By Bulldog Drummond
Ere we go ere we go ere we…. well you know the rest. Start of the new season an’ all that.
Actually the Independent thinks maybe we don’t and seriously has
Here we go!
as its lead headline this morning. That’s so passé it is positively out of date, outdated, unfashionable, old-fashioned, outmoded, behind the times, outworn, archaic, obsolescent, obsolete, antiquated, superannuated, defunct, dead, old-fangled, quaint, anachronistic, olde worlde, medieval…
…a bit like our national media on a good day.
But more of them anon.
This is, in case you have not noticed, our 24th consecutive season in the Premier League – and you may like to know that only seven clubs have been members of the Premier League for every season since its inception: Arsenal, Aston Villa, Chelsea, Everton, Liverpool, Manchester United, and Tottenham Hotspur. Not the club we play this weekend. The club formally known as West Ham.
But any of those for relegation this time around? Unlikely, but you never know about Villa.
It is also Arsenal’s 96th consecutive year in the top flight of English football – an all time record (although it is not the 96th season, since there were not football seasons during the second world war – but don’t tell Wikipedia, it would spoil their vision of their all-conquering knowledge).
It will also be the 96th year in a row that Tottenham supporters will claim that Arsenal fixed their promotion and Tottenham’s relegation to the First Division in 1919, without any evidence to that effect whatsoever, despite the fact that there is a prize on offer for anyone with any evidence But then, when you have been saying the same old story for 96 years, I suppose it gets hard to recognise that evidence is actually needed.
And while we are on the subject it is also the 18th season in a row that Arsenal have qualified for the UEFA Champions League. Real Madrid hold the record number of consecutive participations in the UEFA Champions League with 19 from 1997–98 to 2015–16. If only we’d scored four more goals in 1996-7 we’d have come second and entered the Champions League, and so would be equal with Real Mad. But you can’t have everything.
So, what’s new as the season commences…
Well, we launch the new season with a new campaign for a Memorial to the founders of Arsenal’s Highbury dynasty. The last campaign we’ve launched is that for the Unbold Banner which we’ve been told will be up for the game tomorrow, but we’re awaiting confirmation. If we don’t get it we’ll all be running around the stadium trying to see if it is up, and if it is there we’ll try and get some pictures.
Meanwhile I do hope you’ll have a moment to look at the Memorial campaign, and obviously there will be more on this as time goes by.
But back to now…
Arsène Wenger says Jack will be out for four weeks with an ankle injury and that Alexis Sánchez is unlikely to be in the squad. The boss said,
“He came back in surprisingly good shape. I will see. Sunday will certainly come too early but in 10 days he should be all right. I think he came back in a good shape. Will he not be involved at all on Sunday? I don’t know yet. It depends a little bit on what I see tomorrow and who will be available. He understands that perfectly well. He is one of the players who played the World Cup, came back here and played the whole season without a break, goes to the Copa América and basically cannot start the season.”
If he is involved, he will be on the bench, but the squad is so strong I really don’t think even this is likely. Oooospina hasn’t been mentioned, so could also be on the bench.
On the issue of Jack the only good thing about Jack is that he will probably miss the insane games against the mighty San Marino and Switzerland.
On Jack, Arsène Wenger-Wenger (he now has a double barrelled name to commemorate that two consecutive FA Cup wins) said: “It’s bad luck, purely accidental. It’s a hairline crack in his fibula. It’s in the region where they took the screws off so I believe it’s a straightforward bone injury, which means there’s no surprise there. He just needs time to heal. The news he got yesterday was that it could be much shorter than expected because he’s two weeks in a boot and then maybe after that he can practice straight away again.”
As for the players in the fridge [so we have players on the beach instead of the bench, and now we have players in the fridge instead of on loan – this is getting silly – Tony] Serge Gnabry is the latest to go on loan – to WBA. Chuba Akpom has already been loaned to Hull City,
And one other from the man himself, this on pressure over recent years of just getting into the top four while paying for the stadium. “The pressure is really on you when you know you are just on the border of achieving what is absolutely requested. When you know you cannot miss an inch or you are out. That is much more difficult.”
