A few hours before Sunderland, and I wanted to see how people thought Arsene should approach the remainder of the season. Obviously, we need to and will field teams capable of winning all of our games; however, I think most Gooners would agree that this is a unique moment in time that would cause us to prioritize the CL final. We?ve got a couple of players nursing some niggling injuries and a few players just getting back into playing shape. How do we approach the final three PL games - three games in seven days - while also ensuring that we will be at our best for the final? Here?s how I see it:
Any team we field should be able to crush Sunderland with their feet tied together. If not, then we truly don?t deserve to place fourth. Cole, Clichy, Sol and RvP need runs as they?ve each spent most of their days in the training room this season. They need time, preferably 90 minutes, on the pitch. Hleb and Cesc are still battling persistent injuries, and I would think Toure could use an afternoon off at some point (or maybe he?s just that tough). Give these three and possibly Henry and Eboue, if needed, a rest. Let?s get everyone as healthy, fit and sharp as possible for the final push. As an aside, I also think Sunderland provides a good opportunity for Walcott to make his debut. He might not start, but I could certainly see him coming on at some point to give others a rest. I?d love to see what he can do.
This is the team I would put out:
Lehman (Almunia)
Gilbert / Djourou (Toure) / Campbell / Cole (Clichy)
Walcott / Gilberto / Diaby / Reyes (Pires)
Adebeyor / RvP (Bergkamp)
There is some inexperience there I know, but I don’t think there is a lack of talent. Plus, if you are going to rest people - and you will need to rest players with three games in seven days - this is the game to do it. Ade and RvP, on individual ability alone, should be able to put this game away. After Sunderland, I think the Man City and Wigan games, while important in their own right, become precursors to the final. You aim to win them while fielding the team that is going to play Barca to get them ready.
It?s kind of interesting to note that we have ten days from our last game against Wigan till the final on the 17th. Barcelona play Bilbao three days prior. Will Barca be tired? Is ten days too much time for us to sit around waiting? Historically, I think Arsene has done very well when he?s had lots of time to prepare for matches.
57 Responses to “Final Four Games”
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May 1st, 2006 at 8:50 am
I posted a similar post… on the same subject.
After seeing the Totts beat Bolton, I think the race for 4th place is over. Tottenham will get 4th place.
a) because West Ham don’t care about the last match of the season, they don’t want any important players injured for the FA CUP.
b) What makes us think we can win 3 games in 7 days with a rotated squad that will have little continuity. We haven’t shown that type of consistency IN THE LEAGUE all season
All our eggs are in the CL basket. It should all be geared toward that match.
I’d play everybody in the last 3 matches. You can’t just have 17 days off and be sharp. I’d play Cesc & Henry and Kolo and Eboue… halves. 45 minutes in a few games, maybe the last 30 in the last game… rotate the whole squad.
Get ASH, SOL, RVP and Bergy some playing time… get them as sharp as you can. Everyone else should be playing on eggshells. We need no more injuries.
Walcott? Sure… now is the time. Let him play in all 3 matches. Let’s trot the kid out there now, with no pressure, and see him play a bit.
All eyes on May 17th. I will watch the 3 remaining matches with little interest. As little as you can have for fanatical fans that is. I hope we win the 3, but its not what Wenger has geared towards… he has put all the effort into the CL. Shouldn’t change that now, with 4th place all but gone.
May 1st, 2006 at 9:17 am
Walcott is injured, otherwise I think he would have played.
The se are not much more than training games, so the most important things to me to do are…
Bergkamp/RVP need some time on the pitch as either one may be required to provide a cameo in the CL final. I’d give Henry/RVP 60 minutes, then go with Bergkamp/RVP.
Man City is most likely the roughest of the the 3 we’ll face, so I’d rest Henry completely from that one and start with Adebayor/Bergkamp.
Sol has to play all 3 to get back to fitness. Cole can probably attain fitness from 2 out of 3.
Pires should play whenever Cole plays, if we can get the left side going in time for the final it’s quite productive.
May 1st, 2006 at 9:43 am
I will not give up the 4th place till its Mathmatically over.
All we need to do is take things a game at a time. Sunderland, I think we can win. but remember Man Utd tied 0-0 with them. So I am sure if our legs are tied, we will lose. So lets play serious and win.
