Ten games into the season and we should now accept the fact that Tottenham is doing exceptionally well and might just provide the third axis to the title challenge. I almost puked saying that. I’m sorry. At the very least, they are going to disrupt things. Ange is doing well with that shite and a bit of luck is favouring them too. They won 2-1 against Crystal Palace with ‘only one shot on target’.
Anyway, to hell with them. We are playing Sheff United in a 3 PM kick-off at home. A crucial game to get all three points and also to improve our home performance.
In team news, Thomas Partey is unavailable due to injury. Gabriel Jesus is out too (again) for few weeks due to muscle injury he picked up during Sevilla game. Timber is out for long anyway, rest all are fit. Jesus injury makes thing difficult for us because we are playing 2 games a week and Eddie Nketiah has failed to convert the chances he has got till now. I have been asking to put Trossard at CF because Havertz was not clinical in front of the goal while playing at Chelsea and he is not going to be clinical at Arsenal.
Will we start with a midfield of Odegaard, Jorginho and Declan Rice again? There’s a lot wrong with this. First, Rice should be the DM. Second, Havertz / Vieira provides a better attacking play at LCM. Third, Odegaard needs some rest and ESR should be given some games as he is fit now and is a direct threat. Playing ESR provides something different to our play from the wings strategy. It will happen eventually because Mikel has noticed Ode form but again, why wait till something goes wrong!
Our defence is stable. Tomi again at LB is we all want to see, and he should start ‘if’ performance is the parameter. He was superb against Chelsea in that LB role and it won’t be long before he develops a brilliant chemistry with Martinelli.
—
Right, a short one today. I would love a 4-0 score line, with couple of goals from Martinelli and Saka each. See you during the game.
Kroenke
Its all very uninspiring.
Interesting looking at the table after 10 matches – Emery’s doing a bloody good job at Villa. I hope he doesn’t let ego get the better of him and try something like the ManU job (which at the current rate is going to be available soon) he’s good at a smaller club overachieving not sure he’s cut out for the bigger clubs.
KP
I was hoping so much that Wayne Barnes would have a good officiating in the RWC final, but he didn’t. Clearly a big error when Arti was over the ball and NZ should have had a penalty then a chance to score 3 points rather then SA scoring 3 points after the officiating error.
I did think that games in the RWC were entertaining and excellent even though none of the teams I was routing for made it to the final, Ireland and France, but then we can always watch them in a few months during the 6 nations.
The red card for Cane I totally disagree with as the player turned into the tackle, but then this is not the 1st game ruined by officiating, just too sad that it was a RWC final.
Just as in football the best referees have retired and some of them need to have more influence on the present day referees. No one mouthed of or messed with Collina and a single stare of his would put the fear of god into the players. Everyone on the pitch totally respected him, that was a different generation and today it has spoiled the beautiful game.
Killroy & KP
I see it differently except for the 3 points that should have been more.
I played rugby to a decent level at schoolboy level; playing in the local town’s men’s first 15, at 15. Had the game been pro back then I would probably have sought a career in rugby to see if I was good enough.
I could play 9, 10, 11, 12 and wing and fullback with the pace and strength I had. On top of that I had under 2-minute 800 meters, but was better over 100 meters. At a push I could be used as a tight head lock. I played rugby on instincts – very quick ADHD out of left field instincts that, when they didn’t work saw me pole axed by a few hundred kgs and in pain. There’s always pain.
I got concussed at 16 and found that I was being targeted in every game, so my body fell out of love with the game although my rugby spirit could never be crushed where it remains as strong today as at a young age.
I grew up with J P R Williams era one of the greatest players to have graced his Wales shirt – fucking hated him for his brilliance. Later England character players such as Mickey the Munch who used to train in a Bromley gym I used way back when. https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2oezor A real character you rarely meet today.
https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-news/jpr-williams-wales-all-blacks-15357671
You have to know what it feels like to be hit in the air by a 160kg prop at full speed; granted not fast but kinetic energy makes up for the odd 10mph and fuels more severe pain.
