Jan 19
A relatively easy win at the Cottage today as two first-half headed goals by Emmanuel Adebayor and a 80th minute volley by Tomas Rosicky paced the Gunners to a 3-0 win away at Fulham earlier today.
(Have to run out to help a friend move, so I’m afraid that’s all I have to time to post right now. If Dan or whomever wants to add more, please by all means, have at it!)
72 Responses to “Fulham 0 - 3 Arsenal”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
January 19th, 2008 at 2:00 pm
I wonder… how long before people start slagging off Adebayor again?
January 19th, 2008 at 2:01 pm
to reply Wayne’s comment on previous thread. on Adebyaor - exactly. i tipped him to score 15 goals back in the summer, and predicted a breakout year for him this term. got a few sticks by saying that as well. so i m awfully glad he hasn’t let us down.
and to quota AW’s favourite comment - “More to come”!
January 19th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
Ade can be a really frustrating player but whichever way you look at it, 15 goals from 23 games is a great scoring ratio. Funnily, he hasn’t scored in 8 CL games.
January 19th, 2008 at 2:16 pm
yes nipuna, i think that’s because he’s not a natural goalscorer. he can’t strike the ball like van Persie does, can only place it, that restricts his effectiveness in front of goal.
but of Ade, what he brings to Arsenal, the build up play in particular, is far more important than scoring goals. a bit like our old solider up front Alan Smith, Wrighty would be the first to admit without Smith he might not be able to score so many goals.
IMO he’s one of the most vital players in the current Arsenal squad. in a way, we would miss him more than van Persie. Now I think van Persie is far more TALENTED a player than Adebayor, and much better a goalscorer. but problem is- with this current side, a strong target man to hold up the ball and get our midfield involved is so vital a part in our game play.
unlike the old days, we could relied Henry and Vieira to just drive and charge the team forward. It’s totally different now. without a strong player up front to hold up the ball, by the time our midfield get there, the possession already lost. then we would have to build the attack all over again.
January 19th, 2008 at 2:37 pm
The ONLY critique might be we gave away possession too much at time, BUT overall I thought it was the best win we could have hoped for. Fulham usually gets and then gives up leads…we took the initiative and controlled the pitch all day.
Almunia - 7 an easy day
Sagna - 7 solid, his overlapping runs in the first half were great
Gallas - 7 just a good captain
Clichy - 9 pace, conditioning, footwork, awareness - his best match in a while
Rosicky - 8 don’t discount that late goal, we need to be ruthless for 90 minutes
Fabregas - 6 decent match good passing but he needs to sharpen his finishing
Flamini - 6 courage and fire but he didn’t impose his will like he can
Hleb - the key to the second half, so good on the ball
Eduardo - 8 I thought he was aggressive and smart most of the match
Adebayor - 9 MotM for me…textbook headers and smart hard work all day
January 19th, 2008 at 2:39 pm
I agree with you, Andez. At the start of the season, I tipped Eduardo to replace Ade in the team. Now it’s Eduardo or RvP with Ade. As I said in a previous article, Ade + Eduardo can be our first choice option with RvP as a great backup (considering his injury problems).
January 19th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
also, it’s good to see Hleb finally picked up his form a bit. though cesc seemed still struggling a bit.
January 19th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Overall a very competant and professional performance. We meandered for a ten minute spell in the second half, which can be dangerous when you think of the Birmingham match, but we stepped on the gas and killed the game with a third. After that, Fulham were finished as a force.
Almunia 7/10- Gets more and more impressive in terms of body language. Didn’t have much to do but sweeped up well.
Sagna 8/10- Top notch performance. Didn’t put a foot wrong.
Senderos 7/10- Again, very good. Impressive to the point where I was desperate for him to carry on with what looked like a broken hooter.
Gallas 7/10- Makes it look so easy. Less is more. His composure seems to be rubbing off on Sendy.
Clichy 9/10- This guy has gone off the scale in recent weeks. Best left back in the europe at the moment. Superb.
Flamini- 7/10- Did well for second goal and toiled throughout.
Fabregas 6/10- Came alive when the game was over but he was poor again today, by his standards. It’s a good sign to win comfortably and still not have him firing on all cylinders.
Hleb 8/10- Thought he was great today. Came off the right flank and linked play together like only he can.
Rosicky 8/10- Love this player. Started pretty slowly but his all round class undermined Fulham. His ball retention and decision making is great in situations where you want to deflate the other team.
