Arsenal 2 – 1 Liverpool: Carling Cup

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal1 Comment

A good result against a half strength Liverpool team tonight. Arsenal played a mixture of squad players: Eduardo, Gibbs, Ramsey, Bendtner, reserves: Senderos, Sylvestre, injury returns: Nasri and youth players: Gilbert, Eastmond.

The game saw some end to end football by both teams. Arsenal’s passing was exquisite at times, although it got very sloppy towards the end. Babel was awful for Liverpool and negated almost every attack they attempted, Wenger was right not to sign him on this performance.

Merida’s goal was fantastic, as was Insua’s, Bendtner managed to finish Liverpool off with a good strike on 50 minutes. Eastmond made a decent debut, I was also really impressed with Nasri – he was fantastic, and looked really hungry for the win. Wenger may have a selection problem with him back in contention.

Overall a good performance, Sanchez Watt, Gibbs, Eduardo, Ramsey, Merida and Nasri particuarly impressed me. Senderos and Sylvestre had good and bad spells in defence. I wouldn’t like to see them against higher quality than Babel and Voronin to be honest.

So through to the next round, with the important game against Tottenham coming up on Saturday at 12.45.

What are Arsène Wenger’s best quotes as Arsenal boss?

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal20 Comments
What are Arsene Wenger’s best quotes as Arsenal boss?
To my mind, Arsene Wenger has brought a huge amount to the Premier
League. He introduced strict training regimes, promoted the importance
of a club’s youth policy, nurtured some of the world’s best players
and entertained us with Arsenal’s passing football.
Amongst all this though, he has provided the media with some fantastic
quotations over the years. Whether he is being deadly serious,
humorous, having a rant or commenting on the England national team, it
is always of interest.
Here are some of my personal favourites, but please comment with some
of yours as well. There are plenty out there!
“Is the title over or not? I don’t believe so. If everyone is right
about the championship, then let’s stop, give them the trophy and then
start again.”
“At a young age winning is not the most important thing… the
important thing is to develop creative and skilled players with good
confidence.”
“We didn’t think he (Reyes) would play on Sunday because he was
suspended – that makes me think he has all the qualities to join
Arsenal!”
“I’m ready to take the blame for all the problems of English football
if that is what he (Ferguson) wants.”
“We do not buy superstars. We make them.”
There you go then, a few to get you going. What are your favourite
Wenger quotes? Do you think he should speak his mind as much as he
does? Leave a comment to let me know what you think.
Excellent win last night by the way. It was a really professional
display where Arsenal had to be patient, but eventually got the goals
that their performance deserved. To have Arshavin playing in the
Champions League is such a bonus and he is turning into one of
Wenger’s most influential players.
Should be another victory against Blackburn at home this weekend, but
in the mean time – let me hear your favourite Wenger quotes!To my mind, Arsene Wenger has brought a huge amount to the Premier

To my mind, Arsène Wenger has brought a huge amount to the Premier League. He introduced strict training regimes, promoted the importance of a club’s youth policy, nurtured some of the world’s best players, and entertained us with Arsenal’s passing football.

Amongst all this though, he has provided the media with some fantastic quotations over the years. Whether he is being deadly serious, humorous, having a rant or commenting on the England national team, it is always of interest.

Here are some of my personal favourites, but please comment with some of yours as well. There are plenty out there!

“Is the title over or not? I don’t believe so. If everyone is right about the championship, then let’s stop, give them the trophy and then start again.”

“At a young age winning is not the most important thing…the important thing is to develop creative and skilled players with good confidence.”

“We didn’t think he (Reyes) would play on Sunday because he was suspended – that makes me think he has all the qualities to join Arsenal!”

“I’m ready to take the blame for all the problems of English football if that is what he (Ferguson) wants.”

“We do not buy superstars. We make them.”

There you go then, a few to get you going. What are your favourite Wenger quotes? Do you think he should speak his mind as much as he does?

Excellent win last night by the way. It was a really professional display where Arsenal had to be patient, but eventually got the goals that their performance deserved. To have Arshavin playing in the Champions League is such a bonus and he is turning into one of Wenger’s most influential players.

If you’re interested in Wenger before Arsenal, read about Arsene at Monaco and watch a fascinating Wenger video interview from 1984.

Adebayor shows his true colours, Arsenal were unlucky: Man City 4 – 2 Highlights

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Video86 Comments

Arsenal played some fantastic football at times yesterday, but we were undone again by defensive problems. As soon as we pushed for the winner at 1-1 the defence was left open, and City scored 3 goals in 7 minutes to make it 4-1. Rosicky’s goal was deserved, and we came close to another in the last few minutes – but overall a disappointing game.

