Apologies for a slightly late blog. I have to come clean and say that it’s because I’ve just played an epic game of FIFA09 with my housemates (well, two housemates + one extra).
For those that care, in an epic contest myself and Alan Goat – who played as Arsenal – prevailed in a 4-3 win over SettaKeys and my other roommate Annie and their Liverpool team. Our boys went 2-0 down before half-time but pulled level through two goals by Andrey Arshavin before we fell behind again. Then two late goals from substitute Eduardo (yay!) and a cracker by Samir Nasri from the edge of the area won the match in the 85th. I feel tired just explaining it.
Anyway, onto Arsenal.
First up is the hot topic on this blog (due to yesterday’s post), Nicklas Bendtner. The Danish striker has once again been speaking to the official Arsenal website and admitted that Arsene Wenger’s decision to regularly play him as a wide striker has helped his game. He also spoke about Arsenal’s Carling Cup game again Burnley and conceded that he was partly responsible for our poor result. In his own words:
“I was very disappointed with myself after that game. I had three clear chances from which I should have scored two, if not three. When your finishing is not as good as it should be it annoys you, especially when we have six or seven one on ones and don’t score any of them.”
I have to say that I appreciate the Dane’s honesty. I mentioned yesterday that he is often portrayed as an egotist but these comments add more weight to the argument that he’s simply a realist, as happy to criticise himself as much as anyone else. I for one enjoy Bendtner’s frank opinions and hope he can make up for what was undeniably a poor performance to help knock Burnley out of the cup.
Moving on and the man that Bendtner is currently replacing in the Arsenal team, Emmanuel Adebayor, has been speaking about his goal tally for the season. The Togolese striker has admitted that he couldn’t care less if he didn’t score again this season as long as the club wins a trophy. He said:
“I know having scored 30 goals in a season that people will always be waiting for more this season but the most important thing is to keep on going and to progress. I have 12 already but to score another 18 now would not be easy. But I don’t care if I stop on 12 goals if we win something with the club.”
They’re admirable sentiments but, as he points out later in the interview, it’s more likely that he’ll have to score more for the club to win something. I have to say that like many I’ve been a little disappointed with Adebayor’s efforts for Arsenal this season. While I think it’s unfair to label him as a useless player who has gone missing since his big pay-day, I can’t ignore the fact that his workrate and attitude seems to have dropped off as the season has worn on.
As long-time readers of this blog will know I do have a soft spot for Adebayor and as a result I remain hope(less/full)y optimistic that he’ll come good. I think his injury combined with Eduardo’s return and the improving performances of Bendtner will force him to refocus and lift his game to the appropriate level. Fingers crossed, anyway.
Just a reminder that if you’re a Facebook user (who isn’t these days?) you can add me, Spanish Fry, to your friend list by clicking here. Additionally, if you’re into the slightly more technologically mental Twitter then you can follow me by clicking here. I’m always interested to hear what people have to say and they’re the best way to keep in touch with me and/or express your opinions.
Anyway, that’s really it for today. If I play any more crazy FIFA09 games let me assure you that you’ll be the first to hear about it.
Have your say on Bendtner, Adebayor or FIFA09 by leaving a comment.
Bendtner is top class and is turning into a real arsenal player.. Ade lazy, bring in hunterlaar : )
As a long time Pro Evolution Soccer man, it was difficult to accept that EA had finally overhauled Konami but this year is that year I must admit. I’ve still got PES2009 but I’m very tempted to get Fifa 09, or 08 which is under five pounds in the UK…have you played both Spanish?
As for Bendtner, I saw him in a supermarket last week and he was very polite to people. I think what people forget is that he only turned 21 last month. As a back-up striker he can surely be considered a decent option who will get much better in the years to come.
As for Mr Emmanuel Adebayor, I too am a big fan but I think it is very clear that he was playing for a contract last season and now that he has it, his workrate has dropped off dramatically. I hope he recaptures his form from last year because we’d be in with a real shout to do something with him on song. As things are, he has let RVP shoulder too much of the burden in games. Maybe the competition for places will set him straight and give Arsenal one of the best target men in world football.
@ TDP – 09 is significantly better than 08. But maybe wait for 2010?
I still like PES better. Next years should be epic tbh…
SF sorry I didnt respond to your reply on the last edition. Glad this is on the same topic.
I guess I am with you that the difference could be work rate/ service. But even with the service last year I have seen him miss some absolute sitters (Liverpool UCL). His hard workrate always justified him playing but does it justify the amount of money he gets? Especially when so many are interested? Im not so sure.