Eduardo 6/10- Thought he had a poor game. Anonymous first half but got more involved when switched to the flank in the second half. Did well to set up a few chances including Rosicky’s goal. Gave the ball away far too often though.
Adebayor 8/10- Respect to this bloke. I really couldn’t see him making the difference today but he proved me wrong with two brilliantly taken headers. We can officially rely on this guy in tight away games now.
January 19th, 2008 at 3:08 pm
Nice pic to use Mike. I am glad someone captured this picture of Ade rising high and scoring not one but two beautiful goals. Very rarely does one see Niemi rooted to the spot so helplessly. This was a goal-keeper who frustrated Arsenal on a few occassions in the past, especially with Southampton. Great win
January 19th, 2008 at 3:34 pm
16 goals in 26 matches is sooo frustrating. 6 goals in the last 6 matches, not good enough. RvP scored 17 in the league last season. 1 more and Ade ties his mark.
January 19th, 2008 at 3:42 pm
Hard to gauge how good this performance really was, especially since Fulham is a team in free fall, but the drive and spirit and commitment were there in full force.
I agree with Mazza’s point that the Gunners looked to be meandering a bit in the second half, which is indeed dangerous - I found it rather troubling, frankly. But they soaked up what pressure Fulham had to give, not much to be honest, and the win is a satisfying rebound from last week’s disappointment.
To think we could score on two headers from crosses was a real stretch - but Ade looked like a monster in the air today.
The Eduardo dribbling magic out of the corner early in the second half, and the Hleb display on the other flank, were worth the price of admission.
Clichy was a joy to watch for much of the match.
A star to Senderos today.
The supporters sung like there was no tomorrow - sounded great.
January 19th, 2008 at 4:17 pm
@ 8: LOL, when i saw gilberto warming up, i was so desperate for senderos to continue.
senderos actually plays much better with gallas than with toure. could be because gallas is always very calm, while toure usually has the panicky expression lol. ah well i hope he can just stay good for the next 5 games till toure comes.
January 19th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
@11 It’s easy to gauge how good that performance was, as had Arsenal played like that at home to Birmingham they would have won. In other words, it’s what should have been expected for a team with so much talent.
January 19th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
I’m glad all the damn “pork” loving teams will soon be done with, enough of the Hams.
Well, I trust the lads will dispatch with the next team of “cloven footed” Spuds and Ham in the same tidy fashion as today’s Fullof Ham. They’re a bunch of chickens, anyway if roosters are considered chickens.
Pig meat isn’t too popular in the Emirates.
Ham, Ham, Ham…
January 19th, 2008 at 4:55 pm
The best game Arsenal have played since the first half at Aston Villa.
Fabrgas is still trying to find his form.
Adebayor remains on pace to fulfill my prediction that he will have a ‘Drogba’ type break out season. By that I mean a player who struggles with his touch/game in his first season and then voila he becomes a stud in his second season.
Senderos played a near perfect game. Credit where credit is due. Hopefully his broken nose will not keep him out of any games. Imagine that coming from one of his biggest critics. Keep up the good play.
.
Clichy IS the most accomplished LB in the world. Their are larger implications in Clichy’s cross than just the first goal. It was a well thought out series of moves that resulted in the precise cross. This is how we will need to play when we face AC Milan. Patience and precision will be the keys to win against Milan.
That is where I feel Hleb will be invaluable. He personifies patience and precision that sometimes can be a detriment in the hurley burley of the EPL.
Plan B, go wide young man, go wide. Birmingham City packed the box and why not, if Arsenal were so obligingly attacking up the middle. Two goals from crosses into the box today and suddenly there was enough room for Rosicky and a herd of elephants to score that third. It was not brain surgery but it did require a thinking football brain.
Some have commented about the period after the break when Arsenal visibly gave ground to Fulham. Arsenal changed their formation after the break. Hleb played behind Adebayor, Eduardo went to LMF and Rosicky changed with Hleb. Eduardo struggled until he could play in the final third where he made that brilliant run into the box. Rosicky disappeared until his goal. Wenger should not be deceived by the Rosicky goal in the 4-4-1-1 formation. I feel the first half 4-4-2 was the more successful formation and the second half formation switch could have cost us dearly. What was Wenger thinking? Adebayor also winds up isolated in the 4-4-1-1 because the MF falls back with a defensive mindset that is counter productive.
Can we expect a Bendtner-Walcott pairing against S***s on Tuesday is my question. There has been more sizzle than steak with Walcott so far. Pato scores in his first game. Krkic has scored 3 goals as a sub in his first full season. Bale has 5 goals in the EPL. What has the “great England hope” done? He has been put into positions to succeed and we are still waiting. Wenger is waiting. Arsenal are waiting. He is at the tip of Wenger’s ‘gamble’ on English talent. Will he be Nero? Will he be the One?