I don’t think West Ham are that unprof. they will play hard, and its a home game for them. I think A a tie would be a good score for them. They will play to get tie ..so this is what we need. We only need to win 3 coming games and wait …
Keep the Faith !
May 1st, 2006 at 9:46 am
Why should / would West Ham play hard and their best players v. Tottenham?
That would be utterly STUPID.
If any of their better players got injured in that match the manager should be FIRED.
They will NOT risk a chance at winning the FA Cup, in a match that means ZERO to them.
May 1st, 2006 at 10:09 am
I’d go for a combo of what USGunner and stag or saying. We need to try and win these games with a rotated squad, even if it looks like we’re not going to overtake Spurs for 4th. The thinking is a) you always want to win games, cause that’s what winners do to stay winners, and b) if for some weird reason Spurs screw things up, you don’t want to look silly having given up.
So play a great team today. Beat them up if possible, even though I think it will be a difficult game due to our outside focus right now, and it being an away tie where lots of vets go missing. But if anyone were to pick up a knock, you have a ton of time to heal and get fit by the 17th.
The biggest worry is injury. You don’t want to run players into the ground and make them susceptible, and you don’t want to have them go soft. Rotate, play hard, and be thankful its not Bolton and Blackburn we’re facing towards the end.
The last thing is the Wigan match. While I would like to see us resting our stars (depending on what the table looks like) its the final game at Highbury. Make sure Dennis gets a start. Maybe Bobby and Freddie, too. Its the final one, and while we want to win it, they need to be in it.
May 1st, 2006 at 10:16 am
that’ll be the same west ham who went for a break to dubai for a 5? day break before playing chelsea, went 1 up, went a man up and then gave up, losing 4-1. The west ham fans I work with were disgusted.
And the same west ham who played the cup game on sunday, went out celebrated, went out monday night and got panelled, then played liverpool on the wednesday and lost.
As much as West Ham-Tottenham game is a big old hateful derby, they have nothing to play for except the fa cup.
May 1st, 2006 at 10:36 am
As we’ve been doing in the league for a while… yes, we want to win the games, but we aren’t putting our best team out there.
If we didn’t put our best foot forward against ManU and Pompey, why now?
Play the regulars some to avoid rust. Don’t go in hard for ANY tackle. Play our finesse game and get off the pitch unscathed.
Tottenham aren’t losing to the West Ham Reserve team. The intensity level of Spurz will be SKY HIGH, and West Hams will be like they don’t care, which they shouldn’t.
Don’t hold your breath for Tottenhamz dropping points in that match.
May 1st, 2006 at 10:50 am
Fourth place was over after Portsmouth so that’s no longer the issue. Arsenal were always gonna leave such an important issue right to the last minute i.e -champions league final. Just the way we are.
What we need in these games is for Ljungberg, Reyes, Bergkamp, and Pires to actually try and shoot at the goal- all of which are totally incapable of doing so on current form.
I think Hleb is out for the season (never trust knee injuries, they just drag on) and that means we won’t be able to play our natural game in the final, which in turn means we need to start shooting to compensate for the fact that Fabregas will be the only player who can threaten Barca from midfield. Ljungberg and Reyes are both a waste of space at the moment so hopefully they can wake up and smell the coffee before Barca. Ljungberg has an injury (when doesn’t he?) so he deserves a bit of slack.
May 1st, 2006 at 11:15 am
I don’t think Reyes & Ljungberg are a “waste of space”. If they can track back all game long, running their asses off, to assist defensively… of which everyone has done a tremendous job of in the Champion’s League… then they are very valuable to the cause.
May 1st, 2006 at 11:35 am
Well, great as their tracking back has been, it’s frankly not good enough. We still should have lost about 3-0 to Villareal, which was partly to do with their ineptness going forward, and if that happened no one would be talking about how Ljungberg scampered back for this tackle or Reyes blocked a shot. It would have focused on their reluctance to go forward and consequently concede the iniative to Villareal.
If Reyes has an unforgiving Ref who doesn’t blow on his every tumble, he is a essentially a waste of space, bar the odd long pass. Reyes trys to pull a fast one in most of his games. He has no intention or idea of what he is going to do with a ball other than hope for a free kick. He is valuable in that sense only- buys us time.
