It’s FC Porto tonight in the first leg of our Champions League knockout clash and inevitably, injuries have struck again.
Already denied the services of Andrey Arshavin and Alex Song, our team has now been robbed of William Gallas, Eduardo and Manuel Almunia due to respective calf, hamstring and hand injuries.
While Eduardo’s absence shouldn’t affect the result too much, Gallas’ problem will see Sol Campbell drafted into the starting line-up, which should be novel if nothing else. Campbell was brought back to the club with this sort of situation in mind so there’s no real reason why he shouldn’t be able to get the job done. Away legs tend to be more about away goals rather than clean sheets but Thomas Vermaelen alongside Campbell a shutout remains achievable.
Denilson should step in for Alex Song, one of Tomas Rosicky or Samir Nasri for Arshavin while Lukasz Fabianski has been given a huge opportunity to stake his claim as a potential first-choice goalkeeper after the injury to Almunia.
The Polish goalkeeper recently spoke of his frustration at being unavailable and unable to capitalise when Almunia had his early season wobbles (which haven’t really stopped, mind you) so I’m sure he will be fired up to make the most of this opportunity. He’s unlikely to receive the aerial bombardment of a typical Premier League game and like Denilson, appears to me to be a player that might perform better in European competition. I am keen to see how he performs.
Despite the injuries it has to be said that we have a strong team and one that is capable of not only holding Porto at their home ground, but going there and winning. Nicklas Bendtner’s return to the team has given us a focal point while Abou Diaby and Cesc Fabregas, our two creative midfielders, are in excellent form at the moment. We might be missing five players but we’re still looking good.
It’s worth keeping in mind that if tonight turns out to be a disaster, with the second leg three weeks away we are likely to have a number of players back to try and overturn any deficit. Recent history might suggest that we will probably be without MORE players for that leg but I’m sure you get the point.
European football is back and I’m excited. Come on Arsenal!
Thoughts?
Have your say on Arsenal’s trip to Porto by leaving a comment.
I just hope that the players that we do have left can score a couple of goals and that Fabianski can at least keep a clean sheet so that we have a cushion going back to the Emirates.
HOPEFULLY, FABIANSKI WILL MAKE PROPER USE OF THIS OPPORTUNITY AND STAKE A CLAIM FOR THAT NO.1 SHIRT, COS ALMUNIA NEEDS SERIOUS COMPETITION. I EXPECT A GOOD RESULT FROM OUR BOYS NOT MINDING THE INJURIES.
I’m not sure but I think I have read that Porto eliminated ManU? ❓ mhh, if that’s the case I would be careful . . . the injuries don’t worry me too much, they cope with such situations since the first day of the season, of course missing Gallas is new but I have believe in Campbell, I have a good feeling, don’t know why……. 😉
1 nil to the arsenal
I’d rather have Vela or Rosicky playing tonight not Walcott, but he’ll choose Walcott just hope he surprises me and plays well!
At least with Big Sol back *hopefully* he can get vocal and help marshal the defence and give some direction to our right and left fullbacks. Clichy especially needs to start lifting his defensive game even if it means less runs forward… We are so exposed from these and have gotten stung so many times from pointless attacks from the wing whipping in useless crosses that get smothered and turned into a quick counter attack.
I’m looking forward to seeing Bendtner back as I think he offers a fair bit up front not only just as a big body to hold up the play but as someone who chases down balls at the front and creating movement by moving the opposing back-line about. He also has a good eye for a pass and links well with Fabregas allowing him to get forward and put in a strike.
Either way looking forward to it! Love it!
we are av not play with our first 11 since the start of the season. so i dnt believe in missing 5 key players bcos is not an excuse 4 nt giving us victory tonight. porto is not good enough to stop us even wt our 2nd 11 we are a big club .
In theory the players we have should still be able to the business – but as we’ve seen with the lucky scum (yet again) one team can outplay the other and still not get the deserved result. We’ve got to be smart. We’ve got to take our chances. Work as team. And hope for the roll of the dice. Up The Gunners!
Should make for an interesting match to watch. Love the combination of Diaby and Francesc in mid. Hope Denilson allows them to go forward.
Iam very much confident that we will thrash porto.