Worst of all was Adebayor’s attitude. For the whole game he played like a man who was desperate to prove a point. The fact that he never played like that last season shows just how disloyal he is.

I know that he did get some stick last season – but that is to be expected when you hold the club to ransom over a transfer and get a massive new contract out of it. All that fans wanted to see was Ade get his head down and work for the team – he didn’t. In any case Adebayor did not get that much trouble from Arsenal fans last season.

In his mind though he is a persecuted induvidual with a point to prove – and yesterday it got too much for him.

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Thanks to Gunnerblog for the gif

Cesc’s ankle was almost broken, then he stamped on Van Persie cutting his face with his studs – an event that RVP has spoken out against. As well as that was the celebration which was utterly disgraceful, and left a steward unconcious after causing pandemonium in the away end.

Kolo did the right thing and chased Ade the length of the pitch to pick him up, that is a real player there. Apology or no apology Adebayor is in big trouble, and it’s only right that the FA are investigating the matter.

Apart from that it was great to see Rosicky back – he added real attacking flair with an assist and a goal.

Sadly it was defence that cost us, 3 times we were exposed on the left as Clichy came forward – and City exploited the space.

Alan Hansen said on MOTD last night that Arsenal are the only team who can play so well and not win, and he is right. It is all down to defence. On the left the cover from Diaby was poor, and Song filled in on one occasion, but his tackle was non-existent.

The only hope I can take from this game is that Arsene will be determined not to let this happen again.

There is a shakiness about Arsenal, a lack of confidence, that means even when we play our best football we still don’t pick up the points. We need to correct these problems as soon as possible, the defensive balance is something we have struggled with for 4 years now. We rarely keep a clean sheet and that doesn’t win you titles.

If Wenger can re-address the problems within the team then we could be title-challengers, until then we will continue to play good football with little to show for it.

Wayne ‘I have never intentionally dived’ Rooney – The Video Evidence

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Video25 Comments

Wayne Rooney has been giving his take on the Eduardo incident and the penalty at Old Trafford:

“I have never intentionally dived. There have been times when I have tried to stay on my feet and tried to get the shot off rather than going down. I don’t think it is fair for players to dive and cheat the other team.”

This video tells a different story, maybe UEFA would like to take retrospective action on some of this evidence?

Yet the media still like to portray English players as hard-working and honest, while the ‘foreign’ clubs like Arsenal bring in these horrible cheating tactics from Europe.

Take John Terry today quoted as saying:

“I can speak about the England lads and I think it is something we don’t do, I think we’re too honest, sometimes even in the Premier League you see the English lads get a bit of contact and stay on their feet and try and score from the chance they have been given.”

Somehow I don’t think that is quite true.

The Eduardo Affair: Botched and inconsistent

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Champions League3 Comments

The Eduardo Affair has been grabbing all the headlines recently, and now that the striker has been charged with a two game ban it looks like Arsenal are going to appeal against what the club calls an ‘arbitrary decision’. This is the best course of action in a totally unjust situation.

UEFA have set a precedent in doing this, that is that they will now have to take retrospective action on all such incidents, and punish them in a similar way. If this does not happen, then it will mean that Eduardo has been singled out for special treatment, in a totally unfair way.

So I would like Ryan Babel prosecuted for his dive in the 2008 Champions League QF at Anfield, which knocked us out of the competition, and Rooney prosecuted for that dive with at Old Trafford in 2005. Last year Ronaldo dived to get the freekick at Emirates in the Champions League Semi, which he then scored to put the game beyond hope of a come back.

At Old Trafford on Saturday we saw the sort of problems this decision causes, when Arshavin was denied one of the most blatant penalties I’ve seen in years.

In the second half Wayne Rooney was looking to go down over Almunia as the ball headed out of play. In principle there is no difference between what Rooney and Eduardo did, they were both looking to go down over the keeper. Rooney ran towards Alumnia and was already down on one knee before he touched Almunia.

UEFA have overturned a referee’s decision, and now they must be prepared to do that for every game. The referee didn’t see it as a dive, he saw a foul, and gave a penalty. He then stood by his decision after the game. UEFA looked at video evidence (which they refuse to use during games) and retrospectively said that he dived, and decieved the referee.

For deciving the ref Eduardo has been given a 2 match suspension, an offence which would have earned him only a yellow in the game. This doesn’t make sense and I hope that Arsenal pursue all options and take a stand over this.

UEFA refuse video evidence during games, there’s the whole 5 ref crap on trial in the Europa League this season instead, but they are happy to use it after the match to prosecute someone. Eduardo isn’t even a serial offender, I’ve never seen him dive before, unlike C.Ronaldo or Drogba.

