Strange. very strange, this world we now inhabit.

Posted on by Tony Attwood

Strange. very strange.

Charles Veritie.

I have noticed that there has been a new approach to the criticism of Arsenal and Arsene Wenger. It sort of crept up on me. At first I swallowed it not realising what was happening.

The voices of the blogs. media and pundit land  are doing something strange, very strange.

Looking back it began for me hearing someone on BBC Radio 5 football programme praising Sagna and saying that Arsene should extend his contract beyond his 31 years. ‘Good’ I thought an appreciation of one  of our team at last.

Then I read a piece about Flamini being the best buy of the open window. I thought he signed on a ‘free’ but never mind.

Then someone told me that the big German at the centre of our defence who looks like a giraffe and can’t run as fast as an elephant can, has good positional sense. I wonder if the German team manager knows this. Does Arsene know?  Did you know that Koscielny is playing a lot better now that he plays along side Mertsacker?

Then of course there have been the multiplicity of critics all banging the drum of ‘Last year I thought Ramsey was finished and should be sold off but this year he has proved me wrong.’

After the match against Liverpool there was the praise for Cazorola. ‘He’s as good as Ozil’ I heard one of our critics say.  On the subject Ozil have you noticed that when he arrived he was the sun on our new dawn, but now the knives are slowly coming out for him?

Since the transfer of a certain presenter on Radio 5 to Talk Sport  it seems to me  Radio 5 football spots have improved considerably. However they fell down a little when I heard one of the present ones giving us his view on Giroud by saying that he is a very good midfielder with superb touch but he seems to lose it in front of goal. If he gets injured before the January window Arsenal will be lost because they don’t have another striker that can lead the attack. ‘Arsene must buy a top class striker.’ I presume by that he meant a striker as good as Giroud.

I have also read praise for Monreal and Arteta. Remember the latter being derided as nothing more than a panic buy!

All this praise for our players. Its very strange, very strange

However it was reading an article in the London Telegraph on Szczesny that opened my eyes of understanding. The writer concluded that there is every possibility of Szczesny living up to his potential.

From reading that I now understand what is happening, The voices of the blogs, media and pundit land are telling us one by one that we have a team of great players and they don’t know they are doing it!   Nor do they realise that yet again they are telling us something we already know.

Long gone, is the accusation that we are a one player team and once that revolting player gets injured or moves to a team where can win something we will be lost. Well he did clear off.

In his place has come a team of talented players, playing as one. All thanks to Arsene. I wonder when  Arsene’s critics  will catch on to what we have been telling them for years.

‘Arsene knows best.’

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31 Replies to “Strange. very strange, this world we now inhabit.”

  2. The gutter press inc sky m o t d hate arsenal and are waiting to carry on putting them down first chance also most blogs with arsenal in title are as bad

  3. We still need a striker I don’t care how well giroud is doing right now he is not good enough to be the main striker for arsenal fc he has no composure he only scores tap ins wenever he has had a chance where he has been required to take a touch beforehand he has missed horribly aswell. The worst thing is our midfield is so good it’s wasted by having a lumbering oaf in strike. He has no pace and against teams like bayern Munich Chelsea man utd and Barcelona we need a striker that will atleast stretch deference and create space for the midfield and when he gets a chance to stick it away, giroud doesn’t meet any of those attributes.

    Everytime I watch arsenal play I can’t belive he is our main striker from Henry Anelka Ian wright bergkamp van persie kanu even adebayor we now hav giroud. What makes it worse of we had a half decent striker we could’ve easily walked the premier league title but lack of a top striker is going to cost us.

    Giroud will never score past a mourinho defence or against vidic or Ferdinand couldn’t even score past Liverpool the goal against Dortmund was very very lucky and against tottenham it was a tap in he can’t score past big teams.

  5. The press was mentioning “heavy metal” numerous times in the context of Dortmund. Wenger apparently replied that we were “light metal”.

    As materials science and engineering is where I call home, ….

    Aluminum, magnesium, titanium and steel all have about the same specific stiffness. If the design is sensitive to deflection and needs to be low mass, all those metals are similar. Aluminum-lithium alloys might have a slight advantage.

    The metal that wins on specific stiffness? Beryllium! Used in many aerospace applications, where a stiff, low density metal is the best option.

    I am going to translate Wenger’s statement to “Arsenal were beryllium.”.

    Still ahead of us: carbon fibre, nanotubes of various kinds, graphene.

  6. This world we inhabit has just seen one the most remarkable sportsman achieve something special today.

    Jockey AP McCoy has just ridden his FOUR THOUSAND winner.

    What does this have to do with an Arsenal blog?

    Well AP McCoy is a member of the Arsenal family. Yep a fellow goner.

    Congratulations AP McCoy.

  8. Does that make the Spuds boron Gord? – they are certainly boring me with their play this season.
    Hopefully Arsenal can no longer be considered a transition metal.
    As for the media, yes there are changes afoot – but probably reflecting these types will look extremely stupid if they carry on with their tired narrative – as Stewart Robson now does. Still not convinced they like, rate or appreciate our team

  9. All this praise/ criticism/ publicity about Arsenal and its players reminds me of the late 1930’s and manager George Allison. He once said “As long as Arsenal is in the news, its good news”.

