Arsenal – Westham
December 31, 2007 | 43 Comments
A performance at Goodison Park that needs no further elaboration. 4 shots – 4 goals. How many times have we said that about an Arsenal team?
It’s West Ham up next and if I remember correctly, they’re the only team to have done the double over Arsenal and Man United last year. Anyway the past is best forgotten and history while helpful is useless when it comes to the game; unless people are psychologically bogged down by a bogey team. If we for example don’t get all 3 tomorrow the media will start blabbing about bogey teams conveniently forgetting that ManU are in a worse predicament with regards to West Ham right now.
Team news is that Sagna is rested which means Hoyte gets a game…I’m not too worried. Hoyte will do well for 1 game for sure. I don’t know whether Clichy will start either; he’s due a rest as well. Eboue is back as well thus disappointing numerous people here who believe he was the worst player on the pitch when that was far from true. His playacting is a different thing but there’s no doubt he brings a bit more pace and power on the right hand side. So if he can cut the crap I wont mind him staying at all.
West Ham are a decent team. I have a feeling that Mark Noble will not have a great game tomorrow as the Hleb incident will be on his mind each time he crosses paths. Matty Upson who did us a favour last time against ManU and Freddie as well will be raring to do well against us. Anyway I’m too tired to think of anything but the obvious stuff that Carlton Cole will do nothing against us. Dean Ashton will win 1 million headers in the air if he starts.
Here’s the squad that AW will put out tomorrow:
Almunia
Hoyte Toure Gallas Clichy(Traore)
Eboue(Walcott) Diaby Flamini Cesc Mozart
Adebayor
I know it sounds strange …AW going back to a 4-5-1..but I get this feeling that it’s what he’ll do and switch to Dudu later who will score the only goal again. All instincts these are…and crap may be but I’ll go with:
Arsenal 1 – Westham 0
Anyway its midnight here on Monday and its already past 12:00 on new year. So for what its worth — Wishing all those (unlike me) who believe a new year is different — A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Everton 1 – 4 Arsenal
December 31, 2007 | 12 Comments
A second half Dudu double helps the Gunners pull themselves off the mat for a 4-1 come from behind victory away at Everton on Saturday.
After a first half to forget about, Arsenal found themselves 1-0 down at the half thanks to a 19th minute goal by Tim Cahill. The second half was a completely different story, as Eduardo da Silva opened his league account with a goal just one minute after the re-start.
With the score on level terms, it was Arsenal who were in the ascendancy, and after 58 minutes, it was 2-1 Arsenal thanks to a cool finish by the Crozillian.
Nick Bendtner found himself sent off after 74 minutes for a second bookable offense after making a very stupid tackle on Andrew Johnson. It was striker’s challenge, but exceedingly dumb considering he was already on a yellow, and was just moments from being subbed for Emmanuel Adebayor, who made a rare start on the bench.
Down to ten men, Arsene Wenger subbed the big man in for Eduardo, and within moments, Adebayor had made it 3-1 to the Gunners thanks to a mix up in the Everton defense. For a fraction of a moment, the ball seemed stuck in between two blue jerseys, and Ade pounced on that second, slipped into the space, and guided the ball into the net.
Six minutes from time, it was suddenly 10 v 10, as Mikel Arteta saw a straight red for elbowing Cesc in the face. There’s no telling whether it was intentional, but with the additional space on the pitch, the Gunners controlled the ball for the remainder of the match. Another substitution, Tomas Rosicky, sealed the victory with a 94th minute strike to make the final 4-1 to Arsenal.
An excellent win considering the lifeless first half, and coupled with Man U’s loss at West Ham, a win that sees Arsenal top of the table once again.
So, a few days rest, and then it’s back to league action at home on New Year’s Day against West Ham. The Hammers will no doubt be up for it considering they just knocked off Man U, so it’s sure to be a cracker. Kick off is 10 AM ET tomorrow, and the match can be seen live here in the US on Setanta USA.
