A massive squad but who is Arsenal's best XI?

Afternoon Gooners,

How are we all today? Are we all calmed down now? Good then I'll begin.

Personally I'm still feeling quite good about our pair of games over Christmas. The good feeling from the Chelsea game by far outweighs the frustration from the Wigan game.

One of the big questions raised from the past week is just which players make up our best team? We saw two completely different sides turn out this week and in times when our traditionally second or even third string players that turn out for the Carling Cup are becoming more recognisable the question that needs to be answered is who are our best eleven?

I think that the fact that Fabianski started both games shows that Wenger feels he is our number one. Szczesny is a fantastic prospect and it will not be long before he breaks through properly but he is not ready to play week in week out yet. Almunia, as sad as it sounds, has in my opinion played his last game for the club. I wouldn't be surprised to see him move on in January.

Clichy and Sagna take the full back positions with relative ease. Sagna has been our most impressive player in that position since Lauren and no one at the club can really challenge him for a regular starting spot. Keiran Gibbs is pushing a little harder  on Clichy but is still a little behind but that being said, if some reports are true and Clichy is planning a move to Spain then I would not be uncomfortable with our young Englishman making that step up. Gibbs crossing in the final third is already better than clichy and aspects of his defending is better but Clichy's all round game is still of a higher standard than Gibbs.

The first real question is who are our best centre backs. This decision is probably the one that splits opinions most. Our contenders are: Vermaelen, Koscielny, Djourou and Squillaci.

Vermaelen claims his spot automatically in my opinion, his strength, reading of the game, aerial ability and threat going forward (still can't believe how sweetly he can strike a ball with his left foot) put him a class above not only our other centre backs but most of the centre backs in the league.

But who should partner him? Squillaci gives experience, Koscielny gives his ability in those last ditch tackles as well as his reading of the game and Djourou gives fantastic ability in the air and a strong tackle. I thought I'd go look at some stats for the pairings but as Kos and Squillaci are still in their first season, Djourou has spent over a year out and Vermaelen has been out injured most of this year it is very difficult to compare them fairly. I personally feel that Koscielny has been epic this year, yes he's made a couple of mistakes but it's his first season so a lot of it will be spent getting used to the league. Djourou would already have the spot secured had he not been injured so much so I expect him to be pushing hard for the rest of the year. Squillaci is in my opinion a squad player and little more he has slow reflexes and is not as strong in the tackle as he should be and lacks pace.

Alex Song currently has no equal in the - and I say this loosely - defensive midfield role. Denilson is his closest rival and as rough as it sounds he's just not good enough to be trusted with that role every week. Don't get me wrong, I like Denilson, he brings qualities to our game such as a cool head, he controls the speed of a game excellently but in Arsenal's game plan there's not really a place for that sort of player.
Fabregas needs no explanation or reasoning, he's our captain, he's one of the best midfielders in the world and he walks into our team just as he would any other team in the Premiership.

The third midfield role has more competition than any other. Diaby, Denilson, Wilshere, Rosicky, Ramsey, Nasri to name a few all fighting for one spot. Each player brings different attributes and qualities and may be used for different scenarios but my choice for this spot is not the same as if you asked me 6 months ago. Jack Wilshere has been a revolution this year and on many occasions has been our most influential player, even when Fabregas has been playing. his understanding of the game, vision for the pass, technical skill is beyond most players playing today but to be at this level at his age is almost unbelievable.

We have some of the most attractive options up front in the world. I we assume we're playing three up front with a solo striker and two supporting attackers then the solo spot is between Van Persie, Chamakh and Bendtner. Chamakh has been superb since joining us in the summer. He was thrown into the team earlier than Wenger planned because of injuries to RVP and Bendtner and with 10 goals at the half way point of the season surely everyone must see that he has been a massive success. Bendtner is the best third choice striker in the league but despite his obvious confidence in his own ability he is just that, third choice.

A fit Robin Van Persie is another player that is among the worlds best. His skill, vision and finishing ability mean that if he his fit that solo striker spot must be his.

The supporting players cause a lot of arguments between fans too. Arshavin, Walcott, Nasri, Rosciky, Vela and even Bendtner are fighting for two available spots.

Theo Walcott has been in excellent form this season but his defensive qualities leave a lot to be desired and many fans would argue he's a bit of a one trick pony. His pace causes problems for any team we face but sometimes we need a little more. I am personally excited about what Theo can bring to our team in the next few years from both out wide and also potentially the central role.

