Recovery Act for both the clubs

I can't believe we never showed up against United of Manchester. I would have hoped for a better performance than that. The loss puts us back where we rightly belong, NOT at the TOP! Lets face it, we need to find out a way to defend a high line but at the same time, learn to always have one more guy holding in front of the defense.

Chelsea game is going to be more defensive game than the united one. We need a couple of our players to stand up and be counted. Its a good thing that we did not play last weekend and so the players should be fresher. However, we will also be playing mid week and hope we dont switch off at home again and again and oh yes, AGAIN!

The last defeat must be playing on our players' mind and also the fact that the Fulham game that we won, had plenty of shaky moments. The offside trap is risky especially when our CBs are not really playing with each other for a long time. Fabregas and RVP will play some part of the game. I expect Fabregas to start the game. Chamakh seems to be the obvious choice but if he is fatigued, we have Bendtner and RVP to take his place.

I dont expect us to win tomorrow. I can't believe I am saying that. The last time I wrote that, we won against City and I had to eat my own words. But boy, I will take that any day over an Arsenal win. I hope, if not a win, we could at least draw the game against them. United are currently running away with a lead, with a game in hand if I am not wrong. This leaves us with having just one game in hand and still a little bit of catching up to do.

Spurs are catching up with us and so is Manchester City. If we drop a few more points, Wenger will start resting players in FA cup and Carling Cup as an excuse and chuck it away as well. We have a serious possibility of winning the Carling Cup this year and I hope Wenger does not throw that away.

Team Prediction:

xxxxxxx Fabianski xxxxxxxxx

Sagna X Koscielny X Djourou X Clichy

X Song X Diaby X

Nasri X Fabregas X Arshavin

X RVP X

Score Prediction: Arsenal 1-1 Chelsea

Carling Cup, FA cup and general views

The Spu*s game was a clear lack of concentration and switching off at the wrong time. I mean, it takes a lot to lose from a 2-0 position. The first goal was lack of cover against the counter attack. Clearly, with Defoe coming on as a Sub, Harry had changed the plan to attack with long balls and run behind the defenders. We know every team tries to do that against us. I was hoping one of Song or Denilson would keep up with the striker all the time. If Denilson saw his effort when he was tracking Bale for Spu*s' first goal, he should feel ashamed. The Braga game was one of them games, that we have seen a few times over the past five years. We do the playing part, they do the defending part and we end up losing on the counter. I know, we always go for a win even when the other team tends to play with a 8-1-1 formation. The most important thing in such circumstances is to mark the striker, the pivot of their attack! But what we do instead is let him run and pass! We can do better than that. Hell, that's what everyone is taught!

I seriously feel that Wenger can't teach defense. He should at the least hire someone to do that for us. Someone like a Keown or Adams will make someone like Denilson, Song, Wilshere and even Ramsey better holding mid fielders. Every time, I talk about our weaknesses in defense, with my friends, I can't help but mention Makelele. He wasn't the tallest person. but his positional sense was fantastic. He played with the high flying galacticos of Real Madrid. Even, Zidane acknowledged the fact that they could play attacking football thanks to the defensive cover provided my Makelele. That's exactly what we need, someone to do the job of a holding mid-fielder, if not a Defensive mid-fielder.

It looks like Wenger is going to allow RVP, Bendtner, Vela and Theo to get involved with the Carling cup. I find that very comforting. This year we have a big squad with a few of our reserve players, who are nearly good enough to make the first team squads. So it's a great time to make sure our actual first team players, who have a point or two to prove must play and push the other players.

Last night, Ramsey played for Notts Forest in their game against Leister City. He did alright. Didn't seem to have had any problems in the 30 minute run-in that he had. It will be good to seem him get match fit for out crucial run in. We often slip around the Champions League knock-out round. It would be nice to have some cover and possibly hoping Ramsey will push himself in to the starting XI.

The FA Cup is going to be a not-so-easy game as well. Leeds might have fallen down a couple of leagues now but the anticipation of playing a Premiership side will certainly motivate the Leeds' players. Talking of motivation, I wonder if our players are motivated enough some times, or its just something that Pat Rice and Wenger take for granted. Some of our players had a problem with Gallas but I feel we need a player like him who can shout at other players. The lack of shouting at each other on the field bugs me! I know, in this modern day and age when all players are professionals and what not, this is something that is frowned up on. But, that's something that I find will always motivate me!

As always, we stay positive and hope that we will succeed in at least one of the competitions that we are playing in, if not all. To be honest, I don't see us winning the Chmpns League but Carling Cup is achievable and so is the League and the FA cup.

If you reached this far, I thank you for reading this and as always welcome your comments. My wrong score predictions continue and not really happy about it. Thanks.

Attack thy neighbors, love your own!

I was so happy to see that we won against Brums! I was so wrong and am glad I was!
Everton win helped us snatch the second place in the Premier league table below Chelshit. Anyways, I have decided to stick to the games that I feel are important. Thats right! Its my fcking blog and I reserve that much right.

The title of this article needs a little explanation. Well, the first part is easy to understand, the second part is a little twisted. Don't get me wrong, I love the Emirates stadium. But, sometimes we go as quite as a graveyard. I know, its easy to say since I never attend games at the stadium and I am JUDGING from my sofa seat but seriously, we are very silent sometimes. We need a little cheer, especially when the team is down a goal, aka like New Castle game or even West Brom. Shouting might just wake up the team. We are not really the 12th man, when it comes to cheering. But a little more singing ought a do it! We need to show a little love for the players sometimes, thats all I feel.

Spurs have started to use a non 4-4-2 formation these days. Crouch up top, with Vaart behind him. On the wings its Bale and Lennon/Bentley. If old 'arry is worried about defense, he just puts in two holding mid fielders and 3 CBs and one full back. I wont be surprised if he plays that against us. Counter attack through Bale and vaart is there plan A! Bale will be up against Sagna which should be an interesting duel.

Our team has a few worries in terms of fitness to important players. Sagna, Djourou, Nasri, Arshavin all played for more time than they should have. On the other hand, van persie seems to have come back with his entire skeleton intact! Wenger must have celebrated that, I'm sure. Even Van Persie must have enjoyed a little massage on his way back, just to relax a bit! Chamakh will start, no question on that. Fabregas and Spain, both had bad games. Hope that fuels him to do better on Saturday. People keep complaining about Arshavin being lazy. Although he seems to not last more than 70 minutes in a game, it is obvious that we need him. He is one of the few player that we have who is not afraid of taking on the defenders and shooting from just outside the box. We do need some smart defending against the drop header from Crouch. Song would have to be on top of his game for this one. I feel Jack should not be risked to start in this game. This is because, not only do we need extra defensive cover against Bale and Vaart when Song goes up the field but also for those damn drop-headers. Fabianski needs to keep shouting especially on set pieces.

Probable line up:
xxxxxxx Fabianski xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sagna xxxx Squillaci xxxx Djourou xxxx Clichy

xxxxxxxxxx Song xxxxxxxxx Denilson XXXXXXXXXXX

Nasri xxxxxx Fabregas xxxxxxxxxxxxxx Rosicky

xxxxxxxxxxxx Chamakh xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Subs: #53 W.S., Gibbs, Eastmond, Jack, Arshavin, Bendtner, RVP.