May 1st, 2006 at 11:41 am
We really don’t have a best team, stag. We’ve lost with everyone out there. I’ve heard that Henry is starting, so, if Cesc is also, I guess that’s what we’re calling our best team. The inclusion of two guys. Who must NOT be hurt.
Not holding my breath for the lucky Totts to drop anything. But you can’t start thinking its over until it is. That mentality is catchy and sometimes difficult to shake in other competitions.
May 1st, 2006 at 11:49 am
I think the team we play against Wigan needs to be the team you expect to play against Barca. That is their final preparation. After that you’ve got ten days off. I think Sunderland is the game to play some of the young guns.
I agree though that Dennis must come on to partner Henry at some point in the Wigan match. Could you imagine being in the stadium when Dennis trotts out on to the pitch for both his and Highbury’s final run? Or even better, when Bergy sets up Titi for their final triumphant goal?
May 1st, 2006 at 11:50 am
Ummmm, yes… we do have a best team.
It is much like you stated, with Henry & Cesc in it, Gilberto, Kolo… Ash… Eboue… you can fill in the rest with whomever you like.
We start Henry & Cesc in a match v. Sunderland with little chance of getting 4th now… but we sit Henry at ManU.
What-f***ing-ever.
Baffling.
I really hope Henry & Cesc don’t play more than 45 minutes today.
May 1st, 2006 at 11:52 am
Henry AND Cesc start against Sunderland.
Ash on the bench.
fa la la la la…
May 1st, 2006 at 12:04 pm
Why rest Henry now if we don’t have a CL game for another 2 and a half weeks? Its all about the fixtures, dude. Get the points today and put as much pressure as you can on Spuds now.
And if Lauren returns in the summmer, is he a part of our best? And I guess since Flam is out and Clichy is in, we’re weak? You gotta look at the side in training and how they match to your tactics.
I hope we play well, no one gets hurt, and we win. That is all I hope.
May 1st, 2006 at 12:08 pm
I still think, since the CL final is so far away, that you get the chemistry going as soon as possible. Winning today could have an effect on how the Totts play in their next fixture. Its a long shot, but its also a funny old game. How many times have we seen the unexpected this season alone?
Yes, Dennis and Titi for Wigan. The spark from the concept of that pairing alone could gear us up for the three points, a final win at THOF, and a great run to the CL finals.
May 1st, 2006 at 12:09 pm
We don’t have a CL game in three days, stag. We can play whomever is fit.
May 1st, 2006 at 12:14 pm
Yeaaaaah, thats the ticket.
Let’s play them the full 90.
This is exactly when you don’t risk players getting injured. MEANINGLESS GAMES.
Not games that have huge meaning like ManU, Portsmouth and Tottenham.
You’ve gotta be kidding me.
We rest our best in the big ones, and we play them against WBA and Sunderland?
As I said… whatever.
Can’t say f-all, because we are in the Finals of the CL… it doesn’t make it correct, but you can’t complain. You can question any decision, but if we win against Barcelona, its all moot.
May 1st, 2006 at 12:20 pm
I don’t think you can totally write West Ham off. Pardew may rest some players, but the ones that do play will have plenty of motivation including a chance to earn some time in the FA Cup final - they have four pretty decent strikers vying for places. Plus, Tottenham aren’t consistent enough that it can be assumed with any certainty that they will perform.
As for AFC, I agree with you that our consistency in the league has been equally lacking, so it is difficult to say what the squad policy should be for these final games. But, in looking at the talent we have and the size of the squad at the moment I have to believe that, if we are smart about it, we can win out while getting most of the players enough rest and/or some good prep work in for the final at the same time.
May 1st, 2006 at 12:22 pm
I have to agree with you on this Stag. The timing doesn’t make sense to me either.
May 1st, 2006 at 12:33 pm
Okay you almost succeeded in winding me up. Here we go:
“This is exactly when you don’t risk players getting injured. MEANINGLESS GAMES. “
If you were a player and I was Wenger and I heard you say this, you’d get a hairdryer treatment like you read about. None of them are meaningless. We’re not out of it, and its never too early to get a run going and rebuild the chemistry. Both are vitally important to our style.
