Archive for Arsenal

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May21

Is this the end for Vermaelen? Is the role of Club Captain misunderstood? New Poll

by WiganGooner on May 21, 2013 at 8:00 am
Posted In: Arsenal

It has been said many times that Arsène finds the position of Captain in a football side a rather archaic, unnecessary role in the modern game. Arsène believes that every player should be a leader, driving the team on and that no-one should look to one man for inspiration. His point is clear to understand, when your game is based on collective creativity, speed of thought and execution and a smattering of individual flair it is foolish to rely on one man to inspire 10 other men.

Yet the effect at Arsenal has been clear to see, dropping Club Captain Thomas Vermaelen and passing the armband to the experienced Mikel Arteta and there seems to have been a change in dynamic. Arteta is a talker, he plays the simple stuff first and he is someone that the likes of Ramsey and Wilshire look up to. He is a role model, exactly what you want as your Captain and he has a great understanding of the game, on and off the pitch.

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Our resurgence towards the end of the season is not wholly down to Arteta, there have been some exceptional performances from several players – Rambo, Koscielny, the BFG, Rosicky, Gibbs and of course the mercurial Santi Cazorla but it is a testament to the weight that he puts on Arteta that he started him on Sunday even when he wasn’t fit. Arteta is the football equivalent of the little book of calm and we have missed that cool assurance in the centre of the park. Few could argue that his position as Vice Captain isn’t merited, in fact, I would be confident that the majority would accept him taking over as Captain until Jack is ready and the BFG becoming Vice Captain.

So where does this leave Vermaelen, Club Captain and Central Defender. I think if we took a poll (and I just might put one up today) on who should become Captain for next season and of course what should we do with Vermaelen. We have seen him degenerate as a player and I wonder whether he will get that confidence back at Arsenal. The important thing to remember is that he is a top-class defender and we need more than the BFG and Koscielny to compete. We need strength in depth so to get shot of Vermaelen would mean that we would need to replace him, but will he be happy with a squad role and the chance to win his place back in pre-season?

I know Vermaelen is a good player, I think the Captaincy distracts him on the pitch and I think taking it off of him would release him to do what he does best, which is anticipatory, strong defending. I don’t think he is a suitable partner for Koscielny, but I can certainly see him playing off of the BFG if he starts communicating better (again the removal of the Captaincy should help). Could a change of position benefit Vermaelen? If we moved him into the defensive midfield role currently occupied by Arteta could he do the same job and shield the defence whilst providing the springboard for us to base our attacks on? What do you think?

I think it is always a terrible idea to let good players go if you can do something about it. We are getting rid of enough dead wood this summer, as delighted as we are that they are going it is an awful amount of upheaval in the playing staff – even though they are not first teamer’s they are on the training ground every day. The likes of Squillaci, Arshavin, Chamakh will have friends in the Arsenal squad and we need to bolster the existing playing staff with excellent players and we could do a lot worse than ensuring Vermaelen is still there after the summer transfer window. He is a good player and still has plenty to offer if he is committed to Arsenal. If the picture above is anything to go by then he looks pretty committed to me.

 

WG

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May20

When 4th becomes a trophy – just for a day

by WiganGooner on May 20, 2013 at 8:55 am
Posted In: Arsenal

It seems a ridiculous concept that 4th position in the league could cause such happiness for the Gooner faithful. However it wasn’t just 4th that we were able to celebrate yesterday, it was also St. Totteringhams Day. Arguably the best day of the year.

It wasn’t a remarkable performance yesterday from Arsenal. There were no spectacular 30yrd goals nor any incidents which left pundits and fans alike bawling in frustration. What we saw was a professional, albeit nervy performance from Arsenal. We played a tight game, not over-committing going forwards and did what was required to seal the three points and 4th.

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Arsene said that there has been a great spirit in this squad and I cannot fault that analysis. When we lost to Spurs it asked an awful lot of questions about the quality of these players and they were not found wanting. It hasn’t always been extravagant, classy football but it is a results-based business and we got the results we needed. 11 games, 9 wins, 2 draws – not bad for a team in a negative spiral. Thank you AVB for that ill-judged comment which will have galvanised that shell-shocked Arsenal side.