Score Prediction: Arsenal 3 - 1 Spu*s

Probable scorers: Fabregas, Song and Chamakh. Spu*s to score on set piece.

If you reached this far, thats just AWESOME. Don't forget to comment. Thanks.

Manc City vs Arsenal

We have been talking about team spirit, how money can't buy you team spirit and all that. City have been more focused on telling us that they are serious and focused on winning the game and keep the target of premiership in sight. To be honest, they have the biggest squad to keep them in contention, even more than Chelsea if injuries were to hit any of the squads.

The Whore that went north (Ade) has been suggesting how eager he is to play against Arsenal after scoring a hat-trick in Europe. I think if Manchini plays him instead of Tevez, it would be far better for us, simply because he wont be really useful in counters, nor one on ones. Man, I do wish he plays for at least the first 60 minutes.

Paul Merson has given a very logical and possible game prediction. He suggested that Arsenal will control the game, have plenty of possession but won't finish their chances. On the other hand, City will play on counter and set pieces and wait for Arsenal to commit plenty up the field. I hope Clichy and Sagna (Eboue) whoever plays would keep a close eye out for breaks. Song, for f's sake, dont push into the 6 yard box before making someone else step back to support the CBs!

I am really upbeat for this fixture with Cesc looking fit and Arshavin rested. Wenger will probably play his baby Abou, since Wilshere is suspended. I hope Eastmond is also kept on the bench just in case. Diaby slows down the game a lot more than anyone else. I just hope everyone is on the same wavelength.

Probable Team:
============= Fabianksi =========================

Sagna ======= Squillaci ===== Djourou ===== Clichy

============= Diaby ========== Song ==============

==================== Cesc =========================

Nasri ---------------------------------- Arshavin

--------------- Chamakh ----------------------------

Subs: Schezny, Gibbs, Denilson, Rosicky, Bendtner, Lansbury.

Score prediction: Mancs 2 - 1 Arsenal
Tevez, Yaya Cesc (penalty)

HOPE I AM WRONG. VERY VERY WRONG AND ARSENAL WINS!

Thank god, I was wrong!

What a relief! I am glad I had to eat my own words! Clearly the game lacked that energy which should have been, considering our previous meeting in the premiership. Clearly Wenger had warned the players that no bust ups will be acceptable with the tall money whore who wears a Money City #25 jersey. I think this is where the players lost the desire of pushing for the three points.

The game started slowly and stayed that way. There was some urgency at the end of the first half but soon faded with the end of the half. Mancini may deny it but he had clearly planned not to concede in the first half come what may! He was playing with three holding mid fielders in Viera, Dejong, Barry. The three forwards were trying to provide cover to the full backs more than going forward.

The second half was almost the same story. Viera was replaced by the #25 Wh%@e around 53rd minute. Johnson was shifted to the midfield and from 4-3-3, Manchini made it 4-5-1 with Tevez and Bellamy dropped back as well.

Theo made a couple of useful runs but with no output. Sagna and Theo weren't working at the same wavelength. Campbell was like Tevez's shadow all the game. Hence Tevez was awfully quite. Silvestre was good today. He did what he could, tried to keep up with the forwards, made some useful interceptions. He deserved to be applauded today, no doubt about it. Diaby was wasteful for most of the part. Apart from his little battles with Viera, he was not that useful. Song was stable in the central mid field. Nasri and Rosicky dribbled and passed and did nothing else. Robin clearly was missing a striking partner. The back four of City kept a close watch on him.

The game was dull as I said before. I think Wenger should have let a few sparks fly. He keeps telling us how the squad is young and growing and I feel a few fights here and there would have helped us more. After all, we are playing at home. The spectators tried to brighten up the atmosphere but the players hardly responded to it.

Never the less, two points dropped due to the lack of fire shown by the players. I think they took the boss's warning way to seriously. I would have loved to see a bad tackle on the whore. Robin's 50-50 tackle was punished by mike dean.

I am glad we didnt lose the game. Wenger was sitting down on his chair for most part of the game even when we had not scored. Clearly he did not wish to push the players. Lets see what we do at Blackburn next.

Arsenal vs Money city

Alright, it took me a while to shake off the embarrassment we suffered last week. It wasnt pleasant but taught us the importance of good substitutions. I dont think anything at the club has changed because of it. Wenger is still releasing official statements from arsenal.com about Adebay(whore), Viera and useless things like we are not stupid and so on.

If you cant play mind games with the other manager, just shut your pie-hole. Talk about the players, there response in training to the defeat. Just try to create a positive atmosphere instead of talking about respect for Ade, Viera and foolish things.

I DONT THINK WE WILL WIN THIS SATURDAY. I could not say it clearer. Mancini will play counter attacking football. There will be 9 players defending along with a world class keeper. Only one player will be at the half line waiting for a counter attack. On the other hand, we will be pressing with 8 players in their half and our CBs all exposed and waiting to be exploited. Dont forget that our keeper is not confident either. Tevez, Bellamy and Johnson are fast and can dribble.

Try and think about the similarities in the games of Chelsea and Manu. They didnt care we had the possession. They didnt care if they could pass the ball well. All they wanted to do was hit on the break. Its simple. Mancini is also a tactician. He is not like Wenger. Just plan A is not for him. He is an Italian coach. What comes to them naturally is a strong defensive side.

We will be missing most of the senior players like last game. Song has a chance to play. If he is fit, I am sure he will have a go at some point in the game. It will be interesting to see who plays at the GK position.

My post today has been highly negative compared to all my other posts. Its just that I somehow dont see the squad ready for a big game like this. Lack of experience, yes, lack of plan B, sure. But most importantly, the team morale is down.

I hope the game turns out differently. I hope I have to eat my own words. I pray that Wenger will prove me wrong. Lets see what unfolds.

Arsenal XI

..................Fabianski.........................

Sagna.....Campbell..........Silvestre...........Clichy

........Nasri......Eastmond/Song......Diaby

........Eboue.......Van Persie............Bendtner

Subs: Rosicky, Eduardo, Vela, Merida, Traore, Eastmond, Mannone


My XI:

.....Fabianski.......

Sagna...Campbell....Bartley....Clichy

Eboue...Nasri...Eastmond...Diaby

.........van Persie......

...............Bendtner............


Prediction:

Arsenal 1 - 3 Man City

PLEASE PROVE ME WRONG. PLEASE PROVE ME WRONG. PLEASE.

Wigan vs Arsenal

I dont think any gooner is really excited or nervous about this game. Sure on paper we are better but with those injuries, I think it just ain't that pretty!

