Our big nemesis, our achilles heel if you may.
Now we have another date with them. Away.
A big match - in my view as big as the Liverpool and Man U games.
We know what we will get over there - HARD KNOCKS - and the boys know what they must do to survive! I hope our boys are up for it.
One thing is for sure though - IF we lose I DO NOT want to hear a single word from Wenger or any of the players about the rough or defensive tactics that Bolton will SURELY use. They must give no excuses because they know beforehand. They must go there strong and brave - but sensible! They must maintain their game and focus on their aim - ALL 3 POINTS (although a draw wont really be tragic).
I think the team that will line up will be:
Lehmann
Eboue - Toure - Senderos - Clichy
Gilberto - Flamini
Hleb - Cesc - Ljunberg
Henry
RvP is suspended for this game, while Djorou, Baptista, Rosicky and Ade would most likely start on the bench. Quality wise Bolton are not in our league - but it isnt quality alone that decides games in England - we all know that.
Despite our recent record there, I am funnily optimistic.
I predict: 1-2 Advantage Arsenal! (Hleb and Ljunberg)
Goodluck to the boys. Lets cling to the coattails of those bloody Ruskis and Mancs.
PS: I hope the ManU-Chelsea game turns into an all out 22 man fist fight brawl - with numerous yellow and red cards littering the game - and with ManU just nicking it. And ofcourse heavy suspensions and fines for everyone involved! That should “soften” both of them up! 
62 Responses to “Grey, Gloomy and Rainy - That?s Bolton For You”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
November 24th, 2006 at 9:25 am
Apparently Henry is out, so Ade will start up front - not as big a problem as it could be, because he looks effective in 451. Personally I’d go for Baptista in the middle ahead of Flamini, we need all the muscle and height we can get.
November 24th, 2006 at 10:39 am
No point putting Baptista in the middle, he might look the part but he’s never played like a pitbull in midfield.
Best line-up would be
Lehmann
Eboue, Toure, Senderos, Clichy
Hleb, Gilberto, Fabregas Ljungberg
Van Persie, Baptista
November 24th, 2006 at 10:42 am
Someone above said RVP is suspended.
If Henry is OUT, and RVP suspended…
Cue up… Jeremie Aliadiare.
Front and center.
Here is “YOUR CHANCE”.
November 24th, 2006 at 10:47 am
From Arsenal.com:
Henry is OUT with a neck injury (says its “short term” might be back for Fulham)
RVP is suspended.
If Aliadiare is EVER going to get a chance to start at this club, it would be tomorrow. If he isn’t in the line-up, I’d say it speaks volumes. It would be time to pack the bags, and looking for work elsewhere.
Rosicky and Gallas still out… this game will be one in which our “bench depth” will be tested. I hope they step up big. We need a “W”…
November 24th, 2006 at 10:52 am
Is Van Persie not suspended? Probably necessitates 451 if he is, although I think that’s what we would have played anyway.
Baptista may not have looked like a pitbull for Real, where his form was indifferent until they finally played him in his preferred role coming from midfield to join the striker, play one-twos, score goals, but I think it’s fair to say most players in spain tumble with the slightest contact. For definites, he’s good in the air and Bolton are a set piece team.
November 24th, 2006 at 10:54 am
Aliadiere will surely be on the bench. I think Charlton at home is more the sort of game he’d start rather than Bolton away.
November 24th, 2006 at 11:08 am
Why Charlton at home?
We can’t take anyone lightly.
We drew with Newcastle at home, when we put Henry on the bench to start.
He should start when the opportunity presents itself, due to injury and suspension… like NOW!
If he can’t play away at Bolton, I don’t want him either. I think he CAN compete at this level, and want to see him get his chance. This is his chance.
November 24th, 2006 at 11:22 am
I think he’s a good player and can compete at this level, he’s always done the business in the coca-cola, but for it’s about rebuilding confidence after a few injury-ravaged seasons and the loan disaster of West Ham and Celtic. As such, I’d want to to play him in a few football games, not cripple his confidence in the midst of air assault and physical battle vs Bolton. In my view, I think Wenger will do the same as he did with Van Persie, let him score in the reserves, let him score in the coca cola, give him some minutes at the end of games and once he’s scoring then and his confidence is very high he should have the chance to start.