Several Arsenal players have commented that it took a meeting between the Arsenal players to sort out our lack of cohesion and defensive frailties and it was a successful enterprise. It shouldn’t be rocket science and perhaps it should have happened sooner, but I am delighted that the players took the responsibility to sort it out themselves. The manager can only tell them what he wants them to do, during games they have to act on their own initiative and the players had to sort it out. Far too often we have conceded goals when we shouldn’t, we have dropped point and crashed out of the domestic cup competitions well before time.

Has it been a successful season? We have achieved the minimum requirement. We have reached the qualification stages of the Champions League and most importantly we have once again reminded Spurs that Arsenal are and will always be the Kings of North London. North London is Red.

I have to say, I like this new, mature, composed and determined Arsenal. The players have built a real platform to kick off from next season. We have to take the belief and confidence into next season and strengthen the squad further. Transfer rumours are flying around already and I really like the idea of Yaya Sanogo, so I hope some business can be concluded there. There have been mentions of him being injury prone, but a broken leg and a torn abductor  in two years isn’t a sign of a injury prone player, just one that had a couple of untimely injuries, so lets hope we can sign the talented forward. 9 goals and one assist in 11 games this season speaks for itself, he can finish. If Amaury Bischoff was “a bit of a gamble”, I would suggest that Sanogo could be considered “a dead cert” and I would be delighted if we could convert the rumour into reality. Arsene has said we are in the advanced stages but nothing is completed yet, but perhaps this could be some early business concluded. Contracts generally roll over on the 1st June, so unless Sanogo has signed a pre-contract agreement, then don’t expect any announcement until then.

Most would argue that we need more than a striker, so I hope Arsene is already contacting clubs to start negotiations. We need to be sharp and our recruitment activities need to mirror last season which saw us complete early purchases for Giroud, Podolski and Cazorla. Importantly Arsene has said that the instability of previous seasons where players “were half in and half out” certainly affected the pre-season preparations, but there will be no such distraction this year, with the only notable speculation regarding Vermaelen, side-lined for much of the second half of this season due to the excellent form of Koscielny and the BFG and of course Bakary Sagna who only has a year left on his contract.

I would prefer if we could keep both, but if there is money to be made then I cannot see any reason why we couldn’t sell Sagna or Vermaelen provided sufficient replacements are promoted or purchased. Corporal Jenkinson is looking better and better, but he will need challenging in the same way that Gibbs has been forced to perform by the purchase of the excellent Monreal.

So much still to talk about following this season, but for now – it’s just great to be a Gooner.

WG

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May16

Where will Arsene Wenger go now?

by WiganGooner on May 16, 2013 at 9:15 am
Posted In: Arsenal

Revered in France, highly respected across Europe and of course the globe for the brand of football that he created at Arsenal. In years past the French leagues used to be his hunting grounds, unearthing gems from obscurity, shaping and buffing them into sparking diamonds.

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Where can he go now, the quality of the French talent has dropped firstly in relation to the Spanish and now Germany. We all know these things tend to go in cycles, but now is not the time for France. In Germany, Pep Guardiola is swiftly vacuuming up the top talent in the Bundesliga, so what is left for Arsene? Will he look at top talent like Cavani or Falcao? I honestly don’t believe he would because you cannot add shine to a star and Arsene makes stars, he doesn’t buy them.

Will he take a considered punt on Loic Remy, the talented forward at the relegated QPR? He has a rumoured escape clause of around 8m and it would be an easy transition for the Frenchman who is oft likened to Henry. Personally, I think he is more of an Anelka type, who relies on mobility and positioning rather than his ability to beat a man with pace.

It is clear to see for me that we need to score more goals, we need someone like Remy, but would the fans be satisfied with him? Are we fans so frustrated that we need to see a bigger sign of intent? Do we need to sign a Cavani? Or do we just need to make the right purchases in the positions where its required. In my opinion we need a new Defensive Midfielder and another top Striker. In terms of Defenders, we need to look and see what happens with the Sagna situation, if he stays then I would be happy for him to mentor Jenkinson and bring him along and share the right-back duties with him.

If Vermaelen goes then we need to take a serious look at Iggy Miquel, who at some point we need to show him the path to the first team or we will lose him and I think he is too good to let go. I think he could step up and slot in, he’s mobile, good in the air and he is fearless. He has an awful lot of promise.