I think Wenger should give a chance to the likes of Luke Freeman, Kyle Bartley, Craig Eastmong instead of playing Silvestre or someone else out of position. We have too many players who can play just behind the striker and Wenger should play only one of those players there and seriously think of traditional 4-4-2 till we get our injured players back. Diaby is not a CDM and to help him, we end up playing the likes of Denilson to support him. Denilson is injured so I dont want to see Eboue doing that work now. Eastmond can play there very easily. That position comes to him naturally. Even in under 18 and reserve games, the reports always display a good rating for him as a CDM rather than a CB.

I think we can win this game. There is no reason why we should slip up now. Play for your future, play for your positions. If nothing inspires you, play for our damn red and white colors.

I hope our old boys at the back can play 90 minutes even after playing the game three days ago. Its time for Fabianski to make up for his horrors. Fin flapping Dolphunia should not start. Campbell can take up captains duties if needed.

Latics are playing for survival. Every point they earn helps them stay in the Premiership. I would rather see the likes of Wolves, Stoke or Burnley go down than to see the Latics fall. But for our game, I dont want them to take any points.

Lets play for the three points and forget about the title.

Team Probables:
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxAlmuniaxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sagna.....Campbell....Silvestre....Clichy

nasri.....Diaby....Rosicky

xxxxtheo.....Bendtner.......van Persie

Subs: Fabianski, Eboue, Vela, Eastmond, Traore, Eduardo

Score predictions: Wigan 1- 2 Arsenal

If I were to select the team,

........Fabianski...............

Sagna......Campbell.......Bartley......Clichy

..............Eastmond....................

.......Nasri.......Diaby..........Rosicky

............RVP..........................
.................Bendtner................


Subs: Vela, Eduardo, Traore, Silvestre, Theo, almunia

Title hopes vanished!

We lost. Thank you Wenger for relying on the injured squad. Its official now that every player in our squad was injured once during the campaign. Is there a reason for it? Do we train too hard on the training ground? Is there a problem with our training pitch? Medicos are not good enough? Are players eating more junk? We need to find out the reason for this INJURY problem.

I dont have much to say about the game. It was evenly fought. They had a good first half and we did far better in the second half. Van Persie showed us what we were missing. The first goal by Rose wont happen again for two or three seasons. The second goal was a cause of the team falling asleep and there was no pressure on Bale. Clichy was at the half line and Silvestre was too far off from Bale.

Nothing much to talk about except a few good saves by Gomez. Diaby was horrid for most of the game. These players need to understand that derbies are important, its not just Champions League! If you are playing in England, need to respect the local games. I did not see the extra zing that should have been...

Lets see if we buy a few more players that play in the same way or go out and buy ourselves an authentic winger who could keep crossing the ball in all day... Only time will tell.

WhiNe hart lane, here we come!

I just watched the chelsea-bolton game. Wasnt the best spectacle but had enough things on the plate to keep me interested. First of all, if there was a chance of Chlesea slip-up, I wanted to view that LIVE! Secondly, these mid week fixtures of EPL are always tricky. I dont know why, may be its just mid week and I am not under the influence of alcohol! Thirdly, Jack was playing and was in the starting XI. He played well. For 80 minutes he worked his socks off. I must say, there has been a tremendous improvement in Bolton's play. These days, they get 4 to 5 consecutive passes. Thats new now, isn't it? Fat ass Sam could never do that. He still cant do that!

Alright, back to what I really am interested in. Yes the clash with the neighbors from N17. Like all the games, this one will be an intense battle. At the Emirates, Fab scored that cool goal when he passed through three to four tackles and buried his shot in bottom left corner! I hope our team remembers that and tries to win the game.

The good news from the Spuds side is that there CDM Palacios will be suspended. Also Kranjkaer seems doubtful but I dont really think they are going for a win anyways.

It seems like RVP might be fit to be included in the squad to travel further north. I am too excited to write about how we should play and what the tactics should be. All I am really worried about is the cover that we will need on the right with Bale playing LB, and being their most in form player. Crouch generally misses a couple of chances at least but Defoe can shoot with power. Almunia may flap at it like a Penguin and i fear that.

Couple of interesting battles may be visible tomorrow. Bendtner vs King, Sol vs Defoe, TV5 vs Crouch. Harry Wetpants has already compared the spuds to the gooners! What a jack#$%! He says that the gap between the gooners and spuds is getting smaller as the years go by. Just 6 months back, his captain, now thrown away to Scotland, was saying that the spurs have a better squad. Lets see what happens next year, when we will have six more fit players and so good ones from the Academy.

As for us, Song seems fit and will definitely start. Also, rest of squad must have had enough rest to be fresh again. On the other hand, Spurs played for 120 minutes on a cow-grazing field at Wembley. That should hopefully make them a little fatigued out. Sagna, Clichy, all are fit and I think will definitely start.

We are trying to jump to the second position ahead of manu and trying to keep up with Chelsea. So we are playing for more than the spurs. Surely, they are still aiming for fourth spot which is pretty much taken by Man City. Mancity's squad is big and ambitious and play with two to three holding mid fielders. Thats why its difficult to defeat Man City right now. Anyways, thats not something to worry about today.

Like I said before, these mid week fixtures are tricky. But I still think we have enough to run them over. Its the matter of who scores first. If we score first, we will score two more for sure. If they score early, I think we will score two to scrape out a win.

Arsenal probables:
...............Almunia....................

Sagna...Campbell.....TV5..........Clichy

......Nasri.....Song....Diaby............


....Eboue.....Bendtner.....Rosicky.......

Subs: Eduardo, Theo, Silvestre, Denilson, RVP, Fabianski

Spuds: Who cares? Bring them on!

Score Prediction: Spuds 1- 3 Arsenal

Lost to Barcelona, thats not bad now is it?

Lots of injuries, lack of experience, shaky defense, eccentric goal keeper... the list goes on. We still cant hide from the fact that they were far superior over both the legs. We didnt take our chances and they did. It was not as one sided as the first half of the first leg but Barcelona showed us why they are Barcelona!

It was a great start. We scored on the counter. Theo could have scored but decided to pass to bendtner and the dane scored at the second attempt. After that we have another chance at 20 minute mark when Diaby (who showed us he aint good enough as yet) made a poor choice of pass. He passed it to Bendtner instead of releasing Theo who was on side and could have scored. Only if...

They scored when Silvestre decided to feed a ball to Messi. Silvestre could not have done much, honestly he was wrong footed and too old to change his stance. Another reason why Wenger should have played Eastmond. It would have been Vermaelen at the left and things might have been different. They scored at regular intervals in the first half. Almunia could hardly do anything. It was just a class act by Messi.

Second half was not that eventful. Alves should have got a yellow card for his fouls. He does not make a strong tackle but keep pulling you off by hands or pushing or doing something cu*t style. Denilson got a yellow which he clearly did not deserve. No way! It was down to Messi's acting skills. It was not a foul at all.

Nasri, Rosicky and Walcott were so busy defending that they could hardly go forward and create something. We still had decent chances, especially for Rosicky and then Bendtner. Things would have been exciting if we had scored of those chances.

There are plenty of lessons to be learnt (learned) here, not only by the young players but Wenger. We are still 5 years away from 4-3-3. Its not just how we play on the ball but also off the ball. Pressing for the ball is not a once in while thing but a continuous off the ball responsibility. Vermaelen made a few mistakes in the game. Silvestre was too far away from TV5 most of the times which opened the central gap too easily.

