tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12585483455953588162024-03-05T06:55:32.733+00:00A is for ArsenalA blog about Arsenal Football Club putting quality before quantityJohn Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.comBlogger117125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-81286065002534850662016-08-12T07:34:00.000+01:002016-08-12T07:34:01.850+01:00Arsenal scrapbook flashback: Bruce Rioch sacked and Arsene Wenger appointedAnyone who thinks this summer has been a dispiriting close season for the Arsenal should reflect on what happened in 1996. It was a bizarre series of events – or lack of events - but a period which proved pivotal in the modern history of the Club.<br />
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Let me set the scene with the aid of my scrapbook collection (you can read about earlier entries from it <a href="http://aisforarsenal.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/my-arsenal-scrapbook-20-years-on-part-1.html" target="_blank">here </a>and <a href="http://aisforarsenal.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/my-arsenal-scrapbook-20-years-on-part-2.html" target="_blank">here</a>).<br />
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<b>Note: click on all the images of the newspaper stories to enlarge them.</b><br />
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Bruce Rioch had started the 1995/96 campaign as the new Arsenal manager buoyed by the signing of two ‘statement of intent’ signings: Dennis Bergkamp and David Platt. The season started pretty well and when Bergkamp scored the only goal of the game at home to Man U in November, Arsenal sat in third place in the league, seven points behind runaway leaders Newcastle United.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Guardian, November 1995</td></tr>
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From there though the team’s form fell away as they won only three of next 13 games leaving Arsenal eighth by early February. One of the most memorable moments from that period was a scrap between Rioch and Kevin Keegan, the Newcastle manager, in the League Cup quarter final at Highbury. Tempers flared mainly due to Lee Dixon and David Ginola’s personal feud which led to the Frenchman getting sent off for rising to Dixie’s bait. Keegan was unhappy with his man’s treatment and wasn’t afraid to share a frank exchange with Rioch.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Y2FXu3wLCPMNLPcHBNCwHNiOiG5plNITbjHfsiLschlzxx33wH5U427P0QkB-Ulx2t0BpE4WlObiplP0NxaFRlYGT9Nov4Svhpm101FloThI1v0Mqb-Jcnu5ybXmJgMjGYS_EgQ1pA2e/s1600/IMG_0002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1Y2FXu3wLCPMNLPcHBNCwHNiOiG5plNITbjHfsiLschlzxx33wH5U427P0QkB-Ulx2t0BpE4WlObiplP0NxaFRlYGT9Nov4Svhpm101FloThI1v0Mqb-Jcnu5ybXmJgMjGYS_EgQ1pA2e/s320/IMG_0002.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Telegraph, January 1996</td></tr>
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Beyond the sideline melee, it was an impressive performance by the Arsenal against a team that went close to winning the league. But it was an isolated show of unity in what was a fractured dressing room. There were continuous rumours of Rioch wanting to clear away the old guard and the rumours of new arrivals were endless.<br />
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The biggest fall-out was between Rioch and Ian Wright – there had been speculation about their relationship from pre-season but things got worse in January when the pair had a classic ‘dressing room bust-up’.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">News of the World, January 1996</td></tr>
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And it wasn’t just the lack of love shared between manager and players that was stretched: the relationship between manager and Board was strained, as these stories just a couple of weeks after the Wright confrontation illustrate:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzkGdT6vvVJRsBwMJv4KPgd6Y895FQtntC-16Q1kzlDtveTi0U3GLmzheRKL-4kt0qAPq-KbxTSX16HxUqVVM9SMFItY6iocfJBHNDZdwaQC5rccx3J8hD927JX8pnBvDeQCgPA3DX6a2q/s1600/IMG_20160808_0002.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzkGdT6vvVJRsBwMJv4KPgd6Y895FQtntC-16Q1kzlDtveTi0U3GLmzheRKL-4kt0qAPq-KbxTSX16HxUqVVM9SMFItY6iocfJBHNDZdwaQC5rccx3J8hD927JX8pnBvDeQCgPA3DX6a2q/s320/IMG_20160808_0002.jpg" width="232" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, January 1996</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, January 1996</td></tr>
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Things reached a head in March 1996 when Wright handed in a transfer request, which was rejected.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">News of the World, March 1996</td></tr>
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Anyone who thinks the fights between the AKB and WOB fractions nowadays are a modern phenomena should read the story below - there were distinct camps in the Wright v Rioch debate back in 1996:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8pRnjkviSSt42MOoNrppUf2lUc-WrBgC8x_fIjxSm0LBaECeEHH8ziTfcx6wp63Wsdtsaz5K5y8G_Wx-GtoswYT7yRACci3scbOdEqFARmUSLPr-4Ugg0-UoQNhce0d9XZoIEkzneyXEt/s1600/IMG_20160808_0001+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8pRnjkviSSt42MOoNrppUf2lUc-WrBgC8x_fIjxSm0LBaECeEHH8ziTfcx6wp63Wsdtsaz5K5y8G_Wx-GtoswYT7yRACci3scbOdEqFARmUSLPr-4Ugg0-UoQNhce0d9XZoIEkzneyXEt/s320/IMG_20160808_0001+%25283%2529.jpg" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">90 Minutes magazine, March 1996 (note the Myles Palmer byline - he was a real journalist!)</td></tr>
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The team remained inconsistent for the rest of the campaign, with the League Cup run ending unfortunately in an away goals semi-final loss but enough being done to seal European football via a fifth place finish. It was achieved on the final day thanks to two late goals from the men who inspired so much hope at the start of the season: Platt and Bergkamp.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgKrx7iRYsiG0JavS7YIgln-RbUC0dx0AG9qUQwUk1yBxHWc8HNOYcCWNoEdbKeMWxFGX1IKwdLtzFBTrbABJeXQVZMUZKSCkPNJQ9oRAbdXgDj-sIkSOYKywk0xbO8-CggjwmZ6OZ5aJ6/s1600/IMG_0005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgKrx7iRYsiG0JavS7YIgln-RbUC0dx0AG9qUQwUk1yBxHWc8HNOYcCWNoEdbKeMWxFGX1IKwdLtzFBTrbABJeXQVZMUZKSCkPNJQ9oRAbdXgDj-sIkSOYKywk0xbO8-CggjwmZ6OZ5aJ6/s320/IMG_0005.jpg" width="48" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Telegraph, May 1996</td></tr>
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So despite the tension within the club, it entered the close season on a relative high and with a decent platform to improve the following campaign. But amid all the excitement generated by Euro 96 on home soil and the expectation of further stellar signings, Arsenal picked up just one player: John Lukic, for free. While the likes of Newcastle were embracing the renewed national passion for football by smashing the transfer record to sign Alan Shearer for £15m, the Arsenal mysteriously declined to get involved.<br />
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The mystery was solved on August 12th, 1996, when Rioch was sacked. It was a surprise at the time and I was angry that the board had got rid of him after doing a decent job, especially just five days before the new season kicked off. Not all of the players agreed with the decision either, with stories from Bergkamp and Paul Merson, for example, expressing disappointment bordering on anger. But the warning signs had been there during the season and as the coverage made clear, the Club was unhappy with Rioch’s transfer targets – deemed to be unrealistic – as well as the way he conducted himself, including that fracas with Kevin Keegan, a lack of communication and failing to sign a contract.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizNRjzvp3poTDAHMksZlrRSvRUgT_DkzVPdQfeFd2tOnAqP_z1kmaGHZjizB-QGJOXG9yVPLD2RLBYEhOZPX1lTKAPuWn66y0VwhQBNKs7zAYSYlw9ngFMwM-2bcpY8b-TVvftoKZwum6x/s1600/IMG_0007a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizNRjzvp3poTDAHMksZlrRSvRUgT_DkzVPdQfeFd2tOnAqP_z1kmaGHZjizB-QGJOXG9yVPLD2RLBYEhOZPX1lTKAPuWn66y0VwhQBNKs7zAYSYlw9ngFMwM-2bcpY8b-TVvftoKZwum6x/s320/IMG_0007a.jpg" width="266" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, August 1996</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, August 1996</td></tr>
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Meanwhile, Rioch himself had his say in an interview given the week prior but published the day after he was given the boot (check out the classic broken badge illustration).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiirvC_XgmhOlE227rdMe4ZJ5_kuILN3jHS3DBcZFoaGHTPoQgC8Wgpg1tV7xkcizxbIRzLjzs37k_1_o-yFRv2Bxn_n0xj_CnLNJX8wLmV0pU6H7rX1DDZHVe35yfJn7bPpMM9MRyV-q-X/s1600/Rioch+spread.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="124" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiirvC_XgmhOlE227rdMe4ZJ5_kuILN3jHS3DBcZFoaGHTPoQgC8Wgpg1tV7xkcizxbIRzLjzs37k_1_o-yFRv2Bxn_n0xj_CnLNJX8wLmV0pU6H7rX1DDZHVe35yfJn7bPpMM9MRyV-q-X/s320/Rioch+spread.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSiTCk9QFinQKgH90oJCDxON8KDwQn3gxL-LK7J-5DJDUYdrDZdGxPmIOF8RsxC02nJtkn5nR-M8Kfh7fi9icNB1hywppBt7O_cFRLwbdmd5Bd1RzAuCLY2Ct-bAb6_2QHuWUCQ7zc1uAu/s1600/IMG_20160808_0002+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSiTCk9QFinQKgH90oJCDxON8KDwQn3gxL-LK7J-5DJDUYdrDZdGxPmIOF8RsxC02nJtkn5nR-M8Kfh7fi9icNB1hywppBt7O_cFRLwbdmd5Bd1RzAuCLY2Ct-bAb6_2QHuWUCQ7zc1uAu/s320/IMG_20160808_0002+%25282%2529.jpg" width="260" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Mirror, May 1996: note the list of players who had apparently been on Rioch's shopping list </td></tr>
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Whatever the reasons, time never stands still in football so the focus was as much on who would replace Rioch as it was on why he was fired. The Dutch legend Johan Cruyff led much of the initial reporting:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXHlZjycFg9rIHwSCUfSDkYMiyMh69vk8RDB6ABK34qrdZSBYeErYMpT53kwUhvTOCJIP7mJ72I2w-KTm7IDUkea6lNMiQNcPXENZEBQIwk1owj0Db4BG4jgadFCQfQZo5Eqr0GPvjZyr5/s1600/IMG_0006a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXHlZjycFg9rIHwSCUfSDkYMiyMh69vk8RDB6ABK34qrdZSBYeErYMpT53kwUhvTOCJIP7mJ72I2w-KTm7IDUkea6lNMiQNcPXENZEBQIwk1owj0Db4BG4jgadFCQfQZo5Eqr0GPvjZyr5/s320/IMG_0006a.jpg" width="194" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, August 1996</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk1hRL_V8z38zfSABO2LZh9Xcc7FU9MJG0rg0s0hTwOeZwfqlOsKPAPSgdrrDtAGXQZWubwBFI9BXDFJLAkOdlOpQMnrFDlYnJ31meZMnt2fckUAraXLKZ_X6dIrRwoRo5S5z6m2RQBJJ2/s1600/IMG_20160808_0003+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk1hRL_V8z38zfSABO2LZh9Xcc7FU9MJG0rg0s0hTwOeZwfqlOsKPAPSgdrrDtAGXQZWubwBFI9BXDFJLAkOdlOpQMnrFDlYnJ31meZMnt2fckUAraXLKZ_X6dIrRwoRo5S5z6m2RQBJJ2/s320/IMG_20160808_0003+%25282%2529.jpg" width="162" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Telegraph, August 1996</td></tr>
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It would have been an incredible coup to have got Cruyff and having seen Arsenal break with its conservative image by buying Bergkamp the previous year, it felt plausible. It was with huge regret at the time, then, that the Club appeared to be reverting to type and picking an unknown, un-exciting option in the shape of some bloke called Arsene Wenger.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6WF-9xfI2bg2SkzWflcPSyb2aGmwlJvWvXF1Eah0SzQsYGTexbyRIifDEEWby3hrQW6iBGfZIu6oOv0IxzGSTZen1t9rstYwOg6efmu9tCuDcG62VM-8WnNDebjBkFu2b2t6rx0p4yHZI/s1600/IMG_0010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6WF-9xfI2bg2SkzWflcPSyb2aGmwlJvWvXF1Eah0SzQsYGTexbyRIifDEEWby3hrQW6iBGfZIu6oOv0IxzGSTZen1t9rstYwOg6efmu9tCuDcG62VM-8WnNDebjBkFu2b2t6rx0p4yHZI/s320/IMG_0010.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, August 1996</td></tr>
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I remember seeing that back page and being struck by how unusual Wenger looked compared to most football managers. It was a theme of much media coverage as well, with some going so far to question – like the players it later transpired – who this angular, glasses-wearing Frenchman dare think he was to consider taking over at Highbury.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJi134rur0myhHp96pys_lRdbgvHHH0Op3TfT9ku8t1igk6R0xTgB8uOcjuqFnD68fOUbqtHIjhw2iAGPv_g7JdCBVifjrh1K0Gi8sTb6H3-8iIrUUnKnKx03UTKvhZUDgkfBDqE1dxCCW/s1600/IMG_20160808_0004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJi134rur0myhHp96pys_lRdbgvHHH0Op3TfT9ku8t1igk6R0xTgB8uOcjuqFnD68fOUbqtHIjhw2iAGPv_g7JdCBVifjrh1K0Gi8sTb6H3-8iIrUUnKnKx03UTKvhZUDgkfBDqE1dxCCW/s320/IMG_20160808_0004.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Mirror, August 1996</td></tr>
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But there was also an intriguing undercurrent of wholehearted approval, like this gushing tribute from his former player at Monaco, Mark Hateley:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMydDjfaSN7h2lShCNKrbXHSdkdQ2PyFMVhx3EFXtfFohS6b1OH3CqPchGklVBdQN_BxuD6HgTEwt1yHWsKFVGYTx4bhwpY4-W0KA7S4g3MRWm1VkcPMKf4frW6wl-eXFjOCgwa6CoaiL3/s1600/IMG_0011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMydDjfaSN7h2lShCNKrbXHSdkdQ2PyFMVhx3EFXtfFohS6b1OH3CqPchGklVBdQN_BxuD6HgTEwt1yHWsKFVGYTx4bhwpY4-W0KA7S4g3MRWm1VkcPMKf4frW6wl-eXFjOCgwa6CoaiL3/s320/IMG_0011.jpg" width="224" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, August 1996</td></tr>
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It didn’t take long for journalists and supporters to be won over too. As negotiations continued to hasten his departure from Negoya Grampus, one of his new signings by the name of Patrick Vieira impressed on his debut against Sheffield Wednesday and his words at his unveiling added further reassurance.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghocPn3IrgzuSn5Zc2s3X0MsLmlLASblW7CQdmTO6giWx9KNsdZFan_8tseaevXXvodQR7fvsz5D3536HBtrUeCw_Pox3e_-QGKNV4QFalUZa9G_kKF2iamVvVHrmgJejNfSMLBInD_qGB/s1600/IMG_20160808_0006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghocPn3IrgzuSn5Zc2s3X0MsLmlLASblW7CQdmTO6giWx9KNsdZFan_8tseaevXXvodQR7fvsz5D3536HBtrUeCw_Pox3e_-QGKNV4QFalUZa9G_kKF2iamVvVHrmgJejNfSMLBInD_qGB/s320/IMG_20160808_0006.jpg" width="160" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, September 1996</td></tr>
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The cultural difference that he was stepping into was significant, as this brilliant story about him introducing an 'amazing' restriction on the players drinking alcohol made clear:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRx_uwwfwIWbHQJ6qj_PMOEYrdU7VVlpohs350DNWFpjalSwaOcyXsk7_1msieM7EfuGqA_Co5NRh3eK76-ca6ewSCb73eKqlmXkjCWVeyirVmTeSdcM7pQ2bBIV3Es90C_C41zbAoXK2n/s1600/IMG_20160808_0007.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRx_uwwfwIWbHQJ6qj_PMOEYrdU7VVlpohs350DNWFpjalSwaOcyXsk7_1msieM7EfuGqA_Co5NRh3eK76-ca6ewSCb73eKqlmXkjCWVeyirVmTeSdcM7pQ2bBIV3Es90C_C41zbAoXK2n/s320/IMG_20160808_0007.jpg" width="152" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, September 1996</td></tr>
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But regardless of his new rules, the players didn’t appear to want to revolt too strongly as an impressive win in Wenger’s first match in the dugout proved:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5nMSq_E4ovEllkpUGdbYktLgbdww4mUKKRfG0q3EwdmxcTlmgssRkM4ERsr_JfmotU7Qw5HQK_lGdu2XYv4w2sYaOp8jV1Q6ZcAouzIw_TeVsDOzW6GN-U_w2-tVZ9At0Fne-nbEBH2w_/s1600/IMG_20160808_0008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="93" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5nMSq_E4ovEllkpUGdbYktLgbdww4mUKKRfG0q3EwdmxcTlmgssRkM4ERsr_JfmotU7Qw5HQK_lGdu2XYv4w2sYaOp8jV1Q6ZcAouzIw_TeVsDOzW6GN-U_w2-tVZ9At0Fne-nbEBH2w_/s320/IMG_20160808_0008.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Guardian, October 1996</td></tr>
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Whatever you think of Wenger today, his recruitment was almost as exciting as that of Bergkamp almost 12 months earlier. The Dutchman was a known quantity, a global superstar that you could normally only dream of signing, but Wenger had something about him that suggested there could be some special times ahead. How special, nobody could have imagined.<br />
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John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-57781731904583007682016-05-02T19:49:00.000+01:002016-05-02T19:49:00.191+01:00Time for change should have been 2011Expectation levels are relative among every set of football supporters: what counts as success and failure depends on what you hoped was realistic at the start of each season and the history which precedes it.<br />
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Success and failure lies in the eyes of the beholder and as supporters are the lifeblood of the game, it is their right to form their own view.<br />
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For that reason I was saddened to see the criticism of the protest organised by a group of Arsenal supporters this weekend.<br />
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Regardless of whether you agree or not with their ‘Time for Change’ call, the right for every supporter to have a view should not be denied. Debate about the validity of the argument is healthy, but much of the opposition has focused on whether Arsenal supporters, as people who follow one of the wealthiest and traditionally successful Clubs in British football, should be allowed to complain at all.<br />
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Why should disagreement about what is happening at a football club be confined to Clubs that perennially struggle or have a history of mismanagement? Every supporter should be allowed to have their say in whatever way they want to do it – though personally I think the definition of a ‘supporter’ is somebody who backs the 11 players on the pitch during the 90 minutes of a game.<br />
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<b>Change what?</b><br />
So while defending the right to protest, the meat of the matter is whether you agree with what they are saying.<br />
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The reason the protest failed to resonate is the hole at the centre of the argument: change what? The difficulty is nobody seems willing to put their finger on exactly what should change or how it should be changed but I'll have a go.<br />
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<b>Kroenke - best of a bad bunch</b><br />
Let’s start with Stan Kroenke. Here is a someone who chooses to make money through sport(s). As well as being incredibly wealthy from his real estate background and ability to tap into the Walmart empire through his wife, he is a professional sports club owner who wants to manage the value of his his assets as much as, if not more, than seeking glory on the field of play.<br />
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If the two things happen simultaneously it will be a happy coincidence but make no mistake, this is no stereotypical sugar daddy of yesteryear who, having made his money, was now happy to throw a hefty chunk of it towards making their favourite team better. Indeed, this one is much more likely take money out of it than putting it in.<br />
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But is his concern for the bottom line inherently a bad thing? Couldn't be a useful check and balance among the emotion of the game to have an owner who is unwilling to sacrifice good business sense in the pursuit of glory?<br />
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The ‘Time for Change’ question on Kroenke boils down to what kind of disgustingly rich owner do you want to change him for. An oligarch with links to oppressive Russian presidents? A Middle Eastern sheik with connections to regimes with a disregard for human rights? It is a shallow well in which to search and sadly the American sports mogul might be the best of a bad bunch.<br />
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<b>Wenger - culture starts not quite at the top</b><br />