Vela is not ready, sounds short and harsh but it's the truth. Rosciky is unfortunately past his best. I don't think we will ever see the player Wenger thought he signed but he is still a quality player and the qualities he provides from the bench are fantastic.

Nasri is finally starting to show signs of the world class player he is going to become, some of the things he can do while on the football are miraculous and give credit to the original comparisons with Zidane that he earned in his youth

Arshavin is possibly the most lazy fecker I have ever seen in an Arsenal shirt but there is no denying that when he is on his game he is nothing short of world class. For this reason we as fans almost need to overlook his lazy ways and just except that we'll only get half an hour of football from him in a game but in the knowledge that within that 30 minutes he could win the game for us. However, our defensive cover suffers massively when he plays.

So I do this opening myself up to a mass of abuse but here's my best eleven, assuming everyone is fit.

                      Fabianski

Sagna - Koscielny - Vermaelen - Clichy

                         Song

             Fabregas - Wilshere

Nasri                   -                 Arshavin

                    Van Persie

Subs: Sczcseny, Djourou, Eboue, Rosicky, Ramsey, Walcott, Chamakh

What do you think? Agree or disagree, let me know.

I'll leave you all to contemplate the Birmingham game now but hopefully we've all calmed down about Wigan and can move on.

Till next time,
Goonerfish.

A Little calm please people - The difference two days make.

Morning Gooners,

OK, I know I've been absent from the blogging world for a while but reading through the blog-sphere last night I felt I had to interject and shout out with my two cents worth.

There is only one way to say this but come on people, calm the feck down!! On boxing day, as we sat in our living rooms still bloated from turkey, looking forward to the our next two games we would have taken 4 points with a big smile on our faces so why when after the two games we have the 4 points we wanted are some gooners screaming about how crap we are?

Monday night was one of the best nights for an Arsenal fan in recent history. We showed we are a team that can not only win against the big boys but out play them, it's something we've known we can do for a long time as did Wenger and our players and against Chelsea they've finally proved it.

Then came tonight's game against Wigan and lets be honest, we were not good enough but then lets also look at some facts. Firstly Wenger made 8 changes to the side that embarrassed Chelsea with only Fabianski, Koscielny (who by the way has been phenomenal over the two games) and Sagna retaining their place, take a second look and you could almost be mistaken for calling it a Carling Cup team. That aside as our squad should be strong enough to cope with rotation, Wigan went ahead from a penalty that you could easily say should only have been a free kick as the original contact happened OUTSIDE the box. Again I'll point out here that in recent years our boys would have got their heads down and lost the spirit and we would have lost at least 1-0 but not tonight, we got our heads back on the game and not only equalised but then took the lead, Bendnter and Arshavin involved in both goals and each was excellent in their own ways.

There is no excuse for Wigan's second but we were just a Arshavin chip away from our third and lets be honest we should have had a penalty at the end from an obvious handball, and for those who say it was ball to hand or it wasn't deliberate I'll ask you the question that was worded best of all from our absent skipper

"Whats the diference between this handball & my 1 vs spurs? Referees dont want us to complain abt them but they make life dificult 4 themself"

I'd also like to point out at this stage that I love this tweet from Fabregas because the speed it was tweeted shows he's as much an Arsenal fan as you or me and cares for the club.

In my opinion the same quality was responsible for both results this Christmas and that is our players mental attitude. Against Chelsea our players were fired up, we chased every ball, we fought every battle, we wanted to win every contest. Against Wigan we didn't. We as a club need to face games like Wigan and West Brom and Newcastle and Sunderland with the same passion and mentality that we go into games likes Chelsea, Man Utd and (hopefully) Barcelona. The second we assume we'll win the points is the second we drop them.

So again gooners, I call for some calm. Our win against Chelsea didn't win us the league BUT, the draw against Wigan hasn't stopped us winning it. Some fans may need reminding that from these two games last year we secured 0 points, this year we have 4 and because of impovements like that we're starting January two points of the top of the league, not bad for a team who were written off from any sort of title challenge this year.

We start the New year with a trip to St Andrews on Saturday and as Man Utd discovered yesterday, it's not going to be easy so we need to get our heads down, learn our lessons from last nights dissapiontment and concentrate on getting two more points than Utd did against Birmingham.

Till next time, keep it positive Gooners,
Goonerfish.

