Today is a MUST WIN GAME, a draw WONT DO....

Today is a must win game, no two ways about it...if we draw, it will mean Tottenham have it in there own hands. They will have only two games left to play, so they should be able to get the full amount of points to qualify over us...that simply CANT HAPPEN....we end it today. It is a rough game today, which will be physical and a typical derby, apart from the fact that there hasnt been a derby this important for a long time. I expect Adebayor to play since he wont be able to play on Tuesday, so he can go all out today without having to worry about "being tired" or getting a knock for the midweek game. If he doesnt play, Van Persie will, but I hope that HENRY DOES PLAY because he was left out of the Manure game...and we all know what happened there. This is a must win game...and I know I am repeating that but it has to be said...over and over again....

I cant really predict the outcome without knowing who will play, but I think Reyes will come in, perhaps Diaby and Djourou...Van Persie aswell...lets wait and see! All I can say, it should be a cracking match, but expect a scrappy affair, even with both teams looking to play good attacking football, it is still a North London Derby! Come on you gooners!

Go To Article

It wasn’t a penalty! Apparently…Here is the PIC to prove it!

Somebody sent me an email saying that “Jose Mari was OUTSIDE of the area at the moment of contact so Villarreal were denied a free kick. We were denied the Henry goal that was ONSIDE”….What you think of that then!? Post your comments on that pic below!

Go To Article

A Tale of Play-Acting, Diving, A Disallowed Goal, Penalty Shouts and The Squirrel Stripper

A night that everyone was waiting for, the biggest night we have ever experienced in the Champions League…it was a tough one to call, were the players going to be overawed by the new experience of a European Champions League Semi-Final? Or were they going to stand up to the task set out and deliver a stunning display backed by the “special-ness” of the feeling at Highbury? A young inexperienced side facing a deceitful and conniving set of players in yellow, who knew all the tricks in the book to break up the rhythm of play for Arsenal, mainly in the middle of the pitch…by tripping up our players unnecessarily…where the ref would keep giving out “last warnings” but hardly any yellows.

Villarreal knew exactly what they needed to do to stop Arsenal play, but Lehmann had nothing to do all night apart from the Riquelme free kick that was smack bang in the middle of the goal. I went to my family’s house to watch the game, who are all diehard Arsenal fans. Even my little nephew, who is 6, and annoying as ever, was wearing his Henry shirt cheering on the gunners like an old pro. The match started well enough, we kept the ball for the opening spell like we always seem to do, and had an Henry goal disallowed….HE WAS LEVEL, if not behind, when the ball was played…a terrible decision! I knew that once it was disallowed it would be a low scoring affair. Hleb was fantastic along with Gilberto who showed why he played every single minute of the world cup when Brazil won with the “Three R’s”…Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Ronaldinho.

Gilberto was tight on Riquelme all night and made several brilliant tackles while breaking up play without having to resort to the Spaniards antics of tripping people up! Gilberto was probably our best player on the night, or Hleb who once again was top class on the right wing. If he had that same penetration on the left wing with Reyes then we might have got another goal or two. Henry didn’t get a chance to do much apart from the goal that never was, and that cute little reverse pass that set Hleb up for Toure to finish. It was too congested in the middle of the park, with Ljungberg, Pires and Flamini all being right footed, all 3 never wanted to go on the outside and kept cutting inside. That made our play too narrow and with 7 of there players continuously behind the ball, it was going to be tough to break them down in that way.

To be honest it was an anti-climax to a huge occasion BUT to be fair to the players, they got a goal and should have had two, while maintaining this terrific run of defensive stableness. Yet another clean sheet, in a scrappy affair that was more crucial then even scoring. Even though they should have had a penalty, it just shows justice was served for them continuously falling when they shouldn’t have…never cry wolf as they say…HOWEVER this result now means that if we score out there, which I fancy us to do, then they will need to score three to beat us. They are a tough side, who are well disciplined as said before…and they don’t concede many at all…BUT THEY DON’T SCORE MANY EITHER….they wont score three goals against this side who are now able to protect their lead and haven’t conceded in 9 straight champions league games. The likes of Ronaldo, Robinho, Raul, Zidane, Beckham, Ibrahimovic, Trezeguet, Nedved haven’t scored even one, let alone 3…in one game. If you are an Arsenal supporter, you should be happy that we are in this position, one game away from a memorable final in Theirry’s home town in Paris. A lot can happen in 90mins….but heres the plan:

