Everton v Arsenal: a preview, an analysis, a rant, a funny picture.

Posted on by Tony Attwood

By Bulldog Drummond

And so now we know.   Leicester will win the league and that is jolly good thing.  Man City will win the Champions League and Liverpool the Europa because they are English, and the foreign clubs don’t like it up em.   (The fact that Man City is a Chinese-Abu Dhabi corporation should not be mentioned).

Twenty years of anti-Wengerian propaganda which started when Mr W faced down the journalists on the steps of Highbury as they taunted him about allegations they were afraid to publish unless he mentioned them, and they have finally whipped up a storm.  It’s taken them a long time but they’ve done it.

The FA Cup has become a competition and a trophy again, the FA is ok because England is going to bid to host the World Cup again and Fifa is reformed, and no one considers Newcastle’s travails too deeply because Mike Ashley is highly litigious.  Meanwhile no one considers that there might be anything wrong with the unique status and operational mode in world football of PGMO.  Because that’s a bit technical, and those dear little souls who read the press, watch TV and listen on the radio are not interested in technical stuff like that.  So all is right with the world.   A triumph of repetition over logic and analysis.

But still the games have to be played.  And Everton actually have some people injured, which is odd because Arsenal are supposed to be top of the injury league all the time (it said they were in the press for half this season).

Bryan Oviedo is probably still out, although he has returned to training, Pienaar has a “knock” which is an interesting injury, Browning and Hibbert have knee injuries.  Plus Kevin Mirallas and Gareth Barry are both suspended.  Muhamed Besic might come back for his first game in a while.

We’ve lost Mathieu Flamini, following a hamstring problem against Barcelona – but his stint on the pitch that day means that another bunch of aaa supporters will have moved over to supporting Leicester.  (I know that because they said they would on Twitter).

But for Arsenal as with all clubs, the thing about bad runs is that everything comes to an end sometime.

If we look at the league table around the gooey brown stuff (that’s toffee, nothing else, do try to keep up) we see this.

Full Home
P W D L F A W D L F A Pts
10 Chelsea 29 10 10 9 43 39 5 6 4 27 22 40
11 West Bromwich Albion 29 10 9 10 30 36 6 4 5 19 20 39
12 Everton 28 9 11 8 51 39 4 4 7 29 26 38

Everton have won nine games this season and only four of those are at home.  Everton have lost eight this season and seven of those are at home.

Now I know it is very hard to imagine that Arsenal are third in the league, when the media reporting suggests we will be relegated this season, but here is the top of the league.

Full Away
P W D L F A W D L F A
1 Leicester City 30 18 9 3 53 31 9 4 2 28 16
2 Tottenham Hotspur 30 16 10 4 53 24 8 5 2 26 12
3 Arsenal 29 15 7 7 46 30 7 4 4 27 20
4 Manchester City 29 15 6 8 52 31 5 5 4 13 14
5 West Ham United 29 13 10 6 45 33 6 5 4 23 19
6 Manchester United 29 13 8 8 37 27 5 4 6 18 20

We’ve won seven away, and lost four.

“Everton’s inconsistency, especially at home, has prevented a top-four challenge of their own in this campaign but, as Arsenal will be aware, they are capable of beating anyone on their day,” is what the BBC preview of the match said, and this of a team closer to relegation that to a top four finish.

As ever the opposition managers by and large look on cautiously, because they know if this sort of stuff can happen to Mr Wenger it can happen to them.  Roberto Martinez said, “Arsenal, with the experience that they have, the know-how, the clarity and the way they play football – it doesn’t matter what pressure is on them they will always play with a certain style and be very, very good in that style.

“At the moment, the only way to achieve something special is first to be realistic and humble enough to deal first with Everton…” said Mr W.

But Everton have one big thing going for them.  They beat Chelsea and the fans have not had much to cheer.  Indeed if you type “Everton trophies” into Google this morning you get this picture…

 

I am not sure why but that’s what you get.   The stadium seems to have shrunk a little bit since I was last there.

Anyway, they won the last of their trophies in 1987, and at that time (and I kid you not on this) they were considered one of the top five, or big five, by the English press.   It was Everton, Liverpool!, Tottenham, Man U and Arsenal.   The fact that the press at the time seriously dubbed that group the top five and talked of a Top 5 breakaway shows how their fantasies run over a limited timespan.   Historically they have won the league nine times, and the FA Cup five.

Everton have won one of the last 17 league meetings between the two, which was one of the last three home games for them against us.  The other two were drawn.   But another defeat would mean three consecutive defeats at home – the other two being to WBA and WHU.  Maybe if we changed our club name to a bunch of initials, that would do it.  AFC, how about that.