So, I have a lot of sympathy for the players of today’s game. You don’t get England players hitching a ride on at the back milk float after an all nighter to get back to the team hotel for the team talk. Shades of George Best right there for shower sober ups.
Today’s players are highly mobile human tanks as fit as any SAS chap in his prime I would say, and with the same gas in their tanks as champion MMA fighters.
Knowing what pounding my body took on local pitches around the county I can understand the rules forever being made in favour of a player’s safety. I’m sorry, but the AB should have known that sitting on a player’s knee is going to get him sent off; it was a deliberate dark air they are trying to stamp out from the game and are anterior cruciate breakers.
We’ve all see Concussion the movie or everyone should see it; head contact in sport is a very real problem even in football.
Junior tell me that Maro Itoje is giving up rugby to play in the NBL, so you’ll get to see more of him if true Killroy.
Dark Arts by the ABs & Boks spoiled the game – not the officiating in my mind. Wayne Barnes is the modern Nigel Evans who was possibly the best ever international rugby referee.
In today’s game players need protecting from themselves, as much as each other on the pitch, and because of this, I feel rugby, from grass roots level, needs to make some form of protection armor for the head, neck and back even if it takes some agility away. The NFL equipment isn’t necessary because the hits have different rulings. However, some form of protective clothing should be worn to reduce the concussive hits’ type of pressure on bodies.
For anyone not quite on board with my thinking I’d suggest you put your arsenal shirt and shorts on with trainers and run at full speed into the nearest wall having covered at lest 25-meters to gather speed.
That should give you a realist feel of International rugby. Now think if this immovable wall was travelling towards you at at least 12mph as you collide to add the kinetic energy, and then you get up and know you have 80 minutes of that.
It didn’t spoil the game for me because I was a neutral. Granted, the stupidity of both teams’ trying the illegal stuff with cameras that can pick out bum fluff creeping out of shorts was inane.
Where the tournament didn’t help itself was making a rod for its own back by the early sending off of Curry and another I think. Precedence was set for the need of consistency. However, players’ welfare is the most important thing in any sport.
Rugby at the top level is a gladiatorial contest of 30 ripped powerhouses trying to rip each other to shreds to get the ball and win.
Roll on four years to Australia. 🙂
As for The Arsenal? I think this sums up Arteta as thought for today:
Bolagun was forced out fo the club by Arteta who is looking at Toney and other strikers while Bolagun has 4/6 goals fro Monaco. Let that sink in.
Ok, I doubt Bolagun is going to reach Jude B’s levels, but to what level of ‘Stupid’ is Arteta striving for?
I feel ESR, Nelson and Ramsdale are all asking the same question or their agents are.
Every time you post, Marc, I’m either nodding my head in agreement or enjoying your dry oft acid humor.
That’s my ten pence worth lads.
Tony
The news that “Maro Itoje has confirmed he’s been offered a shot to join a currently unnamed NBA franchise for the 2023/24 season” appeared in the media on April 1st 2023. So this is an April fools joke. He is playing rugby for the future as far as I can tell from the research. This I believe is especially true as he is a world class player in rugby which he is not in basketball.
Thanks, Killroy, I’ll let Junior know as he’s made up about it. lmao.
Morning all
Looks like there are issues with Partey and Arteta because it’s being reported that Partey wants more playing time and not getting it. Juve are looking for, yes you guessed it, a loan for Partey in January or when he’s back from the ANC month long games.
Arteta’s golden boy who he said he fought heaven and earth for or similar while really wanting a maverick MF who subsequently flopped for 2 seasons thereafter. Arteta will be kidding himself Partey was not his buy; it was Edu’s and is why he didn’t want Partey.