GO there….play 4-5-1…play Reyes on the left…Hleb on the right…use the width that we have at our disposal and keep tight on Riquelme and CO…break on the counter with our ridiculous pace…be positive rather than negative….and meet Barcelona in Paris….HMMM that sounds nice…but still a lot of hard work to do in a match still only at half time.

It’s a Thursday and we have the SCUM’s game to look forward to now, another historic game in the making…the LAST EVER North London derby at Highbury…Wenger has already told us he will “rotate”…but a full preview on that will be written later. For now, sit back and relax…just don’t get too over-hyped and remember it is only half time!....BUT…ONE CANT HELP BUT TO THINK ABOUT the mouth-watering tie that could await us in Paris, Henry vs Ronaldinho? The two best footballers on the planet playing on different attacking teams, in a stadium fit for the occasion. They could be playing together next season, but for now lets cherish what is, a situation we have never been in before! On the brink of a game of two, FOOTBALLING TEAMS…NO NOT TOTTENHAM…Barcelona and Arsenal are two of the most entertaining teams in the world, a game that will be a delight for a neutral…not for me though…I get agitated and nervous and sweat like a porn star on set…but for the rest of you…enjoy!

Go To Article

Arsenal 1-0 Villarreal – Player Ratings

Lehmann – 6 – He had hardly anything to do all night, but when he needed to he came off his line and didn’t make a hash of it. He punched Riquelme’s free kick straight into the middle of the box, which could have been dangerous, but apart from that solid display.

Eboue – 7 – Penetrated the right hand side and made lots of overlapping runs, worked very hard and well with Hleb. Most of our play was down the right, but his final ball could have been better on several occasions. Still, he did a good job.

Toure – 6 – Was good enough, and quite solid, scored a goal, probably should have had another. He wasn’t AS brilliant as he has been in recent weeks, but you can never fault him for his effort and hard work.

Senderos – 7 – Was great, commanded the back line and was ordering the rest to push up in the second half. Good few headers and interceptions. Perhaps one bad pass all night.

Flamini – 6 – Did his job very well, never looked out of place, has been brilliant to see him do this LB position so well. His stamina is supposed to be his best quality, he made overlapping runs and supported the rest of the play.

Hleb – 8 – Our joint best player on the night, was a glittering display from the Belarussian. If we had won by more, probably would have given him a 9, but still, he was our best attacking player and made the pass for Toures goal.

Fabregas – 6 – Not as dominant as he was against Madrid and Juve, but he still got in those positions to create chances, but was continuously surrounded by a number of yellow shirts. Still didn’t do much wrong, but wasn’t able to do much in the game.

Gilberto – 8 - Best player along with Hleb, was a ROCK in central midfield, he broke up play, tackled, stopped Riquelme from doing anything at all. He was also the starter of our counter attacks so overall well done Gilly.

Pires – 6 – Didn’t have too much of an impact on our attacking play, but wasn’t really bad either. He had a decent game, comfortable on the ball, and linked up well when we had our one very good spell in the game.

Ljungberg – 6 – Dribbled a lot more than usual, was quite energetic and broke, but didn’t get much of a chance to do much.

Henry – 7 – Considering it was a big match, our biggest player and captain, perhaps could have performed better, but he still was good. He drifted to the left a lot during the match, got past their full back a good few times, should have had a goal that was disallowed, and made that nice little pass to Hleb to set up Toure.

Man of the match: Hleb and Gilberto, both were MEN of the match.