“We rest our best in the big ones, and we play them against WBA and Sunderland?”
You rest them when they need rest - keeping in mind your fixture priority - regardless of who we’re playing. That’s why the team sheets are’t posted until a few hours before the game. You don’t know who’s going to be ready, and we’ve had to play musical positions far too often this season.
“You can question any decision, but if we win against Barcelona, its all moot.”
Disagree. The money we made getting this far nearly makes up for what we would lose not being in it next season. Also, the experience is essential for the growth of our young team. Real, Juve, Barca…its been a huge step for the club and the kids that gives them an advantage over everyone else in the league. Also, Wenger’s had a blinder in Europe this season. He alone will be attractive to the best players in the world.
Unless we’re there on the training ground and in the war room, we can’t say Wenger hasn’t made the best choice for the game.
May 1st, 2006 at 12:44 pm
For me, Wenger should rotate the side with just two things in mind
1. Get everyone RESTED, FIT and FRESH for the CL final.
2. Find out the best team for the CL final - Campbell or Senderos, Flamini or Clichy or Cole, Pires or Ljunberg.
May 1st, 2006 at 12:45 pm
Scotty, we can say ANYTHING we want.
Its part of being a fan.
We can second guess, and do.
No, making the finals does NOT make up for not making the CL next season. I disagree completely. WINNING it would make up for a Lousy League campaign, thats for sure.
Yes, games ARE meaningless.
West Ham against Tottenham on Sunday. Utterly MEAININGLESS to West Ham.
Lets say we drew or lost today, and 4th place was 100% beyond us…. that would make the remaining 2 matches TOTALLY MEANINGLESS.
They become glorified training sessions in which we are trying NOT to get injured.
May 1st, 2006 at 12:47 pm
Some are more important than others, but none are meaningless. This is more than semantics.
And I encourage YOU to say what you want, but you don’t, as a manager, allow yourself to think in those terms.
May 1st, 2006 at 12:59 pm
?!!!!!!!!!!?!!!!
Some are more important than others?!
Do you think?
Yes, ummm… Manchester United and Tottenham are a bit more important than Sunderland and WBA.
Thats for fecking sure. Unfortunately, we didn’t line up as if they were any different at all.
May 1st, 2006 at 1:02 pm
Here you go.
We are up 2-0 40 minutes in.
If we remain that way at half… then HENRY and CESC need to be OFF the pitch by the 60 minute mark (if not at half).
May 1st, 2006 at 1:04 pm
Make it 3-0 with Henry scoring once and setting up 2… I think he’s had enough fun for today.
Gotta go… gotta get him off at half.
Lets get Bergkamp on the pitch with his protege RVP…
No sense in Henry playing on further.
May 1st, 2006 at 1:07 pm
By the way…
Arsenal Ladies 5 - 0 WINNERS in the FA Cup Final today over Leeds Ladies.
Congrats to the women of Arsenal.
gotta go… voices in my head!
May 1st, 2006 at 1:08 pm
The grass is long, the pitch looks sticky, Campbell is (shock horror) playing rank and we’re 3-0 - go figure.
To be fair, Sunderland really are that bad.
May 1st, 2006 at 1:28 pm
Are my comments actually coming out in English on your computer?
May 1st, 2006 at 2:09 pm
Quick guess - Diaby season over with ankle ligaments. 2nd bad challenge from the sunderland lad, Smith, who tried something similar on Fabregas.
May 1st, 2006 at 2:10 pm
Pointless tackle. Someone needs to shoot that c*nt, Smith.
We’ve been in a war this season.
May 1st, 2006 at 2:11 pm
Smith should have been shown red for that challenge on Diaby.
If his ankle is not broken it is a miracle. Not what we needed.
May 1st, 2006 at 2:11 pm
Spot on.
