Millennium Tribute to Arsene Wenger
By: Bootoomee
I have very little interest in celebrating milestones.
General ones like the New Year are particularly unworthy of celebrating in my opinion. It is just another day. I call my birthdays my own New Year and while I take stock of happenings in the last calendar year, I do nothing else about it unless there are loved ones around who want to celebrate with me. Being a scrooge is bad enough but being a party pooper at your own party is unthinkable. Very uncharacteristically, however, I am in a very celebratory mood for the upcoming 1000th game of Arsène Wenger’s Arsenal reign.
The cause of my mood may come across as bizarre to many but I am comfortable posting this weird tribute here because I believe that if you are a regular on this site you will understand. I am so eager to celebrate Arsène Wenger’s 1000th game because he has not won any trophy in nearly a decade.
Weird right? Well, you can’t say I didn’t warn you!
There are many reasons why I am in such a great appreciative mood about this new Wenger milestone but rather than bore you with poorly written gibberish, please go to Arsenal.com or click on this link for the Club and Opta’s report on his 999 games in charge. I beg you to please read the analysis. I promise that it will be a great use of your time. It is totally worth it.
Here is a gem for example: “The Gunners have won 30 of the 45 games so far in 2013/14 – for a 66.7 per cent win rate – better than each of the previous 109 seasons since Arsenal became a league side in 1893.” Seriously, I wouldn’t believe this if anyone had told me before I saw it with my own eyes!
I am celebrating this great man because of his lack of trophy success in the last 9 years, as I said earlier. I am doing this partly in reaction to but mainly in defiance of the qualifier which none of the tributes to him from the traditional media will ever fail to include in order to diminish the great man’s record, even if they don’t openly infer such.
I was really interested, as I looked through the stats rich analysis on Arsenal.com, in how Arsene has fared in the last 60% of his reign which coincide with the trophyless years, in comparison with the preceding 40% that include the trophy winning years.
The most shocking bit for me is that the number of games won (on average) in the latter is actually slightly more than those in the former. For example, in the 1st and 3rd centuries of games, Arsenal won 53 games each. Those were the lowest wins in all of the 10 centuries but trophies were won in each of the seasons included in those lowest points. In other word, we’ve been winning consistently the same number of games (or a few more) but we are just not winning the trophies to show for it. (Reason for this shortly).
So much has been said about Arsène and, by implication, Arsenal’s lack of ambition. Going by this assertion, I was expecting to see a big drop in the charts on our results in the last 600 games but I was delightfully wrong. Our win percentages have been pretty consistent all through Arsène’s reign.
Now, how come we won trophies in 4 centuries of games when we won only 53 games on 2 occasions but then failed to win any trophy in 6 centuries when the lowest was 54 and only once? What is(are) the cause(s) of the trophylessness? Well, I’m glad you ask and here is your answer:
- Financial doping of our nouveau riche rivals:- It is interesting that we have not won anything since Chelsea’s ascendancy, despite winning as many games as we used to before they got their sugar daddy. The arrival of Man City’s sheiks has not helped our cause either. A lot has been said on here about financial doping so I’m not going to waste your time but the millennium game piece on Arsenal.com gives visual resonance to the point. The high end games (finals and semi-finals of cups and top 4 meetings in the league) are where Arsenal have suffered from being unable to match our free spending rivals. They could also beat more of the lower teams (this is where man United excelled).
- Ill luck:- I know that many do not like to see that word but unless anyone can explain to me how a team that we had beaten 3-0 twice, both home and away, could beat us 2-1 on a neutral ground from an error from one of our best defenders, that is what I am going with. Also (and on a flip side), have another look at 2005 FA cup final and tell me luck is irrelevant.
I would normally put The Emirates Stadium as point 3 but not on this occasion. That stadium is Arsène Wenger’s greatest achievement for Arsenal so I am not going to attribute our lack of trophies to it. I don’t want to diminish it. Besides, the stats on our win ratios shows that we have remained consistent even in the post Emirates era; so if we are winning about the same number of games as in the past, why aren’t we winning trophies too? It is more for the 2 points above than anything else.
