So its Boxing day 2012 and another year that The Arsenal don't have a game due to Tube Strikes. This kinda makes Boxing day a bit of "nothing" day for us fans as all we can do is watch our rivals play.
Although this kind of got me thinking towards January and that Transfer Window. Boxing Day and the January transfer window are very much alike for us, simply in the fact that we're not involved.
Its safe to say we've probably not met expectations but that said on Christmas Day we were 4th in the league and as I write this we're currently 6th with a game in hand (could go 7th if the Spuds draw or beat the the Villa).
Apart from the fact it would have been nice to play today, it was also a good opportunity to continue the little run were starting to develop, we will of course now have to wait till Saturday when we face the Toon, who showed themselves today against Man U that they wont be a push over.
The other interesting thing about the upcoming Newcastle game is that fact we've been linked with their top striker Demba Ba.
Its well reported that Ba has some stupid clause in his contract that come January he can be brought for 7.5-8million. Recent reports have suggested that if he were to leave he'd want in region of 90-100k a week in wages.
I'm pleased with our Striker options as is at the moment (Giroud and Theo, providing we keep Theo) but we could also do with another one, and one of quality. The January window can be tricky for numerous reasons. One of the obvious is who do you buy and where from as if its from outside England you have the added hassle of them settling in. Of course some players do this quicker than other but January onwards is the real business end of the season and you often cant afford to wait for a player to start firing on all cylinders. Another challenge is of course for a team like The Arsenal we have to consider the Champions League and being cup tied, and theres the EPL chase and the FA Cup.
It pains me to say that the Champions League shouldnt even be a consideration, for this season. I dont think we have a strong enough team to win it and I cant honestly think of any non cuptied front man that would benefit us in that en-devour. The other two on the other hand should be considered.
The FA Cup is yet to have been played and with the right player(s) we could at least push the two teams from Manchester while easily getting third.
This is where Demba Ba comes in. He is a proven EPL striker. Since joining the EPL hes scored an impressive 34 goals in 65 games, which is nearly one every two games. Hes shown he has strength, a bit of vision and isn't that slow. The style that The Arsenal play for me would suit him to a tee, and he'd be a good partner for the likes of Giroud and Theo. It would give us attacking options which would make a nice change. Of course theres possible doubts over his fitness. He failed a medical at Stoke which is why he ended up in the East End over at West Ham on a pay as you play contract, but to be fair to him hes never looked back.
If he were to come to The Arsenal I think he'd relish the chance for playing for a "big" team and I think he'd lap up the service from the likes of Cazorla, Wilshere and Arteta.
If The Arsenal are serious about winning trophies then for me, Ba is a no brainer. And don't leave it late. The Window opens January the 1st, the day we play Southampton. The FA Cup is on the 6th. Theres no reason we couldnt have the deal done and dusted by then which is of course a tricky away tie at Swansea.
Im hoping this January wont be the usual looking in from the outside for us fans and watching everyone else do business while we just bob along. And that is why I also hope we sign Ba. To show some purpose at the very least, and at 7.5million, he really could be a BA-rgain.
Keep the Flag Flying High and the Canon Loaded
@RabbitArmitage
26 December 2012
22 December 2012
Is Life Under Wenger So Bad?
So, its safe to say that the last week or so has been difficult at best. The loss to Bradford put The Arsenal firmly into a "crisis" or at least it did according to the papers and SkySports news. Wenger on the other hand said the usual "I have belief in this team" and two games on we now sit 3rd in the table, 12pts behind the leaders going into the Christmas Break.
Of course it wasn't just the Bradford defeat that had caused so many fans to say enough is enough and we want Wenger out. That has rumbled on for the last couple of seasons, and the main reason for it? Simply no trophies in 7years.
But is that a fair reflection on a man whom will forever be an Arsenal managerial legend? The Arsenals fans have high expectations, and why shouldn't we? We are The Arsenal and we are the team that by the late 90s and the early noughtys were the team to beat. We battled Man U for EPL titles every season. We won FA Cups and league doubles and we of course had an Invincible season. But since 2005 the well has run dry.
Times have changed, Billionaire owners have came in and took over teams and made them "super powers". Teams that had no history are now out there winning Champions League Trophies and EPL titles while The Arsenal are simply now battling for 4th.....3rd if we're lucky. And for a team of our status that simply is not good enough.
