Tuesday Roundup

Tuesday Roundup

We have quite a bit going on at Arsenal FC at the moment. I won't beat around the bush and get straight into it. The first of which is the news that Eduardo will be making a comeback from the injury he sustained at the hands of that cunt Martin Taylor in February. Eduardo is expected to play against Portsmouth on the 16th and this is great news. Eduardo was looking quite menacing just before his injury and had settled in nicely. I suppose the real task would be to see how well he comes back and wether he's the same player as he was prior to picking up the horrific injury. If we look at Diaby, he has still not been able to come around since and on the flipside we have the example of Henrik Larsson and I don't think I need to tell you about him. We'd have to wait and see how things shape up.

The boss has also revealed that Rosicky might be out till March and he returns we'd put him to the stake. Seriously, I'm sick and tired of Tomas Rosicky, for fuck's sake, even Eduardo has returned to first team action before him.

Right then, moving on, there are reports Juventus are ready to join the battle to sign Arsenal malcontent William Gallas. Milan had been widely tipped to make an offer for Gallas, but it seems they may have Serie A competitors in the race for his signature. According to Sportmediaset, Juve boss Claudio Ranieri is keen to be reunited with the man he worked with at Chelsea in 2001. We're talking Gallas here, I really don't care any longer where he plays just as long as its not at Arsenal.


There's also an article about Ivan Gazidis being unhappy with our current sponsorship deals and is looking to better them. Smart man. Should we get a better sponsorship deals, we can use that money to buy more players. yes, thats definitely what Arsene would have in mind won't he? Oh no, wait.


Right then, thats the lot.

Tas van Danya

Pre-Chavski news

Ahead of tomorrow’s clash with Chelsea, the news that Emmanuel Adebayor, Nasri & Sagna being available for selection is great news.

Arsene Wenger during his pre-match conference had this to say:

"We have no injuries from the Kyiv game and Adebayor, Nasri and Sagna will be available, if nothing bad happens in training tomorrow. They all came through [training] well today. It's good because we were experience-wise a bit short."

A bit short is a bit of an understatement really. Anyhow, this is a significant boost nonetheless. With our attack having looked somewhat toothless in recent weeks, the return of Ade in particular couldn’t come at a better time: when he has been in the side, we have averaged 2.3 goals per game. When he hasn’t been present in our Champions League or Premiership line-up, we’ve mustered a rather miserly 0.76 goals per game.

Chelsea are missing Drogba and we all remember how many problems he's caused us over the years but then again they have an in-form Anelka. I know we can probably up our game but going to Stamford and coming back with a point is a big thing so lets hope we come back with something to gloat about.

Till next time you gooners.

Tas van Danya.

Coming back to life?

After the appointment of Cesc Fabregas, which to my mind was the ideal choice all along and I’m pretty sure he’s the ideal choice for 90% of the fans out there. Despite us hoping that this is when our season officially gets underway, we can be under no illusion that Senor Cesc faces a very difficult time ahead, well for the next few weeks at least. This, as I mentioned in yesterday’s blog, is a step in the right direction, the seed of change, but it is not an instant panacea.

We’re struggling for form and overwhelmed with injuries. Our long term solution lies in Uncle Scrooge taking his cheque book out and injecting some quality into the squad. This can only happen in January and till then; the going is to be very tough indeed.

The team that we do have needs to step up and show quality and repay the belief that the boss has shown in them. We need to be consistent and we need to do that every game, week in, week out. We need to start playing as a team and less like a group of individuals who are having a kick around for the first time.

And this is the main responsibility in Cesc’s job description. He has to somehow unite these players, to make us look like a team again, to function as one. This is by no means a simple task; it’s a lot to ask from anyone one in the world and it’s especially difficult to ask of such a colossal feat by a 21 year old. But this is no ordinary 21 year old, he’s one of a kind, a one in a million type of player and I’m fairly confident he’d be able to pull through. Cesc has never been afraid to speak his mind, to stick up for himself or his teammates, to get involved and he is a winner. He has that drive that we've been missing a bit this season.

Arsene has given him the definitive responsibility as a player at Arsenal, we've asked a lot of him, but the club has to do likewise. As mentioned in yesterday’s blog, the team needs to built around him, he needs players who can deliver instantly, players he can rely on, players who can allow him the space to roam about freely and express himself on the pitch. The boss has to now deliver that set of players and create an environment where Cesc can flourish.

I know he can and will be an exceptional Arsenal captain, ranking right up there with the likes of Tony Adams and Patrick Vieira and we already know he’s a dazzling player and we know what a radiant player he is but it's too much to ask him to be radiant without help. He needs a quality experienced partner alongside him, he needs quality players all around the park, he needs assurance and that will ultimately bring out the very, very best in him. As much as Cesc now has a responsibility to Arsenal, Arsenal has a responsibility to him.

This appointment will be also be extremely popular with the players and that's vital. It's obviously very clear that a few of our players have had some strife’s with Gallas. As unprofessional as it was to point fingers, it was detrimental that Arsene address the root cause and he’s finally done that (no matter how long it took). This decision should have been made a long time ago but it's definitely a case of better late than never.

All hail Fabregas. The new king of Arsenal football club.

Winds of Change

Arsène Wenger announced during his pre-match press conference ahead of the Champions League clash tommorow night that Cesc Fabregas will be the new captain of the club. Whilst speaking at the pre-match conference he had the following to say:

“Gallas will play against Kyiv, but he will not captain the team, it will be Cesc. This is a permanent thing. But I don’t think I especially have to explain why. I have given you information but I do not have to explain to you why I make these decisions. This subject is now closed. You have to respect a little bit of the team’s privacy.”

Cesc has described his elevation to the Arsenal captaincy as “a great honour”. Cesc was handed the armband as a replacement for Gallas (Thank GOD). At 21, Fabregas is one of the youngest captains in the Club’s long history and he admits it will be emotional experience to lead the side out for the first time against FC Dynamo Kyiv on Tuesday night. He had this to say:

"It is a great honour for me to captain one of the biggest clubs in the world. It is a proud moment. I know it's a big responsibility but together with my team-mates, I know we have the spirit and commitment to get back to winning ways and fulfil our potential."

This is truly great news. so many of us had been pleading for this very decision and now it seems Arsene has finally relented and made a bold move because players like Gallas have been a very negative influence on the club. The seeds of change have been planted by this decision but this is not the end. Arsene needs to add to the squad in January and must also realise that Song, Eboue, Bendtner and Diaby just aren't Arsenal material whatsoever. they're average players who do not deserve to be in a world class team like Arsenal.

I personally believe we need to buy some quality CB's (think vidic) and a CM (for the love of GOD, get one already) and a genuine wide player and we need to do that now. The past few weeks have been very depressing, so much so, that I was at a loss of words as to what to write on the blog.

Well, lets hope Arsene continues with this trend.

All Hail Arsenal.

Arsenal vs Wigan

Arsène Wenger has named the 18-man squad for tonight's Carling Cup tie against Wigan Athletic at Emirates Stadium. The squad is as follows:

12 Carlos VELA

16 Aaron RAMSEY

17 Alex SONG

19 Jack WILSHERE

20 Johan DJOUROU

21 Lukasz FABIANSKI (GK)

24 Vito MANNONE (GK)

28 Amaury BISCHOFF

35 Francis COQUELIN

39 Rui FONTE

40 Kieran GIBBS

41 Gavin HOYTE

42 Henri LANSBURY

43 Fran MERIDA

46 Abu OGOGO

47 Mark RANDALL

50 Jay SIMPSON

56 Emmanuel FRIMPONG

Bischoff is included in the squad and could perhaps make his first-team debut following his transfer from Bremen. I defintely want to see more of Wilshire, Ramsey and Vela and I hope they come out guns ablazing.