So to summarise my points, Arsène’s remarkable tenure has our manager has been pretty consistent in terms of style and results. We have missed out trophies dues to bad luck and being financially out-muscled by our rivals. But at the same, and more importantly, we have grown and expanded as a club and as global brand. We are a more robust organisation financially thanks to Arsène and the board’s prudence and progressive thinking.
Small clubs, which thanks in great part to Arsène we are not, seldom win trophies. Big clubs always win trophies; as long as we are a big club, we WILL win trophies. It is only a matter of time.
My Tribute
I referred to myself as an atheist to a Gooner friend during a recent conversation and he objected. “You can’t be an atheist”, he said. “You are an Arsenal fan!” I gave him a puzzled look and he said with a smile: “Are you denying that Dennis Bergkamp is God or are you telling me that you don’t believe in him?”
Now, I have got to tell you, that caught me unawares. Of course, I believe that Dennis is God and this not a faith based acknowledgement. I may not believe in the theological God but I saw with my own eyes how Dennis disobeyed the laws of physics with impunity.
I have seen him make grown men shed tears of joy. I have seen him make opposing fans shed tears of sorrow. I am among the many faithfuls looking forward to his return to the hallowed grounds called the Emirates stadium. Just like in many religions, his statue now adorns our ‘Cathedral’ and we faithfuls will look at it and say: “may your return be hastened, o dear Dennis” or other religious stuff like that.
Is Arsène Wenger God too? I’ll say maybe but I have never seen him nutmeg opponents before. I have also never seen him rewrite the laws of physics. Only God can do that! That is why Bergkamp is God! Arsène is something more realistic though. He is a father. He is a mentor. He is a role model. He is a philosopher. He is an artist. He is an economist. He is a non-sanctimonious moralist. He is a visionary. (Please help me add to the list)
Why do I love Arsène Wenger so much? Because, and this is my ultimate reason, he is a good human being. Arsène Wenger, whatever you might think about him as a manager, is a phenomenally good person. In my professional life, I have worked under many managers (with various titles, they are not always called managers).
What has always stayed with me about each of them is seldom how they treated me professionally but how they react to issues as human beings. Many are calculating, devious and will not hesitate to sacrifice their underlings to further their own careers. Some just want to avoid trouble for themselves and as long as you are doing your job properly, there will be no problem. They will not stick up for you at bad times but they will not add to your problems either.
Finally, there are those very few who I am grateful that I had opportunity to meet and work with. They are mentors and father figures. With them, you learn something new everyday. You want to do whatever it takes for the team they lead to succeed. You know that if you make mistakes, rather than scapegoat you, they’d help you to overcome them. They trust you with responsibilities and they give you room to grow by using your own initiatives. When you have non-work related issues, they support you as you try to sort them out.
This is how every player who has ever worked with Arsène Wenger feels about the man. When I listen to the guys wax lyrical about their boss who I may never meet, I know what they are talking about because I have worked under people like that. When you work with bosses who are good people, they enrich your life in more ways than just the professional. They make you believe in yourself more than your own meagre ability. How many of our players have left for greener pastures only to become irrelevant in the football world because their new manager is notArsène Wenger?
This is my tribute to Arsene Wenger, one of my role models, on the milestone of managing my darling club for a thousand games. Please raise a glass of whatever you are drinking to good health, long life and good luck for our esteemed and beloved Arsène Wenger!
Sometimes I just hate your articles
They are just so frank, well put and down to earth that I end up reading them for 10 minutes and agreeing with every point – just like this one
Much prefer those irritating aholes who write some nonsense about “time to replace Wenger” – but when you ask with who – they stare blankly at you as if they’ve just discovered they forgot to put their trousers on!
Long Live Wenger’s reign, Long live the Emirates – our glorious new home and long live the gooners supremacy over the dark ones.
Great article Bootoomee!