That’s really all the direct news from Arsenalland that their is, there is so the press are doing all they can to find any sort of bizarre tittle-tattle to keep us going. The best I found was Redknapp: ‘Arsenal need to sign more players this month’ which is good enough for me to say, in the immortal words of Sir Hardly Anyone NO DONE DEAL NEVER NO MORE NOT AT ALL. Or something like that. Whatever Arry says, I’ll go the other way. Besides The Ox is reported in the press as saying ‘This is the best squad since I joined’ which is good to know.
Only the Telegraph are being a bit silly really as they respond to Untold’s piece of the rather awful Jonathan Liew by suddenly taking his article All hail Jeff Reine-Adelaide – the new hero of the awestruck Gooners out of the dustbin and re-promoting it on their web site as if it were new.
Quite clearly much of the media is still in shock about Arsenal winning the cup and charity shield twice in a row especially when they told us each time that cup winners don’t win the shield. The Independent today says, “This summer, however, no rival club has damaged Arsenal by buying their best players, nor blown them away by signing someone else’s best.” They sound quite upset by this.
By and large I think we know that, but nice of their Chief Football Correspondent to tell us. I wonder how much a Chief Football Correspondent gets paid. Bulldog Drummond, Chief Football Correspondent; I could go with that. [No chance – Tony] Although I am not sure about his certainty that Arsenal won’t win anything this season.
But the article does have this wonderful bit from Mourinho in the Indy.
Going forward is also spending £300m. We don’t do that.
One could say, Going forward is building a £400m stadium. We don’t do that. At least that would be true.
“Unbold Banner”?
As near as I can tell, the U19 play PSV Eindhoven in the final in Durban in 2 hours.
COYYG!
Totally off point but Arsenal U19 just became 2015 Durban U19 Champions in Durban, South Africa. They beat PSV 2:1. Fortune and Zelalem were the stand out performers in the Arsenal team.
Our 4th trophy in 4 weeks! Will they stop? Hopefully not. 2-1 Vs PSV. The Durban International U/19 cup will now reside in our trophy cupboard. We” have to be making space soon.
That Fortune boy sure seems to be a good prospect. Very skilful and not a bad finisher from the bits I have seen from him so far
Well done Arsenal U19.
Looks like Jeff Reine-Adelaide will be given a chance in the 1st team as much as possible this season. I hope so. Two others (Chuba, Gnabry) gone out on loan, so if Adelaide is not ready yet, he can later go on loan and Chuba or Gnabry comes back. I suspect this lad is going to take his chance if he gets it, and i hope it works out for him.
Speaking of Chuba, he scored today for Hull.
Arsenal.com has a write up on the U19 game. It appears Metro has some video of the game.
http://metro.co.uk/2015/08/08/arsenals-yassin-fortune-and-ben-sheaf-score-stunners-as-u19s-win-durban-international-tournament-5333174/
TH14, please quit being a muppet. Starting working on your coaching certifications. Learn some sport science. There has to be something better to do than be a muppet.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Arsene Wenger is experiencing a severe headache over the weekend, trying to decide his most effective XI to face West Ham.
It must be some time since most of his squad are fit at the start of a season.
Only Wilshere (ankle) and Alexis (fitness) are absent, although the latter will no doubt want to be on the beach.
If the media is, for once, correct about the imminent signing of Benzeme, it would be a publicity coup if he could be introduced to the faithful at the match, wearing the number 9 shirt.
Just a thought. (In my day, it would have just the thing Manager George Allison would have thought up!). 😉
Hope you were watching ManU labored into a 1:0 win at home, against Toys and Chesea could only manage a draw, 2:2, at home, against a well organized and determined Swansea. Their left full back who gave us a hell of a time against them made Chelsea look their age: slow and prone to errors.
” … until A.W buys Messi or Ronaldo, Arsenal will never win the league or Champions League…” Hahahhhahhahahaha.
Some people can’t stop being stupid. Its in their gene.
Hoping for the best tomorrow. COYG.
The Swansea guy’s name is Monterrey. Take note of him!
Spurs ended the first game in the relegation zone, and after an additional 5 games were played, are still in the relegation zone.
Looking in the news, the only diving seems to have been diving headers or diving saves. Wasn’t Ashley Young playing for ManU? I see their prolific goalscorer (OG) scored again. 🙂
Perhaps Walter or OMGArsenal has an opinion on the high kick/disallowed goal?
