Arsenal’s North West Test Has Only Just Begun…

Well Arsenal draw Bolton Wanderers in the FA Cup again, but luckily for us it’s at the Emirates. As Arsenal have proved this season they perform well against the top teams, having won at Old Trafford and Anfield and drawing at Stamford Bridge but struggle against the lower teams such as Bolton, Sheffield United and Manchester City.

Alan Hansen joked on Saturday with David Dein that Arsenal had drawn Bolton in the next round of the FA Cup to the Vice-Chairman’s obvious umbrage.

Most Arsenal fans will relish the chance for us to inflict some punishment against a team we can’t seem to beat over the last 3 seasons. A big plus for us is that Arsenal will have home advantage and we will have space to hurt Bolton with the bigger pitch.

Anyway, it seems our love-affair with the North West has only just begun, with Liverpool tomorrow night in the Carling Cup, Bolton in the FA Cup and Blackburn, Manchester City and Manchester United in the Premiership. The next 5 fixtures will be huge in defining our season.

Our game tomorrow will be tough because it looks like Arsene will play a weakened team and with Liverpool losing on Saturday and going out of the FA Cup you can be sure they will play their strongest team to make sure they stay in the Carling Cup.

It will be interesting whatever happens and there’s no reason why Arsenal can’t spring another surprise and beat Liverpool after a confidence boosting win at the weekend.

And just a note on the dive by Xabi Alonso. To me, that was exactly the same incident everyone seemed to go crazy over when Pires was clipped by the Portsmouth defender at Highbury a few seasons ago. Back then, everyone was chastising Bobby and calling him alsorts but it seems Xabi’s incident has gone unnoticed. Alonso left his leg in and started falling before he made ‘contact’ with Gilberto.

Maybe Arsene should publicly attack the player like Redknapp did against Pires? No chance, that’s not our style.

 

6 thoughts on “Arsenal’s North West Test Has Only Just Begun…

  1. Bolton fan here, I must admit that draw was my worse nightmare. Its only a matter of time before Arsenal inflict a severe beating to Bolton, just hope its not on this occasion. Have you any idea what the pricing structure will be for the match ( will they drop their prices ??) as I feel sure its going to be on the television. I know lots of my friends cant wait to go to the new stadium,Highbury was always my favourite away venue, steeped in tradition and history. It was great to listen to the 5 live match commentary as we came home from Doncaster, the cheers when Arsenal scored their goals would have been a joy to behold.

     
  2. We will more than likely play a weaker team that we did against the scousers on sat,

    Poom
    Hoyte Djouru Senderos Traore
    Theo Song Flamini Aliadiere
    Ade Beast

    subs Almunia, Diaby, Denilson, Fran Merida, Cesc

     
  3. well ade is definitely injured still so move Aliadiere up front and put cesc and Denilson in midfield and you have the team. not sure whether flam or Song will be benched but its a fairly strong team. I dont know whether we have enough proven goal scorers in that team. the beast and walcott need to start producing goals.

     
  4. You play nice football, that’s for sure, but we are your biggest bogey team.

    You may get our scalp at the Emirates, make you earn it.

     
  5. Thank you Eric Fishwick for your humility, truthfulness and class! I want to argue that bestiality with some intelligence will always crush beauty but never overcome it. Since teams decided in defence to park 11 men deep against Arsenal and in attack to boot the ball high into the box making the game a fifty/fifty affair it has developed into a strategy employed nearly wholesale wit success against Arsenal. It must be taken as a compliment that teams cannot afford to let Arsenal play. It is also easier to hack Fab et al. rather than try to play Arsenal and then go for the fifty/fifty balls when they pop out of the mixer. In other words it is easier to paint a mustache on the Mona Lisa than paint the Mona Lisa itself. Rugby style teams want to drag us into the mud with them. The sublime grass of Highbury/Ashburton-Emirates is as far removed as heaven for these trogdolytes. They must kill beauty. Even Barcelona, Roma or Lyon would be as fragile as Michelangelo’s Piete was to an attack. What is worse is that these beasts have some obstinate intelligence as well. So they allow for their fastest to be let loose should a counter-attack eventuate. Back in the mud they hoof the ball into danger zones making the bounce of the ball the determining factor in the game as they prey on the ball like vultures. Of course it will just be a matter of time before Arsenal learn how to overcome this type of strategy because while the beast can kill beauty it is beauty that has an infinite nature. See Brazil v Uruguay. The beast has to kill beauty that is its nature and after awhile it kills itself as beauty flourishes. Come on Arsenal.

     
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