Hello there,
With no match until Saturday, and very little happening Arsenalistically today, I thought I would entertain myself with a little list. So here it is; the 5 things I would like to see happen this season:
1. Theo Walcott having a 20+ goal season. I could add to this that I would like to see him be generally more influential in the final third. Walcott is a very divisive footballer, but I personally am a fan. I like the way his pace terrifies defenders, and the fact that by simply being on the team sheet teams are forced to play a deeper line against us. I also love his attitude. Look at his face in the moment after he scored against Chelsea at the weekend (a habit of his, incidentally, which also endears him to me.) Critics often say that he has no 'footballing brain'. Look at the double-touch that takes him past two static defenders after he has gone to ground. There is something there, and I would love to see his obvious potential fulfilled this season. Not least because Theo scoring a bit more would take some of the pressure off of the busy van Persie. Which brings me to my next point...
2. A striker coming in in January. Wenger being like he is this doesn't seem likely. After all, we do have two strikers outside of RvP who are capable of scoring. Chamakh, though, looks a totally different player to the one who kept the team afloat at the start of last season. No confidence, no touch, and no patience from many fans. Park, who scored a wonderful goal against Bolton in the League Cup the other week, may or may not be the solution when or if van Persie gets broken. A team truly challenging for honours, though, would have extra options. Look at the striking options at Man United; if Rooney's not scoring, they have that guy named after a vegetable. If not him, the tall Bulgarian one with the face of a serial killer. God, even Michael Owen. All of them can score goals when called upon. I would love to see us sign a striker of Benzema-quality in January. But in reality I will settle for a Darren Bent-esque signing. Not for 20 million quid though. That's ridiculous.
3. This one's simple. A permanent back four finally being solidified on. The two teams that have conceded the fewest goals this season are Man City and Newcastle (not a typo, they have somehow only conceded 7 goals). These two both have very settled back lines. We will, sadly, have to wait until the return of Bacary Sagna before we can start our preffered back four. When we do I think it will be Gibbs, Vermaelen, Mertesacker, Sagna. I personally would prefer to keep Santos at left back but I suppose Gibbs is seen as the future. Similarly, I would rather Koscielny over Mertesacker generally, but the German's height and presence is an advantage and will hopefully compliment Vermaelen's reading of the game and positioning. Either way, settled defences lead to improved cooperation, which lead to clean sheets, which lead to wonderful, delicious points.
4. This one's slightly more abstract. I want to see the return of 'fear'. Not in our players, obviously, but in the opposition. It was often said of the Invincibles that teams would be beaten just by looking at our team sheet. 'Bollocks, Henry, Pires, Ljungberg, Bergkamp and Vieira are playing', they'd say. 'Shall we even bother?' Sadly this is no longer the case. There is a definite sense that Arsenal are fragile mentally, and that teams can, with a bit of application, take points off of us. Slowly, perhaps, we have seen a slight reversal of this trend over the last 9 games or so. The wins against Sunderland and Stoke were so pleasing because they were both against the type of team that is perceived as being able to 'bully' Arsenal. So too the win at Chelsea. The fear, I'm sure, will only return with results, and we have been amassing some of those over recent weeks. To reinstate it, we need to continuing mopping up points in the Premier League, and a nice unbeaten run in the other competitions wouldn't hurt at all.
5. A controversial one, this. I want to see the return of Abou Diaby. A player so divisive he makes Moses look like an amateur. I have Arsenal-supporting friends who have said they will not watch matches that he plays, such is the ire he inspires in them. On the other hand, there are people who defend him rigorously, saying that he is a genuine talent whose career has been sadly blighted by now-constant injuries. Remember the Diaby that we saw glimpses of at the world cup? Remember this Diaby? Ever-optimistic, I’m with the latter camp. I really like the dynamism in his game, the way his telescopic legs combined with quick feet make him so difficult to tackle, and the way that people always describe his legs as ‘telescopic’ when they mean ‘long’. Thus, I hope for a return for a footballer whose career has been sadly sidetracked, and whose driving forward play (err... at times) we could really do with at the moment.
So, those are my top five things I would like to see happen, from an Arsenal point of view, this season. Please comment with your own, and let me know whether you agree, disagree, or didn't really read mine.