Lots of things to consider, but first lets smash Newcastle at the weekend to make sure of European Qualification and then we can get introspective about Arsenal and start rebuilding for 2013-14.

WG

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May15

One giant leap for Arsenal, one trapdoor for brave Wigan

by WiganGooner on May 15, 2013 at 9:14 am
Posted In: Arsenal

The twitter fallout after the game was telling, naturally the Arsenal faithful were delighted with the win, but there was a definite sense of sadness at knowing it came at the expense of Wigan Athletic. Martinez’s side were brave, tenacious and lucky at times, but overall you feel  that it was their ability to self-destruct at the back that defined their season, similar to our own plight at one stage.

With Kone and Maloney firing the goals, I thought Wigan had a strong chance this season of avoiding a relegation dogfight altogether, but as mentioned above, defensively Wigan have not been solid enough and conceded some awful goals. It is easy for me to empathise, I know an awful lot of Latics fans, it’s a shame their football didn’t get what it deserved.

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For Arsenal however it was just one giant leap towards top four safety and another season of Champions League football. We have a game against a Newcastle side that has floundered since January, but because of Pardew’s daft comments regarding this game, I expect them to be fired up. For those that haven’t seen it, Pardew (the bounder!) laughingly suggested that now Newcastle were safe from relegation he didn’t care if he lost 4:0 to Arsenal. I hope we do beat them 4:0, it would be funny to watch Pardew squirm as he is asked if the result is legitimate.

We go into the game in good form after the second half last night. We took advantage of the tired legs of Wigan and really put them to the sword by breaking with pace, using the guile of Cazorla and Rosicky to penetrate Wigan time and time again. It was great to see Poldi grab a couple of goals, it will be interesting to see if Giroud is now benched for Sunday’s game or whether he is restored to the starting line-up, I suspect he will be restored but credit where it’s due, Poldi has done OK for us up there as his two goals showed last night.

Theo was very bright last night too, attacking well and scoring a great goal and then doing the donkey work too. He kept Wigan’s defence stretched and burnt Scharner for pace on more than one occasion, the 34yr old didn’t know what hit him. I was delighted to see Rambo score too, the lad needs goals because the rest of his game has really got back to where it should be, but he is missing his goals that he used to get regularly, I can see them returning as he keeps getting in the right positions, it’s just the composure and now the monkey is off his back, perhaps he will grab one or two in the last game – here’s hoping!

We have enough quality to put the Barcodes to bed, I thought Wigan would be more of a banana-skin and so they proved with Maloney’s free-kick just before half-time ensuring Wigan went in at the interval level at 1:1 but Newcastle will offer a different threat. Newcastle without Ba seem a bit toothless at times. Papiss Cisse up front seems to be struggling for goals and defensively Newcastle appear to be at the races but they always seem to motivate themselves against us so expect no favours. I just want the three points and at this point I really couldn’t care less how we get them.

Injury news so far is that Arteta is feeling his calf after last night with Arsene citing him as a major doubt. This is a massive problem as the work that he does is often lost in the razzmatazz of the attacking by Cazorla and Rosicky. I hope he can pass fit, otherwise I expect Ramsey to take that role and Wilshire to come in for Ramsey’s current position. This might leave us open defensively as Arteta and Rambo both put in an awful lot of miles just chasing and tracking back, so it will be interesting if Wilshire does the same, I suspect not but hopefully we will score enough so it doesn’t matter.

Fingers crossed for more team news on Friday.

Come on you Gooners! It’s firmly in our grasp!

WG

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May14

Wigan believes, but so do I – Arsenal v Wigan preview

by WiganGooner on May 14, 2013 at 7:47 am
Posted In: Arsenal

I have been an Arsenal fan from the minute I could distinguish colours on the television screen and comprehend why Dad and my Grandad were screaming at the television on when the football was on.

I enjoy football, so I enjoy watching sides that play good football as well as my own beloved Arsenal and I have to say I have more than a passing affection for what Martinez has done for Wigan during his tenure here. Think back to the days of Steve Bruce, who signed the enigmatic Amr Zaki, Wilson Palacios, Antonio Valencia and most wonderfully of all Emile Heskey. Look how far Martinez has taken this Wigan side whose first instinct was kick and run to the devastating, continental pass and move football that Wigan now employ.