Overall, everyone knew Barcelona would go through. But the young team played as well as they could without a proper leader. May be its time to get an experienced lad to talk to there guys and help them on the pitch.

Clichy, Sagna, Eboue, Denilson did well. Nasri, Eduardo, Bendtner and Rosicky were poor overall. Lets hope now that the team concentrates hard on the EPL and at least gets into top two.

Come on you Gooners, dont be goners, there is still something to fight for. Not for anything but at least the fans, the fanatics like me who want to fight not roll over and die.

AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRSSSSSSSSSSSEEEEEEEEEEEEENNNNNNNNNNAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLL

Lets play against Barca on PS3!

Another injury! Song suffered some swelling on the knee and apparently also has some groin injury. Once again a first team player gets injured. All we have as cover is another kid (Eastmond)! Not a single mid fielder tomorrow has any experience. Nasri, Diaby, Denilson are still learning. Even if we had a single experienced player, things would certainly seem better. That is why I feel that this game better be played on PS3 where we could welcome our injured players against Barcelona. I think we have a better chance to win that way.

Injury List: Gallas, Djorou, Gibbs, Song, Fabregas, Arshavin, Ramsey and RVP. Thats eight players out of which, possibly four would have started (Fab was suspended).

Seems like there is also a gamble for the CB position. Campbell and Silvestre played 90 mintues on Saturday and it will be difficult for them to put in another shift on Tuesday. I recon Wenger will play Campbell instead of Silvestre or may be take a gamble and play Eastmond. That however, seems very unlikely. I feel Wenger will start Eboue in place of Theo. Eboue also provides good cover to Sagna.

This is the first time I have felt to write that we may not win the game at Camp Nou. I cannot analyze the possibility of using winning at Barcelona. Its just unfair to lose eight first team players at the crucial period of the season.

I wish Almunia has a good day. I just dont want him to make a Almunia out of himself! Let them score magnificent goals, dont give away silly goals, thats all.

Barcelona warmed up to the game with a 4 goal thrashing of Atletic Bilbao. However, it was worth noting that a goal was scored against Barcelona. Abidal and Milito is still a strong CB pairing. If they play Bojan upfront, Barcelona wont be able to score the goals that they scored at the Emirates. I hope if Henry plays, he has a bad day.

I am going to predict a 3-1 win for Barcelona. I really cannot see us going ahead with some many injuries. It just seems very unlikely.

Arsenal XI:

Almunia (C)

Sagna, Campbell/Eastmond/Silvestre TV5 Clichy

Denilson Diaby

Nasri

Eboue Rosicky

Bendtner

Subs: Fabianski, traore, C/E/Silvstre, Walcott, Eduardo, Merida

Barcelona XI:

Valdez

Alves, Milito, Abidal, Maxwell

Xavi, Buskhets, Kieta

Messi, Bojan Henry/#19

Prediction: Barcelona 3 - 1 Arsenal

Dear God, Please prove me wrong. Please.

Henry's red card was more trouble for Arsenal than Wolves

We did it! Yes it was some 95th minute. Dont care! We did it! Its not the first time lately and probably this was the kind of luck that we needed and we got it! Bendtner, it seems needs 3 to 4 chances every game to score a goal.

The first half was all Arsenal. It was good attacking football. Sol and TV5 and Silvstre and Sagna were decent at the back. Mozart was pulling the strings from the mid field. It looked like we should have scored at least 1 goal.

Second half started like the first half. The crowd seemed very much in the game. I have observed that even against Barca, the spectators were more vocal. I think that helps the team more and the cheering seems to get more out of the players. If thats whats working, lets keep cheering louder.

The Henry red card was 50-50. Sure he got his toe to the ball. But he came from behind, tackled Rosicky. Even got his studs into Rosicky's leg (back of the leg). Sometimes they are given, sometimes they are not. With the red card, Wolves probably lost much belief and started defending with 9 men and Doyle at the half line. Couple of years back, I would have switched off the television and cursed myself. I would have expected a draw. I still feel we need a plan B for such situations. Try something different, may be a few long balls, some dribbling! Who knows, might just work one day. Else we always have the pass and move thing. Its just that when teams go down a man, especially against Arsenal, at Emirates, they seem to suddenly start aiming for 1 point. Its not that Wolves came in the hope of 3 points. Never looked like that. But I dont know, change is something that might just change the score line for us! Okay, I tried to be a smarta&* here. Didnt work!

Rosicky had three decent chances to score but didnt! Eduardo had a couple chances as well. Eboue looked a little lost on the left. Denilson, Song provided a strong cover and passed the ball well. Campbell was strong and firm and Silvestre put in a few decent crosses. Refreshing to see those crosses but I hope Clichy learns that quickly. Nasri, Bendtner had a good contribution to the game. vela was hardly present. With all the injuries, there is a chance for him to show why he is still on the Arsenal wage bill. He has something to prove.

Lets see now how things turn out at the Camp Nou. I havent really thought about the game yet. Half of the gooners are nervous and the rest are getting there with 36 hours left in the game. Hope everyone had a great weekend. Btw, happy Easter.

Wolves wont be easy but I think we can win

Feels like the Wolves game is coming up too early. Its always like that after a tough Champions league game. We havent had a tough game in Europe since, i dont know, the Champions league final. The last year's semi final game against Manu was too easy for them! We didnt compete that well. Even before that, nothing was this tough. Either we walk over a team or they sometimes walk over us. Thats how things are most of the times.

We have lost Arshavin, Gallas and captain talisman to injuries. Nasri and Clichy and Diaby seem to have got some knocks in the game. Diaby was too slow against Barca. I hope he plays well against Wolves.

There isnt much to talk about unless we get some better idea of the team Wenger will put up against Wolves. I think even with all the injuries we have, we can get three points from this game.

Arsenal Team

Almunia

Sagna TV5 Silvestre Clichy

Denilson Song

Nasri


Theo Eduardo Rosicky

Score Prediction: 3-1 To Arsenal
Denilson to score

We do have the balls to compete!

Okay, so the first half and especially the first 20 minutes felt like league 1 team against league 11 team! We were running all around trying to stop a goal. The tie would have been over in the first three shots on goal! I didnt ever think that I may have to say this but Almunia made some outstanding saves. Block with a left hand, block with a right hand, a body block! However, Almunia made a Almunia out of himself for the first goal. Neither did he charge towards the ball, nor did he stand his ground. I reminded me a little bit of that goal in Champions League when Lehmann was in the goal. That was a bigger blunder than this one. But Lehmann generally did a far better job than Almunia. Sure he was eratic and hot tempered but always kept the back four organized with his shouting and experience.

There was not much positive for Arsenal in the first half. We lost Arshavin and Gallas to injuries. The club needs to clarify Arshavin's injury in more detail. For some reason it seems very suspicious. Its been told that Gallas and Arshavin will be out for at least three weeks. They probably wont feature until the last two games is my guess.