Wigan are a decent side. Amir Zaki is the unsung hero of the Premier League so far with 8 goals, while Valencia, Kapo, Palacios and de ridder all add quality. On the flip side lets not forget they have have Titus Bramble at the back so that's something we should be looking to exploit. Seeing Vela tear him to shreds would definitely make my night. Overall though, it won't be an easy game of football but we have the quality and the reserves have that never say never attitude which should make this a fun game of football.

Here's hoping for all three points.

Come on you Gunnnneeerrrssssss!!!

Roy Keane defends Arsene + News Roundup

There’s a lot to be reported today so I’ll dive straight in, we’ll start this morning with Roy Keane defending Arsene Wenger against the heavy criticism he has received following some bad performances against the likes of Sp*rs, Stoke and more recently Fenerbahce. Keane whilst blasting the TV pundits for their mindless assessment of games and says that they are often trying to 'sell something that is not there'.

"I was asked by ITV to do the Celtic versus Manchester United game but I've done it once for Sky and never again. I'd rather go to the dentist. You're sitting there with people like Richard Keys and they're trying to sell something that's not there.

"Anytime I watch a game on television, I have to turn the commentators off. They say 'he's playing well' and I'm thinking 'no, he's not'. My advice to anyone is not to listen to the experts, just watch the game and gather your own opinions.”

"There was a debate about Wenger on Sky and how crazy is that? People are actually getting interviewed saying he shouldn't be doing this. What that man's done for English football is amazing and will be remembered in 25, 50, 100 years' time. Will those on telly yesterday be remembered for what they've achieved? Absolutely nothing whatsoever.”

"I wouldn't trust them to walk my dog. There are ex-players and ex-referees being given air-time who I wouldn't listen to in a pub. Okay, there will be one or two who've done something in the game whose opinion you would take on board, but I'm on about every Tom, Dick and Harry."

You can’t but agree with Roy Keane on this, I know we as fans have been frustrated by Arsenal this season and that has led to a lot of shite being levelled at Le boss, but what all of us have failed to see is the bigger picture. I remember Alex Ferguson going through the same and look how that turned out. I am not a fan of these so called “pundits” and 90% of them are shite. It doesn’t apply to football in general, but to every other sport as well. I say burn them at stake!

Moving on, Senor Fabregas has been speaking about the win over United. Cesc feels Arsenal went a long way to silencing their critics with victory over Manchester United, whilst also claiming the title is an attainable target.

The title is attainable only if we churn out such performances on a regular basis, we need to get 3 points from sides like Stoke which make 3 points from sides like united a bonus which not only distances your competition from the ultimate goal but also takes you one step closer. Anyhoo, Cesc who heaped praise on Arsene for maintaining his calm inspite of such pressure from the media had the following to say:

“We did it for the manager, because he has believed a lot in us. Without him, probably apart from Gallas and Silvestre, all the rest of us may never have had the chance to play football. We owe him a lot and have to show that on the pitch.”

This is very true, without Arsene having the faith in these players, they would probably still have dwelling somewhere in the reserves of Barcelona and now here they are, at the apex of the midfielder’s hill. Fabregas further added:

“We definitely knew there would be some talk about whether Arsenal were capable of winning anything if we had lost this match. Sometimes we lose playing the same way and everyone says we are not good.”

“Sometimes you are more fortunate in front of goal and sometimes you are not. This is football, this is life. With losers, their heads go down. We have shown we have character. We played against a great team and won under a lot of pressure. So we are happy.”

Let’s hope for our own sake that we can begin to do this on a more regular basis and avoid any more hiccups along the way to the title in May.

Asked for his view on whether Arsenal can win the title, Fabregas replied:

“Oh yes. We have shown we have the qualities to do it.”

Now that’s what I call, keeping the faith.

Now, tomorrow night we face Wigan Athletic in the Carling Cup and its time to bring on the kids. I personally can’t wait to see the kids play, the way they go about their game in that fearless manner with an over abundance of skill is awe-inspiring. A very young and inexperienced team will be put forward and the likes of Bendtner, Vela, Fabianksi, Ramsey, Wilshire, Gibbs etc will come into the team. Players who do not care about who they are facing and I think Wigan are in dire need of being taught a lesson. I can’t wait for Carlos Vela to rip apart our good friend Titus Bramble into tiny little pieces. Should be a laugh and a half. (Excuse the pun). Speaking about the youth, Mark Randall is struggling to be fit in time for the game tomorrow night so lets hope he does manage to play and impress the manager enough to make that transition into the first team.

And finally, Arsenal have opened up negotiations with Theo Walcott over a new contract that has 18 months left with those assholes Chelsea and Real Madrid already sizing up bids. According to the News of the World, Arsene is willing to hand out a £60,000-a-week contract to the wonder boy. Further good news for Arsenal and Wenger is that Robin van Persie looks likely to rebuff interest from Italy in order to pledge his future to the club. RVP is said to want his salary doubled to £80,000-a-week

Right then, that’s the lot.

Tas Van Danya.

Come on you Guuuunnnneeeerrrrssssssssssssss!!

Arsenal 2 - 1 United

Finally, something to celebrate about, I'm esctatic. For now, here are the links to the two goals by Samir Nasri. Enjoy.

1-0: http://www.101greatgoals.com/videodisplay/1744141/

2-0: http://www.101greatgoals.com/videodisplay/1744208/

Tas van Danya.

A chance to make amends

With the Champions League fixture tonight comes a chance to make amends by giving fenerbahce a well deserved thrashing and regaining some vital confidence ahead of United’s visit to The Grove.

Le Clichy has been speaking to the media and had the following to say:

"We have the quality to do it but it's just a fact of being focused and working as a team because in football when you play a collective game everyone has to turn up, everyone has to defend, to attack and to run for each other."

"I think now it is time to realize that we have got the quality but we need to work harder because football is not only about playing nice football and goals."

An obvious hint towards the fact that some players in the team do not have the focus and think they have it made too soon. Focus is detrimental to any job, anywhere in the world as is determination. If you tend to get arrogant, you’ll find yourself, well, you’ll find yourself in a position we are currently in. And if one is to bear in mind the horrendous trip to Stoke that prompted Le Sagna to comment that we lacked focus, then a bitch slapping is the order of the day.

Moving on, we know the team will be rotated and with the likes of Gallas, Adebayor, Theo and Eboue more than likely to miss the game, a lot of young blood could be drafted in, which could see the likes of Vela, Bendtner, Ramsey, Djourou and even Fabianski making starts. I say fabianksi because Wenger is a bit ticked off with Almunia and unlike Fabianksi; Almunia just isn’t world class material. So we’ll have to wait and see till the press-conference by Le Boss. In any case, I do not want to see Alex Song playing tonight, next week or ever again for the club.

A win tonight should definitely see us qualify for the knock-out stages and it would be a welcome boost for everyone; players, fans, the manager etc. We need to set our agenda right and that is to straight for the jugular from the word go and just hope our attacking play clicks. November is a tough month and we definitely need to straighten out the current train wreck that is Arsenal and get back to the only way we know. And that way is The Arsenal way. The way where we steamroll opponents by playing fast, attractive football, only this time, we end up with a trophy in whichever shape or size.

Here’s hoping for a win tonight.

Until next time.

Tas van Danya.

No Arsenal Today

Hello All,

I seriously don't feel like talking anything Arsenal today, the last two games have been horrendous and its now an uphill task for the manager to get the lads focused and determined to make amends by winning a trophy or two by the end of May. That said, i've decided to post a few "Little Johnny" jokes that would undoubtedly make you feel better, so here you go:

NO BATHROOM BREAK
One day there was this little boy named Johny he had to go to the bathroom so he raised his hand and asked the teacher "can I go to the bathroom." she said no. Then 5 mins later he raised his hand and said "damit I have to piss can I go to the bathroom."She said "no not with that mouth."She said now go to the corner and say your a,b,c's.frontwords and backwords .