Go To Article

Team News and Full Preview and Analysis of Villarreal Match

Fabregas has been declared fit to face his nations second team left in the Champions League, Villareal, while Reyes is suspended so he wont be available for selection. Interesting debate has been going on with supporters across the internet forums and in conversations with friends about what formation Arsenal should go for against the Spaniards. Henry has said we have to “go at them” like the premiership, but does this mean reverting to the formation that Wenger likes to keep in the league? My personal opinion is that there is no indication that Wenger would even think to do that, eight clean sheets from a back five that was patched together with about £2 million? Lehmann’s came on a free, Toure for about £250,000…Flamini and Eboue having been poached for minute amounts, and Senderos the same. Even BIG SOL came on a free from across the North London divide of Tottenham… ***SPIT ON THE FLOOR***….

Against Madrid we saw Arsene’s men line up like this:

Lehmann

Eboue Toure Senderos Flamini

Hleb Fabregas Gilberto Ljungberg Reyes

Henry


It was the same against Juventus but with Pires playing for the injured Ljungberg. This formation is more of a 4-1-4-1 if that isn’t too confusing, with Gilberto protecting the defence, picking up the pieces and breaking up play then feeding nice short balls to Fabregas and the rest. Reyes flew up the left wing and dribbled at ease like Kobe Bryant on numerous occasions, winning lots of free kicks after being hacked a good few times. Hleb twisted and changed direction and accelerated to dominate the right wing against Carlos who was playing more like a left winger than a left back. Freddie was a key player and broke to support Henry to get in dangerous positions like we know he can do. Fabregas controlled the midfield with his vision and passing that overall meant that Madrid were unable to get down and really play.

IN THAT GAME, AND THE SECOND LEG, AND THE 2 LEGS AGAINST JUVE it worked every time! Well actually the second leg against Juve it didn’t work in attack so much but that was because the mentality was to protect the lead. We still created chances that Fabregas and Henry should have finished. However this formation only works because the players that are playing in midfield have to work very hard, moving together as a unit the whole time...up and down like a merry go round…Just like they did, but if even one player isn’t fully fit, or is too tired and lazy, it WONT WORK. It leaves gaps in defence, or leaves Henry stranded if there is no support. Also Mr. Va Va Voom would have to be running and chasing down balls, holding up play etc all match. Again it doesn’t work if the lone striker isn’t doing that. Henry was taken off early against West Brom so he should be fresh and full of legs, but if for some reason Thierry doesn’t turn up on the day, all the hard work of the midfield will be worth nothing.

So to sum that up, 4-5-1 will be the best bet if they are all pumped up for it, which they will be! If they are all fully fit and rearing to go, Arsenal will win the tie, that means over both legs not just tomorrow. Wenger has given nothing away about the team he will choose, my best bet is that he will go along with a side like this:

Lehmann

Eboue Toure Senderos Flamini

Hleb Fabregas Gilberto Ljungberg Pires

Henry


It could be with Ljungberg and Pires swapping, or if Wenger really wants to strengthen the spine, he may choose to only play one of those two and stick in Diaby…but I doubt it, not in a game like this, at home. I hope he sticks with this team above, we have been told that Walcott MIGHT get a run out at some time, what a debut that could be! Champions league semi-final at home, not bad for a 17 year old EH…

If Wenger does decide to go for a 4-4-2, it would be Van Persie upfront with Henry but considering Van Persie is still coming back into full flow after his injury, that is quite unlikely. If we are to get a result we will need Gilberto to perform to his best ability to stop his South American “chum” ***SMERK*** Juan Riquelme who is from the “beloved friend” of a nation to Brazil, Argentina. For anybody that isn’t aware….Brazil and Argentina aren’t exactly best friends ….like Liverpool and Everton, Arsenal and Tottenham….Wenger and Mourinho….Ronaldinho and the dentist….

SPEAKING OF WHICH, our noble friend Ronaldinho is apparently not fully fit for tonight’s match against Milan, but obviously he will still play! Barcelona are without Deco and Messi so they need Ronaldinho to be playing without a doubt. Milan are an ageing team that have a superstar of a striker in Shevchenko and a superstar accomplice in Kaka. It will be a tough match, a fascinating affair that many wanted to be the final (OBVIOUSLY NOT ME)…don’t miss the match its on tonight! I had an email asking for a prediction for both matches...I don’t really like predictions but anyway…no harm in guessing! I think it might just be a Barcelona victory or a score draw, but im never really right so don’t quote me on that! If im correct, then you can, but otherwise……Arsenal 2-1 Villarreal??? Leave a comment on what you think the scores will be! Off to get some food before the match, enjoy your night!