Arsenal finally show some mental strength: Villa thoughts.

What a difference a win makes.

I've woken up this Sunday Morning feeling good about the world and in particular Arsenal. It's not just the win but the performance that impressed me.

Arshavin was, in my opinion, brilliant yesterday. He is starting to combine his ability with a more than decent work rate and seems to be really enjoying his football at the moment, a wonderful combination that if continued will see him become the world class player we all thought we signed when he came to North London. He scored our first goal with a jinking run followed by a great strike which was to powerful for Freidel as despite a good hand to the ball he couldn't prevent it sinking into the net.

AA23 then got his assist. A corner earned by a wonderful save by Brad Freidel after a powerful Chamakh header was played deep and the approaching Samir Nasri continued his great form and smashed the half volley into Villa'a goal.

2-0 up at half time and on top of the game - What could have gone wrong?

Villa scored their first despite Carew standing right in front of Fabianski in an offside position but they are just the decisions that go against you when your Arsenal.

I have to admit I was feeling very nervous after that goal and wondered how our players would react, especially after the week we've had but they reacted perfectly showing the character we've been missing of late and it was a matter of minutes before captain for the day, Rosicky slid the ball through for Chamakh who finished well slotting the ball under the keeper to make it 3-1.

As we never do anything the easy way we let Villa in to score a second just to make sure that Gooner's across the globe were on edge for the last quarter of the game. All those nerves disappeared a few minutes from the end when Chamakh turned provider and gently knocked the ball across goal to an unmarked Wilshere who scored his first league goal for the club with a diving header to make it 4-2. I am so chuffed for Jack as his performances this season have deserved more reward so to see his name on the score sheet was a great touch at the end of a great game.

This was the first game Villa have lost at home this season and only the second in the whole of 2010 so the achievment should not be overlooked and lets not forget Man Utd were held to a draw there just a couple of weeks ago.

Arsenal seem to have their swagger back and with only one game left in November we are so close to putting our bogey month behind us and enjoying the rest of the year.

Our thoughts now move to the Carling Cup and our chance to move closer to ending our trophy drought.

Till Next time,
Goonerfish.

Time for positivity: Villa Preview

Morning Gooners,

It feels like an eternity since we last played but that's the way two defeats on the trot make you feel. But lets not forget that prior to the last hellish week we saw are team put in what could be called champion's performances against both Everton and Wolves. November has always been a horrible month for Arsenal fans and 2010 has been no exception with more negativity flying around the blog sphere than I can remember for a long time but today are boys travel to Aston Villa to put an end to it and again send us top of the league, even if it may only be for a few hours unless 'Big Sam' and his boys from Blackburn can do us a favour at Old Trafford.

We travel to the midlands today taking the leagues best away record with us. With four wins, a couple of draws and only a single defeat on the road we have picked up more points than any other club but rather annoyingly, we've picked up more points than we have at home, but as I said this week has been negative enough, it's time to start thinking positively.

In contrast, Villa are unbeaten at home this year and will be doing their best to keep that record and as they showed against Man Utd a couple of weeks ago, they won't be push overs but then again they got owned by Blackburn last week so it all depends which Villa turn out.

Arsenal don't have an option as to which team turn up, it needs to be our best team, giving 100% in every minute of the game until we leave with the three points.

Wenger will have a decision to make over who he plays in the centre of defense but he's never been one to punish for a bad performance so I expect he'll stick with Koscielny and Squillaci. Squillaci will be vital today if Carew plays as I don't think Kos is strong enough to deal with him.

It seems our injury situation is getting better, but we will be missing the talents of Vermealen, Fabregas and Eboue which gives Wenger another decision to make in midfield. Who will fill Cesc's role? Is Wilshere ready to take it? If so, will he play Denilson to give us a bit more defensive bite? Will he bring in Rosicky for a rare start or will he move Nasri into his favourite position? The only thing we are sure of is that we have plenty of options.

Robin Van Persie missed out on the squad mid week but I think that's Wenger keeping his fragile superstar protected for what he saw as the bigger game so I actually expect to see him start today. I think if Nasri moves back then Walcott will be given his chance to show his talents and battle to get back in the starting XI on a regular basis.

Goonerfish's line-up:

Fabianski


Sagna - Koscielny - Squillaci - Clichy


Song


Nasri - Wilshere


Walcott - Arshavin


Van Persie (c)



Score: Aston Villa 2 - 3 Arsenal

In all honesty, I have a nasty feeling we'll drop points today with a draw but this is supposed to be a positive blog today.