Problem was Arteta wanted a show pony not a drey horse; because that is what Partey is a dependable solid 6 who can move the ball quickly with his transitions. Probably the best player we have with that skill set. Doubters will be crying out “Clickbait”, and they’d be in with a good shout, but I feel this has more legs and we’ll get more news on this towards January.
With hindsight it looked like Arteta wanted a twinkle toed creator, but Edu felt we needed an anchor at DMF. With Partey bought on the cusp of the closing TW, we thought we’d landed our man; however, galaxy brain had other thoughts for the poor Ghanan lad.
Well not so poor wealth wise, he was near the top of our food chain of wages, and very quickly the previously unbreakable Atletico Madrid’s 6 was now, well no other word for it: broken, and he’s been repeatedly broken until Arteta now doesn’t love Partey any more because he doesn’t take care of himself or do exactly what Arteta wants him to do, which no doubt Arteta will feel he is blameless in all of this, forgetting he tried to push Partey back on the pitch, as Partey was limping off, which I believe adds more weight to support this post.
There’s that, and Arteta reportedly starting players carrying knocks, such as Saka and Ode, ESR et al.
This is usual or normal for football I hear you say and make well, “it’s a man’s game.”
So, I got to thinking why is this so? Shouldn’t the players union be doing anything about it? Surely it is against all the protective labour laws for the UK?
Shouldn’t players be protected from their employers?
After all football is a job players are contracted to perform at their best, which is why exorbitant money changes hands for such highly coveted players.
I know many here are thinking that players are just as at fault here, and they are, you’re right. The game is their drug that needs satisfying every week, just as it was ours at whatever level we played at; my best being school days. Back then I’d have played in goal on crutches such was football a saving outlet for me.
Professional players have to be much worse; it’s what they live for and it’s their drug of choice they are addicted to.
Back to Partey, and our not so illustrious villainous, Fagan like manager, it looks very much to this poster that Partey’s footballing relationship with Arteta is in the Geundouzi, Auba, Emi, Willock Willian’s level et al. The footballers’ graveyard or home for spent players discarded by Arteta who go on to flourish at other clubs. Shocker I know.
Some manage to escape Arteta’s ruination of healthy players, such as our Emi who has just won the equivalent of the Ballon d’Or for Keepers – The Yashin (Russian legendary keeper) award.
This at a time where Raya and Ramsdale didn’t get a look in and with Emi’s Villa managed by none other than Arteta’s nemesis: Mr Emery who had Emery been backed the way villas is backing him, we would likely never have had Arteta as our failure of a manager.
History does’t lie, but it does repeat itself just look at Arteta’s near 5-year reign? A farcical FA cup and what else?
It’s decisions like selling Emi and having 2 keepers worth a combined what? £70m? Yet still way below Emi’s award winning abilities and a world cup winner to boot.
Partey a brilliant 6 with great transitional abilities Arteta wants to play as a pivoting 6/10/9 and cover for the wayward roaming Xhaka. No wonder Partey broke.
I could go on here and, if KP, Killroy, TRVL and others what to add weight to this post, please do it’s time for this unprofessionalism to end, isn’t it?
It is madness does anyone trust Vieira or Havertz to come good with consistency unless we keep donating penalties to them. £100m sitting losing value when we could have bought Osimhen or similar.
Being completely honest I don’t follow manager’s careers at all really other than to know the elite managers we all know. I just look at the football and the team assembled and how they play to initially asses a manager. Stats can be misleading and managers are only as good as they are with the season they are playing in. Last season is CV fodder.
So, let’s look at what Arteta is producing this season?
Do we have a better squad than last season?
With the much awaited Xhaka departure that alone would have constituted to a good windfall. When you add Rice and Timber to the list, the potential to improve on last season was very real.
Until Timber was unnecessarily injured for various reasons, and galaxy brain decided the whole UK footballing world were wrong about Havertz.
The world renown transfer window sage; Mikel Arteta knew best just as he did with flyweight Vieira last recipient of a donated penalty to help his lightweight and fragile & limited footballing skill set.
