Is Anyone Bothered About Arsenal Anymore?
I wrote how Arsenal were in free-fall back in August.
Funny how everyone thought it was a knee jerk reaction to the defeat away at Fulham, but I think most Arsenal fans saw it coming a mile away. And here we sit in March, hoping that Aston Villa lose games.
How pathetic is that?
Arsenal were always wasteful in front of goal but now this weakness really has reached new levels. It’s so hard to understand now lesser teams can play defensive and wait for their chances and take them. How many times have you seen teams defend in huge numbers at The Emirates and nick a goal on the break?
Why the hell are those teams so clinical and we’re not?
The ONLY saving grace over the last few weeks is Van Persie scored against Roma. But don’t let the 1-0 scoreline fool you - if we didn’t get a penalty we would have never scored from open play, and we’d be travelling to Rome in a couple of weeks with a 0-0 scoreline.
The bottom line we don’t have players who can shoot. Yes, Adebayor is out but he needs 6 chances to score anyway. The only players who I feel confident of taking a chance when it comes are Eduardo and Van Persie, and unfortunately Van Persie is feeling the pressure of being the only player who can score for us.
I will be utterly stunned if we’re not playing in the UEFA Cup next season.
And as bad as that would be, at least it would serve as a wake up call to our club who seem comfortable and almost happy to be a million miles away from Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool.
March 1st, 2009 at 3:59 pm
the selling of vieira, pires and henry = downfall of the club
can’t understand why wenger broke up a team which constantly finished 1st, 2nd….
March 1st, 2009 at 4:14 pm
Where is the “Arsene knows” brigade now?
March 1st, 2009 at 4:19 pm
@bubblestiggr HA HA HAPPY BIRTHDAY! / @Eurobin - up yers u NAZI scum./
Wenger knows what’s what, but he does make it hard work to believe sometimes.lol
March 1st, 2009 at 4:22 pm
i think the only way you will be stunned if we’re not in the uefa cup is if we fail to even qualify for that, not if we somehow finish 4th! everton are closing in on us too and have an ability to win when their not playing well, like yesterday for example.
March 1st, 2009 at 4:31 pm
am not bothered about not playing in the champs anymore. Better put the clubs’ acts well during the summer, not play in the champs and come stronger season 2010-2011. That is the only time I can agai get bothered. Theres’ no point being there and not win it, let alone the carling.
As for now, let us be fifth, or if not, hope for aston to lose some games, starting today.
March 1st, 2009 at 4:40 pm
I’ll hold you to that utterly stunned comment. You’re just like Piers Morgan, you let your vagina talk for you. We are a good team, I am willing to wait for even 5 years to see this same team mature into what they have the potential to be.
March 1st, 2009 at 5:05 pm
Faithless git.
Why don’t you call this crappy blog “arsenal until we’re not winning all the time”. Now you can go and support one of those “so clinical” teams and stop whining on the terraces, making the atmosphere around the ground and on the pitch even more negative.
If you don’t have anything positive to say about our unbeaten run, an excellent defensive record and being in a good position in both worthwhile cup competitions, along with cesc, theo and eduardo’s impending returns, then you’ve got no right to be writing about this great club.
Wonder what you’ll say when we finish 4th? I’ll never know ’cause I won’t be reading your utterly boring blog again.
You don’t care anymore- neither do we.
March 1st, 2009 at 5:22 pm
I have given up hope of finishing above Villa this season. The only way we will qualify for the CL is if we win this year. The problem with playing the UEFA CUP is I fear Wenger will play an inexperienced (carling cup like) team in that competition and will only focus on getting back into the champs league. I can’t see wenger making it a priority over qualifying for the champs league or winning the premiership.
March 1st, 2009 at 5:37 pm
C,mon…You must be taking the piss…Did you not see the guys behind the bench yesterday….About £70m of injured players…..if you took 5 starters from Barcalona they would look average. Add to the fact that we are in a transitional period trying to get some of the most talented youngsters in Europe into the game. 4 years on Players such as Clichy, Cesc, Walcott, Nasri and Djorou will be at there peak and the club will pay the benefits of what we are doing now. Are is the blogger just one of the spoilt want it all now Sky dish generation that can’t remember when we had too put up with the likes of David Hillier and John Jensen in the team.
March 1st, 2009 at 5:41 pm
If we win the Champions League would that make us eligible for next year’s qualifying round, even if we finish outside the top four? Because that’s the only way I can see us being in it next season.
March 1st, 2009 at 7:11 pm
I think you’re clutching at straws there Simon, winning the competition? Manchester United are miles ahead of anyone else at the moment.
And to Hugh Janus, it’s all about having a decent squad. United and Chelsea both have one, and they could have 6/7 injuries and still compete at the highest level.