We had a couple of decent chances in the first half. The second half started as badly for us as the first half. Ibra scored after TV5 was drawn away by Messi and Song was too far away from Ibra to close him down. May be with an actual CB, things could have been different. The second goal was very similar to the first goal. The finish was pin point though.

After that goal, like every other gooner on this planet, I thought it was over. Its going to rain goals on us as we go up the pitch to score a goal or two. But Barca got tired and stopped chasing and pressing. Wenger brought on Theo a little late than I was hoping. But his pace helped us. The finish was powerful and motivated the team and the spectators as well.

I dont care what people say about the penalty. If you tackle from behind and you dont let the other guy score and dont have the ball possession, its a damn penalty. Screw everything else. Its a penalty. We lost Fab for the season and I hope its not the last time he plays for Arsenal.

The return leg is going to be a nightmare for us. They are going to win that one and honestly I dont mind going down to such a strong Barca team. They have enough reinforcements to fill the CB positions. We on the other hand have too small a squad when it comes to CB.

I am just happy at the fact that we scored against one of the strongest teams and came back from a two goal deficit. Thats a victory for me. Anyways, this post has been too late. Had been a little busy.

Arsenal Barca may not be an open game

We have heard enough things over the past few days of Messi being a GOD, the game will be a footballing spectacle, Fab fitness issues, Henry's home coming and lots more. I am as excited as any other footballing fan and as nervous as any gooner! Its seems like the game could have more than 5 goals since both the teams prefer an open game and possession and scoring goals. However, do not forget the fact that its a game that will be played over two legs. Dont get me wrong but this is just the first half of that and teams tend to be more defensive over the first leg.

It seems like we will be playing without Fabregas. If Wenger is post phoning taking a decision over Fab, that means he is not fit and avoiding giving Barca the best news possible. If that is the case, I would think Nasri will fill that role and Rosicky or Walcott might start on the wing. Reports suggest that Iniesta might be injured for the first leg and might not play full 90 minutes for the return leg. I honestly do not know whether its good or bad.

As for the game plan, we hardly have a plan B. It will be passing and movement from both the teams. Clichy will need more cover and its Denilson/Diaby/Song who will need to do that. Arshavin cant really provide cover and we should rather use him for counter attacks. If you recall the last year's semis and also the previous chelski and manu games, we have been scored against by counter attacks. Barca have some good, fast players and I fear they could score on the counter attack. I really am scared of that. We dont have the balls to tackle and stop the counter. Wenger thinks its anti-football and it is but if you tackle instead of trying to block the ball, there is a good chance of stopping the attack.

Henry will receive the warm reception that he truly deserves. Barca might play an extra central midfielder in Kieta and Toure. We may need Bendtner to help our defense especially for corners and set pieces. The fixture is awesome and I am very much up for it.

Arsenal Team (IMO)

Almunia :(

Sagna Campbell TV5 Clichy

Nasri Song Denilson/Diaby

Rosicky Bendtner Arshavin

Bench: Fabianski, Gallas(Campbell one of them), Denilson/Diaby, walcott, Eboue, eduardo, Vela (ha ha ha)

BARCA:

valdez

Alves Pique Puyol Abidal

Xavi Kieta Toure

Messi Ibra UNKNOWN


Prediction:

I am too nervous as of now, 24 hours before the game. Honestly, who is not!
Being a gooner, prediction are always biased. But I am going to say

2-1 to the Arsenal. Arshavin and Bendtner to score. Messi for them.

COMMON YOU GOONERS. ITS NOT A REHEARSAL, ITS THE ACTUAL THING!!! Lets GOOOOOOOO!!!!

Feels like we lost!

The team selection looked like it was made with an eye on the Champions league. There are many ways to access the team selection. One of the possibilities was that, like the FA Cup semi final last year, Wenger wanted his nurtured little angels to win it and prove everyone that they can do it without Arshavin. We all saw what happened. Other way to look at it is that we all remember how we went down when we lost to Manutd over the two legs in the semis last year in chmpns league. So Wenger wants to make some damage control by keeping Nasri and Arshavin fresh for the Barca game.

Although the game turned out to be a draw, it feels like we lost the game. Surely, Birmi is the place where chels, manutd and liverp all have lost points. We did the same as well. The first half was a mixed affair, neither we nor them dominated. Sol was doing a good job of keeping Jerome at bay. As usual they got away with a few nasty challenges. But that is something that I kinda assume will happen these days.

I am really not in a mood to talk too much about the game but I can only hope that we fight till the last game. Barcelona is going to be very tough. Even if we somehow go through, we would have to deal with Inter Milan. If Inter plays with three Central mid fielders, there is no way in hell that we can open up there defense.

Denilson was awful, so was Walcott. Had to decent chances but never felt like he was confident. Clichy, Song, Sagna, Sol were alright. There goal was thanks to our beloved Almunia. I hope he can play the next three games without any mistakes. Bedntner did as much as he could. Rosicky and Fab and Diaby were alright. The pitch was half decent.

Keep the faith you gooners. Support the team, they have come a far way and will produce. Believe me you!

Victory at St. Andrews is a must!

Let me just start by laughing over a couple of articles that have been floating around. First one is the Fabregas rumor of a possible transfer to Inter Milan. I think if Fab was to go and he surely will do one day, he would probably go back to Barca. So there is no sense in that news. Secondly, there was enough ruckus caused by some article in i think, dailyFAIL (dailymail.co.uk), which said that Arshavin was unhappy with the transfer policy of Wenger and had apparently suggested buying world class experienced players. Fab and his representatives have denied it and so has Arshavin.

Lets move on to the Birm game. There are enough reasons to play and win three points here. Not to mention the possible chance of going top this weekend. Let us not forget the Eduardo murder two years ago. I refer to it as a murder because Eduardo has never been Eduardo again! For a change, the manager from the opposition team is not talking about tackles and getting on to the Arsenal's faces. Thats a change. Lets see if thats the case in the game.

Rosicky's fitness seems to be a problem. Also Bendtner could be a doubt. Could this be the day when Eduardo is reborn again. I dont think its ever going to happen. The biggest problem for Wenger is to choose his center half pairing. Silvestre seems to be falling out of favor (thank you GOD!) and Sol may have to put in an extra shift and definitely wont feature against Barcelona. If its Song and Campbell to start at the back, it would mean Denilson and Diaby need to do the job of Song. I hope all the players are really up for the game and are not thinking too much about the Barca game. I hope to see Theo feature at some point in the game. Sagna may feature especially since its an away game and Eboue may start as well. Nasri might be on the bench and surely hope Arshavin scores tomorrow. These are the games where players like Arshavin should be useful.

Birmingham are a decent side. They are mid table and playing at home. They have a very good home record. I think its 11 wins or 12 wins or something. They are dangerous on set pieces and seem to have an inform striker in Jerome.

Arsenal Team Prediction:

Almunia
Sagna campbell Song Clichy

Fabregas Denilson Diaby

Eboue Bendtner Arshavin

Subs: fabianksi, Silvestre, Nasri, Theo, Eduardo, Vela(?)