The next question has to be:
Is our football this season better than last season?
NO IT ISN’T!!!!
It’s featured with zero identity, horse shoe football because we lack creativity. Spud’s and Villa are playing better cohesive football, which would include Brighton for most of their games.
When you look at it closely our football is a stale version of last season’s best. We never recovered such is our collective frailty. Sure, we look hard enough in the tackles bar Havertz, of course, but we are mentally soft at times during games and play safe football.
Why? Because the players are scared to death of Arteta screwing with their careers. Look how long it took for Arteta to keep Saliba.
The pattern keeps repeating itself with Partey the current player in violation of something Arteta has dreamt up. Maybe it’s the rumours Arteta doesn’t like, which is fair. I don’t like them either, if true? If there was a problem, it should have been dealt with last season.
My point is Arteta is to be obeyed to the letter with zero excuses. Ruling by fear has always been a dictator’s go to attitude when they bow to their narcism.
Arteta is no different. He commits the same mistakes over and over because Mikel can never be wrong.
Finally, we’re at this question stage:
What do we expect for this season?
Last season’s pulsating football for 100% of the rest of the season?
Not even close. We’ll continue with the scrappy and lackluster displays of score first and defend for all you got unless you’re playing a team our women’s team could beat. It will be the same roller coaster football of the seasons before the last with selections getting worse for our slow stop start football.
The CL is progressing ok, but we’ve hardly got the group of death, where one of the group is going to go on and win the CL cup. We may make it through the next round if our luck holds with injuries.
As for the PL? I think scrapping for 4th or 5th with a good prevailing wind. Neither position is good enough, of course, but enough to give Arteta another 3 years of bringing us more tedium that fan boys and their many monikers will lap up for the longevity it adds to their self serving beliefs they hope will keep them relevant.
Tomorrow night away to the Hammers, so let’s hope ESR gets a start at 10 where he will deliver with Saka if he’s allowed to.
Late game Saturday against the Bar Codes should prove to be a big test for us but one we should overcome. We have a better squad on paper at least.
Let’s be fair, we want to witness at least last season’s best football, don’t we?
Tony & KP
The Reddit subforum rugbyunion is brimming with comments about the final and after reading for quite some time comments and articles I have changed my mind and feel sorry for Wayne Barnes he had an excellent game and the blame for the most controversial Rugby Final lies somewhere else. One writer, Stevenson, said Wayne Barnes had effectively been relegated to the role of an “errand boy” by changes to the way the game is officiated on the orders of World Rugby. A very interesting 3 minute interview.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CxPgXLwVms&ab_channel=1News
On the very bright side the 2024 July tours are confirmed. England to NZ, Ireland to SA, Wales to Australia, France to Argentina and Scotland to the pacific islands. Ireland is the only team SA has not beaten recently and so that should be very tasty.
Nothing very exciting on the EPL front except that there are 4 points between top of the table and fifth place.
Thanks for that link Killroy the old farts at the RFU as Will Carling famously called them are combusting well in their adult nappies I fear.
I agree with you that the officiating has gone too far but they players don’t help themselves either.
Game Day!
I had a vague vision of us losing 2:1 in my semi conscious drifting before being awake, but you know what my predictions are like – written on tissues in the wind & rain. I’m never fully conscious until my IV coffee line starts to work.
Arteta has been reported to say that The Partey injury problem is a ‘big problem’, and thus paving the way for his departure most likely in the Jan window after the report said that Partey won’t be back until December just as an infantile attempt to add drama and meaning to Arteta’s words. Should be back in 4 weeks sounds so much more hopeful. If really injured at all. Gamesmanship for a Carabou cup game against the mighty Hammers, seriously?
My take?
Partey is being saved for the hectic Xmas period or he’s just another Arteta player statistic Arteta and the medical room had no idea how to look after, so now the need to get rid of him.
Ledley King anyone?