January 19th, 2008 at 5:42 pm
Would these ex-players shut the F**k up: http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/2008/01/19/arsenal-hit-by-aliadiere-89520-20290808/
Bentley was also whinning about how Arsenal don’t have a ‘fun’ football playing environment. Bentley prefers playing ‘au naturale’ and not being encumbered by Prozone data. What are we to make about comments from the star player on a mid table team. A lot of stupid nit picking from players who were not good enough to displace players in front of them. Only Larsson held up his hand and said I wasn’t good enough to stay at Arsenal. Painful honesty rather than sniping from the hinterlands.
January 19th, 2008 at 6:44 pm
Why did he stick around for SEVEN years if he was so unhappy? Doghnut.
January 19th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
aliadiere is a piece of shit player who wenger had too much patience for … yet still mouths off on. idiot.
January 19th, 2008 at 8:26 pm
As for Aliadiere, these words from the immortal Bard will suffice:
“Hast thou or word, or wit, or impudence, that can yet do thee office?”
Taken from: Measure for Measure
“[Thy] tongue outvenoms all the worms of Nile.”
Taken from: Cymbeline
MY FAVOURITE
“You starvelling, you eel-skin, you dried neat’s-tongue, you bull’s-pizzle, you stock-fish–O for breath to utter what is like thee!-you tailor’s-yard, you sheath, you bow-case, you vile standing tuck!”
Taken from: Henry IV, part I
January 19th, 2008 at 8:44 pm
why is it that players that leave Man U, chelsea etc never bitch and moan in this manner?
wenger treats these players way too nice i think.
January 19th, 2008 at 9:26 pm
It was nice to have a comfortable victory today. I wouldn’t say the team completely clicked, but the style and substance showed improvement. As has been pointed out already Clichy, Adebayor and Hleb all had superb games. Clichy has started every league game for us this year. I might even argue that he has been our most consistent performer this season. It will be fun to watch him battle with Evra for the left back spot for France over the next few years. Adebayor was brilliant. His finishing was clinical. But his all around play was superb and he didn’t over elaborate at all, even after the goals. It is pretty unbelievable that we have never lost when he scores. I hope he bags some more big ones this year. And Hleb was almost man of the match for me. He would have won it if Eduardo had played him in at the end for what looked like a sure goal. (it did lead to Rosicky’s goal, so I am not complaining) I love when Hleb slides inside and links up with Fabregas and Rosicky. He is such a unique player and such a joy to watch.
Not really any negatives to speak of. I only hope that Fabregas finds his form again. He wasn’t bad today, just below his own high standard.
January 20th, 2008 at 12:26 am
Cesc should play in one of the next two Cup games. It will help him pick up his form in time for the next league game.
January 20th, 2008 at 1:01 am
Cesc’s played quite a bit actually nipuna. I don’t know why his performances are poor lately. Hleb visibly improved yesterday but Cesc was off the boil again..MOzart n Flma were better than him. Strange really….a friend even suggested his heart wasn’t in it…which didn’t realy sound logical…considering he’s done nothing so far either…but no…I don’t know whats wrong.
January 20th, 2008 at 2:11 am
Cesc’s pass to Eduardo which led to the third goal was cool. Even when he is not on song, he can do a bit. I don’t think it has anything to do with his heart not being there. We forget that he is still 20, such patches of loss of form are bound to happen. Glad that Hleb and Rosicky can pick it up when Cesc is not delivering. How we need those three to stay fit for our title challenge to be on track.
January 20th, 2008 at 2:29 am
Imagine if Togo had qualified for the ACN.
January 20th, 2008 at 3:29 am
On a slightly unrelated note …..Has anyone been watching the performances of Benjani Mwaruwari this season…like Adebayor….another late bloomer…but really got his goalscoring boots on this season.
Was thinking to myself …that it was good of Redknapp to have spotted the potential and more importantly kept patience with him …..a very rare trait in managers (actually Wenger is the only one who comes to mind :D)..
Read through an article on The Daily Mail today about Benjani after his hat trick yesteday…and guess who recommended Benjani to Redknapp
….Arsene Wenger himself 
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/sport/football.html?in_article_id=509235&in_page_id=1779
Cheers,
Wayne
January 20th, 2008 at 3:39 am
Very good win today.
Pretty much a stroll in the park, as we were not really threatened at all on the defensive end.
