The Halloween Frights Come Early As The Arsenal Self-Destruct (w/ Player Ratings)

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Arsenal (4) – (4) Tottenham Hotspur
Silvestre (37′), Gallas (46′), Adebayor (64′), Van Persie (68′)
The Emirates Stadium, London

Well first of all what a game.

David Bentley scored the opener with a stunning effort on 13 minutes, and that seemed to set the tone of the game. The ball was bouncing around in midfield and Bentley controlled the ball with his first touch and volleyed in a speculative effort from 43 yards with his second. While it was a fantastic piece of vision you really thought Almunia should have parried the ball wide rather than try and tip it over the bar when you see how low it dipped into the net.

From then on Spurs sat back and tried to get us on the break.

And as if to keep with the Halloween theme it was the Addams Family’s very own Gomes who seemed to continue his very own personal nightmare from crosses. As the Arsenal pressure mounted it took a corner from Van Persie to get the equaliser. His dipping cross was headed in by Silvestre after Gomes was in no mans land.

Then the second half saw Arsenal take the lead after only 50 seconds of the restart, again after a fantastic corner from Van Persie. William Gallas connected well with it and while Gomes got a hand on the ball it wasn’t strong enough to keep out the header.

With the game at 2-1, it took another 20 minutes before we saw another goal. In between though, Adebayor had a fantastic chance to score when he flashed his effort wide of the left post and Bentley had a low shot well saved by Almunia.

And then on 64 minutes the game burst into life.

A simply stunning through ball from Van Persie made it through to Nasri who found himself through on goal. His chipped effort beat Gomes but it took the finish from Adebayor to make sure it made it into the net. And with that you thought the game was over.

Like hell it was.

In a hectic period, Almunia made a howler from a Huddlestone effort when he pushed the ball straight to Darren Bent to score a simple tap in. Luckily Spurs were also in a generous mood as Alan Hutton passed the ball to Adebayor who played in Van Persie to emphatically smash the ball home.

4-2 and Arsenal were cruising, so Wenger brings off Walcott, Van Persie and Nasri to rest them for the weekend. Maybe they should have stayed on a little longer.

Because in the last 5 minutes Arsenal were all over the place.

Call it inexperience, call it poor concentration – the last few minutes of the game were unacceptable and really re-enforce the fact that this set of players isn’t up to mounting a real title challenge. What happened was just insane, and Arsene must be absolutely fuming.

On 89 minutes, Clichy dawdled on the ball and slipped letting in Jenas to run on goal. He waltzed through without anyone putting in a proper challenge and he curled the ball with his left foot into the corner.

Then when you thought Arsenal would have learnt their lesson, they just simply lost the plot. Instead of holding onto the ball they tried to pass it around and continually gave away possession. Then on 93 minutes, a shot from Modric deflected off Silvestre, and Lennon creeped in score the equaliser and make it 4-4.

Player Ratings

Manuel Almuna: 5/10
Was out of sorts today. Could have done a lot better with Bentley’s pop shot and gifted Darren Bent of all people a simple tap in. Unlucky with the final equaliser but that summed up his day.

Bacary Sagna: 7/10
Solid as usual and can’t really be blamed for any of the goals.

Mikael Silvestre: 7/10
Did well to score his goal but looked shaky alongside Gallas at the back, but then again who doesn’t? Not the quickest player and got caught on a few occasions.

William Gallas: 7/10
Had his usual strop at full-time but did score a vital goal. Should probably concentrate on defending a bit more though.

Gael Clichy: 8/10
Once again was full of running and yet again put in a fantastic performance. Made a mistake to let in Jenas which opened up the floodgates.

Theo Walcott: 8/10
Caused Spurs all kinds of problems on the right and you could tell the dynamic of the game changed once he came off.

Denilson: 7/10
Popped the ball around well but seemed to struggle near the end.

Cesc Fabregas: 7/10
Put in another decent performance but hasn’t seemed to reached top gear since coming back from the European Championships.

Samir Nasri: 7/10
Looked bright at times but always on the periphery.

Robin Van Persie: 9/10
Arsenal’s best player by a mile. Lively, inventive and always a threat. Made Arsenal’s first two goals and scored a fantastic effort to seemingly kill off the match. The team lost their killer instinct once he game off.

Emmanuel Adebayor: 7/10
Never really in the game. Poor touch throughout and really should have scored more than the one goal after wasting a couple of decent opportunities.

