It was a special win, special because we beat the current English and Europe Champions; special because we had not won against them in our previous 15 encounters. Also, the fact that they took all 6 points against us last season which turned out to be the difference between the winners and second spot made this win even sweeter.
The score line of 1-0 doesn’t show the true picture. Man City showed fight but we restricted them to only 4 shots in those 90 minutes – least under Pep’s since 2010 going back to his Barcelona’s reign. The stalemate ended when a half-time, electrified substitute Gabriel Martinelli shot was deflected from Nathan Ake’s face to the City’s goal. Ederson was in no position to stop that deflection. It was a lucky one, but luck only favors the brave. We had some luck in our way when Declan Rice did a brilliant goal line clearance in the opening minutes of the game. Gabriel and Saliba made sure to kill the Haaland hype who had exactly zero shots. Martinelli is a chaos and I’m sure is the worst player to play against, in the league. Mikel is learning, he rested Saka and asked Gabriel Jesus to play at RW which everyone was calling for, and saw we needed to shake things up at the left and brought in Martinelli at half time. I doubt a year younger Mikel would have done that.
We have talked this enough but mate it’s happening every week. Mateo Kovacic received a first yellow when he did a late ankle-breaking tackle on Martin Odegaard. It was reviewed and was deemed only yellow-worthy. To anyone else, it was a RED. But that wasn’t the all of it, he did a similar challenge to Declan Rice and was punished with only a foul. It should have been a yellow again, Mateo Kovacic should have been sent off IN THE 35th MINUTE. We don’t know how the game would have ended; may be with a much better score line but when was the last time referee favored us?
The win leaves us unbeaten in Premier League, with 20 points in 8 games. We are 2nd, as Spuds have scored more goals but have the same point tally. Spuds hangover won’t last long, and I’m sure comes the January break, there will be clear picture of title challengers and top 4s.
Right, short one today. Hope you are still talking about the Saliba x Haaland clash because I am and Haaland falling like a pack of cards begging referee for a foul when there was a none, was a delight to watch.
A City was conquered this Sunday. The Bridge is next!
Nice write up but the have itself was not very exciting, true the result was. Our attack was dismal the first shot on goal was Martinelli and we only had 2 of 12 attempts so this was a defensive battle and without Rodri or KDB to unlock or defense we always had a chance to win this one.
Result excellent, game itself and attack not so much.
have/game
“Mikel is learning, he rested Saka…”
Ermm… not exactly. Saka was injured, and not even on the bench against City. And the reason he was injured is the exact opposite of Mikel “learning” anything at all. Saka was already in the red zone when it comes to injuries, and Mikel finally broke him when he decided to start him against Lens. That’s when he had a muscle injury, and had to be subbed off early. Fingers crossed Arteta’s stubbornness and stupidity is not going to cost us long term.
Hi Ambarish
The site looks brilliant. Congratulations. And that red jacket…. Very sophisticated!
I think Killroy is right – the result surpassed the performance. The players did their absolute best and worked hard as a team. You can’t ask more than that. Rice makes a massive difference.
Someone on LG coined the most appropriate name for Arteta he shall from now on be referred to as NoRoteta 😆
two quick points:
(1) there’s been ample chatter about us “winning” the possession battle which has inevitably led some Galaxy Brainiacs to conclude that MA outmanaged his former boss…of course not a one spoke to the elephant in the room, City’s greatly depleted midfield, when discussing the matter…I guess it makes sense, as one rarely finds nuanced debates inside an echo chamber
(2) many of these same Kool=Aid slurpers suggested that this match perfectly personified our resident MIT’s footballing vision…if that were the case, it means that we functionally spent 200+M to turn the clock back to an earlier phase, when we deployed a much more sideways-dependent boring brand of football
no wonder MA has an inflated ego, as his blinders-wearing wet dreamers will find a way to shower him with flowers regardless of what’s on offer…as I stated following the match in question, I’m elated that we banked 3 points against this particular opponent, but there was nothing revelatory on offer, minus the unfamiliar result…I can only hope that the combination of a now healthy Marts and a “rested” Saka can reignite our stalling offence when we return from the break
Morning all, another busy week that’s keeping all thoughts of football on the back burner. First look at the football news this morning and there were 2 things that caught my eye.
One was Maguire is threatening to leave Manure city better figures when he plays. From my perspective there are only 2 football people who actually think Maguire is a footballer: Southgate and Maguire and probably his dad, but we never hear quotes from him, do we?
Secondly, word is we and father Todd are after either Toney or Osimhen for the January TW. Why not A&E both? Go big or go home, right?
We need 2 strikers and both fit the Artetaball mold. Solves the rotation issue and Barca are making overtures to relieve us of Jesus and his divineness in chaos creating where ever he plays.
He’s our ranking Brazilian army knife, now his Swiss comrade has departed; can we gat a Hallelujah & praise be mercifully he’s gone. Would never have got the City points with him instead of Rice in midfield – just saying lads.