I think most of the players had good matches. Cesc was less that stellar, but he didn’t need to be, as other players kicked it up a notch.
As noted, Clichy was excellent. I thought Rosicky played well, and Hleb was excellent. Adebayor… what can you say, puts the biscuit in the basket. He is impressive, as I never thought he’d be this good, this soon.
Well done all around. Good solid team effort and great effort from the supporters! I could hear them on TV all match long.
January 20th, 2008 at 3:44 am
Oh, in the preview, somebody predicted at 3-0 win, and a walk in the park?
hmmm? not bad.
January 20th, 2008 at 3:58 am
lol Wayne… AW seems to recommend people everywhere…and invariably they turn out to be decent.
January 20th, 2008 at 3:59 am
lol Wayne… AW seems to recommend people everywhere…and invariably they turn out to be decent. Where did uc atch the game BTW..I watched it on a stream…TV wasnt showing it was it?
January 20th, 2008 at 6:19 am
LDE, Star Sports was busy showing the Australian Open. Which stream did you use? I caught the highlights on ESPN.
January 20th, 2008 at 6:25 am
I am very interested in lineup vs Spurs. If Arsene sticks to his policy of playing youth (which I don’t mind at all), that will mean no Cesc, Hleb or Rosicky. Eduardo can do with a rest. Does that mean Bendtner and Walcott up front? If so who will play on the wings? Diaby on the left, but the other?
January 20th, 2008 at 6:32 am
Fabianski
Hoyte Gallas Senderos Traore
Randall Denilson Gilberto Diaby
Walcott Bendtner
Subs: Mannone Hoyte(G) Gibbs Lansbury ?
We have no other centre-backs at the moment with Djourou out injured. Still, with two injuries and three at the ACN, we can afford to change nine of the team.
January 20th, 2008 at 7:01 am
IrishG, it’s very likely the lineup u predicted here. though i have a feeling Sagna will start, with Hoyte pairing Senderos in the middle.
January 20th, 2008 at 7:12 am
“why is it that players that leave Man U, chelsea etc never bitch and moan in this manner?”
I suspect it’s because those clubs never produced anything from their youth rank in recent years. Those they let go, probably only good enough for lower divisions. those players may know their limit, and awared of the fact that are not good enough.
Arsenal though, the likes of Pennant, and in particular Bentley, still being hailed as the future England right midfielder. Aliadiere meanwhile was also a highly rated kid at French when he joined Arsenal.
Pennant scored a hattrick once for Arsenal, Bentley and Aliadiere both scored a wonder goal before for Arsenal first team, and all of them were part of the memebers of our “B” sides who did well in the Carling Cup. so they probably thought they were too good to not to make it at Arsenal.
come to think of it, Arsenal have produced many Premiership players for other clubs in recent years, be it foreigners or English. Cole, Harper, Sidwell, Larsson, Mumba, Volz. Not exactly the top tier players, but compare to other big clubs, our record in terms of producing young players for the Premiership, if not better, at least not worse.
Yet that won’t stop the accusation that Wenger is destroying English football.
January 20th, 2008 at 7:17 am
ANR says there could be 23 ex Arsenal players in the BPL.
http://www.arsenalnewsreview.co.uk/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=872&cntnt01origid=30&cntnt01returnid=42
January 20th, 2008 at 7:18 am
I wouldn’t want to risk Gallas in the CC.
How about Gibbs? The boy impressed in pre-season games but didn’t see him after that.
January 20th, 2008 at 8:17 am
@Nip: I caught it here - http://livefooty.doctor-serv.com/
BTW I got a shiny new BSNL Triband connection last week. Previously on that useless Sify 64kbps connection nothing ever worked
. The only thing now is that its going to burn a big hole in my pocket - all that streaming video.
Yep Star Sports is useless showing that Hewitt - Baghdatis match. Strangely enough the stream was also Star Sports but they were showing our game. Anyway we won
January 20th, 2008 at 8:18 am
Aliadiere’s comment was utterly rubbish. Perhaps he’s running out of excuses. Yes, AW taught his players to not being selfish. I watched the later part of the Boro match yesterday, Aliadiere missed a late header from six yards, that too was being “educated” from his playing time with Arsenal?
And look at Anelka. He too had played for Arsenal when he was young, it didn’t stop him from scoring goals, anywhere.
January 20th, 2008 at 8:46 am
LDE, the Hewitt game was delayed largely due to Federer’s game going on for 4.5 hours. Man, what a game that was. Not something to discuss here, but if you like tennis and Federer, that was a classic.