The only thing that throws me off is Guardiola’s interest. I feel like the guy knows what he is looking for and his interest in Ade has me a little worried. Of course he was wrong about Hleb…
@ TDP – I say if Guardiola wants Ade then let him have him, ask for Eto’o, Henry, Messi, Xavi, Iniesta for a swap. He must accept Ade is a starter so we would want a starter in return.
On the main subject – Bendtner – I hsve very mixed views on the Dane. The Beginning if the season I thought he was ok, but the more playing time he got, the less i liked him, when the Burnley game was over, I wanted to kill him. But recently he has done well. Would still prefer to see Eduardo, Rvp, Vela, Arshavin or Walcott before him but he does work hard, its just hard for a young, tall player to have good technical ability. AW will stick with him, and although he missed simple chances (Cardiff), I think it will be good in the long run.
Well, i became a gooner through Fifa. Way back in 98, I started playing ‘ROAD TO'(FIFA 98: Road to World Cup). I was always player 1 and always chose Arsenal. I never played soccer at school or was even interested in it. I loved playing Fifa and started getting interested in the game itself, so i started watching the Arsenal and absolutely fell in love with their style of play and the game. As you all know, it just snowballs from there. So thats my gooner beginnings.
@SF – What game console are you playing 09 on?
Ive never played PES, is it worth giving a go? I guess i love Fifa so much, i have never felt the need to try anything else.
I think we all need to give Nicklas Bendtner time to develop his game. He is still so young. I think he is the best header of the ball from our strikers. By the time he is Ade’s age, I expect him to be a far better player than Ade.
@SF – You admit to having a soft spot for Adebayor. What did you think of all the shenanigans that went on with Ade during the off season? The reason i ask is, many gooners changed their opinion of him because of it (me included). Perhaps he has been unfairly crucified.
We need to get cracking on some FIFA Fry.
@SF,Ive never played FiFa or any of those games so no comments from me.I used to play the NBA games thou, asIm really a basket-ball Fan till now and I used to be and still a Micheal Jordan Fan,I still remember Luc Longley, he s an Aussie guy, used to play for Chicago Bulls.
As for Bendy’s concern, I used to mention here that Ive started to like his style for almost 2 moinths now, since December 2008.Before then, I was terrified by him, I used to dislike the lad, shouted at him in front of my TV:”Pass the ball idiot!!!…Run run, what a **** are u waiting for!!!!?” etc…But since late Dec, I ve started to see some good runs from him, dynamism, You can really feel that desperate “willing to give evrything” from Bendy, and amazingly he has kept himslef consistent on that attitude, which has given him a very good result so far.If Bendy keeps on working hard like this, I strongly beleive that he will be unstopable even by the end of this season.So im really happy for him.
About ‘Bayor, Im still giving him a chance.I just dont think that its apropriate to give judgement on him now.Id like Re-mention this again:We all know that Ade didnt really have a good season this year but he is more than capable of being a good striker thou, the lad wasnt really convincing to me and I think to everybody as well lately.To me there is a clear reason for all of this:If we take a closer look-back to the course of this season, Ade had a very little time to play with our best midfldr (Cesc,walcott,Nasri combined together), the lad didnt really have a chance to experience the best out of Cesc early this season coz those days (I think we all remember)Deni werent fit yet on his task as a CDm for the team so Cesc didnt really have chances to give his best to his strikers as an AM.(Cesc played 60% on defence to support Deni and 40% on attack to support his strikers), so this situation didnt really give Ade the real opportunity for him, to perform at his best either.
Then, shortly after that he got an ankle injury durin hull or stoke city game, which has kept him sidelined for almost 3 to 4 weeks.
Next up,The worse now has come as Walcott got his shoulder blown up and Sagna had also an ankle injury.So our team has become now basically weak with the presence fo all the apprentices: Diaby,Song,Bendy, etc .. there was even a time when AW played the young Gavin Hoytte on a PL game coz of lack of players on the field.And then Dec,Fab got his Knee injury.
Ade used to perform well when surrounded by good mdfldrs, thats how he came out with 30 goals last season.He is a guy who has really been shaped and formed by AW’s system,He can only play his football when hes got the right mdfldr ard him, to perform the same AW’s tactics from mdfld to striker.So, Im still patient with him, and lets see whats gonna come up when he will show up with Fab and Walcott on the pitch.May be he ll be fit 1 week after Walcott and a week or two before Fab.
