Arsenal 3-0 Wolves: A walk in the park, so let’s talk about Ramsey

I share these thoughts completly, you resumed them briefly but intellegibly. 🙂

I’m a fan and I think he will be a fixture for us in the years to come. To me he was thrust into a position of responsibility at the start of the season when Cesc and Na$ri left. At time when Wilshire was crocked, Diaby was crocked, Rosicky never the same player( but hasn’t that changed!) and we also lost other midfielders like Denilson. So from a position when he was probably expecting to be a second stringer or substitute he was thrust into being a first choice. And talk about a baptism of fire at the start of this season of all seasons.

I thought he was pretty good in that period from October to Christmas/new year when we were on a decent run and then he seemed to lose his way and confidence in January and to me looked like he was knackered and in serious need of a rest. Fortunately that is when Rosicky rediscovered his form.

I think we need to give him a chance bearing in mind where he has come from in terms of injury. I can list a number of our current players – RVP, Song, Rosicky, Koscielny, Sagna for example – who have been bagged, had their ability questioned over the last few years and now they are indispensbable.

Unfortunatley we are a pessimistic bunch us gooners and we always seem to need an Ian Ure to target!

But I should declare that I am a little biased as I have Welsh blood in me!

Hi,

1. VP penalty was completely a genuine chip.
2. I don’t agree with your stand on Ramsey that he is there for defensive reasons. He is simply not good at defending, not good in front of net, lack speed and delays passing. His positioning is the only trait been helping him since turn of the year. He is simply NOT Arsenal stuff.

Hit the nail on the head. In my opinion, Ramsey will become one of our most valuable assets over the next 3 years. He is not the finished product but his vision is the best in the squad. Improves on finishing and adds consistency and he will be a world class attacking mid.

I think ramsy should be sent out on loan till he proves to be this “world class player” every1 is claiming him to be, until he becomes that “world class” player he should not be in this team, if we are to get back to winning trophies, we shouldn’t have mediocre players in the team, and to all you RAMSY LOVERS , let’s be HONRST, he is but a “MEDIOCREL” player, you have to call a spade a spade… ARSENAL is not a mediocre team, do u think RAMSY will make the cut at: Barca, Real Madrid, Chealsea, Man City, Man United(even though fergi wanted him back then) Spurs, Milan or Juve, I really dnt think so,,, I would like to see a response on this comment from a Ramsy lover!!

Oh please stick to the day job and stop writing, your not half as clever as you think. Clearly a talksport listener you have picked up on the anti rvp pen rubbish. 8m in, 0-0, a game that must be won, thats notvarrogance its acsublime footballing gift.
Balance, ? So you write as if you are the font of all knowledge, knowing exactly what wenger thinks.
Arrogant writing like this is what is turning me away from amateur, know all, bloggers

I pray that jack wil nt like ramsy when he is back frm injury. Because ramsy has nothing to offer in that midfield 4 now.

I like the Loan Idea. He is premiership quality at the moment just not good enough for Arsenal. Send him to a club where fans dont attack their own and let him develop and hopefully come back a top player.

i think wenger should take ramsey out on loan for one season and in his place,hand benayoun a permanent contract.it’s very sad to see ramsey miss very open goals e.g against everton, man city and wolves.he needs experience.wenger should loan him to bolton next season.

Against mancity, he should have squarded d ball to Persie who was free instead of missin a sitter.. By now Persie would have scored against all teams excludin fulham.. Ramsey has a deep in form and he takes alot of stick.. To be caprain of Wales ahead of bellamy and Bale aint easy.. Dude is class just bad at d moment

RAMSEY puts presure on the team and he makes SONG do double work 1 taklin covering,tracking loosed balls…. 2 does Ramsey work of passing assistin, because he played averagly in one out of ten games u praise him ahh cut this crab diaby is even better

Ramsey’s a Brit & there are few who handle the ball as well as him. I just pray he can over come all the injury fright, bad press & all that troubles him, & get his groove on once more.

Hehe.. Did you REALLY think you’d change people’s minds about Ramsey? No. The masses have already decided he’s crap, and that remains indisputable until we find someone else we can lay the blame on. It doesn’t matter that he’s 21(?), missed a year of development, doesn’t matter that he works hard, and it doesn’t even matter that he gets into the right shooting positions actually, all that matters is that he is shit/average/not good enough and must be loaned out/sold. Also, what is this balance you talk about? Football is all about passion. We love the Ox and he should play and blow away the opposition. I know Ramsey played away at Everton too, but that doesn’t fit in my argument of how Ramsey is so shit he loses us the game, so I’ll ignore that. Wenger obviously has no other reason to play him than favouritism. For some reason he’s discriminating against Gervinho and Ox, players that he brought in. Yes. That explains everything.

Enough of that.

Andy, I disagree about the chipped penalty. Who cares? I didn’t think it was arrogant. It isn’t as long as the ball ends up in the net. Wenger said he was surprised by it because he’s never seen Robin do that, and that Robin told him that it was a split second decision. Maybe he felt that that’s the best way to score, rather than anything else. Anyway, if such a penalty were scored against Arsenal, I wouldn’t think it was in poor taste.

Great post Andy – enjoyed it thoroughly, even though you got it half right IMO:

Agree on Ramsey, disagree on the RvP penalty. But I think we can all agree on Szczesny. @Retsub # 8 spot on – essential save that had it not been made, could have completely turned the complexion of the match. He already is and will be for years I hope, the bedrock of many more 3 points to come.

My proudest achievement as a Gooner this year is that I no longer have to refer to official sources for the correct spelling of his name. Well at least the last name. Woiychei…Woychek will take a bit longer, but I’m working on it.
Great kid. So happy to have him in our side.

The RvP penalty looked a bit cheeky, but I really don’t see him as any kind of a showboater. A genuine chip for me. As for Ramsey – I really don’t understand all the stick and scapegoating. @Shard # 24, well said.

Looking forward to Wigan, I’d say if they can pull off 6 points back-to-back against Man U and the Arsenal it would be an achievement of monumental proportions. Even I would cheer them on for the their final matches of the season if the season if they were to accomplish that. But then again, stranger things have happened.