Until next time,
Joe
Thursday, 3 November 2011
Wednesday, 2 November 2011
The Apocalypse is Nigh: Arsenal 0-0 Marseille
The best possible time to start a new blog on the subject of Arsenal FC would probably have been on Saturday evening after our destruction of Roman Abramovich's plaything. All was rosy in the Arsenal world. We had won five games in a row since our forgettable loss at White Hart Lane (the DVD should be out soon, incidentally). Going back to the Blackburn game, we had won eight of our nine fixtures since that day. Robin van Persie was on fire, Theo had been magnificent at Chelsea, and, most enjoyably of all, John Terry had finally decided that being a Premier League defender was no longer for him. That he chose to retire in the exact same moment that van Persie snuck in behind him to latch on to Malouda's hospital ball was the icing on a thoroughly delicious cake.
However, since then, we have had the less-wondrous experience of Marseille at home. I was at the game, and, frankly, it was pretty tedious. From a footballing point of view it wasn't terrible, just average. Defensively we were OK, we kept Remy and Ayew fairly quiet, despite a shaky first ten minutes. It is lovely to see Vermaelen back, it goes without saying that we will be a better team once he has conquered these injuries once and for all. Mertesacker, after being out-shitted at Stamford Bridge only by John Terry, had a solid game, stepping in a few times in our box in what could otherwise have become dangerous situations.
It was in the midfield, though, that we seemed to suffer. Perhaps it was weariness after the exertions of Saturday, perhaps it was just one of those nights, but there was certainly very little incision going forward. Neither of the two forward-lying midfielders, nor Walcott or Gervinho, seemed to want the ball enough, and there was little of the attacking commitment that characterised our walk in the park at the weekend. Park tried to get into goalscoring positions, but grew understandably frustrated as time and again the ball didn't arrive.
I have to say that I do not think the atmosphere helped. The crowd was kept fairly subdued by the travelling Marseille fans, who were excellent. What was noticeable were the constant groans of frustration and the loud admonishments every time the ball went from midfield, into a dead end, and back to Mertesacker or Vermaelen. Bear in mind that we were not losing possession. We were recycling it fairly intelligently against an organised, well-drilled side. Quite where some of the sheer exasperation in the stands came from I'm not sure. At one point an older gentleman in front of me stood up and screeched: 'for God's sake Ramsey, go forward- terrible, TERRIBLEEEE!!!' in the manner of a flamboyant priest attempting to exorcise a child-eating demon. Such frustration is understandable when players go backwards with thirty seconds to go when we are a goal down. When trying to find a way through a defensively-minded side, at 0-0, maintaing possession is just common sense. I'm all for gung-ho attacking football, and we did seem a little stale last night, but i'd rather be stale with the ball than without it.
As a performance then, it wasn't fantastic, but the result really wasn't that bad. We drew to a decent side who we have already beaten away. We are still likely to go through and probably have to remain favourites to top the group. If you are panicking, if you were calling for van Persie to be sold after he failed to score last night, please remain calm.
To summarise, despite the loss in momentum brought about by yesterday's dull affair, and despite the general grumpiness and annoyance that is already creeping back into the Arsenalsphere after last night, I still see us as a team on the up. We have, including last night, five home fixtures this month, and a run of winnable (gulp) games in the league. Although we are in seventh place, the teams directly above us are looking down nervously. After West Brom on Saturday, I hope to regain some of that momentum that will be so important in getting us back to where we belong.
Until next time,
Joe
However, since then, we have had the less-wondrous experience of Marseille at home. I was at the game, and, frankly, it was pretty tedious. From a footballing point of view it wasn't terrible, just average. Defensively we were OK, we kept Remy and Ayew fairly quiet, despite a shaky first ten minutes. It is lovely to see Vermaelen back, it goes without saying that we will be a better team once he has conquered these injuries once and for all. Mertesacker, after being out-shitted at Stamford Bridge only by John Terry, had a solid game, stepping in a few times in our box in what could otherwise have become dangerous situations.
