By Bulldog Drummond
Our old chum Kieran Gibbs is a doubt to face the Arsenal, having picked up a thigh injury according to SportsMole who also tell us the line up against the Larger Sam and Co could be
Leno;
Bellerin, Holding, Mari, Tierney;
Elneny, Xhaka;
Saka, Smith Rowe, Martinelli;
Aubameyang
The Standard chicken out of the prediction lark and give us the squad instead, while Sky Sports merely say “Bukayo Saka is expected to be fit for Arsenal’s clash at West Brom with boss Mikel Arteta set for a selection headache.”
Fortunately pain killers are in regular availability.
The Independent goes with the same line up but make it a 4-3-3 with Auba on the wing rather than Martinelli.
Leno;
Bellerin, Holding, Mari, Tierney;
Elneny, Xhaka, Smith Rowe;
Saka, Martinelli, Aubameyang
The Birmingham Mail runs the headline “Is West Brom v Arsenal on TV?” to which the answer is yes, since all Premier League games are on TV as long as we don’t have crowds, but I suppose news travels slow in the land of the middles. Pain in the Arsenal help out here with the headline “How to Watch on TV” although they miss out the bit about getting a TV set. And a TV licence.
The 4th official however takes the same approach as Sports Mole. As indeed does Who Scored.
Now you might recall that WhoScored managed to put together an Arsenal team for this match which is in every statistical regard inferior to the Brighton team that they selected. This time however they have managed to give us a more dominating team.
Our average player ratings outdo theirs – just, by 6.7 to 6.5. Our team’s average height is one centimetre taller and we get 0.1 shots per player more per game.
But they have a higher aerial duel success than we do.
- WBA v Arsenal: The ups and downs of the Larger Sam
- West Bromwich v Arsenal: the curious case of home and away
The team that makes the difference is:
Referee: Craig Pawson.
Assistants: Ian Hussin, Dan Robathan.
Fourth official: Michael Oliver.
VAR: Graham Scott.
Assistant VAR: Timothy Wood.
The question is how much will this lot slope the pitch? Lest hope it is not in their instructions to influence the game beyond the Laws of The Game.
On a good honest game Arsenal should get the 3 points without injury to any player. Let us pray that no player gets injured.
COYG show us the quality that has been nurtured in our Academy.
The duo Gunners of Aubameyang and Bellerin are the two who are available to start the WBA PL away match for Artetal tonight out of the five automatic PL game Arsenal starters of: Leno, Maglhaes, Bellerin, Partey and Aubameyang.
But despite this weakness occasioned in the Gunners PL team selection for the WBA match tonight today, Arsenal can still win the match. But if the duo Gunners who will be brought in by Arteta to replace their 2 unavailable Arsenal automatic PL match starters by giving all that are in them in the game to help Arsenal win the match to keep the club’s 2 recent PL games wins momentum going without suffering a break to it.
I am not the Arsenal manager, but still I will not want to be anonymous but remain available to make my wish Arsenal starting XI and bench for the match qs stated below.
Starts:
Leno;
Bellerin Mari Holding Tierney;
Xhaka ESR Elneny;
Saka Lacazette Aubameyang.
Bench:
Runarsson Soares Luiz Mustafi AMN Willock Nketiah.
The Gunners should therefore play to claim all the 3 points that will be at stake in the match. After all, Arsenal are only 6 points behind the sixth placed club side Chelsea and 13 points adrift the table toppers Liverpool. If Artetal keep winning to have long long anfield long winning run in the PL, thwarting club will overhau any occupying top-four teams before the season runs out. .
The change of referee to Atkinson speaks volumes of how corrupt this game is.
lovely goal by Saka
The first Arsenal goal was just class by Tierney. The second was just class a thing of beauty by Arsenal a series of one touch passes ending in Saka scoring from 4 yards.
Bellerin’s first tackle…of course, got to give him a yellow
We commit our first foul after 42 minutes. Atkinson clearly couldn’t contain his joy. Yellow card. Pathetic.
The Atkinson purpose shows itself quickly when he books Bellerin for a soft foul. This technique is slanting the pitch by putting the player in an awkward place with a card that colud end up getting him sent off.
Several bookable fouls by WBA gone without cards but then why book tyhem they are down the bottom!!
Big Sam never been relegated but then again he was caught a few times with his trousers down. The most recent with money being shoved into his pockets!!
The second goal was beautiful…two great passes by Smith-Rowe.
Good to see us playing fast forward passing football again. More please in the second half. COYG
It is so important to make runs on a slippy pitch. Defenders can not move quickly and there are openings to be had.
