A lot has been said and will be said about the result on Sunday, but now that some of the dust has settled I feel a bit more comfortable talking about it. On the walk (which feels longer every time you do it – weird) from Highbury and Islington to the Emirates I was saying, in a rather un-fanatical way, that I’d be happy with a point. Obviously we always want the Arsenal to urinate on United from a great height, but realistically it’s not always possible, and with the results as they’ve been this season the way we’ll win the league is by taking three points from all of the crap sides rather than duffing the big boys. Leagues are really won in this way – by consistently beating the mediocre sides – winning twice rather than drawing against crap teams is worth more than losing to one of the big sides, though the latter will invariably get the profile.
As it happened, we lost. In the event it looked comfortable for them, and we were certainly ragged at times – particularly when our heads dropped just before and after half time, but I don’t think the game was a foregone conclusion. We weren’t nearly as bad as some of the newspapers would have you believe. Arshavin had a couple of great chances at the start, and if those had crept just the other side of the post the game would have looked very different. It galls losing to a side with an entirely ginger backbone: Brown, Scholes, and Rooney, and particularly one which considers Jonny Evans to be a first-team centre back, but you must remember that this is Manchester United we’re talking about. Even the apparently rather successful advent of 3-D coverage doesn’t begin to approach the hideousness of seeing Wayne Rooney close-up. Marking him must be quite the most onerously disgusting task this side of mythology. It was also a bit unreasonable for Nani to suddenly decide that he can play football, having spent most of this season wandering around like a hapless extra in some disastrous Iberian soap opera.
Song, Fabregas, Arshavin, Vermaelen looked good. Que sorpresa. Others looked a bit off. Nasri and Clichy looked hopelessly weak – the former particularly is really not progressing as you’d have hoped from a man who arrived under the ‘New Zidane’ banner beloved of those whom the gods wish to destroy. He’s got a nice touch, but he neither imposes himself physically on games or mazily dribbles his way through them. One hopes that as our midfield makes its Singer Sargeant esque return from the Triage tent the competition for places will make him pull his socks up. I have fewer fears for Clichy – he just needs a run of games.
A note on John Terry: ha ha ha. I hate international football (particularly England) so I couldn’t really give a hoot either way, but I would say that the real question is surely whether the pleasure one derives from knowing that Wayne Bridge has been cuckolded is greater or less than the misery of John Terry sleeping with a lithe French underwear model(among others) It’s tough, but I think that the fact his liaisons varieux have come to such epic grief compromises them enough that we can celebrate. Well done John! Great cuckolding! Great morale! Great leadership! On which note, do we know yet whether he prefers to lead from the front or the back?
That’s your lot for now, and our hopes for a quick recovery against the Blue lot. It won’t be easy, but don’t despair. Remember last season how we pulled off all those great results when we were against it? Yes. There you go. Soothing. And if not, Liverpool are as self-doubting at the moment as Terry’s PR guy, so that’ll be fine.
What do you reckon?
Tags: Arsenal, humour, john terry, Liverpool, Manchester United, schadenfreude
February 4th, 2010 at 2:06 pm
I think Wenger needs to teach them Plan B as well. Nasri needs to taught to be physical and pressing hard when covering Clichy.
February 4th, 2010 at 2:20 pm
Nice one, very balanced and kneejerk-less comments. I too have refrain from writing about last sundays match, i will be doing a preview of the chavs and a look back at the united one. There is so many arsenal blogs, i held my tongue (fingers) back and just read all manner of articles, so far only two have caught my attention.
Yes we lost and yes united deserved to win on the day because they took their chances, but as you say arshavin could have had a game like Liverpool (A) last season and things could have been so different………Thr Press so over the top with their praise of them.