The Hull City Defeat: One Day Later

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Arsenal (1) – (2) Hull City
Paul McShane OG (49′)
The Emirates Stadium, London

Arsene Wenger’s sobering interview after the game summed up how I felt after the match.

He was hugely disappointed with the commitment shown on the pitch, as was every Arsenal fan watching. We all hoped the Fulham game was a one off and the team would have learnt that substandard performances aren’t good enough to win games in the Premier League. But yesterday there was no desire yet again.

While it was a result that has shocked the Premier League, watching the game you knew that our lacklustre performance might cause us a problem. After all, we became unstuck at Fulham only weeks ago. All it takes is one piece of brilliance or a mistake to let the opposition back into the game and unfortunately for us both of those happened.

We saw Geovanni do it on the opening day of the season against Fulham, and he scored another fantastic strike to equalise last night. Then a mistake from William Gallas (yet again from a set-piece) gave Hull their winner.

The wonder strike coupled with amateurish defending was a trend which cursed The Emirates Stadium when we first moved in.

Teams would visit our new ground and sucker punch us with the opening goal. Aston Villa, Middlesbrough, Everton, Newcastle and Hamburg all did it, thanks to a combination of poor defending and a moment of brilliance.

So you weren’t shocked when Hull scored the winner.

Maybe the players just thought it would never happen. Our record at home is fantastic so what’s the likelihood Hull could actually nick a winner?

Usually though after seeing a performance like that I would be angry, but for some strange reason I wasn’t.

Everyone point is vital if you want to win the Premier League, and maybe that’s exactly why I wasn’t too upset. Maybe I don’t truly believe we can win the league this season.

People will say that it’s just a bad day at the office but you can see performances against Fulham and Hull happening time and time again this season. Put this result in perspective – Hull are only the second team to beat us at The Emirates in 3 seasons. And apparently Hull were 20-1 to win yesterday. You couldn’t get longer odds!

The problem is we’re far too hot and cold. We put in excellent performances against teams like Blackburn, Newcastle, FC Twente and Bolton Wanderers but stutter against Fulham and Hull City.

Arsene Wenger must be completely baffled, and I feel for him.

But what’s the problem? Is it inexperience, or is it misplaced faith in players like Adebayor – who was shockingly bad yesterday. Or maybe the squad isn’t good enough. I’m sure the debate will go on for months about what’s missing from this current Arsenal side.

I think the main problem this season now is that teams will face us knowing that while they may not have the talent to compete with us, as long as they put in 100% they will have a chance of getting something. We’ve given opposing teams belief that they can take us on and that’s bad news.

All teams like Fulham and Hull City have to do is be organised, committed and take the few chances when they come along. And Arsenal just don’t have any answers to that.

The worrying thing is that if a manager like Phil Brown (no disrespect, but he is hardly hugely experience in the Premier League) can work us out and execute a game plan with Hull City then God help us all.

The only saving grace is that even with their game in hand, Arsenal will still be above United in the table. But how long is that going to last I wonder?

Turmoil At Arsenal Football Club?

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Well, what a difference a few weeks make.

Only 3 weeks ago Arsenal lost away at Fulham. It was a gutless, pathetic performance from a team that showed no desire whatsoever. Things looked bleak since we had already lost a game with the Premier League season barely a week old.

Yet amazingly after 4 games we are 3rd in the table, only a solitary point behind leaders Chelsea and Liverpool.

Champions Manchester United currently sit 14th, albeit it with a game in hand. And the funny thing is that Team Manchester have to play Chelsea away on Sunday which could put a real dent in United’s title challenge if they lose. 2 defeats in 4 games could really make things interesting this early on in the season, psychologically if nothing else.

And our lovely neighbours have played 4 games and have only 1 point after Aston Villa beat them at home on Monday night. Sp*rs currently sit bottom of the league, without a win and have only succeeded in achieving their worst ever season in the Premier League.

Don’t you just love football? I do.

And just to make things that little bit sweeter this weekend saw Arsenal demolish Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park. Emmanuel Adebayor scored a perfect hattrick (left foot, right foot and head) despite not playing at the top of his game, Van Persie is showing the quality player he is with his scoring run and Theo Walcott finally looks like he’s got the confidence in his game Arsene Wenger has been waiting for.

The hattrick from Trio Walcott in midweek has done the kid the world of good, and it’s great to see he’s a typical Arsene player who is keeping his feet on the ground. When you watched him in games before you felt he lacked that killer instinct but that run for Van Persie’s goal was exceptional. Direct, powerful and deadly. We all knew he was capable of that and the early signs are that he could be a real player for us this season.