November 24th, 2006 at 11:46 am
Why has the 4-5-1 which was born of necessity last season now become our preferred formation? Why are we playing 4-5-1 at home? Why are we playing 4-5-1 on the road against lesser teams? Am I missing something? Did Bolton suddenly become a scary offensive powerhouse that ‘dictates’ we play 4-5-1. WTF? Chelsea has even dropped 4-5-1 and now play 4-4-2 for crying out loud.
Eboue-Toure-Senderos-Clichy
Hleb/Walcott-Fabregas-Baptista-Ljungberg/Rosicky?
Adebayor-Aliadiere
Let’s show some chutzpah. Go big or go home.
November 24th, 2006 at 12:06 pm
Our back 5 is set, as is Gilberto. I think Cesc and Hleb are definites especially because Rosicky is out. That leaves three spots for Flamini, Freddie, Baptista, Theo, Ade, and Ali. As for guessing Arsene's mind, I wouldn't be suprised to see any of them. But if I were picking I would take Freddie, Baptista and Ade for this game, the latter two for their physical style, but I wouldn't mind Ali getting a significant chunk of minutes. For subs, the choices depend on how the game is going.
On second thought, Anelka and Diouf are fast, and Sendy is not. Maybe I would take Djourou ahead of Senderos today.
November 24th, 2006 at 12:36 pm
You’ve answered your own question - we can’t take anyone lightly so why risk Aliadiere? You said yourself, you “think” he can do it at this level, whereas we KNOW the likes of Adebayor/Baptista can do it at this level. There’s no way Wenger will start Aliadiere tomorrow. - what happens in the Carling Cup doesn’t really impress me or probably Wenger either.
November 24th, 2006 at 1:45 pm
Can someone please start the Aliadiere fan site. So when we can debate something else on this site. Bottom line is he does not play much for the first team. I find it hard to believe that Wenger is holding back a super star in the waiting for one reason or another. He is not good enough to play. He gets plenty of chances to play in the reserves. And others players have made it from the reserves to the first team.
November 24th, 2006 at 2:22 pm
Anyone know a bar in Hartford (surrounding area) that shows prem games?
November 24th, 2006 at 2:38 pm
to be honest i am not sad at all about henry?s short-term “injury” … a 4-5-1 physical test in the north is certainly not henrys cup of tea! he would mostly be ineffective anyways. adebayor or baptista should be better as the pointman - just as in the Man U away game.
we will miss rosicky?s creativity though.
November 24th, 2006 at 3:58 pm
i would field:
jens
eboue - toure - senderos -clichy
Hleb Cesc Flamini Freddie
Baptista
Aliadiere
that's just me…
up the arse
November 24th, 2006 at 4:25 pm
You can’t deny that he has built himself up physically. The boy is no longer a slight striker. He’s stacked. The physicality of play will not affect Aliadiare at all.
What is the RISK? We are trying to see if he can play at this level. If he can’t play away at Bolton, there is no point. At some point, you throw them into the deep end, and see if he can swim.
Tomorrow would be that time, in my estimation.
If we are playing 4-4-2, its Aliadiare that should START. If we are playing 4-5-1, with Adebayor, we ain’t gonna score a goal. We will post a ZERO on the board. Thats my prediction.
November 24th, 2006 at 4:28 pm
I like that set up…
but Rosicky is OUT.
I’d like to see Hleb Gilberto Fabregas Baptista/Ljungberg in midfield.
Bring on Theo with about 25 to 30 minutes left.
November 24th, 2006 at 4:30 pm
Have a few beverages in Hartford mate.
You don’t have to post anything about Aliadiare if you don’t wish. Thats up to you. He PLAYS in reserves and has scored there often. What else is he supposed to do to get a chance in the first team???
What “other players” have made it from Reserves? The better ones have gone out on loan.
November 24th, 2006 at 4:32 pm
Baptista and Aliadiare are strong physically. You aren’t going to push them off the ball… thats for sure.
But I think Cesc / Flamini in the center is very lightweight.
I am extremely interested to see our team selection. This is a BIG test for our club and the bench depth we allegedly have!
Should be a good match.