Henry talking his usual nonsense after the game.
‘Swansea today showed what they can do at the big Clubs with there attacking intent, like they did at Arsenal last season.'(or words to that effect)
Hmm, is that so. Lets see.
Arsenal 0 – 1 Swansea.
Shots:
Arsenal 23
Swansea 8
On Target:
Arsenal 9
Swansea 3
Chelsea 2 – 2 Swansea.
Shots:
Chelsea 11
Swansea 18
On Target:
Chelsea 3
Swansea 10
So not the same at all then really.
I know it’s not that important. What I’m really trying to show is how this ‘alternative reality’ can be created with just one sentence.
You just state something, as if fact, and everyone around you just nods sagely, without question, and suddenly a big dollop of crap becomes a fact.
Just saying.
Maitland-Niles gets a big pat on the back at Wolves.
I wonder how long before TH14 starts bad mouthing Akpom and Maitland-Niles?
Give up the muppetry TH14, please. Learn how to be a coach.
Toral joins Akpom on the loanee scoring list at Birmingham. Congratulations.
A few versions of this on the web, but Fair Play is the story. After a freak goal meant to give possession to the other team, Doncaster allowed Bury to walk the ball into the Doncaster goal in the dying moments, to again put the game level on score.
http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/doncaster-rovers-allow-bury-score-6220255
Shakabula – The Swansea player is called Jefferson Montero (he is a talented player).
AS regards the high kick disallowed goal – should be a goal according to precedent. High foot is a foul anywhere on the pitch & a booking!!!
Alan Shearer has once again proved beyond doubt that he is a brown nose dip stick. He may have been a good footballer (dirty bastard as well) but has no idea about people or quality of management. I suppose that is on par with other pundits.
Podolski gets some silverware too. Maybe something has rubbed off? But Gala won their Supercup (which is a real game in all of the world, except England). Congratulations Lukas.
http://www.turkish-football.com/ex-arsenal-striker-lukas-podolski-wins-first-trophy-with-galatasaray/
Mourinho moaning as usual…implying somehow that they were hard done by…’they only had one chance against 11 and hit the side netting’ But Jose, your keeper took out their player on a break…at 11 v 11. The red card and penalty count as ‘against 11 men’
wiener!…I mean whiner 🙂
Montero! Wasn’t it him who made Chambers his bitch last season?
GGG
He was also whining about a specific Chelsea physio, I wonder how long that person will stay there?
—
I seen a new medja piece about Wenger’s opinion of the striker shortage. Low and behold, a new article at Arsenal.com about this topic.
http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/20150807/wenger-reasons-for-striker-shortage
Might as well read the untwisted version. 🙂
The needs for the typical striker have decreased, because pitches are better. Because there is less of a need to hoof the ball to the opposition area, there are fewer strikers being developed. Because there are fewer big strikers in the game, there is less need for the physical centre back to counteract the striker. A feedback loop. It will feed on itself.
Which if nothing else, Gullit’s statement that John Terry is the best defender in the world, also means that John Terry is a dinosaur, possibly to never be seen again, as he isn’t needed.
Terry, China still likes Dinosaur (eggs).
Excited for the start of the season for Arsenal.
Chelsea’s run of good fortune has hopefully run out. They’ve looked jaded and aged in their last few games.
Sammy The Snake
Mourinho has made a calculated gamble on giving his players an extra week and a half of vacation so they could get their rest. They are clearly not up to speed yet and players like Fabregas and Ivanovic look positively sluggish. Especially Ivanovic , who only managed one Achilles rake on Arsenal players in the CS , when his usual standard is two.
Mourinho’s hope is that his squad will finish stronger than they did last season, but it may backfire yet. By the end of the match day 2 , Arsenal might be 5 points clear of Chelsea who have a tough test against City next week.
@ Gord -August 8, 2015 at 11:03 pm – At the last count 91% feel that it was the right thing to be done. Well played you guys – respect !
Good to see the Arsenal loanees playing well in the Championship.
@GoingGoingGooner
August 8, 2015 at 11:45 pm
The special Moaning one is developing a habit saying (along the lines) that the best team didn’t win etc… last season if you remember he picked on the refs.