Le Grove have started up ‘dive watch’ keeping track of all the dives which UEFA should be prosecuting players for over the next few months, have a look and add to the list, because it only helps our argument.

Tony Attwood also discusses the possibility making UEFA look stupid with their overreaction to the situation, in a nicely written piece.

What do you think about Eduardo’s treatment, are UEFA right to take a stand, or complete imbeciles?

A bad week ends, the Eduardo affair and Old Trafford

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Champions League, Transfers2 Comments

The dust is settling on what was a bad week for Arsenal Football Club. Firstly Eduardo was singled out for very harsh treatment by UEFA after a dive against Celtic. Then we go to Old Trafford, take the lead and outplay United, only to concede a silly penalty and score an own goal.

Eduardo has now been labelled as a diver and the way Man Utd fans treated him at OT was testimony to Wenger’s description of events as a ‘witch hunt’. Eduardo was booed as he warmed up and the fans made diving gestures to the player. God forbid he ever goes down in the box again, because the reaction will not be friendly and the pressure will be on the referee.

The United game was unlucky, we played well, Arshavin scored a cracker, but the team looked nervous. That nervousness led to Almunia conceding a needless penalty, where Rooney was already nearly grounded before Almunia touched him, and then led to Diaby’s crazy own goal. I thought Diaby was good for the most part of the game, so hopefully he can get over it.

I have to admit I was going crazy when we scored in the 95th minute, just like Wenger, and I felt the same frustration when I finally saw the offside flag below. The sending off of Wenger was farcical and he handled it impeccably. He deserves his apology. See the highlights of the game at Arsenalist.com

The game itself gives me hope, as we are still missing so many attacking players, and the team still played better than Utd. I think we can continue our good form in the coming games.

In terms of Eduardo Arsenal have submitted a 19 page document to UEFA in defence of the player. It seems though that UEFA already see him as guilty and he is going to get a two match ban no matter what. This is a dangerous precendent to set, and if they are to be fair then UEFA must take retrospective action on events in every game – something which they cannot physically do. Sam Wallace puts it nicely in this article in the Independent.

Finally today is transfer deadline day, and suprisingly there is nothing to report on the Arsenal front. I don’t think we’ll see any signings for the top four, but I wouldn’t mind Arsenal snapping up one or two last minute bargains.

What are your thoughts on the way Arsenal have been treated by officials in the last week?

Wenger talks about disgraceful Eduardo decision

On By thomasrooneyIn Arsenal7 Comments

Arsene Wenger is not a happy bunny. Upon hearing the news about UEFA’s decision to charge Eduardo for diving in the recent Champions League qualifier victory over Celtic, the Arsenal boss said that it was a ‘complete disgrace and unacceptable’.

To be honest, you can’t blame Wenger for having these views. It’s not as if Eduardo is the first player to make more out of a challenge than he should have done is it? Imagine how many times Cristiano Ronaldo should have been charged if this was the norm!

Continuing to speak about his disapproval with the decision, Wenger said that this has ‘singled out a player to be a cheat’, something which is ‘not acceptable’. He went on to say that it is the first time in football where the judgment of the referee has been deemed as accepted by the football bodies.

This is very true. When do you ever hear of this? When has a player ever been charged for diving? The official line is that Eduardo has been punished for ‘going down with intent’, but how can this be proved?

Fair enough, it probably wasn’t a penalty, but can it be proved that Eduardo dived with the intention of cheating? There have been far more blatant dives in football over the last few years, so why has this one been singled out? It makes no sense to me and seems a very strange decision.

One of Wenger’s final points (he talked about it for a while!) was that the case has been ‘ruled emotionally’ by the Scottish FA and the Scottish people who work for UEFA. Overall, the Frenchman is bewildered by the fact that ‘the existing rules of football have been changed for just one case’.

The next development in this story is that Eduardo could be banned for two European games when the disciplinary body meets next week. This means that there is every chance he could miss the games against Standard Liege and Olympiacos.

Does he deserve this though? What are your thoughts?

As always, let me know.

Arsenal 3 – 1 Celtic: Highlights, talking point Eduardo

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Champions League, Highlights14 Comments

Arsenal dominated Celtic yesterday to reach the finals of the Champions League, with a good display of passing football. Sadly the headlines today focus solely on the dubious penalty Eduardo won for the first goal.

Highlights from the excellent Arsenalist.com:

There was little or no contact, and if it had been given against us I would be upset about it. The fact is though that this happens in football. As Wenger said Babel blatently dived in the CL QF at Anfield 2 years ago which knocked us out of the competition. I have no idea why Eduardo went down like that, but he isn’t the sort of player you expect that of, and it seems to be a one off.