Lets hope we can all enjoy our lunch today looking down on the rest of the league.

Till next time,
Goonerfish.

At last, Hell week is over.

Evening Gooners,

What a week!! Apologies for the lack of blogs during the week but I have not been my normal positive self and the stuff that I did write was not very pleasant. I will attempt to return to some form of regularity.

I  am going to pretend that I have been sleeping for the last seven days as I have no intention of following the trend and describing my disappointment, frustration and anger at almost everything that has happened in the Arsenal world.

I heard a funny joke yesterday though, there was this man in a bar and he said to his mate "I really think the power in North London has changed from red to white"......................... That's it, that's the whole joke. Spuds and parts of the media alike all seem to think that as Spurs have had a better week than us they are now the better team. I'm not one for name calling or sh*t stirring  but I thought to be a better team than us you need to be above us in the league? or is that just my opinion? seriously, you give a charity case a single season in the Champions league (yes spuds, that's all your getting!!) and they think they are the best club in the world. All I hope is they remember these taunts and this optimism in May when they are fighting for a place in the Europe League.

Other news from this week included Robin Van Persie's return then being rested and then a whole load of confusion over whether or not he is fit, these stories will hopefully be put to rest when he starts up front Saturday lunch time. If he plays he will find himself up against a true Arsenal legend, Bobby Pires. Pires enjoyed years of success at Arsenal and was of course a member of our invincibles team. He has now moved on to Aston Villa after a month or so of training with our first team to keep his fitness up. I'm sure there isn't a Gooner on the planet that doesn't wish him all the luck in the world - after Saturday.

More good news was the mid week return of Aaron Ramsey. Rambo made his returns in the reserves and played 45 minutes and although I didn't see it I'm told he played very well and looked strong. This was quickly followed by the surprise news that he has joined Notts Forest on loan until January. Personally I'm quite happy he's going to get some game time but also petrified he's going to get kicked off the park. We'll all find out in the new year how heavily Rambo is involved in Wenger's plans for the rest of the year. Lansbury has also left on loan, joining Norwich.

Anyway, I have finally come out of my misery and am ready to rejoin the living world. I'll be back tomorrow with a preview of yet another 'most important game of the season'

Till next time Gooners,
Goonerfish.

Time to smash some spuds and top the table. Spurs Preview

Here we go, at last the world famous superstar that is his welsh highness sir Gareth of Bale will finally grace the pitch at the Emirates with his presence. I need to make a note of my exact location so I can tell my Grand kids "I was there"

Sorry, sarcasm aside today sees our inferior neighbours pop over for a friendly game of footie. Every professional you speak to will tell you it's just another game but it's not, it's just not, it's one of the first fixtures you look for when they're released in the summer and a victory against the spuds tastes just a little sweeter than any other.

Spurs fans will tell you that they've finally closed that gap between us and by qualifying for the Champions League for the first time they feel the clubs are on par. We suggested they may be mistaken when our reserves beat them 4 - 1 at their place in the Carling Cup. Now it's time to prove the clubs are still miles apart.

Our injury list is looking better and better at the moment and considering we've just had an international
break I never thought I'd say that. RVP got through his midweek appearance and said he feels fine and Wilshere has passed a fitness teat for today's game so it seems that the only regular out at the moment is TV5.

Koscielny returns from his suspension and should step straight back into the team and I expect the experienced head of Squillaci to be stood right next to him.

Arsene Wenger must be smiling from ear to ear at the moment, with so many players available to play in each position competition must be fierce and that can only be a good thing. I wonder if Wenger will do anything to protect us against Bale's pace and give Eboue the start at right back in what looks like it will be a very attacking game or if Eboue's habit to concentrate more on attacking than defending will leave to much space to be attacked by Spurs. Our midfield and attack could take almost any combination, Walcott's pace Vs Nasri's skill and form, Arshavin's ability against Rosicky's reliability and of course Chamakh's fitness against Van Persie's..... um everything. I'm not sure if Wenger will risk Van Persie from the begining as he did such that against Blackburn and he didn't last a half before breaking.