(I know this is very late, but this is the first I’m sitting in front of a computer since Friday afternoon. In related news, we’ll be taking applications for volunteer admins to help get match reports up in a more timely manner when both Dan and I are away from the web.)
The most misused words in the fans’ vocabulary:
December 28, 2007 | 46 Comments
Tactics
Fans throw that word around like it has some sort of magic power. Just get the ‘tactics’ right and victory is assured!
Oh how managers must love to hear fans talk about tactics.
I don’t pretend to know much about coaching football. But it seems to me that it is possible to get your tactics right and still draw, or even lose, a game. Conversely, it’s possible, though less likely, to get the tactics wrong and still win.
What does the word tactics mean, anyway? Formation? Personel? Tempo? Style? Mindset? All of the above?
When is the right time to change tactics? Between matches? Halftime? After a goal is scored? 20 minutes to go? In response to an injury? All of the above?
Is it possible for the same tactics to work at the beginning of a game, but not later? What about vice-versa? How soon should you abandon your tactics? How do you know that the new tactic will work better?
If your tactics aren’t working is it because one player is failing, or several players? Which players? How will a tactical substitution affect the play of those staying on?
Lots of questions, aren’t there? And keep in mind, I’m probably just scratching the surface. And I’m doing so from the comfort of my home, not in the middle of a match. So, before we start throwing around the word tactics, keep in mind that it’s probably a lot trickier than we imagine.
Everton vs Arsenal
December 28, 2007 | 156 Comments
Whenever I think of an away game to Everton, my mind drifts to ‘that’ game from Oct 19 2002 when Arsenal’s 30 game unbeaten run was shattered by a 16 year old Wayne Rooney (who was earning a mere £80-a-week ) in the 90th minute. Things looked so good early on when Ljunberg put Arsenal 1-0 after 8 minutes. But despite Canadian Radzinski’s 22 minute equalizer, it did appear that Arsenal might get away with a point until that last minute marker. That defeat was the first dent in Arsenal giving up the title in the 2002/03 season. And two years later on Oct 24, 2004, Rooney would damage yet another Arsenal title challenge when he dove to earn a win for Man Utd in that kick-fest of a game.
Stats:
Since that away defeat in 2002, Arsenal have lost two more times to Goodison Park (both 1-0 defeats) in their last 4 visits. In the last 5 seasons, the only time Arsenal have won both their league fixtures over Everton was in the 2004/05 season when they won 4-1 away to Everton and thrashed them 7-0 at home. And even the young Guns got into the act that season winning their Carling Cup fixture 3-1 at home.
In the last 10 league meetings between the two, Arsenal have a slight edge with 5 wins, Everton have won 3 times and the remaining two games ending in ties. Historically, Arsenal have a much better gap with 82 wins compared to Everton’s 54 victories and 36 other league games ending in draws.
Everton have not made for an easy opponent (barring that 7-0 thrashing) in recent years. Games have been close and Arsenal have always had a fight on their hands. Their grinding 1-0 win at Everton in the double winning season of 2001/02 is an example of the kind of resolve needed to win at Goodison Park. That 1-0 game back on Feb 10, 2002 was decided by a looping goal from Wiltord but that game was played on a muddy pitch and was a match of few chances and certainly not pretty football.
Current Season:
Everton have a fine form at home with 6 wins, one draw and 2 losses (1-0 to Man Utd and 2-1 to Liverpool) scoring 21 goals (7 of those home goals came in a 7-1 win over Sunderland) and conceding just 7. Whereas, Everton’s away form is not that bad with 4 wins, 2 ties and 4 defeats scoring 13 goals and letting in 11 goals. Everton put up a fight away to both Chelsea (a 1-1 tie) and Man Utd. They were 2 minutes from escaping Old Trafford with a tie until a silly mistake gifted Man Utd a 2-1 win last week. Everton’s current top-scorer is Yakubu with Tim Cahill scoring 5 times. Mikel Arteta is credited with the most assists at 5.