Lets get one thing straight… Adebayor, has the touch of a baby elephant and the turning circle of a 20 tonne truck and the only reason he scored 30 odd goals last season was because of the balls that he was being supplied by his gun, pardon the pun, midfielders. Minus a handful of well executed goals, which you would expect of any prem league striker, the rest were all tap ins… and lets not count the amount of goals that he missed! Had any other striker in the world been in his shoes he would have banged in 50+ and thats no exageration!
hey same thing AR.
few years back i was a great fan of cricket.But back in my college days i tried playing fifa ,though i m a expert now , then i started wathing every bpl game and i chose arsenal as my idol i dont know why but they deserve to be idol.now i m a gooner and hail gunners.So fifa really transformed me .
Im a huge PES fan but the ’09 version was rather disapointing. Thought of buying fifa ’09 after trying it out at my mates place but then decided to wait for PES and fifa ’10, ill buy the better one from the 2.
Anyway back to Arsenal, im absolutely gutted after hearing that Eduardo will be out for 2 weeks. Sigh, it sucks!
No Eduardo, no Cesc, no Theo, no Arshavin and no Rosicky for the crucial match against Roma on tuesday. Its going to be really hard for us to beat the Italians.
2 weeks for Eduardo! Oh no, I can’t believe our bad luck…
So I guess we’ll start with RVP and Bendy up top then? I really hope we’ll see Vela and Nasri as wingers again, that worked out very well in our last game.
I’m not feeling very confident ahead of the Roma game. Hopefully the guys can step it up in a big game, like against Man U and Chelsea.
This moron called ‘Bayor who gets a grand pay rise after one 30 goal season doesn’t care about scoring goals. Pathetic.
I don’t want to bash him a lot but it’s beyond limit.
O i cant beleive edu aint gonna play da Romans its depressing
Hopefully we can somehow squeak a 1-0 vs Roma. Dudu and RVP would have been dangerous for them but now Im not so sure. Hope Vela plays though I have a feeling he won’t… IMO this could be his coming out party, Walcott won’t be back will he?
Hold on, Eduardo injured again. I think its not that unusual after a long injury. We will miss him. Come back soon!
I am not confident about Roma game because of our central midfield. Arshavin can’t play, Walcott won’t return in this leg also. If Roma dominate midfield, we will have little chance of winning the first leg. We might hold on a scoring draw. I rate Vucinic and Totti, both of them fantastic scorers. De Rossi and Aqualini midfield looks so scary.
I will take 0-0 draw.
This is our best midfield option agains Roma
Nasri,Deni,Song/Diaby(if fit),Vela
We need 1 big and strong fella (Song or Diaby) who’ll take on DeRossi.
And the striking pair should be Ade(if available)/Bendy and RvP.
Arsene is going to sign Aguero’s son and Maradona’s grandson when he turns 5.
And new zidane in making: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10FKWOn4qGA&eurl=http://timesonline.typepad.com/thegame/2009/02/meet-the-mini-z.html
If all our real midfielders back, Im sure that Aebayor will finish with at least 18-19 goals. What I think its very good.
@ SpanishFry
If you play at XBOX Live lets create a league for all the gooners of this blog!! I play with Arsenal on live but when I play with my friends I play with Bordeaux or Stuttgart, cuz they suck!
I was the biggest fan ever of PES. I still rate PES 5 as one of the best games made.
However its fallen behind FIFA and i think itll just keep falling due to the rights and money fifa have.
Fifa09 is marvelous game
@ Ronaldo7 – PES5 was quite excellent. 😉 Pity you could never beat me when it mattered.
@ Mexican Gunner – Great Idea, I play with Everton on live. Arsenal would be my first choice, but i like a challenge lol.
PES 5 and 6 were perfection. It has regressed a little but I think they are just working on coverting to the next gen- next years will be amazing. Honestly I still ike it more then FIFA 09- the passing and amount of things you can do- small touches to avoid defenders- cant be done the same on FIFA
PES 6 is/was the bomb!PES 09 isn`t that fantastic,but i gotta say i think it still has its merits over FIFA 09.I think FIFA 09 is kinda “easy” to play and score!
dont u find the new PES too be too ARCADE like.
Not at all. At first it seems so but the intricacies are still there. A little rough but they will be smoothed over next year i think…
@ jay-jay
Add me to your friends in LIVE to play some games. My gamertag is: supergrizly.
…I also play in LIVE with Lyon and Juve. And Mexico and France for internationals.
i don’t not hw has this kid of bad lck on our team. or may be the funs nolong pray but only complain. ok may be Roma will see the real game. guys lets hung on