January 20th, 2008 at 8:49 am
Merson’s Riposte
Asked by Sky Sports News what he thought of Bentley’s complaint that there were no laughs at Arsenal, and that he branded the atmosphere at Arsenal as “boring”, Paul answered straight away that if Bentley wanted laughs he should become a comedian.
http://www.thefootballnetwork.net/main/s378/st124801.htm.
January 20th, 2008 at 12:21 pm
Here’s Bentley’s quote:
Meanwhile David Bentley in a Mail feature says: “When I was at Arsenal, it was all about statistics and perfect football. I don’t want to play perfect football. I don’t want a cross of mine to be a statistic. Everything I thought football should be wasn’t happening at Arsenal. So, six months after signing a five-year contract, I decided to go.
“Please don’t get me wrong, sometimes I can be rash, but I honestly don’t have a bad word to say about Arsene Wenger. He didn’t pick me because he had world-class players, but I just wanted to play. But there was no banter there, it was boring.”
In other words, I wasn’t good enough!
Come on Bentley, just admit it.
January 20th, 2008 at 12:39 pm
Bentley was a good young player who chose PLAYING TIME over sitting on the bench regularly. He is a regular first team starter for a decent team. I would say he definitely made the right choice for himself.
January 20th, 2008 at 1:00 pm
Yes, no one said he did not make the right choice. Not Wenger, not any Arsenal fan. Dont’ know why he kept on telling the world WHY he had to leave the club? Honestly, who cares?
January 20th, 2008 at 1:07 pm
If I were him, I would wait until I established myself in the England national team, turning himself into the next David Beckham or something, being bought by Chelsea for 20 millions, go on and win a medal or something… then he EARNS the right to come back and mock us for letting him go.
before that happens, no matter how he tries to kidd the world, and himself, it won’t change that fact - that he’s simply not bloody good enough.
January 20th, 2008 at 1:08 pm
Andez, do you think that perhaps he was prompted… or asked the question by the media? Or … did he hold a press conference to tell the world what he was thinking??
Whats the context. I doubt Ali or Bentley or any of them just start going on and ranting about how its better now that they left Arsenal… I would imagine they are asked a question or pushed in that direction in an interview.
Obvioulsy… there are like 100 papers in the UK… so they need something to write about. I would say the press cares. It creates a story for the day in their sports section.
January 20th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
Am watching the Madrid derby and Casillas is single handedly keeping Real alive in the game.
By the way, Reyes didn’t start for Atletico. He came on for an injured Simao.
Wouldn’t it be ironic for Torres if Liverpool fail to make it to the CL and Atletico do?
January 20th, 2008 at 2:43 pm
I dont know. It differs from player to player really. I wouldn’t blame Bentley or Sidwell or Muamba or Larsson or Cole..well forget the last one
. No seriously …the kid has a limited football career 10-12 years ; more if you’re super fit. he doesnt have alifetime to fart about unlike all us couch potatoes, So I’d never blame a guy for going if he wants to play football regularly; albeit at a smaller club. There’s no shame really in moving to a smaller club. I’d much rather work for a smaller firm which gives me an identity rather than for a huge firm where it might take me 4 years to prove my worth. If I feel I’m stagnating at a large place and am not doing the work I love to do; I WILL MOVE. So no…DB and the others made their choice; they face the consequences ..good or bad.
What really irks me is weird comments like Ali or DB make about dressing room banter and French boys and banter and some cunts who “tremble with rage” and swerve of roads …etc etc. Oh well…
January 20th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
1st minute goal from Raul. Inside 30 seconds….after that its been all Atlectico..didnt catch the whole game..just watched snatches of it and AM seem to be attacking all the time. Is it just me or does the stadium seem too quiet for a derby?
We have a good chance to beat Man City at home; they play a classic counterattacking style of football. They aren’t exactly quick either and have had 3 home draws in a row. I think we can nick another 1-0; specially if the ball goes so much to Petrov and he continues doing zilch with it like today.
January 20th, 2008 at 2:50 pm
@nip: Yeah heard it was a classic 5 setter; the Federer game. Sadly Sania went out though; what about the doubles. Are Lee n Hesh playing at all?
January 20th, 2008 at 2:57 pm
@Stag, problem is - Bentley has left Arsenal long time ago, the same damn questions, or I should say same answers we have been hearing for God knows how many times already. Don’t the reporters got anything new to ask about?