I just raised my cup of tea and drank it ad fundum. Luckily I didn’t read any Bricfields comment while doing it 😉
Cheers!
thanks Bootoomee, great passion as always! Here is Tim Stillman’s piece on Arseblog, well worth a read as well http://arseblog.com/2014/03/on-arsene-at-1000/
Wonderful, Bootoomee, it is all in there. All I would disagree with, think wenger has nutmegged more than a few people, in a metaphorical sense of course, including the gentlemen of Her Majesty’s Press.
Wenger has been a gift to the the club, supporters and players, he will always be part of the very fabric of the club. What he has built in its time is more important than mere trophies and will stand us in a much better position to win them in the long run. Strange how life ….or the EPL schedule pairs him with the anti wenger in his 1000th game.
Things have been nowhere near as bad in the last few years as the aaa and their media friends would make out, and remember despite it all, it has at times taken cheating refs to ensure we remained potless. Your mention of luck is valid.
Hope this season marks the trophy comeback for a lot of reasons, but even if it does not, wengers legacy remains intact
Good stuff Bootoomee, and to Arsène for changing the club and taking us to new heights.
COYG! Aha and Amen
Great write up Bootoomee. Well done AW – now hurry up & sign up!
I don’t normally have the chance to watch Sky Sports news in the morning but my itinerary this morning was such that I caught their report on Wenger’s approaching 1000th game. They were re-markedly pleasant about Wenger – I just wondered if they were hoping to set us up.
I feel like shedding tears. Respect to a man of honour. A man with a good heart. A father figure. Trophy or not, you are the best. I will always believe and trust in you. God bless you Arsene and may the boys give you a worthy 3points gift tommorrow. Hopefully things will turn around for us this season. FA cup and PL. Just believe and keep the faith. COYG. GTID. Proud, loyal, and faithful Goonerette till the end of time
Bootomee – your last point about inspirational and supportive management really made me stop and think. Like you, and many others reading this, I have experienced the full gamut of managerial types through my career. I had always attributed the relative failure of most players who leave Arsenal to the fact that they weren’t as well coached, the style of play was a mis-match etc, without making the final, obvious connection.
Wenger gets the best out of players because he is a fantastic manager – in the non-footballing sense of the word (as well as a good coach and all the other things). I remember Merson’s “unbelievable belief” comment way back when.
I couldn’t agree with this piece more and I certainly couldn’t have expressed its sentiments any better.
Supporting Arsenal has helped to see me through some rough patches in my life and supporting a Wenger inspired Arsenal makes that even more so.
Here’s to the next 1000.
Thanks all for your comments. The man is worthy of all the accolades and much more. He is a great human being indeed.
I deliberately ignored the subject of the 1000th game itself. It’s a results that will have a big impact on our season but one that will have ZERO impact on my feelings towards Arsene Wenger.
Mark my words, those of us fortunate to witness the Wenger era will be envied when we tell future Gooners that we were there when Arsene made Arsenal one of the 5 biggest clubs in the world. I will always be grateful to him for that and many more.
I love this man so much that whenever I hear or read any unfair criticism of him, I always feel like a close member of my family has been insulted. While I have always defended him over the lack of trophies, seeing that his teams have been winning about the same number of the games in the trophyless years vindicates my faith in the man and makes his critics and detractors look like the mugs that they are.
I hope that our luck turns this season as only ill luck can stop us from claiming the FA cup. Once the trophy monkey is off AW’s back, I believe that we’ll be challenging with renewed belief in coming seasons. I’m not ruling us out of the league by the way, so a double is still possible.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s Tribute:
“I congratulate Arsène in reaching this momentous landmark. Having also reached the same milestone at one club, I cannot emphasise enough the level of dedication, resilience as well as sacrifice required and for that I have for the utmost admiration.
“Over the years we enjoyed some fantastic battles and you could say we had survived together and respected each other’s efforts to play good football. I always enjoy watching Arsène’s sides – Arsenal play the right way. Playing against them always presented special challenges that I burned many hours over the years thinking about.