November 24th, 2006 at 4:35 pm
Anelka will play as a lone striker which means Senderos will man-mark him with Toure covering.
I fear Diouf’s deceptive moves may rip Clichy a new one.
Davies likes to try and play the ball off of your hand if you’re in the box to try and get a penalty.
There are three teams Anelka always scores against; Liverpool, Man City, and Arsenal.
Baptista hasn’t shown quickness or pace. If he plays, Bolton will kick him to sleep.
Against a team like Bolton, Gilberto is definitely going to play.
With no Henry or van Persie, who’s going to score for us tomorrow or even pose a threat?
Can we please sign Darren Bent or Fernando Torres or any other striker who has pace and can actually score, pref. Crespo?
What am I going to do with all this turkey?
November 24th, 2006 at 4:58 pm
Gilberto is obviously going to play.
November 24th, 2006 at 7:01 pm
This game cries calling for Diaby (he would be in my formation instead of Fabregas for this game), but we will see him play against Bolton at the Emirates stadium later, as for this game there is no way adebayor is going to be dropped for anyone, even if Henry was available.
If Aliadier ever is going to get a chance to play, it should be on the left wing in this match so he can do some damage without being bullied from Bolton defenders.
If Wenger really is brave and wants to win then he should consider this formation:
———- Lehmann —————
Eboue - Toure - Senderos - Clichy
Hleb - Cesc - Gilberto - Aliadier
———- Adebayor —————
———- Baptista —————
Adebayor have a lot of energy and have pace so he should help the midfield to win the ball back and use it well by going to either wing until he finds other options, another thing I noticed is that Adebayor can deliver good crosses, so he should deliver one to Baptista knowing that he can score with his head.
The two players can change positions with each other but baptista is not match fit to run like Adebayor all day, or he is just lazy, but he doesn’t lack pace for sure.
If Baptista had any opportunities on goal he will score for sure, at least he isn’t afraid to shoot with power and accuracy, and can definitely beat the keeper in one on one situations or either make space for him self just to unleash a shot. At least he isn’t as bad as Adebayor in front of the Goal.
Walcot would be the secret weapon on the bench and come in the last 25 minutes.
Ljungberg can play instead of Fabregas later if things turned ugly but hope it won’t reach that point.
Depending on this formation I can predict a 3-0 or 3-1 to Arsenal, they should brave from the first whistle and try to score every time they have the ball.
**Fabregas shouldnt keep the ball too much with him in this match for several reasons.
November 24th, 2006 at 7:08 pm
Like I said, I don’t mind if he plays. But I think Wenger will almost certainly play 4-5-1 - especially considering the opposition, although whether it’s necessary or not is debatable.
With Arsenal’s up and down season so far, getting a win at Bolton, or even scoring a goal, is uncertain whatever the formation or players used.
November 24th, 2006 at 7:15 pm
I think Toure will mark Anelka, Anelka drifts out left. Senderos has no pace.
November 24th, 2006 at 7:22 pm
The team should be something like this:
———-Lehmann———-
Eboue-Toure-Senderos-Clichy
———-Gilberto———
Walcott—-Fabregas—-Hleb
——-Baptista————
————-Adebayor——
Hleb and Walcott can change flanks if necessary.
The bench would be Almunia, Djourou, Flamini, Ljungberg and Aliadiere.
November 24th, 2006 at 7:27 pm
“At least he isn’t as bad as Adebayor in front of the Goal”
Man, I think Baptista is even a better finisher from Henry, you can’t compare him with Adebayor.
November 24th, 2006 at 11:20 pm
Henry’s injury could be a blessing in disguise. Was this planned?
This is the game for Ade to prove his worth. Like he did a OT, a winning goal would suit me just fine.
As Arsenal.com points out, Davies is going to get all over Clichy at left back. Same with Diouf on Eboue. Nolan is back and we have to watch out for his runs into the box. We don’t want to concede another Cahill type goal, something we have done at Bolton before.
As always, first goal is the key. So far, we haven’t conceded a single goal after scoring in a league game. If Bolton score first, can we get back?
November 25th, 2006 at 6:27 am
We can all imagine our own favourite formation but what will Wenger do?
I think he will play the following team in 4-5-1
Lehmann - Eboue, Toure, Senderos, Clichy - Hleb, Gilberto, Flamini, Fabregas, Ljungberg - Adebayor.