I watched the Milan v United game. If you think Almunia is a terrible keeper, then Dida is total rubbish….Goodness, he is really bad. Almunia should feel encouraged.
I have a nudging feeling we’ll come out on top tonight. The injuries may be “not be a few” but then again, this is Arsenal vs Porto. Go Gunners!!!!!
I’m really hoping Fabianski plays well tonight. Almunia isn’t currently inspiring confidence. But what about giving Mannone a shot? I remember him impressing early on in the season.
I want to see us play with tempo and confidence to me we look the favourites
That’s a strange comment for Wenger to make about members of the squad. Usually he doesn’t come out with anything from anyone, maybe he is trying a bit of subliminal motivation, I hope it works whatever it is!!
OK, so we’ve a few injuries, that’s nothing new. Whichever eleven players Wenger puts out they must remember who they are playing for, that means they give 100% for the whole match, I don’t want to see any diving, feigned injuries or players asking to be subbed.
My pre match message to the team…..
“Get out there, roll your sleeves up and get on with the game, your playing for Arsenal!!!!”
gonna be tough to get a result out there chels were fortunate 1-0 winners in the group stage while a 40 yard stunner from ronaldo,along with portos lack of self belief, were the only thing stoppin them from eliminating utd last season….so lets hav faith but not underestimate a capable opponent.
itl b interestin to see denilsons reaction after a spell on the bench and huge lack of enthusiasm n his recent performances….if he wants to be an arsenal player and prove hes good enough it should come toni when wel need him
i also watched the milan/utd game last nite and i feel it only highlighted the differences in us and utd/chels even more.when we make errors wer normally punished….utd cuda been 4 down last nite yet they score,then rally to go 3-1 ahead…clinical,chels do this regularly but it doesnt seem to be in our locker…heres hopin we never sign huntelaar aswel,the guys another bluffer of a footballer….nothing to offer bar the ball lands on his head or at his feet…useless
heres hopin for a win!!if not il take the score draw
I have zero faith in Denilson. His lack of ‘bottle’ has shown to be his downfall. Commitment and strength of character are essential in the midfield and his last few outings have shown he has neither in abundance.
I hope that inside him there is a little voice saying, “Try Harder” or “Get stuck in and win that ball”. There are certainly millions of voices screaming those sentiments to him from the outside.
We hear a great deal about Arsenal’s supposed attacking prowess – our ability to swamp supposed lesser teams with pace and movement. This is supported by our excellent “goals for” record thus far this season. However, despite our quality, to what extent is this down to sheer weight of numbers as opposed to attacking nous? Our full-backs bomb-on, one of our centre-backs occasionally becomes an additional attacker, while Song has also been known to arrive into the box to supplement an attack. This s well against mid-table and below teams, and can be a joy to behold (Blackburn at home, Wolves and Everton away).
However, we’ve also seen a fair few occasions of late (and not just against the Manchester Uniteds and Chelseas of this world) whereby Arsenal are caught on the hop after losing the ball in such positions, and a goal is conceded on the counter attack from a previously positive position.
Our current style of play attempts to dominate possession and wear teams down. The current Wenger view appears to be that our movement and numbers will be enough to force openings against massed ranks, and that if a goal does not come early our opponents will tire due to the aforementioned domination of possession and increased numbers in attack. However, it was not always thus, and I would argue this current way of playing – given the relatively callow age of our young charges and the linked lack of experience – is actually making life far harder for ourselves.
The much touted “lack of a plan B” is not the problem here – we are able to vary our play; with Diaby in the team we have borne witness this season to something approaching a defensive line-breaking run or two and even the odd floated ball over the top for one of our diddymen to run onto alongside the standard tippy-tappy we’ve come to regard as the norm; when Robin van Persie is fit the options up front allow for a wide variety of attacking approaches due to his ability to adapt to the role early in the season. In fact, the problem is one of the use of space and resources. The parallels with the world of work in the current climate are many – what we should be able to achieve with the current playing staff is more with less. By which I mean continue to enact a high-tempo attacking style but without the attendant risks attached that we currently impose on ourselves.
