One of the most important games of Premier League, today, at Stamford Bridge! In about 30min, we are going head to head against Potter-led Chelsea. There are three things that makes this game very interesting.
City won last night, thanks a penalty(?) on De Bruyne. Not that I care what they do, but this means they have overtaken us to the title spot. We need to win this game to get back to the top of the league – where we belong.
Few of us admire Potter and the work he had done with Brighton. He is young, develops talent and has his own way of playing attacking football. This is similar to what Arteta is doing at Arsenal. There is a score to settle here, till they meet again.
Auba. I loved him, I was sorry for him when he was forced out but his leak in Barcelona’s dressing room, spitting not-so-nice words against Mikel, ruined his image for me. I am a fan, I am allowed to criticize my manager, but as a sportsperson, for a club and it’s hierarchy which was paying you 3,50,000 pounds p/w, you are expected to behave.
He starts today!
Team News
Teams are out. We are playing our best XI today. Zinchenko is back at LB, Gabriel and Saliba is our best CB pairing and White starts at RB.
In the midfield, Partey will play the solo anchoring role with Xhaka allows to move forward. Odegaard captains the team, Saka and Martinelli starts on either side of the wings and Jesus lead the line.
No surprizes there, except it’s good to see Zinchenko back in the team.
For Chelsea, Auba starts up top. Fu*k him and the Chels.
What to expect?
Frankly, Chelsea looks vulnerable at the moment. Brighton beat them easily last time they played in Premier League. They have shared points against a poor Man Utd and Brentford. They are playing with a 33-year old striker and a new defense. If we play our game, I don’t see any reasons why we can’t beat them today. We are a better quality team, playing better football and more hungry than any other premier league teams this season.
Jesus has not been on the scoresheet recently, but I’m sure he would be excited for his first London Derby and show his ex-colleague in Sterling that who made a better decision.
We have won our last two games when we visited Stamford Bridge. Lets make it three.
Wrapping Up
What’s your expectation today? I’m going for a 2-1 score, Jesus and Saka scoring today.
Hi Tony
Thanks for the speaker advice mate. Ms Kroenkephobe doesn’t know it yet but once our house is set out the way we want it, the next thing up the driveway will be a massive van carrying some seriously new hi-fi equipment. 🎵
K-Phobe, my critique of Sambi wasn’t meant to be overly disparaging towards the young Belgian, as I think he could become a viable midfield “option” in the foreseeable future, it’s that this team lacks the requisite amount of directness in the middle of the park and there’s little doubting that JW is miles ahed of Lokonga in this regards…the only tactical changes this year from last, when Laca played far too often with his back to goal in and around the center stripe, is that our novice manager has simply placed Xhaka in more advanced positions…imagine if we had another box-to-box option in midfield, of which Xhaka is clearly not, so that we could opt for a more direct approach at times…this would allow for some more logical tactical deviations in attack, which would make it exceedingly more difficult for opposing defences to constantly doubleteam our wide-side players
ahead
Lokonga desperately needs a loan – he needs regular football to develop getting a handful of minutes here of there will do him serious damage.
So not only doesn’t Arteta not start a single youth prospect outfield tonight we don’t even have one on the bench.
Useless fucker sack him now.
Marc, at least MA publically acknowledged the need for some reinforcements,come the winter window, albeit his comments likewise included his usual “out-clause” caveat…with this in mind, we all know what happened last season, after a whole host of pre-window gibberish about having an aggressive recruitment plan in place…all I hope is that all of our players who will participating in this ridiculous mid-season World Cup come back to North London healthy and raring to go
Morning all
Just watched the lowlights of our predictable loss considering the line up where I endorse Marc’s views.
Ok, it’s the lowest hanging fruit for trophies on offer, but going out so early reduces our youth prospects minutes this season. Mikel won’t give up the FA cup so easily.