So who is to blame? Our board, for the lack of funds to compete and for letting our players go? Our players for not showing loyalty or passion for the badge? Or as many would now believe is it Wenger, a man with no plan b, poor team selection, and the no trophies for 7yrs.
Now I'm no AKB, I simply respect a man that if we as fans looked at it with some perspective, maybe we'd see that actually hes not done or in fact is not doing that bad a job.
In the 16years Wenger has been here we've won 7 trophies, 2 Doubles, and that Unbeaten season. All that came in such a short space of time that we as Arsenal fans started to believe that the the Era of The Arsenal was upon us. But alas the Russian money machine came in and took over Chelsea, and we started to get left behind. And then came the Dubai Dollars and the change in power up North.
But looking at our record are we under Wenger that bad? If we split the the trophy haul over the 16years, then it works out a trophy roughly every 2 seasons, take that and add the fact that we've made Champions League football every year, and we don't spend vast amounts of money, what Wenger actually achieves is very good.
Times at The Arsenal do appear to be changing. The recent contract extensions for 5 British players shows a mould Wenger has broken. He was always one for buying foreign, and putting trust in other players but our own. Of course theres the Theo saga and The Arsenal only have themselves to blame for that. But even where thats concerned Wenegr seems to be softening by now playing Theo in his "preferred" center role. And with the Stadium all but paid for we, as fans, are told that there is most definitely money there to help make us once again compete at the very top.
Is Wenger the man to do this? I believe yes, for the time being. Theres still one or two things that he needs to iron out. The lack of that Plan B being one of them. But I think as things stand, Life at The arsenal isnt as bad as the Press would like us to believe. If we were told at the start of the season we'd be 3rd going into Christmas, many of us would have taken that.
Maybe all we need to do is keep a little faith. in 16yrs Wenger hasnt done us that wrong. Change is good and freshens things up but lets not just change because the Press tell us we need to. Theres many teams out there that would kill to have Wenger as there manager. Maybe we should be great full for what we have, as it could be a lot worse.
Have a Cracking Christmas and stay safe
Keep the Flag Flying High and the Canon Loaded
@RabbitArmitage
Of course it wasn't just the Bradford defeat that had caused so many fans to say enough is enough and we want Wenger out. That has rumbled on for the last couple of seasons, and the main reason for it? Simply no trophies in 7years.
But is that a fair reflection on a man whom will forever be an Arsenal managerial legend? The Arsenals fans have high expectations, and why shouldn't we? We are The Arsenal and we are the team that by the late 90s and the early noughtys were the team to beat. We battled Man U for EPL titles every season. We won FA Cups and league doubles and we of course had an Invincible season. But since 2005 the well has run dry.
Times have changed, Billionaire owners have came in and took over teams and made them "super powers". Teams that had no history are now out there winning Champions League Trophies and EPL titles while The Arsenal are simply now battling for 4th.....3rd if we're lucky. And for a team of our status that simply is not good enough.
So who is to blame? Our board, for the lack of funds to compete and for letting our players go? Our players for not showing loyalty or passion for the badge? Or as many would now believe is it Wenger, a man with no plan b, poor team selection, and the no trophies for 7yrs.
Now I'm no AKB, I simply respect a man that if we as fans looked at it with some perspective, maybe we'd see that actually hes not done or in fact is not doing that bad a job.
In the 16years Wenger has been here we've won 7 trophies, 2 Doubles, and that Unbeaten season. All that came in such a short space of time that we as Arsenal fans started to believe that the the Era of The Arsenal was upon us. But alas the Russian money machine came in and took over Chelsea, and we started to get left behind. And then came the Dubai Dollars and the change in power up North.
But looking at our record are we under Wenger that bad? If we split the the trophy haul over the 16years, then it works out a trophy roughly every 2 seasons, take that and add the fact that we've made Champions League football every year, and we don't spend vast amounts of money, what Wenger actually achieves is very good.
Times at The Arsenal do appear to be changing. The recent contract extensions for 5 British players shows a mould Wenger has broken. He was always one for buying foreign, and putting trust in other players but our own. Of course theres the Theo saga and The Arsenal only have themselves to blame for that. But even where thats concerned Wenegr seems to be softening by now playing Theo in his "preferred" center role. And with the Stadium all but paid for we, as fans, are told that there is most definitely money there to help make us once again compete at the very top.