Furlong should be shown a RED as he left the ground with no control and could have broken Tierneys neck. VAR higding behind a snowman!!
Arsenal get into an attacking position and Faka Laca Saka and eventually a third goal against all Atkinsons instructions. He must be wetting his pants because Riley is going to have him ….. :0)
Pass Pass PassPass and boom Laca gets the 4th!!!
Wmo’s picking Laca???? Only the cameras!!
Ivanovic changed for not being able to stop Laca with several unbooked fouls.
Yellow card for a deliberate kick to Sakas leg by Gallagher. Its the way PGMOL work. They allow injury to occur without seeing anything and then revisit with a card as if that forgives them for their evil intentions.
Atkinson can’t help himself.
Martin will be in tears in the dressing room. I just wonder what it would be like if we were all subjected to the rules in the same way.
Irrespective a very good game. Very professional. A future captain in Tierney that’s for sure.
Well that was fun. Four nil despite Atkinson’s efforts and a miserable Over Large Sam to boot. Well done Gunners and a Happy New Year to all Untolders
It always is a nice feeling to give Fat Sam a big spanking 🙂
Saka is going to be a superb player. Smith-Rowe also on the verge of something great!
I think if they would have asked if a player wanted to play without a shirt then Tierney would put up his hand. What a beast and what a first goal that was! Amazing! He surely liked the conditions.
Laca finding his scoring boots again…. now for Auba to do the same!
Oh yes a happy new year to all Untolders!
Given I have nothing better to do, I was thinking………
Allardyce is my second least favourite manager after Pulis. Leaving aside all Spuds managers (they go without saying), who’s the third most despicable….or have I missed somebody obvious…….I’m on my second bottle now 😉
Great performance.
Always tough to assess these games against teams so out of form, (shipped 5 against Leeds who just shipped 3 against Spursy), but you can only beat what’s in front of you and if ever there was a 4 – 0 spanking that was it.
3 worst managers ?
Pullis was a disgrace of a manager. I believe he actually sent his teams out to hurt our players.
Fat Sam. I don’t believe he did that, just a terribly negative anti football kind of manager.
Mark Hughes. Got away with murder as a player and carried that in to management. cant stand the guy.
A special mention for Mourinho. I know he wins, or at least used to win things, but given the amount of money he spent I’ve never seen him create a team that was enjoyable to watch. No different or better than George Graham on 100 times the budget. And an awful human being in to the bargain.
Happy Hew Year to all at Untold and all the terrific posters. You know who you are.
Surely Alex (Get in my pocket FA Premier League and Sky and Pigmob slanderous drunk arsehole bully) Ferguson has got to feature?
I have a bottle of Grande Dame 1989 waiting for when he goes.
@ mark you
I realised as soon as I posted that old red nose (or Mike Riley’s Dad to give him his real name) would be up there…. but who ar3 the others?!
The list starts with Bennet, Riley and Wiley. These three were the initial start of the pigmob. They handed over their ways to the current select mob. The managers in the EPL fergie, pulis, fat sam, pardue and jose are the ones that draw joy when thumped by beautiful football.
Happy New Year to all Untolders and let us hope we see an end to the virus that has impacted football in the form of selected vision and corvid.
I know what you mean about Sir Alex but is it really his fault?
By that I mean is it his fault that the authorities were so willing to jump into his back pocket?
Is it his fault the media swallowed his every word and allowed him to use them as his propaganda machine?
Sorry to keep banging on about the media but he could of only got away with what he did, which was basically run the game in England, if he had a complicit media to assist him in his machinations. And he had them and some alright.
And to just take one point to emphasise how untouchable he is. If it had been discovered that it was Wenger and not Fergie who had a list of premier league referees phone numbers in his phone, and it had come out, as it has, that referees were openly intimidated by him, everything Wenger achieved would of been cast under suspicion. Wenger would of been slaughtered.
As it’s old fungus face, not a scooby.
But again, is all that really his fault?
Well yes as he knew it and used it fully. See also Donald Trump ETC. Media go populist. Ferguson had a Frenchman as the enemy he used that absolutely.
markyb
Yes he took advantage, but as frustrating as it is, that was is job.
He did what powerful people do. He tried to get away with whatever he could, and the media not only allowed him to get away with his bullying but actively assisted him. They still support him to this day as with the infamous match 49 by allowing the likes of G Neville to either re write history or actually turn their violence on that day into a joke, a joke at Arsenals expense.