He went to the corner and said "a,b,c,d,e,f,g,h,i,j,k,l,m,n,o,q,r,s,t,u,v,w,x,y,z"

Then he said "z,y,x,w,v,u,t,s,r,q,o,n,m,l,k,j,i,h,g,f,e,d,c,b,a"

Then she said "Where is the p."

Little Johnny replied "Running down my leg."

DINNER TIME
Little Johnny comes home from school one day and asks his mother what "shit" meant. Thinking fast she replied "food on the table". Next day he comes home and asks his mother what does "son of a bitch" mean. Again, thinking fast again she says "It's a priest". Next day he comes home a asks what does "fuckin'" mean. She says it means "getting dressed".

That same night a priest was coming over for dinner. Johnny is just finished setting the table when he hears the doorbell ring. He yells "got it". He opens the door and says "Hey son of a bitch, shits on the table and mom and dad are upstairs fuckin' ".

DO HEARTS HAVE LEGS
Little Johnny once asked his teacher "Do hearts have legs?."

The teacher answered "Why do you ask that?"

Johnny replied "Yesterday, I heard my dad say sweetheart open your legs."

JOHNNY NEEDS A BIKE

A few months after his parents were divorced, little Johnny passed by his mom's bedroom and saw her rubbing her body and moaning, "I need a man, I need a man!"

Over the next couple of months, he saw her doing this several times. One day, he came home from school and heard her moaning. When he peeked into her bedroom, he saw a man on top of her.

Little Johnny ran into his room, took off his clothes, threw himself on his bed, started stroking himself, and moaning, "Ohh, I need a bike! I need a bike!"

Well, I hope those will have cheered you lot up, heh. Did anyone catch the drama in todays race? Excellent stuff, what a way to win your drivers championship. The look on the ferrari's camp was priceless. I couldn't stop laughing.

Dressing Room Bustups, Players To Be Dropped and a Happy Halloween to you!

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What a night at The Emirates

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Tuesday Roundup

Good Morning Everyone,

There’s not a lot going on this morning in terms of Arsenal news so it’s going to be a quickie. We’ll start off first and foremost with former Arsenal captain and legend Patrick Vieira singing it up for Arsenal.

Following Le Boss’ comments that he made a few days earlier about the lack of support that the fans have been showing to the team, Le ex captain Vieira says the Arsenal faithful do a pretty good job as it is and then demonstrated by singing his own chant for the camera. Vieira also had the following to say about the supporters:

"What I love about the English fans is that they always remember what you give to the club, I'm sure if after 15, 20 years, I go back to Arsenal, they will remember the nine years I spent there, so that's why Arsenal will always be a special club for me.”

"When you have 50,000 people singing ‘Vieira, woa-oh-oh-oh, he comes from Senegal, he plays for Arsenal’... it's fantastic!”

The man is undoubtedly one of the finest players ever to grace an Arsenal shirt and he would without a shadow of a doubt be given the best receptions whenever he returns to the club. However, I do feel that the supporters have been a little too quiet and we need to make The Emirates the noisiest place on earth, the atmosphere can become quite daunting at times and we need to do our utmost to make it as uncomfortable for visiting teams as possible.

In other news, Abou Diaby is glad to be finally back from injury and we’re glad as well, we definitely needed some depth. He claims that the times spent on the sidelines were harsh but they’re what made him stronger and had this to say:

“It was hard but I regard it as part of my evolution if you like.I stayed positive and kept doing things right, like eating the right food and living the right way. Hopefully the problems are now behind me.”

Lets hope his injury woes are well and truly behind him and he can go on to being the true successor to PV that he was initially tipped out to be. Fingers crossed.

Finally, another Arsenal legend, our favourite Freddie Ljungberg has signed for the MLS outfit Seattle Sounders and will be unveiled tommorow. I wish him the very best.

Right then, that’s the lot.

Tas van Danya.

Yippe .. Ki .. Ay

We started the game rather brightly but despite some fine spells of possession, it was Manuel Almunia who was being worked the hardest of the two keepers on the field last night. On the 20th minute mark, a counter attack saw Theo strike the cross bar when he could have passed the ball onto Bendtner at the far post for us to very easily have taken the lead. We were a bit sloppy and that essential ball was lost through misplaced first touches by van Persie, Song and Bendtner.

On the 23rd minute mark, Robert Green very clearly handled the ball outside his area, to prevent Bendtner collecting a long ball, had the assistant referee (who was about 84) have been in the position he ought to have been, then Green would have been sent off. Arsenal went on the back burner and this saw some good play by WHU, they launched an exhilarating counter attack after Eboue lost possession and the pass forward found Bellamy in on goal being chased by Clichy. Bellamy’s shot was all but goal bound until a stunning save by Almunia’s trailing foot sent the ball over the bar for a corner.

At the restart, things did not change much, the hammers picked up where they left off and began applying pressure. A corner rebounded off the chest of Matt Upson from 2 yards out and Almunia saved easily.

On the 54th minute mark, we saw another fine run from Theo from right hand side. He slid a ball across the box into the far post which was blocked over the bar by the defenders. A large chunk of West Ham’s second half pressure appeared to come primarily at the courtesy of Eboue’s natural errors; luckily they were unable to make the most of the opportunities.

At the 67th minute mark, Diaby and Adebayor came on for Nasri and Walcott and Arsenal suddenly began to find their groove and the instant change of gears was very obvious. RVP suddenly became alive and unleashed a fierce shot from the left hand side of the box which was parried by Green and Bendtner was unable to convert the rebound. A couple of minutes later, RVP almost scored as following a silly free kick conceded by Scott Parker on Fabregas in a nice position from 25 yards on the right side. RVP’s shot cannoned off the far post with Green absolutely beaten.

The dreadlock was finally beaten as Adebayor, demonstrating some fine close control and cut inside three defenders from the right and unleashing a shot that forced an own goal from Julien Faubert. 1-0 To The Arsenal.

Song made some nice inquisitive runs and RVP was a regular threat down the right flank. In the first minute of extra time after a scurried clearance from our 18 yard box, saw Bendner, who was 15 yards inside his own half down on the left, launched a transcendent ball some 35 yards over the hammer’s defence and right into the feet of Adebayor, who rounded past the on rushing Green and struck the ball calmly into the back of the empty net. 2-0 and game over.

Afterwards Arsene, whilst speaking about the game had the following to say:

'It was a big win for us today, to come out of it with a frustrating 0-0 would have felt like a wasted ­opportunity to get closer to the top. We knew before the game we could not drop points. West Ham can also feel ­frustrated because they defended well.'

Arsene Wenger further revealed that he had taken a conscious decision to give Adebayor, a rest by saying:

'Last year I over-used him and now we go into a period where we play every three days, which is why I want to rotate a little bit.'

Which is true actually, we’re playing a lot of game up till December and it is of utmost importance that the squad is rotated as much as possible and the other players be given a chance to prove themselves. I however cannot wait to see Carlos Vela find his groove as he is one helluva prospect.

And finally, Juventus have been linked with making a £6million bid for, wait for it, wait a little more, just a wee bit more, Emmanuel Eboue, ladies & gentlemen. According to this article which you can read here, it claims that Juventus were keen on Eboue during the summer transfer window, and it has been reported that they remain interested and will make an offer in the New Year.

Is there a possibility that we pay them the said amount and throw in a Bentley for their brilliant manager so as to ensure that this deal absolutely goes through?

