By Sir Hardly Anyone.
Apparently there was an anti-Wenger protest at the Arsenal on Saturday evening… but very people turned up because of the rain. At least that is what one of the bloggettas says, with pictures of a few guys hanging around Arsenal tube station.
Which is a bit odd because I used the station on Saturday, arriving about an hour before the match kicked off, and there was only a slight drizzle and no sign of any protest.
Mind you there was a considerable amount of booing for Sir Chips Keswick, chair of Arsenal, when he made a presentation to Tomáš Rosický at half time – an interesting development I thought. Perhaps this means that the anti-Wenger thing has now become a bit passé, and now the focus is elsewhere. Don’t tell the AAA though, it will upset their plans.
However I do see several bloggettas claiming that if they had not waged their virulent anti-Wenger campaign we would not have seen the transfers that have arrived in January. No evidence of course, but it is their point of view.
The newspapers however are unhappy with Tottenham with headlines in the Telegraph such as “Spurs won penalty with a very good dive, but it’s still cheating” and “Tottenham in cheat storm as Virgil van Dijk accuses Harry Kane and Erik Lamela of conning penalties from referee.” Those from the Telegraph.
It is quite a long time since we saw anything very negative at all about Tottenham. Mostly it is all quiet except when the praise is being lathered on. The Guardian goes with “Klopp blasts officials” – and if he did I wonder if they will ban him for matches as others occasionally have done to them for speaking out of turn.
HITC however have an interesting headline of a different type however with “Can Liverpool have same success with Wilshere after Arsenal switch as Ox?”
So has Oxlade Chamberlain been a success at Liverpool? Is Jack leaving, after both management and player have said he is staying? Certainly the bloggettas have started to say so, but I am not quite sure.
Of course if you read the bloggettas you would not know the transfer window thing is now shut, not least because we are told that “Liverpool and Arsenal have both agreed to meet the €32million asking price for Hoffenheim star Kerem Demirbay, according to reports in the German media.” (That is in Team Talk).
Mind you the Arsenal History Society (published from the same room as this blog) is running: The press discuss Arsenal (and gets it totally wrong.) However that article is about February 1920. Nothing much changes it seems.
Some of the headlines today are however of the standard hilarious style as with “Arsene Wenger reveals the big change Aubameyang and Mkhitaryan have made to the Arsenal squad.”
So what did he say? We are all agog – at least until we read the answer…
“Yes, it’s always when you have new players it gives always a little positive swing,” the Frenchman told the club’s official website. “It wakes everybody up as well, because there’s suddenly competition so they have to live with that as well.”
Anyway, any feel good stuff that one might pick up is quickly washed away by the ever antagonistic Metro which today runs the headline “Aubameyang warned he’s at risk of being destroyed by Wenger at Arsenal.”
The explanation comes with the statement “Arsene Wenger has a history of ‘destroying strikers’ and new Arsenal hitman Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is at risk of befalling the same fate, warns Garth Crooks.”
There is no explanation of how or why although Giroud (the current centre forward of the French team) is cited as an example. And I suppose Robin van Persie who came from nowhere to be the top striker in the country. Or that other guy… Terry Enry. Oh and Robert Pires. And Bergkamp who was previously lost in Italy.
Anyway not to worry because there are always more where Aubameyang came from once he is wrecked and sold. And I know this because the Daily Star tells me that “Real Madrid star Karim Benzema offered to Man Utd and Arsenal”. Very kind of them I am sure.
And here is one I really like: “Everton substitute shares what Allardyce told him before bringing him on against Arsenal”. That is the headline in
Well as it turns out, no.
“The manager told me to run hard: to get forward and back and try to affect the game,”
Oh,
Bit of a let down really.
More anon.
Why would anyone listen to a guy from spuds named Crook!
Nice one 🙂
Interesting that so many strikers “ruined” by Arsene Wenger have been in big demand from other clubs.
The BBC Sport website have details and images from the so called protest outside Highbury’s old East stand, labelled as, ‘The saddest protest in the word’ – NB. that is actual spelling from article! It is point 6. http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree/article/2a035b98-aea0-47e5-bcae-13f01e99f308
Statement from PGMOL
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/42943628
I really enjoyed that article, Tony. Thanks! I laughed quite a bit.
Maybe all this talk about Spurs diving will deter them when we meet them next weekend. We can only hope!
