- How referees are manipulating the number of yellow cards this season
- Manchester C v Arsenal. The teams and the records that suggest anything can happen.
By Tony Attwood
It took Manchester City 100 minutes and playing half the match against 10 men on their home ground just to get a draw, which tells us everything about this excellent Arsenal team and the brilliant Arsenal manager.
This was a superb display by Arsenal after the sending off – indeed it was brilliant with 11 men before that incident. The fact is before the game many of were hoping that Arsenal could make it to a draw – to do that with 10 men was fantastic, and to come within seconds of getting the win says everything about the team.
| Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester City | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 5 | 8 | 13 |
| 2 | Liverpool | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 9 | 12 |
| 3 | Aston Villa | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 12 |
| 4 | Arsenal | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 3 | 5 | 11 |
This will give Arsenal enormous confidence, to have gone to Manchester 115 and play half the game with 10 and come within seconds of the win, when most people were suggesting they would lose with 11, was brilliant and indeed incredible. And with the Sky pundit in the studio saying there was nothing to celebrate for Arsenal just shows how fantastic this was. We know those Anti-Arsenal sky pundits will have a go at anything and to see them reduced to this was something else.
This must give enormous confidence to Arsenal going forward. Indeed to get the most troublesome game of the season out of the way with a draw gained by ten men is an utter sensation.
Better still this will knock Manchester City’s confidence – their belief that they can get away with anything they like at any time and push on to winning the season again will have taken a huge knock. And that is without whatever happens in the court case.
Just a few years ago Arsenal lost their first three games of the season and the media and those with no faith or understanding were howling for Arteta to go. Now he can do this!
Of course I would have loved Arsenal to hold on for those last few seconds, but there is still a lot of the season to go, and ManC’s self-belief will have taken a knock. Of course we don’t know what the outcome of the hearing against this awful club will be (and awful is the right word – Forest and Everton were silly to allow themselves to get half a dozen or so claims against them, but to get hauled up for 115 is just plain daft and justs plain arrogance). But we can hope it is something very, very strong indeed. If not, the rest of the League should simply resign and go and set up their own competition.
Now we are seeing light at the end of the tunnel – Arsenal can hold that oil-sponsored club with justs ten men and not a single suggestion that Arsenal have broken any financial rules, and that really must give everyone a really positive feeling.
Of course they will be upset at the last minute equaliser, but in time it will be understood what a fantastic effort that was by Arsenal, taking on the billions of pounds invested in the club by the oil state, and still managing to challenge them without any suggestion of financial irregularity.
This should be the moment we celebrate to real achievements of Arsenal. Arsenal are now a team that can take on anyone, and will do as the season progresses. This is indeed a moment to enormous joy and pleasure. I just wish I had some fingernails left.
Well done Arsenal, lets see if the media will say anything about City celebrating a draw.
It was going to be hard with Oliver in saudi payroll.
It was indeed Tony.
Conceding a late goal always hurts, but I am still extremely proud.
To hear Stones whinging about Arsenal employing ‘Dark Arts’, gleefully encouraged by the SKY interviewer, was an utter embarrassment.
As for the supposed ‘time wasting’ according to SKY (probably courtesy of OPTA) the ball was in play for 35 minutes in the second half. The most for any match this season.
As for the SKY pundits, I thought they were trying to be more complementary about Arsenal, but that big mouth bully Keane was having none of it, and took over the tone of the analysis.
As for the match. Prior to the sending off, and following a tough opening, I was seeing more and more signs of our offensive play starting to come together. Despite his tough start to the season I thought Martinelli was very brave, wanting the ball constantly, and starting to look dangerous.
He not only worked his socks off, but didn’t give away a thing in the second half. He was a big part of a magnificent backs against the wall second half.
So pleased for him he got the assist, as that will do him the World of good.
My problem with the pundits ( all ex players) is that they seem to forget what it is like on the pitch. Trossard put in what he would have considered a reasonable challenge given his small stature and gets whistled for it and he kicks the ball away. Wright says he’s dissappointed with him for that. What is Trosard, a chess player? Come on, Wrighty, you did that all the time back in the 90s. One of the media outlets/PGMO apologists/Man City apologists said that Doku was only knocking the ball back to where the infraction took place…yeah right, he was. Hey, our lads aren’t angels and we don’t expect them to be but lets at least pretend to be fair.
And, how about Haaland bouncing the ball off of Gabriel’s head after the goal…straight red if it was seen. Given that it wasn’t awarded, VAR should have intervened.
GoingGoingGooner
Sorry but I cannot abide Wright. A fair-weather fan in the extreme.
Your points:
1 – Doku
No way on Earth was he kicking it back to where the offence occurred and Oliver was looking right at it. The fact the pundits didn’t think it was a disgrace he wasn’t yellowed, and worse even defend it just shows how biased they are.
2 – Haarland
Absolute joke that VAR didn’t intervein. Absolute joke the pundits just let it slide with barely a mention.
Not only your 2 points but when Oliver blew up for the foul just before having that word with the 2 Captains, a Man city player walked off kicking the ball along, away from the incident, as he did so. He was clearly keeping the ball away from where the offence took place in order to prevent a quick free kick. He didn’t know Oliver was going to call the 2 Captains together. Again not mentioned.
If Wright had any balls and was a true Arsenal fan, rather than a fair-weather glory hunter, he would be jumping up and down about these gross inconsistences rather than having a pop at Trossard..
He as anti Arsenal as the rest of them. cant stand the man
We recall from the Martinelli sending off that Oliver’s mind and reactions work in tiny fractions of seconds where Arsenal are concerned.
I knew before the game that he would screw us -. eg lettiing Haaland constantly barge. into our players off the ball etc.
So just a little recap on how these things work:
-Doku can kick the ball away without sanction.
-Pep Guardiola can kick and break his seat in anger without sanction.
-Haarland can throw the ball with force into the back of Gabriel’s head without sanction.
All missed or worse, ignored by the Referee and VAR
Isn’t odd how the slightest pull by Trossard, isn’t ignored.
Isn’t it odd how Trossard kicking the ball away within literally a fraction of a second of the whistle blowing, isn’t ignored.
Noting to see here gov’ner
You just watch this whitewashed over again tomorrow, just like the Brighton match.