By Bulldog Drummond
At home West Ham are very much the team of the day, second in the league if we just consider home games.
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | West Ham United home | 14 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 23 | 15 | 8 | 27 |
| 11 | Arsenal away | 14 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 19 | 14 | 5 | 20 |
The one interesting point is that despite having seven more points at home than we do away, their goal difference is only three better than ours, and they have actually let in more goals at home than we have away. There’s an element of hope in those details which I suspect the regular commentators will not notice, unless they copy it from here.
When it comes to the last six league games we are neck and neck, both on ten points.
| Pos | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
| 1 | Manchester City | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 6 | +9 | 15 |
| 2 | Leicester City | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 7 | +7 | 13 |
| 3 | Manchester United | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 2 | +5 | 12 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 1 | +5 | 12 |
| 5 | West Ham United | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 4 | +4 | 10 |
| 6 | Arsenal | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 10 |
But if we look at West Ham’s actual last six games we find something a little different
| Date | Match | Res | Score | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 Feb 2021 | Manchester United v West Ham United | L | 1-0 | FA Cup |
| 15 Feb 2021 | West Ham United v Sheffield United | W | 3-0 | Premier League |
| 21 Feb 2021 | West Ham United v Tottenham Hots | W | 2-1 | Premier League |
| 27 Feb 2021 | Manchester City v West Ham United | L | 2-1 | Premier League |
| 8 Mar 2021 | West Ham United v Leeds United | W | 2-0 | Premier League |
| 14 Mar 2021 | Manchester United v West Ham United | L | 1-0 | Premier League |
Here we find West Ham have won three and lost three, scoring 8 and conceding five.
Arsenal last six games in all competitions
| Date | Match | Res | Score | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25 Feb 2021 | Arsenal v Benfica | W | 3-2 | Europa League |
| 28 Feb 2021 | Leicester City v Arsenal | W | 1-3 | Premier League |
| 6 Mar 2021 | Burnley v Arsenal | D | 1-1 | Premier League |
| 11 Mar 2021 | Olympiakos v Arsenal | W | 1-3 | Europa League |
| 14 Mar 2021 | Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur | W | 2-1 | Premier League |
| 18 Mar 2021 | Arsenal v Olympiakos | L | 0-1 | Europa League |
Four wins, one draw and one defeat. Arsenal have scored 12, and conceded seven.
These various tables overall show two teams that are travelling in the same direction, doing quite well, but with West Ham having difficulties when playing Manchester United and Manchester City. We have only played one of the current top four (Leicester City) in the last six matches, but we have been playing many more matches per week, and doing some hard travelling (as the blues men of old would say).
Our last six games cover a period of 21 days. West Ham have had the luxury of six games in 33 days – a huge difference.
Basically I think these figures overall show the teams are balanced – WHAM have the luxury of playing fewer games and travelling much shorter distances but have had to play Manchester City once and Manchester United twice.
Injuries
But curiously while all this overloading of games and travel have only affected Arsenal we are doing far better on the injury front than WHAM. Details from Physioroom
| Player | Reason | Further Detail | Potential Return | Situation | Status |
| Bukayo Saka | Thigh Injury | “It depends on how he feels in the next few days. He wasn’t ready to be involved in the Europa. Then we will talk to the doctors to decide what we do.” | 21/03/2021 | Late Fitness Test | 50% |
| Willian Borges Da Silva | Calf/Shin/Heel Injury | Calf Injury | 21/03/2021 | Late Fitness Test | 25% |
And WHAM
| Player | Reason | Further Detail | Potential Return | Situation | Status |
| Angelo Ogbonna | Ankle/Foot Injury | “Angelo is closing in and getting much closer to fitness but he’s a wee bit away.” | 17/04/2021 | None | Ruled Out |
| Andriy Yarmolenko | Knee Injury | Mar 19: “Arthur and Andriy are both getting much closer as well so hopefully it won’t be too long until we’re back to a full squad.” | 03/04/2021 | None | 50% |
| Arthur Masuaku | Knee Injury | Mar 19: “Arthur and Andriy are both getting much closer as well so hopefully it won’t be too long until we’re back to a full squad.” | 03/04/2021 | None | 25% |
| Pablo Fornals | Groin/Hip/ Injury | Groin Strain | 03/04/2021 | None | 50% |
| Ryan Fredericks | Groin/Hip/ Injury | Feb 26: “Fredericks picked up a groin injury which is not serious, it’s touch and go, so we’ll have to see how he is after training today.” | 21/03/2021 | Late Fitness Test | 25% |
| Darren Randolph | Groin/Hip/Injury | Mar 05: “Darren has got a little bit of a problem with his hip. He’s doing a bit of work in the gym.” | No Return Date | None | Ruled Out |
In fact WHAM have almost the worst injury record in the league – only Leicester have gone beyond with eight, probably a result of their approach of incessant tackling, and Liverpool and Palace have seven.
More anon.
