Friday, Friday, Friday. Where does the week go? Its almost half way through February already, it will be Spring soon and there is almost nothing of the season left and we have nothing to play for.
Stop right there. There is a massive amount left of this season. I think we were still top of the table at this stage last year, and then look what happened. I am sure there will more to come this season.
The defence, for the first time in years, is looking quite competent at the moment. That is a real bonus for sure. It is also the platform upon which we can build our attacking game, which has been suffering a bit of late.
Given that most of the players will have been involved in the internationals this week, I think we can expect Wenger to make some changes for Monday night's game against Cardiff. The talk is that Wilshere might play on the right, which would be an exciting prospect for the lad. Because make no mistake, the arrival of Arshavin at the club and the imminent return of Walcott to fitness will mean Wilshere is unlikely to get many other opportunities to start games, other than the Carling Cup.
But the focus has got to be on winning the game on Monday, not on giving Wilshere a chance. If he is the best player available on the night, then fine, play him. But I would now like to see Arsenal take the FA Cup seriously this season. The next round against Burnley at home, whilst not to be underestimated, means that we should be looking at a Quarter Final place. If we can get a bit of luck in the draw, then who knows. As things stand, I would love to win the FA Cup this year.
Whisper it quietly, don't tell anyone, but we stand as good a chance as any to win the Champions League as well. The only team that worries me is Barcelona. Can we take Man Utd, Liverpool or Chelsea on the day? We know we can.
That, of course, leaves the small detail of the Premier League. And even old Ted is struggling to be optimistic about that. The fly in the ointment is Aston Villa. No-one said they could stay the distance this far, but they have proved a lot of people wrong so far. Chelsea have to go to Villa Park next Saturday and my money is against Chelsea getting three points. The Hiddink factor may get Chelsea a draw, but I can equally see a scabby late goal by Milner winning it for them. In contrast to Tony Adams, who seems to have a curse on his managerial career, Martin O'Neil is a lucky manager. I really don't think Villa are out of contention for the title.
If Arsenal can, at last, sort out some offensive weapons to complement our solid defensive base, then we can climb up the table. So long as we beat Sunderland, then the worst case scenario is that we are 4 behind Villa (if Chelsea win). We will only be 2 behind Chelsea if Villa win.
And thats why I am now hoping for Aston Villa's success to continue. Chelsea in 5th place having spent £400m - now that's worth fighting for.....
Friday, 13 February 2009
Tuesday, 10 February 2009
You're Fired!
In these crazy days where employees of failed banks are taking tax-payers money as hyper-inflated bonuses, I find it amazing to see how regularly football managers get sacked for "failure".
Tony Adams and Phil Scolari are the latest victims of the short-term narrow minded clubs, for whom everything is about results over the last couple of games. Its worth having a quick look at both of their situations.
Phil Scolari inherited a strong Chelsea side from Avram Grant, who was himself sacked in bizarre circumstances following Chelsea's last-ditch 'failures' to land the League and Champions League titles last season. In the meantime, Big Phil Scolari has lost a whole host of players who (quite rightly) are seeking some mud on their boots during games to go with their fat pay cheques. I don't see how Scolari can be blamed for losing SWP to Man City, missing out on Robinho, or Joe Cole getting injured. Equally, he is not responsible for signing dross players like Malouda (Mourinho). However, the net result is that Chelsea have had no width whatsoever all season and the cheque book has been closed on him. Scolari had one week using Queresma in the squad (on loan from Inter) before getting sacked.
Now, I am not going to say that Scolari is a great manager, but I think Chelsea have completed got what they deserved after sacking Avram Grant, who was a respectable man who got Chelsea playing some attractive football after several years of Mourinho's brand of expensive, boring shite. Its a tough gig for anyone to go into Chelsea now and I hope that they are now in the decline.
Similarly, Tony Adams is the latest victim of a bizarre merry go round at Pompey. To get the sack after 17 games is a joke. Especially when Diarra and Defoe were sold and no money was released for new players. Pompey were 5 minutes away from beating Liverpool on Saturday and I really don't understand what more he could have done.