And so to Wenger. In some ways, the same points can be made of him. On one hand we want a manager who refuses to countenance anything other than winning a league as success – something at least publically Wenger does not appear to sign up to given the emphasis he places on finishing fourth as the first priority – but on the other we want a steady leader who can build a team as much through developing players as they do through the chequebook.<br />
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Add two FA Cup wins in the past two years, plus the wonderful Highbury years, into consideration and the verdict on Wenger becomes even more complex to reach. There is also a lack of viable alternatives who would be a clear upgrade. Without doing any calculations to check whether the cliché is true, it feels like we live in an age when managers’ shelf-life is shorter than ever and managers have less time to build the CV wanted for such a high profile job. That could explain why the shortlist for potential replacements for Wenger is so small, especially when two of the better alternatives – Guardiola and Ancelotti – will start jobs with new employers next season (both could come in the future but Guardiola seems less likely having made Man City his choice of all his options but the Ancelotti, whose Chelsea connections seem a distant memory, is 10 years younger than Wenger so has time on his side).<br />
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So you can understand why there is a reluctance to have phrased ‘Time for Change’ as ‘Time to change the manager’ despite it being a clearer message.<br />
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But I think it would have been a valid one, possibly more so than ‘Time for a new owner’. One reason is just how much influence Wenger has on the football strategy of the Club – far, far beyond the first team remit of most modern managers – and it being this part of the Club which is arguably underperforming the most. People highlight how the culture of the club needs to be overhauled and that this stems from the top, from Kroenke. I agree to an extent but any check on Kroenke’s track record shows how he and his people leave the football – or the basketball, or the ice hockey – to the sporting experts and they focus on ‘winning off the field’, to borrow a phrase from another NFL executive.<br />
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I tweeted recently that Kroenke deserves his share of criticism given the issue about culture but on reflection it is set by Wenger. Football managers, particular high profile and successful ones, have an almost unique ability to set the tone for the organisation, far more than a chief executive, chairman or owner, especially one so long in post as Wenger. The back office takes its lead from the dugout and the flaccid atmosphere found at home games could be switched in a season with a different man at the helm.<br />
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The second reason is the inability over almost a decade to end the same mistakes being made, and address flaws shown, on the pitch.<br />
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During much of that time the argument could be justifiably made that our financial position was holding us back, though I didn’t really fully accept it at the time and I still don't: the mis-judgements made to allow so many sub-par players like Almunia, Eboue and Silvestre to have extended Arsenal careers completely undermine the idea that lack of money was our biggest problem.<br />
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But today – especially with Leicester City and Sperz topping the league table – that argument holds even less water and Wenger is left exposed to the same criticisms: lack of leadership, lack of impetus, lack of defensive nous when it matters most, lack of willingness to invest in better players.<br />
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<b>The end of an era is (still) never pretty...</b><br />
Some of the supporters’ criticism of Wenger has been disrespectful, and sadly some of it offensive. But to dismiss the protests as the work of a bunch of spoilt brats who feel entitled to see their club win everything, or how one set of supporters’ ire is less genuine than another’s, is as nonsensical as it is insulting.<br />
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I concluded a blog entry in April 2011 entitled <a href="http://aisforarsenal.blogspot.co.uk/2011/04/end-of-era-is-never-pretty.html" target="_blank">‘The end of an era is never pretty’</a> with these words: <i>“The criticism of the team and Wenger continues to increase and more and more of even his most steadfast advocates are beginning to believe things will never improve until he is replaced. It might be different if our problems and faults were not so familiar, bordering on pathological. The end of an era is rarely pretty but we can only hope the atmosphere surrounding this one is not allowed to get so bitter that it spoils the joy of what came earlier.”</i><br />
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How times change... <br />
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We could, maybe should, have started protesting at that point. The five years since have seen two FA Cup wins, yes, but Arsenal have not moved closer to becoming the best team in England or Europe which is the measure by which we define our success. That isn’t supporters’ fault but we are the people left waiting for the one change that will make it happen.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-20159577711351717092015-08-16T09:12:00.000+01:002015-08-16T09:12:00.071+01:00Arsenal’s all-time away record: Crystal Palace is our happiest hunting groundAs we start our away fixtures against Crystal Palace later today, I thought it would be interesting to look at which trips away from home traditionally provide the most and least success for Arsenal. Well, interesting to me, at least.<br />
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<b>How it has been done</b><br />
I’ve come at it from two directions: firstly, looking at Arsenal’s record in every away match, in all competitions, against each of this season’s Premier League teams except Bournemouth who we have only ever played once (all of the data for that has come from the <a href="http://www.arsenal-world.co.uk/head_to_head/next/vs/match/index.shtml" target="_blank">Arsenal World database of head to head results</a>). I’ve ranked the teams by their winning percentage and by Arsenal's and combined the two to collate an amalgamated overall table.<br />
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Secondly, I’ve pulled out the outcomes of the last 10 <u><b>league games only</b></u> to assess things on a more recent basis.<br />
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For seven of the 19 teams, that means looking at the past 10 seasons as they have been in the top flight alongside Arsenal throughout that time. For the other 12 it has involved going back to the early 2000s, sometimes the 1990s and in a small number of cases the 1980s to collect 10 sets of league results.<br />
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In Swansea and Watford’s cases, it meant working with a reduced set as they have only ever hosted Arsenal six and eight times respectively in the league.<br />
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<b>What is the point?</b><br />
As the famous stocks and shares warning goes, previous performance is no guide to the future. Can you really learn something today from the fact that Arsenal lost 2-0 at Vetch Field in October 1981 or that Woolwich Arsenal picked up a 1-0 win at Aston Villa in the 1907/08 season?<br />
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Well, I think history can offer a decent indicator of where Arsenal fair worst and best, particularly at the extremes of good and bad.<br />
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Who knows why certain trends can be seen: perhaps getting to particular locations may be more awkward for a team based in North London; maybe the opposing supporters or Club as a whole have a particular hatred or respect for the Arse that lasts generations; maybe the slope of a pitch may freak out our players for no particular reason.<br />
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Whatever, if nothing else it gives a useful guide whether the pre-match gut-wrenching pessimism or inspiring optimism is justified by earlier results.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7s9MJgXFglXbUn2KQUT4IFoS7T_utKlZ3JrVDm3_TcZcnBR24IImlnx_2_IgfkzBYFTBOpiWm0-7fiwy-B8iXi8UEIwR055CeIRa_2cIwJ4OfaUrEW6z4zKkKOTFcKWTgPQo2QKivEKO0/s1600/AFC+all+time+away.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7s9MJgXFglXbUn2KQUT4IFoS7T_utKlZ3JrVDm3_TcZcnBR24IImlnx_2_IgfkzBYFTBOpiWm0-7fiwy-B8iXi8UEIwR055CeIRa_2cIwJ4OfaUrEW6z4zKkKOTFcKWTgPQo2QKivEKO0/s400/AFC+all+time+away.jpg" width="276" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arsenal's all-time, all competition away record<br />Click to enlarge</td></tr>
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<b>The happy hunting grounds</b><br />
Reassuringly, Crystal Palace are the club where Arsenal have the best record overall, winning a massive 59% of games compared to the Eagles winning only 6%. It is the only place where we have won the majority of matches and from our most 10 recent league encounters at Selhurst Park we have claimed five wins and five draws. We could certainly do with improving that record even more today to kick-start the season after last weekend’s deflating loss against West Ham.<br />
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Speaking of which, the Hammers sit near the top of all of my tables, which was a bit of a surprise to me. I imagined many more variations in outcome given the passions and fireworks a London derby can involve but we have a 6-3-1 record at Upton Park over the past 10 league games and have won 43% of all games there.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNkEpmQSbP1cEJAH-EJojRiTciZNFQS-76Xsqw2-jsJ0MaUhyLdtmF3i3YEVy2-bh0SpGk_78EfbQamf4zDO0QhXGHy1RNZjBAjyJdjQk_aKiquBBDi2AUF8dDEPPT4viikhUEh1EjHH8u/s1600/AFC+10+pts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNkEpmQSbP1cEJAH-EJojRiTciZNFQS-76Xsqw2-jsJ0MaUhyLdtmF3i3YEVy2-bh0SpGk_78EfbQamf4zDO0QhXGHy1RNZjBAjyJdjQk_aKiquBBDi2AUF8dDEPPT4viikhUEh1EjHH8u/s400/AFC+10+pts.jpg" width="248" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arsenal's record away from home: by actual points won<br />Click to expand</td></tr>
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Sunderland is Arsenal’s most productive destination recently, with the Gunners dropping just seven from 30 points available. But historically Sunderland has proved a more difficult task, the fifth toughest destination in our history by my reckoning.<br />
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Another team that Arsenal have improved against more recently is Aston Villa. Villa Park has always felt like somewhere you should be happy to take a draw from but in the last 10 years we are unbeaten and have won six times there. During all of Arsenal’s away trips, though, Aston Villa have been the seventh hardest to claim points from.<br />
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To a lesser extent, Liverpool have also slipped away from their loftier perch, with Arsenal winning 13 of the 30 points available at Anfield since 2005/06 but they remain our second worst destination historically, winning just over a quarter of matches. You can also lump Newcastle into that group of club's whose hoodoo over the Arsenal is seemingly starting to wane, with us claiming five wins and suffering only one defeat in the past 10 matches.<br />
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<b>The bogey teams</b><br />
We can split the bogey teams into two: those that are expected and those that are not.<br />
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The most high profile names in the first category are obviously Man Utd and Chelsea. As we all know, Chelsea has no history so their place in the overall table is fairly high with wins, draws and losses split almost exactly in thirds.<br />
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Man U claim the bottom spot of each of my rankings although, before collating these figures, I would have said we earned more at Old Trafford than Chelsea recently but actually an extra win at Stamford Bridge means we have accrued at extra point there over the past 10 seasons. Only one win at ManUre in that time speaks volumes for the two clubs’ respective trajectories over that time and even taking on the fairly ropey Moyes and Van Gaal editions only generated a single point for the Arse.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0pAzJuKe5wjBQqAn9X_45rUTGbgNJE-qKokAWMxd0nhRQFHX7aPp2XMqx1hyX_wrgHDB0b2b-w6OdobK7FlHzflMz6rgRiJIJILlGwUsWUAW-EivPdnXalTHHsn-MgiZbsJOCgQ0oIHel/s1600/AFC+last+10+per+cent.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0pAzJuKe5wjBQqAn9X_45rUTGbgNJE-qKokAWMxd0nhRQFHX7aPp2XMqx1hyX_wrgHDB0b2b-w6OdobK7FlHzflMz6rgRiJIJILlGwUsWUAW-EivPdnXalTHHsn-MgiZbsJOCgQ0oIHel/s400/AFC+last+10+per+cent.jpg" width="252" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arsenal's record away from home:<br />by percentage of points won<br />Click to expand</td></tr>
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Trips to White Hart Lane have led to Arsenal winning an average of one point per game in the past 10 years which, even if we have finished above them in the league over those 10 seasons (and the previous 10), sounds par for the course for such an intense rivalry. I did assume we had won more than twice in that time, though, and that is well below the historic win percentage of 32%.<br />
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Southampton, meanwhile, sit in the surprise bogey team list, particularly over the shorter term. Arsenal have only won 13 points from the 30 available over the past 10 matches on the south coast, the same as at Anfield. Yes they have had some tidy players during that time but even then rarely finished beyond mid-table, and more often it was closer to relegation than most so it is certainly counts as an under-performance by Arsenal. Over the longer term, the Saints have been less heavenly, sitting fifth in my table of Arsenal happy hunting grounds.<br />
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Then there is Leicester, where we have won only half of the points available recently and less than a third of our matches against them overall. Even though the majority of the last 10 league games date from the Martin O’Neill era which must count as the best in their history, you would think Arsenal would have defeated them more than three times.<br />
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Arsenal’s record at Swansea counts as another turn up for the books. Although based on only six games, we have been defeated there as often as we have won. Watford’s record is based on a slightly larger set of results, eight, but is even more bleak. Arsenal only won three and managed to lose five at Vicarage Road. Even though the majority of fixtures, and all of the losses, date from the era of Graham Taylor’s over-achievers it is still a horrible record of Arsenal’s.<br />
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And finally we come on to the ultimate bogey side: Stoke.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="berrygoal" height="191" src="https://theoatcake.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/berrygoal.jpg?w=473&h=283" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Arsenal being rubbish at Stoke in the 1980s<br />(courtesy of The Oatcake website)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
It doesn't come as a shock to know we have a poor record in the Potteries but it isn’t the recent Pulis-inspired, long throw-wielding human orks to blame: Arsenal have been getting beaten there for more than 100 years.<br />
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We managed to lose all of the last three league games we played at Stoke got relegated in 1985 (which make up the first of the 10 games included in my tables), and since they returned to the top flight in 2008 Arsenal have won there only once.<br />
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In fact, looking at our league record at Stoke dating back to 1904/05, of the 44 trips we have returned with a win only 10 times. That leads to our worst league record anywhere outside Man U and Liverpool and given the relative potential of all four clubs, it is incredible – and to Stoke's credit, in many respects - that they have achieved so much against Arsenal and keep company in my rankings with two of the most decorated clubs in Europe.<br />
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<b>Conclusion</b><br />
Supporters of other clubs may view it as arrogance that I assume(d) Arsenal would have stronger records than many of their opponents even on their travels. But even neutrals would assume, given the relative resources at their disposal and the success that Arsenal have enjoyed over the years that they would be better than most.<br />
<br />
Actually we have won more than we have lost over all encounters at only four of the current top flight, increasing to eight of the 19 if you look at only the past 10 league games.<br />
<br />
The history of a club and their status in your formative years play a big role in how you judge how 'big' a club is, where they sit in comparison to Arsenal and how you view what constitutes success against them. Hopefully this exercise has cut back some of the myths and reinforced the reality about how much effort is required to reach the summit of the league again.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-81313583281044570882015-08-07T07:46:00.000+01:002015-08-07T07:46:00.544+01:00The alternative Arsenal 2015/16 predictionsEvery pundit and journalist in the land has filled in the obligatory season preview pack over the past week or so but instead of picking all the winners and losers, I’m treating you to a special Arsenal-focused alternative set of predictions by way of previewing the season. It should be an interesting one…<br />
<br />
<b>Who will be Arsenal’s top league goal scorer?</b><br />
Here’s a bold one to start with. If Arsenal are going to win the league, it needs to be Welbeck. It might sound strange but I see him as someone who backs himself to score much more often than Giroud. Could you see Giroud claiming the only goal in a vital 1-0 win at Old Trafford? No, I can’t imagine he does either more tellingly. But Welbeck on the other hand is someone who could be that match winner. Not someone who will run a team ragged but someone who will snatch vital goals here and there as well as filling his boats in the more straightforward encounters. The other runners for the top scorer prize will be Sanchez and Walcott. But with Sanchez seemingly allocated to the wing (even though I’d prefer to see him used through the middle) it would mean we are not firing on all cylinders if he is grabbing most goals. Meanwhile Theo is someone who is just as likely to start on the wing, up front, on the bench or in the treatment room so you can’t back him to take the honours. I won’t even mention Karim Benzama…<br />
<br />
<b>How many assists and goals will Mesut Özil contribute in the league?</b><br />
It doesn’t matter. I can’t recall seeing a player have more influence on matches without actually scoring goals or delivering the final pass. Özil is a rare breed and like all unusual varieties he needs to be protected and cultivated. The hope must be that Wenger places him at the centre of the action instead of trying to shoe-horn him into a wide position that doesn’t do him any favours. But if it is numbers you really want, I say he’ll play 30-32 games, score six goals and make 11 assists.<br />
<br />
<b>How ridiculous will Olivier Giroud's hair get?</b><br />
If we hadn't won the FA Cup so gloriously, I think the blonde highlights plus fake tan option that Giroud sported for such a prestigious occasion would have seen him run out of N5. Can it get worse? Possibly: as we stride proudly on to San Siro turf for the 2016 Champions League final, here comes Olivier to take his place on the bench sporting a clip-on David Seaman pony tail.<br />
<br />
<b>Will Petr Cech help Arsenal to keep more clean sheets than they did last season?</b><br />