They’ve done clean sheets twice – against Villa and Newcastle, but Lukaku has scored six in his last six.  As for us Ozil has only given two assists in the last nine.  But we have scored two or more in our last four games against Everton.  So the press are offering 3-2 to Everton as their score of the day.

Here’s a team.  It might not be the right team, but it is a team…

 

Oooooooooospina

Bellerin Mert Kos Monreal

Eleny Coquelin

Alexis Ozil Welbeck

Giroud

On the beach…

Chambers, Gibbs, Arteta, Iwobi, Campbell, Walcott, Reine-Adélaïde

Our poor run of results has to finish sometime.  Let’s hope it’s today, although I see that the aaa are again hoping for a defeat.

————————-

Anniversaires – the full index is to be found here with the full list of this day in history on the home page.

  • 19 March 1914: A torrential downpour hit north London and flooding disrupted part of Arsenal’s ground causing the collapse of a wall within the ground.  Highbury was however fit for use once more on 4 April. 
  • 19 March 2000: Arsenal 2 Tottenham 1.  The start of eight successive victories which secured Arsenal second place and a continuation of the European adventure. Armstrong scored for Tottenham and an own goal for Arsenal, and Henry got a penalty.

Elsewhere…

Arsenal scout Danny Karbassiyoon answers Untold readers’ questions on being a scout for Arsenal

The Untold Books

The latest Untold book is Arsenal: The Long Sleep 1953-1970 with a Foreword by Bob Wilson, available both as a paperback and as a Kindle book from Amazon.   The Arsenal Yankee by Danny Karbassiyoon with a Foreword by Arsène Wenger will be published at the end of March and will be available directly from Untold as a printed edition, and via Amazon on Kindle.

Details of these and our previous titles can be found at Arsenal Books on this site.

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85 Replies to “Everton v Arsenal: a preview, an analysis, a rant, a funny picture.”

  1. You shouldn’t pick out $itehs ownership without also mentioning that Leicester are owned by a Thai consortium and Liverpoo are owned but an American group (like ourselves and dis-united). That could suggest some form of bias against them…

  2. No goalkeeper on the bench? 😛

    Everton have been really strange this season. They had a two-goal lead at Bournemouth and Chelsea, spilled it, restored the lead in the injury-time and then conceded an equalizer even deeper in the injury-time. They have lost 3:4 to Stoke at home and have won at Orcs Arena 3:0. That’s Everton this season.

    Oh, and they have lost just once away from home in the league this season. Can you guess against whom? Yep, against Arsenal.

    There is a funny piece of stats: Everton are the cleanest team in the league so we may even see a football match today. They have committed 32 fouls less than second-placed Arsenal with a footnote that Everton have played one game less than us.

    I would just give a middle finger to FA for giving us less than 72 hours to recover from the game against Barcelona. I wish them all the worst.

  3. Joif, the keeper was on the beach, but he must have slipped into the water for a quick swim while I was doing the list.

    Macey in Jeff out I guess.

  5. Tony

    Does that mean Macey has become a trophy in the same time when FA Cup has become one?

    Are Matt Macey and FA Cup the same person? Has anyone see two of them together?

    I’ve been always suspicious about Macey given the aliteration in his name. It is usual that superheroes have that (Matt Murdock aka Daredevil, Peter Parker aka Spiderman, Bruce Banner aka Hulk).

    Macey the Trophyman?

  6. Somehow I get the feeling that today’s game will be the start of our comeback in the search for the EPL title.
    There were signs against Barcelona of a return of confidence.
    All that is needed now is some inspired shooting from anywhere within range of the Everton goal.
    If Leicester City continue their winning way, we cannot win the title but there is nothing we can do about that.
    Our minimum target must be to qualify for the CL next season.

  7. Nicky, of course I agree – but I am currently working on the final section of the Arsenal in the 70s series on the Arsenal History Society blog, and I’m reminded that for the last three years of Mee’s reign the target was to avoid relegation.

    Ok it was 40 years ago, but still one hell of a different scenario.