“He has always been a conscientious member of our trade who makes it his business to help other managers. Perhaps the biggest compliment I could give Arsène is that I could never be anything other than competitive with my rival for 17 years.
“Overall this achievement once again shows what stability can bring to a football club and without doubt he has created a permanent legacy during his 1000 matches with the Club.”
Marc Overmars’ tribute:
“It is a major achievement to reach 1,000 games as a manager at such a high level and I would like to send my congratulations to Arsène. When I signed my contract with Arsenal I remember there were some doubts about my knee injury at the time but he had such faith in me. I paid back that faith as the team went on to win a number of prizes together.”
Ray Parlour’s tribute:
“Congratulations boss. It was a pleasure working with you – you certainly helped my career with your technical work but you also gave me the opportunity to progress. I feel that most of my medals are down to you and I wish you all the best for the future. Here’s to another 1,000 games. Good luck.”
Lauren’s tribute:
“Arsène Wenger was the best manager I ever had – and that is considering I have also been managed by great coaches like Héctor Cuper. Arsenal gave me the chance to develop at one of the best clubs in football. His dedication and professionalism has been admirable. Congratulations.”
Gilberto’s tribute (and a note of warning to those for whom the grass is always greener on the other side):
“I had six great years at Arsenal under Arsène’s management. It was nice to have him as a coach and learn the way he think about football in all aspects. His knowledge is fantastic and the way he work with the players and for the club is something special. He works 24 hours a day looking after the growth of the club and development of the players, and has participated in the new Arsenal stadium development and helped many big players at the club.
“I feel happy for him that he is reaching his 1,000 games at this fantastic club that I’m proud to have been part of. I wish him all the best for the future as he deserves it, for what he did until now for the Club and for football itself.
“I hope Arsenal win something this year to calm down the pressure on him for a title. Many people question him about when it will happen, and one day when he leaves the club people will realise the importance of having him as manager. Thanks Arsène for helping me and teaching me without saying anything. Thanks for what you have done for our beloved Arsenal and for football. All my best to you and your family. “
Boo,
A damned good piece.
I was even more impressed by the statistical in the link that you supplied. Basically, it shows how a manager can be much more than the number of trophies that he has won to date. In particular, it caught my attention that the average Arsenal position in the English League before Wenger was 7.5 vs 2.7 in his reign. This average didn’t falter even in the Stadium – building years.
The stats took a lot of air off the sails of many who find it fashionable to disrespect the man under one guise, excuse or the other.
As one of those who got serious weekly access to all EPL games yearly and via satellite TV after Wenger’s arrival at Arsenal and who, after a few years settled for Arsenal as his favorite club and Wenger as his favorite club manager, from the stats and your write up, I can see more clearly now, the rational basis for the instinctive choice.
Wenger’s human side endeared me to him so much that I never failed to show them up to my three football loving sons who grew up watching the games with me on TV, captive audience to my post-match spiel on the game and on life’s lessons in the drama and reactions of the personalities involved in them.
The man has been a gentleman and a leader full of gravitas for a very long time. His very mien is an eternal understatement of his stature and achievement in Arsenal. We only have to look at Newcastle and Tottenham (comparable clubs to Arsenal when he arrived) to appreciation how far he has taken the club ahead of them and how lucky Arsenal had been to have taken a chance on him.
I toast to 1,000 more games under his direct charge or glare from the director’s box.
THANK YOU BOOTOOMEE AND THANK ARSENE WENGER.YOU MADE THIS GOOD CLUB A MAGNIFICENT CLUB.OOH WE LOVE YOU ARSENAL!
Arsène Wenger
Class. Human. Being.
Thanks for this Bootoomee.
Continued success to Arsene Wenger.
Shakabula Gooner,
That link is rich with nuggets like that. Imagine lowering average final league positions from 7.5 to 2.7 despite finishing 3rd or 4th in the last 8 season.
There are lots of accolades on Arsenal.com from ex-players and Arsene’s fellow managers and rivals.
Heh, did you read the comments by the Chelsea manager? Predictably, he was less than a gentleman could be.