Birm Team: WHO CARES, bring them on!!!

Prediction:
I was wrong the last time. I dont seem to believe that we can keep a clean sheet.
This one looks a tougher outing and with a mid week game coming, things could be tight in this game with players possibly a little distracted!

I will go with 2 goals to Arsenal with Birmi scoring 1.

For those who still havent heard it, Arsenal TV online ATVO was free this friday. It was alright. Nothing too much that anyone missed, not bad either!

West Ham could be tricky!

Fellow Gooners,

It seems that the pundits are suddenly talking about a easy win for the Arsenal against West Ham! I was surprised at that. I wonder if there is more to it than that :-|

This is the team that held us to a 2-2 draw last year. This is the first and the last team to win at the Emirates and Highbury respectively. Zola is a good coach and does not teach karate or kick boxing. His team of Hammers has a captain that may lunge into tackles. Apart from that, I dont see anyone who plays that dangerously in West Ham team.

The first goal will be crucial. I think if we score first, we will win comfortably. If they score first, we may need a lot more than first half goals to win the game. They have some tall players so set pieces can be important.

We should welcome back Fabregas and Song in the mid field. I hope Nasri gets a breather. Rosicky should also be fit to start. I hope we can rest Vermaelen. I would like to see some academy graduates play this game and pair up with TV5. We will need the cover since Gallas might not play for a while.

Team Prediction

Almunia

Eboue, TV5, Silvestre, Clichy

Diaby, Song, Fabregas

Theo, Bendtner, Arshavin

Subs: Sagna, Eastmond, Rosicky, Eduardo, Nasri, Denilson

Game Prediction

3-1 Win to the Arsenal!

Champions league draw was fixed!

I am just not sure how every year the teams with the most recent history are paired up to face each other. Then there are instances in the games where emotions boil over and viewership ratings hit the roof! I am not going to talk too much about the other fixtures simply because none of them will be as entertaining as this one and are not as important as my Arsenal.

I still get the feeling that we might be able to get a home win. I still feel like that. Lets see how things shape up. The quarter finals are to be played on 30/31st March and 6/7th April. We play Birmingham away before the first leg and then play Wolves at home before the second leg. The Birmingham game is a little tricky. This is where Eduardo suffered and will play in the team's mind. Also Wolves will play a hard game to impress the Fergusons of Manchester. They tried to get away by playing a weak side and were busted! However, we could rest a few players for that game if needed. What happens in the second leg will decide our next game as well. Spuds away is important, hell its very important. If we have a bad day for the second leg, it could affect our spuds game. However, if I a recollect it right, we played spuds away last time as well around our champions league exit. WTF! Deja vu!

Arshavin and Fabregas have been linked with barca many times. I think its going to happen sooner or later. I would like if they prove their worth by defeating the team that wants them! If they do that, Barca will definitely buy them next year. Right now, I hope they realize who their present wagers are and work accordingly. I would not be surprised to see if some Fabregas rumors start again. And there is some speculation about something. I am glad to notice that most of the times, Pep Guardiola seems to be out of these contraversies. I dont know how he does that. Apart from being the Champions, another reason Barca is dangerous is that the finals are to be held at Santiago Bernabeu! What would a Catalan want more than to win the trophy back at the enemy grounds and rub it in deep, very very deep! :D

I still am positive about this fixture. It will help us learn more about this 4-3-3 system. If we play at the pace of Epl, I think we have a chance. Common you Gooners, lets fight it out! First the Catalan capital for the march towards the Spanish capital!

Thats what good teams do!

I could not watch the game due lack of planning on my part and changes made to the tv schedule at the last minute. It was suppose to be lunch time kick-off in England and so it would be breakfast kick-off for me. However, for some reason tv folks decided that it was better to see some fights and rough tackling on Arsenal as evening entertainment.

As for the game itself, thanks to modern technology, i watched the game five hours later! The game started with plenty of tackling on Hull's part. It seemed that the referee was happy to stop play for all the fouls. However, it seemed as if it was not affecting Arsenal much. Arshavin scored forcing himself through two challenges. What a great guy! He is fu%#ching sharp!

George of the Hull jungle seemed to having a great day. He slapped Bendtner and poked him in his eye and then decided that the only way to stop Sagna was to make a stups-up challenge right on the knee. The reward was two yellows and an early shower.

The pitch looked like it was a part of national forest. It still had the lines from the previous rugby game. That just shows the difference between the two clubs.

Once Hull were playing with 10 men, it was obvious that we would find it difficult to unlock the door. Hats off to Bendtner for staying on-side and then reacting before everyone does. Also thanks to there keeper for not conceding a corner instead.

Apart from that, it was a very gritty performance by gooners and looked like they were determined to get 3 points in this game. I think the team has definitely grown up. A couple years back, we may not have got these 3 points.

Team talk:
Arshavin needs to find more consistency to his game. He seems very lively for sometime and then suddenly switches off and makes a poor pass. I think he is not really enjoying his left wing role and personally i would like to see him play through the middle. He will join very well with Fabregas. Denilson gave his full throughout the game. Good performance in terms of trying but not much output apart from the screamer at the end which set up Bendtner. Diaby was a little lost as well and Campbell was tired at the end. Clichy was sharp and so were Eboue and Sagna. Theo and Eduardo made decent efforts in little time they had. TV5 was awesome as usual.

Overall, I am happy at the fact that it was a well deserved three point gain. Keeps the squad motivated and happy. Phil Brown was criticizing the penalty! what a jack%$#. Come on you gooners, lets stay focused.

BTW, got my prediction right again. time for celebration, well extended celebrtn

Arsenal against KC Stadium

Fellow Gooners, after the Porto game, Wenger seemed very upbeat. He apparently said a few things about the Red nose's club's victory over Milan. Like any other day, it was misread and there were a few uproars as usual. I sometimes wonder why Wenger talks about other clubs. He was also talking about Real Madrid on the official AFC website. My only question is WHY???

Our Saturday lunch time kick-off is going to be a very different game compared to the Porto game. This one will be more physical. There will be more fouls and stop plays and a few grunts by Stephen Hunt. Phil Brown and his jackass assistant will be there doing the usual antics on the side lines. The whole stadium might be upbeat to boo us. That is why I am suggesting that Arsenal will be playing against the KC stadium. The only player that I admire from the Hull side is Geovanni or G-o-vanni. It is not because he scored against us at Emirates when we lost the game but because he learnt from it and missed the penalty last time! Stephen Hunt is one of those home grown talents who get away with kicking just like Shawcross! I cant completely forget that. Not until Aaron starts playing again.

Our team is in form. We have won four of the last five games. On the other hand, Hull seemed to be falling apart, with consecutive defeats after drawing against Chelsea and then winning against Chity. As for our Captain and former captain, they wont be featuring in tomorrow's game. I hope we do not have any other injuries. Almunia has not been tested enough for a last couple of games now and I have a bad feeling about him for tomorrow. I hope he proves me wrong. We may have to play Silvestre and Denilson since Song is suspended and Campbell cannot play two games in one week. Thats a bit too much to ask of the lad now. I hope Denilson improves in the summer and Wenger rightfully sells Silvestre.