I watched the last Blackburn match as well. Towards the end of the match, Blackburn won a freekick down the byline, all their big central halfs pushed up seeking for a goal. A perfect position to make a cross, instead Bentley went for glory himself, and stupidly shoot from such a tight angle. If I were a reporter, I would have asked him why did u choose to shoot when the best option was to cross? Do u think ur name on the goalscorer sheet is more important than a win for your club?
Anyway, thank God he’s a Blackburn player.
January 20th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
Hi guys, I’ve been out of internet access for a few days so some late comments.
1. arthur3sheds, yeah I remember the departures of Stapleton & Brady - body blows from which we took years to recover. And truth is players of a quality that Arsenal couldn’t replace……and Arsenal boys. For chaps on our site who don’t know about them, Stapleton went to ManU and Brady went to Juve - both in their prime.
Lovely how our stature has developed to an extent that we can now keep who we want - Bergkamp, Henry and Vieira stayed at Arsenal in their prime.
2. danny, yeah the Diarra situation is very unusual. On an individual level I fear for Diarra because your actions tend to shape how you become. I admit I do tend to side with our club, and that’s for 2 reasons;
(a) Arsenal have proven their class in management time and again, and
(b) bottomline I support the club - these boys get paid ‘kings ransoms’ to play football so in my view the least they can do is act with a little bit of professionalism. I know players will come and go but for me angling for a move after 3 months smacks of myopic self-interest. He did get playing time, he just wanted more (or perhaps he wanted to be considered 1st choice). If every player conducted himself like Diarra, we would have chaos and professional football would collapse.
3. Prediction: I started the season open-minded - even optimistic that if things went well we could seriously challenge.
We got the good start I hoped for, and have avoided dabilitating injuries, only RvP has been a bad one.
Our progress has made me even more optimistic that we can challenge this season. The fact that we have shown the ability to keeping clicking points is a key. Truth is, if as a team you have the quality and hang in there, your form will return. ManU look impressive now, but frankly I’m not unduly bothered. It is quite possible that their form will ‘turn off’ later in the season when they least want it to.
I like the spine that has emerged in this team, Ade, Fab and Gallas. It’s really solid and hard working - you can add players around it with confidence. Sagna appears to be an essential ingredient in providing solidity and balance, and together with Almunia has eliminated the Lehmann/Eboue head-case instability. I also like the way our attack is now varied - we are no longer 1-dimensional - we have an airforce.
There are lotsa players who remain a work-in-progress - but some of these have made tangible strides forward - Dudu, Flamster, and Hleb.
January 20th, 2008 at 8:52 pm
Kiwi - good points about Diarra.
I know of very very few young twenty something athletes that don’t suffer from myopic self-interest. One of the traits of Gen-X’ers/Gen-Y’ers is the expectation of instant gratification - it certainly is true in the professional work force. I don’t blame them, because the baby boom generation trained them to be that way.
Thus, it takes a special manager to effectively motivate them, especially when they are not getting their weekly dose of gratification. But you can’t please all of them, and sometimes you just have to let them cut their own cord and let both sides move on. I think Wenger is probably better than most, and he obviously must enjoy developing the really young players as opposed to handling the established stars - a whole different set of problems.
You know, at the level of clubs like Arsenal, and in today’s climate, I really thing being a great manager is more important than being a great coach. I’m not sure there are but a few who qualify as world-class in both. Wenger is arguably a great manager (manager of young gifted athletes); I’ve heard many on this site criticize him for not being a world-class coach (director of skills and game tactics), and they might be right. But which would we as Arsenal supporters rather have? Given the type of player and club culture, I’ll take what we have gladly - exceptional management.
January 20th, 2008 at 8:52 pm
I’ve been referring to Adebayor as ‘a monster’ in the making for a while. Interesting to see one of the Fulham players describe him as such.
He’s had that monster look for a while. The raw material was there with the rare combination of height, muscularity, endurance and speed. The attitude and stare was there, he’s always been a bit narly, and looked up for a scrap. Even his skill levels were there but were often overshadowed by an apparent clumsiness (which seemed to me to be due more to his height than an inherrent technical flaw).
What I’m loving is since coming into the season late from an injury, he has led the line, giving Wenger the ability to mix-and-match partners and formations according to player availability. He really has been a hero and carried the teams attack this season.
The other quality Adebayor has is ’smarts’. He’s a monster but a clever one. I saw this first in the way he integrated into Henry’s Arsenal. He obviously worked out that if he was to suceed at Arsenal he needed to gel with Henry both on and off the pitch. His play needed to compliment not compete with Henry. That might seem incredibly obvious but few strikers over the years ‘worked well’ with Henry (Bergkamp aside). Yet Adebayor worked well with Henry and I think it was more intentional than natural. Now bit by bit we are seeing his confidence rise and his game develop at the pointy end of a multi-dimensional team.