Osimhen or Toney LIR who do you feel would be best for us?
https://www.transfermarkt.com/victor-osimhen/profil/spieler/401923
or
https://www.transfermarkt.com/ivan-toney/leistungsdatendetails/spieler/251664
I like Toney because he reminds me a bit of Drogba, who would also be a match for Halland in the air at set pieces, as well as PL tested and proven. The Arsenal would be a big step up for Toney, but one I feel he would match with aplomb and is a big improvement on Eddie, Harvetz and Jesus.
Osimhen on the other hand has this said of him:
“Osimhen is known for his physical strength, pace, and clinical finishing, which makes him a nightmare for opposition defenders. He is also proficient in the air and possesses excellent dribbling and ball control skills, making him a complete striker.”
My take here is Osimhen is a mix of sublime silky Kanu and raw old Wrighty and why I think they could end up being our SAS remember them? Tosh & Keegan? to name more recent striker partnerships would only induce unnecessary pain from flashbacks long since compartmentalized, but you get the gist or will with the Internet.
Osimhen or Ivan Toney or Both?
Excellent layout Ambarish and I would imagine much easier for people where English is not their first language to read. A lot of intelligent English is written here bar typos and recreational influences where legal of course.
Just the level of content you and LIR deserve, Ambarish.
Here’s something to drool over:
Could you imagine a Bassouma, Rice/Partey and Ode/ESR Midfield with a Osimhen, Toney & Saka/Martinelli front three? Bassouma was a big miss by A&E; more so than Caicedo.
If Arteta had the above at his disposal it would be very difficult to NOT win major trophies because Mikel could then stick to coaching something at times he looks very good at – just needs consistency over a season.
Rotation would be a breeze.
Anyone think differently?
citing*
https://www.football.london/arsenal-fc/transfer-news/emile-smith-rowe-arsenal-newcastle-27892157
Looks like Arteta glib talk is failing . Smith Rowe to Newcastle , which he too will prefer to Chelsea summer transfer talks .
Tony-my preference has little to do with what Striker I rate more, knowing full-well that we will never ever secure both, and everything to do with MA’s tactical shortcomings, full-stop…his wide-side focused, sideways passing predilictions, makes no sense for a more direct player of Osimhen’s ilk…now if Edu grew a pair, went all-in for the Napoli Striker, then pressured MA into injecting some much-needed directness into our tactical script, I would think vastly differently, but I get the feeling that in this particular duo the tail wags the dog…with this latter point in mind, Toney’s much better suited for our particular brand of football, which doesn’t appear to be changing anytime soon…I would gladly offer Brentford both Havertz and Eddie for their now suspended front man, but they would never agree to such a swap, as they likely rate neither player and/or our ridiculous wage practices have made any such dealings next to impossible
Medical update – Marc is expected to recover from the catatonic state induced by one of the worst football matches in recent history.
Apparently the alcohol saved him by partially numbing the pain.
TRVL
I hear you and don’t disagree. I think Toney is the raw maverick type of player to me. No real frills, but hard and aggressive vertical player who is a bit like Wrighty; a brilliant anomaly late to the PL party. He also has a bit of John Radford (the early Drogba) in him as well.
I’m hoping that when Arteta has assembled his sum of all parts he’ll be snapped up by RM or BM and Barca.
Consistency, is the buzz word for Arteta and the squad this season for me. We laid our marker against City and put Liverpool on notice. Now we have to back it up by winning and winning comfortably by playing fast quick touch football with intelligent pressing all over the park. We’ve seen it in glimpses for short bursts in the City game and others.
However, generally, the transitions were still too slow and we need to stop slowing our counters down in the oppositions’ final thirds and thus allowing them to get numbers back in defense. Then we are back to tippi tappi football that lacks any real vertical penetration into their penalty boxes.
It’s a major flaw in our play. We only outplayed City for short periods, the rest of the game being mostly a nervy stale mate of both sides often giving possession away. For all that, we only managed one shot on target and a deflected one at that.
It was a mental victory more than anything. The 12-year curse had been broken and lifted and City for the first season under Pep look beatable and dejected. We can expect fireworks at the Etihad of the Manure Fergie days. Keen and Vieira wars in midfield with the legendary and epic battles between Martin Keown and Van Nistlerooy
:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhA3wcvrgyY
Keane & Vieira wars:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDBlyfbGI0k
Oh those were the days!!!! But let’s hold our horses here. There were some tasty tackles flying in the City game and prisoners weren’t taken, so I hope this is a sign of ze mental strength returning to our valiant gladiators.
Saliba is Henry levels in defense plain and simple; levels above other CDs in the PL where I’d say in the top 5 in the world. Saliba effortlessly keeping Halland in his back pocket all game says it all really. Saliba also keeps big Gabs from being too anxious in tight games and always pushing Gabs to a better consistency is also in his natural leadership skills; a future captainI hope.