  10. @MandyDodd

    Interesting question. Obviously the word “boring” has different meanings: to bore someone, or to make a hole in something. Others? Boron has quite an interesting chemistry, and some unusual physics. I would say that neon, argon and krypton probably are the most boring materials on a chemistry and physics basis. Helium has interesting physics, and xenon has some strange chemistry (one of the few oxide explosives, among others).

    It may be that Tottenham are playing their football in the wrong place. There is a place in Oregon, USA called boring. Most of the hits I seen about business in Boring, Oregon were about (tree) bark. Maybe the spurs are barking up the wrong tree? Bark worse than their bite?

    I find steel boring, mostly because it is so over-specified. It would not surprise me to find some mechanical engineer specifying steel for toilet paper. But steel is often used to make boring bars.

    I can’t say I am happy to read news that M$ (Microsoft) is going to pour money into Barcelona.

  11. As long as we appear to care what the likes of Robson and the other detractors say they will continue to utter their garbage.

    It really does not matter what they say does it?

    The stupid injustice of the ill thought out jibes so many of these loons spew forth does rankle, of course. Ignore them.

  12. Nicky.
    That is as may be.
    I heard George Swindon on what was then the BBC Light programme saying very much the same thing in an interview when he had just been appoint manager. I quaked in my soul and feared the worse.

    Then came Terry Neil sometimes his comments floored me.
    I disagree ‘bad news is not good news’ ‘Negative comments from any one involved in the club encourage the ignorant to be ignorant.

    I have never done this but search out comments made by the late Bill Shankly and Arsene I’ll bet you will find they speak the same positive message about their respective clubs. Shankly won the hearts and respect of the whole of Liverpool not just the red side with his positiveness.

    Good news, good comment or no news or comment is best.

  13. Gord,

    I think neon can make a pretty orange light when an electrical current is passed through it.

    Not boring at all. 🙂

  14. @HenryB

    I wonder what colour light a spud makes when you pass electric current through it/them?

    Actually Henry, that is a general property of matter, all matter can be made to emit light of some kind under those conditions.

  17. Well Mandy, Wikipedia has the answer as to what element Tottenham is: Argon.

    > The name “argon” is derived from the Greek word αργον, neuter singular form of αργος meaning “lazy” or “inactive”,

    🙂

  18. It is all well and good saying we should all ignore the constant torrents of negative comments and abuse aimed at Arsenal and the players and manager.

    It might not effect everyone but the narrative DOES have an effect on some people. Enough people to help them form THEIR opinions of the club, based on the misguided, ill-informed and/or spurious, hate filled views of others.

    All one has to do is see the amount of times the lack of a trophy is thrown into ANY discourse about Arsenal.

    Where has that come from? The incessant mantra from the media. I see it time and again. On the BBC match day feeds, the hosts post tweets and texts about the teams. Recently Arsenal were playing WBA and losing and all the tweets chosen were very similar; “Arsenal’s bubble has burst” ” Yet another year without a trophy” and so on.

    Its clear to me, anyway, that the constant repitition of Arsenal’s lack of success (recent) has been absorbed by the gullible football masses.

  21. You know guys if we win the league it would be the other teams losing it and giving it to arsenal. See that coming! 😉

  27. With the pundits turning up posts and interviews praising Arsenal, we can at least conclude the following:
    1. There are many among them that know good football and footballers and are not afraid to own up that Arsenal is coming good in both respects. These ones refused to pander to Arsenal when, in their views, the club and players weren’t good enough and are not now holding back for ego or tribal reasons when they see the team hitting the mark. Bravo to them. May their ranks increase.

    2. As the pundits are opinion leaders, hopefully, Arsenal shall begin to see more good press in general and less ink or airtime from implacable and emotional Arsenal hatters.

    3. Perhaps the section of Arsenal fans that derive their views from pundits and the press will feel more comfortable now, expressing their love and support to the club they profess to love and support.

    4. A final word of caution to Arsenal: be careful; be on your toes when your enemies start singing your praises. Keep your head down and keep working hard for the ultimate prizes at the end of the season: that, and not anyone praise enroute is what matters the most.

  28. I’m still a bit careful, as this may only be wrestlers move when they rise you higher so they can hit you on ground harder. Learned last years to not to trust anyone, except Gary Neville.

  30. Don’t be fooled by their “nice” remarks, this is only to keep their jobs safe when we make it. But we know as soon as an opportunity arises they will bring out the knives again, and usually “nice” remarks are dripping with sarcasm anyway.
    I would really really really like to THRASH, i mean THRASH Manu on Sunday, first, for revenge, and secondly to shut the punters up for some time longer.
    Come on Gunners.

  31. Certainly did Gord, a metal well applied to them Spuds. Just hope we show our quick silver qualities against utd

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