Probably Sol’s equal at the Spuds CD & CDM. His knees were shot so they looked after him all week so that he could play the important games. He hardly trained and still got many MOTM accolades.
Spuds never really replaced Sol or Ledley King which is why I feel my temple donations are working.
Truth is were will look high and far to find Partey’s replacement and never find the complete finished article.
Partey is a phenom when he is on his irresistible & irrepressible form. Arteta has taken a player with a very acceptable injury history in Spain to suddenly becoming far too breakable playing under Arteta.
The robust and staunch DMF became fragile under Arteta’s care. Ask yourself why that was?
And so, the time has come for the broken Partey with Mikel’s belief of his washed up career who Arteta thinks is a big problem, and £millions better off I should add, will depart in the Jan TW. So, financially not all rain clouds on the horizon for our unsavory DMF if stories are to be believed.
I’m not subscribing to A&E always reporting that Josh has been told by daddy to sell before they buy. It’s an old line Wenger peddled and we are still owned by one of the richest families in America where a few £100 million is chump change to them.
Mrs T and I aways say to our son & daughter and employees:
“When you have problems come to us with solutions and we can discuss to find what works best”.
It reduces the tension and allows for oft sound thinking or just the beginning of a solution. So, to keep with my beliefs, if I were Josh and Stan I would do this:
Hand A&E £250m in December and direct them to buy a quality 9 and a young with high ceiling LB.
I would tell them to keep Nelson, ESR and Partey with the latter to be used only in crucial games.
I would tell them to sell Havertz and Vieira when ever possible and to find a suitable 8 replacement for Xhaka. However, until then use ESR or Trossard.
Then tell A&E their contracts will cancelled if they fail to win the PL or CL this season, as they have all the tools they need especially after the Jan TW and had almost 5 years to do it in.
This season should be the ACCOUNTABILITY SEASON – where you’re either good enough or you’re not for The Arsenal.
If there is no accountability and we just scrape CL football for next season, then I would be very concerned that that will be Good Enough for KSE, as it was under Wenger and Arteta will be staying for seasons to come.
Agree or disagree anyone, Hoopah, Ambarish, TRVL, KP, Marc?
Sorry Killroy for missing your name out; coffee IV took longer than thought.
I’m hoping to be in the UK Feb/March next year with junior, so will try to take in a 6-Nations game.
Would be a first for junior and me. I’ll even hire a Range Rover for the 2-weeks for the outside car park nips and canapés before the game. Got to be civilized to teach junior the pre-game etiquette. If you, KP and TRVL, Marc are free would make for a fun day. I haven’t had a drink in years so I’d be designated driver.
I’d welcome the help to teach junior the post-game etiquette – any takers? Almunia? If we came over for an Irish game replete with a Guinness IV only for the game nerves, mind? Well, there’s that, Almunia and you having to cope with a full on KP 🙂
What a day it would be, I mean what could possibly go wrong?
Hi Tony
Here’s Dr Kroenkephobe’s prescription (they’re still free in 🏴) to your evident and wholly justified unhappiness about the duplicitous, rigid cretin that is our manager.
This article is a fair and accurate description of the massive impact that Declan has made at Arsenal. I’m pretty certain that Irons fans will greet him warmly on his homecoming – he seems to be a thoroughly good egg, idolised by their fans and now ours and who, importantly, left WH in the right way. None of the kind of backstabbing bullshit that Paul Ince practised when he left WH for Manure (in the 80s?) or when Fabregas or Robin vP left Arsenal. Enjoy – in the scabby, shit stained, money grubbing world of football, this story is relatively uplifting. OK, very low bar I know.
https://www.theguardian.com/football/2023/oct/31/rice-returns-to-west-ham-having-already-shown-his-value-to-arsenal-carabao-cup
You planning to watch it live? I doubt it given the time difference but it’s on the box here. I think we need to select a strong team and go for it (and the eventual trophy). Middlesbrough and Port Vale already through so getting one of those in the last 8 if we make it would help. To my mind, this season feels like it’s on a knife edge given Arsenal’s form (nb – not the results which have been better) so win something FFS.