Baptista for Ljungberg after 60 minutes. Walcott for Hleb after 75 if we need a goal. Aliadiere for Flamini after 85 if we still need a goal. Djourou and Almunia to complete the subs.
Aliadiere can only be considered as fourth choice striker at the moment. If he gets a chance it will depend on injuries and suspension as well as tactical choices such as Wenger keeping 4-4-2 today. I feel a little sorry for him but there is no room for sentiment if the team wants to improve and win trophies. Adebayor scored the only goal against Old Trafford in our last trip north this year. For that he deserves to be first pick striker today.
November 25th, 2006 at 6:30 am
I forgot a prediction. 1-0 to Arsenal with Adebayor scoring the only goal (a good bit of heart rather than head in that prediction!). A struggle to get that result but if it is achieved, this week could be a turning-point.
November 25th, 2006 at 7:12 am
There is no way in hell a healthy, fit Ljunberg isn’t going to start. I wouldn’t start Baptista or Walcott either.
November 25th, 2006 at 7:29 am
I think everyone agrees on the back five. The rest may look like this;
Hleb-Fabregas-Gilberto-Ljunberg-Flamini
Adebayor
Walcott will see play time as well as Baptista in their best positions respectfully. Adebayor will play the entire game unless he picks up a knock. Aliadiere only plays if Flamini or Adebayor get injured or we go up big.
Freddie might play the whole game. I don’t know about you guys but I think it’s good to have him back and he’ll do better centrally in our five man midfield than he will playing on the flank. Flamini can play on the left and will track back.
My only concern is it’s hard to see where the goals will come from. We really need to hand Bolton a beating today playing our football and concentrating on our defensive play. I’m predicting 2-1 to the Arsenal with Senderos and Baptista finishing.
We can’t afford to get caught out with Toure up on a set piece. Also they like to keep pressure up on their set plays by continually lobbing the ball into the box. We’ve got to concentrate. There other threat is the shot from distance from Anelka or Nolan. Also, Bolton play the whole game so we’ve got to stay focused for 95 minutes.
November 25th, 2006 at 10:09 am
Prediction?
Well…
if we play 4-5-1 with the only striker Adebayor up front, we won’t score.
We will post a big ZERO on the board.
When the other team is confident they can beat us, and come to play… we ususally win the game. Its when they play cautious and defensive that we struggle.
I say 0-0 if we are in a 4-5-1 with Ade up front. or… we lose 1-0.
If we play 4-4-2… I think we are better than they are, even without Henry or RVP… I think we’ll score and win.
I’d LOVE to see Adebayor prove me wrong and score a Kanu-style 3 spot, but I just don’t see it happening.
November 25th, 2006 at 12:40 pm
Hilarious. Absolutely hilarious.
I know I said tongue in cheek I couldn’t believe anyone was predicting a win over Hamburg, but I cannot believe anyone thought we could win here.
Faye scores. Exact re-run of last year. How much you wanna bet that Wenger will start complaining about Bolton time-wasting in injury time even when we look a million miles away from scoring.
bolton 3-0 victors is my prediction.
Knew Fabregas would be a waste of time. He was “marking” Faye.
November 25th, 2006 at 1:15 pm
we’re gonna win this….
walcott’s gonna be the star!!
November 25th, 2006 at 1:16 pm
We are complaining about Bolton’s physical play, as always…
they play against us like the KNOW they are going to beat us.
A point from this match will be lucky.
Is Adebayor playing? Oh, thats right, he did miss a good chance early.
Thankfully Gilberto gave us some chance with his excellent header.
Aliadiare not even on the bench. I guess his Arsenal career is over.
WE NEED A STRIKER TO COME ON… but Wenger decided not to carry him on the bench. Brilliant.
Don’t see us winning or even drawing.
All you can do is watch and hope and pray for something good.
Laughable. Where is the thought in our tactics for a game like this?
November 25th, 2006 at 1:18 pm
Hope you are correct, but you might be drunk!
Based on the 1st half I saw, don’t see how you believe we will win.
We sucked.