It will be fascinating to see how Cech influences a team which will surely have a far greater desire to attack than any Chelski team he has ever played in, or at least do it in a much more cavalier fashion. Last season Arsenal kept 12 clean sheets, just less than one every three games but the season before that was 17, a season earlier 14, so you would expect us to do better than last season regardless of Cech’s arrival. If he can reach the 17 figure that will be a success.<br />
<br />
<b>Who will get sacked first: Rodgers at Liverpool or Pellegrini at Manchester City?</b><br />
One of them is going to suffer the Sterling curse. I reckon it could be David Brent himself, as his American employers stick with their Moneyball principles and realise he’s bought some right donkeys with all the cash he’s been given over the years.<br />
<br />
<b>Will Debuchy or Bellerin and Monreal or Gibbs start more games?</b><br />
Debuchy and Monreal. I really like Hector and I think he could become our right back for the next 10 years – if he doesn’t get poached back by Barcelona – but I expect Debuchy to have reached ‘reliable workhorse’ status by the end of the campaign, although he may need the young Spaniard to get injured before regaining his place. The battle for the left back spot is just as fascinating. Monreal had a terrific run of form last season, although he doesn’t appear to have made the starting spot his own yet. I’m not sure what more he can do to do that as his consistency has been excellent recently.<br />
<br />
<b>When will everyone start to remember they thought Wenger should have retired two years ago?</b><br />
Sadly I can pinpoint the most likely date now – the weekend of January 23/24. On the back of two defeats at Liverpool and Stoke, I can just see an injury ravaged Arse suffocated by dullards extraordinaire Chelski to register a third consecutive defeat. Cue apoplexy and complaints from Arsene about the absence of a winter break.<br />
<br />
<b>Are Arsenal going to get beyond the last 16 in the Champions League?</b><br />
Every year there is a surprise package who get to the semis, or even the final, but it is a stretch to see Arsenal fitting that bill. With a kind draw it wouldn’t be a complete surprise but it feels like the Wenger, the squad and the club as a whole has something they want to prove domestically first.<br />
<br />
<b>Is Alexis Sanchez going to burn out?</b><br />
Over the past three seasons Alexis has started 155 games for club and country. For comparison Santi Cazorla has started 150. There is of course a difference in how they express themselves on the pitch and Alexis plays with an intensity only usually seen on the face of a Sperz fan watching a bulb light up but it doesn’t necessarily stack up that he has been overplayed. That said, it wouldn’t be a bad idea for Arsene to excuse him from League Cup action this season.<br />
<br />
<b>Which game will our players most regret having to wear a skin-tight kit?</b><br />
Last season it was during the torrential downpour at Swansea where for 10 minutes all you could see was players desperately tugging at sleeves and shirt bottoms to make the shirts feel just slightly less hypothermia-inducing. This year’s kit looks a bit more forgiving but that away shirt is still a bit spray on so my vote goes for a windswept trip to Sunderland in early December.<br />
<br />
<b>Could Gabriel Paulista become a first choice centre back by the end of the season?</b><br />
He has the talent to but it would need an injury to Mertesacker or Kos to give him the chance, I would say. Wenger is always reluctant to break up a partnership when it becomes established but in Gabriel and Chambers there are two back-up players who shadow the first choice selections very closely.<br />
<br />
<b>Which signing by another club are you most intrigued to see in action?</b><br />
For once, I’ve not really been jealous of any other British club’s signings. It will be interesting to see whether two relatively low-key stars of the Bundesliga, Robert Firmino at Liverpool and Shinji Okazaki at Leicester, make an impact. And Max Gradel, who looked great for Leeds and has done well in France could annoy a few defences for Bournemouth. I’ll be watching how Chancel Mbemba fares at Newcastle as he impressed me when Arsenal played Anderlecht last season. Affelay at Stoke could become Arsene’s next ‘we could have signed him when he was 12’ claim. Outside England, I would have loved us to have snapped up Kondogbia who went to Inter. One player who has not moved, at least yet, who I would love to see in red and white is Julian Draxler from Schalke. He reminds me so much of a young Van Persie but I think he could be better than him in the long run. It would be a shame to see him move to Juventus but we do have a history of rejuvenating attackers depressed by Serie A so maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.<br />
<br />
<b>Should we have signed another defensive midfielder in the summer?</b><br />
Not necessarily a defensive midfielder, just a midfielder. Coquelin has clearly established himself as the first choice player for the destroyer role, and Arteta and Flamini will be able to fill in occasionally when required. I would like to see Arsenal pick up an athletic midfielder who is equally interested in attacking and defending, not one or the other as our current crop seem to behave. The balance at the moment isn’t quite right – Ramsey is slowly turning into David Platt with his ‘late burst into the box’ special move and Cazorla, although excellent at Man City, was poor in a few big games in the centre. Jack Wilshere could be that person to offer the balanced blend of offense and defence but the poor guy’s legs just don’t seem to give him a break, if you forgive the expression. Calum Chambers should develop into a terrific centre back for Arsenal but maybe this season he will first emerge as a central midfielder, solving a variety of problems in the process.<br />
<br />
<b>Do you still think Roberto Martinez will be the next Arsenal manager?</b><br />
When we were in the Austerity Arsenal phase, I thought Martinez might be the man Wenger ordain to be his successor given their similar managerial characteristics: focus on youth, parsimonious spending ethos, devotion to playing nice football. But now the money is flowing a bit more freely, you would have to question whether a bigger name than Martinez, or at least someone with the CV to immediately earn the respect of a dressing room containing the likes of Özil, Sanchez and Cech, would be targeted. Martinez’s Everton were stretched too thin last season but without Europe to distract them perhaps he will win over any doubters, most likely via a decent cup run which Toffees supporters would go wild for. The impact that Tomas Tuchel has at Borussia Dortmund and the progress of Roger Schmidt at Bayer Leverkusen should be watched carefully at Emirates Towers too – if either of them can challenge Bayern Munich, they might start to ping the radars of Premier League chairmen.<br />
<br />
<b>Who is going to get relegated?</b><br />
Sperz, Sperz and Sperz.<br />
<br />
<b>And finally… where are Arsenal going to finish in the league?</b><br />
The major factor for me is winning home games. Teams that win the league claim about 17 wins from the 19 home games. This Arsenal side seems more capable of doing that then any over perhaps the last 10 years but it would still be a surprise if it managed it. At least it feels like this group is going in to the season with a genuine intention of achieving that kind of record, rather than just making sure they don’t finish fifth or lower. The tone needs to be set from the kick off, both of every game and the season as a whole, starting with West Ham on Sunday.<br />
<br />
Think I'm right? Think I'm wrong? Any other burning questions you need answers to? Leave a comment in the usual space or reach me on Twitter.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-91450756788352914942015-07-14T07:15:00.000+01:002015-07-14T07:15:00.453+01:00Arsenal scrapbook 20 years on: Farewell Stefan SchwarzI loved Stefan Schwarz and he was possibly the biggest plus of what, admittedly, was a pretty awful 1994/95 season. Although we didn't know it at the time, he was a poor man's Manu Petit but with a greater streak of malice.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, in reminding myself of Schwarz's career through a bit of light Googling, I came across <a href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sport/football/fa_carling_premiership/410156.stm" target="_blank">this fantastic story</a> about how he was banned from travelling into space when he signed for Sunderland in 1999.<br />
<br />
It includes the comment from the chief executive that "one day it could become quite acceptable to put such clauses in various contracts".<br />
<br />
Quite the Nostradamus.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixx6li9YC4DIGQzxHWVszkGfwvrZp8R8_z__DWBhpL8xPZFQ48AUzm6xNZxOpAT34nv_9XJlaISD7RhqvHgL6zbFq5pHzq2xyXQmf1WLg6kvOmFoHIAQcbEnT7pEIgxvtc9mo9DRWOJCY3/s1600/15+July+Sun.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixx6li9YC4DIGQzxHWVszkGfwvrZp8R8_z__DWBhpL8xPZFQ48AUzm6xNZxOpAT34nv_9XJlaISD7RhqvHgL6zbFq5pHzq2xyXQmf1WLg6kvOmFoHIAQcbEnT7pEIgxvtc9mo9DRWOJCY3/s320/15+July+Sun.jpg" width="165" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun (click to enlarge)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-49009179084270619402015-07-10T06:54:00.000+01:002015-07-10T06:54:00.094+01:00Arsenal scrapbook 20 years on: David Platt signsThe signing of David Platt couldn't match the capture of Dennis Bergkamp a few weeks earlier for jaw-droppingness but I remember thinking at the time it could turn out to be the cleverer bit of business. Here was an experienced former England captain returning home after a pretty successful stint in Italy who could offer some sage leadership in midfield.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG7PlbuEOERohyphenhyphenEfrOJUryYcG5auToQXQ90eEQbcBceq3Qk_043PY6tca2wBwMI13L57KMnvm8UYmcffaxlKcgEZ5Mw1ejZgRBkOWe-KhkJXHRul-4ZCn5z9qtX_XyJ0WRT3fFhXZOXhvK/s1600/11+July+DT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG7PlbuEOERohyphenhyphenEfrOJUryYcG5auToQXQ90eEQbcBceq3Qk_043PY6tca2wBwMI13L57KMnvm8UYmcffaxlKcgEZ5Mw1ejZgRBkOWe-KhkJXHRul-4ZCn5z9qtX_XyJ0WRT3fFhXZOXhvK/s320/11+July+DT.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Telegraph (click to zoom)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I was wrong, largely, and I never really warmed to Platt. While he proved to be a reasonable goal threat his passing was lamentable and he didn't exceed 'steady pair of hands' status in his three seasons with us.<br />
<br />
Having said that, it was probably worth the transfer fee alone for his incredible leap and headed winner against Man U in Arsene Wenger's first double season. That must have provided a terrific psychological boost and it is interesting to think how things would have panned out if we hadn't won that day.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-84214164644246551052015-06-30T08:36:00.004+01:002015-06-30T08:36:59.782+01:00Thoughts on Cech signing and Szczesny's future<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">If you pay £11m for a
33-year-old you are either very confident in his quality or have too much money
to spend.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">We
should be very confident in Petr Cech.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Not only does he bring an impressive medal collection to the club, he adds another cool head at the back and can deliver the consistently good performances you need to challenge for the
title.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Most people have drawn comparisons with Pat Jennings since he moved from a supposed rival who wrongly assumed he was past his prime.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">But Jennings was 32 and 'only' won an FA Cup with Arsenal, something that would be considered a poor return for Cech.</span><br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="-webkit-composition-fill-color: rgba(175, 192, 227, 0.235294); -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: none; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; color: black; font-family: Times; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;">
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">A quick flick through the record books shows his age should not be a concern as there are some brilliant examples of great keepers being successful in the twilight years of the career.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin: 0px;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span></div>
</div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">David Seaman won two
leagues and three FA Cups with Arsenal after turning 33. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Jens Lehmann picked up
a league and a cup after joining us at that age, while Gianluigi Buffon has won
four leagues and a cup for Juventus.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">But the best example has
to be Edwin van der Sar at Man U. He was 35 when he moved to Old Trafford from Fulham and collected four league, two league cup, one Champions League and one
World Club Cup title before retiring at 41.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Is it feasible that we
could get nine years out of Cech? One person who will be hoping not is Wojciech
Szczesny. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">He is now 25 and has failed to pin down the number one position that appeared to be his for the taking.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">The hope is that enough of
Cech’s good habits will rub off on </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Szczesny </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">and he will mature into the first choice in a couple of seasons.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Sadly I have my doubts the
story will follow that path given some of the traits he has shown on the
pitch and surely he would much prefer to be learning on the job through a loan, but he can shape his own destiny.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Well, he can to an extent because Wenger has always taken quite an unusual approach to handling goalkeepers.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">After inheriting Seaman,
he dabbled in a bit of Richard Wright, Stuart Taylor, and Rami Shabaan before
landing Lehmann. Throw in Manuel Almunia and Lukasz Fabianski and
you have quite a hotpotch of keepers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">F</span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">or about half of his time as manager, Wenger has never really fully committed to a keeper - there has been a
sense that any of the two or three keepers in the squad could be given
a run in the side. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">There might be a school of thought that the 10 outfield
players are far, far more important in deciding the success or failure of a
team compared to the one in goal but as far as I’m concerned all of the
great teams have a clear number one in place.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Wenger’s
judgement on which keepers to, er, keep and which to discard has also been questionable.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I never really saw what Wright and Taylor did to warrant being discarded without getting the chance to fully prove themselves, though a</span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">dmittedly neither of them
have gone on to do much beyond warm the benches of various Premier League clubs
(mainly Man City where didn’t Wright win a league title without playing a
game?). </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">On the other hand, I saw plenty of what Fabianski and, in particular, Almunia
did wrong. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Of course we aren’t privy
to their training ground work and approach to life like Wenger is, but the loyalty shown to Fabianski and
Almunia compared to those who previously tried their hand at the position was baffling. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">And there were alternatives available – I got very excited a few years back at the
prospect of Mark Schwarzer joining us, as he was too I seem to remember, and he would have been
a clear upgrade even if he might not have been world class.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">But back to Cech and
Szczesny. And David Ospina, who I suspect will become a footnote in Arsenal
history pretty quickly, despite not doing a huge amount wrong apart from being just
mediocre. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Does the fact that Wenger
has brought Cech in show us that he has sharpened his ability to assess
goalkeepers? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Maybe, but I think it is more likely to show that he doesn't believe in Szczesny. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Wenger's usual MO when presented with goalkeepers of a similar ilk would suggest the Pole would have regained his place from Ospina after a few games of this season, then lost it again, and then regained it, then lost it… and so on. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">If Cech hadn't arrived on the scene, </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Szczesny could realistically have battled past Ospina over time. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">But given the amount spent on Cech and the fact he is so clearly the more talented keeper, the chances of </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Szczesny seriously challenging for a place in the team are remote, and Wenger must know it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Cech is our number one and could be for a good few years.
Everyone associated with Arsenal should be
thankful we have him. A</span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">part from Szczesny.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia;"> Without wanting to sound cruel, we have to hope that the new recruit performs so well that the Pole is forced to look elsewhere to gain the playing time he needs to fulfil his potential. </span></div>
John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-45905965384601448222015-06-20T09:10:00.000+01:002015-06-20T09:10:00.206+01:00My Arsenal scrapbook 20 years on. Part 2: we’ve got Dennis Bergkamp<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha-VROYAy2y1UJo5LrG-B_wtpRmZfepIpaDBs15zyW5HRvTjOL-umn5q4mS2h2X2L8GjdZThTmDUCiohvAnfNqP4m7yEGiDm34RU5nUNCO-mja0SGtC2jKyNAtSrfmeS0qz7L6xClpbhsp/s1600/June+21+S.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEha-VROYAy2y1UJo5LrG-B_wtpRmZfepIpaDBs15zyW5HRvTjOL-umn5q4mS2h2X2L8GjdZThTmDUCiohvAnfNqP4m7yEGiDm34RU5nUNCO-mja0SGtC2jKyNAtSrfmeS0qz7L6xClpbhsp/s320/June+21+S.jpg" width="278" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, June 21, 1995 (click to enlarge)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It still feels a bit weird seeing Dennis Bergkamp in our beloved red and white for the first time, even knowing full well
that he turned into an Arsenal legend. Imagine then, if you need to, or cast
your mind back if you can remember that far, what it was like when it actually
happened.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Truly astonishing would be my verdict.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The two signings made prior to Dennis, in the winter of
94/95, typified the calibre of player we had been buying: John Hartson from <st1:placename w:st="on">Luton</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">Town</st1:placetype>
and Chris Kiwomya from <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Ipswich</st1:placename>
<st1:placetype w:st="on">Town</st1:placetype></st1:place>. No offence to them
but hardly inspiring. Beyond that, the most recent exotic purchases had been
John Jensen and Stefan Schwarz: full internationals but the sort of classic midfield
workhorses adored by George Graham.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Enter Dennis Bergkamp. A bona fide world superstar. Someone
who every football fan knew about after scoring of ludicrous goals like <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPJoApTx2lA&t=2m29s" target="_blank">thisagainst England at Wembley</a>.