Best of luck to the lad.

I do have to say thought I almost threw up at the sight of c*nts like Ferdinand, Lampard and Terry hugging Walcott after he scored in midweek. They were retarded enough to really criticise a young, promising player a few years ago despite Theo not doing a single thing wrong. Did I mention they are c*nts?

And while things on the pitch are rosy, other clubs are in turmoil off it.

Alan Curbishley left West Ham United, KK departed Newcastle United and now it seems, Newcastle owner Mike Ashley has put the club up for sale.

He released an emotional statement, which said:

“My plan and my strategy for Newcastle is different. It has to be. Arsenal is the shining example in England of a sustainable business model. It takes time. It can’t be done overnight. Newcastle has therefore set up an extensive scouting system. We look for young players, for players in foreign leagues who everyone does not know about.

“We try and stay ahead of the competition. We search high and low looking for value, for potential that we can bring on and for players who will allow Newcastle to compete at the very highest level but who don’t cost the earth.”

Sad for Newcastle obviously but a nice compliment to Arsene Wenger and Arsenal and how we run our club.

I don’t claim to be an expert on the Newcastle situation but it’s amazing to see a football club in this position. And I don’t claim to know the ins and outs of Mike Ashley or what his background is, but for me to see fans protest against someone who paid over £250 million of his own money in only a year is strange. From his statement it’s clear he had the best interests of the club at heart but I suppose that’s not enough?

Most, if not all Arsenal fans understand Arsene’s whole philosophy at the club and what he wants to achieve, and it’s easy to take it for granted, especially in a league where money buys success.

I’ve already written numerous times what I think of Arsene and what he’s done for our club. You can read one of the pieces here.

So it seems like I need to sit down and eat some humble pie.

I Just Can’t Listen To Arsene Wenger Anymore

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Before all the ‘Arsene Knows’ brigade jump aboard and have a go I do realise what the great man has done for the club, of course I do. He is the most successful manager in Arsenal’s history. He has transformed us into an mediocre side into one of the biggest four teams in the Premier League.

But some of things he comes out with are so ridiculous.

I’m not sure who his PR man is, but he’s not doing a very good job.

Arsene has come out and said he doesn’t know why he’s under pressure to buy a £40 million player.

Who the hell has actually said they want Arsene to spend that on a single player?

He said:

“It is not one player who makes a difference. It is up to us as a team to show personality, strength and belief. If we can find one more, we will do it, if not we will not limit our ambitions because of it.

“I do not know why we are always under pressure to buy £30m or £40m players.

“I am under pressure to buy good players – it is as simple as that. And good players are not always necessarily linked with the price.”

Talk about getting all defensive.

I’m sorry Arsene. We’re so sorry for putting you under so much pressure to buy a £40 million player. Because obviously the rumours of Messi and Kaka joining Arsenal won’t go away.

And talking about the team showing personality, strength and belief – I failed to see any of those things against Fulham at the weekend and the first match against FC Twente. Along with our paper-thin squad, we don’t have any desire on the pitch.

Am I the only one who thinks that a central midfield of Emmanuel Eboue and Denilson isn’t good enough to challenge for honours? Am I the only one who realises injuries are part of the game? Last January was a glaring example of how close the title was – just another player (no, not at £40 million) with a bit of experience would of helped.

I don’t want Robinho, I don’t want Ronaldo.

I just want half decent replacements for the players that have left, and Arsene can do that without breaking the bank. I don’t have specific examples, but with a scouting structure as good as Arsenal’s he should be able to pick out a few players. We’ve lost Gilberto, Lehmann, Hleb, Flamini, Diarra, Hoyte and Senderos, and the only player of quality that’s been brought in is Nasri, who is still very young.

And if you can’t get decent replacements, then why let them go!

You don’t have to be a genius to see it doesn’t add up.

I also don’t get the signing of light-bulb head. Arsene talks about bringing in experience yet he releases Gilberto, who has been there and done that. This is a player who won the World Cup and is a fantastic professional.

Let me say this though: I hope I am completely wrong.

I hope Arsenal fight for all the major honours and Arsene Wenger has the last laugh. I hope I look like a complete idiot as the season comes to a close. I hope come May I get put in my place, and get a torrent of abuse because I couldn’t see the forthcoming success. Unfortunately all the antics over the summer and the performances this season haven’t given me much confidence for the campaign ahead. And the signings of Silvestre and Bischoff just scream of desperation but Arsene will tell us all that “this season, we have the same numbers as last year”.