Is Wenger the man to do this? I believe yes, for the time being. Theres still one or two things that he needs to iron out. The lack of that Plan B being one of them. But I think as things stand, Life at The arsenal isnt as bad as the Press would like us to believe. If we were told at the start of the season we'd be 3rd going into Christmas, many of us would have taken that.
Maybe all we need to do is keep a little faith. in 16yrs Wenger hasnt done us that wrong. Change is good and freshens things up but lets not just change because the Press tell us we need to. Theres many teams out there that would kill to have Wenger as there manager. Maybe we should be great full for what we have, as it could be a lot worse.
Have a Cracking Christmas and stay safe
Keep the Flag Flying High and the Canon Loaded
@RabbitArmitage
13 December 2012
So 20 Years on then and no change? But should there be?
Its took me all day yesterday to really digest the magnitude of our defeat against Bradford. I mean losing on Pens, the shame of it.
Of course I jest, it wasnt the loss on Pens that hurt but the fact a team like Bradford had took us to them! Look I'm not gonna say that we werent poor, of course we were, but lets give credit where its due. Bradford played to our frailties, weak at the back on set pieces. Every manager has the manual. And they defended whole heartly, something we could learn from.
We as a team, as a family are going through a rough a time at the moment. But as Monty Python once said, "Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life" except as a Gooner, there is no bright side, well not that we can see.
Its been reported yesterday and today that Peppy G's first choice is The Arsenal, once of course God himself Arsene Wenger Retires/Gets Sacked/Walks/Gets Abducted By Aliens (you pick most likely).
On January 4th 1992 The Arsenal lost to Wrexham, a team that was at that time at the foot of the football league. We were of course the current top Division Champions. So was the Bradford defeat worse than that? I'd argue no, as the 1992 team were good enough to win a league, we currently simply are not. Ive seen a lot of posts on Twitter and Facebook saying "Wenger Out"...heck theres been the #WengerOut posts and ive even heard rumblings of a "wenger out protest march". But yet surprisingly back in 1992 when we lost, in the FA Cup to Wrexham, these calls never came. But we were mocked, laughed at, even ridiculed, just like now. However Graham was just making his legacy (and what a legacy I might add). Wenger, well some would say hes at the end of his legacy. Hes past it, let him go, put him out to pasture.
I'm not a AKB, but I will say this..... The Bradford defeat was no worse than that night against Wrexham. And whether you like it or not Wenger has a successful past, so did Graham granted, but Wengers surpasses even that.
Theres a lot wrong at The Arsenal at the moment, from management, to players, to BOD and even us fans. But lets put things into perspective. We've had worse results, and when ever history is about to happen we are generally there, good or bad and frankly thats all i se the Bradford defeat as. Just another piece of history that we'll be associated with.
"In Wenger I trust" well no not entirely, but as we've seen at Chelsea the grass isn't always greener and if Pep really does want the Job in 2013, then dont we simply owe it to Wenger to give him this as a Swan Song and hope he can make it a good one come May.
Until Next Time
Keep The Flag Flying And The Canon Loaded
@Rabbitarmitage
Of course I jest, it wasnt the loss on Pens that hurt but the fact a team like Bradford had took us to them! Look I'm not gonna say that we werent poor, of course we were, but lets give credit where its due. Bradford played to our frailties, weak at the back on set pieces. Every manager has the manual. And they defended whole heartly, something we could learn from.
We as a team, as a family are going through a rough a time at the moment. But as Monty Python once said, "Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life" except as a Gooner, there is no bright side, well not that we can see.
Its been reported yesterday and today that Peppy G's first choice is The Arsenal, once of course God himself Arsene Wenger Retires/Gets Sacked/Walks/Gets Abducted By Aliens (you pick most likely).
On January 4th 1992 The Arsenal lost to Wrexham, a team that was at that time at the foot of the football league. We were of course the current top Division Champions. So was the Bradford defeat worse than that? I'd argue no, as the 1992 team were good enough to win a league, we currently simply are not. Ive seen a lot of posts on Twitter and Facebook saying "Wenger Out"...heck theres been the #WengerOut posts and ive even heard rumblings of a "wenger out protest march". But yet surprisingly back in 1992 when we lost, in the FA Cup to Wrexham, these calls never came. But we were mocked, laughed at, even ridiculed, just like now. However Graham was just making his legacy (and what a legacy I might add). Wenger, well some would say hes at the end of his legacy. Hes past it, let him go, put him out to pasture.