Ha ha, its good to have you back Andy, though I did find it a little unlike you to dismiss Wolves with the ‘walk in the park’ headline, your not an arrogant person,and a real football man, so it was kinda funny that you then wrote that you didnt like RvPs pen as you thought it belittled Wolves….anywho it was an execution of class that weve seen before from titi on more than one occasion, he misses he gets lambasted, he scores, the end products the same, we go 1 up.
I for one have never spent my time here giving out about Ramsey, he had a mare against Swansea and has had some poor displays since but I did mention here before that up to Jan he shared top spot on Opta Index for distance travelled on the pitch with Karl Henry of Wolves, the workrate and honesty of effort is there, its the shot, pass and dribble selection, and TINING thats been badly lacking recently…and rather than lauding Wenger for applying fictional balance, we should be looking at why he isnt being subbed like any player should be when his form has dipped. Thats why you have a squad, Wenger seems to forget this at times, that when a starting player tires or is just having an off day, that there is a teamate in the dugout that he bought and trains everyday itching to get on and get gametime, if complacency is allowed in then competition for places evaporates and so then does competitiveness and the standard within the group and on the training pitch, a manager may feel he is being loyal to the player but he is doing him or the squad no favours…….see abou diaby who despite mediocre performances week in week out played 90 mins and got picked whenever he was fit….injuries aside I dont think it did him much good.
On the issue of balance, which you make an excellent point of Andy, all I can say is I hope

Hey Andy. Very interesting blog once again and I have to disagree with the person who told you to go back to your day job. Has been great to have you back reading your interesting and unique spin on certain things, the consistent optimism and positivity about arsenal and your openess to differing views. Long may that continue for as much as possible! As for Van Persie’s penalty well like most gooners I’m not ashamed to say, though it clearly was arrogance, that I absolutely loved it haha. I also feel Ramsey will, whatever day that may be, turn into a world class central midfield player at arsena. He’s 21 and bound to have ups and downs just like any young player but clearly seems to have the talent and attitude to be an arsenal player for many years to come.

What game was that last month when Wenger sent the squad out completely front-loaded with strikers? Balance went out the window that day in favor of raw force, and it was amazing to watch…

Ramsey should be sold. He is not good enough for Arsenal FC.

In all aspects, Rosicky is far better than Ramsey. Rosicky will ensure the ball move forward and speed up counterattacking. Ramsey will slow down counterattacking and allowing opposition defenders to regroup. Rosicky’s passes are neat and fairly accurate. Ramsey’s…no comment. For now, Rosicky shall fill in for Fabregas. Ramsey and Diaby and Benayoun shall be benched. I do not see Benayoun as typical Gooners. His work rate is Ok. His work quality is just so so.

It’s hard to accept with you Andy on Ramsey. Wenger trying to slowdown things is something not required when we have Gervinho ,Benayoun,Ox . I think he is more worried about next season where he gets Arteta,Wilshere,Rosicky,Song,Coquelin,Frimpong,Diaby in midfield and he may find it hard to accomodate Ramsey.So he wants Ramsey to adapt to the new role and giving him more chances than Ox,Gervinho and possibly promoting him as a winger .(I doubt replacement for Benayoun next season)

I totally agree that Ramsey possess talent and he needs time to improve. But he looks more adept to play the role of holding midfielder(mostly supported by your view on him on this blog and the below lines “He could fairly be criticised for taking a split-second longer to release the ball than an Arteta or Rosicky and his finishing has been poor but he shoots from long-range as often as the Spaniard .”) than winger which i think our professor is not ready to settle with.

Even Denilson looked great when he played alongside Fab as holding midfielder and Song protecting him . But what happened when he is given the role of defensive midfield. I remember some of the stats showed he made the most successful number of passes but his effectiveness or results went down.

Hope Ramsey’s talent is deserved with right position rather than fitting him into denilson shoes.

@voley_gun38 – Absolutely on the money…I would’ve taken atleast ten paragraphs to make those same points and its like repeating myself over and over. Brilliant and straight to the point.

I’ve made those same points before and even listed him as a striker for next season cos it seems Wenger is trying to ensure he is not shut out of the team completely next season. But, is it not foolish taking the ox to central midfield so that Ramsey can be preferably played to Gervinho on the wings? I mean Song, Arteta and Rosicky are a very formidable trio right now, so, …why? Last game he switched them back again cos the Ramsey on the wings thing can never work. I mean, you need speed to operate on our flanks.

Aside Walcott, RVP and Song who seem assured(in our 4-3-3), the Ram will be vying for places with Gervinho, Ox, Rosicky, Wilshere, Arteta, Coquelin, Diaby…could add Arshavin, Miyaichi, Park, Podolski, Frimpong and Chamakh.
In other words, if anyone of Miyaichi, Ox, Podolski, Gervinho, Arshavin starts on the left, the rest will have to slug it out for the remaining two spots in midfield(Song already takes one). Santos/Gibbs, BFG/Djourou, goalie will have spots on the bench, leaving four/five spots for all those players earlier mentioned, it’ll be war. Junior Hoilett could come, same with M’vila, Hazard/Odemwingie, then what? He would be very lucky to get a place on my bench for next season

Who has any info on Gervinho’s mystery injury? Is it a coincidence? Has Wenger said RAMSEY MUST PLAY AT ALL COSTS?

@leftcoastgooner

“Ramsey is young and needs to play to improve so I’m for him playing and improving”

Is Ramsey always on the bench? Playing but not improving.How long? He need to be loan out to wolves. Period

Gunnerboss

I have a deep mistrust of statistics and I really do like the instinctive understanding. But both have a role to play. Those stats are rubbish to you because they go against your entrenched argument, for which you seem to have no basis except, that;s what you see. Everything else is rubbish. Why else would you always need to say ‘do you even watch games’ to anyone who doesn’t agree with you. Basis. Grounding. Logic. SHow me HOW Ramsey is poor, or HOW Gervinho or the OX playing would impact the team in a better way beyond just, the Ox is better at dribbling and shooting. I don’t think Ramsey has been playing well, and him playing on the left is not necessarily a tactic I would employ. But that doesn’t make it wrong. It just means I need to try and understand why. And Wenger’s playing with our emotions is not a valid reason. I’m sorry. You can’t both accuse him of not caring about the fans thoughts, and also accuse him of trying to play footsie with them. Wenger picks his team because of what he sees. Not because of what the millions see or don’t see. And That’s how it should be. Running a team by popular vote, while very democratic, is a bad idea.

@Shard – Are you a lawyer? Cos, i’m gettting really really bored with this thing. I stand with you on 37, else i wouldn’t bother calling ur name. What is obvious is now argued about with fact against what we see and as i said earlier…the best of writers can never argue this one out. By best of writers i meant Andy, cos ur on my page even though u dont understand why i think Ramsey is so mediocre and not Arsenal quality.

I understand ur argument 24, and I made my point already in @39 above. There is no other answer, you even implied favouritism, how else does this even translate into an argument? How many people have complained about Benayoun? See? Ramsey does not help his cause when he comes on…how many times will i have to say this?

In the Stoke game, Ramsey ran the most, but was he effective? I do not doubt his work rate, but trying to even compare him with Rosicky is not only futile, but also a lot safer in here. Try doing it in a public viewing spot and you will understand that people dont want to see that guy in the team sheet at all right now. We know what we see, you could get punched in the face…and this is my point exactly. There are a lot of gunners that dont even want to see Ramsey on the bench cos they feel someone else will do a better job. Its like benching Messi, Ronaldo or Casillas and trying to support the argument….get ma point now? People want to see the Ox running, thats all. The more Wenger keeps him away from the team, the more his hype will grow and the more people will look for a scape-goat when things go wrong. That i said stats are rubbish does not mean what you wrote is rubbish…i completely understood what you wrote Shard, thanks for the compliments.