Of the top six teams in the league, its no surprise that it is comprised of 5 of the 6 longest serving managers - Ferguson, Wenger, Moyes, Benitez and O'Neill. Perhaps amazingly, Gareth Southgate completes that list - having been appointed by Boro in June 2006. All of them, even Fergie, has had his rough patches. But it is yet another reminder that long term success is built on long term stability at football clubs.
Tony Adams and Phil Scolari are the latest victims of the short-term narrow minded clubs, for whom everything is about results over the last couple of games. Its worth having a quick look at both of their situations.
Phil Scolari inherited a strong Chelsea side from Avram Grant, who was himself sacked in bizarre circumstances following Chelsea's last-ditch 'failures' to land the League and Champions League titles last season. In the meantime, Big Phil Scolari has lost a whole host of players who (quite rightly) are seeking some mud on their boots during games to go with their fat pay cheques. I don't see how Scolari can be blamed for losing SWP to Man City, missing out on Robinho, or Joe Cole getting injured. Equally, he is not responsible for signing dross players like Malouda (Mourinho). However, the net result is that Chelsea have had no width whatsoever all season and the cheque book has been closed on him. Scolari had one week using Queresma in the squad (on loan from Inter) before getting sacked.
Now, I am not going to say that Scolari is a great manager, but I think Chelsea have completed got what they deserved after sacking Avram Grant, who was a respectable man who got Chelsea playing some attractive football after several years of Mourinho's brand of expensive, boring shite. Its a tough gig for anyone to go into Chelsea now and I hope that they are now in the decline.
Similarly, Tony Adams is the latest victim of a bizarre merry go round at Pompey. To get the sack after 17 games is a joke. Especially when Diarra and Defoe were sold and no money was released for new players. Pompey were 5 minutes away from beating Liverpool on Saturday and I really don't understand what more he could have done.
Of the top six teams in the league, its no surprise that it is comprised of 5 of the 6 longest serving managers - Ferguson, Wenger, Moyes, Benitez and O'Neill. Perhaps amazingly, Gareth Southgate completes that list - having been appointed by Boro in June 2006. All of them, even Fergie, has had his rough patches. But it is yet another reminder that long term success is built on long term stability at football clubs.
Sunday, 8 February 2009
Spurs 0-0. No thanks no Comrade Eboue
The dust has not settled yet on this afternoon's 0-0 draw at Shite Hart Lane, but my immediate reaction is that despite a great deal of frustration, we have done bloody well to escape with a point from a Spurs team that was desperate to win.
The headlines are not going to be pretty. Arsenal were pretty poor during the opening exchanges and gave the ball away a lot. That said, there were one or two bright moments and Eboue was finding some joy drifting onto the left wing. In fact, I saw nothing wrong with the goal which was disallowed by Mike Riley, although replays showed there was the slightest of pushes in Woodgate's back. But the massive talking points are Eboue's red card and Adebayor's injury.
The fact that Eboue managed to get a yellow card for dissent early on in the game was pretty stupid. But even as an Arsenal fan I thought he was being a prick towards the ref, constantly going back to the incident and bizarrely trying to make a one man wall where the free kick was being taken from. But having got a silly yellow card, Eboue kicked out at the rat-faced Modric and sent him spinning to the ground. The fact that Modric had trod on Eboue's toe whilst going for the ball seemed to be the reason the red mist descended in Eboue's pea sized brain, but the ref had no choice but to give Eboue a second yellow.
With Arshavin now available and Walcott hopefully back sooner rather than later, this has got to be the end of the road for Eboue. He is a complete twat for making a difficult job all the harder for the rest of the team.
The other piece of bad news was Adebayor pulling up with a hamstring injury in the middle of the first half. I thought it was odd at the time, as it didn't look like he had really hurt himself. I was half expecting the magic sponge to allow him back on the pitch. Anyway, he went off on a stretcher and was replaced by Bendtner, who did his usual routine of frustrating nothing mixed in with occassion moments of looking ok. What surprised me though were the pictures of Ade climbing the stairs back to the dug-out later in the game. I guess his leg may have been heavily strapped under his tracksuit, but he didn't look that bothered. And neither did his team mates as he came to sit down next to them.