And crucial ones <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QJfK0npPLXk&t=3m15s" target="_blank">like this in the return fixture</a>. Or <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PRaG3__v0z8&t=1m50s" target="_blank">in a World Cup quarter-final just a year earlier</a>.</div>
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The rumour mill started relatively late to signing day, with
confident whispers only appearing on June 19, the day before the deal was done.</div>
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As we all know, tabloid rumours are not always the most
reliable. And like the true pessimist that I am, I refused to build my hopes up
that it could be true, even though there were quotes from both Dennis and Bruce
Rioch.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN5euUq2QGG6eJYx_t0B06fypskZJ5gj2kU-TFunEdY36cdXJsMY9qzm8WIWIr2K3c7kmOehfnzaJ6kZ8FDe5x2CAfx8SAZ8pKR-K3WYLjj295tkd3IYS-KeLLWmhyphenhyphenKAhIW-C1N6Q3x00K/s1600/June+19+M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="109" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN5euUq2QGG6eJYx_t0B06fypskZJ5gj2kU-TFunEdY36cdXJsMY9qzm8WIWIr2K3c7kmOehfnzaJ6kZ8FDe5x2CAfx8SAZ8pKR-K3WYLjj295tkd3IYS-KeLLWmhyphenhyphenKAhIW-C1N6Q3x00K/s320/June+19+M.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Mirror, June 19, 1995 <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">(click to enlarge)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_3BvktBUeYnooNtQUtWLylObZEM0TYPXFwjKSJS3jViJKKM9rGl2vaOWWmXQ0mdzwyy_kwL3qbOEEMiT7TLinlXDtpuawWilH3GXV6I3d_MjemOKdIQ2016SXRiUfuo9uk3EAM7klq2vi/s1600/June+19+Ma.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_3BvktBUeYnooNtQUtWLylObZEM0TYPXFwjKSJS3jViJKKM9rGl2vaOWWmXQ0mdzwyy_kwL3qbOEEMiT7TLinlXDtpuawWilH3GXV6I3d_MjemOKdIQ2016SXRiUfuo9uk3EAM7klq2vi/s320/June+19+Ma.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Daily Mirror, June 19, 1995 <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">(click to enlarge)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The difference between Arsenal and the neighbours up the road was made clear in this story, with the capture of Chris Armstrong and Dennis highlighting our different ambitions.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-KAFsDiFfcl2rFV6jeBnQCLBNRCDdLL_K7A-XneG1-5bwvEr8cA68UQ-x8tErUaX7fqIbXQU0JndO3wlXvnFGIPK0-vaVGWa7LAWIj1NZ-RCVMmOBhzh4Sk8t5I9DPQI3_r14qQnkh-_k/s1600/June+20+ESa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="90" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-KAFsDiFfcl2rFV6jeBnQCLBNRCDdLL_K7A-XneG1-5bwvEr8cA68UQ-x8tErUaX7fqIbXQU0JndO3wlXvnFGIPK0-vaVGWa7LAWIj1NZ-RCVMmOBhzh4Sk8t5I9DPQI3_r14qQnkh-_k/s320/June+20+ESa.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evening Standard, June 19, 1995</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The following day’s papers contained even more reports it
was happening, and this time even from a broadsheet. Cue just a smidgen of
optimism.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmrhL_dxGHsBjXVWPtR-ARm_bbTpEZmuecUb8A0CBLDeS0mN8YCj8iALabWURBfRk0OXkErf_bqsTZANJfRaF8Da0fA7ibEnNic5QJrEg9TnLk8PRYEtbP3-stIfHfgJXVjsEur5EmG8li/s1600/June+20+DT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmrhL_dxGHsBjXVWPtR-ARm_bbTpEZmuecUb8A0CBLDeS0mN8YCj8iALabWURBfRk0OXkErf_bqsTZANJfRaF8Da0fA7ibEnNic5QJrEg9TnLk8PRYEtbP3-stIfHfgJXVjsEur5EmG8li/s320/June+20+DT.jpg" width="133" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Telegraph, June 20, 1995 <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">(click to enlarge)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Meanwhile, he might not always be remembered for his clarity
of thought but George Best showed some pretty sound judgement in suggesting
Dennis would be worth every penny (also note how we were also getting linked
with a certain Dutch teenager by the name of Clarence ‘Seedors’).</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiL_PL9lzTy4vQgX_YDm1NJY6jjuH8n9R82BmxMRo-pFDw7OzcF-pd5-4cUindHbknaqGcHbq6QpLumy55kPESxtQXgFyoLtH-E-3ftxYS737kG8WceJ8-HIC67PFbD5ZCG7AIOJkH4eQ/s1600/June+20+M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJiL_PL9lzTy4vQgX_YDm1NJY6jjuH8n9R82BmxMRo-pFDw7OzcF-pd5-4cUindHbknaqGcHbq6QpLumy55kPESxtQXgFyoLtH-E-3ftxYS737kG8WceJ8-HIC67PFbD5ZCG7AIOJkH4eQ/s320/June+20+M.jpg" width="163" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Mirror, June 20, 1995 <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">(click to enlarge)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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And then later that day, it finally happened. We’ve <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/sep/24/dennis-bergkamp-teletext-arsenal-joy" target="_blank">all read about how Dennis himself was amazed to see him appearing as the top story onCeefax</a>. Well it was nothing compared to how amazed I was, Dennis, as my
scrapbook entry proves:</div>
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<o:p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMMZxGyHMWBjjy0lRrxMCGz6wCp3OZyL7SiBGo1oSYPtekLiZi0PvTj1t9IYbUUOpQMvfMGc0SlgJgFPAwHygT-jBWLdeMiGordXB1SrDXiNIVixc9oq12O8kMO2Y7X-6UsGyQmMcdbxaf/s1600/June+21+Contents+entry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="43" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMMZxGyHMWBjjy0lRrxMCGz6wCp3OZyL7SiBGo1oSYPtekLiZi0PvTj1t9IYbUUOpQMvfMGc0SlgJgFPAwHygT-jBWLdeMiGordXB1SrDXiNIVixc9oq12O8kMO2Y7X-6UsGyQmMcdbxaf/s320/June+21+Contents+entry.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My scrapbook</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</o:p></div>
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The thrust of most coverage is around how mental the money
had become, with Peter Hill Wood describing it as ‘madness’ but, in fairness,
acknowledging that now was the time to cough up or miss the boat completely.</div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjULdFseKb9fn4W2o08GwPnMBYo5rq14UMcM1jEzUqWb3QsSrQvjUL9bNg7Yw0x1EZG_wilMzKxGZIhE2wnqItBCl2SmNJm5BMPUeISwdaH_kuGgUXg-coXfpoA95ky9tTaukv-qUE7-Amr/s1600/June+21+Sa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjULdFseKb9fn4W2o08GwPnMBYo5rq14UMcM1jEzUqWb3QsSrQvjUL9bNg7Yw0x1EZG_wilMzKxGZIhE2wnqItBCl2SmNJm5BMPUeISwdaH_kuGgUXg-coXfpoA95ky9tTaukv-qUE7-Amr/s320/June+21+Sa.jpg" width="220" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, June 21, 1995 <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">(click to enlarge)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7EJChumQkA3e7lA9wRo39VW-GsIpiAzgMftlL3Mz-xQS6NY9B5S2eETSgUVhGcjrSaQrjSXyhquAX14lkg1kobHL8ANag8RVW6GajA9KA00o18Zzpu_iEt2mzEZovCcGfH___yR6UIcjs/s1600/June+21+DM.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="162" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7EJChumQkA3e7lA9wRo39VW-GsIpiAzgMftlL3Mz-xQS6NY9B5S2eETSgUVhGcjrSaQrjSXyhquAX14lkg1kobHL8ANag8RVW6GajA9KA00o18Zzpu_iEt2mzEZovCcGfH___yR6UIcjs/s320/June+21+DM.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Mail, June 21, 1995 <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">(click to enlarge)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ASxgzOx_uz8kv-cWhPhuMovxvOa0YZ59g2W-0eb2eaIl7QIKu01kWnqNHGtqyE_NYbKd2vEJiCxuUS35ty8VA54VUGoooPmo4PCmXrvcu6tBggiCWpLw6S_VePTjtNNPE5iVj-3j9tMz/s1600/June+25+Sun+T.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ASxgzOx_uz8kv-cWhPhuMovxvOa0YZ59g2W-0eb2eaIl7QIKu01kWnqNHGtqyE_NYbKd2vEJiCxuUS35ty8VA54VUGoooPmo4PCmXrvcu6tBggiCWpLw6S_VePTjtNNPE5iVj-3j9tMz/s320/June+25+Sun+T.jpg" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sunday Times, June 25, 1995 <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">(click to enlarge)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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The other main angle was whether DB10 would be another one
season wonder like a certain German who had plied his trade up the Seven
Sisters the previous year. The short answer: no chance.</div>
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<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvGceVPCeEpf9GAGf7CUPZ61Dgg61Z3VU5RZTGpA5WWZFl5I2_h-uUqg-TzCvHq-dp5O1KHPpQqMrW_inHOR9ZEcozszNpsAJ8OoLO4AOw0VwtWtWe53M7BCqUaEj4xHudckjPBl4xYanC/s1600/June+21+Sb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvGceVPCeEpf9GAGf7CUPZ61Dgg61Z3VU5RZTGpA5WWZFl5I2_h-uUqg-TzCvHq-dp5O1KHPpQqMrW_inHOR9ZEcozszNpsAJ8OoLO4AOw0VwtWtWe53M7BCqUaEj4xHudckjPBl4xYanC/s320/June+21+Sb.jpg" width="56" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, June 21, 1995 <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">(click to enlarge)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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And showing an uncharacteristically strong grip on reality,
this Spurs fan admitted they were coming second best in the transfer market.</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB2HLeKfX8zSkeyAZjWHXU2gxH9lF1WPTjCcStyEUNrVzhbnsO6A2cuSsuSUrrfKCb172vMcIzYzxe-pCFIpgkY86L0aBXLLIx_bha0xsQ25Sw0HiopnLkbrPPJGgEemi100EGBCV3JxHr/s1600/June+21+Sd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB2HLeKfX8zSkeyAZjWHXU2gxH9lF1WPTjCcStyEUNrVzhbnsO6A2cuSsuSUrrfKCb172vMcIzYzxe-pCFIpgkY86L0aBXLLIx_bha0xsQ25Sw0HiopnLkbrPPJGgEemi100EGBCV3JxHr/s320/June+21+Sd.jpg" width="122" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, June 21, 1995 <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">(click to enlarge)</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Finally, Louis Van Gaal had his say on DB10 arriving on our
shores and confidently predicted he would enjoy his time here if he was played
in the right system.</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZjkCDyfJpL-4_5IsWoIktKMEl8C3HIszSqTY2ZwxGoQj4OoRehNeROgpS5llEICo47elccTIF95LGX3saOvoG_Fj9501JN6ofVEj74WTNGh6sVrxqZmfuPIWy8XutR9VMwv8bP_0e6MFW/s1600/June+21+DM+b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZjkCDyfJpL-4_5IsWoIktKMEl8C3HIszSqTY2ZwxGoQj4OoRehNeROgpS5llEICo47elccTIF95LGX3saOvoG_Fj9501JN6ofVEj74WTNGh6sVrxqZmfuPIWy8XutR9VMwv8bP_0e6MFW/s320/June+21+DM+b.jpg" width="222" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Mail, June 21, 1995</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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An incredible few days that would turn out to be some of the
most important in the Club’s history. As we’ll see in the next post, there was
another big name signing to come in the shape of David Platt but nothing could
ever match the jaw dropping nature of Dennis joining.</div>
John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-19947824125553301492015-06-14T14:25:00.000+01:002015-06-14T14:25:09.371+01:00My Arsenal scrapbook 20 years on. Part 1: Bruce Rioch arrivesThere is a bit of a 1990s revival going on at the minute. Blur have returned, TFI Friday is back on screens and wherever you turn Gazza’s face is smiling/grimacing back at you.<br />
<br />
Never one to miss a bandwagon when it is passing, I thought it was time to share the contents of my Arsenal scrapbook with the world.<br />
<br />
Back in the summer of 1995 I decided to start collecting Arsenal newspaper stories.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtBGenzlbnbyfSKuF58ll4mPnpE1orumTqxv-2QwzPznxK5_Kj_PSyb4TgStCHoA1mKcNQSHSu54WNuOwWON7EzE6bLf1TywxdRT-LkIAsiwED7Gwu8G8E-ENF10L166VgMPz4ObmImW4g/s1600/June+8+Front+cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtBGenzlbnbyfSKuF58ll4mPnpE1orumTqxv-2QwzPznxK5_Kj_PSyb4TgStCHoA1mKcNQSHSu54WNuOwWON7EzE6bLf1TywxdRT-LkIAsiwED7Gwu8G8E-ENF10L166VgMPz4ObmImW4g/s320/June+8+Front+cover.jpg" width="216" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Arsenal scrapbook, complete with badly drawn club crest</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Usually you associate this with the 1950s and 60s, or at a push the 1970s, when people were so impressed with the invention of colour they thought they needed to store it away in case it disappeared.<br />
<br />
But no, aged 14 – when there were almost certainly better things I should have been doing with my free time – I thought it was a good idea to start cutting and sticking the main news stories from the day.<br />
<br />
And it turned out to be decent timing: I have a record of some pivotal years in Arsenal’s modern history and there are some fascinating, hilarious, and prescient comments in just the first few pages.<br />
<br />
I confess I have only rooted out the first few editions and can’t remember how long I did it for but hopefully you’ll enjoy the trips down memory lane before I run out of material in a couple of years…<br />
<br />
<b>Bruce Rioch arrives: </b><b>June 9 to June 15, 1995 </b><br />
I distinctly remember when George Graham was sacked in February 1995 that, probably for the first time in my life, I checked the league table to see how likely it was Arsenal would be relegated. On the day he went, we were 13th, just four points better off than West Ham who occupied the highest spot in the relegation zone at 19th. We finished 12th, six points from the relegation zone, and then lost our Cup Winners’ Cup crown after Nayim’s freak last minute goal in the final.<br />
<br />
In short, while not a total disaster, in comparison to the title and cup-winning seasons that had gone before it, the season was nothing to be proud of and the star names like Tony Adams, David Seaman, Ian Wright and Paul Merson had collectively failed to live up to expectations.<br />
<br />
While Stewart Huston led the team for the rest of the 94/95 season after George departed, I don’t think anyone felt he was genuine manager material. If he had won that CWC final, perhaps the Board would have felt duty-bound to give him a shot full-time, who knows.<br />
<br />
I have no cuttings from earlier in the summer but my scribblings in the front say there were rumours Bobby Robson was the first choice but his then employers Porto wouldn’t let him go. So in the end they opted for Bruce Rioch, who had just led Bolton Wanderers to the top flight via the playoffs, and who was unveiled as Arsenal manger on Thursday, June 8, 1995.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6aZ1XfLT0xHDjUrBt2A6vnApbxA7MFnHf0Lm0sxtCgp1CJ_lFdHlpmllu__ps4ZvEN9-Y8D8vgMx7mDObO0MX2z8GmoufeyPZDlHDUhpd87ciMihKcfddnVJlaUd7EvWt64SFLNtoGx5v/s1600/June+9+M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="142" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6aZ1XfLT0xHDjUrBt2A6vnApbxA7MFnHf0Lm0sxtCgp1CJ_lFdHlpmllu__ps4ZvEN9-Y8D8vgMx7mDObO0MX2z8GmoufeyPZDlHDUhpd87ciMihKcfddnVJlaUd7EvWt64SFLNtoGx5v/s320/June+9+M.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Mirror, June 9, 1995</td></tr>
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This story alludes to the Club wanting to avoid another bung scandal rather than him not having control of the purse strings, I would say.<br />
<br />
The general theme was one of him imposing some law and order, rather than introduce sexier football as he gradually did.<br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-MpXuqAT7z12UC5qOBlOxsnUqSjDnnMvb768VvDPSwdRe9Z3GdvUq2kI5y9yLbofhaq5j9DfVYIbcD8_ZayebPV2vf96NdBE0bbhfi4Hs5Iaq018YOkLK3VZzu7ubDSG1bkCk678Mlbku/s1600/June+11+Sun+T.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-MpXuqAT7z12UC5qOBlOxsnUqSjDnnMvb768VvDPSwdRe9Z3GdvUq2kI5y9yLbofhaq5j9DfVYIbcD8_ZayebPV2vf96NdBE0bbhfi4Hs5Iaq018YOkLK3VZzu7ubDSG1bkCk678Mlbku/s320/June+11+Sun+T.jpg" width="288" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Sunday Times, June 11, 1995</td></tr>
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He was chosen to be a tough task master like GG and make sure they looked after themselves just as much off the pitch as delivering the goods on it. Merson had already confessed to his addiction problems, but TA had not and in the May of 1995 Ray Parlour had been fined for punching a taxi driver after going on a bender during a club tour to Hong Kong (<a href="http://www.scmp.com/article/118613/apologetic-parlour-fined-and-facing-club-wrath-after-admitting-assault" target="_blank">detailed almost minute-by-minute here by the South China Morning Post</a>).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp8aIIQBlF7STznWV_Gcq6rdCvU89Ou6yUCQu0GaKbGCQZQhuqtcV1E5NvNAKHoAv86xN38gALis0Hoq3gF_0mdK1Ihl-rcKnC2kJW6D4QbQ9CPwEuxNogUfVrRpCz-3UtqU-zDdyqayUb/s1600/June+9+DT.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp8aIIQBlF7STznWV_Gcq6rdCvU89Ou6yUCQu0GaKbGCQZQhuqtcV1E5NvNAKHoAv86xN38gALis0Hoq3gF_0mdK1Ihl-rcKnC2kJW6D4QbQ9CPwEuxNogUfVrRpCz-3UtqU-zDdyqayUb/s320/June+9+DT.jpg" width="73" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Telegraph, June 9, 1995</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaB39TlL-xQT5qE40aAiFrhZLdRji0HK9J-CbHUbM1C2qxlgaH04HpuQzQWv_oHsC03TspoXLoREwVuAr-_ct9OHmN_StWZHumOLLaNgyb8-DpCMrYMlEsHLg0eEReqnktbQZfz6VGc-1K/s1600/June+9+DTa.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaB39TlL-xQT5qE40aAiFrhZLdRji0HK9J-CbHUbM1C2qxlgaH04HpuQzQWv_oHsC03TspoXLoREwVuAr-_ct9OHmN_StWZHumOLLaNgyb8-DpCMrYMlEsHLg0eEReqnktbQZfz6VGc-1K/s320/June+9+DTa.jpg" width="96" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Telegraph, June 9, 1995</td></tr>
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With hindsight, I think he was trying to do what Arsene Wenger eventually achieved – play good football, get players to live better lifestyles – but went about it in a way that failed to win over an experienced bunch of players who had won far more than he had. In the end, I think it became a choice of him or some of the star players and the club chose the players. But we’ll get to that in a year’s time – though as that last story shows, Rioch himself ironically predicted the outcome on the day of his appointment:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmr5HU8shuxK44sFo86d_IIoiihb35gv2MtKfFfJfmMZQ3f_9H8g0iqug03kRSGnIbrVxHZv1ZjgGbfuZcR2xKW2h02HuIDVFWIPI3Th1TJW1JASJk0SeqmCG-GzwtlTiiDnFNVaffnSqT/s1600/June+9+DTb.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmr5HU8shuxK44sFo86d_IIoiihb35gv2MtKfFfJfmMZQ3f_9H8g0iqug03kRSGnIbrVxHZv1ZjgGbfuZcR2xKW2h02HuIDVFWIPI3Th1TJW1JASJk0SeqmCG-GzwtlTiiDnFNVaffnSqT/s1600/June+9+DTb.jpg" /></a></div>
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<br />
For now, let’s look at Rioch’s obvious pride at being given the job which is clear in all of these stories and would be through the rest of the single season he was in charge. In fact, that pride has come through even after he was replaced by Arsene Wenger, as I’ve never seen him say a bad word against the Club since then.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlThVSQDOKkChf2gy-3j0IGdlfWnEMA5tdpBVnZb5xZZJLJ-4iXsGF4YH_hfBc4OlvzACziAYVuM1k23b-YqS65Szaco_F5-KgFSI0nKRQJM-uv_qP2A9JIU1Z4btqncoD9ZBp6M3ASN5v/s1600/June+15+Sun.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlThVSQDOKkChf2gy-3j0IGdlfWnEMA5tdpBVnZb5xZZJLJ-4iXsGF4YH_hfBc4OlvzACziAYVuM1k23b-YqS65Szaco_F5-KgFSI0nKRQJM-uv_qP2A9JIU1Z4btqncoD9ZBp6M3ASN5v/s320/June+15+Sun.jpg" width="221" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Sun, June 15, 1995</td></tr>
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That story appeared on the same day that Rioch responded to a letter I sent him wishing him good luck:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiztLptXUyIj8H8V4x9BkfjpsPbsUq0RxM9bggycqd1rdEetnUaPvv2rSqlXwhn8jO2yxJ4X_w3Cz0b1EmOLVdgr9yU14YL2sO2ub6eAeLu51GSkLPAHVb0Lp35Hi3-HXy03zgEThTX33Af/s1600/June+15+AFC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiztLptXUyIj8H8V4x9BkfjpsPbsUq0RxM9bggycqd1rdEetnUaPvv2rSqlXwhn8jO2yxJ4X_w3Cz0b1EmOLVdgr9yU14YL2sO2ub6eAeLu51GSkLPAHVb0Lp35Hi3-HXy03zgEThTX33Af/s320/June+15+AFC.jpg" width="245" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Letter to me, June 15, 1995</td></tr>
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<br />
In terms of transfer speculation, there were – and would be for the rest of the summer – rumours that Rioch would revisit Bolton to buy ‘classy’ centre back Alan Stubbs and/or midfielder Jason McAteer.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtpDLMHzY5vSe8OfhTzuRxwsnhS-XOYv1-NRAgVCmwtq1_0FRKmya4eN9uuAs6REdAQ2Hh6P8uxMknm-IQKIZvscR6Ck6TRIjCIh8bciXObanbTXgO2IaaRDKqxoq4Jzxpj9MJ3ELJ9_LZ/s1600/June+13+M.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="166" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtpDLMHzY5vSe8OfhTzuRxwsnhS-XOYv1-NRAgVCmwtq1_0FRKmya4eN9uuAs6REdAQ2Hh6P8uxMknm-IQKIZvscR6Ck6TRIjCIh8bciXObanbTXgO2IaaRDKqxoq4Jzxpj9MJ3ELJ9_LZ/s320/June+13+M.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Daily Mirror, June 13, 1995</td></tr>
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They were not particularly exciting rumours at the time. For that, we would have to wait a few days more, as the next batch of stories on the arrival of a certain Dutch legend will illustrate.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-14463745380794786922015-05-26T19:00:00.000+01:002015-05-26T19:03:12.679+01:00Arsenal won fewer points this season – so are we getting worse?The dust has just settled on the league season so while acknowledging we still have a Cup Final to play on Saturday, let’s consider whether we have improved compared to last year.<br />
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<b>We are better than Man U and Liverpool</b><br />
Let’s start by pointing out that we finished a place higher than last year, despite the smaller points tally. The difference between one position might sound trivial but it is one less opponent to be better than next year in the race for the title. By that I mean Man U, who finished fourth, will need to improve even more than we do if they want to be champions and of course Liverpool, who fell four spots to sixth, will have to do even more than that.<br />
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It is worth remembering, though, that we finished third in 2012, 2010 and 2008 so this isn’t some major breakthrough. And in the seasons following those, we fell back to fourth so there is no trend of us using the higher finishing position as a catalyst for greater things.<br />
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<b>Slow starts to blame, in more ways than one</b><br />
We fell short of Chelsea in two key areas. First, as Wenger himself has highlighted, the awful start to the season, where we took 11 points from a possible 24 in the opening eight games, including draws away at Leicester and home to Hull, and then 17 from 36 after 12 games.<br />
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We slipped behind Chelsea after the second round of games and never got close to them again, even extending their lead to 17 points in November.<br />
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Secondly, we didn’t win enough games at home. It is something that is rarely highlighted as a big factor in deciding the outcome of titles but since 2003/04 (and probably longer, I just haven’t done the maths further back), the champions have won a mean and median average of 51 points at home (Chelsea won 49).<br />
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This season Arsenal won 41 points at home and that difference needs rectifying if they we want to mount a serious championship challenge. If you exclude the Invincibles season from both calculations, our average home points tally has been 42 compared to the champions’ 51, and has peaked at 47 (twice). Fifty-one points equates to 17 wins from 19 games – can you imagine this Arsenal team achieving that?<br />
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There needs to be a change in how games at the Emirates are approached. Too rarely do Arsenal start at a tempo that makes it clear to the opponent and supporters that they intend to dominate the game, that they are up for not only winning but tearing the visitors apart. As a result, matches often become a bit of a chore for everyone involved.<br />