Away from home, Arsenal have 4 wins, 4 draws and one loss with 13 goals scored and 8 conceded. Arsenal’s home form is much better with 9 wins and 1 tie with 23 goals and just 7 let in. Adebayor is still Arsenal’s top scorer with 10 goals and Fabregas has 6 goals. Cesc leads with the most assists at 9 and Hleb is second with 4 assists. Sagna is credited with 3 assists.
Tactics:
Some managers like to change things constantly and some like to stick to the same formation and line-up no matter what the opposition. Wenger appears to fall in the latter category. Whereas, Rafa liked to tinker line-ups and formations constantly. Jose was the extreme in making changes as early as 30 minutes if he didn’t like how things were going. Sometimes, the different gambles pay off and sometimes not.
One thing is certain — Everton will not provide any gifts to Arsenal on Sat and will make very difficult. So Arsenal have to be on top form. What tactics or players can help fight a defiant Everton? Have at it.
The thankless job of the manager
December 27, 2007 | 26 Comments
When it comes to Arsene Wenger, it seems the Arsenal board have done their job, but the fans, at least many of those here at ArseAm, haven’t.
Since Wenger took over only one club, Man U, has been as (more) successful. Like Arsenal they have had the same manager over that time. By sticking with Wenger those who run the club have maintained the high level of success. Sure, it might have made sense to go in a different direction after two straight fourth place finishes, but they’ve stuck with him.
Now, my question is, why do we, the fans, question Le Boss after every match that doesn’t end with a glorious Arsenal victory?
I read the same complaints after every loss or draw: Wenger got the tactics wrong.
So, victory = right tactics; bad draw/loss = wrong tactics?
Wow, this truly is a simple game. The other team never plays well. Our opponents never play a blinder. Arsenal players never fail to execute (accept due to the poor tactics of the manager.
Of course, after the match is over, sitting at your computer or at the pub it is easy to say, “He got the tactics wrong.” But in a sport where the difference between a draw and a win is eight seconds (dribble…cross…header…goal) pointing to the tactics every time is a little tough. If this were, say, chess where tactics make up roughly 98% of the sport, then yes, I could understand the constant criticism.
It also goes back to the unrealistic expectations that Wenger himself has created. Regardless of the competition or circumstances, anything less than a victory is the result of any error by the manager. Guess what? Every team (apart from Arsenal four years ago, and that’s the problem) loses sometimes.
So next time the Arsenal fail to get a win, let’s try chalking it up to something other than poor tactics.
Portsmouth 0 – 0 Arsenal
December 27, 2007 | 14 Comments
It seems that both sides were still as hungover as I was yesterday, as a drab 0-0 draw was an anti-climatic ending to my Christmas vacation. Tomas Rosicky did have a few good chances, but it seemed that no one could kick up a gear. As a result, the Gunners drop to second in the table, but as Arsene says, it’s
“…not that big a deal”.
Portsmouth vs Arsenal
December 24, 2007 | 91 Comments
Fratton Park is one of the oldest grounds in English football. Records show that the first league played game at this stadium was Portsmouth against their local rivals Southampton in September 1899. Portsmouth are also known for being the first stadium to use floodlights for an English league game back in 1956. Having never been to the stadium, I can’t comment accurately on the atmosphere but from what I have read this 20,000 seater still has an old time charm about it. Seeing some of the recent games, one could tell that the fans were really behind their team. When Arsenal were leading 5-1 at Fratton Park during an F.A Cup tie in 2003/04, the Portsmouth fans were still singing and encouraging their team on. Such support despite losing heavily would be hard to imagine for some of the other big Premier League teams. Earlier this year, a plan for a new 36,000 stadium was announced so Fratton Park is probably in the final few years of its existence.
Head-to-Head Stats:
In 61 all time league meetings between Arsenal and Portsmouth, the Gunners have 25 wins, Pompey have 14 victories and the remaining 22 games ended in ties. Since Portsmouth returned to the Premier League in 2003/04, Arsenal are unbeaten in all 10 league and cup meetings (5 wins and 5 ties including the 5-1 F.A Cup win). In fact, Arsenal’s last loss to Pompey was at Fratton Park in the 1953/54 season when Portsmouth ran out 5-4 winners. Ofcourse, some critics would point to the fact that Pompey might have beaten Arsenal in the 1-1 draw at Highbury on Sept 13, 2003 when a Pires tumble allowed Henry to level the game from the spot. For the record, the Portsmouth goalscorer that day was Teddy Sheringham.