Now, I don't think that Ade faked his injury, but I am very unconvinced by him this season. Whilst Dawson took a heavy knock in the first half and was visibly wincing with pain, I am not sure there are many Arsenal players out there who can take a knock and continue the game. Sagna and Kolo are pretty tough, but not many others. Ade, on the otherhand, is turning into a massive jessy. There is something of a sick note culture at Arsenal. If you feel the slightest twinge, or you realise you are not as fast as Corluka, you take a precautionary early bath and look after yourself. As Ade made clear over the Summer, he has retirement planning to get on with.
Anyway, enough of that. The second half was generally much better, and the 10 players left on the pitch did very well. We may have even sneaked a goal towards the end, but massive credit to Almunia as well, who made an excellent save against Modric in extra time.
Mixed feelings overall. A lot of relief that we didn't lose but also a lot of anger that Eboue, yet again, behaved like an utter tit.
The headlines are not going to be pretty. Arsenal were pretty poor during the opening exchanges and gave the ball away a lot. That said, there were one or two bright moments and Eboue was finding some joy drifting onto the left wing. In fact, I saw nothing wrong with the goal which was disallowed by Mike Riley, although replays showed there was the slightest of pushes in Woodgate's back. But the massive talking points are Eboue's red card and Adebayor's injury.
The fact that Eboue managed to get a yellow card for dissent early on in the game was pretty stupid. But even as an Arsenal fan I thought he was being a prick towards the ref, constantly going back to the incident and bizarrely trying to make a one man wall where the free kick was being taken from. But having got a silly yellow card, Eboue kicked out at the rat-faced Modric and sent him spinning to the ground. The fact that Modric had trod on Eboue's toe whilst going for the ball seemed to be the reason the red mist descended in Eboue's pea sized brain, but the ref had no choice but to give Eboue a second yellow.
With Arshavin now available and Walcott hopefully back sooner rather than later, this has got to be the end of the road for Eboue. He is a complete twat for making a difficult job all the harder for the rest of the team.
The other piece of bad news was Adebayor pulling up with a hamstring injury in the middle of the first half. I thought it was odd at the time, as it didn't look like he had really hurt himself. I was half expecting the magic sponge to allow him back on the pitch. Anyway, he went off on a stretcher and was replaced by Bendtner, who did his usual routine of frustrating nothing mixed in with occassion moments of looking ok. What surprised me though were the pictures of Ade climbing the stairs back to the dug-out later in the game. I guess his leg may have been heavily strapped under his tracksuit, but he didn't look that bothered. And neither did his team mates as he came to sit down next to them.
Now, I don't think that Ade faked his injury, but I am very unconvinced by him this season. Whilst Dawson took a heavy knock in the first half and was visibly wincing with pain, I am not sure there are many Arsenal players out there who can take a knock and continue the game. Sagna and Kolo are pretty tough, but not many others. Ade, on the otherhand, is turning into a massive jessy. There is something of a sick note culture at Arsenal. If you feel the slightest twinge, or you realise you are not as fast as Corluka, you take a precautionary early bath and look after yourself. As Ade made clear over the Summer, he has retirement planning to get on with.
Anyway, enough of that. The second half was generally much better, and the 10 players left on the pitch did very well. We may have even sneaked a goal towards the end, but massive credit to Almunia as well, who made an excellent save against Modric in extra time.
Mixed feelings overall. A lot of relief that we didn't lose but also a lot of anger that Eboue, yet again, behaved like an utter tit.
Friday, 6 February 2009
Keep it understated
The big game is getting closer and unlike Tottenham have done so far, I'd be pleased if we kept a nice low profile before Sunday. I think it's a cunning move to let the attention stay focused on the spuds, Keane and his fellow scummers can take the spot light, let's leave them to it. The more the spuds big up their own chances, the more the pressure will be on them, and that's great for us no doubt.
Despite all 19 other Premiership clubs having no doubts over the legality of the Arshavin deal, it seems Steve Coppell knows better, I wonder if he's a psychic or whether he's just mouthing off without engaging the old grey cells. Arseblog hits the nail on the head, maybe Mr Coppell is just a very bitter old man.