I'm not a AKB, but I will say this..... The Bradford defeat was no worse than that night against Wrexham. And whether you like it or not Wenger has a successful past, so did Graham granted, but Wengers surpasses even that.
Theres a lot wrong at The Arsenal at the moment, from management, to players, to BOD and even us fans. But lets put things into perspective. We've had worse results, and when ever history is about to happen we are generally there, good or bad and frankly thats all i se the Bradford defeat as. Just another piece of history that we'll be associated with.
"In Wenger I trust" well no not entirely, but as we've seen at Chelsea the grass isn't always greener and if Pep really does want the Job in 2013, then dont we simply owe it to Wenger to give him this as a Swan Song and hope he can make it a good one come May.
Until Next Time
Keep The Flag Flying And The Canon Loaded
@Rabbitarmitage
12 December 2012
Errrrm....
Errrrrrm... We just lost to a League 2 side with a full strength side?
Now I know there is always a chance you can have a blip, but this blip has been going on since the International break and quite frankly I have enough. Firstly let start by telling it how it is. Aaron Ramsey is not could enough to be playing for us, he could have been but since the injury he sustained at the hands of the cavemen he has never been the same. Gervinho in my opinion should never wear an Arsenal shirt again and it worth mentioning that he cost us 10 million! Why does Wenger keep playing this man when he has Podolski to play in that role and Arshavin to play left wing?
Arsene Wenger then goes on to defend 11 Premier League players each earning what over 50K a week? He defends them saying, "It wasn't for the lack of quality" "I'm happy with the way we played" Well Arsene let me tell you, Quality? We didn't have our first shot on target until the 60th min, Happy with the way we played? We couldn't break down a League 2 defense?
I worry for him, I don't want him to go. But he is great danger of losing everything he ever did for this club. All his achievements will come to nothing if keeps playing the formations and tactics he does. He will end up being a hate figure and the reason why this club came tumbling down. Even the most avid Wenger supporter can not defend the performance last night, we could what our performance merited, Nothing.
Isn't about time us Arsenal fans stopped living in past and reliving past glories and stop talking about what has been done, instead talking about what has to be done. I have seen last night on twitter than some fans have turned there back on the club, Some season tickets holders saying they wont return to the Emirates, Some fans even going as far as burning there shirts. While this is highly disappointing the alarm bells are ringing loud and clear at Arsenal and its going to take one hell of job to switch them off.
I myself got what I wanted last night. A strong team and Arsene showing some intent by playing a strong team, at least that what I thought until he says "I'm playing this team tonight because we have a good break after it" Shouldn't he have said " I'm playing this team tonight because I want to win the trophy". Its just sends out the wrong vibes and frustrates everyone involved.
For me the only positive to come out of this game was Jack Whilshire. If he stays fit he is going to be a very special player indeed, but then you ask yourself when will he leave? I would predict that the same thing will happen to Jack as the "others" and he will be gone in 2 years when he realises that his career is going no where at Arsenal and jumps ship for success.
Ill finish on this. The song sang by the Bradford fans night, "He left because your shit" Im afraid you would have to agree. Even the rest that jumped ship could see this coming and leaves me wondering, If you can leave a club and join another one and get paid more money and win medals, I don't think you can blame any of them for doing so.
Sing for the Arsenal
ScottyBoy
Follow me on twitter @ScottyBoyGooner
Now I know there is always a chance you can have a blip, but this blip has been going on since the International break and quite frankly I have enough. Firstly let start by telling it how it is. Aaron Ramsey is not could enough to be playing for us, he could have been but since the injury he sustained at the hands of the cavemen he has never been the same. Gervinho in my opinion should never wear an Arsenal shirt again and it worth mentioning that he cost us 10 million! Why does Wenger keep playing this man when he has Podolski to play in that role and Arshavin to play left wing?
Arsene Wenger then goes on to defend 11 Premier League players each earning what over 50K a week? He defends them saying, "It wasn't for the lack of quality" "I'm happy with the way we played" Well Arsene let me tell you, Quality? We didn't have our first shot on target until the 60th min, Happy with the way we played? We couldn't break down a League 2 defense?
I worry for him, I don't want him to go. But he is great danger of losing everything he ever did for this club. All his achievements will come to nothing if keeps playing the formations and tactics he does. He will end up being a hate figure and the reason why this club came tumbling down. Even the most avid Wenger supporter can not defend the performance last night, we could what our performance merited, Nothing.