  8. Although the PGMO have tagged Everton as the cleanest team, that’s just because they let a few players get away with some really poor tackles.
    There can be little doubt that Ross Barkley is a very talented lad and being ‘English’ (especially being from the north and not playing for Arsenal) makes him one of the England pin-up boys so he’s rarely punished despite some nasty tackles.
    The English media (and some idiot pundits and weak-minded fans) think a player needs that ‘nastiness’ but they don’t. They need the hunger which is nowhere near being plain nasty…

  9. think Elneny could be our trump card. he has been getting into goal scoring positions every game and now that he has one under his belt, he could really be that spark that’s needed

  10. Arsenal: Ospina, Bellerin, Gabriel, Koscielny, Monreal, Coquelin, Elneny, Ozil, Iwobi, Alexis, Welbeck

    Subs: Macey, Mertesacker, Gibbs, Chambers, Walcott, Campbell, Giroud

  11. Incidentally my initial thought about putting Rene Adelaide on the beach was pretty silly – he played last night of course in the FA Youth Cup semi final first leg at Man City.

    We lost 2-1, but that is not at all a bad result against such a highly financed team. That away goal could be of great benefit. I am hoping Andrew might do us a review.

    You there Andrew?

  13. @ Tony @ 10:23

    Yes it may have been 40 years ago but for those of us that do remember it, it helps put a perspective on today’s reality. The divine right to win used to sit firmly in the domain of Man U fans but since AW created a dynasty and, courtesy of the www, everyone is now an expert, we have a verbal minority who have no perspective whatsoever and need their egos feeding.

    Standing on the terraces in the rain (no roof at the clock end in those days) being humbled by the majority of other clubs (particularly the Spuds) was a sound apprenticeship. This is what makes me realise that what we have at the moment, whilst less than one would ideally like, is hugely better than we had………and what we might have if the aaa’s get their, ill thought out wish.

  14. I want to see iwobi on the pitch today. You can’t bench him after his performance at nou camp, can you?

  15. Saadman, we left him out of our team, simply to manage him, as Wenger does sometimes with younger players. On performance alone, no of course he has to play, but management of players is something Wenger sometimes does in that way.

  16. Iwobi gets a start. So does Elneny..

    wait. Its the same team that played barcelona!!

  17. Many people on here associate the British press with a total lack of perspective when it comes to Arsenal. Whether you agree with that or not (or believe that the same treatment is extended to most other clubs), you can have no complaints with the Guardian’s preamble on their minute by minute report:

    “Good morning and welcome to live coverage of the 47th “must-win game” of Arsenal’s season, and the first actual must-win game. If they don’t take three points at Goodison Park today their title challenge will be over, and their appalling trophy drought under Arsene Wenger will be extended to one season.

    The farcical hounding of Wenger by people who would struggle to walk a metre in his shoes without suffering a breakdown, never mind a mile a day for 20 years, has become increasingly unpleasant in recent weeks. It’s a consequence of our tediously demanding, entitled culture, and something that most concerned will eventually look back on with regret. …..”

    Credit where it’s due to Rob Smyth.

    Right, let us get our title challenge back on track today with a good win.

  22. PGMO cheating as usual & Owen agreeing with the cheats. It is truly so obvious how hated Arsenal are.

  23. Clatterburg using PGMO selective vision to ignore several fouls on Arsenal players. Fouls so blatant & right in front of him.

  24. The cheating is unbelievable. The foul is not what gets a penalty but its the going down.

  30. Excellent first half. Strong in the defence, well-timed interceptions to break down attacks and a couple of composed finishes – lovely.

    First goal – I think we got ourselves a fine attacking triangle. Three of Özil, Alexis and Welbeck created our goal against Watford as well.

    Iwobi – wow. Such a composed finish. Hopefully there is more to come from him.

    Clattenburg, eat sh!t or whatever they feed you with at PGMO meetings. It was a clear penalty on Alexis. Not one but two penalty offences.

  31. Drat, I missed both goals. I didn’t get the TV on until 10 minutes into game, and got up to refill coffee towards end of half.

    But keep up the scoring Gunners!

    Oh, is Clattenburg starting to go grey? 🙂

  35. So the 2nd goal had nothing to do with Arsenal pressing the ball according to the numptys on BT sport. No penalty again ? I’m going to have to go back through all the ref reviews and see how many that is now.

    And while I’m at why no booking for cleverly ?

  41. Lukaku fouled Ospina & should be red carded. A keeper on the floor should not have to take a kick in the head!!!

  44. The lads plays amazingly well. The Referee is, amazingly, disgusting. That Clattenberg really hates Arsenal, doesn’t he? He just lets our players get fouled all the time. Just like that. I can’t believe it. No wonder we’ve been having a lot of injuries. F****n’ PGMO

  46. Stones lands on Ozil’s ankle in front of the ref ad he doesn’t see it. Hope Ozil is OK.

  49. What is it that all our players suffer serious injuries at the hands of English players??????

  51. Even this so-called clean team is committing damaging fouls. It’s because they know they can get away with it against us. Curse PGMO!