Right then, that’s the lot.

Until next time, ladies & gentlemen, this is your host, Gonner14, signing out.

Tas van Danya.

I'm back.

Hello Everyone,

I'm sorry for not being able to post regularly but I've had my hands full as of late. In any case, it has now become apparent that almost everyone is now writing us off as usual. We definitely have lost our way after putting in some great performances but its definitely not the end of the world. A lot of work needs to be put in by Le Boss and now that we have a break.

Arsene definitely needs to go back to the drawing board and instead of drawing up Wile E. Coyotesque plans, be direct like the Road Runner and kick ass. I probably didn't make too much sense there but the fact of the matter is that this is definitely a make or break season. I'm not worried though as there's still a long way to go and other teams will also drop points and Hull will very soon be back to where they belong but now that our backs are somewhat against the wall, we must bounce back in style and i'm fairly confident we will.

I don't want to indulge on the gloom and doom wagon that everyone else is so mad keen on getting the front seat on so in order to make you guys feel better, I've dug up another quality goal from the Arsenal archives and I'm sure you lot would love to see it, so here it is:

Right then,

Until next time,

Godspeed.

There's nothing to "blog" about today!

Hello Everyone,

There's very little to talk about today as all one can find is the smoke blowing over from the match against Porto. I could go about it all over again but as I've already covered that in yesterday's blog I can't be arsed about re-rounding up the same stories again.

So instead, I'm putting up this video of a Freddie Ljungberg fan which is simply put, uproarious. Enjoy!



Until next time,

Godspeed.

Back In Black

Arsene Wenger had demanded an ardent response from his team following the shock 2-1 defeat at the hands of Hull, and they delivered in irresistible fashion. Whatever was said on the training ground prior to the match by Le Boss appeared to work as Arsenal, particularly in the second half, ran riot whilst Porto crumbled.

We started the game brightly, spare a few nervy moments where Porto seemed to be getting the better of us and were actually playing some very good football despite all our dominance and possession. We gradually settled in to the game and therefore it was only a matter of time before we grabbed our first of the night in the 30th minute courtesy of Robin van Persie. Ade & RVP combined proficiently down the right of the field, creating space for Ade who with the greatest of calm looked up and delayed his pass to RVP, who fired the ball home. It was a lovely goal to open our account and settle any jitters that we had.

After that it was all Arsenal, the champagne began flowing more swiftly and we grabbed the game with both hands. We began to ask even more questions of Porto’s defense and one of the moves resulted in a corner. RVP fired the ball in to penalty area which after finding Ade’s head bounced rather awkwardly and sailed over the heads of Helton and Benitez and landed in the back of the net. It was 2-0 to the Arsenal.

Soon after play resumed, we were back to our usual antics but with much more fluidity and much more composure. 3 minutes into the second half and we added a third. This time a rather brilliant move sparked by Theo Walcott found its way to RVP, who showed strength to fend off Bruno Alves and stab it home.

The fourth goal was scored off the penalty spot by Adebayor after Bendtner was brought down rather gauchely by Guarin who made a stupid tackle when there was absolutely no need for one. In any case it was now 4-0 to the Arsenal. It was a night which had a bit of everything, an outstanding team performance. Everyone seemed to have the touch of magic. We scored four lovely goals and missed another four sitters. We saw Eboue doing some brilliant step overs which would have put the best to shame before trodding on the ball to put an end to that exuberance of talent. We saw how good Carlos Vela is and just how much potential that lad holds. In short it was a complete performance; the boss also seemed to agree by saying:

"It's difficult to measure our best performance of the season but this was maybe our most complete performance."

You can’t argue with that can you? The boss also hailed the king of Arsenal, Cesc Fabregas by saying:

“He was outstanding tonight. He was good offensively and good defensively and overall it was the complete midfield performance.”

It’s taken a while for him but knowing the quality of Cesc, it was only a matter of time. I actually know some jackasses who actually had the nerve of writing him off and declaring him as crap. I’m serious fed up of such fans, why don’t you go support Chelsea or something? You’d get along great, they too have no class like you lot.

Moving on, Manuel Almunia also hailed last night performance and states the claim that the win displayed our true colors by saying:

“It was crucial to have a clean sheet, have a victory like this and play fantastically like we did. think Arsène was furious before the Porto game and we said to ourselves that we had to play the Porto game as Arsenal know they can. We had to show we were a very great team.”

He makes a valid point of Arsene being pissed off. He very rarely criticises the team in the media but after the Hull game he was absolutely seething. As I said in yesterday’s blog, the players need to be given a kick up their arses and dropped from time to time to show that they aren’t indispensable to the Arsenal.

Moving on, Adebayor believes that the understanding that is developing between him and Robin can fire us to glory on all fronts by saying:

“Robin and I are working hard for the team. We are here to help this team win something so I am pleased with the way he played last night. I give him a pass, he gives me a pass so this means there is a good relationship between him and me.”

They have so far netted 11 goals in 9 games that they have played together and that is a good figure. What worries me is the erratic nature of their performances. They net 4 goals in one game combined and then fail to score for 3,4 games in a row. There is no doubting in their quality but the levels of consistency need to built up and maintained. If they are able to do so, I have no doubts that they will indeed fire us to quite a few trophies down the years.

To wrap it up, this win has undoubtedly restored the confidence in the team and it is crucial as the month ahead holds some very crucial games and we absolutely cannot afford any more slip ups like the one we had at Fulham and more recently at home to Hull.

And finally I’d like to wish the readers an Eid Mubarik.

Right then,

Until next time folks.

Come on you Gunnnnneeerrrrssssssssss!!!

It's time to go Gallas + Porto Preview

We face Porto tonight at the Emirates and its also a chance to put to rest any demons we may have been carrying around since Saturdays brilliant encounter with Hull. It will by no means be a walk in the park as they are a tough nut to crack and it is going to be a real test of character for
us.

Anyhow, we'll start with the team news first and the highlight of which is that Samir Nasri is back into squad and will be vying for a start. The rest of the squad remains unchanged although Le Boss has intimated that the squad will be rotated. Whilst many of us would be led to believe that this is out of punishment for the outstanding displays on Saturday le boss made it very clear that it was not the issue. He said:

"Punishment? No, you know sometimes you make changes because you consider the other team, you consider the balance of your team, sometimes because one player is not at his best. If a player or two do not play tomorrow it is not a punishment, it is just because of a rotation in the side. You cannot play every single game with the same 11 players."

Le boss has made it crystal clear why the rotation is being taken into effect but I personally believe that he need not hide behind this & just drop those that deserve it however fragile their unwarranted ego's may be. In any case, some big decisions need to be made in terms of who stays and who goes and the biggest decisions need to be made in that of the defence and the striking departments. Arsene needs to ask himself wether he wants to continue playing the highly erratic, lethargic and offside prone Adebayor and RVP or is it high time the hardworking and highly deserving duo of Bendtner or Vela be brought into the mix? If we look at the defence then 95% of the gooners would like to see Gallas dropped in favor of Djourou but as always it will be Kolo Toure who would be the most likely to be dropped.

The game, as I have mentioned earlier is not going to be a walk in the park and tonight is an game we must absolutely win otherwise we'd find qualification into the group stages a little too daunting.

Moving on, William Gallas has pointed out his ambitions for the season ahead whilst speaking to the official website after the Hull defeat and had this to say:

"We have to try to stay in the fourth position. It's very difficult to accept."

This is very ambitious indeed, finish 4th without any trophy is exactly what is required. I have never heard of a more ambitious captain and people like him have certainly put to rest former captains like Patrick Vieira and Tony Adams to shame.

