1. Get to your seat really early (I am not sure where they are putting the free flags but if it is on the seat, then watch out as some nerd might nick yours if you aren’t in quick)
2. Get to your seat early even if you don’t want the flag – don’t let the guys from Cornwall and the Hebrides get the early shouting for themselves – support Arsenal in the warm up.
3. Sing a song for Vic Akers.
4. Sing a song about winning the league in Man-ches-ter
5. Remember what it was like when we beat them 2-1 earlier this season, and double that volume.
6. Smile (you are on ITV).
7. The moment the guys from Kent start singing their anti-Ade song, sing louder.
8. If you know any funny songs about ITV, the way they cut transmission to show adverts and the way they destroyed the football league during the days of ITV Digital, sing those.
9. See if you can make the stand rock up and down like it did on the north bank when we beat Everton 4-0 to win the league and Adams scored the last goal. (Actually maybe not, I really began to wonder if the whole place would fall down).
10. Stay to the final whistle.
(c) Tony Attwood 2009
I was at the league game earlier in the season and Rooney really reacted badly to the chants of “You’re just a fat granny shagger”. Sing loudly everyone.
Great idea. I’ll go with that.
Tony
For all of you lucky enuf to be at the Grove tonight, make yourselves doubly hoarse for those of us who can’t be there. I will unashamedly quote arseblogger’s rallying cry today:
“Remember, the guy or girl to your left or right is an Arsenal fan. The boys in red are your team. Our team. United are the enemy. United would kill your mum. They’d run over your puppy and then point and laugh. They would make you listen to Phil Collins. They would insist on putting cloves on everything. They would dip their pizza in ketchup. They would offer you a cup of coffee then serve you chicory. They would force you to watch Tom Hanks films. They would kidnap you then read to you from the novels of Dan Brown. They would drive really slowly in front of you when you’re in a hurry then speed up so they get through the amber light and leave you stuck at the red. They would chew gum loudly in your ear. They would come on our pitch and dance after getting one of our players sent off because of their theatrics. They would score a goal in the last few minutes of a semi-final then show everyone their hairy chest. They would dive to win a penalty to stop us going 50 games unbeaten. They would sing disgusting songs about our manager.’
“Need I go on? They are not our rivals, not our competitors, not our competitors, not our peers: they are the enemy. Treat them as such.’
“And in the face of such monstrous evil, such hideous, diving, tantrum throwing, ballerina, monster faced malevolence, make sure you let our lads know that they are fighting the good fight, on the side of truth and righteousness. For, after all, we are The Arsenal.”
Let’s go out and wipe the floor with these arrogant thugs who believe they own the Premier League and that no one should dare even challenge them.
On our day this team can beat anybody. It’ll hurt to lose but I can handle that. All I ask is that we really make it hard for the manc scum, really give it a go and make them work damned hard for it. Every single player has to bust his gut for the team, fight for every ball, commit to every tackle. And no more experimental lineups with Cesc used as a second striker, let him dictate play from his best position.
C’MON YOU REDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
This is the game of all GAMES. We need to be ready for WAR. We must go out at the emirates tonite prepared to be martyred for the cause which is ARSENAL…..No Fear is what is required……No guts no glory
it’s going to take our best performance of the season, perhaps the best performance of the last three seasons, to beat United and make it to the final tonight. Anything less than that and we will fail – it’s as simple as that.
Going into this game I think it’s fair to say that the tie is balanced at around 65-35 in United’s favour. We have to score and they don’t and that means they definitely have an advantage. I’m certain that United’s philosophy going into this game will be to focus on defence but look to hit us with the pace of Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo in order to find the away goal. They won’t care when they get it and I just can’t see them coming out with the same intensity that they did at Old Trafford. Our formation won’t allow it and to be perfectly honest, it would play into our hands. In my opinion the best way to trouble United at the back is to play a high-intensity pressing game and target their fullbacks. John O’Shea may have scored the winner in the first-leg but he’s far from a brilliant defender and Patrice Evra is not in the best form at the moment. Pressuring the full-backs will force the United wingers back and that means they become less of a threat on the break. Walcott needs to be going at Evra from the first minute and Nasri, although likely to play slightly more defensively to balance Walcott’s attacking role, needs to work to ensure O’Shea stays pegged back. The key to getting through this tie is to score the first goal. While United will come out with the intention of getting an away goal at any point in the game, leveling the tie will fire up the crowd and massively change the complexion of the game. United will know that any time they push forward they could concede at the back and bagging the first goal might just give us the momentum to go on and win it normal time
DEAR GOD (WHICHEVER ONE YOU BELIEVE IN)
WE ASK FROM YOU TODAY SOMTHING THAT IS CLOSE TO OUR HEARTS.
WE ASK VERY LITTLE FROM YOU, SO THIS ONE THING FOR US BAND OF GOONERS IS ALL WE ASK….
PLEASE LET US WIN AND GO THROUGH TO THE FINAL TONIGHT.
WE HAVENT HAD MUCH LUCK THE LAST FEW YEARS, AND I THINK WE’VE BEEN A VERY PATIENT BUNCH.
ANY HELP YOU COULD GIVE WOULD BE MUCH APPRECIATED. AND WE WILL FOREVER BE IN YOUR DEBT.
SO PLEASE LET US WIN.
AMEN (OR WHATEVER YOU SAY IN YOUR RELIGION)
Yep when all else fails pray.
sing your lungs out and no matter what shout encouragement to the team because make no mistake, they are up against it tonight. It will fantastic if we win but with so many players injured/carrying injury/ineligable etc it will take a serious amount of luck.
If our formation isn’t 4 4 2 it will take a miracle and not that water to wine kind.
More a parting of the red sea proper miracle.
God knows we are due one eh.
Good luck!
terrier, ha ha ha.
i just bust a gut. nice one, set me up nicely for the game that has.
c’mon the reds.
Bollox…
Wenger is not to blame at all
We came out and did exactly what Man U did to us last week. We attacked and looked ready for the challenge. Once gibbs slipped however it was over. Having to score 3 goals shocked the team. Almunia was shocked and probably meant he didnt save the free kick.
The Manc supporters i was watching it with were very nervous for the first 8 minutes.If Gibbs, doesnt slip it would have been a completely different game. After the slip and free kick, the game is over nad we are completely demoralised.
Lets get one thing straight here. No matter how much you want to blame Arsene Wenger for Arsenal being smashed up more than Ricky Hatton you can’t. You can’t blame Wenger for Gibbs slipping and you can’t blame Wenger for that Portuguese lady boy being able to kick a ball better than anyone in the world of football. Trust me, it is easy to blame Wenger but think about it. Was it really his fault that Arsenal were destroyed tonight? Not in my opinion. Arsenal did everything we wanted at the beginning of the game. We got into United faces and made the kind of start we desired more than a bar of chocolate. What happened? Lady luck kicked us hard in the bollocks that’s what happened. I feel so bad for Gibbs. He was shattered after his slip and he wasn’t the only one. The rest of the lads were too. They were killed off completely by the second. Credit must go to Manchester United. I hate them but they deserved to go through over the two legs. I also feel a little for Fletcher. At first I laughed but I suppose that was cruel. Nah, allw that
We were punished by a slip. It’s not Gibbs’ fault. It’s not anyone’s fault. It’s just football. Feel terrible right now. Very disappointed. F***** life!
Don’t blame Wenger or any Arsenal player. When they need to score 3 goals in that kind of match, it’s a nearly impossible task. The game could be very different without that slip.