Efficiency is not a byword that you can associate with the current Arsenal team. We may have the highest shots-to-goals ratio in the league at the time of writing (and thankfully so), but we also dominate the possession stats, passing stats, and – following the defeat at Stamford Bridge this shows this up for the folly that it is – are high in the corners-won (and probably corners-hit-frontman) stats. Other teams are fully capable of scoring goals by attacking teams with not seven, eight or nine men, but with three to five, leaving themselves far less exposed when the ball is lost. Whereas we seem to have a situation over the last 14 months that wherever on the pitch Gael Clichy loses the ball there is a clear run with a goal at the end of it.
Early in the season, the shift to 4-3-3/4-5-1 was lauded as it played to the strengths of a number of our players. However, when taken alongside the attacking intent of our full-backs, this is increasingly exposed – as shown by the number of away clean sheets this season. Arshavin; Nasri; Rosicky; Walcott (!?): when playing wide, how much assistance is their full back provided? How often have you seen Clichy/Sagna lose the ball high up the pitch and then see the winger in front of him track the man back? I have the odd recollection, but it does not occur nearly often enough. The defence is more likely to shuffle across to fill the gaps which leaves the team open to a quick switch of play by our opponents.
We have the players to dominate sides, and provide sufficient attacking width while still maintaining something approaching a back four. If Arshavin, Rosicky, Fabregas, Diaby plus one other (either up front or in midfield) aren’t able to open up a defence without constantly requiring the width provided by our fullbacks, or an additional body such as Song or Vermaelen pushing through centrally, then there is something seriously maling when it comes to our shape as I cannot think of another Premier League team that uses such a high portion of its resources for attacking purposes.
Unfortunately, we need only cast our minds back to last season when the shocking start to the campaign was arrested by a more sedate approach that saw our full-backs push forward less frequently, and a run of dull 0-0 draws ensued. What is it about this current Arsenal team that requires so many bodies in order to achieve the game’s fundamental aim?
When we were a primarily counter-attacking team this was not an issue as by its very nature a counter attack is against fewer players, and thus requires fewer to push forward. When we played possession football at Highbury (there are times we now miss the narrowness of the pitch despite the much vaunted extra space) with the likes of Bergkamp, Pires, Vieira and Henry in the team, we were able to dominate teams with lesser numbers, with the timing of the fullback runs more important than their mere existence. Now a young, callow team requires such runs due to a combination of the slower speed of our attacks, the attendant massed ranks of defenders, a larger space to cover (at least at home), the lack of a central Dennis Bergkamp-style player (though Cesc will approach that level in the coming years), and a seeming lack of confidence and/or ability to break through defences without committing large numbers of men forward. Football is a game of shape, and ours is one that currently is in need of revision.
The example of a midfield three of Fletcher, Scholes and Carrick tells us what we are missing unfortunately. I know not a single Arsenal fan that wasn’t confident going into the recent 3-1 reverse, seeing Manchester United as a team close to being there for the taking compared to previous years. The core reason they weren’t overcome wasn’t to do with a poor keeper, a lack of cover when being counter-attacked etc – they are all symptoms of the current issue – but Arsenal’s default shape affording no safety net to any player once a mistake is made. Yes, Nasri could have helped Clichy out better for the Almunia own goal – but it’s the very lack of support (or style of/training for that support) for the fullback as an endemic issue which requires addressing. The lack of responsibility taken by anyone to at least track Rooney (if not take him out!) when he was making that incredibly hard to read run for the second (you know, when someone runs in a perfectly straight line bisecting both the centre and penalty spots) was also worrying and a point which could be addressed via a leaner, more compact shape.
Shape and balance. These are to this current Arsenal team more important than a good first touch and the ability to reverse a strike across the keeper’s dive off the far post as they are issues that are not being addressed. If anyone can name a successful football team whose approach to shape is to mimic that of the “crack suicide squad” from Life of Brian, I would love to hear it. Sadly they at times resemble our forebears.