Go To Article

Race For 4th Hots Up As Rooney Demolishes Spurs

By M. B. Zaidi

Thank God for £28millions worth of WAYNE ROONEY! As the Mancs have just beat Spurs 2-1, it means we are just 4 points behind Tottenham and have a game in hand. With Wednesdays game going to be the first half of a two legged affair with Villerreal, Saturdays game against Spurs is going to be one that actually counts for something other than pride for the first time in a good few years. Arsenal have been kings of London ever since the premiership begun, and our lowest finish this season now means we are going to levels never experienced before…..

THE BOTTEMLESS PIT OF SHAMEFULNESS OF ACTUALLY HAVING TO COMPETE WITH SPURS!

Nevermind…a win against them will put us 1point adrift and they definitely do have a tougher fixture list remaining. We got away with a 3-1 victory with Bergkamp the hero, but with Henry, Van Persie and Hleb off we could have easily slipped to another draw like we have done so many times this season. That would have inevitably ended our hopes of 4th place.

THE GOOD THING IS…Henry was taken off half an hour early and he should be nice and fresh for the midweek champions league game. Hleb was very good on the weekend and Diaby looked impressive too…BUT…Fabregas has been influential in recent games especially in the four legs against Madrid and Juve. He will be a BIG MISS if he isn’t fully fit to be involved. The 4-5-1 formation ticks away nicely with him being the focal point of the play. He allows Hleb and Reyes to work the flanks while Ljungberg/Pires can support Henry through the middle. Fabregas’s has brilliant vision and an immaculate passing ability. He is able to identify the best time to pass and when to keep hold of the ball, Wengers philosophy is quite simple…PASS AND MOVE.

I know that I have summed up a physiological genius’s years of team building into this one phrase “pass and move”, but that is what makes Arsenal’s football so beautiful, the simplicity is masterfully planned and masterfully executed. The likes of Vieira, Pires, Henry and Bergkamp perfected this play while they were known as the “invincible’s”, but today’s team has a similar way of thinking.

Fagragas is the new Bergkamp and Hleb & Eboue are developing into the right sided dynamic pair that Cole & Pires were in that 49 games unbeaten team. I remember as a kid doing those “pass and move exercises” at the age of 6 or 7, do you think Wenger ever does that with Henry, Reyes and CO!? I know it sounds funny! That some of the best and talented footballers in the world might do the same exercises that I did when I was 6! But nobody else can play football like Arsenal do when they are on top form, that simplicity is key so they must be doing exercises like that! Practice makes perfect after all… Even this team of kids and Henry play stunning football at times….

Do I have to remind you of the Real Madrid first leg, 4-5-1 formation working at its best to defeat a Real team that had won 12 straight games in La Liga! 12 STRAIGHT WINS! Zidane, Beckham, Ronaldo, Carlos were outgunned by Fabregas, Henry, Reyes, Hleb. Ok….Henry is an absolute legend already, but Reyes dribbled like Giggs against Arsenal in the FA cup semi-final of 99, Fabregas simply outclassed Zidane and Gravesen , even making them lose balance a few times! And Hleb showed us exactly how to play that inside right position, three players all still young, outshone the galatico’s of Madrid! Ljungberg was having ineffective games all season, but for some reason he was brilliant in that game. Running, chasing, twisting and turning the hell out of their players!

ANYWAY before I waffle on, I will write a full preview on Villerreal tonight of tomorrow, so check back for that. Once again this is a new site and so far the response I have had has been fantastic so I hope you are enjoying what you read. If you have any comments that you would like to say, you can press the “comment” link below this article, or you can email me at:

admin@arsenalreview.com

Hope you have all had a great Easter weekend! Back to work tomorrow, but we can look forward to Barca vs Milan, and then the big one on Wednesday. Any predictions for the Barcelona Vs Milan match?