Top post, Boo! Really heartfelt and also very true, especially the end part. The mark of the man is the way his former players to a man have nothing but respect for him. He is indeed a worthy individual and in this modern age of immorality and lack of integrity, he shines through as an example of being able to succeed and still live with the old fashioned morals that served us well. He’s an odd man, Arsene. And a great man, a great person, indeed.
Oh man, what Gil wrote brought tears to my eyes. Really!
I had smiled all the way till reading his tribute. Thank you all for the love you give to our dearest Arsene.
Bootoomee, I was going to disagree on Dennis and Arsene being gods, but Psalms 82:6 confirms it. So I have nothing against your article. Its a great tribute for a great man, thanks for the service.
AW deserves all accolades he gets on his 1000th. The sweetest for me will be a win tomorrow at stamford bridge.
Congratulations to the greatest manager in our club’s history.
In Arsene We Trust.
COYG
Great tribute to a deserving man, thanks Bootoomee. Wenger epitomises the values that we should all wish for in life; honesty, integrity and truthful. Great man.
Damilare,
Please don’t jinx it. I’ll go mental tomorrow if we get 11th time lucky against the Arrogant One but that result notwithstanding, we love and admire our manager always.
The Nasty One’s lack of class shone through when he couldn’t even give an unqualified compliment to Wenger. His direct quote:
“I admire him and Arsenal because it is not possible to have 1000 matches unless the club are also fantastic in the way they support the manager, especially in the bad moments and especially when the bad moments were quite a lot.”
I hope I am not paranoid but it does look like Jose’s praise is more for the club for tolerating those “lots of bad moments” rather than because Arsene has continually helped the club to achieve a very difficult target with meagre resources. How can a cheque book manager ever understand this anyway?
The little piece of shit should just have shut his trap and reply that he has nothing good to say.
Thanks Boo. A magnificent piece, befitting of a magnificent manager and human being.
Martin Keown:
‘I always felt the boss left an indelible mark on people. I was once wearing a stripy shirt and he said to me: ‘You cannot wear that shirt again tomorrow. If you wear a plain shirt you can wear it as many times as you want because no one will recognise it. Keep your life simple, you don’t need lots of jewellery, you don’t need lots of cars or houses. Keep your life simple, take that on to the pitch and you’ll play that way with your football.’
Keep your life simple – But somebody just can’t do it because it’s not in his personality.
Arsene is more than a coach. Though I know him from afar, his life has taught me a lot about loyalty. This is what I respect most about him. His loyalty to the club, the players and to his job is second to none IMO. Recent comments by him regarding the financial situation of the club reinforced his legendary and role-model status for me. Congratulations Arsene, you are doing a great job. Good health and success I pray for thee for the next 1000 games in charge of the club you made me to love – Arsenal FC.
Great article.
Arsene Wenger. A brilliant man.
Boo, for the first time, I am dissapointed that you even expect something good from Mourinho. I remembered when he returned to his vomit as a coach in Chelsea, he said he hope to stay as long as Wenger has stayed in Arsenal. Anyway, what do u expect from a money grabbling idiot who has never lasted 400 games for a single club in all his coaching career. You know what Boo, the honest and loyal lifestyle of Wenger and his longetivity as our coach is a direct unspoken insult to miscreants like him. Mourinho could go ahead and win the galaxy champions league in heaven for all I care, BUT he will never win the hearts of so many men that Lord Wenger has.
Ever since Arsene was mentioned as future Arsenal manager, I felt something is right. Even the names rhyme:) He already had a track record of building winning teams, so it was just what Arsenal needed. Over the years, I watched him oversee the highs of doubles and The Invincibles (may I add that years ago when I played a computer soccer game as Arsenal manager named incidentally Arsene Wenger I won all the 38 matches in a PL season:)) and the lows of making it to the Top 4 (by some people’s standards, that is). I wonder how many managers would have taken the job of shepherding a club through 8 years of pain due to stadium mortgage payouts. It only demonstrates Arsene’s incredible strength of character and the principles he’s basing his whole life upon. That is what makes him such a role model, and a class of his own. He all but earned his place in eternity.