Sunday's game is huge, we really need the three points and the scum will be right up for it. We'll need to weather the inevitable early storm, so it will be a good test of our slightly more solid defence. We need all our big guns firing, Ade needs to start working as hard as he used to, while the youngsters in midfield will need to be up for a fight. Diaby's absence is a big loss after his sterling performance last week, while I can't see Arshavin starting but don't rule out him being used as a game changing substitute. Come on you reds!
Despite all 19 other Premiership clubs having no doubts over the legality of the Arshavin deal, it seems Steve Coppell knows better, I wonder if he's a psychic or whether he's just mouthing off without engaging the old grey cells. Arseblog hits the nail on the head, maybe Mr Coppell is just a very bitter old man.
Sunday's game is huge, we really need the three points and the scum will be right up for it. We'll need to weather the inevitable early storm, so it will be a good test of our slightly more solid defence. We need all our big guns firing, Ade needs to start working as hard as he used to, while the youngsters in midfield will need to be up for a fight. Diaby's absence is a big loss after his sterling performance last week, while I can't see Arshavin starting but don't rule out him being used as a game changing substitute. Come on you reds!
Wednesday, 4 February 2009
The Weekly Chunter
Afternoon all. So, we've signed a midget Russian for £15m who played quite well in the Russian league and put in a couple of good performances in Euro 2008.
Now, whilst I suspect Arshavin is going to turn out to be a good signing, and not the new John Jensen, we must not expect too much him this season. If he hits the ground running, then great. But lets not wobble like Rafa's belly if he takes some time to adjust.
Speaking of Rafa the Kebab-King, Robbie Keane's transfers to-and-from Liverpool within 6 months has got to be one of the weirdest episodes of all time. I wonder how much Liverpool's dire financial situation has to do with this?
Anyway, whilst we bask in the glory of Arsene actually dusting down the cheque book and signing a player, its sneaked out in the press that the first round of negotiations for the Premier League's TV contract have concluded, apparently with Sky paying £1bn for a 92 game per season deal. Sounds good doesn't it? Lots of lovely new money for the clubs to spend. Well I am not so sure.
Football finance is a popular hobby horse on this blog, and whilst we know virtually nothing about it, lets not let any minor details like that get in the way. So here is what we know so far. The Premier League TV rights deal is apparently split into 6 "packages" of coverage rights for live games, which are each sold to the highest bidder, so long as no single company has more than 5 packages in order to comply with EU competition law prohibitions.
Sky have apparently secured 4 "packages" in the first round of bidding, leaving another 2 up for grabs, with Setanta and ESPN rumoured to be interested. Now, the point is that the Premier League trousered £1.7 bn for the six packages during the last round of negotiations in 2006. Sky paid £1.3bn for their 4 packages in 2006.
Therefore, on a simplistic view, Sky's contribution to the pot is already down by over 23%, and unless a bidding war starts between Setanta and ESPN, the overall figure will be much worse.
Again, "who cares" I hear you cry, "its tons of money". Well, the point is that for those few clubs who actually run themselves as a genuine business, such as Arsenal, there will be at least 20% less income next year compared to this year in relation to the money feeding down from the Premier league deal. If that is reflective of what will happen elsewhere in terms of clubs' projected income, then on a current turnover of £250m that means there will be £50m less going through the books next year.
For me, that is a scary thought and this says two things loud and clear:
1. Those clubs that do not run themselves as a business need to really watch out. That is most of the league.
2. This is why we didn't just pay the £20m that Zenit wanted for Arshavin on 1 January. People who do not regulate their spending will go bust.
Lets hope Spurs are the first against the wall. I wonder if Ladbrokes offer odds on this sort of thing....
Now, whilst I suspect Arshavin is going to turn out to be a good signing, and not the new John Jensen, we must not expect too much him this season. If he hits the ground running, then great. But lets not wobble like Rafa's belly if he takes some time to adjust.
Speaking of Rafa the Kebab-King, Robbie Keane's transfers to-and-from Liverpool within 6 months has got to be one of the weirdest episodes of all time. I wonder how much Liverpool's dire financial situation has to do with this?