May 1st, 2006 at 2:14 pm
I don’t know about you guys but I’m just sick over Diaby. On the slow-mo replay, I could see the ankle/leg sag the wrong direction when his momentum took it in the air for a split second–I’d bet the house on a complete fracture. At the time, I was still screaming at the TV for Wenger to protect Cesc, put him up front and away from the hack-fest that Sunderland whipped up near the end. And then it was our brave #2 that took the cruel and frankly, despicable, boot of a Sunderland #$!@head. What a woeful season of injury for our men. After this, I almost feel we should put a b side out for the last two–its just not worth it. As for the last match at Highbury, let’s sign all of the greats to a one-day contract and play them to a 1-0 boring Arsenal victory. Man, I’m spitting daggers right now.
May 1st, 2006 at 2:20 pm
Injuries can happen at ANY time for any reason.
Whose to say WHO will get injured in a meaningless match on a wayward tackle.
voices in my head… gotta go.
May 1st, 2006 at 2:32 pm
You don’t invite injury by playing tired players - you don’t get the best out of them and you endanger their short term, or even long-term, future.
Shame about Diaby, think he had a very good game, the stupid classless nobody who fouled him deserves a Mike Tyson upper cut to the face - useless c*nt.
Mind you, this game was dismal. Campbell’s performance was even worse than West Ham. He came through well at Portsmouth, but now looks like his head is all messed up again.
May 1st, 2006 at 2:51 pm
Typical. Another ignorant thicko northerner does a “50-50″ and ruins the dreams of a young footballer. Suppose Kevin Ball will come out and say it was a fair tackle, blah, blah, blah.
Footballers should have IQ tests before they are allowed onto a football pitch, or least some sort of intelligence test. What sort of c*nt does a tackle like that in injury time when his team is losing three nil.
What a player Fabregas is. He’s gonna have to suck it up for the next two games although Song might just be good enough to keep things ticking against Man City. Our games our rarely lost in midfield.
Campbell is still a plank. So is Senderos. But at least Senderos is good quality timber. Sol has got woodworm.
May 1st, 2006 at 3:30 pm
really whats the difference between cygan, senderos and campbell ??? i think nothing…
they are all bald, put anybody with pace on them and they’re finished…..at any moment whatsoever they can blunder and throw the game away….
thank God kolo is always beside them!
May 1st, 2006 at 4:32 pm
It’s natural for a player who had been out for a lengthy period of time then back to the starting lineup to be a bit rusty. Particular when u consider he’s a big man, his body-coordination may need a bit more time than an agile little player say Clichy and Cole.
Sol Campbell is a good defender, regardless of his off pitch problem. And a good player won’t turn a lousy one overnight.
May 1st, 2006 at 4:32 pm
And yet we somehow mananged 10 STRAIGHT CLEAN SHEETS IN THE CHAMPION’S LEAGUE.
Can’t be that bad…
Matter of fact, they’re pretty damned amazin’!
May 1st, 2006 at 4:34 pm
Yes indeed Andez.
I’d say we are quite lucky to be able to slot a “SOL CAMPBELL” into the line-up with Senderos going down. He’s got experience and has played many many big games.
I think he can raise his game up for one big match… thats for sure.
May 1st, 2006 at 4:38 pm
Well Campbell couldn’t blame the West Ham performance on ring-rustiness and again today he showed the same weaknesses which blighted that performance.
The guy is finished and someone please train Djourou to play left-sided defence before Campbell ruins our champions league bid.
May 1st, 2006 at 4:47 pm
I agree with you that EVERY game is important and that the race for fourth is NOT over yet. I would also agree that only Wenger really knows the fitness level of his players. However, I think you can stand back and look at some of the personnel decisions he’s made and wonder, what? Henry starts against Sunderland and WBA, but not ManU and not Tottenham??? Each of those games were critical to our push for fourth. In fact, the Tottenham match was probably the most significant and Sunderland the least (if you can rank them). Consequently, I don’t think it’s unfair to ask some questions.
You are right though, if we win the Champions League every move Wenger made will have been the right one.
May 1st, 2006 at 4:51 pm
He’s playing in the big one.
Many folks don’t believe “he’s finished”.
He played well very recently.
In ONE big match, I’d much rather have Sol Campbell, who’ll play in the next 2 as well… than Djourou…
matter of fact, I’d rather have him in there than Senderos against Barca.
You know he’s not going to get muscled the way Senderos repeatedly was against Drogba.
I’ll go with Sol, thanx.