I dont even know what we are arguing about and please leave Byo to me, he is the one who wanted to take on me personally cos of Chamakh. Maybe he does not watch our matches cos i supported that argument. So, please, stay out of this, the comment was addressed to Byo. You are not his dad…even if you are, i’ve been waiting for him to come back and tell me how good CHAMAKH is…

If we’re cool, tell me we’re cool so i know how to join your issues from now on cos its like you are making a habit of attacking me unnecessarily(maybe you dont know it) even though we have that mutual respect for each other.

Gunnerboss

Respect? You, in a however roundabout way, threaten me with physical violence and then say we’re cool? Fuck you. You are not the voice of the people, and just like there are people, who for reasons known to them have decided Ramsey personifies all that is wrong with the team, there are also people who think Ramsey will come good, regardless of his form, which isn’t even terrible. And in any case, that mob mentality is exactly what I was mocking when I brought up ‘favouritism’. You sort of missed the point didn’t you? As you do most of the time because you are so caught up in your own argument, trying to be the know it all and imagining yourself as the voice of the people. I’m done with the Ramsey argument so feel free to mock him, Wenger for playing him, and me, all you want. I DON’T think you could get punched in the face for any of that. So, fire away.

Ramsey the flop . Mtcheeeeeew.

@ kiki, in total agreement with you mate, I think Ramsey should go Bolton, perhaps even Everton, for a season and sign benayoun for next season in his position. I also think ramsey can slow the game down.

Well put article but 2 things:
1: henry scored a more audacious penalty against newcastle in 03/04. Then they cocked up another cheecky attempt with pires against man city at highbury
2: ramsey’s recent misses stem from his huge urge to score. These are chances he scores every day in training but he so much wants to score that he doesn’t!. But he compesates for that with his impeccable vision and his eye for killer pass.

With Aaron Ramsey starting this term: win ratio 48%, 1.65 goals scored per game. Without Ramsey: won 88%, 2.78 goals. Interesting.

Shard

I was working on a scale of 6. Heres hoping that Spurs kick lumps out of Chelsea I couldnt give a toss who wwins!!!

Referees just keep covering themselves in glory.

I’m not a fan of technology in football, 1 I think it will slow the game down, can you imagine every time a goal is scored you have to wait for a computer to decide if it was a goal. Secondly I quite like a good discussion about was he? wasnt he? However we must have goal line technology, that was a

retsub

I think the fears over technology are over-hyped. I would certainly think its worth a try. Why can’t we try and use technology in friendlies? We can see how best to implement it. Keep trying till we reach an acceptable medium. Arsenal asked for it to be allowed during the Emirates Cup last season, but that permission was denied. I think to bring in video is inevitable, but the authorities for whatever reason, keep wanting to delay it. And the good of the game is not usually their motive in most things, I would say.

Typically paranoid or not, I’m in total agreement with you lefty. There is a lot wrong with the way football is run, and where there’s so much money, and so little transparency, there’s bound to be some foul play.

Well Sir Retsub,
I’m not sure about how systemic cheating is in the NFL. With instant replay from 6 or 7 angles and the right to challange calls the refs here have a lot more to answer to than in English Football.
However, as a native of New England (Maine) I can tell you that a bet on the Bears vs. The Patriots in ’85 was as close to a sure thing as one could get and still be called “gambling”. (unfortunately)

@Terry
Sorry my fault. if you look at the various blogs they are totally divided on Ramsey. Various stats produced making him out to be both great and awful. as has been pointed out unless you analyse the stats they dont add up to much. For instance Ramsey played when we got hammered in Milan , but didnt when we beat them at home = Ramsey is crap.

Heres a couple of review of his performance against Wolves which i have shamelessly lifted from elsewhere which emphasises the great divide

Ramsey: He out Arteta’d Arteta last night. He was involved in everything – his passing stats must be close to perfect – and he made numerous progressive through balls that could have led to three assists on another night. In one five minute spell he set up Robin twice and Arteta once. He was desperately unlucky not to score when Hennessey made a great block from point blank range, but earlier seemed to fluff a good chance through lack of confidence in front of goal. Nevertheless, he was our best player on the night by quite some distance. 8.5 MotM.

Aaron Ramsey – 6 – The Welsh captain was wasteful once again today. He did play better than he has recently, probably because he finally played in his preferred central position, but he wasn’t great. Together with the rest of the team, he was a bit slow in attack after going 2-0 up.

Does deserve some credit for his hard work and defensive determination. I do believe that if he gets a run of games, the goals will come. Fabregas was very wasteful early in his career as well, and look at him now.

Don’t forget it’s Ramsey’s first full season, and I’m sure he has a great future in this club if he keeps up the work rate.

Wenger for all his alleged shortcomings has faith in Ramsey and he has a pretty good success rate in bringing youngsters through.

I firmly believe Ramsey will go on to be a great player, I wouldnt be at all surpised to see him starting tonight

Andre Santos makes 4.5 tackles per game and 3.6 interceptions per game, no player in the Premier League betters this!

Arsenal: Szczesny, Sagna, Vermaelen, Djourou, Santos, Song, Arteta, Rosicky, Benayoun, Walcott, Van Persie (c).

Substitutes: Fabianski, Gibbs, Squillaci, Ramsey, Gervinho, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Chamakh.

Horrible

Cut the Ramsey crap. He didn’t concede the two goals. The whole team is sucking today. Even if we score a goal in the last 5 minutes a home draw to wigan in the midst of a Champions League qualify place run is lame.
Okay Opus, what has your boy Wenger got up his sleeve besides his shriveled,withered arm.

Someone should tell me it was right again to drop the Ox and Gervinho even when Arteta came off.
When Arteta came off, Benayoun should’ve come in-field to allow the Ox or Gervinho to operate on the right…..But, according to some folks in here, everything is perfectly normal…

Laugh out loud in my native language

While this sick favoritism fling with Ramsey goes on, i wonder who loses. Where was the supply? Where was the midfield?
Between Ramsey and the Ox, who would we prefer to exude all manner of confidence? Who are we killing to our detriment? Why couldn’t the Ox come in when Arteta went out?
Is the Ox or Gervinho that bad all of a sudden? This is my grouse and to majority of our fans, this is the problem, said it a lot of times already.
Rest my case.

Back to the usual complacent team that we’ve loved to hate these past years. Just when we start to believe that 3rd place is practically ours , you can be sure that Wenger sets up a game-plan to ensure that we will be fighting to retain the 4th spot in a few weeks time. AW proved once more that he has no answer to a determined relegation-avoiding team; no attempt to adapt game tactics to what’s happening on the field, no vision. All we saw was a jittery defence, and every time the ball somehow was pushed forward, there was always a Ramsey, Sagna or Walcott to pass it backwards again. To top it all, all we needed was to get such biased refereeing!!