So that makes it okay then.

It doesn’t matter if the ‘numbers’ brought in are crocks and can’t even play for us. What the hell is going on?

The only saving grace tonight is that McClaren is completely shite at qualifying for major tournaments.

I’m going for a lie down.

The Demise Of Arsenal Football Club?

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A bit extreme? Maybe. Then again maybe not.

People will accuse me of jumping on the bandwagon after defeat at Fulham yesterday but since the summer there has been a general unrest amongst Arsenal fans.

But if anything I should have written this years ago. At least then it would have been more prophetic.

We lose experienced Premier League players such as Flamini, Hleb, Gilberto and Diarra, and apart from Samir Nasri the arrivals to replace them are hardly going to excite the fans.

We’ve brought Mikael Silvestre (£750k), Amaury Bischoff (Free) and Aaron Ramsey (£5m) – one of which is a 17 year old and the other two have big injury problems hanging over them. Our squad also contains Abou Diaby, Tomas Rosicky and Robin Van Persie who spend more time on the treatment table than on the pitch.

You can harp on about the state of the squad once we get our injured players back but it seems like Diaby and Rosicky are destined to never get a decent run in the side. And the purchase of Silvestre and Bischoff has most Arsenal fans scratching their heads – are we so desperate for players that we have to resort to injury-prone personnel?

Would Manchester United, Chelsea or Liverpool ever do that?

The fact is that since the invincibles season, we’ve become a selling club. Probably because of the Emirates Stadium. I mean look at Wenger – he’s waiting for the last week of the transfer window so we can get cut-priced players! We have no money, despite what crap you hear from Arsenal.
Just think of Arsenal as an Ajax Amsterdam.

People ask why didn’t Arsene strengthen the squad last January so we could push on with our title challenge? It’s because he’s got no money to do so. Remember Wenger had no problem forking out around £12 million for Reyes in 2004 to reinforce an already awesome squad. We were spoilt for choice that season. This was a squad that had a midfield choice of Wiltord, Ljungberg, Vieira, Edu, Gilberto, Pires, Reyes and Parlour. Players full of experience, power and excellent technical ability. At the weekend against Fulham we had Denilson and Eboue in central midfield. How on earth did things get so bad?

Since 2004 another trend that’s begun is the fortunes of departing players. We used to say that players leaving the club were going to see out their careers but is that really the case these days? Patrick Vieira left for Italy and he’s won the Italian league. Mathieu Flamini and Alexander Hleb have joined AC Milan and Barcelona – two of Europe’s real superpowers. Thierry Henry is at Barcelona too, and even Jose Antonio Reyes joined Real Madrid when he left. Wiltord went to Lyon and won a couple of French titles, and Ashley Cole is at Chelsea.

Hardly terrible destinations for those players are they?

I hate to say it but those players have got more chance of winning honours at their new clubs then they would do at Arsenal. And that is heart-breaking to even say.

And we haven’t even talked about Emmanuel Adebayor who wanted to leave the club in the summer. We keep hearing Arsene talking about how we should get off Adebayor’s back after the summer but that just reeks of desperate damage-limitation.

Things look to get worse before they will get better. And maybe that is the whole point.

Arsene’s policy on youngsters is obviously driven by the lack of funds at the club. Before the financial constraints he didn’t have a problem bringing in experienced players like Emmanuel Petit, Marc Overmars, Giles Grimandi, Nwankwo Kanu, Sol Campbell, Gilberto Silva – the list goes on.

The fact is Arsenal will have to go through a few more seasons without silverware before they can even consider challenging for honours. And the problem is you’re playing a dangerous game, because even when we are ready to compete in the transfer market again to buy quality players attracting the very top players is going to be difficult since titles speak volumes. Who is going to want to join a football club which has been trophy-less for years?

Arsene knows we’re in no state to challenge for the Premier League.

He’ll never say it in public, but he knows we’re miles off. That’s why he hasn’t spent anything! Why waste valuable money on buying players when we’re never going to win the title. Wenger is playing the waiting game and will only spend the money when he truly believes we can challenge for the biggest honours. But is that going to be in one, two or three years time?

That’s the big question.

And don’t even get me started on Gareth Barry. He is not the solution to our problems and has to be one of the most overrated players in the Premier League. On the state of the squad this season we need at least 3 or 4 experienced players to even think about challenging for the league, but we all know that’s never going to happen.