May 1st, 2006 at 5:22 pm
Stag I agree, I think Wenger will go with Campbell?subject to fitness. I also think the same applies to Cole?if he proves his fitness he will play. The Final, the single biggest game of Wenger?s career, all sentiment will be put aside and he will field the players he believes are best equipped to both nullify and beat Barcelona.
Players are a mix of skill, experience and attitude. I still rate Cole and Campbell?s skill and experience?not convinced about their attitude. Then again Wenger is perfectly positioned to gauge that.
I do have a residual concern for what impact their inclusion may have on the team?s spirit. I can?t quantify that, but there was a special spirit that developed over the Champions League season?.and it grew largely without Campbell and Cole.
Gutted for Diaby?.can?t remember feeling so sick for a young player in quite a while. If he?s out, it?s quite a blow to our reserve depth.
May 1st, 2006 at 6:01 pm
campbell and cygan didnt play in any of those 10 games……….so why are you saying “they” ??
in the end, the future of all three of them can only lie in 4-5-1 which protects them…
May 1st, 2006 at 7:27 pm
USG, the only answer I have to your questions about resting Henry against the clubs we did is “look who we had coming up in the fixtures”. We had a crucial semi-final. Today is a totally different story. We’ve got plenty of time to rest as long as he’s careful, and putting more pressure on Tottenham can be a priority.
May 1st, 2006 at 7:30 pm
Well said. Reyes has been one of the reasons Flamini has been so solid in Europe. Tracking back and covering for him. Ljungberg’s game has changed alot recently, there’s no one to play the Bergkampesq pass to him and his pace has gone. He’s holding the ball and playing people in, tackling and tracking and is a very important player for us still. Agreed, he should be scoring but to call these players a ‘waste of space’ is narrow minded. The 4-5-1 formation just doesn’t work without these two (and Hleb too).
Villarreal was a team performance, they all played badly, apart from Jens.
May 1st, 2006 at 7:30 pm
Sol can’t jump.
May 1st, 2006 at 8:16 pm
He was jumping alright at Portsmouth, now all of a sudden he can’t jump. I think that was the worst game I’ve ever seen him play - I mean at West Ham he made two mistakes, at Sunderland he couldn’t do anything - he was like a vegetable. It’s not like he was under pressure, we were 3-0 up and most of his mistakes were after that.
May 1st, 2006 at 8:20 pm
4th place is as good as gone so why not prepare for the CL final now. Let the playes like Cole, Clichy and Cole get playing time and assess their readiness for the CL final in the event Sendoros and Flamini do not recover in time. Involve players like Henry, Cesc, Gilberto, Toure and Eboue sufficiently so that they remain match fit and minimize risks of injuries. Certainly don’t want what happened to Diaby against Sunderland today happen to one of our key players. So one half of a game is good enough for them. Having 10 days of break between last EPL game and CL final is good for our boys as it will allow them to be fresh and there is time for injuries to heal.
May 1st, 2006 at 8:29 pm
Campbell didn’t play against Villareal?
Really?
Geez, that sure looked like him out there for the full 90 minutes. Hell, he was a rock out there against Villareal.
He played… and he played very well.
May 1st, 2006 at 8:32 pm
Huh?
He can’t jump, yet he’s always been considered one of England’s best defenders?
Geez, he must have been doing something right all these years?
Its the WHITE MEN CAN’T JUMP Scotty.
(good movie!)
May 1st, 2006 at 9:24 pm
Well we all know he can dance with the ladies.
May 1st, 2006 at 9:27 pm
right on!
May 2nd, 2006 at 4:01 am
is it a coincidence that the game he features is the one that we could easily have lost…and NO he didnt play so well. the only reason it was a clean sheet was becos of lehmann and becos their strikers missed easy….while in our other games we were not in such direct danger….so please….
if you are so hyped on the 10 successive clean sheets why do u still think campbell should start over senderos in the final? inconsistent comments on your part mr. stag.
in the end, this was not even the point of my comment…the point is that when campbell, cygan and senderos are playing we fans are worried the same exact way praying they dont blunder! it makes no difference which of them plays…none of these three are good enough for first choice NEXT season.
senderos is good enough for 3rd choice though (becos of age and commitment) to gain more experience….while we should just flog cygan and campbell in the summer….