Boxing Day:
Arsenal have met Pompey three times previously on Boxing day but all three games were ages ago. Of the two games at Fratton Park, Arsenal tied 1-1 (Dec 26, 1951) and won 2-0 (1946). Whereas, the Dec 26th 1929 fixture at Highbury ended with a 2-1 Pompey win.
Ex-Gunners and other bargain buys:
There are three ex-Gunners on Pompey’s current squad — Sol Campbell, Lauren and Kanu. That total could have been 4 if Freddie Ljungberg had moved to Fratton Park in the summer as per initial reports. Over the years, Harry Redknapp has managed to collect a diverse but talented group of players such as Glen Johnson, Benjani and Pedro Mendes to name a few. In the summer, they strengthened their squad with three promising signings in John Utaka, Papa Bouba Diop and Muntari. But John Utaka who was quite good at Lens & to some extent at Rennes hasn’t transformed the same form to the EPL. Muntari on the other hand scored two beautiful goals away to Aston Villa in a 3-1 Pompey win.
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Current season
After 18 games Arsenal are still the highest scorers in the league with 36 goals, 4 more than Man Utd’s 32. Most of Arsenal’s goals have been quite beautiful but some of Portsmouth’s 29 goals haven’t been that shabby. If things go their way, then Pompey are capable of scoring goals such as in the 7-4 win over Reading, 4-1 away demolition of Newcastle and 3-1 away win to Villa. But if things don’t go right for Pompey, they are capable of not even creating a single decent chance as shown in the 1-0 home loss to Spurs. Prior to this weekend’s 4-1 away loss to Liverpool, Pompey had gone on a 6 game away winning streak. In fact, had it not been for that good away run Pompey might have been in the bottom end of the league as they have only won 2 of their 8 home games. The last time Portsmouth won at Fratton Park was that 7-4 win on Sept 29. Since then, they have had three successive 0-0 home ties (West Ham, Man City and Everton) before that 1-0 loss to Spurs.
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Point totals
Wenger’s previous analysis of 75 points being good enough to win the league is no longer true. In fact, the bar has been pushed much higher and it started with Arsenal’s unbeaten league season in 2004. The points of the top two teams and their cumulative points total over the last few seasons:
1999/00: Man Utd (91), Arsenal (73), Total: 164
2000/01: Man Utd (80), Arsenal (70), Total: 150
2001/02: Arsenal (87), Liverpool (80) Total: 167
2002/03: Man Utd (83), Arsenal (78), Total: 161
2003/04: Arsenal (90), Chelsea (79) Total: 169
2004/05: Chelsea (95), Arsenal (83), Total: 178
2005/06: Chelsea (91), Man Utd (83), Total: 174
2006/07: Man Utd (89), Chelsea (83), Total: 172
The 2004/05 season stands out not only for Chelsea’s point total of 95 but the high number of points the second placed team, Arsenal, grabbed. Since that season, the second placed team has earned 83 points, a total which would have been good enough to win the league in two of Man Utd’s triumphs in 2001 & 2003. So if 90 points are the new approximate standard to guarantee finishing the season on top, that leaves an error margin of 24 points (out of the possible 114 points available from 38 games). Dropping 24 points over 38 games does not leave too much room for error. But these point only show a narrow view at the top. An accurate picture has to take into account points total of all the league teams. Last year, the third & fourth place teams (Liverpool and Arsenal) only got 68 points each, much lower than the point totals of previous years third place teams (75 in 2003/04, 77 in 04/05, 82 in 05/06). And also at the bottom end, there have been a few teams that have performed worse than previously. The lowest dip at the bottom was in the 2005/06 season when the bottom two earned only 45 points (compared to the range of 58 – 66 over the last few years) with Sunderland only getting 15 points (West Brom got 30).