It was in the midfield, though, that we seemed to suffer. Perhaps it was weariness after the exertions of Saturday, perhaps it was just one of those nights, but there was certainly very little incision going forward. Neither of the two forward-lying midfielders, nor Walcott or Gervinho, seemed to want the ball enough, and there was little of the attacking commitment that characterised our walk in the park at the weekend. Park tried to get into goalscoring positions, but grew understandably frustrated as time and again the ball didn't arrive.
I have to say that I do not think the atmosphere helped. The crowd was kept fairly subdued by the travelling Marseille fans, who were excellent. What was noticeable were the constant groans of frustration and the loud admonishments every time the ball went from midfield, into a dead end, and back to Mertesacker or Vermaelen. Bear in mind that we were not losing possession. We were recycling it fairly intelligently against an organised, well-drilled side. Quite where some of the sheer exasperation in the stands came from I'm not sure. At one point an older gentleman in front of me stood up and screeched: 'for God's sake Ramsey, go forward- terrible, TERRIBLEEEE!!!' in the manner of a flamboyant priest attempting to exorcise a child-eating demon. Such frustration is understandable when players go backwards with thirty seconds to go when we are a goal down. When trying to find a way through a defensively-minded side, at 0-0, maintaing possession is just common sense. I'm all for gung-ho attacking football, and we did seem a little stale last night, but i'd rather be stale with the ball than without it.
As a performance then, it wasn't fantastic, but the result really wasn't that bad. We drew to a decent side who we have already beaten away. We are still likely to go through and probably have to remain favourites to top the group. If you are panicking, if you were calling for van Persie to be sold after he failed to score last night, please remain calm.
To summarise, despite the loss in momentum brought about by yesterday's dull affair, and despite the general grumpiness and annoyance that is already creeping back into the Arsenalsphere after last night, I still see us as a team on the up. We have, including last night, five home fixtures this month, and a run of winnable (gulp) games in the league. Although we are in seventh place, the teams directly above us are looking down nervously. After West Brom on Saturday, I hope to regain some of that momentum that will be so important in getting us back to where we belong.
Until next time,
Joe
Welcome to the new home of ill-structured Arsenal analysis.
Hello there.
It is quite possible that you have found this page as you stumbled, half-blind, through the murky recesses of the internet's football sections, looking for any written word about Arsenal Football Club, eager to soak even the dreggiest of footballing dregs into your statistic-addled brain in the hope of avoiding doing anything productive for just a few more minutes. If so, I know how you feel. I have been that person.
I refresh Arsenal.com more times each day than I have had hot meals in my life. I follow developments at the club like Paddy Kenny follows a kebab van. And I, like many of you, will allow my mood for the week to be determined almost entirely by how many times eleven men that I have never met can kick a plastic sphere between two posts.
Sadly for you Arsenal addicts, I am not in a position to help you much. This blog is simply going to be a semi-regular assembly of my thoughts on the world's greatest football club, perhaps with some occasional gloating when teams that I despise lose, or, to take a hypothetical situation, have their captain investigated for racism. It will have little to no artistic merit, and will probably be libellous and defamatory more often that not. But if you support Arsenal (or feel a strong dislike for any of the teams or people that I will be libelling and defaming) then perhaps you will enjoy reading it.
Joe
It is quite possible that you have found this page as you stumbled, half-blind, through the murky recesses of the internet's football sections, looking for any written word about Arsenal Football Club, eager to soak even the dreggiest of footballing dregs into your statistic-addled brain in the hope of avoiding doing anything productive for just a few more minutes. If so, I know how you feel. I have been that person.
I refresh Arsenal.com more times each day than I have had hot meals in my life. I follow developments at the club like Paddy Kenny follows a kebab van. And I, like many of you, will allow my mood for the week to be determined almost entirely by how many times eleven men that I have never met can kick a plastic sphere between two posts.
Sadly for you Arsenal addicts, I am not in a position to help you much. This blog is simply going to be a semi-regular assembly of my thoughts on the world's greatest football club, perhaps with some occasional gloating when teams that I despise lose, or, to take a hypothetical situation, have their captain investigated for racism. It will have little to no artistic merit, and will probably be libellous and defamatory more often that not. But if you support Arsenal (or feel a strong dislike for any of the teams or people that I will be libelling and defaming) then perhaps you will enjoy reading it.
Joe
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