November 25th, 2006 at 1:18 pm
It’s not hilarious, it’s disheartening. However, the score could be alot worse than 2-1 at the half. From this vantage point, Toure was responsible for the first and second goals. He should have marked Faye and his marking of Anelka was loose to say the least. Nonetheless, getting one back before the half was a good retort. For the life of me, I cannot understand why Flamini is playing. He’s got to be pulled. He simply is not an answer at midfield. Hleb must come into the game. Further, why do we have 2 defenders on the bench, Djourou and Hoyte. I agree with Stag. Aliadiare should be at least on the bench. Finally, let’s bring Baptista into the game. One last observation, Arsenal’s whining must stop. I hate to say this but I think this attitude comes right from the top; it’s not always the referee’s fault but Wenger encourages this kind of mentality. EPL football is a tough game and Bolton plays particularly roughly but things even out and Arsenal gains no support or credence with the referee by incessantly whining. Lehman was clearly out of line and Ljunberg should know better. Let’s get it going in the second half.
November 25th, 2006 at 1:21 pm
Pull Flamini and Ljunberg; insert Hleb and Baptista; and dare I say it, it’s time to think about giving Toure a rest. Let Djourou play. Fabregas has to dig deeper. I agree with you about Aliadiare.
November 25th, 2006 at 1:26 pm
just a hunch …nothin more
…time will tell
November 25th, 2006 at 1:46 pm
Typical Arsenal, put pressure on early in the second half. Our storm blows out and Bolton get a third. How predictable.
November 25th, 2006 at 2:05 pm
Lord. I know Arsenal too well.
November 25th, 2006 at 2:22 pm
Is this another example of you “trying to shift the spiritual gods to our side by creating a situation of adversity for Arsenal” because if it is, please stop. Wenger has work to do. That’s clear. The only question is whether the work will be done in the transfer window in January. Hleb looked useless on the left.
November 25th, 2006 at 2:28 pm
Well Wenger has said ad nauseum that we are not going to buy anyone in January. He then cited the amount of players we have on loan which, considering he will never play them, means absolutely nothing.
Wenger deserves it for playing Flamini, and buying Adebayor in the first place.
November 25th, 2006 at 2:39 pm
I think you can’t trust what Wenger says about buying players because he likes to buy without other big teams being aware he’s interested in making a move. I really think we need help on the left. And it’s time to give Fabregas a rest. I love Wenger but it’s time for the team to dig deep and Wenger to acknowledge reality with respect to Flamini and perhaps Ljunberg.
November 25th, 2006 at 2:43 pm
Arsene knows how Bolton are going to play against us…
The players know how Bolton are going to play against us…
Bolton knows how they are going to play against us…
the supporters know how tehy are going to play against us…
why wouldn’t we do something a bit different… play 2 strikers up front… or try and put some strength in the middle of the pitch … or… I don’t know, I am NOT the manager.
But to watch the same match @ Bolton unfold, over and over again is just PAINFUL.
Why the f**k would Aliadiare not even make the bench? What would the point of having Flamini start, and have Djourou and Hoyte on the bench?? No striker to come on when we are down a goal and then two.
Wenger is the master. But you have to say he is clueless about trying to beat Bolton. He has NO answers at all. He has no idea.
Frankly, they are the better team at that stadium. We could play all day and all night for a week, and we wouldn’t be on top at the end.
I don’t want to hear Wenger complain or whine or say any of the typical bullshite he spews after we lose to Bolton. Its sad when he does that crap.
Out played
Out coached
AGAIN.
November 25th, 2006 at 2:47 pm
and just for kicks… let me say again what I said about a week ago…
I would take Nic Anelka over Adebayor EVERY freakin’ day of the year. He would work extremely well with Henry, in my humble opinion…
November 25th, 2006 at 2:47 pm
That’s Wenger’s problem recently. Too slow to react to flaws in the team. By the time he addresses them, another weaknesses rear its head. The cycle goes on and on…..
Most of the time, he doesn’t do anything(flamini)
November 25th, 2006 at 2:50 pm
We missed RVP and Henry today. Considering Adebayor was the front man in the 4-5-1 one of the prerequisites should be that he should be a good finisher but he consistently misses the target. Even though he played quite well made some chances for himself he didn’t even test the keeper
November 25th, 2006 at 3:00 pm
even though anelka is ofcourse a far better player than adebayor….dont forget these were his FIRST goals for bolton ALL season. so dont get too excited putting “super” in front of his name.
its typical though that he chooses to break his duck against us.