Well written, Bootoomee.
Too many internet trolls, have replaced the pub bore.
It takes courage to stick to one’s principles, in spite of all the snide comments.
Who remembers the asinine comments from the junta that runs the Arsenal Supporters’ Trust. Mr Wenger does not deserve a new contract at this stage.
Bootoomee
From the midst of all your fine words and analysis these are the 2 pieces I would like to single out as the closest to summing up my feelings.
You say:
“Why do I love Arsene so much? Because, and this is my ultimate reason, he is a good human being. Arsene Wenger, what ever you might think about him as a manager, is a phenomenally good person”
And from your comment @ 1.03PM.
You say:
“I love this man so much that whenever I hear or read any unfair criticism of him, I always feel like a close member of my family has been insulted. While I have always defended him over the lack of trophies, seeing as his teams have been winning about the same number of the games in the trophyless years vindicates my faith in the man and makes his critics and detractors look like the mugs they are.”
I echo every word.
On the subject of eating there words, I would like to print off a few copies of this article, screw them up, and shove them straight down the back of the necks of all the media wankers that can see no further than the ends of there agenda driven noses.
That ignorant numbskull Durham would be a good place to start.
soglorious,
I cannot agree with you more. I think his snide remark was more out of jealousy than anything else. I think he wished he were adored and loved as Arsene Wenger is by his employers and ex-players. Chelsea fans love Mourhino because he won them trophies but the love and respect that AW commands after 9 trophyless years is something that Jose will never achieve.
I have no doubt of his jealousy because I remember that he has made comments about Arsene still being in charge at Arsenal despite not winning trophies. He is such a shallow and empty human being that the only way he gets any self esteem is by how many shiny trinkets he acquires. Sad, very sad. For him.
jambug,
Thanks for the kind words. I’m glad that you like the piece. Arsene deserves all the accolades he’s been getting and so much more. I love that man.
Boo, don’t know if you’ve seen the movie “the 3 idiots”? Though they were idiots, they know the reality of life that “success is temporary but excellence is permanent” How an idiot holotype like mourinho never realise this fact is heart breaking – though not surprising cos “if you give success to a fool, it makes him more stupid”. Success records will be broken, excellence records will not. Ask Einstein. Mourinho may have metallic trophies as success but Wenger is Excellence.
Soglorious
If the Russian money suddenly vanished and the Chelsea board went to Mourinho and said ‘we intend to build a new stadium and we want you to guide us through this difficult time’ you wouldn’t see his sorry arse for dust.
NO MONEY, NO MOURINHO.
Mourinho is like a man who visits brothels while Wenger is like the guy that goes after a high school sweetheart. They both end up with women at the end of the day, perhaps Mourinho with 20 to Wenger’s one, but there’s no question who’ll be the happier and more satisfied of the two, and who’ll be jealous of the two. Sorry for the ‘sexist’ analogy, and I don’t have anything against brothels btw 🙂
AL
What’s a brothel ?
Bootoomee
This article is a full bag of sand, I am not sure why Walter et al are giving you so much qudos.
Stick to being rude to my posts rather than writing stuff that you have cut and paste from somewhere.
Jambug
I was going to give you a little nice description but that comment below yours is bang out of order. That’s not acceptable.
AL
Don’t worry about it mate.
Hissy Fitt is obviously not well.
@jambug
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Brothel, n. [OE. brothel, brodel, brethel, CF. Bordel.] A house of lewdness or ill fame; a house frequented by prostitutes; a bawdyhouse. [1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)
brothel n 1: a building where prostitutes are available [syn: whorehouse, brothel, bordello, bagnio, house of prostitution, house of ill repute, bawdyhouse, cathouse, sporting house]
English-Czech fdicts/FreeDict Dictionary
brothel: bordel
English-Czech fdicts/FreeDict Dictionary
brothel : nevěstinec
English-Irish FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.3.1
brothel /brɔθl/ drúthlann
English-Afrikaans FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.1.1
brothel bordeel; hoerhuis
English-Portuguese FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.2.2
brothel /brɔθl/ alcoice; bordel; casa de prostituição; lupanar
English-Turkish FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.2.1
brothel 1. genelev; umumhane .