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Of course it is easy to suggest the manager and players can flick a switch to turn the style on from kick-off. But equally, we can all remember how matches at Highbury would be over within the first 20 minutes and it isn’t crazy given the personnel available to think that Arsenal can do something similar today.<br />
By the way, our away points tally is a lot more healthy compared to the champions – on average the title winners claim 37 points on their travels and this season we amassed 34.<br />
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<b>We need to do more than ‘exist’ in the big games</b><br />
Not getting thrashed in most of the matches against the other big four made for a pleasant change this season. Wenger has described it as us managing to ‘exist’ in those fixtures. Presumably the next step is to compete in them, and following that, win them. When you consider my last point about our home points, it is crucial we take that step if we want to challenge. Over the past three seasons we have won one home game against the other top four sides and taken a total of six points from the potential 27. Champions will invariably win at least two home games against the other top four.<br />
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<b>We now have a long-term defensive core</b><br />
Since last season we have seen the arrival or emergence of Bellerin, Monreal, Chambers, Debuchy, Gabriel and Coquelin. All of them have strengthened our squad and should provide a stable foundation for a good few years to come.<br />
<br />
Compare our current selection of defensive players (including Koscielny, Mertesacker, and probably Arteta) to the crop in 2009: Gallas, Toure, Silvestre, Djourou, Eboue, Sagna, Clichy, Gibbs, Song. You can make an argument that the first choice defences are on a equal footing but surely nobody can question that the back-ups are far, far stronger. Anyone who thinks Song is a better choice as a defensive shield compared to Coquelin has a very selective memory.<br />
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Why pick 2009? For me, it was typical of the early Emirates years which, with the exclusion of a short time in 2008 when we looked like a force to be reckoned with, we have had to field economy class players to pay for a first class stadium.<br />
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Which leads me nicely on to my next point…<br />
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<b>Supporters were misled for years</b><br />
Compare quotes from Arsene from a couple of weeks ago with one from countless interviews since leaving Highbury and you will see a revisionist version of the truth.<br />
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<a href="http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/arsene-wenger-qa-full-transcript-5736938" target="_blank">Today he says</a> that for years ‘we had no chance to compete for the championship because we had restricted finances’. In 2009 <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/football/2009/aug/14/arsene-wenger-arsenal-premier-league" target="_blank">there was a very different slant on things</a>: ‘I know people have no patience any more but I agreed on a structure at the club that I believed could work, and we are at the period now when we will see whether I was right. To talk of winning the league is an audacious statement but I built this team and I want to deliver.’<br />
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We were fed the line that we could remain genuinely competitive despite having less cash to use as a result of the move to the Emirates. It might have been naïve to believe it, but everyone from Arsenal was adamant that was the case, at least in public. In reality there was no way we could have competed at that time so it was a lie, or at least a half-truth, from the Club as the position Wenger takes on that era now makes clear.<br />
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It was done for understandable reasons – to suggest we were realistically only competing to get in the Champions League rather than the title would send all the wrong signals to supporters and players. But it was misleading and I would have preferred to hear Arsene acknowledge a little more candidly that we had our backs against the wall rather than claiming we were aiming for top spot. I suspect the thousands of season ticket holders will believe that even more passionately.<br />
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<b>Walcott v Sterling</b><br />
As an example of our changed financial fortunes, you only have to consider the current speculation about Raheem Sterling joining us, potentially with Theo Walcott going in the other direction. I’ve always thought Theo was wasted on the right wing and his hat-trick on Saturday shows what a dangerous player he is when he works on instinct alone. He could thrive in place of Giroud but perhaps Sterling would thrive even more, as well as give you greater threat as an attacking midfielder.<br />
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<b>Sanchez should be our number nine</b><br />
While Walcott could be a contender for the centre forward position, I think the answer should lie in Alexis Sanchez. He’s had a wonderful first season and having a superstar so clearly give his all every minute of every game is a real pleasure to see. Sometimes he tries too hard and his efforts to dribble his way out of a problem only makes matters worse but he has shown all the tenacity, agility and skill to thrive as a striker in England. I look at Sergio Aguero at Man City, the top scorer this season and comfortably the best forward in the Premier League, and think Sanchez can do the same for us but it doesn’t look like he’ll be given that chance.<br />
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<b>Highs in one cup, lows in another</b><br />
Beating Man U at Old Trafford in the Cup quarter final was one of the highlights of the season (so far at least, with the final itself still around the corner). It was a controlled performance and showed we can beat the big four on their own turf. Some might say the league win at Man City had already shown that but City were in the middle of such a poor run of form that hindsight takes the gloss off what was otherwise an outstanding performance.<br />
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The low-point of the season in terms of things only getting better after it was the away defeat to Swansea but in isolation the loss to Monaco (another poor home performance, see a recurring theme?) in the Champions League was much more disheartening. The players looked to have taken Monaco too lightly which is unforgiveable, while the inability to close the game down after reducing the deficit to one goal was embarrassing.<br />
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<b>So are we worse or better this season?</b><br />
It is displays like that against Monaco which make it harder than it should be to judge where Arsenal stands today.<br />
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The squad is stronger than 12 months ago, it looks more of a resolute unit and in Sanchez and Özil possesses two of European football’s biggest talents.<br />
And yet we claimed fewer points in the league, never looked like overhauling Chelsea or beating them when we met and went out of Europe at the same stage as last season following the type of meltdown that had appeared to be confined to the history books.<br />
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But the deep down gut feeling is we are closing the gap to the champions, even if the evidence is debateable either way.<br />
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There will be plenty of supporters who think we would close it a lot quicker if Wenger was not the manager but it is a non-argument as he is going nowhere for at least the next two years.<br />
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In the meantime, let’s hope that Wenger’s admission that we were never going to be contenders in the years directly after the move from Highbury is a sign that we are ready to reach the summit again.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-7600731791713041872014-08-16T10:44:00.002+01:002014-08-16T10:44:36.960+01:00Season preview: do we always need ‘one or two signings’?The theme for many season previews this week has been how Arsenal need to strengthen in one or two areas to seriously challenge for the title.<br />
<br />
Even Arsene wheeled the line out in his press conference <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/20140815/wenger-i-won-t-rule-out-more-signings" target="_blank">yesterday</a> as he has done, fittingly, <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/wenger-plans-one-or-two-signings" target="_blank">once</a> or <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/wenger-i-am-targeting-one-or-two-players" target="_blank">twice</a> before. Actually, no, make that <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/wenger-my-summer-transfer-window-plans" target="_blank">thrice</a>.<br />
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He’s not alone. <a href="https://www.google.co.uk/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=%22one+or+two+players%22+%22transfer+window%22" target="_blank">Every manager seems to think</a> they need a couple more players to complete their squad and it’s become a bit of a cliché.<br />
<br />
So is it true of Arsenal at least?<br />
<br />
Well, I’m far more upbeat on the cusp of this season compared to <a href="http://aisforarsenal.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/the-season-doesnt-start-here.html" target="_blank">the last one</a> and we definitely have a stronger squad after the summer’s transfer activity. This wasn’t a case of us doing business early, more of us just doing business at all.<br />
<br />
Alexis Sanchez is obviously the standout new boy. Being far from an expert on La Liga, I had a gander at youtube to see some of his best bits and had to reload some of the clips because I thought they were playing back at x1.5 speed. No, he’s just that fast.<br />
<br />
It was striking last weekend how much quicker and sharper we looked on the breakaway with Sanchez on the pitch. Quick and successful counter attacks became less of a feature of our game as Wenger adapted our style in the second half of his reign to fit different personnel. But it would be a real positive if we can recreate some of the threat which the Invincibles always possessed and that may be Sanchez’s biggest contribution.<br />
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I would expect him to become our lead front man in place of Giroud by the end of the season. It seems logical to me to have your best players in central positions and he will have far more influence as a number 9 than trying to cut in from either flank. He might lack a bit of height but he seems like a tough nut and should be able to handle the likes of Shawcross. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for a Thierry Henry-like conversion over the first half of the season as he adapts to the joys of English football.<br />
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Our other signings have been replacements rather than additions, but they still feel like they have put us in a better position. We’ve not seen Ospina in Arsenal colours yet but he impressed at the World Cup and should put more pressure on Szczesny than Flapianski. Debuchy may not be much younger than Sagna but he has stepped in to his shoes admirably for the French national team and there should be no reason he won’t do the same for us.<br />
<br />
Calum Chambers appears to have replaced Vermaelen as a third choice centre back, though his versatility will be greater. Chambers has shown real poise in his first friendly appearances and looks a very exciting prospect, certainly a better bet than someone like Chris Smalling who we have always been linked with.<br />
<br />
And lest we forget that also since the first morning of last season we bought a certain Mesut Özil. The guy is world class and even if he never appeared to devastate teams single-handedly last season, his influence was still impressive. I still think much of the improvement in Aaron Ramsey last year can be put down to having someone of Özil’s quality to train and play alongside. The arrival of Sanchez should inspire Özil to greater heights. Without wanting to denigrate Giroud, subconsciously Özil will have known Giroud would either not be on his wavelength or he wouldn’t convert the opportunities he created anyway. The same can’t be said of Sanchez and the could create some combination.<br />
<br />
So are we really one or two players short? I would still put Chelsea and Manchester City’s squad as the stronger overall. Injuries have taken their toll on us in the past few seasons and even though the arrival of the fabled <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/aug/09/arsene-wenger-arsenal-new-fitness-coach-shad-forsythe-germany-world-cup" target="_blank">Shad Forsythe</a> should ease that problem, it is inevitable we will need to draft in reserves.<br />
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This is where I hope the ruthlessness Wenger has shown so far this summer, demonstrated in securing his targets without dithering over prices and shipping out the likes of Jenkinson rather than letting him improve on his watch, can continue. Instead of worrying about potentially ‘killing’ a couple of his existing players by bringing in more competition, it would be nice to over-stock. We’ve reached that position in attacking midfielders and if we keep Joel Campbell and Podolski we’ve probably got their up front. At the back, though, we still feel vulnerable to the loss of a first-choice defender.<br />
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So maybe like all good clichés, there is a ring of truth to the idea of being ‘one or two’ away from a complete squad. Just like needing to take things one game at a time, perhaps we need to see how the rest of the transfer window pans out before truly believing the title can be ours.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-6389190755649460592014-08-13T19:00:00.000+01:002014-08-13T19:00:01.274+01:00Arsenal’s actual average attendance last season was 53,788It has long been a bug bear of mine that Arsenal announces official attendances which so often are clearly not accurate. The scores of empty seats at many home matches are clear proof that things are not what they seem.<br />
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It's become a bit of a running joke among supporters and everyone seems to have accepted it. But I've got so annoyed with the ‘tickets sold = attendance’ policy that I decided to try and do something about it.<br />
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So, armed with a trusty sword of truth and shield of justice, I did what every great conspiracy theorist-in-the-making does and fired off a freedom of information request.<br />
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It went to the Met Police, that bastion of fair play and trustworthiness, who eventually delivered what I asked for: the actual attendance figures supplied to them by the Club for every home game last season.<br />
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<b>The real attendance stats</b><br />
The figures (based on the official stadium capacity of 60,338 stated in the <a href="http://m.premierleague.com/content/dam/premierleague/site-content/News/publications/handbooks/premier-league-handbook-2013-14.pdf" target="_blank">2013/14 Premier League Handbook</a> and which can be downloaded from the image below) make for stark reading:<br />
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* on average the actual attendance was 5,998 lower than that stated by the Club<br />
* on average 6,550 seats were empty per game<br />
* the worst attended match was Fenerbahce at 44,779, which was 15,559 lower than capacity and 11,492 below the official attendance<br />
* the best attended game was Liverpool in the league at 57,341<br />
* the real average attendance was 53,788 compared to 59,786 announced by the Club<br />
* a total of 173,945 seats went unoccupied at home games last season<br />
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<iframe height="380" src="https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1wOnBcZPs6heXlSVTNPd2dmQVU/edit?usp=sharing" width="420"></iframe>
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(For reasons only known to themselves, the Met have not published my request and the data on their website, which they appear to do with most other FOIs. But if anyone doubts their validity, the FOI reference was 2014050000832 and Arsenal have said the numbers are ‘broadly accurate’ which I’m taking to mean ‘accurate’. If you want to download the sheet visit )<br />
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Hopefully the chart and numbers speak for themselves but I’ll highlight a couple of points that struck me.<br />
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Firstly, it isn’t ‘big games’ that necessarily draw the biggest crowds. The Chelsea (Premier League, not League Cup) and Bayern Munich matches were only the 18th and 19th best attended last season while Southampton, Norwich and Fulham were 5th, 6th and 7th.<br />
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Secondly, non-weekend matches are generally more poorly attended: Saturday and Sunday games comprise nine of the top 15 attendances compared to only three of the bottom 14. Does that mean weekday travel could be improved or just that supporters are inevitably going to struggle to get away from work / school / college in time?<br />
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Thirdly, television coverage appears to be a non-issue. I can’t see a pattern based on whether matches were screened on terrestrial or digital television but I’m open to any suggestions that I’m missing something.<br />
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<b>Why oh why</b><br />
The numbers trigger two ‘why’ questions: why does Arsenal announce the tickets sold figure as the attendance, and why do up to 6,000 people not turn up to every game?<br />
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My working theory going in to this exercise was that the Club uses the ‘tickets sold’ number to overinflate the true demand for tickets, thereby helping to justify charging some of the highest prices in the world. It also encourages season ticket holders to renew and avoid potentially missing out on tickets on a match by match basis because they think demand is *so* high. The counter point to that argument is that matches are selling out so surely demand is there. But when you consider there are approximately 45,000 season ticket holders (leaving about 12,000 tickets for match-by-match purchase if you assume 3,000 away fans), there will be many more people who have paid for a ticket that they want to get rid of than those actively deciding to go to a particular match.<br />
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However, having looked at things in more detail, I think the real answer to the first question is that a) it’s probably just easier and quicker to give that than the real attendance and b) it appears to be common practice. I dropped a quick email to a dozen current Premier League sides. Of those that responded, only Spurs said their policy is based on actual attendance. Burnley, QPR and Everton all base it on ticket sales. It was by no means a scientific exercise but it at least shows Arsenal isn’t the only club who practice the policy.<br />
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<b>What Arsenal say</b><br />
At this stage I got in touch with the Club to get their side of the story. They strongly rejected the suggestion that the policy was an attempt to deliberate mislead supporters in connection to ticket prices.<br />
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Their statement said: “We are clear in all our communication that the figure we are announcing reflects the number of tickets sold.<br />
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“The club are comfortable with using ‘number of tickets sold’ as the measurement for attendances, and believe it is a reliable and relevant one. We have no plans to review this at present.<br />
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“It’s worth making the point that the Club work hard to ensure that Emirates Stadium is as full as possible on matchdays, through our <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/tickettransfer" target="_blank">Ticket Transfer</a> and <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/ticketexchange" target="_blank">Ticket Exchange</a> systems.”<br />
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I would dispute the point about them clearly stating that attendances reflect tickets sold. The media are apparently told it explicitly on match day but I don’t see any evidence of it in the programme or Club magazine. It also doesn’t state it on the Club website (though equally it also doesn’t say it is the attendance, it just gives a number which floats around on match reports).<br />
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I didn’t ask the Club to explain why they think an average of 6,000 supporters do not turn up having bought a ticket as I think it is an impossible question to answer. The more important point is what they are doing about it and in highlighting the Ticket Transfer and Ticket Exchange schemes the approach they are taking is clear.<br />
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<b>What more can be done</b><br />
The Arsenal Supporters’ Trust asked a series of interesting questions at the <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/20140512/supporters-forum-april-28-2014" target="_blank">last supporters’ forum</a> and the answers also show the Club is looking at improving those systems, with the prospect of a ‘seat utilisation’ scheme in the offing. I would take that to mean incentivising people who do actually turn up or make use of their ticket. That could include rewarding supporters through cup final ticket prioritisation, as Tim Payton, the AST secretary, suggests in <a href="http://www.gunnerstown.com/arsenal/2013/06/06/is-there-a-fire-drill-solving-the-tragedy-of-the-emirates-empty-seats/" target="_blank">this blog</a>. Tim also raises another good way of improving the Ticket Exchange system, by allowing tickets to be bought/sold for less than face value.<br />
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There is clearly a problem with the Ticket Exchange system. At the time of writing, there was supposedly half a dozen tickets available through it online for the Crystal Palace game but when you click on them they say they are no longer available. The buying process is extremely user unfriendly and the selling process must be the same – you can guarantee there will be more than half a dozen empty seats on Saturday.<br />
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Some other points I would throw in to the debate about getting people to the ground are trying to address the non-weekend travel issues, assuming that is a problem for people as the chart suggests. If the Club successfully pressed the authorities to put on a few more late trains would that be enough to convince people to come to games?<br />
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I think the Club could also put more effort into its supporters’ clubs. If the volunteers running them were given more backing, they might attract and keep more members and in turn be able to run more transport to and from games.<br />
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<b>Admitting the problem</b><br />