January 20th, 2008 at 9:02 pm
thompson gunner. I agree, no doubt in my mind the guys a legend. Can’t wait to read his book. No other single person has done more to create Arsenal into a mega-club.
What’s fascinating is how his relationship with his players seems to transend ‘just football’, when you hear their comments about him you get the impression they see him as a mentor in life as well.
January 20th, 2008 at 10:05 pm
Interesting article on the Vital Chelsea site about Clichy vs. Cole
“How do Arsenal do it? Lose a player at the top of his game - An England international. He moves and fails to reproduce his form and they bring in a youngster from the reserves and he settles right in and plays an almost identical way to the player they lost.”
http://www.chelsea.vitalfootball.co.uk/article.asp?a=503663
January 20th, 2008 at 11:13 pm
aha, its true that cole has not come near to reproducing his form for chelsea.
chelsea were retards to “headhunt” him.
somehow i have a feeling abrahamovic has ordered his staff to be more mellow first with recruitments (less galactico-ish), and less talking from directors. thats pretty much why mourinho had to go.
January 21st, 2008 at 1:39 am
I know this is late in the day, but what a relief to score two headed goals from crosses. It was exactly what we failed to do against B’ham, even when they had a forest of defenders planted along the front of the penalty area.
Hats off to Clichy for - finally! - delivering a pinpoint cross to match the rest of his attacking game. I particularly loved the way he played his way out of defence past two attackers. Very cool.
Crosses, generally, are much more effective against a packed defence. Our long ball forays only really work against a defence that has pushed up to squash the midfield and stifle our training ground triangle game.
Interestingly, Wenger made the point that Ade sometimes gets lured out of his most effective position - in the fucking box! - during the link-up play. But at Fulham he was textbook for both goals.
Cesc is still way off his early season form right now. Hard to pinpoint it still. He doesn’t look unfit, or lacking in zip, but his touch is way off, as evidenced by his shots on - or rather near - goal.
Still, a solid confidence-boosting result that helps make Sp*rs seem more appealing. With a young team at Shite Hart Lane, at 1-1, the pressure is all on Sp*rs to get a result. Hopefully, they wore themselves out on Sat. because the Gunners will mostly be rested and ready youngsters: Bendt, Theo, Diaby. etc.
The one thing you can say about Tuesday is the both sides will almost certainly score.
January 21st, 2008 at 2:33 am
AW after the Fulham game -
“Rosicky is more of a Pires-type and Hleb is more for me a guy who attracts people to the ball, and then slides it through”
“Alex looks like he always slows the game down to speed it up again. He is more of a dribbler and a passer, whereas Tomas is more of the guy who is in the flow of the game, a little bit similar to Pires.”
“At the moment, I feel we can score from everywhere - Rosicky, Fabregas they can score, Hleb maybe scores less, but he makes others score.
“The fact we are a passing team, that then makes others congest the centre.
“For us it is important we can score goals not only through our quick passing in the middle, but also from balls to the flanks, put in quality crosses and get people into the box from midfield - that is what we did at Fulham.”
January 21st, 2008 at 5:15 am
By the way, did anybody see Fergie show the finger to Reading fans after their game? Well, he didn’t actually show the fingers, he closed the fist but you could clearly see what he meant. Will he face FA action for this? I doubt it. And this is a guy knighted by the British. Quite disgraceful.
January 21st, 2008 at 12:12 pm
I have to be honest. I am rooting for Nigeria today. I hope the Ivory Coast goes out in the group stages.
Looks like AW is going to play Gallas in the Spurs game. I think this is a mistake. I would have been more than content with Gilberto partnering Senderos or Hoyte and Denilson playing centrally with Diaby.
January 21st, 2008 at 12:15 pm
Ferguson’s behaviour will surely be punished. Although knighthoods don’t exactly mean a lot in this country - most years they run out of people to knight, so they end up trawling through the history books and giving one to some ancient comedian who’s nearly dead or a vagrant who sold enough copies of the big issue to buy himself a mobile home.
January 21st, 2008 at 12:21 pm
He has to play Gallas Brendan otherwise we’re going out. I think the line-up will be quite predictable:
Fabianski, Hoyte, Gallas, Senderos, Traore, Randall or Lansbury, Denilson, Gilbero, Diaby, Bentnder, Walcott.