Are they Martin Keown and big Tony levels of today? I think they are close.
Was the City game a glimpse off the future under Arteta only to be seen sporadically or is it here to stay with statement of intent made to actually win the PL this season?
Two words are now that the most important for our season: Consistency and accountability.
The hope is we use the City result to confidently springboard our assault on the PL title. Can we?
Killroy & KP
The world cup rugby quarterfinals all look tasty. I’ve only managed to watch various games making a pint too try to watch the Japan games – such warriors who are becoming worthy adversaries and I think should be part of the southern hemisphere tournaments with South Africa, Australia and the Kiwis.
I’ll add my usual do not bet on my predictions caveat and give my 2 pence worth:
Wales v Argentina
Although Argentina have improved immeasurably from their early outings in the 6-Nations competitions, Wales will be too much who are beginning to click throughout the squad.
Wales to win by more than 10 points.
Ireland V New Zealand
By my predictions the semi final is going to look like this with no southern hemisphere teams left in the tournament.:
Wales V Ireland
England V France
That would make it all very interesting for my thinking and where evry game will be worth watching.
Should have been the final and will no doubt be the game of the quarterfinals. A really tough game to call but I think Ireland will smother the All Blacks to slow their ball and find the quick hand to ball the Kiwis are famed for to seal the game
Ireland to win by 3 or less points where this game could go to extra time
England ve Fiji
This has upset written all over it and our national teams love to choke in tournaments. Still, we have to take our luck and in a bloody and ferocious game we will need to keep our discipline and the penalty count down to below 10 for the Game.
As with the Wales game England should have too much for the Fijians who are far better at 7s. In a tough game of big hits from Fiji I expect England to win by more than 10 points in the latter stages of the 2nd half.
France v South Africa
What a game to rival the All Blacks game. I honestly can’t say which is going to be best because this is going to be a titanic battle in a stadium where perhaps the Springboks are better equipped to take on France. If the French can keep their collective heads from the South African constant onslaught, then the partisan French crowd will be like 2 extra players on the park or at least helping the France players to dig into the body’s reserve 10% few athletes can break into, and find that bit extra when needed.
Has to be a France victory. Another possible game for extra time because the win will be very narrow of no more than 5 points for the France win.
Marc
Glad to hear you didn’t go in the wrong house and sleep with your neighbour as happened recently. 🙂 Recovery is a bitch and is why I gave up alcohol years ago and, as with the flowerpot men weed is my friend.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9JKKWJqFpBQ
Commiserations KP & Almunia seems I got both results wrong but not unexpected. Wales look lost at the moment and Ireland let the Kiwis get in their heads absolutely great game for neutrals. It seems our semi pirate Internet app run by the local satellite company now offers a function to watch back 2-days, so for as long as it lasts I won’t miss the rugby or CL for time reasons.
Makes for a happy Sunday.
Hi Tony
I wasn’t surprised that Wales lost (and that things are a little bit sombre in this part of the world as a result…). What was surprising was Argentina’s earlier in the tournament loss to 14 man England. I thought the other game was terrific and hinged on that tackle towards the end that prevented the Irish player from downing the ball. It was pretty even but you can never rule out the ABs. Today’s games? England to win narrowly and France to lose, again narrowly. The second game will be a real bruiser I reckon.
I’ve had a football fix this weekend. County won underwhelmingly on pens. They always win shoot outs thanks to their (kiwi) GK who is a master shot stopper. No Arsenal? No bother.
Hope all is well chez Tony.
This was one of the more entertaining weekends. Both Saturday and Sunday at 11:00am and 3pm local time were the quarter finals of the RWC and they did not disappoint. For me the Wales v Argentina was the more interesting one on Saturday because of the emotions. Also the Ireland loss was tragic.
Next weekend it will be the English to go for the 2019 revenge and Los Pumas to repeat their win over the ABs.
But realistically I see a final of ABs v. Bokks and Los Pumas taking 3rd. Well they would have if Pablo Matera wouldn’t be injured.
Hi KP
All good here, thanks.
Junior wondered if people made money off my predictions by betting against them, which he did, and got them all correct. What great quarterfinals of breath taking rugby from all sides bar England, who have been making games heavy going with silly errors and so will be their undoing against South Africa.
As you say KP, football what football? Next weekend’s semis and the final are games to be savored, as possibly they could be the best so far in the history of world cup famous battles where there have been many. England beating Australia after extra time in the 2003 final with a last ditched drop goal from Johnny Wilkinson just outside the Australia 25 in the dying seconds of the game is a tough one to beat.
Killroy
I concur with your head thinking of a Boks v All Blacks final in potentially the final of finals. What a combinations of games to look forward to. I’m glad the Arsenal game is Saturday, so we have Sunday free for the Semis Sunday.
Could there be upsets? My gut feeling is no. Both the Argies and England have punched above their weight with arguably Argentina having upped their games once again in catching up with the 6-nations sides; therefore more worthy of their semi birth than England.