Whatever you reckon the solution is, the first step is for the Club to acknowledge how serious the problem is in the first place and I think that means abandoning the ‘tickets sold’ policy on official attendance, or at least giving the true attendance as well as tickets sold.<br />
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Fundamentally, Arsenal is redefining the word ‘attendance’ and it is misleading. Other clubs do it as well but Arsenal has always claimed to stand for higher values than everyone else and it should do so again here. I hope getting the real attendances into the public raises the profile of the issue and goes some way to convincing the Club they need to rethink the policy. Only then can they talk honestly about how to fill all the empty seats.<br />
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PS: On a historical note, the Club also confirmed that the supposed <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/history/club-records/appearances-and-attendances" target="_blank">record attendance</a> at the Emirates Stadium (against Man U in 2007) was based on tickets sold. Hope the club historians have their asterisks ready.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-73289392288798260672014-05-25T09:14:00.000+01:002014-05-25T09:14:00.758+01:00Season review: We've got that winning feelingHow different this season review would have felt had Alex Bruce’s header not been cleared off the line by Kieran Gibbs last week. Had we fallen 3-0 behind at Wembley, and presumably gone on to lose the FA Cup Final, no doubt my assessment would have been a lot less positive.<br />
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Such is the fickle nature of football supporters and the fine margins between success and failure. At least after nine years of waiting, we’ve managed to get on the right side of the divide.<br />
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Winning some silverware after, in Arsenal world, a pretty long wait surely seals Arsene Wenger’s future as manager for at least a couple of years more. As he had talked about the result against Hull having no bearing on his future on the club, I wonder whether he would have moved into a director role if we had lost.<br />
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It is pointless speculating and the main point to focus on is that, in the space of 120 minutes, the current group of players have gone from losers to winners. It should have happened in 2011 with the League Cup and it’s intriguing to think what impact taking that opportunity would have had. The hope should be that the injection of confidence and belief, and removing the pressure of not winning, will turn the side into a genuine title challenger.<br />
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Does the FA Cup win mean those who argued Wenger should stay have been proved right and those who wanted him out proved wrong? If only it were so clean cut…<br />
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Over the past few years I have increasingly fallen in to the latter camp – though not as vehemently as many fans – for a variety of reasons beyond a lack of silverware; namely the way transfer windows were handled, the unwillingness to consider tactical trickery to overcome stronger (and richer) opponents, rewarding players too early with big contract deals that seemed to stifle their desire rather than encourage it, the failure of new signings to contribute and the unwillingness of the manager to admit his mistakes at the cost of the team (ie retaining Almunia in goal for so, so long).<br />
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Even Wenger’s staunchest supporters should not now pretend the kind of questions raised over the past eight seasons have been answered with the FA Cup. Equally, it would have been wrong to judge Wenger on the outcome of one match, albeit an FA Cup Final.<br />
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We have improved overall this season and it would have been odd to boot him out now having put up with a lot worse in recent years. The key was achieving that Champions League spot again – had the woeful performance at Everton prompted a real collapse and missing out on fourth then there would have been a stronger justification for changing managers.<br />
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But instead we can see this as a season of progress. Even taking the hammerings received at Man City, Liverpool and Chelsea into account, doubts about the resolve of the team and its ability to see out a win appear to have been answered once and for all.<br />
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The signing of Özil elevated us to a new level and even if he did not consistently produce performances worthy of his £42m price tag (though I expect him to next season), I don’t think we would have achieved what we have without him. Would Ramsey have raised his game as much without working alongside someone like Özil? Would the rest of the team have felt the Club had any sort of ambition anymore if we hadn’t made such a ‘statement’ signing?<br />
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In his heart of hearts, though, Wenger must have known this team was not capable of becoming champions, or more specifically its front line was not up to the job. Giroud – at least in isolation – is not a strong enough striker to win a title with.<br />
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On days when things are not clicking, you need to rely on a striker who can conjure up a goal from nowhere. While Giroud can perform other roles pretty adequately, neither he or any other strikers in the squad could deliver that. Ramsey stepped up countless times from midfield but an even stronger cutting edge is needed. Wenger’s pursuit of Suarez last summer is proof he realised it was an area of weakness and it will surely be where he focuses most this close season too.<br />
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When I look back at my reviews of the past few seasons there have been far more negatives than positives. Whether it was doubts about the mental or physical fragility of the squad, retaining our best players or being able to secure deals for better players there was plenty to weigh on our minds.<br />
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Today it feels like those fundamental problems have been addressed and while some flaws still remain – particularly around the club’s injury record which is receiving increasing scrutiny – the outlook is far more positive.<br />
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What we (or maybe it’s just me) need to do is accept and embrace Wenger’s faults as much as his strengths for the remainder of his days leading Arsenal.<br />
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His philosophy of football and human nature generally mean he’ll never set a team out to deliberately stifle opponents and grind out a hard-earned point. He’ll never straitjacket his players into performing particular tasks. He’ll trust his players to express themselves and find solutions to problems on the pitch.<br />
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Forgiving the errors that approach leads to, and enjoying the benefits it brings, is far easier when you have a trophy in the cabinet to admire.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-40317051342485651602013-11-10T10:10:00.001+00:002013-11-10T10:10:44.460+00:00For once, we visit Old Trafford with genuine hopeIt’s been a good few years – about 10, actually – since Arsenal last travelled to Old Trafford and I didn’t fear the worst.<br />
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Of course I always have hope that we’ll pull something unexpected out of the bag but usually those feelings are overwhelmed by the thought of us getting, well, overwhelmed by Man U.<br />
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How refreshing then that this morning there isn’t a gnawing fear in my stomach about what trauma the boys might suffer this afternoon but instead an anticipation of us going toe-to-toe with them.<br />
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Creating a combined form XI at the moment would see a pretty even combination of players selected, probably weighted Arsenal’s way, and that reflects the excellent start to our campaign and the pretty mediocre one they have made.<br />
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What’s happened since my last post to bring us to this position? We drew at West Brom in a match we would have lost last year but which it felt like title-winners would have scraped a win; we hammered Norwich with a collection of four sublime goals that made things look a lot more one-sided than they were; we lost to Dortmund after a pretty patchy performance but one that probably deserved a point; we avoided a banana skin at Palace with a professional display; we worked very hard to beat an in-form Liverpool; we rode a bit of a storm in Dortmund to claim three terrific points.<br />
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In all, the results have been a lot more impressive than most of our performances over the past few weeks. That sounds curmudgeonly, I know, but there is no shame in not being scintillating every match and it’s also heartening to think that there is room for improvement even when we sit atop the league table.<br />
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And improvement is what we will need today. Even though we have just won at the home of last season’s Champions League runners-up – becoming the first English team to do so – it was a low quality game overall and a repeat performance wouldn’t get the same outcome in Manchester.<br />
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For Man U, this will feel like a chance for David Moyes to make his mark and I expect he will have his players more fired up than at any other point in his short reign. Ferguson may have left but his ethos of intimidation will return for these 90 minutes.<br />
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We need to be ready for that and match it but there is a confidence and serenity about this team at the minute which suggests they can. They’re assured in knowing they are very good players, they have proved they can beat very good opponents, they don’t panic if things don’t go their way.<br />
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I’ve said from the start of this season that Arsenal will remain a work in progress for a while and regardless of what happens this afternoon it will still feel like there is more to come. Which means this match doesn’t feel so ‘make or break’ for Arsenal as it does for Man U – but what an impact a win would have.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-79457370105301610032013-10-06T10:43:00.001+01:002013-10-06T10:43:28.356+01:00Keep it up, boysWhat a week it has been. Two excellent wins against Swansea and Napoli, the latter a result of one of the best performances from the Arsenal for quite a few years.<br />
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It is all worth far more analysis than I can give it here but there is time to make a few points before today’s game against West Brom.<br />
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Starting with the Swansea match last weekend and another impressive Serge Gnabry performance. His defensive contribution was noticeable as well as his goal, his first for the senior team. His maturity and composure has struck me most in his short spell as a starter and that was summed up in his finish. As I said after the Stoke game, there is always the fear that someone making his first few appearances plays above himself through all the excitement but the longer it goes on, the more I think that’s just how good he is. Theo must be growing more and more concerned for his place as he watches from the sidelines.<br />
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While Gnabry’s debut goal was good, Özil’s on Tuesday blew it away. I don’t think I’ve ever seen one like it before – a searing, first time, side foot, finish of a bouncing pass from 18 yards. Simply wonderful and like Arsene said, if you don’t enjoy that, you don’t enjoy football.<br />
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It was typical of an excellent opening 20 minutes which Napoli simply couldn’t match.<br />
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What caught them out most was the movement of the front four – Giroud, Özil, Rosicky and Ramsey. The latter pair didn’t play as wingers, they just took up positions wherever they felt they could offer most threat, with Ramsey reminding me of Iniesta. You can’t call the Spaniard a mere central midfielder or a wide player – he is just a great attacking midfielder who goes where he thinks he needs to go. Giroud pulled into wider areas and drew his defenders with him, while Özil floated wherever he pleased.<br />
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The challenge now is to repeat that performance, potentially with neither Rosicky and Ramsey in those positions. I’ve no fear Cazorla could take the Rosicky role (and do it better) but could one of Theo, Podolski, the Ox or Gnabry do the same?<br />
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Perhaps the most impressive thing from both the Swansea and Napoli wins is just how much more controlled we appear. The days of losing a four goal lead seem very long ago now. That has built up through the end of last season, I admit, but as the Villa defeat showed there was still a feeling of ‘playing on the edge’ at times.<br />
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The presence and influence of both Arteta and Flamini, who both started against Napoli, should not be overlooked in helping to give that stability. That attacking four – as well as the overlapping Gibbs and Sagna – could roam around safe in the knowledge that there were teammates filling the gaps they were leaving.<br />
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The best way of retaining that level of control is to keep the winning momentum and consistency. It will be interesting to see how Wenger sets up his starting XI today. Will he stick with the two defensive midfielders? Will he be tempted to rest one of the star performers?<br />
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And it will be just interesting to see how the players handle the match. Will they be able to keep their mind on the league with the final World Cup qualifiers round the corner? Will they be able to maintain the buzz generated by an outstanding Champions League win during a trip to the Black Country?<br />
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If they want to make the most of this great start to the season, the answer to both those question has to be 'yes'.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-46565802547143509262013-09-23T08:08:00.000+01:002013-09-23T08:08:00.586+01:00Home truthsThe word of the day before kick off should have been ‘complacency’. On the back of a Champions League trip to Marseille – albeit a winning one – coming home to face the likes of Stoke screamed points let slip.<br />
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This was exactly the sort of game where the Arsenal of the past few seasons would start slowly and go a goal behind, or take an encouraging early lead but then stop playing and let the opponent back into the match, only to spend the remainder of the match chasing a precious goal.<br />
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Strangely, in many ways the match lived up to those fears but thankfully a pretty mediocre performance still led to three goals and a win.<br />
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Does that mean we have witnessed the dawning of a new Arsenal era?<br />
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No, not really.<br />
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The only surprise in the line-up was the presence of Serge Gnabry – a late swap for Theo – and aside from three points he offered the biggest positive of the day.<br />
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I’ve not seen enough of him to know whether it was an overachievement on his part but he put in a very composed performance and certainly wasn’t phased by making his first league start, or his last-minute inclusion in the starting 11.<br />
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He didn’t offer the same down-the-line threat as Theo but conversely he looked far more dangerous cutting inside and the ball stuck to him with greater security. Here’s hoping he gets the chance to live up to an encouraging first taste of the Premier League.<br />
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Aside from the German teenager’s display, there was precious little else to get excited about except the fact that we have yet to really hit top gear and still find ourselves top of the league and have our best points total after five games for four years.<br />
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Games like this must lead to three points if we are to have serious ambitions of challenging for the league.<br />
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Last year we won 11 home matches and didn’t win eight (five losses, three draws) and having already lost to Villa we aren’t left with much wiggle room for the remainder of the campaign.<br />
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Only twice since the switch to 38 game seasons in 1995/96 has the title-winning team won less than 14 games so that seems a fair target.<br />
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Based on yesterday and the other matches so far this season I am unconvinced we will achieve that kind of number.<br />
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The fact we didn't succumb to complacency yesterday and that we managed to win without playing well are of course good signs.<br />
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But before anyone gets too carried away reciting all the WWWs, DDDs and just one L since March, let me suggest there hasn’t been enough of a restructure to address the defensive faults of previous years - we are simply playing a fraction better as a team and benefitting from some exceptional individual contributions (eg Ramsey).<br />
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The hope that the presence and influence of Özil might raise the level of a few players may come to fruition.<br />
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Even then, though, my fear is we’ll remain vulnerable to the flaws that have prevented us from turning Ashburton Grove into the kind of fortress a championship-winning side can rely on.<br />
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Stoke didn't create many clear chances yesterday but we still have an air of vulnerability that, for example, leaves us serially open to counter attacks from our corners or too often waving legs at balls at the hope of making a tackle rather than being in the right position at the right time.<br />
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We have had a good start but there is plenty of work to be done. This team is still under development..<br />
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Anyway, before people start shouting at me for managing to sound fairly downbeat after a 3-1 win against Stoke, let me end on a positive.<br />
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If anyone with red and white in their veins has not yet read <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/sep/21/dennis-bergkamp-arsenal-love-game" target="_blank">this article</a>, an excerpt from Dennis Bergkamp’s autobiography, then I implore you to do it.<br />
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It will give you a warm feeling that the current team also appears to have more players that worship football than use it for their ego (Stephen Ireland, anyone?), but also reminisce about what a genius Dennis was and how privileged we were to see him and the rest of the Invincibles play for the Arsenal.<br />
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And it will probably also make you log on to Amazon to pre-order the book.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-42981334121544453982013-09-09T10:52:00.000+01:002013-09-09T10:52:00.564+01:00Özil: Cööl, calm and cöllectedAfter the initial delight of seeing Arsenal spend real money on a transfer, I’ve had a few more days to reflect on our new record signing.<br />
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And I’m pleased to say I’m still very excited.<br />
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Generally speaking, all Arsenal supporters have welcomed the addition of Mesut Özil with open arms.<br />
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But some pundits have questioned the need for another creative midfielder rather than a striker or someone more defensive.<br />
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They are understandable points but if your fundamental aim for any transfer is to make your team stronger, then Özil does that.<br />
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I watched him play for Germany on Friday night in their World Cup qualifier against Austria. I haven’t seen him perform often for Real Madrid but if this match was anything to go by he will be similar to watching Robert Pires trying to play like Dennis Bergkamp.<br />
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Like both of those Arsenal heroes (Dennis' occasional flying elbows aside), he is a cool, calm and collected character, making himself available for teammates but not demanding the ball off them – as though he trusts them to make the right decision and realising he can be as effective without the ball as he is with it.<br />
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That sense of him putting others first comes across in his keen eye for a pass as opposed to shot – a perfect ball midway through the first half along the inside channel to a sprinting Reus was one of his finest moments. His assist record suggests, like Bobby, he gets as much satisfaction from creating a goal as he does scoring it.<br />
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Overall, he had a quietly efficient game but the fact he didn't stand out is almost reassuring – Austria were pretty poor opposition and Germany were fending them off fairly easily, so no need to search for top gear, he was comfortably in third.<br />
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Where will he line-up for the Arsenal? If he was available last weekend, it would have been in place of Rosicky. I expect Özil will become the new first choice tip of the midfield triangle, with Cazorla playing on either flank and Walcott and Podolski starting on the other, and Rosicky and the Ox as further back up.<br />
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Behind them, Arteta, Wilshere and Ramsey will all be competing to take two of the other central midfield positions.<br />
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The similarities and differences between Özil and Wilshere are striking for me. Both are very left footed, both have excellent passing ability, both like to dribble their way out of tight spots. What differs is their approach to the game and, as a result, where they end up playing. While Özil has an air of knowing how good he is and not having to prove anything to anyone, Jack rushes here, there and everywhere as though he blames himself for our lack of recent silverware. He throws himself dangerously into challenges, scurries to every loose ball and gets frustrated when he isn’t involved or things don’t go his way. In short, he comes across as an angry young man, while Özil rarely dropped deep looking for the attention of his teammates - he knew he could do most damage to a team by keeping his focus and killing them in the final third of the pitch.<br />
