By Tony Attwood
Newcastle v Arsenal is a repeat of the first ever league game Arsenal played in September 1893 in the second division. In fact there’s a whole series of articles about the game, including newspaper reports and an article on each and every one of the Woolwich Arsenal players who take part in the game. There is an index to the celebration of our first ever league match here
So what of this game 117 years after the first?
Newcastle has gone down a bit since those days when in the 19th century, when it was the powerhouse of the revolution, building ships, engineering all sorts of stuff, developing the safety lamp, the first railway engine, the electric light, the steam turbine…
These days the main industries are night clubs of a highly dubious quality, the Paul Gascogigne industry, the let’s-wreck-a-famous-club business, and unemployment. Oh and big statues alongside the A1.
So on to the teams. Predicting a bit of a shuffled team is not really very clever for this fixture at the pleasant beach and spa resort, since the Lord Wenger has made it clear this is what we will see There will be…
The kiddiewinks
Henri Lansbury, Jay Emmanuel Thomas, Wojciech Szczesny, Eastmond
The returnees just back from the land of injury
Waclott, Bendtner, Vela, Koscileny,
The subs
Gibbs, Eboue
Put that lot together and you have ten out of eleven – so where do they fit in?
Wojciech Szczesny
Eboue, Djourou, Koscileny, Gibbs
Eastmond
JET, Lansbury
Walcott, Bendtner, Vela
Maybe, maybe not. Denilson might get another game, but otherwise it is going to be a surprise. Maybe Tom Cruise, Chucks Aneke, Gillese Sunu, Benik Afobe, Connor Henderson…
And of course putting a list like this means I don’t have a clue.
Whatever happens it can’t be worse than the first half of the Man U Wolverhampton game on Sky on Tuesday night, which was shocking. Not just shockingly bad in terms of quality, but also quite shocking to see whole swathes of the Very Old Trafford ground closed off (most of the upstairs in fact). An interesting comparison with the way the Ems always fills up even when it is a totally reserve team that is put out.
I suppose it is due to the fact that in the past Man U season ticket holders were forced to buy tickets – maybe they don’t do that now.
Anyway, back to the team – Scsczcszy is in goal who is the sub? Shea perchance?
Newcastle beat Chelsea 4-3 in the last round and Accrington 3-2 in the previous round. In the four games since the Chelsea game they have won one (WHU), drawn one (Wigan), and lost two (Stoke, Man City). They are 15th in the league, two points above bottom club WHU.
There is a suggestion that they won’t put out a full first team. On Sunday they play Sunderland, and the week later they have us again at the Ems, so they might well be trying to get something from those games to avoid a return to the lower levels – although WHU, Wolverhampton and Liverpool are doing their best to ensure that Newcastle stay up. So, yes, maybe they will relax the squad a bit and put in some reserve players. (It is after all so horribly embarrassing when Arsenal Youth beat your first team).
Nasri: Demi God or just ZZ in disguise?
On the history site: Arsenal did not start where we thought they started
Untold: The Index to All Things
As usual, nice and funny write up. One question though as a naturalized yank. I thought Thomas Alva Edison discovered the light bulb, how did Newcastle lay claim to that?
🙂 🙂
It’s going to be an exciting game, and it seems like we will put out a strong team. The only Reserve team players included in the squad are Eastmond, Lansbury and JET, and possibly only one of them will actually start.
Denilson, Rosicky, Walcott and Bendtner are probable starters, leaving the option of Eastmond or Lansbury for the third midfield spot, and either Vela or JET for the left wing. While Fabianski, Sagna, Clichy and Chamakh have all been taken to sit on the bench as insurance.
Must say i dont know much about light bulbs, but i do know the proposed team is a recipe for dissaster, if we’re supposedly going for everything we enter this year, how come we put a team out which will lead us to get knocked out, if you go for something. surely we should have the same team as Sunday or better. If the mallingerers in the squad are fit, and there better than what we have, play them, but not all at once.Its important that we keep the moral up in the team by winning, or else the heads go down, and the next thing you know we’re out of all the cups and chaseing a ten point lead for a spot in the top four.
I will be amazed if Fabregas doesn’t start.
We have a genuine shot at this trophy so we should put out a very strong side.
Given AW’s statement at the AGM, I would be evry surprised if there was more than one youth player in the team.
I would suggest the same back line but Cesc Denilson and Lansbury in the centre.
Front 3 as you were.
Arshavin, Nasri and TR7 for reinforcements.
I know Chamakh needs rest but man I weould love to see him tormenting their back line.
The depth of our squad is incredible. Even if we field a very young side there will be lots of experience.
The line up you are suggesting is missing Rosicky as I believe he will captain the side and fill in for Cesc as the playmaker.
——- Szczesny ——–
Eboue, Djourou, Koscileny, Gibbs
—Eastmond —- JET ——-
——— Rosicky ———-
-Lansbury ———— Vela –
———Bendtner ———
Subs: Shea, Nordtveit, Denilson, Cesc, Walcott, Nasri,+1
chamakh needs rest…he played all the games….as always…without managing himself..
chamack
12 games
6 goals
4 assists
6 penalties won
4 red cards given for fouls on him
work rate:his reward is in heaven.
distance covered:unlimited
I think AW mentioned on the ATVonline interview that he will be playing an 80% 1st team squad and that it’ll be similar to the team put out against Spurs.