@Retsub – The whole team played poorly? Walcott and Song? Seriously? Why not blame the keeper for not coming out and making a proper clearance or not holding the ball better? Because keeper has been our saviour a lot of times already, we know he is human and can loose concentration a bit. But for someone who has not been doing well, you expect he will double up and hassle and harry players,,,did he? Old Rosicky did that and later ran out of steam, where was the effort from Ramsey? Did we see Gervinho and the Ox in second half? That is what we want to see, but why must it be so late? Moses gave Sagna a torrid time and thwarted a lot of our attacks on the right does not mean Sagna was not up for it or didn’t do well. But, this is a team sport, we have to do same to their players on both flanks and more to counter the effect of their performance. We tried, but they were already set-up to defend even before they scored. So, what sort of players come into mind to attack and disrupt their defense? RAMSEY to the rescue..

I’ve said it here a lot of times, when someone in the team is not performing to acceptable levels, others have to step up. Unfortunately, stepping up against a Wigan that is completely up for it was not that easy as Wenger found out again. Milan, QPR? Anyone? Its just sad that the team that scores more wins, not the team that runs most or the team with more corners etc.

If Benayoun was in there with the Ox first half, things would’ve definitely been different. I think Wenger will never win anything if he keeps going like this. We cannot keep on promoting mediocrity. If Ramsey is not the problem, i dont know what is. Okay, maybe the stubborn Wenger is, for bringing on a not so confident Ramsey. Poor Ramsey…

Shambo
not defending Wenger but he’s on now

Shambo

I thought Martinez made his first move towards his own bench and then spent about 2 mins hugging everyone on it. I don’t know if Wenger refused his hand or not, but as soon as the whistle went, the camera panned to Martinez who turned towards his own bench as I said. I wouldn’t expect Wenger to stand around and wait for that to finish just to shake Martinez’s hand. Also, the RVP thing. He did extend his (wrong) hand as he was walking away, but Caldwell(?) wanted, no demanded, that RVP shake his hand properly. If you think he did it as anything other than a wind-up then I disagree. I have no problem with what RVP did.

@Shambo well said. Supply lines completely cut-off to the strikers, yet we still try to use the wings to supply crosses…Wenger Oh Wenger…
Makes our players look silly on the pitch cos its like “My stuff isn’t working today”…even when we know it could’ve brought a different result were they not so defensively built. I know when i blame a player cos i’ve seen him week-in week-out. I know when any player’s performance is dwindling, RVP’s job is to score, not to look for the ball to score…was he fed today? Did he miss chances? Was there any chance for him?
But, because they were set-up to counter, we pretend we do not know this and we set for attacking(with Ramsey strolling as the cow in the field) making their fast(but average) strikers look very deadly on the counter.

Outplayed and outgunned at home because we keep our dangerous players on the bench and expect to win. Told you he would look foolish when this tinkering does not work. Cos, this FAVORITISM is also known as TINKERING. Shove all the blade covering grass statistics up my ass, USELESS, completely useless. It is the effectiveness that matters here, how sensible are you where you play? How consistent are you? How many times have you been on the winning side? What are your contributions to the team, are you effective in the side? Not the stupid stats…

We know Gervinho can do better, but how many people did he need to come up against whenever he was with the ball? Same situation Walcott faced throughout. Embarassing, but solution lies on switching tactics, patience or play ugly for a moment. Wigan was never going to lie on the slab for us to slaughter, not after their morale boosting win against manure.

So, why couldn’t we do something? We had enough time to rest and we are out of europe with nothing else absolutely to play for…beats me completely

I dont care how you see this, but our best eleven is never on the pitch for the 90mins(reserves included). If they are and we loose, fine, just like Milan at home. In that game, we needed something extra (I say an Arshavin), but we did not have any classy players to bring on. Where will we be in the next two seasons? We just wobble if we keep going like this…

We all talk about shitty coming up, some say they will win the EPL next season. The spuds are coming up and threatening us too. What better way to show our stuff and re-assure our fans and the world that we belong to the top of the EPL by beating QPR and Wigan, getting an unbeaten run going again. We should be beating Wigan 6-0.

If tinkering and loosing(as long as we qualify for UCL) will get us four quality players next season, long may the tinkering continue. But, if we feel we have a star in Ramsey and we are loosing matches with him, yet, he will be the same reason we cannot get a playmaker… then this is counter productive. Rosicky is not getting any younger you know. I wanna see us get an unbeaten run going again and get used to the pressure cos we will be needing it next season. So far, tinkering has not allowed us get any sort of run…but for the mediocrity of others, we would be no-where near those UCL places. Shame

@Gunnerboss
Listen Queeny, it’s clear you know everything about football and have a high def TV. That just makes you one of many countless clones so when you’re finished dishing up innane advise pull yer HD head out and have a look around.
Opinions are like assholes and EVERYBODY and not just you have got one, So hold your shit there pal.

How about we try and restore a bit of reason and sanity. We conceded two sloppy goals (where was Santos for the first one btw? we had a corner so the two centre backs were in the box I think so we usually have the full back and Song as cover). The second goal Djorou probably should have dealt with the cross better and Sagna should have prevented it in the first place.

We created numerous chances after that which on another day we probably would have convereted more than one. Djorou came mighty close, Benayoun’s header I was sure was going in until the keeper pulled off a terrific save.

At half time even though we were losing I still thought we would score again. But we lost our way. Wigan frustrated us with the time wasting and we got sucked in, and they crowded us out in and around the box forcing us out wide and we never looked convincing. We seemed to run out of ideas. RVP looks like he needs a break and Song tried too many difficult passes in the final third that were easily defended. Walcott was anonymous and Benayoun and Rosicky both faded as the game went on. Ramsay didn’t create anything and Gervinho when he came on went down more blind alleys than… someone who spends a lot of time going down blind alleys (dammit couldn’t think of a decent metaphor).

And in truth we left ourselves open at the back and could easily conceded a third in the second half. Also you need to give credit to Wigan who played well and look like they are safe for another season. Didn’t see the post game stuff so don’t know what went on then. Some of us had to go to work!

Not a disastrous result but we have put ouselves under needless pressure for the last few games. Bugger.

@Terry
I agree with you in as much as you correctly state the way in which we lost the game. Yours is a rational and accurate analysis. But I think the bad feelings amongst some of us is that the loss itself coming where and how it has is almost inexcuseable. A more visceral reaction to be sure but you’ve been around a long while and must see where that’s coming from.

@leftcoastgunner – Why not join the “Lets tame the GunnerBoss” gang? Watching stuff transmitted in HD is different from having a HD TV(even though i have one)…It means more of having a HD decoder. Hold ur shit, ur intruding, I gave reasons…..the blog is about Ramsey, why the cut the crap message lefty? You say everyone has opinions, i did not stop you from making one, you rather tried to make me stop making mine. How insane, oh well, it truly does take an insane person to be a jester….taha tehehehehe(unknown tongues)…still laughing

Shambo

Accountability? What accountability do you want? (that’s a serious question by the way) If the manager comes out and says we were pathetic, does that imply he’s being more accountable? If he tells the press we were unlucky, does that mean he’s not looking to improve and work on the flaws in training? Is it really about what happens on the field or what you want to hear to assuage that feeling of frustration? Wenger will never hang out his players to dry. Even when he criticises them, he does it gently. For better or worse, that’s his style.