  53. @AI

    Our players have watched Henry, Bergkamp, Pires…

    English players have watched Lennox Lewis, Mike Tyson, Vinnie Jones, Duncan Ferguson…

  54. Apparently Coleman can lose his head and gets a warning, then a warning, then a talking to from his captain…how about a card, ref?

  58. Good goal by Giroud robbed by a pseudo foul whistled before the ball was in the net.

  59. Clattenburg is git…chalks off a Giroud penalty, then a Giroud goal, then just giving silly phantom fouls.

  60. Some of these officials should be investigated for any possible links with betting syndicates or patterns, because some of the decision making is baffling.

  61. OMG, the stupid referee like this Clattenburg is gonna ruin the EPL for sure. No wonder English clubs sucks on European competitions.

  66. BREAKING NEWS:

    Alexis to be charged by FA for sitting on the stands without paying a ticket. Six-match ban expected.

  67. Andy, I did leave the room a few more times. No more scoring. Sorry. 🙂

    Clattenburg, you’re a cheat!

    Good game Arsenal.

  69. Well done boys.
    Yet again, up against twelve men and northern rules…….all as predicted in the ref preview. This ref seemed to do everything he could to get them back into it.
    But , looked pretty solid in defence, good to see Iwobi get his first goal.
    And Ospina, Sir, I salute your bravery. Hope our keeper and Ozil ok….

  70. Another stupid banner again… The positive fans needs to start doing something too.

  71. Elneny the worrier, he nips at the attacker’s heels until they turn away.

    Surprisingly, the NBC coverage is pretty pro-Arsenal. Or is that just because they see we have no more chance of silverware this season?

    Now, just keep winning lads.

  74. Para, TSN (Canada) had the NBC feed. I still had to turn the volume to 0. Too much stupidity.

  75. Well done well done

    Iwobi, Elnany, settling to the manor born, Gabriel solid, the team playing as a team, the movement that first half, jeez

    A great feeling.

    As for those idiots at the end, imagine going to a game carrying a banner and showing it, and you’ve just won?

  76. I think my preview got it about right again. Clattenburg using most of the tricks of the trade to tilt the pitch.

    @swales1968, the number of not given penalties before the start of the game was 27 in favour of our opponents and 3 in our favour.

  77. Maybe it will all even out and we’ll see a hat trick of penalties each Bournemouth and Palace. You never know.

  78. Clattenberg tilting the pitch, Everton the foot coming down, and these people are supposed to be clean, wholesome, an advert for the game, the best league on the planet. What a load of nonsense!

  79. Yes, wait outside somewhere and point out that they don’t agree with their sentiments.

  80. Another idiot banner. What is the point of going to an Arsenal away game, watching a great performance, then refusing to celebrate?

  81. ‘Maybe it will all even out and we’ll see a hat trick of penalties each Bournemouth and Palace. You never know.’

    Against them probably, for them, no chance whatsoever

  82. We wait. No hounds howling today. We must have won. How the support behaves is almost as bad as the northern whistle blowers. They are ungrateful for the wonderful stadium & glorious football that Wenger brought to England.

  83. Great win today. Unfortunately I was at work this morning until early afternoon so haven’t seen the game, yet saw the banner and the attempt from someone to grab it or the holder while tv panned away quickly.
    Early goal as I asked for was taken and that makes all the difference to our confidence.
    So now it’s the waste of time international break, although this might help us get Jack and possible Santi back, Achilles dependent, plus time for Ozil to receiver too. Please someone put Alexis away and tell him that going to Chile is forbidden.

  84. Good win for us. We needed that to avoid getting into a scrap for fourth.

    Great performance by Iwobi. Giroud was shit again, as was the ref.

  85. Their is no way on God’s green earth that all that has been happening between media, pmgo, tv coverage of the little boys protest with his little banner is pure coincidence. Something is going on and it’s smell’s as bad as WHL.
    The Arsenal board should be lodging complaint after complaint if the have not as yet but if they have then it’s not working as these sad excuse for refs are as transparent as ever.
    I know people are worried that if the club are vocal it will get worse but from where I’m sitting if we don’t then if we think we are been screwed now just sit back and watch next season.
    It must be stopped or we will never get the top class players to come to Arsenal or when AW thinks it’s time to go, a very manager will take one look and say thanks but no thanks.
    The muppets will continue to lambaste AW.for the refs faults and the board will sit on their hands and not even defend Wenger who of course will take it yet again on the chin. The refs do it and openly because no one yet has had the balls to stop them but surely even their time must come to an end and I hope that time is coming ASAP for all ourselves.

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