It was just before christmas when the Father-in-Law said that he didn’t think Wigan would stay up this year. I countered that Wigan always start playing football from February onwards and that I thought they could escape again, citing that there are worse teams in this division than Wigan.

Yet here we are, Wigan need 6 points from 6 to stay up and Arsenal need 6 from 6 to get in the top four.

What a fixture!

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Off the back of a 10 day rest our team looks pretty healthy with the beleaguered Abou Diaby being the only long-term injury, other than that we have a clean bill of health which is frankly both surprising knowing us and yet a bit refreshing to not blame injuries for form.

News has broken that Jack needs minor surgery to remove a pin in his ankle, but this was actually news about four weeks ago when the Ox said that Jack was still feeling a bit of pain from the pin itself and that it needed removing. Arsene has said that they will continue to manage the injury and play Jack only when completely necessary.

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Apr30

Could we ask for more? A look at Arsenal vs ManYoo and a look forwards to QPR

by WiganGooner on April 30, 2013 at 7:36 am
Posted In: Arsenal

In the last three games we have seen the very best and the very worst of this current crop of Arsenal players. We saw the excellent defensive work and eventual goal by Mertesacker, the fine finish by Theo against ManYoo and we played that excellent draw against the Toffee’s where both sides fought for the three points but it just didn’t come.

Then we saw Sagna’s red mist moment against ManYoo.

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I would like to start by saying I really like Sagna and this isn’t a personal hit on him, more the ability for Arsenal as a whole to hit that big red self-destruct button at key moments in games. The second I saw Sagna head off on that run after RvP I knew what was going to happen and I was screaming for him to “stand him up” and “make him work for it” rather than rashly dive in and concede what was always going to be a penalty.

The ref was never going to let that go after watching Sagna charge 40 yards to make the tackle. It was clear desperation and a lack of a clear head but I can understand Sagna’s wish to atone for his mistake. It is just endemic of our season where we are flying then we make a daft mistake – BFG vs West Brom, for example where a crazy decision could have cost us the game. I’m not suggesting for one moment that Sagna cost us three points,  because ManYoo were already feeling their way back, but I’d prefer to make them work for it than gift it to them.

Were we due more than a point at ManYoo, did we deserve all three points, being fair No, we didn’t do enough. There were clear signs though that we are a really good side and we need to take this form into our next three fixtures.

Onwards, we have QPR at the weekend who played out a hapless 0:0 draw against Reading to ensure mutual relegation. Old ‘Arry (not a wheeler-dealer – honest guv’) Redknapp and his gentlemen players welcome us to Loftus Road for the first game since their relegation was confirmed. Rumours abound that we are taking a close interest in Loic Remy, the striker signed from Marseille in the January transfer window. His stats are good, 11 appearances – 1 sub – 5 goals – 1 yellow card.

Remy is certainly different to what we have. He fits Arsene’s mould of a talented French striker, he’s 26, apparently available for a knock-down 8 million in the summer due to a relegation escape clause. If that is the case I would certainly consider it, though I think there is work to do for him to become a first-choice player for us.

Looking introspectively at Arsenal, we have our own concerns with our strikers as Lukas Podolski looks leggy despite him being under-used. Now I am fully aware that he is used to a mid-season break, but it’s not like he has played every minute of every game. There is plenty of scuttlebutt flying around about an ankle problem that we are managing until he can have surgery in the summer, which would practically be a first for Arsenal. Usually we just ship them off for the required surgery and just “cope” without. So it is either a trail-blazing decision, or a lot more of our players have been going through this without us knowing about it.

Which raises an interesting question for me, what if we cause irreparable damage to Podolski by playing him occasionally when required rather than getting him the required surgery. Is it then worth it?

I will do a proper pre-match later on in the week, but for now Gooner’s – have a great week!

 

WG

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Apr19

Rosicky must start in crucial match against Fulham

by WiganGooner on April 19, 2013 at 11:02 am
Posted In: Arsenal

As we take in our annual boat trip down the Thames there has to be a certain sense of trepidation considering previous form, the result against Everton and the news from Arsene that Santi, Jack and the Ox are all carrying knocks from Tuesdays battle.