But the statistics can only give a picture of the past. If in a particular season, there are 2-3 strong teams setting a blistering pace, then the final tally of points required to win a title will be dictated by how many points the chasing teams earn. For example, the huge number of dropped points by the chasing pack account for the low total of 80 points needed to win the 2000/01 season. Considering the holiday season contains so many games over a short period of time, winning as many points is highly critical. Dropped points in less than a week could have consequences for the rest of the season. Currently after 18 games, Arsenal have 43 points, Man Utd have 42. No breathing room really. Chelsea are not too far behind with 37. Although Liverpool have 33 points, they still have a game in hand.
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Predictions, line-ups, etc
Well I can’t give any predictions. In the past when I have expected an easy win and Arsenal went onto drop points, I felt horrible. And in cases where I expected Arsenal to drop points and they did indeed go onto lose or tie, I felt even worse. So no scores from me. As for the tactics, well you guys do that best 
I Wanna Be Vic Akers!!!
December 24, 2007 | 1 Comment
With apologies to Joey, Dee Dee, and the gang…
I Wanna Be Vic Akers
(Refrain)
Twenty-twenty-twenty-four hours a day,
I wanna be Vic Akers!
Plenty to do, so here I go, oh
I wanna be Vic Akers!
I’ll coach the Arsenal Ladies, they’ll win the cup this year,
Whisper whisper whisper, into Wenger’s ear,
Pack the team’s equipment, to travel far and near!
Oh no oh oh oh oh
(Refrain)
Just put me on the team bus, get me on the plane,
Hurry hurry hurry, we must win the campaign,
I’ll train and train the players, it shall not be in vain!
Oh no oh oh oh oh
(Refrain)
I wear my shorts on cold days, drumsticks for all to see,
Presenting substitutions to the referee,
It’s when I am most likely, to be seen on TV!
Oh no oh oh oh oh
Ba-ba-baba, baba-ba-baba, I wanna be Vic Akers,
Ba-ba-baba, baba-ba-baba, I wanna be Vic Akers,
Ba-ba-baba, baba-ba-baba, I wanna be Vic Akers,
Ba-ba-baba, baba-ba-baba, I wanna be Vic Akers!
Arsenal 2 – 1 Spurs
December 22, 2007 | 92 Comments
Manuel Almunia’s huge save from a Robbie Keane penalty midway through the second half proved the turning point in a highly entertaining North London derby this morning.
After a tight, but goalless first half, Arsenal came out with great intensity in the second half. The intensity paid off when Cesc Fabregas’ slick back heel enabled Emmanuel Adebayor to maintain his amazing scoring record against Spurs. He now has six goals in six games against Tottenham.
It seemed that after the goal, Arsenal took their collective foot off the gas, and slowly but surely, Spurs re-gained their footing. Spurs’ hard work paid off, after just moments earlier having seen Robbie Keane’s effort clang off the cross-bar, Dimitar Berbatov smashed a loose ball into the roof of the net from only four yards out to put the score at 1-1 just before the midway point of the half.
It was a few minutes later that Spurs were awarded a penalty when Kolo Toure was adjudged to have taken Berbatov down the box. Robbie Keane stepped up to take the spot kick, and Almunia underscored why he’s firmly Arsenal’s #1 with an excellent save.
After the save, Arsene Wenger made his first substitution, sending Nick Bendtner on in the place of Emmanuel Eboue. It proved a master stroke, as within moments, Bendtner headed in what proved to be the winning goal.
An immensely satisfying win, and now on to Boxing Day, and a trip to Pompey. Kickoff is 2:30 PM ET, and the match will be shown live on Fox Soccer Channel here in the US.
Champions League Draw – Arsenal v. AC Milan
December 21, 2007 | 41 Comments
Arsenal draw AC Milan in the first knock out stage. Milan is currently sitting in 11th I believe in Serie A, with just four wins from 13 matches.
Old. Slow. Beatable.
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