Also, although a plan B can be important, there is nothing wrong with playing the way you want to play. Barcelona have no plan B. They are so good at what they do because they constantly practice and play to Plan A. I tend to agree that tactics might help, but the team that plays well wins usually.

In any case, we won’t make top 4 is now spewing over to anger because we lost and gave up a good chance of further extending our lead in third. I can understand the frustration of 7 years. But holding onto that frustration is no way to analyse what is happening now. Also, I would demand the same accountability from the referees. How do they give the decisions they do? Maybe if they had got some decisions right, we, with all our failings and rubbishness, would still have won some trophies so that you could feel happier about our current situation.

I don’t understand why every defeat has to be met with the sky is falling on our heads reaction. A defeat means the manager is useless, a pre defined scapegoat is useless, we will never amount to anything. Wigan beat ManU, and should have beaten Chelsea. Does that mean nothing? The manager focuses on only us, is your criticism of him, but aren’t you doing just the same. We didn’t lose only because of our failings but also because of Wigan’s strengths. It happens.

We’re still third. Top 4 was always going to be the limit of our capability this season. We’re still there. Anyway. I’d rather just stay on this ride and have fun than get bogged down in any argument or just feeling negative, downhearted or angry. So.. No worries. I’m not challenging you on anything. I’d just rather we could all just enjoy the football. Isn’t that sort of the point?

@Shard
I guess the point is that I don’t enjoy the football when we lose to (and I will only name) Liverpool,Fulham,Sunderland,Swansea,QPR, and Wigan.
I can’t imagine why I or any one else who supports the club would.
In none of the above mentioned losses have we played anything like competitve football. The truth is God knows what or which Arsenal will show up. This is especially true against weaker opposition. (do you deny this?) Accountability means being ready to play on matchday and not some time after it.

@Shard Un-defeated is a bit much but,
it would be nice if we would beat the teams that are (in talent at least) far inferior to us. I didn’t list all the teams we lost to only the ones where we never showed up. Wigan is on that list not just because they beat us and not just because we’re better that they are but because we were not ready and did not play well. Thus un-enjoyable footie.
And I agree, though I feel I have the righ to criticize the team but I don’t want them to lose games to prove me right. Instead if we could LEARN something from losses like Sunderland,QPR and Wigan and be more prepared to beat the teams we should that would be most preferrable.

Gunnerboss aka Queenie

Not only is it easy to say all that here, it is also much safer. (Ring a bell?) Say that to lefty’s face, and I’ll crown you king, for all time to come.

Gunnerboss
You certainly are an enigma. You have mentioned before about laugthing in your native language. I really hope some of your ‘attacks’ are lost in translation.

@Shard – Are you a fag? As a fag, one is the girl and the other the King. Girls take it from behind, so, are you trying to woo me unto ur hook? I dont need to take punches from lefty(with his leftcoast-hook) before giving it to you from behind, so take your answer there…
Yeah, punch that

When the pen is used to start peace/a war, then laughter could suddenly turn to roaring/groaning. The agony of defeat or the joy of winning cannot be more expressed by writhing in pain or reveling in the unprepossesing conqueror’s loot.
The king is where the loot is, the jester belongs to the courts. When the loot is used to feed the jester, the merrier the court may be…
When the loot is used to feed the jester, the jester may be the war pen…

Never knew i could compose this, eventhough it is meant for someone(when he/she does pop-up)…thanks to the blog for this space.

I remain the GunnerBoss

@Shard
OR…d) all of the above.

Shambo

Regarding questions being asked. Arsenal are far more open to dialogue than most clubs. Do you know of any other club in the EPL which has its CEO spend an hour and a half in a room full of its fans facing sometimes tough, and sometimes even ridiculous questions? Now whether those are answered depends. Arsenal will not criticise their model, they will not criticise their players or their manager publicly. That much should not be expected. Those questions are only an issue because people ‘demand’ trophies. I remain convinced that the manager wants to win as much as you. However, I am also proud of a manager who clearly says it is never about winning at all costs. I think a lot of those players you mention were given chances because of the initial investment in them and the belief that it would pay off. Misplaced? Not necessarily, but even if so, the fact remains that when those players were brought in, it was in large part due to the financial constraints placed on the club. It didn’t go perfectly, but it was managed well. The stadium is not an insignificant factor in how we have done. The only clubs who have finished above us have been the ones who are financed by billionaires.

The signing of Podolski (if its true- I’m usually loath to believe the media, but this one seems legit) is a step in the right direction, because of the type of player, his position, and also that we are looking to sign players early. It suggests that lessons are being learned from last season. I would say, it also suggests the ability (not just the need) to be able to spend a bit more money. Don’t expect us to go all galactico though. That has never been arsenal’s style. Not just under Wenger.

Anyway. I gotta run now. Besides. I just think we should see out the ride of this crazy season before we all turn hysterical. Losses to clubs lower than us happen, and they dont happen only to us. At least beating bigger clubs doesn’t seem to be a problem anymore (fingers crossed for Chelsea)

Fingers crossed for the Chelsea game. I think we need to unleash the Ox for this one. hopefully they are knackered after chasing Barca all over the pitch. If we had taught El Fab to shoot it would have been all over by now. hope the ground staff make the pitch nice and comfortable in case Drogba fancies a lie down

In the unlikely event that Chelsea win the champions league and finish outside the top four, then only the top 3 qualify. I think the answer is to give them a good hiding and rough them up a bit .

@Shard – Are you a dementor? You are very fond of accusing people of stuff they do not say and you answer to your own question. You just want to be the only correct person(a megalomaniac) and you have started showing signs of memory loss/dementia/insults in your posts. This is not the Shard i knew, this new Shard seems to want a queenie. So, what is the meaning of cunt? You are stuff of fairy tales and a supreme jest/fool too. “Megalomania and dementia are two very likely possibilities. Either that, or you’re just a cunt.”

Who is ur Queenie? I am a proud man, not a fag and wont stand for that sort of bullshit. Had to put you where you belong, had to let you know that if i am ever going to be a fag in the next world (that’ll never happen either), you would be the one bending over. Thats out of the way now….and thats what happens when you look for a male QUEEN.

Now, you and Terry pretend you dont know what i was talking about cos you need cryptic codes again(?)……
@Terry – BEHOLD THE CODES….you go for the therapy (i could pay if its too expensive for you)…sorry, but i’m perfectly normal. I have jests in my court, i laugh too much and have not lost my sense of royal humor.
@Leftcoast – Shard says i need to rough you up before he lets me stand behind his behind (he dreams a lot these days)…So, hiding behind the fag will do you no good at all, thus, i wonder who is roaring/groaning between both of you. Jests, fools, your duties are to make me laugh, not make me draw out my royal sword. Its not that i intend using it though…just brandishing it will do..