My only real concern with this match as usual revolves around the PGMOL appts.The ref.Hmmmm,.But worse still is our friend the VAR in the less than capable hands of another Arsenal stitch up merchant namely ….Atkinson.If we’re relying on him at any point.we’re done.
if arsenal want to win tomorrows game arteta must start lacazzette rather than auba
Jon Moss is our ref for this one I believe, we’ve had him only once this season and we lost, so that’s not encouraging.
OT @Nitram – I wrote to the BBC about the Lamela flick kicks in the Totts game and they have replied.
My complaint:
“Bias in broadcast of football match.
In the Match of the Day 2 programme, the first half had several incidents that were not picked up by VAR but were serious in the context of foul play.
Lamela flicked a boot at Xhaka that caused an incident that Michael Oliver had to intervene. Soon after that he flicked a kick at Luiz, again this was not picked up by VAR but was picked up in commentary. The two incidents are red card incidents as they are deliberate kicks off the ball on opponents. Neither were shown on the BBC because (in my opinion) of bias. These were prior to the goal scored by Lamela. The Match of The Day programmers are very quick to pick on Arsenal demeanours but hide those of select clubs.”
———-
THe BBC answer:
“Thanks for watching the programme and sharing your thoughts with us. I’ve watched the programme and can only assure you that our coverage is aimed at being balanced. Yet, we appreciate that not everyone will agree on the choice of highlights we include. There’re always a lot more to show and discuss than can be shown, especially in a derby as major as Arsenal vs Tottenham Hotspur. It showed many highlights from each side including Lamela being sent off, and the post-match commentary discussed each team’s overall performance.
Nevertheless, we do value your feedback as you felt the Lamela incidents should’ve been included. All complaints are sent to senior management and we’ve included your points in our overnight report. These reports are among the most widely read sources of feedback in the company and ensures that your concerns have been seen by the right people quickly. This helps inform their decisions about current and future content.”
_____________________
The beat goes on!
Menace
Well done on your persistence.
Unfortunately my belief is that they know full well of their bias as it is part of their agenda, therefore drawing it to their attention is alas going to make no difference.
I don’t agree with every single incident you draw attention to but I certainly agree with your overall observation that we are treated terribly by referees and as such I do admire your diligence.
I really wish there was something we could do about it but I don’t think there is.
That accepted I hope it will never stop you from calling out these biased B******s at every opportunity.
Menace/Nitram
I did not see the MOTD program with the Arsenal/Spurs game so can you tell me was the Kane assault on Gabriel which went unpunished by Oliver shown and discussed.
I realize that as ‘Harry’ is a national treasure any criticism of him is frowned upon but surely that incident would have warranted some analysis by the so called experts.
@ mick shelley
The Kane incident was shown but glossed over in the commentary and I don’t recall it being discussed after the game…….Jenas and Lineker were too busy telling everyone that Lacazette shouldn’t have had a penalty!
I think Moss was the referee who let play continue in the recent game against Man City when Holding sustained a head injury. Contrast this with the Spurs game when Son went down with a hamstring injury and Oliver stopped the game. PGMOL have more protocols than you can shake a stick at, but won’t activate them in an impartial manner.
Mikey summed up the Kane coverage brilliantly.
I didn’t have a recording of the whole game as I subscribe to Now for sky sports. That would give me a precise time for each of the Lamela kicks to point to, and to ask for vision of on a complaints coverage.
The BBC respondent said that he watched the programme and was satisfied with it. My complaint was not the coverage on the programme but the important lack of coverage of vital incidents that are more news worthy, particularly to sports fans. Showing a penalty given for very obvious fouling of a player after having attempted a shot at goal is not as critical as the very obvious deliberate kick of a player off the ball.
Maybe you have to keep plugging away. Most of these serious journalists, such as those at the BBC, will want to show impartial coverage. They just need things pointed out to them. And they probably have unconscious bias going on from the brainwashing that has affected most of the country from the PGMOL and some less reputable parts of the media for many years.
Panorama is like a dog with a bone. Once they get their teeth into something, they don’t let go. They would love to have this site’s 17 years of observations and hard statistics passed over to them, as a start for their own investigation.
It would be the sports story of the century. The fact is, it would be in the bag. Anyone who has actually paid any attention knows 100% that Riley and his crew are 100% corrupt and have brought the game into disrepute. Can these things seriously be happening in Britain? Yes, they have been 100% and it will be a fantastic story. Imagine the look on Mike Riley’s face when he realises that Panorama are going to investigate and there’s absolutely nothing he can do to stop it. It would be great for some of the honest referees to get off Riley’s bandwagon while they still can. If they have been pressured into committing crimes by Riley and his overlords, they can and should reach out. It WILL all come out sooner or later, so why prolong the agony? 130 million Arsenal supporters and anyone who is interested in impartial refereeing will LOVE it if we finally get decent refereeing, without the corruption of the last 17 years!
@Sally Pally – hear you loud and clear. I will attempt to influence one respondent and will search through my previous correspondence with the beeb for one promise to attend to any queries with utmost urgency.
We wear masks for prevention of corvid, let’s make Riley fear Panorama.