Bookmark the page by pressing Ctrl + D, or you can subscribe to our RSS feed to keep up to date with every article published. Have a nice day celebrating Spurs loss…and don’t eat too many Easter eggs the sugar rush isn’t good…trust me!

Go To Article

Farytale Finish For Bergkamp To Highbury Showdown

By M. B. Zaidi

It’s the 72nd minute…Bergkamp comes on to a warm welcome from the Highbury fans as they are winning 1-0 at home to West Brom…a team fighting for survival in the Premiership. Henry’s already off, Van Persie is off, and Arsenal’s goalscored on the day, Hleb, has just been replaced by Pires. ALL OF A SUDDEN a long punted ball upfield is half cleared by the Arsenal backline, who only get it as far as Nigel Quashie. He takes one stride and releases a left foot shot into the bottom right hand corner of the goal. Lehmann has no chance!

Panic…Panic…Panic….The fans were just thinking “SAME OLD STORY!”….one remark I heard straight away was: “we don’t deserve to be in the champions league at this rate, 2 points in 3 games!”…Im not going to lie, I was just like the rest, after all who did we think could score another goal to get us all three points!? Well Reyes hasn’t looked confident in front of goal all season, Adebayour had those howlers in the last game….and lets not rely on a set piece because we know that Arsenal never score from those now!

Best bet would be Pires, as he has this knack for scoring crucial goals…he hasn’t had the best of seasons but still he manages to score 10 goals this season where he hasn’t been a regular!? Ljungberg hasn’t scored one all season!....AND now we come to Bergkamp…we know that he is a masterclass and one of the best players to ever put on an Arsenal jersey, but at his age you don’t want to rely on him because you have to be fair to the man! In the week that his testimonial was announced to be the first fixture at our newly built state of the art “Emirates Stadium”, and it being a special day for him…could it be Bergkamp that comes up with the goods to grab the three points!?....

As soon as he came on West Brom equalised, but 3mins later a fantastic direct ball from Flamini in his left back position released Adebayour as he fought to get behind the last man and get to the ball. He held up the ball and squared it to the oncoming Bobby Pires. His shot was deflected by the keeper and none other than my favourite player of all time stepped in to pick up the ball and set Pires up again for an Arsenal second goal! Fantastic! Cant get better than this for Bergkamp, coming on for a couple of mins and setting up the crucial goal to win the match!.......

OR COULD IT!?....

On 89, Bergkamp collected a pass just outside the area and sent an absolute CORKER of a curled finish into the corner to make it 3-1 on his special day! Don’t you just love it when stuff like that happens! A gracious finish for a class player of absolute top quality. Trying to get tickets to the testimonial just to pay respect to this Arsenal legend….

Enjoy your day Dennis, you deserve it!

Go To Article

Eto Signs For Al Ittihad On LOAN!?

Barcelona striker Samuel Eto'o will join Saudi club Al Ittihad on loan for the summers Asian champions league. The striker is hoping to help the club retain its Champions league trophy.

Eto’o said: “I don’t play for the money alone. Happiness is my priority that's why I chose to play with Ittihad in the AFC Champions League."

“The Saudi club will benefit from the players that graduate from the academy,” said Al Ittihad President Mansoor Al-Balawi.

Go To Article

Cesc & Campbell Out Of West Brom Tie, Walcott Against Spaniards?

Cesc Fabregas hasn’t recovered from a foot injury that has ruled him out of todays game against West Brom and could well mean he is out of the Villarreal game too. If that is correct, then that will be Cesc AND Reyes out who is suspended. Our Spanish duo wont be there to face out Spanish opposition! How ironic is that!

Also out is Campbell who looked like he had just had 12 rounds with Mohammed Ali by the end of the Portsmouth game…and young Theo Walcott may get a chance against Villarreal on Tuesday but isn’t in todays squad.