Arteta says “we’re very, very short” – no shit Sherlock when did that finally dawn on you? When you needed a ready excuse for last night’s debacle? It will be of no surprise if Arteta looks to buy more to add to his pets’ list being starters, and thus relegating any hope for youth prospects for the next 2 or so years. Unless, If Arteta surprises me and buys 26/27/28 year olds for the missing experience of well err Xhaka we’ll lose bringing a better, and quicker, two-footed replacement, then I’ll concede that there may be a plan for youth after all. May being the operative word.
We need a Cantana type experienced player without the flying two-legged lunges into the crowd ala Crystal Palace.
Not watching other leagues, I have no idea who that could be perhaps those here would know the ideal player. A midfield general who can attack and pivot to 6 when needed and be dynamic goal scorer as an 8.
This kind of player combined with Partey would seal the midfield and allow Patino and Azzez and others great role models to learn from. Getting game time, though, will be another big challenge with Arteta. Look at Willock doing far better for Newcastle than Xhaka does for us is a prime example of Arteta’s pet playing incompetence, ignoring sound youth prospects.
When Newcastle secures a CL spot you can bet Willock will be playing and a key part for the Magpies.
Youth isn’t Arteta’s remit with us being top of the table, staying top is. With any luck ESR will rid us of Xhaka being a regular starter, which will immediately improve us.
As for the TW with Arteta and Edu? We’ll have to wait to see. Right now there is a matter of dispatching Wolves at the weekend before going to Dubai.
I would question whether high altitude training would be a better advantage for our fitness Boxing day onwards. Denver for example? Dubai’s oppressive heat would be more body sapping than high altitude adding to lung and muscle stamina.
Arteta says we’re very very short? You’ve spent £300 million how much more do you fucking need to spend so we’re only a little short?
Completely full of shit.
Marc, the biggest dilemma with our recruitment practices are that, more often than not, we’ve paid above the number for those who hadn’t proven themselves and who likewise have considerably lower ceilings, instead of pursuing those the likes of a Nkunku or Diaby, or even Mudryk, who have shown vastly more, have exceedingly higher ceilings and whose market values were undoubtedly going to rise exponentially this season, thereby likely putting them out of our reach…as I’ve always said, especially in regards to this particular “rebuild”, I would have much rather that we splashed the cash on 2 or 3 potentially seminal players, than paid above the number for a handful or so of coin toss propositions…by doing this, it forces a manager into properly developing in-house prospects, which is much easier when you have centerpiece figures roaming the pitch and making everyone look substantially better…not to mention, it’s imperative that you take advantage of those years when you have overachieving, younger and cheaper prospects coming through the ranks, like Saka, Marts, Saliba and ESR, as the advantageous financial realities of that situation was always going to be relatively short-lived
TRVL
I think you need to start preparing yourself for the fact that Arteta will be looking to sell ESR soon.
frankly, I was surprised that he actually reupped him instead of selling him off to Villa….so long as Xhaka and Ode are seen as essential requirements for MA, there’s simply no room for ESR to flourish, especially considering his tactical rigidity…it’s too bad, as I think he would really provide us with some much-needed directness in attack
Morning all
I don’t know about anyone else, but I see similarities between Southgate and Arteta other than age. Granted GS is more cautious with play than MA in the main part; however, both repeat mistakes repeatedly because of misplaced nepotism based on misguided loyalty.
Both have in-bedded selection limitations although GS is a little more astute with in-game management. Certainly Maguire is going to be the elephant in Southgate’s room another bleating Bambi-on-ice player lacking any sense of football nous and best suited to the Championship league.
As tacticians? Similar handbrake approach, lacking plan B options and overworking pet players.
I said to my son that the W/C being in Qatar and the inhumanity of the Qatar country’s laws is something that weigh heavily on the very negative side of my moral compass. 14 yo junior replied he feels the same way, but we should watch the important games actually for those that died or they died for nothing.
Hard to argue with his logic. This ventured forth into hard nosed negotiation where I conceded at watching from the quarter finals onwards. While Junior was fist punching the air, I said be happy now for the win, but sometimes losing a battle helps you win a war. An hour later after interesting debate on the subject discussing various wars he got the point and another lesson in life was learnt and a fun couple of hours.