RE: Edison Caribkid………Lots of lightbulbs were invented before Edison. He just made them last longer.
Same way that three different people working seperately should be credited with TV. Farnsworth, Baird and some russian bloke?? Cant remember name of him but worth a search.
Oh yeah football. Eastmond probably will not get ‘exposed’ against NUFC!
Sorry
I don’t go to many away games, but I have been to St James Park a couple of times. It has got atmosphere and since its Arsenal the Toon army will be loud and semi naked for some reason. I hope the away Arsenal fans continue to the Gooner Nation proud by giving as good as they get. do us proud
.
I am going to admit I am feeling unusually nervous having Szczesny in goal. This could be an absolutely huge game for him. I hope that JET gets a full debut to give him time to settle into the game, Lansbury should come on as a sub in this match, maybe for Rosicky.
.
Newcastle might score first, but I reckon we will win 2-1.
Wojciech
Eboue, Djourou, Koscileny, Gibbs
Denilson
Lansbury Rosicky
Walcott Bendtner Vela
JET might come on as a sub in second half for Vela. The two other Subs could depend on the scoreline. I expect a strong bench of atleast 3 first teamers.
The safety lamp isn’t a lightbulb, it’s a flame lamp, but safe for work in coal mines – http://lmgtfy.com/?q=safety+lamp
I’m hoping for
Wojciech
Eboue, Djourou, Koscileny, Gibbs
Denilson – Eastmond/Lansbury
Walcott Rosicky JET
Bendtner
Vela’s time has gone. JET is a man mountain who will single handedly take our team average weight up a notch. He should be fast tracked in just so he can walk in with Arshavin and make him look like the mascot.
Caribkid
Sir Joseph Wilson Swan (31 October 1828 – 27 May 1914) was a British physicist and chemist, most famous for the invention of the incandescent light bulb for which he received the first patent in 1878. His house (in Gateshead, England) was the first in the world to be lit by a lightbulb.
So there! (that little piece is actually copied from Wiki – I didn’t make it up, honest, but it is what I learned in physics lessons, which is why I thought of it when doing the piece.
I bet that Wenger will surprise us a bit with his final selection. Would Nordtveit be in it somewhere?
Your ignorance of the better aspects of the North East is most praiseworthy Mr Attwood.
Perhaps you could highlight the Enterprise Software company SAGE? A completely useless billion pound T/O company founded and still owned in the North East. Absolutely useless, that firm. The sort of company Mr Cameron can’t stand. Sells to johnny foreigner you know. Bloody appalling…….
The finest mass participation half-marathon in the World. Run by a bunch of athletic half-wits who only won gold medals because they were competing against beer-swilling, ice-cream guzzling turnips from Sunderland. In times which broke world bests more than a few times, one of whose records still stands 15 years on. Total rubbish athletics in the NE. That’s why Gebreselassie kept his promise to run in it after becoming a grandad. Couldn’t be seen dead there until he needed prosthetic limbs, could he??
Stem Cell research in Newcastle is total shit. Absolutely fifth rate. On a par with Sheffield Wednesday. Don’t go anywhere near that………….
Uni of Sunderland puts the Uni to shame. The fact that, unlike football, the two are complementary is neither here nor there. They’re both rubbish. That’s why the Chancellor of Oxford moonlighted up to the NE a day at a time to monitor the 24 students that Blair paid £500m a pop to study there………Newcastle being in the Russell Group is like the thought of Scunthorpe in the Premier League – to be tolerated, not embraced. Because they’re rubbish, aren’t they????
In fact, the only good thing about Newcastle is the airport, the ferry port and the train station. So you can get to Norway, Schiphol or London asap. To get away from in-breeding beer-swilling incomprehensible pillocks who shouldn’t be in the same nation as Londoners, eh?
St James’ Park needs pulling down as well. I mean any place where Gascoigne, Waddle, Beardsley, the Shay and Keegan played at needs demolishing post haste. The only grace worth mentioning is that a Frenchman, Ginola, brought some culture to the place.
It’s an absolute disgrace that they’re still allowed to be in English football after letting a Spurs fan buy the club……..
Hello Ryhs – haven’t heard from you for a while. But, I did mention the light bulb
This has been the most satisfying match so far …
Scezsny was so fun to watch, really – when they showed Fabianski’s face at the 85th minute or so, it said “oh sh*t”… ha ha ha, poor bloke, he is doing really fine for us but that Scezsny guy … wow.
Plus Bend it like Bendtner bends it again… where was this quality hidden all those years ? (I remember seeing him playing for Denmark pulling this stuff off)… I guess he had a point in that “I’ll show them what they were missing” thing.
But for me the best part was seeing that we were, in fact, turning into quite a physical side – mind you, without our regular bouncer. Time and time again you saw us not giving the opposition a second to breath. It was just awesome.
I am glad I was wrong about the result 4-0 is way better that 2-1. Taking everything into consideration, Szczesny had a really good game and all players did really, really well. I hope Eastmond is alright, when Barton came on and Newcastle were 2-0 nil down, I thought he might forget about playing football and try and maim either Theo or Cesc. Kos is my MoTM. I love the fact that Wenger is finally going to have a team selection headache before games.
*I meant Wenger will have a team selection headache that isn’t down to injuries. RVP & Rambo due back in a couple of weeks – this could really be our year.