Probable Gooner Team:
Almunia (C)

Eboue TV5 Silvestre Clichy

Nasri Diaby Denilson

Theo Bendtner Arshavin

Subs: Eduardo, Sagna, Rosicky, Eastmond, Fabianski

Probable Result:

Hull are not in the best of forms but a away game which has some history behind it is always tricky. To add to it, our defense will not be the best with the lack of cover. I am going for a close game.

Hull 1 - 2 Arsenal. Victory is in sights but will need the determination which our team seems to have acquired.

Have a great weekend fellow gooners...

Brilliant team effort by Arsenal

Let me just say that this was one of our good team games. Strong defending at the back and the mid field dominated over all. Nasri-Bendtner had the games of their lives!

The first ten minutes of the game were all Arsenal. The first goal was actually a bad call by the linesman. Arshavin headed the ball after coming from an off-side position but a great through ball by Nasri to Arshavin caused a havoc inside the Porto box and Bendtner finished the goal. Credit to Bendtner for being in the right position at the right time. Thats what the strikers are suppose to do!

The second goal was individual brilliance by our Russian prince Arshavin. His dribbling sometimes leaves defenders embarrassed. Bendtner did well to stay on-side. The first half was all Arsenal. Porto strikers hardly had any sniff of the goal.

The second half started differently. Seemed like the team had gone asleep. This was the period where Sol had some serious work to do. Nasri blocked a header at the post from a corner kick. This was the time where Arsenal woke up again and Nasri scored the best goal of 2010 so far. He dribbled through 3 defenders and shot from the acutest of the angles at the far post. Inch perfect. Nasri played very well throughout the game. He had some big shoes to fill but did a splendid job today. HE was man of the match for me. He pulled the strings very well in place of the absent Fabregas. Within the next two minutes Arsenal scored on the counter attack. Clichy cleared a corner kick which fell perfectly for Arshavin after a bad control by a Porto player. Arshavin ran about 40 yards with the big Manu making a lung bursting run to his right. He slipped a perfect reverse pass to Manu and Manu scored a good goal with the Porto keeper drawn out to the 6 yard box! Eboue also contributed to the last goal by drawing in a foul inside the box which won us a penalty. The big Den scored well, a cool finish from the spot.

Special mention should be made about the blocks and tackles put in by TV5. He was carded early in the game. But he made some very useful tackles. Sol looked calm and composed on most of the occasions. Clichy had a good game. Worked very hard and kept Hulk under control for most part. Sagna defended well but crossing was poor most part apart from a perfect dipping cross to Bendtner who missed it. Almunia was alright. Didnt have much to do all game.

Song and Diaby looked very comfortable. I hope Diaby can play this weekend against Hull. We will need his strength with Song suspended. Denilson could not really influence the game when he came on for Nasri who got a standing ovation along with Arshavin. Theo didnt have too much to do. Rosicky had a decent dribbling game. However the team today seemed to be passing badly than the usual inch perfect passing.

So we advance ahead and certainly hope we can go beyond the next round as well. I dont have that confidence about this team. If we get a non-English opposition, there is a chance. Lets see what happens. Would not mind, if I am proved wrong about progressing beyond semis. Oh well, we will find out by April End.

My prediction was wrong about the final score line but I am happy today like every other gooner on this god's green earth. Hope to feel the same way tomorrow if you know what I mean :D

Arsenal without Fab4, the one for the future?

Fellow Gooners, despite our victory last weekend, it looks like there are more grunts about Bendtner missing chances. To be honest, some of the chances looked like they were begging to be put at the back of the net!

It was bad to see Fabregas go out injured in the first half but good to see Diaby play the remaining 60 minutes without feeling any injury back-clashes. All praise to Nasri for a relentless job and we may need him to do the same tomorrow against Porto. At least Porto boss was not heard saying that he wants come on to Arsenal's faces!

Wenger showed us why is the boss at Arsenal! He obviously feels that winning the league is still possible and that is why he gambled on Fabregas. Once we scored, it was easier to remove him. Diaby did not play 90 minutes and so should be ready to play against Porto for the entire game. Arshavin played a small part of the game and seemed a little rusty. But the goal should make him feel better. Theo started the game and Wenger knew that after the England game (well a bad one for Theo), Theo needed some boost (boast- both seem to work here if you know what I mean).

Talking about Porto, Hulk seems to be the danger man. I honestly do not know much about the opposition. I just hope they dont park the bus and wait for the counter. Honestly they can do that and it wont be easy for us!

Totally forgot to write about why the title of this post refers about the future! The thing is that Fabregas may leave us this summer and Arshavin might stay. Porto game can be looked up as one for the future. We will lose our #4 probably to some Spanish outfit. It could be next year or after that but the future will probably be us playing without our #4. Surely I will still be supporting and cheering the Arsenal.

England's biggest loud mouth and Mr. England himself, Harry Redknapp was heard complaining about lack of everything British in the Premier League. He was heard complaining about the lack of British managers and owners. He said that it was bad for the Premiership. Apparently, non-British owners do not give enough chances to British managers to prove there worth. If the idea of the premiership is the broadcast it world over, make money from all over the world, why would there not be non-British managers? If the British managers were so good, why would the national team need an Italian genius? Obviously, this narrow thinking and the fact that the British managers seem less eager to venture out of that island country, the British managers are always going to suffer. I think, redknapp just enjoys talking to the press.

Team Prediction for Porto game:
Almunia
Sagna, Campbell, TV5, Clichy

Nasri, Diaby, Song,

Theo, Bendtner, Arshavin

Result Prediction:
3-1 to the Arsenal! I have a positive feeling about this game even though Fabregas has joined his buddies on the treatment table.

Arsenal vs Burnley

Fellow gooners, I hope your week was alright. The debate over the tackle seems to continue and hopefully will end with the FA doing something about it. Intent or no intent, it turned out to be a bad tackle and so needs to be punished.

Talking about the Burnley game, I honestly do not have much information about our opponents. There was a news article along with a few blogs which suggested that the Burnley boss was talking about throwing tackles in and coming on to Arsenal's faces! Its just sickening is what that is! Its more of a mentality of 'if I cant, they shouldn't either...' which is just BS. Sorry about that.

We should welcome back Denilson, Diaby and Arshavin for tomorrow's game. Hopefully, Arshavin and Diaby wont have to play 90 minutes. Diaby is very fragile and needs to be brought back slowly. Arshavin, well I just want him to play on Tuesday against Porto for 90 minutes because this game may need his magic more than the Burnley game. It seems like Wenger does not talk about Arshavin at all. I wonder why...

Our former captain, Gallas seems to be still injured and Sol Campbell has some sort of groin problem. With the number of injuries we have had, it seems like Denilson would start the game in place of Song. I would rather see Eastmond play in place of suspended Song. Bendtner seems to have found a right balance. He needs to improve his shooting. I am sure the coaches and Wenger are aware of that.