The press seem to be having a field day over Eduardo’s actions, in a qualifier where we were always going to go through. Players like Drogba have a reputation for diving and never seem to get this sort of reaction. That is what I don’t understand. Eduardo wasn’t right, but there are much worse offenders in English football.

Aside from that the game was a straightforward affair, we passed the ball around neatly, and Eboue’s performance was a highlight! He made several nice turns and passes, and his goal topped it off. He was playing in the front three and often was playing as centre forward which was interesting.

Arshavin, Ramsey and Wilshere came on in the second half and all looked impressive. Arshavin showed why he is one of the best players in Europe at the moment, scoring a goal and making an impact within minutes of coming on. Denilson also performed well.

Most pleasingly the central defensive partnership of Vermaelen and Gallas was again solid last night. Vermaelen didn’t miss a header, and made several interceptions as did Gallas, and both made excellent forays going forward.

A good performance, now we need to see the draw this afternoon for the group stages. As well as that we have the small matter of a league tie at Old Trafford on saturday afternoon.

Why Arsenal will beat Manchester United on Saturday

On By thomasrooneyIn Arsenal87 Comments

Gut feelings are very common in football. You just get a feeling about something and proceed to tell everyone you know about it. I had such an experience this morning. I have an increasingly positive mindset ahead of the game at Old Trafford this Saturday.

In fact, I am confident that Arsenal can go to Manchester United and pick up three points. If you are going to push me for a prediction, I’d say 2-1 to the Gunners. Like I said, this is mainly based on a gut feeling, but there are plenty of reasons to suggest that Arsenal can emerge victorious.

For starters, confidence is very high. In my opinion, this Arsenal team doesn’t fear anybody at the moment. These are two key mentalities to have when you travel to Old Trafford and Arsene Wenger knows it. He says that the game this weekend is the first ‘big test’ of the campaign and that his team will be ready.

The Arsenal boss says that the team is improving their play all the time. Even since the end of last season, Wenger believes that the ‘speed’ of the team’s play has increased, something they can put on display at Old Trafford this weekend.

In other words, Manchester United – who have arguably lost their wow factor in the summer – might not know what has hit them.  They have every reason to be wary of the young Gunners and I’m not convinced Wenger’s men should be so of Alex Ferguson’s team.

The most important factor ahead of the game, according to Wenger, is that the team ‘recover physically’ because Manchester United will be fresh after not playing in midweek. This shouldn’t be a problem though. The team is young – the average age against Celtic was 23 – and they won’t know what tiredness is.

Arsenal will be up for the fight and determined to show the rest of the Premier League teams that they mean business this season. An early season game against Manchester United is a chance to set a marker down
for the remainder of the campaign and I’m absolutely convinced that three points can be achieved.

I want your thoughts on this though. Can Arsenal win at Old Trafford this weekend or am I being stupidly positive?

Arsenal vs. Celtic Second Leg: Fabregas out, expect rotation – Ramsey?

On By jamesgillespIn Arsenal, Champions League, Injuries4 Comments

Fabregas is out for the CL Second Leg Qualifier tonight against Celtic with a hamstring problem. The injury is not serious according to Wenger though.

Fabregas was taken off at half time against Portsmouth, and went for a scan afterwards which showed that the muscle was not strained. I expect he will be back for the game at Old Trafford on Saturday afternoon, but if he needs more time then the club should allow him to recover.

Wenger said that he will be rotating the squad, as we saw in the Portsmouth game with several changes in defence and midfield. The players who need a rest will be rested but Wenger insisted that his selections will not be influenced by the Man Utd tie on Saturday.

“I will rest the players who need to rest. “Some players have played many, many games; if I feel they need to rest, I will do it. It is not as a result of that game [against Manchester United on Saturday], it’s just if you have a player tired, you play the player who is fresh. I will play the team who I think is most efficient to win the game considering the level of some players.”

Expect a 4-3-3 formation yet again, with Ramsey stepping up to replace Fabregas. He already has the passing quality to fit into the first team, and his goal on Saturday was well taken. What Ramsey lacks is experience so tonight will be a big test if he gets the chance.

Wenger knows that we will have to be on our game tonight, Celtic have spirit, but their awful European away record, and our 2 – 0 lead away from home definitely give Arsenal the advantage.

“I thought Celtic did well in Moscow, it makes us more on alert, we know they had a very good away performance. To be strong at the Emirates is vital for our season. Any time you show weakness at home can have consequences for the game and also your season.”

Highlights on Arsespeak after the game!