Anyway, whilst we bask in the glory of Arsene actually dusting down the cheque book and signing a player, its sneaked out in the press that the first round of negotiations for the Premier League's TV contract have concluded, apparently with Sky paying £1bn for a 92 game per season deal. Sounds good doesn't it? Lots of lovely new money for the clubs to spend. Well I am not so sure.
Football finance is a popular hobby horse on this blog, and whilst we know virtually nothing about it, lets not let any minor details like that get in the way. So here is what we know so far. The Premier League TV rights deal is apparently split into 6 "packages" of coverage rights for live games, which are each sold to the highest bidder, so long as no single company has more than 5 packages in order to comply with EU competition law prohibitions.
Sky have apparently secured 4 "packages" in the first round of bidding, leaving another 2 up for grabs, with Setanta and ESPN rumoured to be interested. Now, the point is that the Premier League trousered £1.7 bn for the six packages during the last round of negotiations in 2006. Sky paid £1.3bn for their 4 packages in 2006.
Therefore, on a simplistic view, Sky's contribution to the pot is already down by over 23%, and unless a bidding war starts between Setanta and ESPN, the overall figure will be much worse.
Again, "who cares" I hear you cry, "its tons of money". Well, the point is that for those few clubs who actually run themselves as a genuine business, such as Arsenal, there will be at least 20% less income next year compared to this year in relation to the money feeding down from the Premier league deal. If that is reflective of what will happen elsewhere in terms of clubs' projected income, then on a current turnover of £250m that means there will be £50m less going through the books next year.
For me, that is a scary thought and this says two things loud and clear:
1. Those clubs that do not run themselves as a business need to really watch out. That is most of the league.
2. This is why we didn't just pay the £20m that Zenit wanted for Arshavin on 1 January. People who do not regulate their spending will go bust.
Lets hope Spurs are the first against the wall. I wonder if Ladbrokes offer odds on this sort of thing....
Monday, 2 February 2009
Arshavin signs
On, off, on, and finally confirmed by the one trustworthy news source that doesn't speak out if its derriere. Hallelujah.
Throughout this saga we've learnt a fair bit about a fair few people. In fact quite a few so called Gooners were slagging off the club, board and manager for having let down the fans; maybe they should have remained patient and saved their comments until the facts had emerged. The mainstream media was also shown to be nothing more than a hollow talking shop full of largely gossip and rumour, very little fact seemed to permeate into the hundreds of stores we've read over the past few days.
Anyway we've got our man, he might not quite be a Palacios or a Bentley, or even a Chimbonda, but he has just about enough quality to push Eboue for a slot in the side.
Arse and chaving
The absolute bullshit in the news this morning makes the media appear very very stupid indeed. It seems that researching a story properly, getting some evidence to back up ones claims and writing something that has a vague basis in fact is very much beyond most hacks these days. A share of the blame must go to the idiots who swallow each different story as if it were true, does experience teach these morons nothing?
The various reports have never added up because there are so many vested interests at work here, the media want to draw in punters, the player and clubs all want as much cash as possible. Goonerboy's interpretation of events appears reasonable to me. Frankly I'd advise you all to wait and see what has happened by the time the window has closed, then make your comments then, otherwise egg is likely to appear on several faces.
Elsewhere I have heard from an important source close to myself that the mainstream media are desperate bastards who will write anything, no matter how untrue, in order to sell papers and attract visitors to their websites. This close source also advises people from taking anything written on these scurrilous websites too seriously, it's not goood for your health and you could certainly spend the time more productively doing other things, such as having a crap.
The various reports have never added up because there are so many vested interests at work here, the media want to draw in punters, the player and clubs all want as much cash as possible. Goonerboy's interpretation of events appears reasonable to me. Frankly I'd advise you all to wait and see what has happened by the time the window has closed, then make your comments then, otherwise egg is likely to appear on several faces.
Elsewhere I have heard from an important source close to myself that the mainstream media are desperate bastards who will write anything, no matter how untrue, in order to sell papers and attract visitors to their websites. This close source also advises people from taking anything written on these scurrilous websites too seriously, it's not goood for your health and you could certainly spend the time more productively doing other things, such as having a crap.
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