November 25th, 2006 at 3:02 pm
Curse of the former Arsenal player
November 25th, 2006 at 3:03 pm
Fred, can you imagine if he were playing with us?
He’d be getting set up by Henry, who is extremely unselfish… Fabregas, who is a gifted passer… Hleb Rosicky Theo…
He would be scoring some goals for us… there is no doubt about it.
He is a better striker than Adebayor every day of the week.
November 25th, 2006 at 3:07 pm
the main loser in this match was ARSENE WENGER!
his choice of tactics, lineup and BENCH were crazy and a bit silly to say the least.
first of all we didnt have henry or RvP against ManU so that isnt a major reason for this loss….but against Man U we had two major CREATORS in Hleb and Rosicky. Today Rosicky was injured so in GOD?s NAME DID HE REST HLEB ???? Resting him for FULHAM????
why was flamini even on the team sheet?
walcott is too physically weak to start games …by second half he was way too tired and was making basic mistakes. he shouldnt start yet and especially not at bolton. why not give him the start at fulham rather than at bolton.
Ljunberg should have been removed at least 15 minutes earlier. he has scored ONE GOAL for us in the last 16 months!!! he is of no use to us. NONE!
and now last but not the least. Adebayor. absolute rubbish.
November 25th, 2006 at 3:15 pm
I agree. We missed Henry and RVP today. Should never have started Flamini. Why play 2 defensive midfielders in a 4-5-1. Plus I’m sure everyones predicted teamsheet would have had Hleb, so why is he on the bench? Walcott played well overall. Could have had an assist if Ljungberg scored the header that hit the crossbar. Ljungberg has completely lost it. You need pace on the wing and he has lost all of it. The only position he’d be effective in is midfield but we’re well covered there. Adebayor is not Arsenal class whatsoever. Alot of tihngs went against us today, not to name the ref’s performance- shocking. Should have sent off Davies for a push on Eboue but that’s not the reason why we lost the game. We have many technical footballers but not enough finishers.
November 25th, 2006 at 3:18 pm
its just crazily ironic that our best defender was the major culprit for the first two goals. AWFUL defending from him for both goals.
in the end, we didnt have our top TWO scorers and we didnt have our top TWO creators. useless insignificants like ljunberg, adebayor and flamini started. eboue and clichy didnt do much. and toure was making mistakes. great recipe for defeat really.
we didnt outpossess them or have more goal attempts. i think we even got more yellows than them. infact they didnt really rough us up…they just played lots of long balls in the box - and watched in amusement as we quaked in fear.
all in all given this data. for the first time this season, we DESERVED to lose. today, they were just a better side. SIMPLE!
November 25th, 2006 at 3:18 pm
-A loss of concentration on a set piece gifts them a free header from two meters; goal.
-A shot from distance from Nolan or Anelka, we dare Anelka to beat us from distance even though we know he can; goal.
-We needed Senderos to mark Anelka with Kolo covering Senderos, NOT MARKING ANELKA! I wouldn’t want anyone in a foot race with Anelka. If you’re going to play with two CB’s against one striker why not give yourself the advantage by double-teaming him or one CB covering the other? That seemed to be the easy solution for Anelka. Every other team in the EPL has done that to him and guess what? It worked as he hadn’t scored all season. That’s what Bolton did to Adebayor. But no, we go and try to re-invent the wheel. I know if I had two CB’s against one striker, that’s exactly what I would do. Anyway, Anelka get’s a half-yard; goal.
The other big mistake was to play Fabregas by himself with no Hleb or Rosicky. He needed another one of the three amigos out there with him. It’s no disrespect to Walcott, Flamini, or Freddie but when players have a chemistry, you’ve got to respect that.
Flamini did okay. Walcott did well, exactly like I thought he would. Freddie should have been pulled at the half for Hleb to go in and give Fabregas some help in midfield. Fab is still only 19. Adebayor did the best he could but with a 1v2, why would you keep trying to squeeze that ball in to him; ie. why keep touching that hot-ass stove?