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Wilshere is a little more than three years younger than Özil and has a chance to learn from a master of what could be his best position, just behind the striker. That means no more crazy tackles, no more throwing your arms around like a hormonal teenager. Just concentrate on how to hurt the opposition most and keep himself fit to play every match.<br />
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Getting Özil means rather than having just enough midfielders and fearing the impact of the next injury, or thinking we cannot afford to rest players, Arsenal have a healthy surplus and a pretty clear hierarchy.<br />
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The key now will be to get into the same state in other parts of the field, most notably up front. Adding another German in the shape of Julian Draxler would be a good start.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-27929981807415264212013-09-03T19:56:00.001+01:002013-09-03T19:56:35.149+01:00Özil: a game-changer in all senses of the termIt was a summer that promised much, appeared to be turning into a farce but eventually ended with a record-smashing signing that will hopefully go down as the best in the history of Arsenal Football Club.<br />
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Mesut Özil, signed by Arsenal FC for £42.4m.<br />
<br />
Yesterday the amount seemed perfectly natural for Arsenal to spend, probably because we have become obsessed with the £75m to £150m kitty supposedly at our disposal.<br />
<br />
But the more I look at the words the more staggering it becomes.<br />
<br />
All those doubts that Arsenal and Wenger were willing to settle for fourth place... dashed in a day.<br />
<br />
All the doubts that they were genuinely willing to put their money where their mouths were... gone.<br />
<br />
And all the doubts that we could attract genuine world class talent to the Club... cast asunder.<br />
<br />
Why could it go down as the best in the history of the club?<br />
<br />
Because if the Club capitalises on it, we could look back at it as the moment where we really entered the big time.<br />
<br />
Every Arsenal player will be excited at the prospect of playing with Özil and will be inspired to train with him.<br />
<br />
I think about Jack Wilshere in particular here. In essence, he is the English Mesut Özil but who did he have to look up to in our squad? Yes, Cazorla is hugely talented but even he is not in Özil’s class.<br />
<br />
Wilshere (and Walcott, and Ramsey, and Gibbs, and Jenkinson...) will now think he needs to raise his game, his standards generally, to do justice to having someone like Özil in the squad.<br />
<br />
Equally, other players, agents and managers around the Premier League and Europe will look at Arsenal in a different light.<br />
<br />
They will now look at Arsenal enviously because we’ve got a 'Playstation' player that everyone would like to line up alongside, whose clients they would want to be associated with or who they would like to coach.<br />
<br />
That includes Wenger who might just get a new lease of life from the move. It was telling how much emphasis was placed on the unity between Wenger, Gazidis and Kroenke in the confirmation announcement, leaving little doubt that Wenger will be offered a new contract.<br />
<br />
That will given him the opportunity to deliver on his dream of creating a self-funded, European mega-power. We all knew that potential was there but the doubts were whether someone would take the leap towards realising the ambition.<br />
<br />
Wenger needs to change how he does things – even his most staunch supporter must accept that regardless of financial restrictions he has made mistakes and appeared to accept the status quo too easily.<br />
<br />
Those changes include the way he handles the transfer window, which has been bizarre.<br />
<br />
On the one hand we are told we only want ‘super, super’ quality, and Özil definitely falls into that category. But on the other we have signed an unproven French teenager, an Italian keeper with a fairly sketchy track record and were chasing Demba Ba, who would probably himself admit is far from ‘super, super’ quality.<br />
<br />
Even though we need extra strikers, I was pleased the Ba signing didn’t come off. When you set the bar as high as Özil, sniffing around Chelsea casts-offs again, particularly wanting one on loan, would have lowered the tone.<br />
<br />
That lack of a striker is living proof that bringing Özil in is not the final part of the plan, in fact it feels more like the first.<br />
<br />
But if we do seize the moment it could be a plan that is a lot bigger and a lot more exciting than any other the Club has come up with before.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-38391199773466694512013-09-02T07:51:00.000+01:002013-09-02T07:51:00.695+01:00Forget the hype and just enjoy beating SpursThere is no better result than 1-0 to the Arsenal.<br />
<br />
It is victory in its purest form. No need for a comeback, no opponent letting things slip, no easy street. It is perfect – especially when it comes against Spurs.<br />
<br />
There has been so much negativity around the Club recently (much of completely justified but much of it completely not) that it is easy to push victories like this to one side. Likewise, speculation is increasing by the minute that we will finally make that 'marquee signing'.<br />
<br />
It is quite right that we should all take an interest in the big issues like Club finances and ownership, and the thought of us signing true world class talent in the shape of Mesut Ozil is exciting, none of it should overshadow the 11 blokes pulling on the red and white.<br />
<br />
And when those 11 play as well as they did yesterday we need to take joy in it.<br />
<br />
Arsenal performed with a maturity, solidity and cohesion that should bring a smile to the face of every supporter whether they think Wenger should be deified or sacked.<br />
<br />
From back to front, there were players raising their games and standing up for their team.<br />
<br />
Mertersacker was full of heart and Koscielny always seemed to be one step ahead of the attack.<br />
<br />
The returning Flamini, even though he only played about 50 minutes, gets a mention for bringing some much-needed passion to proceedings and his willingness to organise those around him.<br />
<br />
Giroud led the line superbly and the touch required for his goal was worthy of Henry and Bergkamp, it was that good. He had run himself into the ground by the final whistle (highlighting the urgent need for at least one striker to be brought in before the window closes) but fully deserved the three points.<br />
<br />
Cazorla and Walcott, who was unlucky not to have made more from some well-timed runs, played well too.<br />
<br />
But my standout player was Aaron Ramsey who put in one of his most impressive performances in an Arsenal shirt.<br />
<br />
While his passing was actually slightly off kilter at times, it was his energy and physical strength that stood out most.<br />
<br />
He refused to be outmuscled on at least three occasions when he was clearly second best. They are minor victories in the grand scheme of things but in years past they would have been little defeats. In matches like this it is that kind of attitude that inspires crowds and teams alike and can help to make the difference. Ramsey has been excellent so far this season and there can be no better example of Wenger’s approach to player development paying off.<br />
<br />
All of this does not now mean I think we are going to challenge for the league, and perhaps I am guilty of Spurs-esque small-mindedness in taking so much pleasure from beating our nearest neighbours.<br />
<br />
But when you think about the consequences had we lost, it throws into relief why we are justified in getting excited about it.<br />
<br />
This was a litmus test for the way each club has approached the transfer window and had it turned sour the boos and hysteria following the Villa defeat would have paled into insignificance.<br />
<br />
Thoughts will now turn to the transfer window and the prospect of more positive developments after a summer of frustration.<br />
<br />
But the window closes in 15 hours – let's enjoy this moment for a bit longer first.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-60769134600527315962013-08-31T14:33:00.002+01:002013-08-31T14:33:52.164+01:00Some succour courtesy of Billy BeaneIt has been a North London derby week dominated by transfers, and the lack of them.<br />
<br />
With the Fenerbahce second leg dealt with as comfortably as we all expected, it has been our ongoing transfer impotence and Spurs splashing the cash which has been the focus of everyone’s attention.<br />
<br />
The free transfer of Matthieu Flamini apart, we have been unable to bring in any new faces in the final days of the transfer window and don’t appear close to a ‘marquee signing’.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile along the Seven Sisters, our nearest and dearest have taken their total summer outlay to about £90m.<br />
<br />
You have to think Daniel Levy is deliberately stalling the Bale transfer to prevent Real Madrid potentially selling players to us to help balance their books.<br />
<br />
Given our track record, I seriously doubt we would actually be able to secure any of Madrid’s most prized assets but kudos to Levy if that genuinely is his tactic – it shows the kind of cut-throat approach to the transfer market which we have lacked this summer.<br />
<br />
Whatever the reason, it is Spurs’ supporters who will go into tomorrow’s game with the warm glow that comes from seeing new recruits sign on the dotted line.<br />
<br />
On the face of it, they appear to have done well. Lamela has an excellent goal-scoring record, Soldado has a ‘been there, done that’ feel and Paulinho has been getting rave reviews from those who (unlike me) have seen him in action.<br />
<br />
Their most intriguing arrival is Christian Eriksen from Ajax, who to my unsophisticated eye looks pretty classy and he has a stellar reputation. At just 21 he will obviously get better and it could turn into another Bale-esque success story for them.<br />
<br />
But you have to ask why no other clubs were willing to bid for a player moving into the last year of his contract and my mind thinks back to why, despite being equally well-regarded, nobody else apart from us wanted Andrei Arshavin. Maybe Eriksen will ultimately turn out as underwhelming as the Russian.<br />
<br />
Anyway, enough semi-positive analysis of Tottenham. There is an interesting piece in The Times today which gives us hope.<br />
<br />
It is an interview with Billy Bean, the famed Moneyball stats guru from the Oakland A’s baseball team.<br />
<br />
The thrust of Bean’s approach recently has been to focus on cutting the crap from the bottom of their squad and raising the quality level of their weakest link, rather than trying to add cream to the top. And by all accounts it is working for the A’s.<br />
<br />
The hope has to be that mirrors what Arsenal have done this summer by shedding so much dross from the squad during the close season. The way we have handled the in-coming side of the transfer window has been dreadful, and we’ll only truly be able to reflect on our business at the strike of midnight on Monday.<br />
<br />
But you can’t argue that while our squad is thinner, player-for-player it is better now than it was at the end of May.<br />
<br />
Tottenham, on the other hand, can’t be so sure that their new signings will actually improve them overall. As Wenger said yesterday, it is quite a risk to bring in so many bodies at once.<br />
<br />
Spurs have a pretty ropey transfer record recently and although Baldini and Villas-Boas have not overseen them all, the latest signings will need to prove themselves on the pitch.<br />
<br />
They face their first real test tomorrow, as do Arsenal. The pressure is on both squads, both managers and the way both clubs have handled the ins and outs this summer.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-84715500548374496242013-08-26T09:24:00.003+01:002013-08-26T09:24:30.925+01:00Foughts on Fener / Fulham / FlaminiThis is a bit of a retrospective post due to technical glitches but at least it wraps up a pretty positive week.<br />
<br />
<b>Fenerbahce</b><br />
It was a terrific result on Wednesday and relieved some of the gloomy atmosphere around Wenger and the club following the Villa defeat.<br />
<br />
The home side were staggeringly poor. At first I thought they were playing conservatively, then I feared they were lulling us into a false sense of security before I realised that actually they just weren’t very good. It was so straightforward it made me question the need for the lowest placed team from England, Spain, Italy or Germany to qualify for the group stage but looking back they haven’t always progressed and a couple may not this time – we just seem to handle this stage easily.<br />
<br />
Every Arsenal player performed decently, with Ramsey winning most plaudits for his effort and goal. His combination with Jack Wilshere was encouraging and having Ramsey take more of the Arteta role gave the side more ballast than Jack offered last weekend. What struck me most was how one-sided our attacking play can be. With Cazorla and Rosicky floating around in an inside-forward position on the left rather than offering genuine width, everything went Theo’s way. Pretty much all overlaps were down the right and while that may be a deliberate tactical ploy on Arsene’s behalf, there are downsides. Firstly, you can’t rely on Theo to consistently deliver quality even if he does have plenty of the ball, it must make it easier for teams who are more defensively astute to stymie our attacks, and we’re limiting any creative input from Gibbs or whoever is playing left back.<br />
<br />
As always, it’s easy to over-react to this win, just as it was to the loss on Saturday. We’re not always going roll over teams as easily as we did Fenerbahce and we’re not always going to lose our heads as we did against Villa.<br />
<br />
<b>Fulham</b><br />
It sounds ridiculous to say it after one league match but if we are to have any hope of getting ‘in the mix’ at the top of the table we had to take three points on Saturday. Not only to get us closer to our rivals but for player and supporter confidence. Even though we appear to have secured our place in the Champions League group stage after only one leg of the qualifier, imagine going to Spurs with one or no points and £150m cash still in the bank.<br />
<br />
Thankfully, the team again did well to ignore the ‘crisis’ talk and earned a good three points. Ramsey impressed as 'quarterback’, Cazorla looked far more like his old self, Walcott was sharp and Podolski hopefully did enough to stop the rumours of a transfer away. I don’t think the German will ever dominate a match like Cazorla, for example, but he is a solid international who has a handy goal scoring record for us and it would weaken the team to loan him out or sell him.<br />
<br />
Like the Fenerbahce match, it is difficult to read much meaning into this result. I always think of Fulham as one of those sides that if Arsenal do their jobs properly and give everything for a win, it will happen. Fulham will never seek to out-muscle us and should not have enough quality to outplay us but – as they showed last year in the 3-3 draw – if we do not give them the respect they deserve it will cost us.<br />
<br />
But it was a professional job and Arsenal did what was required. The only worry is prior to our second goal we continued to play football on the edge – because everyone is so committed to attack, one misplaced pass or mis-control leaves us wide open and there is no solid foundation to fall back on. Mistakes cost us badly against Villa but we managed to limit Fulham to a consolation goal. Better sides will punish us more.<br />
<br />
<b>Flamini</b><br />
While there were positives to take on the pitch, the story off it remains dispiriting. The latest crack in the transfer window is the possible return of Mathieu Flamini.<br />
<br />
On the point about whether Flamini should be ‘allowed’ back after leaving in the first place, I’ve said ever since he departed it was a mistake to not give him the contract he deserved. He was one of our best players, if not the best, in that 2007/08 team that went as close to winning the league as any post-Invincibles side. He was the real captain of that team but Wenger decided to go down a different route and let him go. As much as we try to convince ourselves everyone who leaves are mercenaries, they don’t all fit neatly into that category and for me Flamini deserved better.<br />
<br />
But if we are going to sign him, why not do it last week and give us an extra body to choose from on Saturday? Yes, it is only one match but either Flamini is a good addition to the squad or he isn’t. Wenger will probably say it depends on whether we bring in Cabaye from Newcastle. If so, why haven’t we tied up the Cabaye deal if we truly think he is the best choice? It all screams of not having a transfer strategy. Or just being inept at carrying it out.<br />
<br />
Infuriating, and I’m not even going to get started on some of the other names we’ve been linked with - there is no point building our hopes up/getting even more frustrated. Suffice to say, the squad will be strong enough to overcome Fenerbahce on Tuesday but we have just one week to get it ready for the far tougher challenges it will face before January.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-22421431038716689572013-08-18T15:16:00.000+01:002013-08-18T15:16:12.130+01:00Only one way we’ll find out who is to blameWe’re almost 24 hours on from yesterday’s match but it still feels like supporters are coming to terms with the result, after another big portion of fans reached breaking point.<br />
<br />
It’s obviously not the scoreline itself, the quality of the performance or heartbreak at seeing glory slip through our fingers that is to blame – it was seeing the Arsenal myth get exposed once too often that triggered the outpouring of fury.<br />
<br />
We started well and deservedly held a lead after 20 minutes when Villa were awarded the first penalty. It came because a static Jack Wilshere (playing in an anchor role that doesn’t suit him) let Agbonlahor weave past him too easily, before Koscielny missed a straightforward tackle and Szczesny rushed out and took the striker down.<br />
<br />
The referee, Anthony Taylor, appeared to let an advantage play out before deciding to award a penalty as well. What was a fairly minor quibble seemed to become a major injustice in Arsenal eyes – particular Jack’s – and they never recovered. They became frantic and ragged, reacting to every questionable decision by the referee as if it were part of a conspiracy. They lost what shape they had held at the start of the match and, like our manager who blamed the referee for much of what went wrong, looked for excuses in others rather doing something about their own shortcomings.<br />
<br />
It was a petulant response and the problems were made worse when a tired or under-prepared Santi Cazorla twice lost possession easily, the first time leading to the second Villa penalty and the second Koscielny’s sending off.<br />
<br />
Mikel Arteta’s absence played a major part in the lack of cohesion within the team and the lack of focus on the task at hand. But you have to wonder as well whether the players are even more frustrated than the fans at the lack of new arrivals over the summer – they know better than anyone that without reinforcements they have no chance of challenging for honours and another year of their career will slip by without silverware. As much as we think footballers are all mercenaries, they want to win things too.<br />
<br />
It triggered more desperate pleas inside and outside the ground for money to be spent. Leaving aside the question whether new signings would actually make much of a difference when there are real tactical problems to be addressed, both the board and Wenger are being blamed for the lack of signings.<br />
<br />
Surely even his strongest supporters will acknowledge that only when the manager is replaced will we truly know whether it is Wenger or the board’s intransigence that is the root cause.<br />
<br />
Personally, I think it is Wenger’s but I hope the board stand up and show some leadership by deciding this really is his final season instead of hiding behind him. What that means for the remainder of the transfer window (would you really expect a board like ours to bankroll spending for a boss they may replace?) is anyone’s guess but I’m preparing for things to get worse before they get better.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-76487020243630394422013-08-18T10:12:00.000+01:002013-08-18T10:36:51.980+01:00Arsenal v Villa - ref decisions analysed<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt;">I’m going
to write about the match and why we lost separately later but considering
everyone - not least of whom Wenger - has been getting worked up about the
referee Anthony Taylor’s performance I thought I’d look at each decision he
made.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">I’m not
usually a referee basher but he did get at least
two big decisions wrong – he appeared to play an advantage (but didn’t signal
it) on the first penalty and then still awarded a spot kick; and he should have
sent off Vlaar in the second half.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Other than that, </span></span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 13px;">I think most of the incidents, such as the second penalty, were arguable either way and Villa got the rough end of a few decisions too - Luna didn’t deserve his booking and Rosicky probably should have been booked. </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: 10pt;">Koscielny’s red card was one that, if he was
managing the game better, would not have happened. Overall, I wouldn't say Taylor was as much of a factor in the game as Wenger and others are making out.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">For the
record, I’ve only looked at the fouls given and bookings made so if there were
separate incidents that should have resulted in free kicks then they are not included here. Also, the timeline is in reverse order as I’ve lifted the match text commentary from the BBC website here: <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/23644714">http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/23644714</a><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">And no, I
don’t have anything better to do this Sunday morning…<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Gabriel Agbonlahor is cautioned by
the ref for unsporting behaviour.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">90:00+4:37Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">90:00+4:27<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Free kick awarded for an unfair
challenge on Jack Wilshere by Gabriel Agbonlahor.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair and
fair. Should have been booked earlier, another deliberate kick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">89:50<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Unfair challenge on Bacary Sagna by
Christian Benteke results in a free kick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair.