Funny ay, we all start talking about why he hasn’t had a chance to play and AW comes out and says he is “in England form”! I certainly hope so! BUT that is so far fetched that even I, one of the most optimistic people I know….will just dismiss that as a joke…sure he might be doing well in training, even SONG might be doing well in training, but lets see how he performs on the pitch. I saw a couple of clips of Theo on Sky Sports News when he signed, and what a player he looks to be. Lightning pace to rival Henry…and that finish from the inside left channel that he got over the keeper!? ABSOLUTELY SUBLIME FINISH! HOPE TO SEE MORE OF THAT IN THE NEXT 10 YEARS!

We have been linked with Torres and Nikola Zigic in the past few days. Zigic is a Crouch lookalike…as in he’s long and lanky and has a bit of a weird looking smile, but aparantly he is nothing like Crouch on the ball. I mean, don’t get me wrong, for a tall lanky man Crouch is good on the ball…but HE’S A FOOTBALLER…of course he has to be good on the ball! Zigic has been described as “superior with the ball on the ground” by the Sun, if that’s anything to go by! Well anyway, wouldn’t have minded a certain Mr. Torres against Portsmouth, he would’ve buried those Adebayor blunders and probably grabed a couple more! Not too sure about the Torres story though, but he would be a fanstastic acquisition if the story is true. Will write a piece on Torres a bit later, check back later in the day for it.

For now though…have a great Easter weekend, kick back and enjoy the football…im off to watch it now.

Go To Article

Adebayor and Arsenal Off SONG!

By M. B. Zaidi

Sorry for late news, I was asked to write something on the 1-1 draw with Portsmouth but I wasn’t here! Anyway, didn’t get to see it on the night, but asked a friend to tape the game so I could watch it after and the Adebayor sitters. Now don’t get me wrong, I think he is a good talent and can be a good player for us one day, but he did miss some despicable chances. And I don’t blame people to start ranting and raving about all this “he’s not good enough”…but I wouldn’t listen to that one bit. He has still scored 4 goals in 10 games I believe, and before the Manure game, it was 4 in 8, which is fantastic for a foreign player who is only 21 just coming into a brand new, rapid and unique style team. He has done brilliantly so far, apart from this game. So, yes, he did miss chances, but don’t get on his back because Henry took 14 games or so to score his first goal, let alone 4 in 8, or 4 in 10!

THE MAIN THING IS…THAT HE ACTUALLY GOT IN THOSE POSITIONS TO MISS THE CHANCES! NOBODY ELSE BOTHERS TO DO THAT NOWADAYS! FREDDIE USED TO, BUT NOW HE HASN’T SCORED A GOAL ALL SEASON IN THE LEAGUE…SO DON’T WORRY, HAVE NO FEAT….ADE WONT BE AN ADE-AKIN-BAYOR…HE HAS SHOWN THAT HIS MOVEMENT IS BRILLIANT AND GETS IN THOSE POSITIONS NOBODY ELSE DOES!

Arsene continues to baffle me with his decisions, but the leaving out of Henry and Reyes for the Manure game would have been justified if we had taken all 3 points against Portsmouth. BUT NO! 7 changes, Alex Song in midfield? But yet Walcott hasn’t even made a one appearance even as a sub? No excuse of “we have important games so we cant risk it”, Song was literally OFF SONG, he made no impact at all and didn’t justify his selection. Diaby showed us that Wenger still knows how to pick out a star for the future, im still amazed at his “Vieira-ness”…

We NEEDED to win that match and now it means it isn’t in our hands. But no panic, we still have to play Spurs, and they need to play Manure! We still have Forlan and Riquelme to look forward to on Tuesday! And possibly a final against Barca or Milan. I just came back from Milan, and bought the Milan home jersey as a souvenir with my name on the back and Kaka’s number 22. Just realised now that they might be playing us in the final! GOD HELP ME….

Saw the San Siro and don’t worry, us Londoners went and REPPED ARSENAL to the fullest in the San Siro. The Italians in the shop were quite flabbergasted when we were singing Arsenal anthems on their premises, but O WELL it has to be done!