I seriously feel that Arsene needs to get rid of Gallas asap. The centre of defence is becoming a major problem and even so early into the season we have conceded too many goals off set pieces and defensive errors for comfort.

We really miss a strong presence at the back, like Tony Adams or Sol Campbell and in Gallas or Toure, we don't always have that. Why doesn't Arsene Wenger see this? When it comes to Gallas to being out-muscled in the box from set pieces, it's happening far too regularly. If you look at the other top teams in the Premier League, namely Liverpool, Manchester United etc one can see got the commanding centre halves who will not allow you any space to score off against, whatever the situation maybe.

Arsene Wenger after the Hull defeat even came out and said:

"I believe that we have more a size problem than quality in our defending problem. Our centre backs are not very tall. I don't know what we can do. It's not only centre backs who defend. As a team we are a bit short."

I find this statement, "I don't know what we can do" a little hypocritical of Arsene. This isn't something that happened 5 minutes before the Hull game but has been eminently apparent for a long time now. We've had Gallas and Toure our first choice centre backs for quite some time and something could have so easily been done in the summer about this obvious lack of size.

The problem is that William Gallas cannot be dropped. Why you ask? Well its largely due to the fact that Arsene Wenger has made him club captain and not only stuck with him but also made the promise of playing regular games at centre back. What a magnanimous mistake this now looks in retrospect.

However, we must concentrate on the task that lies ahead and hope that Mr. Gallas can keep his act together and not concede any stupid goals as usual.

Here's hoping for all 3 points.

Come on you Gunneerrrssssssssss!!!!

Horrendous

I'm sure all of us are feeling rather gutted after seeing what we did and what hurt more was the fact that we lost at the Emirates, our first league defeat since April of last year. It was a pathetic performance to say the least, one where the enitre team failed to perform and its now the second time in six games we have lost to a team that actually taken the game to us and we've ended up losing. The boss agrees here and says:

"We don't know how costly it could be but they were committed. It was a bit similar to (Arsenal's match at) Fulham."

It really sucks to say the least, I seriously think Le Boss needs to think things through and some of the players need to be given a dressing down. The lack of competition for some positions is insane and hence the procrastinating behavior of some players on different occasions. The Boss says:

"Everything that makes you win football games was not there from the start. The concentration levels were not high enough from the start. When we went 1-0 up our focus dropped and we gave them too much room."

Arsene also thought that we had been handed a good lesson by yesterday's defeat. He also demanded improvement in the overall attitude of the team. He's right as well, we were caught out for our own laziness and also for tyring to score that fucking perfect goal when we really should have been scoring. The boss said:

"We had the chances to win the game. The commitment was on the high side but we weren't completely switched on to the level you need to be to win the game. It was a good lesson for us. We now know that if our attitude isn't right, we can lose games."

No one had the hunger to go out and win the game and it was really disappointing. That said, its not the end of the world, really it isn't. Its not like the other teams will not drop points over the course of the season or its not like we won't gain any. We need to keep the faith and remain hopeful that we don't keep repeating such horrendous performances.

Until next time folks.

What we would we do without you Arsene?

We have Hull coming over today and the anticipation of having some football to watch after a rather long week is very exciting. We are going into today’s game on the back of some cracking performances that has seen us score 14 goals and concede just 2 in all competitions and one must not forget that 3 out of those 4 games were by no means easy. The way we literally tore those teams apart has been a treat to watch. We’ve shown great resilience, composure and never compromised the Arsenal way of playing football. The most important aspect is that you can’t single out one or two players either; the entire team has stood up and come through where it mattered. Therefore, to expect an absolute decimation today would be quite fair.

Onto some team news now, nothing has changed thus far since what I told you lot in yesterday’s blog. To give you a brief overview though, Clichy & Silvestre are fit and apart from Silvestre returning to fitness, the team remains unchanged. Samir Nasri is still out injured. I swear, the left side of the pitch is jinxed for us.

While we are on the topic of left midfielders who are always out injured, one can not help but mention Tomas Rosicky. We were expecting to see his make his way back to the squad (finally) sometime in December but now the club is now rather “speechless” about him. It is not very surprising to hear that they can now not give an exact date towards his return. For a player who has been out since January for reasons unknown and who’d be coming back after Eduardo, you have to seriously think that his days at the club are numbered. This is the season where he has to come out and prove that his sole duty at the club is to not keep the physio’s occupied but also to perhaps sometimes play a little football as well. It’s very frustrating, I’m a big fan of the player but I think the shit has all but hit the fan with him.

In other news, it’s all Arsene Wenger today who has had a lot to say. He speaks about the possibility of packing up and leaving the club by the time his contract runs out in 2011. He says:

“I've not thought about my contract, “I will give myself to the end of my contract in 2011 and then have a serious check-point. You don't want as well to go on too long.”

It would be really sad to see him, should the day ever arrive. I don’t even know who we would replace him with. He’s one of the best manager’s in the world and I’d only place Alex Ferguson in the same category as him. This man is Arsenal, through and through.Its even in his name, Arsen – e. Arsen – al. Its going to be really hard. *sighs*

The boss also speaks about the fact that his upcoming anniversary on Sunday, that will mark his 12th year at the club (amazing in this day and age) is not a time to sit and gloat over past achivements but to remain focused on the future. The boss says:

“I’m not very happy to speak about my anniversary because what interests me in life is what is in front of me and not what is behind me.”

"I also believe that is part of the sickness of this job, as you know what you've done is forgotten and what is important is what happens tomorrow. You spend your life worrying about the future, and are always expecting the next game, the next game and the next game”

"It becomes something almost perverse. It takes over your brain completely and you never take time to look back."

He’s very right at this. The job of a football manager is the most thankless one in the world. No matter how good you are a sudden slip and the world climbs on top of your head and jumps on it. We’ve seen this happen with Alex Ferguson as well. The amount of trophy’s he’d won for United counted for nothing when they hit a barren phase whilst the team was in a state of transition. The club fans were calling for his head and the same has been apparent with Arsene Wenger. People who tend to do this are not fans and are just an ungrateful lot.

Finally, young Denilson has been looking to follow in the footsteps of Patrick Vieira & Gilberto Silva. Not the worst of role models to follow are they? Heh! He says:

"He (Patrick) helped Arsenal to achieve beautiful things so it’s an important reference for me. But it’s the same with Gilberto Silva. He is also an example for me to follow.”

"They have both made their mark and now it is my time to write my history in the pages of Arsenal."

We’re waiting as well Denilson. We hope you make 600+ appearances and score 200 goals for a midfielder and help us win a ton of trophies in the process.

Right then, a couple of hours to go till kick-off.

I can’t wait.

Come on you Gunnnnnnnneeeeeerrrrrrrrrssssss!!

You're one in a million Cesc!

Our beloved midfield maestro Cesc Fabregas has vowed that, he will never, never, NEVER EVER quit The Arsenal. Whilst talking to The Sun, the king of Arsenal had this to say:

“I am so happy here that I will never think about moving as long as things keep going the way they are. For me it’s not a problem. My mentality is the same since the day I signed for the club.”

“What’s the point in having millions and millions in the bank if you don’t enjoy playing and you are not happy? I am happy, I love the way we are playing and the fact I’m still here after three seasons’s without winning anything means something.”

“It’s because I love the game, I love the club and I love the way we play football. I really enjoy the way we play on the field and for me, that’s the most important thing.”

An obvious jab was taken at all the footballers who had prioritized money before anything and very openly stated that money wasn’t everything in the world. Footballers such as Cesc don’t come by that very often anymore and I must say I am extremely pleased to hear someone not bleating about money for a change. He is a sublime player and an excellent individual. A perfect role-model for everyone out there who is in need of one.