We are not miles away from them, but what frustrates us all is the odd bit of tinkering could make all the difference and wenger would not have to sacrafice all of his principles. And to compound this he has a tendency to tease us about signings, but I always thought he would refrain, as he slowly back tracked on what he said………
we beat the chavs last season at theirs, so why not this? But I would take a point right now………………
February 4th, 2010 at 2:22 pm
I would love to share your optimism, but I am still at a loss to explain the sheer lack of effort and interest from players like Denilson and Nasri, both of whom were awful for Rooney’s ‘wonder goal’. Nasri, jogging back towards the Arsenal goal, watched Rooney run past him around the half way line and did not increase his jogging speed one iota. I am truly, truly baffled. That ManUre team was a pretty poor one but they all wanted it. Half our players didn’t give a flying puck – and if they can’t get motivated for a top-of-the table clash against ManUre, how on earth do we think they’ll drag themselves up for a performance against the Chav machine?
February 4th, 2010 at 2:34 pm
Don’t despair guys, we can still win the league. do i hear laughter? fact is we can and will if the players stop and learn. Believe it or not Arsenal were not passed off the park in that game. nor were we well thrashed. Nor if we were to play the same guy tomorrow will we be beaten. We had as many attempts as man u with no goals. infact had Arshavin squared the ball on at least 3 occasions even before man u had scored we could have been the one in the ascendency.
The reason we lost that game is all too clear. Arshavin was a bit selfish -yes arshavin, many here dare not say it -but to be fair to him he is not selfish by nature and is indeed a team player. but the fact he has not scored in a long time had this pyschological impact on him and instead of squaring the ball to players who only need to tap the ball in he tried to win the game by himself. perhaps wenger or others said to him you are a better player than what you have been delivering so far. And i really think it affected his game and he had a one track mind of “i must score in this game no matter what”. this is the only reason why we lost. not because we were inferior, or we are defensively worse than at any other time. its not because we did not buy, it was because we did not play as a team when the opportunity came to score.
In regards to conceding 3 goals i accept that it is important that if we concede a first goal we do not throw the kitchen sink at the game especially when we have plenty of time to equalise. its different if you are losing 2-1 and you have 5mins to go. the end result will be either 2-2 or 3-1 which can happen to any great team.
Our issue was we took off the handbreaks and attacked and attacked even with our defenders. i am not saying our defenders should not attack as this is the arsenal way and if it wasnt for the verminator we would not have scored. All i am saying is that we should be more organised and have at least 3 players drop off and wait for the lose ball or the counter. Especially in games with other big teams like ourselves but its good practise at anytime.
We made that game all too easy yesterday and i bet knowing ferguson man u will not be counting their chickens. he knows that on another day it could have been all too different and they could have ended up 3-1 down themselves.
Our mindset should be to play as a team, try and score the first goal and even if we concede and there is plenty of time on the clock not to rush things.
Finally, most of us are like the scottish sailor Alexander Selkirk in 1704 who when he found himself stranded – we look at our material resources and wish we had more.But a different possibility exists for us as well – the realisation that more resources are not necessarily coming from the outside and that we must use what we already have to better effect. More so now that the transfer window is closed.
So lets not be rash. so we lost against man u and the nature of it was bad. But 2 seasons ago we did the double on them and beat chelsea but did we win the league? its not all about beating our main rivals though it feels good to do so. usually we get undone by the smaller teams. so let the smaller teams take points of man u and chelsea and believe me they will. Losses come in the most unexpected quaters.Our aim is to ensure we are snapping at their heels until we are ready to strike.Man U and chelsea will lose at least another 3 games this season and draw a whole lot more. Lets just make sure that we and not just the players have the right mindset to go out there to make the most if it
So come on Gooners spread better vibes. For it is within Arsenal to go all the way.
we are the Arsenal after all.
Reply
February 4th, 2010 at 2:35 pm
Top blogging grabber.
I wonder if those Gingers for Limpar have anything to say about United’s ginger backbone?
February 4th, 2010 at 2:39 pm
@androus
Yes. Most of us are, indeed, like the Scottish sailor Alexander Selkirk when he found himself stranded in 1704.
February 4th, 2010 at 2:41 pm
When Cashley got his move to the Chavs, I remember the press saying part of it was due to the fact that he would be amongst his own, fellow English Internationals. Well he seems definitely to be amongst his own now. Cole, Terry and Lampard- a trio of whoring, cheating, money grabbing, self righteous and self serving players.