ANYWAY…last comment of the day, hope that we can beat West Brom with a good team and a good performance, hopefully by a few goals…so that the confidence is as high as possible for the Champs game…crucial two game for the future of Arsenal FC. Because we have no excuse of saying that we have a lot of youngsters that is why we will come 5th, THE SCUM have a hell of a lot of youngsters aswel, and they don’t have the best striker in the world on their line up! WE DO! No excuses, lets just get on with it, get off Ade’s back, get behind the team…and believe in the team that has overturned two MAJOR UPSETS of two of the biggest and successful teams in the world. Madrid and Juve didn’t expect us to beat them over 4 legs like we did, but Villareal are the underdogs now, lets not underestimate them either!

Keep the comments coming…and bookmark this page now! (Press Ctrl + D)

Go To Article

No Henry, No Reyes, No Result, No Europe? HMM...NO!

By M. B. Zaidi

Dissapointing display and result but is that the end of our chances for 4th spot? With Spurs winning on Saturday and increasing their lead on their 4th place, it was a game for us that we really would have loved to win, or even draw, but after seeing Arsenes team selection it was clear to see that he perhaps was ready to accept defeat in sacrifice for his team being able to get maximum points in the remaining games. If Henry and Reyes had started it is still quite fair to say that the result may not have been that different as Man Utd seemed to deserve their victory. Was it worth playing an exhausted Henry and Reyes just for a point which may affect them getting the rest of the points available against lesser opposition? Was it worth it if the team was so exhausted by the time Arsenal play Spurs for the 6 pointer for 4th place. The truth is that we don’t actually know what would have happened if Henry did play, or Reyes, so we cant criticise Wenger for his selection, but if we still don’t claim 4th place then perhaps that is a different story.

Cesc who has been magnificent all season and especially in the last month was tired and not the same player in the last 15mins of the first half and the remainder of the match. Fabregas is a phenomenal player….but he is still only 18! We can’t expect him to be a superstar in every game yet, he has set his standards so high that we come to expect him to run midfields week in week out. He outshone three world cup winners in the centre of midfield against Juventus over two legs. Emerson, Vieira and Gilberto looked like little kids compared with the mammoth match presense Fabregas had in that fixture. However after the opening spell that Arsenal always seem to dominate, where Fabregas made some direct passes for Van Persie and Adebayor, he never really got into the game after that. He looked drained and out of legs like a lot of the players. It has to be said that it was just a matter of time before the intense few weeks we have had, took its toll on the players. It just wasn’t Arsenal’s day, but never the less it really ISNT the end of the world. We can still get 4th place with wins in the last of our games and crucially the North London derby against bitter rivals Tottenham. As a local lad, I can only say that I really can’t wait for that match, which essentially will be the decider if both teams continue to win the other matches.

With the exception of Gilberto who had his best performance of the season, there was nobody that really seemed to get a grip on the game for the gunners. Van Persie made great effort and had a few chances that could have gone in on another day if he was fully match fit with 5 of 6 games under his belt. But it wasn’t to be, United controlled the second half and should have had a penalty against a wonder save from the man in the Arsenal goal…no not Lehmann….he was on the floor! It was none other than brother Toure that made a fantastic save of the match, both handed…FANTASTIC KOLO! If we ever get two keepers sent off/injured in the match, we know which player to call on to put on the gloves! Rooney screamed and shouted and made a disgruntled face or two, but the ref was perhaps giving us a “ref mistake” in our favour from the last time Rooney “fell over” for that infamous penalty that ended in a Manchester United goal, and an end to the invincibles 49 game run. But there was more to come, the second half saw Silvestre whip in an absolutely fantastic ball that had pace, dip, swerve and absolute precision. It dipped perfectly just as it went over Senderos, and fell to none other than Roonaldo who controlled it with a sublime touch, then sent a piledriver into the far corner. I scored a goal like that in Pro Evolution 5 on PS2, 15mins before the match! A clean hit as you will see, as good a hit as you will see…from a young Englishman that may well lead England to the closest we will come to a worldcup since 66…if he is in that sort of form, I would put England right up there for the cup. Good luck to Man Utd for the title now, I REALLY REALLY HATE CHELSEA! But I don’t see them loosing it now.