My writing skills is actually improving, thanks to you lot. Will remain GunnerBoss

What has happened to the blog I loved so well?
No updates.
And the bickering is embarrassing.
@Shard, Re read your last post after what gunner boss wrote previous, accidentally quite funny….hes talking bout fags and buggering from behing and your giving him advice on what to do when hes in a hole!
Lefty, what do you call an aligator wearin a vest?

Shambo
I believe that’s called a double entendre 🙂

LOL @ Wally Gator.. I can’t remember why, but for some reason I was thinking about that old cartoon a few days ago. That and Lippy the lion & hardy har har.

Andy, I thought you’d be here for our run in.. I guess its better to have a Chelsea preview now. I’m actually quite excited. Just over 24 hours to go. Although Arteta will be a huge loss.

Gunnerboss

Look..This is going to be my last post addressed to you. So listen good. The Queen joke (along with Sir Retsub etc.) began because you started saying King Shard. And the last bit of advice was meant in an honest way because I actually felt sorry for you. So I just meant you should let it go. But I guess that isn’t your strength. And returning to the queen thing, the fact that you would get offended by it and take it in a way that it meant people were calling you a ‘fag’ and your subsequent comments show you to be 1) a homophobe, and 2) seemingly insecure about your own sexuality. Since then you have basically admitted to purposely writing in riddles and parables because it makes you APPEAR smart (your advice to retsub I think it was-can’t be bothered to go back and check) and then abstractedly compared yourself to Solomon. Hence my bringing up megalomania and dementia. As for the insults. You, not just intimated I should be punched for my views on Ramsey, you did in a way that was hiding behind talk of ‘respect’ and the ‘oh Shard you write so well’ spiel, which is what annoyed me even more. I didn’t say ‘fuck you’ out of anger or any lasting impression. I said fuck you because that’s exactly the response you deserved. and if you didn’t act like a total cunt, i wouldn’t have called you one. I thought the name Queen was funny for you because you are a total drama queen. As your continuing hissy fit shows. Once again, just let it go man. Seriously.. But of course, you won’t. Oh evil shard the bully continues picking on you so you just have to defend yourself. Go ahead, I’m done with this shit.

……an in-vesti-gator!!!!!….ha ha ha ha!
Im glad this argument above is over, it was like watchin mammy and daddy fighting when you were a child, not that I had a bad childhood, ha…..god what has happened to this site?
Gunnerboss, you know we actually share alot of the same frustrations at the mo but its not right to take it out on Shard, he has alot of valuable things to say and if you take the time to read it there is substance to it and, personally it brought me out of the feeling of frustration quite often when we got into a heated debate, hes not asking you to relinquish your opinion, you know what your talking about, but we are here to listen and share opinion and if we can take a new perspective away then s’all good, eh?

I don’t know if Chelsea’s mid-week match is to our or their advantage. They had to put a lot into it and they are definately not a young squad but on the other hand the psychological boost of beating Barca has to count for something.
Will that be enough to overcome the fatigue or changes in their side?
And of course there is always the question of which Arsenal will show up.

@Shambo Investigator? sorry to say I did not see that coming. Good Juan 😉

Drogba is out thats a big plus

I expect Chelsea to play similar in tactics to Barca and would not be too adventurous against us .Also expecting that they would like to master their counter attack and defense to perfection before they return to barca and arsenal would be the right team to attain perfection for them .

if it is so as expected ,then it would be interesting to see, what arsene will deploy to break the best defensive line up.

Ox starting, correct decision.
Ramsey starting, not correct decision on form but I hope he plays well today and his confidence returns….but he has to start by doing the simple things right..no flicks or backheels for the sake of it.
COYG’s

Song!!!!!
Get outa the fuckin bed!

Fair result, we didnt deserve 3pts.
The pass pass pass approach is overused, you have to incorperate a piece of individual brilliance or dribbling at and past an opponent. Shard stated on thursday that Barce dont need a plan b that their plan A is good enough, that is because they have Messi, Pedro, Iniesta, etc who will take on a defender and in the process leave him BEHIND the play, we do not have one player who dribbles past or runs directly at a defender. Our attacks are designed around passing at what has become a 10 man wall of defenders because the build up from Ramsey Song and the full backs is so slow and ponderous that by the time weve made a mere two forward passes the opposition has their def setup alligned at their ease, for me the start of the attack is so ponderous and individuals are so over-indulgent in possesion that we leave ourselves the impossible task of playing a pass up the pitch which is over congested and devoid of an attacker who can draw defenders away from their comfort zone.
Aswel as Barce having players who will leave defs in their wake they have their teamates on the same wavelength keeping width and space to run into when the dribbler gets his head up, we are to narrow and in my opinion from watching this particular group I feel too many players are happy enough to stand still without the ball, if you dont have the ball and your not calling or wanting it theres something wrong, if you dont have time to call your movement determines and makes the mind up of the passer for him.
I may have people who dissagree but I can tell you I cant remember one instance today where we got to the byline and cut a ball back across….90 mins of football without an in play threat from play.

Not only have we only 1 point out of the last 6, I really want somebody to pipe-up and say that at least the football has been enjoyable. We were drab, predictable and impotent. True, it was much preferable to get a draw than a loss especially with Newcaslte coming up behind us but there was much room for improvement. For me, the clean sheet was the one real redeeming factor. It’s always good to see the back four shut ’em down.

I thought we seemed to care more about not conceding on the counter. And probably hoped that a final few minutes frenzy would be enough to get us a victory. The football wasn’t great, but I wasn’t really ‘bored’ or anything. I thought it was an interesting game actually. More of a cat and mouse game though, where no one wanted to take the initiative. We got a point, and maybe we didn’t deserve more, but we did ht the post and the bar, and we kept Chelsea down to virtually no chances (thanks to Koscielny) I don’t know. I was definitely worried about Spurs and Newcastle catching us, after the game, but I still wasn’t really disappointed with a draw. It could well prove to be an important point. As it is, Spurs lost (When do they become a club in crisis and the trendy view becomes that their manager doesn’t have a clue?) and Newcastle are to play ManCity and Chelsea. So..a point seems a decent outcome. Oh and I think ramsey had a much better performance today. Although he lost the ball to Torres a couple of times, but I think he became better as the game went on. He was always chasing back to try and win the ball back as well, and he kept those little flicks to a bare minimum, if at all. Plus, it was good to see Diaby make his latest comeback. I thought he looked quite sharp (and no..I don’t mean his looks) considering how long he’s been out for. Fingers crossed he can stay fit now.

I also watched the Clasico today. That was a very poor game of football in my opinion. That was probably the most expensive bus actually. Although at least they (Madrid) attacked occasionally. Barca had I think 2 shots on target the entire game, with the first coming in the 70th minute. I wonder how many they would have managed if Messi got a red card in the 56th minute. Interesting no?

Anyway. On to the insufferable neanderthals next. We’ll need to be sharper, and I think we will be. At least, I think we’ll be more adventurous in looking for a win.. But Stoke will definitely be up for it too. They hate us. Why?Because Ramsey had the temerity to break his leg in front of their captain who would never hurt a fly, he’s not the type of guy. Poor Shawcross. I think he’s just about managed to recover from the trauma Ramsey caused him… Forget being 3rd. Beating those guys should be motivation enough.