I’m not a big England fan since losing faith in the FA after El Tel. We always flatter to deceive and the last final we lost was the easiest route for any team and Kane was top scorer with just a few goals.
Of course the press and SM will send our boys into Qatar with strict instructions now to talk about Gay or Queer except on the pitch when it will be ok to complain before KO that you heard Neymar ands Bruno G were an item both being gay and queer! Wouldn’t work in every match, but worth using that card at some point. I’ve always felt a kinship with Niccolo Machiavelli in situations like these where one has to think outside the box.
There will be fanfares full of hope and glory splashed across the front pages only for the press to do a complete 180 as soon as performances and poor results happen as they happen. World Cup Groundhog Day once again. England and GS being thrown under the bus by the previously adoring media masses.
Thai friends say to me how can you feel that way you’re English where I remind them that I’m half Scottish, which usually confuses the shit out of them to be all talking to each other in fast Thai where one will translate to English their next question. I wait until they think they’ve got the finer nuances of me being half English and half Scottish when they think they’ve nailed me on the half English side until I introduce that my mother was Jewish born in England.
With them thoroughly confused as I can be with some of the deep Thai culture even after after 24 years here, so I change to more simpler question of who they think will win the World Cup, which will lead to one shouting Man City! Ever the comedian!
There is only one team in football I care deeply about: The Arsenal. I was lucky enough to watch the 1966 Wold cup in full glorious black and flickering white on a screen no bigger than an iPad. I was 11 and I has walked 12 miles from my grandparents house to my home. Greatest day in football for me at that age.
The only other game that compares was the 1989 0:2 Anfield night.
After 1966 hope sprung eternal until it fizzled out during 1990.
For those of you patriotic types and neutrals enjoy the WC and pray for Saka, White and Ramsdale to come back fit and injury free.
and Martinelli & Jesus of course*
Big game at Wolves. If we can win that we head off to the world cup top of the league. I must admit I didn’t expect that.
Terry
Hi mate. I think we’re all astonished by where we are in the table. Personally I thought top 3 was achievable by the end of September but to have progressed through the latest tough run of games has been phenomenal. And the team hasn’t been playing as well recently. I predict 3 hard fought points tonight – start like a train and hit them before they can get their passing gsme going. They also struggle to score and will look to hit sone long range efforts from midfield. Would be nice to see Jesus replicate his full blooded displays of late and also add a goal or two.
Too many times in the past ten years we’ve had setbacks when we were expected to win relatively straight forward games. Arteta needs to get them up to do the job. We have way more talent and energy than Wolves.
PS Welcome to LiR.
Tony
Are you taping it or getting up in the middle of the night for it? It’ll be our last Arsenal fix for weeks while the Qatar shitshow goes on… And on… And on. Same to you lads in India.
I’m getting an AFC fix during the WC. I’m taking the twins and their mates to Villa Park in December for the WSL fixture.
I think everyone’s surprised by our position but even with that in mind if you look at the fixtures there’s only one result that stands out as better than what we should expect and that’s Chelsea away last week.
Palace (away) usually a difficult place to go but they’d had a really screwed up pre season so we played them at a good time, Liverpool (home) the wheels have really come off, the Spud’s (home) we should always be beating them at home. The rest of the fixtures are a mix of promoted, recently promoted or mid table teams.
Take the emotion and surprise out of it and actually we dropped points against Southampton who sacked their manager a couple of weeks after because of poor performances and ManU who’d been awful (just been spanked by Emery in the league) and beat us.
Hi Marc
It’s a bit of a circular argument but being top and looking down on everyone it’s natural to assume we ought to be beating everyone (except City).
Thinking about tonight it’s a long cry from I think 2 seasons ago when we were doubled by Wolves.
I know Liverpool are in disarray by their recent standards but that was a good victory. The saints defeat was a return to the bad old days but coming back and winning was not.
They need to finish phase 1 of the season tonight with a comfortable win. I think we’ll get a 0-2 victory. Jesus and Partey.