Continuing the parallel with necessitated approaches in the world of work, Arsene needs to learn how we can do more with less, thus freeing up our ability to maintain shape, balance and intelligently apply this to ensuring that the sorties forward enjoyed by each member of our back four is only applied at moments of lesser risk or maximum opportunity. By it becoming our default we are exposed unnecessarily to the risk of conceding. The fundamental education being “enjoyed” by our young team is in those respects flawed. Gael Clichy is a case-in-point – where our former left back learned his defensive trade over time due to being within a stricter structure, Gael has been left exposed by those in front of him and his decision-making has regressed due to the poor shape of the team around him – I fear for the lad’s development due to this and think that as a club we may actually be doing him a disservice.
lol,
nicely put vancouver gunner,i share those sentiments to an extent,but as i said he can turn us around with a performance when wer short some of our more influential players…lets think positive for a denilson powerful performance toni…but if he saunters about the place in his usual manner and doesnt put himself about i guess wel know wot type of man he is….win lose or draw he has to put in a strong performance
that was my post above dunno why it came up anonymous
1000% agree with Vancouver Gooner… Denilson is absolute CRAP! I’d rather start Eastmond for what is worth,,
the fact remains we haven,t kept a clean sheet away from home in the cl since we won 2-0 in milan in mar 08 thats nearly two years!so first and foremost no keystone cops style defending tonight.we all know we,ll create chances at some stage through out the game so lets defend as a unit,be clinical and if we cant come away with a victory lets at least keep a clean sheet.
Tricky game but I believe we have the personnel to at least come away with a point and prefferably a scoring draw!! Looking good for sure, Go Gunners!!
by all accounts bendtner seems to have a lot to say for himself,well he,s been given the oppourtunity for the remainder of the season to prove why he should be starting on a regular basis, he snatched at a couple of chances against liverpool and in the latter stages of the cl chances will be at a minimum its no place for a striker who needs 3/4 chances to score 1 goal.
http://goal.com/en-gb/news/2559/rumours/2010/02/17/1795000/arsenal-boss-arsene-wenger-gives-green-light-for-cesc
4 nil
jeez dara thats some really outragious predicting in fairness….wot are you basing this on???
Just back from the Emirates… was lucky enough to get an invite to ask Tony Adams a question for a new ATVO show… an audience with
WOW – an afternoon all those who attended will never forget.. and an afternoon full of startlingly honest and expansive chat from TA6
i assure you, a lot of what he spoke will not make the final edit!!
i am still gobsmacked with the underlying anti arsene stance he took
going to settle down and watch the porto game.. but i will put up a full report of this afternoon on my blog later tonight.
amazed with some of the stuff Big tone came out with… he certainly loves the club.. but he has 100% lost faith in wenger!!
FACT!!!
I believe (“,)
OOH TO
OOH TO BE
OOH TO BE A ……… GOONER!!!
O shit fabianski n denilson playing,lost faith in them
fabianski prove me right,does gael know what goin on
no, he missed his chance, they have a keeper problem, definitely…………… 😥
Absolute rubbish game,porto running thro us,it more like we are playin wit 9 players
denilson and clichy had a shocking first half, as for fabianski…….nasri,s just posing, porto are nothing name me 3 good players thay have?COME ON ARSENAL SORT IT OUT!
HAHAHHAHAHAHAHA here we go again Fabianski is a idiot. Sell all are goal keapers fuk them all
What a joker fabianski is he is not even a championship keeper. Bet we would be lucky to get 1m for him if he went on the market. As usual the goalkeeper is our downfall until a quality keeper is obtained there can be no confidence throughout the team.