March 1st, 2009 at 7:13 pm
are you a spud in disgiuse?
If you do go to the emirates i bet your one of the plastic fans that leaves 10 minutes early. Stop being so bloody negative and GET BEHIND THE TEAM, If your a real Arsenal fan that is.
In fact anyone reading this that does leave early, take my advice and pass your season ticket onto someone who really cares about the club you tosser. WHat kind of effect do you think it has on the players, 10 minutes from time with everything still to play for, to look up and see all you tossers heading out the exit? Cant be a positive effect now can it.
March 1st, 2009 at 8:11 pm
“We don’t have players that can shoot.”
Hahahahahahaha. Another clueless Arsenal blogger.
March 1st, 2009 at 8:12 pm
Robert. 1, We are not Chelsea and do not have the amount of money to throw at a side as they obviously have. So if you believe that Arsene is suddenly going to spend £150m then you are living on a different planet. I cannot see the comparison and 2, Yes if Fergie lost 6 important players from his squad, then United’s form would faulter like every other team. United at the moment are forunate that it has not happened. Give it a couple of years when Giggs, Scholes, Neville and Van der Saar retire and United have a bagful of injuries…what then?
March 1st, 2009 at 9:17 pm
I was talking to my old man on the way back from the game and we came to the conclusion that yes wenger did fuck up last year- he should have replaced flamini diarra and gilberto- his faith in players like song, who is certainly a promising player but not an arsenal standard one stopped him doing that. Yes he was wrong- all those hailing wenger as almost untouchable need to accept that. However, those calling for his head are worse. Wenger is the man to dig us out of this rut and get us back in the big time- everyone makes mistakes, its how you recover from them that matters. If there is a better man to get us back than wenger I would love to hear the suggestions? We have been in the champs league for the last 12 seasons- thats the 4th most consequtive seasons of any team in europe! All wenger.
March 1st, 2009 at 10:45 pm
I get really hacked off with people like Cesky who castigate others for leaving the ground early without any understanding of why they might do that. What if staying ’till the end puts an extra hour or two onto a journey because of missed trains ? Some people don’t live within walking distanca of the ground and have significant round trips to watch their team. My brother has watched Arsenal for 50+ years and has had a season ticket for nearly 40. He leaves a couple of minutes before the end for exactly the reason I mention. Is he plastic ? Does he not deserve his seat ? Grow up. There are more problems at the moment than people leaving early.
March 1st, 2009 at 11:21 pm
it just goes to show how out of touch Wenger and his players are when he can ask a question like he posed today.I dont know if the fans are losing faith ??? wake up man we are miles behind teams you promised we would crush and dominate 4 years ago your plans have gone seriously belly up or should i say your experiment,we are a straw away from finishing outside top four and we cant score in a brothel.Yes,we are losing faith and rapidly and you wonder why…..my god, the man is as delusional as ever.We havnt won anything for four years we crumble like a stack of cards when we get the chance to win something the players seems uninterested or spouts some drivel like we can win this or that or we are a special team with special talent while Man Utd have just won another trophy,their 8th since Wenger started his special team nonsense.
March 2nd, 2009 at 3:35 am
Credit where credit is due, you were right about the decline. BUT, I think the problem in the last game [Fulham] was that Arsene was trying too many new and risky tactics all at the same time.
Now, I really rate Denilson and hes improved a lot as the season has worn on. Thing is, Diaby looses the ball far too much [and does nothing to regain it when he looses it] for Denilson to clean up after him. Diaby’s movement has improved and he is now getting to think quick enough for the PL, but his passing was terrible and led to a lot of anxiety that became contagious.
Arshavin, Vela and Nasri have not played together and Vela and Arshavin are nervous so the 1-2s were not 100%.
RvP Persie is a great striker, but he cant play through the middle as an out&out striker. He needs to come in just behind the main striker so he can drift to the wings as he likes.
So…I think the leak in midfield came from Diaby and the attackers were not used to playing together creatively. With RvP drifting. We effectively had no striker in the middle which is why we didnt shoot much. When Eboue and Bendtner came on the performance improved.
We WILL be OK. Our fixture list is kind during this mediocre time. We will finish 3rd or 4th. No question.
March 3rd, 2009 at 2:36 pm
dfb, you are spot on mate.
People work hard for their money and support the team by digging into their pockets and they still get slated.
March 6th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
I would prefer we dont qualify for champions league. Then the club will understand the gravity of its shabby transfer policy. we cannot keep on expecting to get results we didnt work for. we cannot start a season unprepared and naive and expect some form of magic. you must have a well tailored squad and good buys to start a season as winners. football is getting more competitive by the day. Denilson, Song, Diaby and Bendtner ARE NOT WINNERS. AW has to know this.