Andy, Where are You?? No preview of Wigan, we lose. No preview of Chelsea, we only draw. Those 5 dropped points are on you Andy. You know it.

Great Perfromance to have a draw in an important game and secure a point. We were the team likely seemed to score till the end (Koscienly really stood as a bus infront of chelsea) and frankly in my eyes Ramsey looked better after the departure of Rosicky, distributing the ball forward sensibly rather to the back four like denilson.If he can produce the same with Rosicky it would really help the team a lot.I feel spurs are the likely team to catch us, if possible ,considering the fixtures they have compared to Newcastle or Chelsea.

Fixtures
———-
Newcastle-Wigan,Chelsea,ManCity,Everton
Chelsea – QPR,Newcastle,Liverpool,Blackburn
Tottenham-Blackburn,Bolton,AstonVilla,Fulham

Two wins out of three matches will secure us third place considering noone leads us on goal difference.

I am already set in the mood that we will secure third and interesting to see whom arsene brings in next season.

As for ElClasico it was really interesting to see how Real Madrid managed to stop Barcelona and also tried to attack ,unlike Chelsea where they never showed any serious intent to attack in the first leg other than the goal scored.

Real Madrid never allowed barca to hold the ball and also other teams can learn the way they stopped messi by tackling in a way that he will never get the ball back in his foot.

this talk of 3rd place being a shoe in makes me nervous. Our recent history shows that we cannot take it for granted until the final whistle of the final match even if it is mathematically impossible not to stuff up before then!

I watched the clasico and it was far from that. Real were efficient and took their chances and Barca could not create their normal number of chances. Normally I would say Chelski have no chance but I have this sneaking feeling they are going to spoil the party and bore their way into the final. God I hope I am wrong.

Andy,

Wherever you are come back and give us a good write up for our captain Van Persie.

So what has changed with us this season is the season really any different than the last 5???? is it??????? fighting for 4 or 3
Strangely a lot of people don’t seem to notice that after all you can WIN with kids, Look at Borussia Dortmand they have proved beyond a reasonable doubt that it is possible with the right philosophy. They have successfully defended their title among the German power houses Bayern Munchen, Schalka, and all the others. German clubs are Notorious for being well run and pretty rich as well. So regardless of how rich other clubs are if the philosophy is good enough and your players are good then you can win.
Opps!! and i almost forgot Juventus opened its new stadium this season and they are the only club in Italy who owns its own stadium, YET they are top of the league AND UNBEATEN TO BOOT so reguardless of the age of the players and moving to NEW STADIUM if you know what your doing you will have success.

On home note
Arsenal seems to be best bet for 3rd (knock on wood) and i have always said that the manager’s job is easy when you play big name teams MAU, Chel, MANcity, because they players don’t need any motivation, the manager really earns his corn when we play lesser teams wigan, QPR etc.

A lot of people are saying the point against chel was a good point BUT really they just played Barc, there still in the cup and we are well rested AND still we can’t take all 3 points they even rested there main players and played us with a B team. YET people come here making excuses which is the norm for us these past 7 years.

I remember in the champions league Against Milan we scored 3 goals in the first half, and could not score 1 in the second, the excuse was that the lads used all there energies in the first half, what a laugh, when your so close tiredness goes out the door, poor excuse.

It hurts when you see young ramsey being abused when its not his fault. I remember on this very blog that people where saying that Bendtner just became a father which contributed to his poor performance, (can you believe that) If that is not the worst excuse i’v ever heard i don’t know what is. Someone even said we will regret loaning him out and that appears to be true only because the replacement is 5o time worst than him.

3 games to go lets keep the faith and we can also renew wenger’s contract.
Lets give him a nice FAT one worth about 10 mil and keep him till he’s 80.
he deserves it for sure…………

Kel

As with anything, there is more to the story of Juventus. Drawing direct parallels is pointless. Maybe we should have won the title through match fixing, been relegated, before coming back to being top of the league? Navel gazing is possible both ways.. But I digress

Firstly, Juve is owned by the Agnelli family. Those that own(ed?) Fiat. They are a big business house with lots of political influence. Which brings us to the second point of difference. Arsenal’s stadium cost (as I recall) 390million pounds.. Juventus’ stadium cost about 90million pounds. That’s a 300million pound difference.

Why the difference? Clubs in Europe routinely get subsidies from their local councils. Read Madrid’s training ground was bought by the Madrid council and leased back to them when they were having financial trouble. I think Lille built their new stadium on land which they bought/leased for 1 euro.. In Juventus’ case, I havent looked into it enough, but what I’ve found so far is “11 June 2010 Juventus acquired for one million euros by the City of Turin on 50-year leasehold on the 270,860 m² Continassa area with the aim to redevelop over ten years with a series of projects and an investment of at least 60 million.”

Essentially. For 61m euros (paid over 10 years)..Juventus got the land not just for the stadium, but around the stadium where they will build their headquarters, their museum, shopping malls etc, all of which is also a revenue stream for them.

how their demolition of the old Delle Alpi and the construction of the new stadium was completed in 90m pounds I don’t know. I haven’t really looked into it, and i doubt i’m going to even try. Maybe the construction costs in Italy are really low. Maybe the Agnellis own construction companies. Maybe their political influence helped.

All I know is.. There is no one-to-one parallel with Arsenal here. Even if it were to be.. Someone else’s success isn’t proof of our failure. It CAN be done doesn’t mean it being done is inevitable except through bad management. But of course, Arsenal don’t know what they are doing is so entrenched in popular perception now, despite all the evidence to the contrary. ManCity got a new stadium from taxpayers money. Spurs want the same. As do West Ham. Liverpool can’t decide where to build their stadium. Everton have been trying to get out of their stadium for years but don’t have the funds. The Arsenal stadium move has been one of the best managed projects in the business of football. there are no two ways about that. Were mistakes made? Of course. They are always made. But it was something unique, done at a time of constant flux in the English game, and it deserves more credit than to be taken for granted or run down by comparing it to something dissimilar in so many ways.

Regarding Dortmund.. I don’t know what your point even is.. Aren’t you saying there’s nothing wrong with relying on youth? Well..there you go. Nothing fundamentally wrong with Arsenal’s philosophy then, is there?

Wenger will not change his philosophy. I agree. He doesn’t have to CHANGE it. He doesn’t buy ONLY youth. He doesn’t buy CHEAP. He spends the money we have. Look I would talk about things that Arsenal must address if this culture of BLAME goes away. Not every mistake means that the person(s) involved don’t have a clue. Not every failure means they are a failure. We are not SHIT. Analysis of what can be done better requires a level of detachment that most fans (understandably) cannot achieve. It’s all or nothing..which isn’t quite how it works.