My Arsenal team prediction:
Almunia,
Sagna, TV5, Silvestre, Clichy,
Diaby, Eastmond, Fab4
Eboue, Bedntner, Rosicky

Bench: Fabianski, Traore, Denilson, Arshavin, Eduardo

Match Prediction: 3-1 to the Arsenal.

Dont forget to watch the massive banner that some gooners have designed to show support to Aaron Ramsey. I really appreciate this idea.

Come on you Gooners, lets win it for Aaron.

Good luck to Arsenal players

International break right in the middle of an intense season cannot be justified! However, with the nations battling it out this summer for the World Cup, not too much can be said against these fixtures. This is evident from the fact that none of the managers are moaning about it. I wouldn't blame them even if there was some uproar. Speaking of uproar, I am surprised to see plenty of pundits jumping to protect Ryan Shawcross!

When a guy has a car accident, it does not matter whether he has a history of such accidents or whether he intended for it to happen or not. When a car accident occurs, there is no way to wipe it off as if it never happened. This is how I look at the tackle. If a player injures another player, with or without intentions, he needs to be punished.

I hope that all the Arsenal players come back from International duties, without any strains, injuries or like Van Persie. For that matter, I hope none of the players anywhere get injured representing the nation because these friendlies are not really of any great importance.

I would like to wish Aaron Ramsey a full recovery and wish to see the lad up and running as early as possible.

"THERE IS ONLY ONE AARON RAMSEY..."

My first blog and made a mistake as well!

Turns out that instead of creating a new post, I accidentally created a new blog within my account. So to rectify that, I ended deleting that one and posting it on this blog. It happens to be my first blog. Please be patient while I learn the trades! Here it is...

Dear fellow Gooners,

This is my first blog and wish to thank all my friends who encouraged me to start this.

In this time of unrest in the gooner fans, I feel we need to look at tomorrow's game in a positive manner. Without a proper defensive mid fielder in the last game, we had a good number of problems protecting the back four. Clearly the defensive mid field of Diaby and Denilson forgot to keep it tight in the midfield.

The biggest difference in the teams that play 4-3-3 and Arsenal is that we tend to allow teams to hold the ball when we lose the ball. I know it sounds like preaching negative football but we need to immediately press the ball and if needed make a foul! Yes I know it does not sound like Arsenal or pro-Wenger but we really need to do that. See how many times we are getting caught on the break. Its hard to believe that a few years back we did this to teams and pretty much destroyed them!

Come on you gooners, its time to start building the momentum again.

Sunderland:
They have been able to acquire 6 points from the last possible 36! The team has lost its experienced mid field duo of Reid and Steve Malbr... through injuries. The team seems to be on a low morale and we need to take full advantage of this situation.

However if Sunderland scores and I think they might in the first half, we may have to fight it out till the last minute for an equaliser and a winner.

What about us?
Seems like the little Russian is not going to be around on the pitch tomorrow to show us his talent.
However Song seems to be 80-20 to play. I still feel its better to keep him on the bench and not rush him into action immediately. Also our blonde keeper could be back. Why rush the guy? We have already seen what happens when we rush players like the flaky Diaby.

Prediction:

3-1 to ARSENAL.

Thanks for reading. Please feel free to comment.

Any aggressive comments may be removed due to the public domain access laws.

We defended well

Arsenal had a fine game against Stoke City today at the Britannia. We went down to the typical long throw-in goal. But I was glad to see the determination that our players showed to fight back and win the game.

In my last post, I had predicted that we may lose the game by 2 goals to 1 and had also hoped to be wrong. I am so happy that I have to eat my own words for this! That is why football is unpredictable and another reason why I am not an expert and instincts take over my decision making.

We dominated the second half. I was very impressed with the pair of Verma and Campbell. They really seem to be doing well as the CB pair. They kept Sidibi and Ricardo F well under control. Wenger made a smart team selection. He added Sagna at the back to help Campbell. Song was very stable today and seems to be improving with every game. I think with Ramsey in the mid field, Song seems more confident. Ramsey has amazing energy levels. Unfortunately, Shawcross made a dirty challenge on Ramsey. All the Arsenal players seemed to be in shock after that challenge. Seems like he has a fracture on his knee. I really hope the kid gets back on his feet again. Its hard not to compare his injury to Eduardo's!

Stoke blocked plenty of our shots and seemed very strong in defense. Ramsey was definitely fouled in the box by Faye and we were not given a penalty like many other games. Justice was made however, when we were given a penalty for handball inside the box. Fabregas shot low and in the right corner and Sorensen got a hand to it but the shot was powerful. In injury time, TV5 scored after some neat work by the likes of Eduardo, Rosicky, Fabregas and Bendtner from the corner. Fabregas was fouled before that at the center line and the referee waved play on. However, Tony Pulis was pretty pissed when Fab4 fouled one of his players and seemed to swear at Fab4. Cool Fab4 just indicated to him to shut up. I think this one is going to start another battle just like the one that we already have with Hull city and its lunatic manager and assistant.

It will be interesting to hear who starts the fire tomorrow in the press conference. Pulis will say it wasnt a penalty and Wenger may actaully say that it was. I just enjoy these managerial fueds. Keep up the good work Gooners.
Thanks for reading.

May be third time is a charm...

Its time again for us to prove, "Football is mostly played with feet." Although head is required but mostly the inside of the head more than the outside. However, our opponents for tomorrow may not agree with that statement. I know the debate has been going on for ages and will continue till the end of football which will probably occur with the end of the world. It was time I to join the debate.

Something for us to learn and observe tomorrow is- Have we learnt anything from past two seasons? I hope Wenger has been practicing some defending against long throws and corners and set pieces. I have a feeling Stoke might score a goal this way. If my stats are right, we have been vulnerable to stoke against these tactics. Height is no excuse against poor defending. Remember Makelele, he was no giant, yet was one of the best defensive mid fielders in football. DETERMINATION, INSTINCTS will be very much the mantra for tomorrow.

TEAM CHAT
Arsenal: We dont have our #23 coming back this week. Although he is not tall, Arshavin makes it up for this with his physical strength to hold off defenders while others join the attack. Theo may start tomorrow, since Wenger may keep Nasri for Champions League.
Predicted team: Almunia, Sagna, Campbell, Verma, Clichy, Fabregas, Song, Denilson, Rosicky, Bendtner, Theo

Stoke: They are unbeaten in 2010. Pulis will probably keep telling that to his players. Tails are up and Arsenal are vulnerable away from home and especially when long balls and throws come into the 18 yard box. Faye returns and will probably start. Bendtner may have a hard time shrugging this guy off.
Stoke: Everyone in the squad who can head the ball and is 5' 10" starts the game!

Instincts say:
We need to score early to win or draw. It will be difficult to make a come back especially at the Britannia. Wenger will probably blame the referee for something and Pulis will criticize Wenger for that.

Prediction:
Stoke City 2-1 Arsenal
I HOPE THAT I WOULD HAVE TO EAT MY OWN WORDS...

Hope you gooners have a great weekend. Thanks for reading, if you reached this far.