Fabianski must go n play wit reserves,arsene is 2 blame choosin rubbish players
Dunno what game you are watchin Georgetown but I thought Denilson was having one of his better games
are they teasing us, what was that? 😯
I mean the second goal, referee can’t do such a thing………… incredible, 😯
Arsene do what he does best blamin da referee 4 that 2nd goal.fabianski 2 blame so stupid,that was a goal,arsene really losin touch wit reality
Fabianski (-10)
Sagna(7) Campell(7) Vermaelen(6) Clichy(3)
Diaby(8) Fabregas (7) Denilson(5)
Rosicky(4) Bendner (2) Nasri(5)
Walcott(4) Vela(-) Eboue(-)
Billi that is a fair goal, the defender should of done their job
aw will come out and blame the ref,linesman and porto for roughing us up but its all deflection…
nasri…as iv said before offers nothing,just a bluffer….gave away the ball so much before he was taken off it totally nullified any chance of us getting forward and he shuda been off before rosicky,i dunno how that decision came about
denilson….didnt let the haters down,hes useless and is so easy knocked off the ball its unreal,paul scholes is stronger than him and he was still trotting back toni after hulk left him on his arse….embarrassing
clichy/sagna….just awful.going forward and defending the are terrible right now and the first goal came after clichy had crossed from one side of the pitch to the other…reall really awful
bendtner….knew in the first min wot game he was gonna hav when he stumbled over the ball not once but twice…in the first min!!!not a goal scorer and has terrible balance…hes always over stretching and slicing the ball
walcott/vela…impact????yeah wotever
fabianski….labelled the next seaman by wenger….ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
wer a laughing stock,really teams are laughing at how we beat ourselves ALL the time….helton made one save,that was it.diaby refuses to shoot from outside the box….its infuriating and wot makes it worse is wenger and rice rocking to and fro in the dugout like their surprised at whats unfolding in front of their eyes!!!come out of the fog!
iv just seen the cesc interview aswel….hes leaving no doubt,any1 that doesnt believe it just watch his demeanor and wot he was saying…who can blame him???but wenger wont stand in his waybecos it will be more money to stock under the bed
am just sick of these toothless performances….we may be still in the race for both league and CL but by god we DONT deserve it
its about time wenger had a long look in the mirror,it cant all be the refs,linesman or oppositions fault!!
Fabianski is a useless cunt. How can someone of such low standard get to wear an Arsenal shirt?
@mairtan what you smoking my friend??? denilson was shit from start to finish like he always is, pathetic,lightweight,sideway passing,no tackling,out of position on numerous occassions shall i go on?clichy,clichy,clichy what has happened to the guy ?? yet again skinned down the wing for the first goal.nasri…you can come out from where ever you were hiding the game,s over now, i,ve seen better defending from conference teams that was shambolic and an embarrassment to arsenal .f.c £50 million in the bank including the money from the sale of bayor and kolo and we got 2 clowns between the sticks,you couldn,t make a decent keeper between them.the further we get(thats if we do) in the cl the more our defensive deficences we be exposed. what a joke this club has become,TOO MANY players not good enough to wear the arsenal shirt or compete at the highest level but hey like most of you say ARSENE KNOWS. lol…………
Well, Fabianski certainly left his mark on the game! the couple of saves he made do not cancel his disastrous giving away of the two goals which lost us the game. How can Arsenal dream of glory with no reliable keeper in post? The edge of ManU and Chelsea is in their keepers, Van de Saar and Cech – they inspire confidence in the defence which allows the defenders to express themselves to the full on the field. How about investing in some serious goalkeeper?
ramsey over denilson every time for me, he may be young but at least he,s got pride and passion and doesnt jog back when he loses the ball.
We will still win the second leg.
Sol played well at the beggining with a great tackle and the goal which was Sol of old. But then the howlers. Look, they’re going to happen to everyone. Seaman made his fair share of clangers. Fabianski is a solid keeper for the most part but I agree we need a bring someone in with more experience.
2-0 or 3-1 at home to progress given that Ashavin, Song and Gallas play.
@georgetown,
how much do u reckon wed get for fabianski,denilson,bendtner and nasri in the morning if we transfer listed them?????
prob 5m for the lot id say….pathetic excuses for athletes….steven hawkins wud beat nasri in a sprint
i watched the fiorentina/munich game after and it was bad but at least they shot from outside the freakin box!!!we make lesser teams and players look invincible????why is this??? because the manager never shows the opposition enough respect to do his homework on them and counteract their strentghs.he is hugely arrogant and believes the way we play shud prevail all the time….but i ask you this,wot is so attractive about the way we now play???slow crossfield passing that becomes so obvious …..wev no penetration at all.wenger said after the game that the referee shudv hekd up the game to let us assemble a wall….can u believe that shit???yes arsene and the opposition shud stand aside,relinquish any physicality and let our boys walk the ball in from 6 yards,cos thats all they wana do!!!!
our CL away history….W18 D18 LOSS 23…is some1 gonna argue that thats good enough??