On Terry. He has made his Private life Public by sh*gging a fellow England Internationals missus and mother of his child. This affects both team spirit and possible selection. He doesnt deserve such an honour. A apple doesnt fall far from the tree. With his coke dealing dad and shop lifting mum, he’s a wrong ‘un. Urinating in night clubs, parking in disabled bays, taking back handers for guided tours, whoring himself as england captain for coporate money, serial infidelity. He is and always will be, good captain or not, Scum.
February 4th, 2010 at 2:56 pm
With good squad selection ,we can win at Bridge .
I feel Denilison and Bendnter should not play.
February 4th, 2010 at 3:47 pm
Couldnae give a f@$k about Terry.
Our immense susceptibility to the counter attack is frightening, but I do think we created plenty of chances on Sunday, which we didn’t when Chelsea walloped us in November.
I don’t think we’ll win, if I’m honest, but I’m sure we’ll play better. And if we do, we’re still well in it.
February 4th, 2010 at 5:42 pm
Most of the comments are good and fair.However the only trick for gooners is to ensure safety first at the back before any attacks.The whole team has been fooled to feel they are the best attacking flair in England and thats why you can see a person like Silvester also upfront.Thats foolhardy in its strict sense.We need to be patient even if it is a boring game but a point will be vital.Why not pack the midfield and suffocate them so that we play on counter attacks as we have fast players like Walcott who can run at the ball .That game is winnable if Wenger realised the system arsenal used in the 2006 champions league competition. Ever since he resorted to open play and entertaining football Arsenal has never and it will not win any trophy.If Chelsea beat us and we fail in Europe it will be the tactical inability of the coach.Any one can see that.We played as underdogs in Europe and humbled mighty teams like Milan ,Juventus and Madrid on their own home grounds. Unless the coach has totally lost direction and has no ambitions for the club why cant you replicate the same tactics in big games like these and instead resort to open play and we are humilliated at the need not once.If we change tactics from now on i bet we shall fight to the wire in all 2 competitions.But Almnia must hand over the gloves to Vito Manone.I just wish Almnia declares himself injured so that over season is saved from misery.
February 4th, 2010 at 6:02 pm
@wandega, it’s actually a good point you make about being successful by approaching games as underdogs.
Wenger won’t do this at home, but I suspect his approach on Sunday will look a little like what you are suggesting, even if we do ‘resort to open play’ now and again.
That said, the prospect of Almunia ‘declaring himself injured’ is a rather distant hope.
February 5th, 2010 at 11:58 am
@grabs
Gingers for Limpar have the following comments to make regarding allegations of a ginger ManUSA backbone:
Wayne Rooney is not ginger, and gingers can take no responsibility for Wayne Rooney. Ginger sideburns and other forms of facial hair do NOT constitute gingerness.
Wes Brown is not ginger, he is orange. As in “Don’t knock Wes Brown, I know he’s inconsistent but he’s come through a lot of adversity to become England’s first ever orange footballer.”
Scholes – ok, you win that one.
February 5th, 2010 at 2:11 pm
JT was one of the lesser few individuals left in the game, whose name carried some credibility. Hell, Cashley’s wife even got him undone! Lolz!
Arsenal must be wary of 6 things ahead of this encounter though:
http://11gunners.com/opinion/6-must-do%E2%80%99s-as-arsenal-await-another-6-pointer/3063/
February 5th, 2010 at 5:28 pm
@Julian H
Good to hear from you. Wes Brown, the human baked bean, is unique in his array of hues, but is nonetheless both brown and ginger. Remarkable, but still ginger. I’ve never been able to look at Rooney for long enough to verify either way, so I’m prepared to concede, but he certainly has a kind of gritty ginger bumfluff sort of a vibe going on.
By way of further ammunition, I refer you to erstwhile hare-toothed midfielder Luke Chadwick, who though no longer on the books has undoubtedly tainted United ginger for the rest of time.