Knobby
I know, it’s absolute bollocks, because even if they are worming out of this by saying Lovren deliberately played the ball, rendering Kane on side, he still should of been blown off side under the INTERFERING WITH PLAY law, which states:
See Illustration 17 on the following FIFA link
https://www.fifa.com/mm/document/afdeveloping/refereeing/law_11_offside_en_47383.pdf
INTERFERING WITH AN OPPONENT
—-Making a gesture or movement which, in the opinion of the Referee, deceives or distracts an opponent.
(which is exactly what Kane did)
The opponent must be reasonably close to the play, so that the blocking, deceiving or distracting makes a difference—-
(which Kane certainly was)
I don’t think there’s any denying that Lovren must of seen Kanes run in to the box, in which case it MUST of distracted him.
Lovren must of been aware of Kanes presence behind him and as such it affected what he did.
It would be a perfectly legitimate argument for Lovren to say, given it obviously wasn’t a shot, that he would not of even gone for the ball had Kane not been where he was. He would of let it run through to the keeper.
That “KANE MADE A MOVEMENT THAT DISTRACTED THE OPPONENT” is irrefutable.
In short:
If Lovren touched the ball accidently kane is off side as shown in illustration 25.
If Lovren played the ball deliberately he did so due to his knowledge of Kanes run into the box, so is therefor off side as described in illustration 17.
So it doesn’t matter how they try to worm out of it, Kane was off side.
Half time score at Borehamwood where our U23s are two nil up against Everton
Eddie Nketiah with the first in minute 12 and Reiss Nelson with the second in minute 26
Mike Dean has just Mike Deaned Chelsea, second booking and a sending off,
Half hour gone.
Now three nil. Sorry in earlier post I said Nketiah got the first goal, it was actually scored by midfielder Joe Willock.
Eddie is now on the scoresheet with our third in minute 62
Four nil, Nketiah with his second minute 77
Ha ha double Deined, dodgy penalty to Watford..1-0.
Yet more dodgy reffing. Has Roman upset someone
Knobby
As Chelsea are finding out, when you are on the end of a ‘Deaning’ you are in trouble.
But honestly, I can see why in real time he thought it was a second Yellow and a pen but both were tight.
But this is what happens when 50/50’s go against you, as we know to our cost.
That’s the final score – puts us one point behind Liverpool in the table. Well done lads!
Nitram.
It’s going to be funny when Dein has to double task with VAR and he explains his thought process.
Dean has a thought process ?
I was right in the first place Nketiah did get the first goal so ended with a hat-trick.
The first goal came from a corner, Eddie got an effort on goal but it was defended, Anarchist recycled it for Willock whose shot was deflected by Eddie.
Nelson scored a great second before Eddie took over in the second half with two more goals.
Probably need a trick cyclist to work it out.
Watford 4 – 1 Chelsea
Bye Bye Conte me thinks
Sir,
The blogettas had it all righ about Ozil.
Guess they will be right about Jack and Aaron as well….
Why all this hype, tripe and PIGMOB aid for the Spuds ? To continue to allow them to be in the top 4 to help pay for their new stadium ? As we did before.
And to big up Kane enough for one huge transfer to offset most of their expenses ? But this may also hinge on the fact that Harry and England may need to have a great WC in Russia to push his price up for suitors like Real Madrid to want to bit.
But them Spuds , and quite often England , fail to deliver on the big stage. So will be looking gleefully forward to the closing games of the season and the WC !
St. Totteringham’s Day , forever !!
Not even remotely subtle is it
How come there is absolutely no talk of Kane being investigated for simulation, after such a blatant dive which coinned the ref and earnerd a penalty? Just curious
Brickfields Gunners
Only thing is, they did not help us really, quite the contrary, but they may well be helping the spuds. 😡
Don’t you just love it ? These past 3 days all we’ve heard is how good it is that Mr Wenger has been sidelined in the transfer process and that finally there are some serious, competent and responsible people in charge and look what they have just achieved ?
And then you have this caption from a blogetta :
Arsenal shareholder urges Wenger to agree deal for 26-year-old and announce new captain
So is he in charge and gets the credit or is he not in charge and that is none of his business ? And can’t a shareholder know who is in charge of what in the company he co-owns ?!?! Said shareholder should read the blogettas to get his information like Trump feeds on Fox….
I suppose Garth Crooks is referring to Gervinho, Jeffers, Sanogo, Chamakh and maybe Lacazette, though it’s too soon to write him off entirely. There’s probably one or two others I’ve forgotten. Of course the alternative view is that maybe those players weren’t very good in the first place which then makes one wonder what Wenger saw in them anyway. The only thing I found odd about Giroud being our main striker for a while was the fact that he had great ability at heading the ball and yet we prefer playing the ball on the ground rather than peppering our opponents’ goal area with crosses.