Isn't about time us Arsenal fans stopped living in past and reliving past glories and stop talking about what has been done, instead talking about what has to be done. I have seen last night on twitter than some fans have turned there back on the club, Some season tickets holders saying they wont return to the Emirates, Some fans even going as far as burning there shirts. While this is highly disappointing the alarm bells are ringing loud and clear at Arsenal and its going to take one hell of job to switch them off.
I myself got what I wanted last night. A strong team and Arsene showing some intent by playing a strong team, at least that what I thought until he says "I'm playing this team tonight because we have a good break after it" Shouldn't he have said " I'm playing this team tonight because I want to win the trophy". Its just sends out the wrong vibes and frustrates everyone involved.
For me the only positive to come out of this game was Jack Whilshire. If he stays fit he is going to be a very special player indeed, but then you ask yourself when will he leave? I would predict that the same thing will happen to Jack as the "others" and he will be gone in 2 years when he realises that his career is going no where at Arsenal and jumps ship for success.
Ill finish on this. The song sang by the Bradford fans night, "He left because your shit" Im afraid you would have to agree. Even the rest that jumped ship could see this coming and leaves me wondering, If you can leave a club and join another one and get paid more money and win medals, I don't think you can blame any of them for doing so.
Sing for the Arsenal
ScottyBoy
Follow me on twitter @ScottyBoyGooner
11 December 2012
From Worthless Cup to Critical One Cup
So tonight sees the Quarter Finals of the League Cup with
The Arsenal in action against Bradford City.
I think its safe to say that over the past few years The
Arsenal, along with the likes of Man United and a few others, haven’t exactly taken
this trophy seriously. In fact from the
1998 season that Worthingtons took it over from Coca-Cola, it has somewhat been
a “joke” cup as far as “big” teams like us were concerned.
That said it hasn’t stopped Man United racking up 3 of them in
the past 10 years and Chelsea winning 2 of them (one against us). We have of course been in the final twice in
that period and both times coming out as the bridesmade…..None more painful than
in 2011 against the mighty Birmingham, which didn’t only signal a cup loss but
ended up starting possibly 3-4 of the worst weeks I care to remember.
Also I guess when you’re winning the trophies such as the
EPL, the FA cup and the Champions League you can see why “top four” teams don’t
worry about it as much. Of course I guess
that’s my point. We’re no longer a “top
four” team in the sense of the word and what it used to mean.
We used to compete for the EPL and FA Cup on a regular basis
but nowadays, we as fans generally concede the league is over come December, and then we hope with all hope
that we’ll get a Home tie against a much lower division team in the FA cup,
just to give us the belief that we can have a run in that campaign to at least
give us something to look forward to for the remainder of the season (other than a months loan return of "The King")
But times have changed and none more so than for The
Arsenal. We no longer field a team of “kids”
but more a team of fringe players and first team, mixed with a sprinkle of
youth. The reasons for this could be
that our “kids” have now become of age and we’re awaiting the next batch. It could be a case that we have such a large squad
that our fringe players need/deserve games.
Or it could be that even Wenger is now accepting that this once “Worthless”
cup is now becoming “Critical” to The Arsenal. Critical in the sense that if we were to win
it, it might help our causes elsewhere.
It would certainly shake the “haven’t won a trophy in 8 years counting”
monkey off our back. And perhaps it would give the team some belief and that all important “knowing how it feels to
win something” mentality. It would also
give us, the fans something to cheer about.
Yes we’ve mocked The Spuds in the past for only having the “worthless”
cup to name in recent times, but even they hit back with “At least we’ve won a
trophy” and that point can not be argued.
But I think even us fans realise now that winning this cup
might not be so “worthless” after all.
You only had to look at fans reactions on Twitter during the last round
against Reading to see just what it meant to us.
I’ve seen today that Wenger is warning against complacency
and god knows that’s always been a big problem with us no matter how much faith
Wenger says he has in there “mental strength”.
He's saying tonight will be a good mix of experienced players, helped by
the fact we don’t play till next Monday. So hopefully we’ll produce the goods. Of course beating Bradford don’t mean we’ll
win it but it puts us a step closer, and who knows maybe the old girl might have
to get those Famous Yellow Ribbons out for a trip to Wembley in what then would
be a “critical” final for so many reasons than just a League Cup.
Until next time.
Keep the Flag flying high and the Canon Loaded
@RabbitArmitage
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