The tactics were dead wrong. I called Bolton’s only three threats this morning and because we didn’t respect those threats, they managed to score three different goals from those three different threats. Total lack of respect from Arsenal. Even though we hit the wood three times, we got what we deserved.
November 25th, 2006 at 3:22 pm
ofcourse he is a better striker than adebayor - adebayor shouldnt even be at arsenal … or in the premiership really.
November 25th, 2006 at 3:25 pm
We’ve been having too many losses in concentration this season. The potential in this team is staggering, we should not be 6th behind the Boltons and Portsmouths of this world. Wenger please sort this out otherwise we’ll be in the situation of last season fighting for a Champions League spot never mind winning the Premiership!
November 25th, 2006 at 3:47 pm
I remember after the Portsmouth game last season calling it early that Emmanuel Adebayor was not good enough. I took a bit of heat but predicted that next season, when he continues to fail to hit a cows arse with a banjo, that everyone would belatedly come on board and conclude he is no where near good enough. I knew with him early- like Flamini- that he didn’t have it. He had deficiencies that couldn’t be ironed out at the training ground. Most good strikers are naturally good finishers but lack in all-round play. Adebayor is the opposite- a good player who can’t shoot. That’s an irreversable situation right there.
As a team, we have a glass jaw. I mentioned it on Arsenal times. Bolton know we have a glass jaw so they just hit us with pitty-pat until they see the opening and then they strike. They know us better than we know ourselves. They know we can’t deal with random balls. They know we are a finely tuned machine that can only deal with conventional attacks. Unorthodox attacks or crosses trip us up time and time again. That’s why we will get ripped apart in Porto, who will use the full range of tricks in their own ground. If other teams realise this we will be lucky to win another game. We are a fragile sculpture that melts under any heat.
Also, Bolton had better players than us in several positions. Which wasn’t always the case before. Anelka is better than Adebayor. The whole Bolton midfield is better than Flamini. Ben Haim and Hunt are better defenders than Eboue or Clichy. Couple in the fact Bolton have much more resilence, mental strength, and cutting edge than we have, and this result isn’t a surprise at all.
November 25th, 2006 at 3:53 pm
I started my campaign about a year ago when I was screaming we need an “Anelka-type” striker with pace and that is clinical in front of goal. I’ve been screaming Darren Bent, Fernando Torres or any one that fits that mold. Can I get an Amen?
Ironic it is that the very person I was saying we needed someone in his mold would be the first person to throw Arsenal a beating this year.
I don’t blame Adebayor for the loss today as it’s tough to play as a lone striker against two marking backs. You have to be very exceptional to do that with success. Wayne Rooney is exceptional but even he couldn’t do it at the World Cup. But we also watched Diouf do it in the World Cup in Japan with great success and I’ve wondered at times how he might change the dynamic of this Arsenal team before Bolton bought him from Liverpool. Despite his antics, I’m a big fan of Diouf’s ability and wanted he and Fadiga, who both went to Bolton, to come to Arsenal. But Diouf lacks the pace required.
We still need a striker with pace that can bag fifteeen to 20 goals a season up front that’s a lot like Anelka. It could be like Yorke and Cole were for United in ‘99 when they won the treble. They both scored about twenty-five that year. Wenger said he already had a twenty-five goal a year striker and didn’t need another one. I’m sorry but two guys that can score that many goals is better than one. Then when you have two more that can give you ten a piece off the bench, are you kidding me? Do you really need to be a “mathemagician” to figure that one out? I’m sorry but three major trophies is better than one every day of the year. Do the math Arsene, do the math.
November 25th, 2006 at 8:11 pm
Well it’s hardly Wenger’s fault that Anelka left is it? He did everything he could to keep him and would have turned down ?24m rather than sell. So what’s the point of talking about Anelka as if it’s Wenger’s fault?
November 25th, 2006 at 8:15 pm
Use your brain Fred, Wenger’s thinking all became crystal clear today. Wenger rested Hleb because he full well knows that Arsenal is not going to win the Premier League - he’s throwing in the likes of Flamini, Walcott and Adebayor because they have to learn fast, and this is the only way they will.
November 26th, 2006 at 9:38 am
danny, YOU should use your brain…wenger BELIEVED he could WIN this game…