Benteke stands his ground. No real intent to move Sagna in mid air but he does
land horribly. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">87:50<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Free kick awarded for an unfair
challenge on Jack Wilshere by Leandro Bacuna.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair. Shove
in the back.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">80:56<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Foul by Karim El Ahmadi on Tomas
Rosicky, free kick awarded.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair. More
harrying.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">78:27<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Santi Cazorla is cautioned.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">78:27Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Not fair.
Given the amount of ‘first foul’ leniency earlier in the game this is a harsh
booking.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">78:22<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Foul by Santi Cazorla on Fabian
Delph, free kick awarded.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair.
Miscontrolled, late tackle but no impact made.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">75:53<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fabian Delph gives away a free kick
for an unfair challenge on Carl Jenkinson.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fortunate.
Both players collide, but if anything Jenkinson looks late on Delph.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">70:08<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Theo Walcott fouled by Ashley
Westwood, the ref awards a free kick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Marginal.
Two players jumping for a bouncing ball.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">68:20<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ron Vlaar gives away a free kick for
an unfair challenge on Tomas Rosicky.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Very not fair.
Should have been a booking and then a sending off for his second yellow; no
difference in principle to the Benteke caution a few minutes earlier.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">66:06<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Red card for Laurent Koscielny.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">66:06Dismissal<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Dismissal<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">65:59<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Laurent Koscielny challenges Andreas
Weimann unfairly and gives away a free kick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Mmmm…
Arguably fair because Weimann appears to leap out from a challenge that was
never made but Koscielny was late trying to get to the ball. Given the doubts
the ref surely had in his mind from the first yellow, I would have expected a
stern warning. Mertesacker lucky not to get a yellow in the follow-up advantage
and Benteke does him a favour by not making a meal of his two footed challenge.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">64:57Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">64:57<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ashley Westwood is shown a yellow
card.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">64:53<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Unfair challenge on Aaron Ramsey by
Ashley Westwood results in a free kick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair.
Challenge from behind. No complaints from anyone.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">60:13Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">60:13<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Laurent Koscielny shown a yellow
card.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">60:06<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Gabriel Agbonlahor fouled by Laurent
Koscielny, the ref awards a Penalty.</span></b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fairish. If
you’re Villa you say it is a penalty, if you’re Arsenal you say he won the
ball. Koscielny does win the ball but he also does make quite a big impact on
Agbonlahor’s trailing leg. Camera angle gives a ref’s eye view and, trying to
be neutral, I struggle to see how he would see him clipping his foot when he
would surely have been focusing on the ball? <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">59:17Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">59:17<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Christian Benteke is shown a yellow
card.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">59:06<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Christian Benteke concedes a free
kick for a foul on Aaron Ramsey.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair.
Ramsey looking to start an attack and is brought down. No complaints from
Benteke.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">54:31<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Matthew Lowton concedes a free kick
for a foul on Jack Wilshere.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair / not
fair. Cynical follow through after ball played away but, again, ‘first foul’
theory comes into play. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">53:45<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Per Mertesacker concedes a free kick
for a foul on Gabriel Agbonlahor.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair.
Classic example of a player winning a free kick. Sees Mertesacker coming, gets
in front of him, is held and then falls over.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">52:48<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Unfair challenge on Andreas Weimann
by Bacary Sagna results in a free kick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Not fair.
Just two players jockeying for the ball. It’s a man’s game!<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">47:53<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Unfair challenge on Jack Wilshere by
Gabriel Agbonlahor results in a free kick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair / not
fair. Another chase back by Agbonlahor where he made contact. Not as deliberate
as his last one but arguably could trigger a booking given the totting up
theory.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">45:00+3:37Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">45:00+3:37<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Caution for Antonio Luna.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">45:00+2:51<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Free kick awarded for a foul by
Antonio Luna on Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.</span></b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fortunate.
Both players slide with knees (ie not studs) first and appear to make contact
simultaneously. Could be argued as a foul either way and can’t see how it is a
booking for Luna. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">45:00+0:40<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ashley Westwood concedes a free kick
for a foul on Jack Wilshere.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair. High
foot, though not really endangering Jack.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">40:25<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Free kick awarded for a foul by
Aaron Ramsey on Fabian Delph.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fairish.
Slightly mis-timed interception.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">39:30<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Unfair challenge on Aaron Ramsey by
Gabriel Agbonlahor results in a free kick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair.
Deliberate clip of the heels.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">38:03<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ashley Westwood concedes a free kick
for a foul on Tomas Rosicky.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair / not
fair. Cynical hack from behind from Westwood. Fabled ‘first foul’ rule probably
applies but could have been bookng.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">32:59<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Free kick awarded for a foul by
Tomas Rosicky on Gabriel Agbonlahor.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair / fortunate.
Another poor challenge by Rosicky, his third, could easily have led to a yellow
card.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">32:19<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Karim El Ahmadi challenges Jack
Wilshere unfairly and gives away a free kick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair. El
Ahmadi runs into the back of Jack.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">29:51<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Jack Wilshere booked for unsporting
behaviour.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">29:51 Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Unfair.
Wilshere reacts to Vlaar’s foul by getting up and shoving him. Unless he said
something out of turn to the referee it doesn’t appear to warrant a caution.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">29:30<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ron Vlaar is given a yellow card.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">29:30Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">29:06<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Ron Vlaar concedes a free kick for a
foul on Jack Wilshere.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair. Vlaar
wipes out Wilshere and rightly gets booked. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">23:40<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Olivier Giroud concedes a free kick
for a foul on Antonio Luna.</span></b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Not fair.
Unless the camera angle from the ref’s side shows Giroud’s elbow makes contact
with Luna, it just looks like he jumps higher than the defender who doesn’t
make any effort to head it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">20:52<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Wojciech Szczesny goes into the book
for unsporting behaviour.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">20:52Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Booking<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">20:35<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Penalty awarded for a foul by
Wojciech Szczesny on Gabriel Agbonlahor.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Unfair and
fair. Definite penalty but referee clearly only whistles after seeing Weimann’s
shot go wide. No signal of advantage given. Szczesny could have been sent off,
though.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">17:55<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Free kick awarded for a foul by
Bacary Sagna on Fabian Delph.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair. Delph
hits the ball too far but Sagna clips him after slightly mis-timing the
attempted interception.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">14:41<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Foul by Olivier Giroud on Matthew
Lowton, free kick awarded.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair / not
fair. Giroud doesn’t jump for a bouncing ball and does move toward a leaping
Lowton and knocks him in mid-air.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">10:37<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Unfair challenge on Karim El Ahmadi
by Aaron Ramsey results in a free kick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Not fair.
El Ahmadi’s heel may flick Ramsey accidentally but contact looks minimal and
certainly doesn’t look intentional.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">9:10<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Free kick awarded for a foul by
Tomas Rosicky on Ashley Westwood.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair.
Clumsy, late tackle by Rosicky who chases a poorly weighted lay-off from the
Ox. Gets a lecture from the ref.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">4:14<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Foul by Aaron Ramsey on Christian
Benteke, free kick awarded.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair.
Ramsey misplaces a pass and in his eagerness to make up for his mistake runs
into the back of Benteke.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">3:22<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><b><span style="font-size: 10pt;">Andreas Weimann is penalised for
handball and concedes a free kick.</span></b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair/fortunate.
Ball bounces high and Weimann controls it with what looks like the top of his
arm but from a distance could be his upper chest. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">2:47<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Unfair challenge on Fabian Delph by
Tomas Rosicky results in a free kick.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair.
Rosicky slides in the rear side – gets the ball but also takes Delph’s legs in
the same motion. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">2:09<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Free kick awarded for an unfair
challenge on Jack Wilshere by Gabriel Agbonlahor.<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Fair/fortunate.
Agbonlahor harries Wilshere at his back but nothing major.</span><span style="font-family: Arial;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-66946938350113504312013-08-17T08:31:00.001+01:002013-08-17T08:31:32.047+01:00The season doesn’t start hereIt’s strange to arrive at the morning of our season opener and not feel the usual mix of excitement and optimism, or at least intrigue.<br />
<br />
That’s because the summer usually involves new signings or squad promotions which bring fresh blood into the team, making me either convinced we’ll overcome our faults and challenge for honours or scared witless that everything will come crashing down.<br />
<br />
This time round it just feels like we’re in for more of the same. Arteta’s injury apart, the team we field against Villa today will in all likelihood be exactly the same as the one that won at Newcastle on the final day of last season.<br />
<br />
Really, our season will start against Sunderland on September 14, the first match after the transfer window shuts. It’s a stupid system that everyone is left dangling until the first three league fixtures – not to mention both legs of the Champions League qualifiers – are completed before we know who our squad members will be for the campaign.<br />
<br />
But that is nothing compared to the stupidity of the way Arsenal have done their transfer business this summer.<br />
<br />
The good ship Prudence was launched with high expectations after Ivan Gazidis’s ‘new era of financial firepower’ rhetoric, it coasted through the Higuain speculation before hitting weather off Irony Bay with the signing of an injury-prone French teenager in the form of Yaya Sanogo. Then it crashed into the Suarez £40,000,001m storm and has now properly run aground in Plain Embarrassing Straits with Wenger blaming the market and other clubs for doing business early as the reasons we haven’t signed anyone of note.<br />
<br />
I could moan away for another 1,000 words about how badly the Club has handled things but, in the interests of readers’ sanity, let me try to be brief: we have no transfer strategy; our scouting system is failing; we don’t have the manpower to complete deals; the messages from Gazidis and Wenger are not the same and yet there never appears to be any pressure placed on the boss; Wenger’s perception of ‘value’ is the same as ‘discounted’; signing Suarez would have/still could undermine a huge amount of what Arsenal Football Club stands for.<br />
<br />
These aren’t completely new problems but I’ve always managed to be persuaded that they were excused by the financial constraints of financing the construction of Ashburton Grove. Now, with new commercial deals secured and having oodles of cash in the pot, I just see them as inherent flaws in Wenger’s attitude and the way that part of the Club is run.<br />
<br />
The one plus has been the amount of deadwood we have managed to chop out. Bendtner and Park Ju-Young remain but getting rid of Squillaci, Arshavin, Denilson, Santos, Chamakh and, best of all, persuading Roma to pay actual money for Gervinho, in the course of three months is pretty sharp.<br />
<br />
But of course virtually all of these players represent failures of our transfer policies in the first place. With the exception of Gervinho they have had to be written off by the Club because they were literally worthless.<br />
<br />
Questions need to be asked both about how and why we targeted these players in the first place and also about how they were treated (by that I mean coached as well as the atmosphere within the ‘Colney creche’) once they arrived. Basically, were they crap when we bought them or did we make them crap? But there is no feeling that those questions ARE being asked, either by Wenger or anyone supposedly above him.<br />
<br />
So we arrive at the start of the season not having suffered the traditional trauma of selling our best player but equally not having taken the opportunity to use some of our mammoth cash pile. The teams that will be competing for the title have all undergone upheaval to a greater or lesser degree by appointing Moyes, Mourinho and Pellegrini. This was a chance to add even more pressure on them by – crazy thought this – buying players that are better than theirs.<br />
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It all still may happen in the final days of the window. But it hasn’t so far this summer and it hasn’t in any of the last eight or nine so don’t build your hopes up.John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1258548345595358816.post-50387680212658262922013-07-20T09:12:00.000+01:002013-07-20T09:12:55.461+01:00Suarez and Rooney – between the devil and the shallow red git<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">We all remember those breath-taking transfers. For me, the hallucinatory sight of Dennis Bergkamp standing in red and white at Highbury and a beaming Sol Campbell shaking hands with Arsene at London Colney stand out as the real jaw droppers. Even thinking back to those moments now brings a smile to my face.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Should the growing speculation of Arsenal’s desire to sign Luis Suarez or Wayne Rooney be proved true, it will feel similar but without any of the joy. How could you take pleasure in recruiting two players with such ugly histories?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I’ll deal with Rooney first. I know it is almost 10 years ago but I’ll never forgive him for his contribution to ending the Invincibles’ run at Old Trafford.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I’ve watched the clip of him diving over Sol’s leg again for the first time in years this morning (remind yourselves here if you dare: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eg7jYCcvO4U&t=1m15s" target="_blank">Rooney dive video</a></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">) and it still riles me. Fine, Sol shouldn’t have flashed a leg at the ball, but that was a dive by Rooney, pure and simple.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">That leap, in a game were there was nothing to choose between the two teams, triggered the end of that glorious period. It was a group so committed to the beauty of football that to see the unbeaten run end in such an unjust way was devastating for them. Of course they could have shown more resilience afterwards and not stumbled for so long but Rooney had a central role in sparking them fall from the top of the tree and I can’t forgive him for it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Now for Suarez. This is a man who has been banned for racially abusing a black player, showed great delight at committing a handball in a World Cup quarter final, has twice been banned for biting opponents and is currently in part way through a 10 match suspension for the latest of the two chomps.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">How can you want to sign a person who has done all that? Forget whether they will improve your starting XI or not, what on earth would want you to bring someone like that into your football club, nevermind potentially blowing at least half of your transfer kitty on him?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">There is no shame in wanting to work to a higher standard compared to other clubs. It is a proud part of our tradition that we have at least strived to be a club that does things honourably and in recent years our self-sacrificing pursuit of living within our means and taking FFP seriously while our rivals have been ‘financial doping’ has reflected we still try to work to a better set of rules. Wenger forever lauds our topping of the fair play league whenever it happens (where’s the trophy for that!) so it must be close to his heart.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I have no doubt there would be double standards involved if these two had done what they did in an Arsenal shirt - dozens of my Arsenal heroes have bent the rules over time and I have continued to worship them regardless. But I’d like to think even as one-eyed a supporter as me would draw a line at backing an Arsenal man who committed any of Suarez’s most heinous acts.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Both players are not Wenger players, not Arsenal players. For a man who puts so much store by how players live their lives, how could Wenger want someone with Rooney’s lifestyle? And for a man who believes so strongly in multiculturalism and looking beyond a passport, how can he want someone with Suarez’s attitudes?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I don’t understand why we would want them in the first place or, if the speculation isn’t true, why the club wouldn’t quash rumours linking us to such degenerates.</span></div>
John Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17771475960184948637noreply@blogger.com1