Cesc also claimed he was “Sleepless in London” because of the up and coming kids at the club. The king even said that he needed to raise his game in light of the snazzy displays by Wilshire, Ramsey & Merida against Sheffield United. He said:

“I was really excited on Tuesday — it was sensational. You can see all the players have ambition; they want to show how good they are. I cannot go to sleep as one day or other they will want to play more and more and the manager will want them to play more.

“I will have to be better and better. Wilshere, Ramsey, Merida — they all play in my position. This is great for me. I love competition. If the players are so young you can feel your place is too secure. So it’s fantastic to have competition — to wake you up and make you a better player.”

For someone as established as Cesc is, for someone as talented as he, for him to be actually talking about how important it was to up his game and make sure he deserved his place in the Arsenal side is truly remarkable. With the truly altruistic way that he has complimented these players, it too shows how down to earth he is and how much he has Arsenal in his heart.

Cesc also spoke about the lack of trophies at The Arsenal and how it didn't bother him so much. He had this to say:

“People can say ‘They will never win’ but it’s not in my mind. I’ll never think we won’t win anything. But sometimes when you feel so good during the game and play the game you enjoy so much, even if you haven’t won anything in the last three seasons, I have felt so good, so free. I enjoy it so much.

“Of course you want to win but when you have this recompense inside that you are playing so well maybe it’s much better than to be in another team that wins trophies but you don’t enjoy it so much.”

He really has the maturity of a 60 year old and it’s just amazing to see a player of his kind. He has all the makings of an Arsenal legend that will fall in a category even higher than that of Dennis Bergkamp or even Thierry Henry. Come on Arsene, make him captain. Make him le captain right now.

We all remember how much criticism le boss faced when the transfer window closed without any player arriving into the club. Football “pundits” as usual wrote us off completely and yet again tipped this year to the year that sp*rs will win all major trohpy’s around the world. Yes, they will win the Bundesliga, the Primera Liga, The Premiership, the Euro Cup, The Champions League, The World Cup and “Go fuck yourselves” award for being the shittiest lot of rejects in the world. Now however, with us being top of the League, Sp*rs being 20th and the children having just hammered Sheffield United in the Carling Cup, the issue all but disappeared.

The pundits are nowhere to be found and Arsene Wenger now finally explains why he did not add to the squad. According to the boss it was last term’s improvement, coupled with the youngsters rapidly rising through the ranks, that helped convince him that a signing was not the order of the day. The genius said:

“I believe we have many good players here and we try to sort out any problems collectively as a team. We lost some top-class players in the summer but we always try to produce good young players and develop them. I always feel with the youth policy, the Club has a security and even if one or two players leave, we are strong enough to cope with it.”

The boss also spoke about going that extra mile this time around to show everyone that we had truly learnt from our mistakes.

“Having been in that position before, our determination not to lose our advantage is certainly greater than ever. We experienced a big frustration last season and, in a highly-competitive league, we want to stay where we are. We were very close last year and it will be close again. We want to show we have learned.”

I have to admit, after patiently watching the boss creating this monster, it would be truly fucking sweet to see these young lads lifting a trophy or two. I swear, would it not be fun seeing Le Boss having the last laugh? I can’t wait. I honestly believe it is coming, we were so close last time around, we could only possibly build on a great season much like what United did last time around. I really can’t wait.

It seems that those utterly despicable cunts, namely Inter Milan are now trying to get their grubby little hands on Jack Wilshire. The only thing I have to say to this is, go fuck yourselves Milan!

Finally for some team news ahead of our clash tomorrow against Hull. As reported in yesterday’s blog, the squad remains unchanged to that which beat Bolton a week before, the only addition to that is of Silvestre. Samir Nasri is still sidelined and I’m really becoming convinced our left hand side of the midfield has been jinxed since the departure of Robert Pires to Villarreal.

Right then, that’s the lot!

Come on you Gunnersssssssssssss!!!!

Bits & Pieces

We’re a bit high and dry in terms of Arsenal news right now but I’d still try my best to put together some meaningful bits & pieces together to fulfill your blogging needs for the day.

We’ll start off with Le Genius heaping more praise on our new Liam Brady. The compliments don't come any bigger, especially if happen to be a 16-year-old chap trying to make your way in the professional game and Arsène yesterday did not hesitate for a second in mentioning Wilshere's name in the same sentence as the words "Liam" and "Brady". The boss had this to say:

"He is a quiet boy, very determined and focused. For the rest, the talent is there. You have seen that again"

He also stressed the importance of taking time to nurture his talent and this is very important in his overall development.

"When you are a manager of a boy like that who has the talent, you are always cautious to put too much pressure on him and too high a level of expectation. I believe it is all in there, but also that I have a responsibility to nurture him and get him in the right development over the next two or three years, that will be vital. From 16 to 19 is a very important age for a football player – and Jack has skipped a few classes.”

Le boss stands true and this is very important obviously; otherwise if we heap too much pressure on any player we can very easily pull a Michael Owen or a Robbie Fowler on them.

AW was also full of praise for Carlos Vela, and said:

“Carlos is a player who has everything in his locker. He is agile, has a good first touch and is very calm in front of goal. Also, he is a clinical and quick finisher and I just think he is top class."

Oddly enough, I think so too. As I mentioned in yesterday’s blog, I thought Carlos Vela was top notch, his calmness in front of goal reminds one of Eduardo and yet his finishing is one step beyond that, infact his finishing reminds me of Dennis Bergkamp even. I’m really excited to see more of Vela in the coming games. He certainly special.

Moving on, ex-Gunner, Nicolas Anelka has heaped praise on le boss.

"We are used to watching them play like this. They have always played extraordinary football. They have a super coach who knows how to get the best from his players.”

He himself scored some absolute crackers whilst at the club and it was a shame that he had to be a jackass and screw it all up. On the other hand, we got Thierry Henry and a new training facility, so it all worked out well for us, didn’t it?

Onto some team news now ahead of the clash with Hull, it seems that Mikael Silvestre is available for selection and Gael Clichy after receiving a nasty lump on his shin against Bolton. Alex Song faces a late fitness test and apart from that, the rest of the team is available.

And finally, RVP is on the verge of getting a new contract.

The weekends around the corner and there’s some Arsenal to look forward to as well.

Here’s hoping for a million goals and all three points.

Godspeed.

Trés Magnifique

There’s just one word to describe the events taking place at the Emirates last night, and that word is “Slaughter.” Yes, slaughter, a youth team against an experienced Championship side, whose lawyers have been arguing that they should be in the Premier League, were made to look like amateurs by a team comprising eight teenagers with an average age of 19, who put on a footballing masterclass that was a joy to behold.

After a rather edgy start to the game, where the possession of the ball was sacrificed too readily, The lads recovered their composure to put on a mouth watering show, headlined by the Carlos Vela hat-trick and the support being in the shape of a Bendtner brace & a debut goal by Jack Wilshire.

The game started with the first real chance falling to the Blades. Gary Speed found Danny Webber who cut in from the left but failed in his attempt at goal. From thereon in, it was all about The Arsenal. Vela in possession managed to hold off Morgan before finding Bendtner, who calmly stroked the ball past the Sheffield keeper to put our young Arsenal side ahead.

Bendtner got a second, 11 minutes late after, Ramsey found him with a back heal and Bendtner got in behind the defense before finishing past Kenny. Only 2 minutes later, it was Bendtner again who this time put Carlos Vela through to add our third of the night.

Soon after play resumed, Kieran Gibbs got the ball down to the left, and found Vela who cut inside and beat Morgan before lifting the ball over and about the keeper. Sheffield United then went into suspended animation, a quick short corner by Arsenal left Wilshere to pick his spot in the bottom corner Aaron Ramsey got his second assist of the night, once again finding out Carlos Vela on the left who smashed the ball passed Kenny to make it 6 for the night for The Arsenal.