why shud cesc fabregas toil with guys like almunia,nasri,fabianski,bendtner,sylvestre,walcott and vela when he can play with WINNERS like xabi,iniesta,messi,puyol,henry,ibrahimovic etc etc etc
its like arsha said today…how cud u blame the guy for leaving???i certainly wont i will blame wenger the stubborn,arrogant shortsighted miser
Here we go we again we get beaten and ppl are on arsens back. Yeah we lost but we got that one away goal that is very important must admitt it should have stayed 1 all but both they goals were gift warped and given to them. Ppl are forgettin that we had a very strong pen chance turned down, 2-1 to us would have been a totally different story than ppl wouldn’t be sayin shit.
For cryin out loud we were missing 4 startin players tonight take 4 startin players from any team and see how they cope, not very well I bet. Take 4 startin players from porto and I can put money on it we would not have lost. So I really think ppl should relax all is not lost.
Fab was very flat tonight and that’s down to one thing DENLISON he is F**CKEN SHIT. I don’t like baggin any of arsenals players, but seriously this guy just doesnt do shit all, I saw him again just letting players run past him, and him just watchin them and joggin. For cryin out loud u are paid to wear the gr8 arsenal shit and he pulls that crap. I just don’t understand him I kept my faith in him for ages when ppl said he wasn’t fit to wear the shit, but now I can see why ppl were saying that. And now I’m really startin to get enough of him.
Anyway it’s all good return leg will be a very different story. Keep the faith!!!!
@shambo, we wouldnt get a bean for those jokers,all drawing massive salaries whilst conning us the arsenal fans. i said yesterday no keystone kops defending,keep it tight and take our chances but YET AGAIN,we gave away sloppy goals and make porto look like barca with the gaping holes in the middle time and time again and what frustrates me most…WE KEEP MAKING THE SAME MISTAKES because we have a manger who refuses to instill discipline to eradicate the appaling defending. two keepers required in the summer,flapianski and fawlty out along with denilson,bendtner needs to park his ass back on the bench just not good enough and dont think he ever will be but at the moment he,s all we got up front,clichy i,ll give till the end of the season before i judge him but since he,s returned from injury his performances have left a lot to be desired.its blatantly obvious we have become a non trophy seeking cash franchise,
Cash franchise???? Is that why we put a price freez on our ticket prices for next season??!!
@Shambo
athetic excuses for athletes….steven hawkins wud beat nasri in a sprint. Absolutly love it!!!!!
Fabianski ahhhhahhahahaha i laughed. you made so many good points. I agree absolutly the team isnt able to think on their feet and change the game plan. They all wait for halftime for AW to tell them what to do.
You know what when the team starts to play bad or under pressure. What they do is play the same way even more. Maybe this time it will work. Fuk me. Thats a sign of luck in leadership. Which in turn goes to say how young the team is.
AW needs to fucking stop complaining to the REF we desrved to lose again. Godamit Fabianski can skit….skit….skit back to canada or poland. Dont let me get started with denilson. He needs to go play in brasil again he is like ADRIANO he just cant be bothered playing well. They should bought FELIPE MELO now he is a player who commands fear. He smashes dudes out of the way.
Fuck Fabianski! Hes a fucking disgrace. Hes rubbishness spreads to his fellow defenders like a virus!
Que Sera Sera whatever will be will be, the future’s not us to see Que Sera Sera
Yes I still Can’t believe that AW is still complaining. He is as always sulking around after loosing. This was school error from AW arsenal. When you go away you need to be solid on the back protect your goal. But i think team is good to nothing when it comes to defending. I just feel for guys Like Fab,Arsha,Verm,Gallas. They are so much better they don’t deserve to me an team which is making silly school boy error. It is not about we will progress or not it is how the strategic plan is as always we failed again. With players like Lukasz Fabianski,Almunia as first and second choice goalkeeper and people like Nasri,Deni even Theo Walcot and Sagna and Clichy if AW is think that they will win the EPL than he is dreaming. I think Fab,Arsha should leave arsenal should not spoil there carrier here. Because this team has no game plan,no strategy, no GK, no proper Winger, no proven ST and as all know they don’t have Plan B when one Plan A fails.