Newcastle might have seven first team squad players injured going into Saturday’s game including Isak, Botman and Barnes.
Hey KP
There’s no denying Rice adds great value to our team and should become captain sooner rather than later. Ode needs to concentrate on his game and finding his creative spark/flair again.
Was a good read. Just a shame we didn’t any 2 of the following for the price we paid for Havertz: Caicedo, Gravenberch, MacAlister or Szoboszlai.
I could accept Vieira as a flop; he’ll get pen shouts in a strong, gusting wind, but Havertz as well for a £100m+ is just criminal.
It’s going to be interesting with such PL table congestion to see if there is going to be a real leader of the pack? Is a smaller group of say 3 going to finally make headway before Xmas?
That’s a genuine question as I have no idea. Only 4 points separates the top 5 clubs where their GD is 15 down to 12 after 10 games or roughly 25% of the season played.
Still to have a good laugh, yesterday when I read Don who is also Un and several other banned LG monikers was using Un and Raulishuss and then starts convos between his 2 monikers, but not having the nous to change writing styles; just boring diatribes calling everyone cnuts if they don’t agree – usual LG. Simply hilariously bad. It’s the only way he can get anyone to agree with him.
buy*
Tony
On a roll today. Do buy more of the same you been smoking mate.
Tetsy is a psychiatric case. Period.
Exasperating if was not so nasty.
In other news there is talk of Ramsdale being sold or traded for Mudryk . To me , Ramsdale gooze started to simmer when No21 started letting in goals and showing his weakness , largely because of his smaller size. That started an uproar suggesting compatriot nepotism by Arteta. Raya was pushed for by Arteta , and this creep being more of a politician than a manager with empathy for his charges, had to push Ramsdale out of the equation and out of Arsenal
Hi Hoopah
The Mudryk rumour is sheer lunacy isn’t it?
We were formerly in a bidding war for him this year with Chelsea, he signs for them and then is fucking terrible, or ordinary at best. Why on earth would we trade a decent-ish goalkeeper for him? I’m not against selling Ramsdale but for fuck’s sake Edu just needs to get a fee for him. There are many Chelsea players I’d consider part-swapping for Ramsdale but Micky isn’t one of them.
Nkunku, Caicedo, Chukwuemeka, Gallagher, Reece James even Omari Hutchinson would all make make more sense than Micky. But better still, just sell and look at a wider market. I’d even think about taking one of their GKs for free if the wages were sensible (unlikely in CFC’s case).
How’s life in Goa mate?
Lost that game on purpose. Arteta is a fucking wanker. Expect the same in the FA Cup. They should either play the u21s or just not compete. Disgraceful.
Eric toon Hag… See what I did there?
There are some proper cunts in high level football. Lying, cheating, throwing games, eh Mikel?
Tonight’s game was yet another example of Tets’s intrinsic dishonesty and arrogance. He thinks we’re all too stupid and gullible to imagine that he threw that game. Put out a decent-ish team, bring on the heavier artillery when all is lost and it looks as if Arsenal tried and face has been saved in a minor cup game. Well, I’m not buying it Tetsy you miserable, prissy little bastard – tonight is not what a proper Arsenal team is about. In reality, neither Tets nor the coaching team wanted to win and put it into the minds of the players that it would be OK to take a dive.
I wouldn’t be surprised if it was part of the Rice deal that we gifted WH a cup win as soon as the first opportunity arose such is the cuntery in modern football. We’ve become a very difficult club to love (among our own fans!). Other big clubs do it too but that doesn’t excuse Arsenal running onto the pitch wanting to lose.
Cunt Out.
And take your two Chelsea slags with you.
Sold Willock, who scored again
Sold Martinez , who won more awards this week.
De Zerbi in.