It was an incredible display by the lads, especially by that of Carlos Vela who could more than likely be the 18 yard box finisher that Arsene Wenger has been searching for. Vela showed remarkable composure (very similar to Eduardo) for his 3 goals, I’m certain this lad could find himself challenging the more established players like RVP & Ade in no time. Le boss agrees:

"I think he’s a player who has everything in his locker of a good striker. He's agile, good first touch, very calm in front of goal, clinical and quick finisher and I just think he’s top class."

Not to forget, Fran Mérida also demonstrated the class that has had club insiders purring in expectation for several years, Ramsey taking to the grandeur of the Emirates Stadium like a fish to water and Jack Wilshere, 16, confirming his vast potential with a first senior goal struck from the edge of the penalty area. Le boss was very impressed by Wilshire and singled him out for a lot of praise and even talks of a comparison to Liam Brady were made, the boss said:

"He was 15 [when he first impressed] he’s 16 and last year a few times I integrated him in our [first team] training sessions. He didn’t look at all out of place. Straight away football was natural for him.”

"People tell me he is a little bit like Liam Brady because he has good balance and change of direction. I dont know Liam well enough.I believe later [in his career] he will be a central midfielder or behind the strikers."

Post match though Le Genious, was obviously full of praise, he said:

"I believe every one in his position has done very well. From goalkeeper [Lukasz] Fabianski up to [Nicklas] Bendtner and Carlos Vela of course up front they were great. You know already Bendtner and you discovered maybe a bit more about Vela. He is a clinical finisher. I am pleased as well with our midfield, and our defence was serious and stayed strong - we looked like the complete team and I’m very happy and proud of that.”

He even went onto state that this was the “cream of the youth crop” (sorry, Goon! :P) he’s had thus far, he said:

“Yes [these are the best crop of kids] Yes. Because there is not one player who has not the real quality of the Premier League in any position."

Even Kevin Blackwell, the Sheffield manager was full of praise for the youth side that tore apart his Sheffield United side, he said:

“Life has a funny way of bringing you back to earth, we knew they were a good set of lads, but no one knew quite how good they were. That side could play in the Premier League. It was like trying to swat a fly and we couldn’t catch them. I asked Arsène at the end if I could borrow 11 for Saturday.”

Bearing the slaughter in mind, Phil Brown, the Hull manager would be more than happy to face the first XI this weekend. Heh.

Finally, that sad fuck platini has been bleating on as usual and I find him so nauseating that I don’t even want to divulge into the details. My good friend, The Goon is covering this department and if you want a better look into the details, do so by clicking here.

All Hail Arsene.

Arsenal for life.

All Hail Arsene

We’ll start off today with le boss hailing the gunners for their exceptional performances over the past week. The team, which had been written off entirely before the start of the season, scored 8 goals and conceded only 2, securing 2 wins and a draw over the past seven days. These games were all away and not only required a lot of traveling but also required a lot of character from the lads. We were faced with testing Premier League trips to the outposts of Blackburn & Bolton, journeys that we do not always relish, but eventually negotiated with little bother, securing a 3-1 win at The Reebok and an exhilarating 4-0 triumph at Ewood Park. And lest we forget, a late Gallas goal secured a point at Dynamo Kiev, (another place we seem to have issues) in match day one of the Champions League.

The boss whilst reflecting on these games had this to say:

“We’ve dropped points at teams like Blackburn and Bolton in the past but we have won convincingly at both places in the last week. We had an international break, then three away games, including a Champions League tie in Kiev, so what this team has done in the last week is exceptional.”

The boss also claims he sees vast improvements over the squad from last year and we all remember the squad we had that time around, the boss had this to say:

“This team has learned and improved from last year. Look at my team today. Denilson is 20, Cesc is 21, Song is 21, Theo is 19, Bendtner is 20. When you have players of that age and can still fight for the championship it bodes well.”

This, by no means is an understatement, we do seem much more composed and much more focused than last year and I said yesterday, the team will only improve. If you look at the players who are about to make a return, the quality they have to offer is exceptional. The most important part is that we continue playing as a collective unit, maintaining a single objective with a single direction and this naturally creates the hunger to win. I, therefore, don’t see any reason why we shouldn’t be able to bring a trophy or two back to the Emirates. The boss agrees with me on this and says:

"We want to win the title and the Champions League. We have the quality, we are hungry, and we have a good spirit. What I like about this team is that they have a good attitude and share the same vision and express themselves well. We want to win first of all, but if it's possible we want to win with style."

And finally, Le Boss has been full of praise for Alex Song, he said:

"[When I signed him I liked] his personality, his technical quality, his composure, his strength in the one against one, the way he uses his body in the fight and, overall, his intelligence. I believe in him”

When he first came to the club, I have to admit I didn’t like him at all, most of the Gooners agreed with me on this and almost everyone wanted Alex Song to be kicked off the team, much the same case with Almunia, but you have to hand it to both players, they took all the criticism quietly, worked hard, got their chance and now have begun to silently make their mark amongst the best in Europe.

Arsene Knows. There’s no doubting this fact.

All Hail Arsene.

Arsenal is in a state of 911.

After the 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge, Arsenal has moved to the top of the table. Add the impressive numbers generated by the football side of the business that were announced yesterday and suddenly the “pundits” who had tipped sp*rs to enter the “big four” at our expense have gone very, very quiet indeed.

Whilst all the pre-season talk was focused on the players we had lost, how we were in crisis, how this was the year the scum that is sp*rs will take over the throne at our expense and the search for a defensive midfielder, a young squad trained hard to improve on a season of missed chances.Both on and off the pitch, there is only one individual with the vision to make this happen but certainly he couldn’t do it alone. Then who can we credit for this resurgence? Can we name one or two players even? No. It is a collective effort. Le Boss, has released the demons, so to speak, in the form of players such as Theo Walcott, Denilson & Carlos Vela and who have electrified the squad into a side with seemingly boundless talent, flair and creativity. Throw in the summer signings of Samir Nasri & to some extent Aaron Ramsey who have both adapted well to the finesse that is Arsenal. Mikael Silvestre and Amaury Bischoff have yet to enter the fray and knowing le boss, I’m fairly confident the change of atmosphere will bring out the very best in both players. Not to mention the return from injuries of Eduardo, Rosicky and Diaby, who with their technical affluence can single-handedly transform the entire scenario. One can only see one way for The Arsenal and that way is UP, UP & BEYOND.

Now, we have a midweek Carling Cup fixture against the likes of Sheffield Utd. We’d undoubtedly get to see our youth team let loose and a chance to see potential Gunners given carve a niche’for themselves. Aaron Ramsey, Kieran Gibbs and Jack Wilshere who have talent oozing out of their feet and enough potential to light up the League Cup and even the Premiership on fire for many seasons to come.

So, where is wenger’s head? where exactly is this “crisis” and where exactly are these pundits? Where exactly are sp*rs after spending 70 million pounds on players?

Well, there never was a crisis, the people calling for le boss’ head, the self-proclaimed “real” fans, are just pathetic little ingrates, My personal suggestion to you fine lot is to FUCK OFF to your pathetic existence and go support Chelsea. These pundits, how about back under the rock that they crawled out from? And Sp*rs, well 20th on the table. Wouldn’t it be funny that instead of finishing in the big four, they get relegated. I’m sure Juande Ramos should be able to win them a trophy and enable them to finish in the top four next season, albeit not in this league. Think about it lads. I’ve heard life down there is a lot more fun. At least, you “might” manage to win a “real” trophy and have something “real” to “celebrate”.