You could see these knocks coming with cynical body-checks happening throughout and the Barkley incident where he rolled back and up Santi’s standing leg was enough to make me wince. Something that perhaps looks an awful lot worse in slow-motion, but also that requires looking at by the FA. There have been a few incidents of this recently and perhaps something needs to be done about it.

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That said, I liked the Barkley kid, he is a bit like Rooney, big, strong, creative and he doesn’t hide in the big games. It will be interesting to see if Everton can keep hold of him.

So we take on the Cottagers again in yet another must win game knowing that a win would put us back up into 3rd overnight and leaving Chelski to play Liverpool and Spurs to play Citeh. Psychologically a win would be a great boon, putting the pressure back on both sides and we need to pick up our momentum again. I don’t think there will be any dropped heads following the game on Tuesday where we fought well but we just didn’t manage to nick it.

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Apr16

Arsenal vs Everton – The Toffee’s are Coming!

by WiganGooner on April 16, 2013 at 7:04 pm
Posted In: Arsenal

Tonight we welcome the Toffee’s to the Emirates in a game that could really kick us on in the run in, or it could really derail us and put a halt to our great run. There is real positives on the teamsheet today as Rosicky and the BFG are both back available and I could go a long way to find an Arsenal fan who wouldn’t want both of them in the first team right now.

The BFG has been consistently good all season and whilst he doesn’t have pace, he has a calming assurance at the back and he brings a level or organisation. Vermaelen came in at the weekend for him due to the red card he picked up against West Brom and whilst he had a good game, I think Arsene know that Koscielny and the BFG are a great partnership and he would be foolish to choose against returning to that formula tonight – especially with the height options that Everton have. Incidentally, once I wrote the above Arsenal.com published the teamsheet and Arsene clearly agrees with me, or vice versa…or whatever..

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Apr15

It felt pretty good didn’t it? a look at Arsenal v Norwich

by WiganGooner on April 15, 2013 at 10:30 am
Posted In: Arsenal

I’m not going to lie, by the 80th minute my nails were in tatters and my bottom lip had been bitten to pieces. I shouted, I flailed my arms in exasperation and I even had my face in my hands in disbelief. Then, finally, a decision went our way in the strangest manner possible, or at least not the strangest, but the most unlikeliest manner.

We were awarded a fortunate corner after tireless chasing by Ramsey, Giroud was hauled down in the box, denied a goal-scoring opportunity and Arteta buried the penalty with a cool swagger and a steely determination. If ever there was a player who has given everything this season, Arteta is that player. He has been exceptional all season. It says a lot about him that he can play to such an impeccable standard every game and we hardly notice it because it is the norm. He is consistently played as a holding midfielder/deep-lying playmaker and whilst that has never been his position in the past, he has grown into the role. He isn’t a Frimpong, he isn’t a hard-as-nails, physical presence but he plays his position extremely well and a lot of good things come from his intelligent passing and control of possession.

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Apr10

Caging the Canaries – Arsenal v Norwich Preview

by WiganGooner on April 10, 2013 at 2:50 pm
Posted In: Arsenal

Arsenal fans could be forgiven for chalking up this season as a case of  Déjà vu. We sold sold our best player in the summer to bitter rivals ManYoo and replaced him with what is perceived in some quarters to be with inferior players. Performances this season have been lacklustre at times and we have oft been reminded that this is a direct effect of Robin van Persie’s departure. We have struggled for goals at times and we have not been able to string a decent run of wins together. As the season has progressed, there have been some positive elements to Arsenal’s performances, but plenty of negatives for the media to pick up on and use as their club to beat us with. Nothing sells more newspapers than despair but you won’t ever find much of that here.

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There are clear positives to bring out right now. 1) We are challenging for 3rd spot in the Premier League, if results go our way we could even raise our ambitions to an even loftier state. 2) We are in a run right now and confidence is high, defensively and offensively we are performing and that has been a difficult thing for us to achieve this season. 3) Whilst Giroud isn’t banging in 30 goals just yet, we are managing to spread the goals around which makes us a better overall team, rather than being reliant on one super player. 4) You might lament his departure, but I liked the way we dealt with the Song transfer, he touted himself about, make his intentions clear so we shipped him out. No messing, no fuss and we made a killing on the deal. Perhaps Barca won’t be too keen to take another player in the short-term.

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