Portsmouth on Wednesday, damn waterlogged pitch…nothing but 3 points will do now against them, and if not then our main hope will have to be by beating Riquelme and Forlan in the semis…then the Brazilian beast and Eto in the final…HERES A NICE ONE…LETS LEAVE IT ON A HAPPY NOTE AY!...


Spurs come 4th…Arsenal win champions league…Spurs into the Uefa Cup…HAHA…Then it could be Waynes World in Germany 06…WOULDN’T THAT BE GREAT…..never know in football now do you!

P.S.

This is a new site as you may have realised, but we aim to write articles every day and will continue to write until we aren’t wanted anymore! Please leave your comments to let us know what you think and your feedback, or drop an email…have a lovely Monday, im off to Milan tomorrow for a two day quick break, San Siro here I come!

Go To Article

Pele Wants To Sign For Arsenal FC...and other youngsters....

Yoann Pele has responded to speculation linking him with a move to Arsenal Football Club. The young goalkeeper has said he wants to sign for the gunners and has said that Arsenal have watched him several times this season. He is seen as a long term successor to Jens Lehmann. Also Arsenal are interested in signing Rennes midfielder Yoann Gourcuff. The 19 year old has been targeted by Italian giants AC Milan and Juventus but Arsene Wenger hopes to beat the Italian clubs to sign the youngster.

A Rennes official confirmed: “Yoann was approached after the club’s game in Toulouse.

“It was an Arsenal representative who wanted to discuss the player’s opinion of going to England.

“His contract ends at the end of next season and his future hasn’t been decided yet.

“We cannot do anything about him leaving if the offer is right.”

More youngsters for Ashburton and beyond, sure Wenger knows of their tallents but it is way to early to be talking of transfer talk, most of it is usually rubbish in the press so I wont take much notice of it. I think we need a few solid experienced players in rather than pure youngsters, but we will worry about that in the summer!

Go To Article

Three Cracking Games On One Super Sunday

By M. B. Zaidi

What a day of football we have in store for us today. Romans Chelsea take on a jubilant West Ham team in the early afternoon kick-off at Stamford Bridge, then Liverpool against the soldiers of Bolton and then the icing on the cake for the day, as the most famous premiership fixture in the last decade takes place at 4:00pm at Old Trafford.

With Man Utd being on such a fantastic run and our lads also being in the best form they have been in all season, this is sure to be a mouth watering encounter. Im not too sure if the boss will play the 4-5-1 or revert back to the 4-4-2 with Adebayor returning upfront with Henry. Perhaps the 4-5-1 in this away match may be sensible, but with Adebayor looking so impressive in recent weeks, our best form of defence WILL be attack.

Adebayor has power, strength, more than average pace for his size and build, bottle and gets in where nobody else likes to. An African warrior with bags of determination and add to that an instant first touch, skill and an eye for goal and you have Emmanuel Adebayor. I hope that he can keep improving and continue to develop this great little understanding with Mr. Va Va Voom. In the last few games they have played together, they have been involved with about 75% of the goals.

With Adebayor returning to the squad, and no new injuries, we are in good shape for the tie. Campbell has come back to fitness at a time where he perhaps isn’t needed as much as he was previously with Senderos being absolutely solid alongside brother Toure, who has really risen as a senior member of the team at only 25 years old. He has led the backline by example and I really think that these two can be something very solid for years to come. Don’t you just love Toure’s attitude!? Absolutely fantastic!

Reyes has warned that he wont be scared to get stuck in against Manure. Thank God because it was at Utd a few seasons back where he got hacked the heck out of by Gary Nevile and Co! He is the most fouled player in the Premiership and Europe, and it isn’t that hard to see why with his direct as an arrow dribbling skills. Reyes could be key today if we are to get any glory, aswel as Hleb on the opposite flank.

Rooney & Saha are on form, and Van Nistelrooy is the joint top scorer of the league with Henry, there are sure to be goals! What a terrific game, just like you all I cant wait! Come on you GOONERS!

Go To Article