In other news, Cesc was pleased that we were able to cope to our yearly trip to Normandy quite well. He said:

"We showed great character and if you are going to win the league you have to win these games. We don't want to stop here. We want to keep going."

He also demanded to know why Kevin Davies wasn’t sent off for that malicious tackle on Gael Clichy. We had Diaby sent off at Bolton last season for a challenge on Steinsson, quite similar to the one we saw last night on Clichy. Cesc clearly felt Davies, who was booked, should have seen red too for his lunging tackle on the full-back.

"Look at his leg! Why not the same punishment?"

Firstly, I’m quite pleased as to how well we were able to step up to challenge and showed absolutely no fear, its something that we have built up quite positively on since last season and while sterner tests are yet to come, these sort of games are where there are no excuses to take all three points and are ones that ultimately settle the title towards the end of the season. Secondly, I agree with Cesc, the difference of attitude is shocking. I’m sick of this biasedness we tend to face everywhere we go.

Le Genious has praised the attitude of the Gunners.

Finally, please take a moment and send out a quiet prayer to those slain mercilessly in the suicide attacks at the Marriott. May GOD grant their families the courage to cope with the situtaion. Terrorists have no religion and may these suicide bombers and the others responsible burn in eternal hell.

That’s the lot.

Godbless.

Live & Let Live

"Look at the shoes your filling. Look at the blood we're spilling.

Look at the world we're killing. The way we've always done before. Look in the doubt we've wallowed.Look at the leaders we've followed. Look at the lies we've swallowed.

And I don't want to hear no more."

A little after the fast broke here in Islamabad a massive suicide truck bomb devastated the heavily guarded Marriott Hotel, killing at least 40 people and wounding another 200. A dozen more are feared dead, trapped inside the rubble including Danish, US, Saudi and citizens from various other countries.

A recent rash of civilian deaths from U.S. airstrikes and military operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan has been feeding widespread outrage and anger in these countries toward the U.S.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has condemned recent U.S. attacks in his country, while the Pakistan government had filed a formal protest. The backlash of these actions to rid their personal problems is being faced by the innocent men & women of these poor developing nations.

To top if all off, the nation's leadership only sits and gives feeble comdemnation statements that anyone least concerned with pakistan would make. When a government official was contacted , instead of accepting the blast as a security lapse, he comforts himself with the thought that no one of "importance" was killed or hurt.

The rest of the people of this country seem like cattle to our honorable leadership. Had that not been the case, concrete steps would've been taken to avoid such a massive loss of life and property. They wage a war which even the US themselves admit is going nowhere, all the while piling the blame on Pakistan. Simply demanding "do more, do more". Pakistan has yet again given sacrifice in the shape of our own citizens being slaughtered by their brethren. How much "more" do you possibly want from us?

Today we have witnessed yet again that Pakistan has suffered the most through cooperation with the US on this so called "War on Terror", which should rather be called "War of Terror" to befittingly describe its impact on our own country and the US Government's image around the world.

We, the Pakistanis, dont know what to do. To mourn the impotence of our government or to condemn US attacks on our soil or to blame the self created " Taliban". For a war that never was ours . We vehemently condemn all forms of terrorism and loss of life. But that is not what this so called "War on Terror" has set out to eliminate. Rather the "War on Terror" is a intelligence-blunder littered mismanaged war to take control of all the worlds strategic assets for the sole benifit of the american agenda of world dominance.

On record , US has always been all-smiles to Pakistan , coining terms like "Non-Nato Ally" just to exploit the current situation , falsly assuring us of not attacking our soil or our sovereignty . We , the Pakistani's, have only one thing to say to "Uncle Sam" or simply "Sam" since we'd never like to consider him as our Uncle.

We want nothing to do with you or your War of Terror. Leave us alone. We hope that atleast these words could affect the mere strands of moral fiber that may be left somewhere in the west. That this message can get to someone who isnt brain-dead or soulless.

We mourn the loss of the lives of our brethren as well as the loss of the lives of foreign citizens, whose protection was our duty once they stepped into Pakistan.

May those responsible, burn in eternal hell.

"War is enjoyable to those who've had no experience of it" - Erasmus

"My hands are tied. For all I've seen has changed my mind, but still the wars go on as the years go by. With no love of God or human rights. 'Cause all these dreams are swept aside, by bloody hands of the hypnotized. Who carry the cross of homicide and history bears the scars of our civil wars"

UPDATE: According to an official statement, the death toll has risen to 53 and the injured at 250. The Czech Ambassador to Pakistan, has also been confirmed as the ones amongst the dead.

Bolton Today

What a tricky tie it is today. A trip to Lancashire has never been easy for us and every victory we have had has been nothing short of a trip to hell and back. It goes back all the way to a difficult cup tie at Burnden Park in the early 90s. The Gunners have always seemed to struggle with Bolton’s tactics, succumbing to a series of tame defeats, the most forgettable of which was a 2-2 draw back in April 2003 which effectively put an end to our title hopes.

There have of course been happier times as well. Who could forget the stirring comeback last season when Arsenal, two goals down and a man down at half time, rallied to a delightful 3-2 victory? The bizarre F.A. Cup Fourth Round replay the season before which saw Arsenal win 3-1 in extra time, two players missing penalties in the process, Bolton having a man sent off and Adebayor missing an open goal & then getting two? And of course the incredibly tight 1-0 victory in March 1998 that constituted part of Arsenal’s awesome 10 match winning run to the title.

Today isn’t going to be a walk in the park either. It’s going to be a hard fought physical battle reminiscent of Normandy. We are going to be kicked about as usual but its now down to our character and how well we respond to the challenge. That said I’m fairly confident we have the quality & the determination to come back with all 3 points in the bag.

Speaking of getting kicked about; Le boss is urging the referees to not allow Theo getting kicked out of football by the games bully-boys. Theo has recently become the target after scoring that sensational hat-trick against Croatia and is now a marked man (as we saw in Kiev). Le boss said:

“Unfortunately for a player who gets a name for being dangerous, the first answer he gets is harsh treatment. We do not expect presents from anybody but we want protection from referees.”

“I thought Wednesday night, for example, the target was not the ball. If a guy plays hard it is down to Theo to deal with it. But if the guy targets Theo, he has to be punished.”

He has a point there as well, if a foul is being committed, deal with it accordingly. The ref’s are exactly like two-faced from Batman, the ugly side is for arsenal & the normal one’s for Chelsea and other despicable clubs ran by *****. For instance, If Theo was a Chelsea player, the Kiev captain would have been sent off, but since he plays for the Arsenal, the ref turns a blind eye and calls it a “part of the game”.

Moving on, Samir Nasri could make his return to the side today.

In other news, Arsene believes Denilson can effectively fill up the void left by Flamini. I had been expecting to hear this since quite some time. Speaking to Arsenal.com, Wenger said:

“Denilson has different qualities to Flamini but if you look at the numbers at the end of the season you will see he is a very good player. You look at the assists he has had since the start of the season, the balls he wins, the interceptions he has and the distance he covers”.

He more in the mould of Cesc but he has the quality and the temperament to succeed at the highest level. He has put in a few good performances (spare the one at Fulham) and my guess is as good as anybody else’s. We’d have to wait and see at the end of the season.

Finally, Robert Pires thinks we are better than last season despite losing three mid-fielders (Does Hleb even count?) and reckons we can lift a trophy or two this season. He says:

“I think they have moved up a level. The players are much stronger; they are a young side that has gained a lot of experience.

“I have a very good feeling about Arsenal this year. I don't know whether it will be the Premier League or the Champions League but I believe they will win at least one title this season.”

Don’t you just love Robert Pires?

Here’s hoping to all 3 points today.

Cheers.