Without Gallas I think we’ll get the thrashing we should have got at the Emirates.
January 21st, 2008 at 12:41 pm
Senderos is out too. Arsenal.com doesn’t say when he will be back.
So Gallas HAS to play and Gilberto/Hoyte will partner him.
January 21st, 2008 at 12:50 pm
I didn’t read the rest of the article. I guess we are quite short on center backs. I still wouldn’t play Gallas though. I know it is Spurs and its a semi final. But I would rather he play Hoyte and Gilberto in the center with Gilbert on the right and Traore on the left. He could slide Diaby in the center with Denilson in midfield. This cup is nothing but a bonus for us. It shouldn’t be worth risking anyone who is crucial to our league and champions league hopes.
January 21st, 2008 at 12:56 pm
Yeah, from the brief look that I got Sendy’s nose looked broken. I remember him mouthing to Dempsey something along the lines of “you broke my nose you fucking….”
Looks like Lansbury is playing tomorrow night. He’s not in the squad for the reserve match tonight. Unlike all our other youngsters, I’m actually looking forward to watching him. He has bit of ambition and drive in his play.
January 21st, 2008 at 12:56 pm
Upon further reflection, I think that if you spend a good part of your life in a surrogate family (Arsenal) and fail to get your father’s (Wenger) approval (first team selection), it becomes a psychological scar from which it is difficult to recover. This is irregardless of reporters asking umpteen questions about your Arsenal years.
January 21st, 2008 at 1:01 pm
OT:
Does anyone know if they’ll be broadcasting any of the ACN tournament in North America. I for one would like to watch some (any) of the games.
I’ve been to the “dark continent” before and I can assure you that lotsa people have TVs, computers and everyone has a cellphone.
So what’s up with that? Surely someone at Fox, Setanta, or GoalTV must realize that their customers wouldn’t mind watching some good African footy.
January 21st, 2008 at 1:05 pm
The Ivory Coast vs Nigeria game is on Sopcast. I am getting great reception on Channel atdhe 1 if you want to watch.
January 21st, 2008 at 1:15 pm
Why do I not have a good feeling about our chances against Sp**s tomorrow? Is it because they played us tough and we needed a fluky goal to tie the first game at home. Is it because our back line now looks like swiss cheese without our Swiss defenders? Is it because Diaby hasn’t done anything intelligent with the ball once he gets it? Is it because we can count on Gilberto giving a performance that won’t even get him linked with Bournemouth? Is because when the Indians overrun our MF, there’ll be no calvary on the bench to rescue Denilson/Gilberto? Is it because Walcott may be a burnt out bulb rather than lightning in a bottle? Is it because at the end of the day, all we maybe able to gain is experience for our reserve players? I so wanted another shot at Chelsea. Bastards.
Vela got his 2nd goal in a 2-0 win. Maybe he will be our “Robinho”.
January 21st, 2008 at 3:19 pm
not sure if this clip has been shown yet but on the evidence of it there is absolutely no reason to buy a winger in the summer…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuIJkWbKI7U
Vela is playing against one of the best RBs in the world and makes a mockery of him in parts(see his ‘nuts’ on Ramos).He’s got everything…pace,shooting ability,crossing,willingness to close down opposition,tenacity,guile..everything.no point reminiscing about reyes since this guy is quite similar in style but much more impressive.he also loves a good dive.also willing to change sides which could be useful.i’m immensely excited by this guy…
imagine, after 6 months of acclimitising to the premier league and we are hitting a slump we unleash this guy on a pitiful fulham side.cant wait.i think we can properly mount an assault on the world with this guy.forget pato or walcott..we got vela
January 21st, 2008 at 3:29 pm
agree with all the praising of ade..he has come on leaps and bounds..pun intended!
but also you have to credit wenger often under-appreciated tactical approach..against fulham we fully exploited their aerial vulnerability.only stefanovic(and he’s only rubbish) is above 6′1.wenger obviously told his team to play with width and cross the ball more regularly.i was hugely suprised to see hleb cross the ball not once, but twice, for the second goal.also looking back to birmingham game he crossed beautifully with his left for eddy.(off-topic:actually have you noticed how frequently hleb uses his left foot…may be his more potent foot for striking the ball)
secondly, our first choice midfield were once again reunited.hleb-rozza-fab-flams.crucial to success.think wenger knows this by now.he cannot rely on the inconsistent eboue.i think if we can keep these four fit…flamini fitness is now crucial since diarra’s departure….we have a chance in EPL and champions league.without we look vulnerable.fingers crossed