Anyway Auba looks good, probably too soon to get overexcited, we’ll have to see what he’s like against decent opposition. Were Everton shambolic or were we brilliant? More of the latter I think. But the real test is against Spurs, let’s hope we can knock them for five too, or even the more traditional six.
Para
I don’t think Bricks was inferring we got any help maintaining our top 4 status during those tough times, just that that is what we managed to do, actually DESPITE Pigmob et el.
I’m sure that’s what he was saying.
I would not write off Lacazette yet, Rupert. 50% of big money signings only come good in season 2, so it could well be one of those.
It will be about how we set up the midfield , with Ozil and now Mikhitarian ( spelling ) probing with Jack , Ramsey , Xhaka and Elneny contesting two places we could play Auba and Lacazette together leaving four at the back with a keeper which would be quite interesting.
“Arsene Wenger has a history of ‘destroying strikers’”
Surely to destroy something it has to of been of some significantly high standard in the first place.
Given the cost of the following players:
Jeffers £8 Million
Gervinho £10 Million
Chamakh Free
Sanogo Free
It seems they were hardly setting the World on fire before Wenger acquired there services were they?
In which case it seems a bit rich to accuse Wenger of ‘Destroying’ them don’t you think?
Now I agree it could be argued Wenger ‘failed’ if that’s the term you want to use, to develop these players into Worldies, but conversely I would argue not a single one of them went backwards either.
So as I say, as such it can hardly be claimed he ‘destroyed’ them can it?
The truth is anyone who’s had the misfortune to be subjected to the inane ramblings of Crooks knows the guys just another anti Arsenal dipstick without a good word to say about us, much the same as the guy that seems to be supporting him.
“Anyway Auba looks good, probably too soon to get overexcited, we’ll have to see what he’s like against decent opposition”
In 9 matches against Bayern he scored two goals and posted two assists. To be fair, the team did lose six of those matches and playing with Mhiki and Ozil behind you is a step up from Dortmund.
Nitram, to be fair, Jeffers was a big signing. It was a lot of money at the time, but Jeffers just didn’t perform at all, for us or for anyone after he left.
As for the others, you’re right that they were all cheap gambles.
Personally I think Lacazette has had a decent 1st season so far.
Not Alexis level (but that’s real rare), more Ozil level (good quality but not fully integrated/comfortable yet).
Those 20 years of CL qualifications earned us around 20 million Pounds each season , despite the PIGMOB’s best efforts to scupper us!
The Spuds will have to replicate it to pay off their bills.
Or sell the family jewels!
Andy Mack
£8 Million may of been a lot for us at the time but when you consider around the same time United spent £19 Million on Nistelrooy and £28 Million for Veron and Liverpool spent £11 Million on Diouf and Spurs £8 Million on Dean Richards it wasn’t mega money.
But I concede he was a disappointment, but when you consider what happened to the 3 others that Wenger sigbed that same season:
Wiltord: £13 Million (invincible)
Pires £ 6 Million (invincible)
Edu £ 6 Million (invincible)
singling out Jeffers is actually pretty sad.
Add to that from around the same time:
Ljunberg £3 Million (invincible)
Henry £10 Million (invincible)
It makes the Jeffers reference even more pathetic.
Yes Wenger really ‘destroys’ strikers.
I forgot to mention, he hardly ‘destroyed’ Bergkamp either did he after he inherited him.
Garth Crooks must’ve been confusing the relative success the difficult to manage Adebayor had at The Arsenal when compared to his (subsidised) semi-retired spell at the club that is being subsidised by the taxpayer and the sweet FA.
If only Garth had as much passion for the team that couldn’t draw against Iceland as he does for The Arsenal.
Perhaps then he could muster the “cojones” to comment on the strikers who couldn’t score in 270 minutes (each) of tournament football.
By comparison with the legends against Iceland, Walcott had only 45mins in the previous Euros against Sweden: and scored!
Nitram, I agree whole heartedly.
@Tony Attwood, certainly wouldn’t write Lacazette off yet. Not sure he’s had the best service, now we have Miki and Ozil I expect he may have more chances, that is off course if he can get a game. I expect he’ll be doing the hard work in the Europa as I think Auba is cup tied.
Certainly not writing him off Rupert. My point throughout has been that if he doesn’t come good back to his level of previous goalscoring until next season, he will be following the normal trend for strikers. When we look at the stats for most top strikers they underachieve in their first year at a new club.