English-German FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.3.5
brothel /brɔθl/ Bordell
English – German Dictionary 1.7
Bordell n; Freudenhaus n; Laufhaus n; Puff m [ugs.]
English-Latin FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.1.1
brothel /brɔθl/ 1. latrina; lustrum; meritorium 2. latrina; lustrum; meritorium
English-Arabic FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.6.2
Brothel بيت الدّعارة
English-Spanish FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.2.1
brothel /brɔθl/ burdel; mancebía
English-Swedish FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.1.1
brothel /brɔθl/ bordell
Mueller English-Russian Dictionary
brothel [↗brɘθl] _n. публичный дом
English – Polish Piotrowski+Saloni/FreeDict dictionary ver. 0.1
brothel /ˈbrɒθəl/ burdel
English-French FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.1.4
brothel /brɔθl/ 1. bordel; maison close; lupanar 2. bordel
English-Hungarian FreeDict Dictionary ver. 0.1
brothel bordélyház
Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0
40 Moby Thesaurus words for “brothel”: Babylon, Gomorrah, Sodom, bagnio, bawdy house, bawdyhouse, bordello, cathouse, clip joint, crib, den, den of iniquity, den of thieves, den of vice, disorderly house, dive, dump, fancy house, fleshpots, gyp joint, harem, hellhole, hole, house of assignation, house of joy, house of prostitution, joint, lair, panel den, panel house, red-light district, seraglio, sink, sink of corruption, sink of iniquity, sporting house, stew, stews, tenderloin, whorehouse
Gord
Thanks for that, as helpful as ever.
Hmmm !! Sounds interesting. I would investigate further but I don’t think it would go down (no pun intended) too well with Mrs Jambug?
Jambug, how dare you equate the word “Mourinho” with “patience, loyalty, consideration, lack of funds,”? I can’t wait for when that will happen though but don’t be surprised that he will move out of the club with a speed more than Bolts world record. Mourinho=classless.
As Brickfields doesn’t seem to be around to send in a pile of jokes, I thought listing a bunch of dicitonaries might work about as well. Some of the foreign definitions are interesting.
Hissy Fitt,
Thanks for the compliment. I didn’t know that the piece is so good that you’d think that it was plagiarised. I am honoured!
A Yoruba adage is translated thus: All wise men think alike, only the fool think differently from them.
Who is foolish and who is wise? By their comments on AW 1000. And as for the “arrogant moo”, his comment is stupid and disrespectful as usual. Even sir rednose’s comment was respectful despite his fierce rivalry with AW.
Arsene Wenger is a shepherd while jose mourinho is an hireling. John 10:12-13
COYG
A carbolic soap mouthwash might help Hiss.
“Arsene who? Isn’t that typical Arsenal? Appoint someone I’ve never heard of.” Nick Hornby (as far as I can remember his exact words from 18 odd years ago).
That’s WHO Nick. Brilliant article Boo and thanks also for that most revealing link.
@ Bootoomee and all you guys , thanks for this moving piece as well as those fine comments and quotes from the ex-players .
Some men make an impression on you for the sheer simplicity and uncomplicated way they lived their lives
and in doing the right thing without any fuss of fanfare.
To me , he ranks equally with people like Gandhi , Mandela ,Martin Luther King et al , whoose lives have enriched.
I leave with a famous quote ,from another outstanding man ,from
http://www.mkgandhi.org/biography/intro.htm
His ideas, once dismissed as quaint and utopian ,had begun to strike answering chords in some of the finest minds in the world. “Generations to come, it may be”, Einstein had said of Gandhi in July 1944, “will scarcely believe that such one as this ever in flesh and blood walked upon earth.”
From my my e-mail box today – a timely present ? Or ?