German clubs like Bayern may have more money than Dortmund, but the German league has rules on spending what you earn. It has limits on the wage bill being a certain percentage of turnover, and it only allows sugar daddies to own 49% of the club, at the most. That makes the German league one of teh most competitive and exciting leagues in the world. If only England would learn some lessons from them.

You are seriously equating acquiring young players (not once has breach of rules been proved, nor even alleged really. Just ‘immorality’) with match fixing? Seriously? Arsenal are not ‘clean’..But Arsenal haven’t broken rules either. This ‘immorality’ is a vague argument.

The stadium debt IS an issue. Like it or not, it is. You tell me what else is it. Wenger isn’t a good enough manager? Winning is not something he cares about?

Oh, and Valencia went bust last season, forcing them to sell Villa and Silva, and I don’t know who else. Their stadium was left half constructed for a while because they had no more money. I wonder how much of that was about trying to keep up with the Joneses

And by the way.. Arsenal’s 3 league titles under Wenger, also came against a much heavier spending opponent. Arsenal have done it too. Don’t forget that. And Arsenal have done it without going bust, rather while getting richer.

Well written Shard
Too many people take a snapshot in time with no thought to history. You covered Juve, Valenicia etc. imagine if Arsenal had been relegated for ,irregularities, and you are spot on with we are not a shit team. There are at least 89 teams in the league who would gladly swap places with us. We should be proud of our team and it’s achievements. I know it’s frustrating that we haven’t won anything for 7 years, but in my opinion it won’t be long now.
COYG

So will Van Persie stay or go?
That’s what I want to know.
And… is there any significance to the Barca hotel thing or is it a red Herring?

I was just waiting for the “chelsea’s win highlights Arsenal’s failure” line.. (It’s actually Barca’s failure but whatever)..Congratulations Shambo for being the first with it.

I was being less than serious..I thought the flippancy came across, but I guess not.. The point behind the flippancy was, can’t we all just enjoy football for what it is, sometimes, without everything being about how good or bad Arsenal are? Dortmund win the title, Arsenal suck. Juventus lead the league, Arsenal are shit. Chelsea reach the CL final, we have no tactical plan.. It’s football. results we want, results we don’t want. They happen. Why should it be talked about as showing Arsenal’s failings? Arsenal weren’t even in the match yet it becomes about Arsenal.

I’ve said many times I’d be more than happy to discuss Arsenal’s failings if people wouldn’t go overboard with it. We’re in a good position as a club. We can be better. How can we get better.. I would love to have a discussion about that without it sinking to the level of Arsenal are pathetic etc (not talking about you Shambo) , and without it being about finding someone to blame. Because that happens is why I end up defending the club. Because there is a flip side to all the negativity. And I think there is more reason to be positive than negative. Partly, I suppose it’s just how I am. For one thing, trophies aren’t really important to me. Never have been. What I mean by that is, that trophies are a by product of playing well. I don’t need that validation from others and rubbing it in their faces etc. I mean, I’m not above it and I do enjoy it, but it’s not my prime motivation. I already think we play well enough under the circumstances, and I think trophies haven’t come due to a variety of factors (among which is our failings too). As such, I’m happy..while wanting more.

So I guess , I don’t get the constant anger in people’s posts (again, not talking about you). It’s not healthy. Not even for me. And I dislike it for what it is. Maybe I’m being naive countering all of it and I will stop at some point. It’s taxing. I could go back to ignoring it all. I left this blog alone for a long time for that very reason.

My only concern is that the miserable Chavs have enough left in the tank to nip at least a point off Newcastle. It was nice to see Terry get caught at his usual dirt. I’m curious as to what he was trying to explain to the ref. “I meant to knee him in the crotch but I couldn’t get him to turn around”… 😉

@volleygun, Fabregas has looked out of sorts recently and has nowhere near the same impact or influence in that Barce side…he also dived for the pen which was dissapointing. I think he will return to Arsenal one day.

i was surprisingly happy to see chelsea make it thru to the final. (terry’s moment aside) the way barca played the whole fab thing last summer turned me off and to see them not winning the 2 team league trophy or the CL is great. and fabregas diving for the pk? disappointing. torres… who’d have thunk it?

@Shambo

Sorry if you feel I attempt to talk you down. I don’t. But hey, on Chamakh. I’m not even going to try. He’s done at Arsenal it seems. Not cos of the shisha incident, but the lack of incident on the field involving him. He needs a change of scenery as much as Arsenal need someone else in.

Are reports that Guardiola is leaving Barcelona true? If so, Cesc loses his mentor just after he went to join him. Oh, poor Cesc. Meh.. I couldn’t tell if that was a dive. From one angle it looked like Drogba caught him, on the other it looked like a dive. But everyone seems to think it was a dive. I guess I’ll agree with that. No interest in defending Cesc anyway.

**Facepalm*** @GBoss
Reading comprehension isn’t one of your strong points I gather.

So…what do the big bad uglies of Stoke have in store for us tomorrow? Will they play as poorly as they did against Newcastle? Somehow I doubt it. They don’t like Arsenal it seems. After all, we whine and moan about having a young players leg snapped in half by their club captain, who is a terrific bloke because he cried for 2 mins after he brokeded what got in his way to the ball. His reward was his first England cap too. And their fans show their class by jeering him off the pitch, and booing him on his return to the ground.. Ok..I was going to worry about how finishing third is now vital because Chelsea might just fluke the CL trophy. But the more I type about Stoke’s behaviour then, the more I want to win just to beat them. That should be prize enough. Lets go beat those neanderthals, at their own game if necessary.

Big game tomorrow, AND boy do we need those 3 points!!!!!
I can’t believe that Diaby is injured again, he’s worst than Robin was,
(Knock on wood)

By the way i MUST say this, and i know it will never happen BUT i’ll say it anyway

Please Please Please Please Please Please sign Pep Arsenal and get rid of wenger, he’s past it, done and dusted, and guess what he might not cause 7 mill

Yes! Arsenal should gently tell Wenger this your last year of coaching and bringing Pep. A younger hungrier coach is what we need instead of a coach who’s ambition is top 4. That’s why RVP is not keen on signing because squad as structured will struggle to finish in the top 4 next year.
For those making fun of Fab he already won FIFA club trophy with Barca … I worry about Arsenal when are we going to win major trophies?
The best scouting last 2 years has been done by the Maggpies signing Cabaye from the French champion for 4 million?! He is as good a passer as any player in the top.
Pap Cisse, we heard over and over that great deals were not available in the January transfer market…they signed the second best striker in the Bundesliga for 9 million?! Insane!

Looks like arsene wenger wants a nail biting finish to the season with that draw.
It’s really bad when we need the points and the team is not ready to shoot when they have space but instead want to pass the ball to the net.

Must say a hard fought point and well earned against the stripey, leg breaking cunts. Everyone worked hard, especially Rosicky, who was everywhere, tackling, passing, winning the ball, as did Yossi.. Even Ramsey got into tackles which shows he is putting behind what heppened to him there. All in all, a very good point. Should have beat the cunts but a useful point nevertheless.

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