o.k. it seems as if the rules tell the second goal would have been with them, as I know the rules a back pass isn’t allowed to catch by the hands, and Fabiansky touched the ball with his leg at first and then took it with his hands, ❓ so I couldn’t understand it, taken it was a mistake, I can’t understand how the referee delivers the ball and looks as if he doesn’t know what to do resp. as if he wanted to take advice with the liner referees, it wasn’t a clear freekick, Fabiansky was on his way into the goal, normally you have the time to build a wall in front of the goal, I can’t justify such a cunfusing behaviour of the referree, and I swear, if Arsenal would have taken this indirectly kick, it wouldn’t have been allowed, I swear it…….. so the second goal wasn’t o.k., in no respect, that can’t be football, that’s teasing, and it changed the whole of the game, because Porto took over immediately, they smelled their advantage by the referees, the crowd got crasy, by the way I didn’t like the manner of the Porto Fans, you have to respect your opponent a little bit, no, I blame the referee with his conduct at that situation, the Porto player just dictated what to do, impossible, even if you can take the rules and say that’s possible, in my opinion it isn’t, the referee has to clearly say what’s going on, he can’t deliver the ball for a free kick when the goalkeeper is just returning into his goal, that’s teasing, can’t believe it, despite of all the other problems Arsenal may have, but they can’t compensate such silly situations in aggregation with Fabiansky’s first mistake, it’s impossible, you can’t blame them that they couldn’t organize the match afterwards, too much is too much…………….. never ❗
Words can’t describe Fabianski’s ‘performance’ last night. He was bloody awful, worse than Almunia (and i didn’t think that was possible). Our keepers are a joke, maybe it’s time to recall young Chesney and give him his chance. From what i’ve seen, he is the best keeper we’ve got.
Anyway, with an away goal to work with, I think we will still go through to the 1/4 finals.
Oh, and the ref was shocking too. He tried everything in his power to make sure that Porto won. He denied the most blatant penalty you’ll ever see, and 2 minutes later he awards them and indirect freekick in the penalty box, takes the ball away from Fabianski, hands it to a Porto player and alows him to take it quickly without giving us a chance to organise a wall or anything. Shocking really, I’ve never seen an indirect free kick taken so quickly and I prolly never will. Where do Uefa get these refs from? Pathetic
Question: Where do you pick your keepers from?
Answer: Same place where we picked Foster from – LOL
But seriously guys (and no offence meant), I feel for you…when we were in school, my house keeper made exactly the same mistake that Fabianski made for the second. I was playing right back, and I couldnt believe my eyes. After the match, half the team pasted the little bugger. Our striker was a fuckin Iranian giant (he now plays national level rugby) and his wrath was a sight to behold. Wenger will probably come back with a statement saying how talented Fabianski really is and that David Seaman would probably have made the same mistake at the age of 23. How frustrating! He needs to borrow a hairdryer from fergie….
. . . and I want to add one thing: I can’t understand your criticism with players or the manager after such a game neither, how can you search the fault at your own players after such an injustice? you’re not Arsenal fans, absolutely not …………. 😯
billi,
how can you say that portos quick free was an injustuce when wev scored from quick frees with henry before and pires even tried that ridiculous pen with henry,jeez man get some objectivity and stop making excuses for players that simply arent good enough
sorry, but I don’t know what Henry has done at your club, I don’t watch them until 2006, and I don’t want to excuse any silly player mistakes, not all, I’m no professional in football, but if that should be part of the game, I will leave that sport alone, that hasn’t anything to do with sports for me, thats about poker game and giving disadvantage, no sorry, I haven’t any comprehension for such things, you have to live rules with finger feeling not to create silly and unfair gamesituations, if a referee would whistle every foul dictated by the rules he would never cess whistling during a match, my opinion, I can’t help it, I don’t like such things ………. ❗
My favourite 4 sayings of Arsene this season:
4. “The returning of Bentdner [after his injury break] is like a new singing”.
3. “Fabiansky is talented.”
2. “Vela is the reason of not replacing Adebayor.”
1. “Fabregas is going anyware.”
This season, we have extended the contracts of approx 14 players) ;-))