Take sometime to view this slide presentation , or read the gist of it below.
http://www.authorstream.com/Presentation/navtejpvs-1010612-indian-spirituality/
“The Four Principles of Spirituality ”
The First Principle states: “Whomsoever you encounter is the right one” This means that no one comes into our life by chance. Everyone who is around us, anyone with whom we interact, represents something, whether to teach us something or to help us improve a current situation.
The Second Principle states: “Whatever happened is the only thing that could have happened” Nothing, absolutely nothing of that which we experienced could have been any other way. Not even in the least important detail. There is no “If only I had done that differently…, then it would have been different…”. No. What happened is the only thing that could have taken place and must have taken place for us to learn our lesson in order to move forward. Every single situation in life which we encounter is absolutely perfect, even when it defies our understanding and our ego.
The Third Principle states: “Each moment in which something begins is the right moment” Everything begins at exactly the right moment, neither earlier nor later. When we are ready for it, for that something new in our life, it is there, ready to begin.
This is the Fourth Principle, the final one: “What is over, is over” It is that simple. When something in our life ends, it helps our evolution. That is why, enriched by the recent experience, it is better to let go and move on.
And just to mix it up ,the same person sent me this too !
THE CURE – THE 4 CONDITIONS .
The Pope was very ill, and nobody could cure him.
The cardinals called in an old physician recommended to them.
After an hour long examination, he comes up with a solution.
“I’ve got some good news and some bad news. The bad news: The Pope has a rare testicular disorder. The good news: He can be cured…..with sex.”
The cardinals, not happy with the cure, explain the situation to the Pope.
“I’ll agree to it,” says the Pope.” But under four conditions.”
The cardinals were shocked.” What are the four conditions?” asks one.
“First, the girl must be blind, so she cannot see with whom she is having sex.
Second, she must be deaf, so she cannot hear with whom she is having sex.
And third, she must be dumb, so if she somehow figures out with whom she is having sex,.. she can tell no one.”
After a long pause, a cardinal asks, “And the fourth condition ?”
“Big tits”.
There Are 5 Simple Rules to Life…
http://www.ba-bamail.com/content_8598/There_Are_5_Simple_Rules_to_Life.aspx?source=sliding_cube#.Uy1BpKIzf-Y
@Tony, Walter
Why is this Hissy Fit troll tolerated? How can calling a poster’s mother a whore be tolerated. Profanity is surely not just using the f-word, b-word, c-word, etc. The troll’s attacks are just filthy and unacceptable. I am consistently appalled by the pathetic attacks this troll throws at regular posters and I would think such a troll would be banned for excessive use of profanity.
Arsene on that irritating topic of “no trophies in X years”:
http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/20140321/-some-of-our-achievements-not-discussed-
I can sense that he is irritated by the silliness of the issue and this just breaks my heart.
“The silliness of the issue.” Excuse me but if Wenger hadn’t won loads of trophies he wouldn’t have been given the time he has had without any success so I doubt he thinks not winning trophies is a “silly issue”. I’m sure he wants to win trophies as much as anyone at Arsenal does. Pat Rice tells players that you come to Arsenal to win trophies and I expect Wenger believes the club can do that.
Trophies are important to attract the next generation of fans. They are the ones that will pay the players’ wages and keep the club going. You may wonder at a brilliant new stadium but that means nothing to some 6 year old who loves to brag about his team winning trophies. Of course the stadium is a great asset but it’s basically a big lump of ugly concrete in the middle of Islington and certainly not an architectural triumph like Highbury. Still we had to move to compete but let’s not keep on carping on about it. Fans appreciate it but they’d rather have a CL medal than years of nothing but a huge stadium. Illogical I know but fans often are. Hopefully we’ll win a few trophies in the next decade and we can stop eulogizing the Ems.
Also why is your heart broken over what is said about Wenger? You seem quite indifferent when we get hammered by the three teams above us and suggest forgetting it and moving on to the next game. I should think your heart should be a little more ruptured by the heavy beatings we’re getting. What matters most, Arsene or AFC? Or can you not imagine the two separated? One day they will be.