Goonerfish's Line-up:

Fabianski


Sagna - Koscielny - Squillaci - Clichy


Song


Fabregas (c) - Wilshere


Nasri - Arshavin

Chamakh




Score Arsenal 3 - 1 Spuds

I wouldn't be surprised to see Spurs score first although we will be too much for them in the end.
You'll notice I haven't even mentioned a certain Billy Gallas. That's because I don't care. He was a player that would have been handy to have in the squad but in all honesty his menstrual cycle was a little to random for my liking.

Anyway, go find a perch wear your Arsenal red and sing all the songs (try to ignore Sky's inevitable bias towards the Spuds) and then after the game find every person you can find and scream right in their face "WE ARE TOP OF THE LEAGUE, SAY WE ARE TOP OF THE LEAGUE"

Till next time,
Goonerfish.

Everton thoughts. Great weekend for a Gooner

This was above all else an excellent win for our team, on a ground where Utd dropped points we battled hard and came away with the win.

Wenger was full of praise for his team saying:

"The most important qualities we showed at Everton were discipline, commitment, togetherness, desire and a 100 per cent focus for 90 minutes. That is what got us the points."

The points were definitely earned by 'Fab' today but not the normal one, not the Fab that scored our second and ultimately winning goal. Lukasz Fabianski put in a fantastic performance at Goodison and produced a number of top saves while the score was 2 - 0. The 25 year old keeper had another faultless performance and was definitely a core reason for our success, not only against Everton but since he came in to the side after Almunia's 'injury'. What's more impressive is hat during that spell when he made his only error that cost us points he came back and earned us wins in the next two, That is the sign of a world class keeper in the making.

Another player that has improved his reputation although somewhat more quietly was Denilson. His introduction at half time was a beautiful and clever move from Arsene Wenger, he replaced Jack Wilshere who in himself is a great player but he likes to have the ball at his feet, make runs, take people on and so on, Denilson on the other hand receives the ball, takes a touch, looks up and passes to the free man and that sort of quick link play was what was needed against a tough Everton team that enjoyed closing us down very quickly. A lot of fans have criticised Denilson for always passing sideways, not being attacking enough or just not being good enough. Hopefully more appearances like this can slowly keep changing the minds of those fans. Denilson's introduction also allowed Fabregas to concentrate more on the attacking side of his game, In the first half you could often see him step back while Alex Song made a forward charge but in the second half it was Denilson and Song who shared the responsibilities of defensive cover allowing Cesc to run forward just like he did when he scored his goal.

I was disappointed not to see Walcott involved, he is as far as we know fully fit and before his two game absence he was in form so his lack of involvement was surprising. The only assumption I can make is that Wenger doesn't trust Theo defensively and if that is the case, we may not see that much of him away from home.

I haven't seen many of the post game interviews so all I can give you is a tweet by Cesc Fabregas after the game he took the time to thank the fans, he tweeted "Great victory. All the lads were fantastic. Great support once again by the away fans. Keep it up Gunners!"

All in all This game provided the perfect build up for the Spurs game but of course we need to get through the internationals injury free first - I wonder what odds we'd get for RVP getting injured whilst playing for Holland?

Until then, Go forth and enjoy your week in the knowledge that we are potentially one win away from being top of the Premier League.

Short but sweet today so until next time,
Goonerfish

Must take advantage and take all the points: Everton Preview

Unbeaten in seven games, lost only three games in there last twenty three and the third best defensive record in the league this year falling behind only Man City and Chelsea. It all sounds great but that's not our record, it's Everton's.

This will not be an easy game. Our third game in seven days and we follow a home defeat to Newcastle and an away win at Wolves with a trip up north to the blue side of Mersyside.

Today marks the half way mark in our traditional bogey month which so far reads one win and two defeats. Better news though is that Cesc Fabregas has been declared as "back" by manager Arsene Wenger. Our captain has been a mixture of average and almost good. He has failed to reach his normal high standards but according to Wenger he's "back". He said:

“It took him a while to settle again. But I am 100 per cent convinced he is focused, motivated and determined more than ever to lead the team to victory.

“Stamina-wise, Cesc is there now. He has lost his restriction in his head and the fear of injury in his hamstring.

“He still lacks a little bit of zip in the decision-making and his acceleration in the final third. He is at 95 per cent.

“I felt we saw a different Cesc at Wolves – focused, motivated, wanted to give everything, no restriction. He was already a completely different player. That means in the next game he should be alright.

Having a fully fit and match sharp Fabregas will be a massive boost for any team. His vision, skill and commitment will earn us points on there own and the sooner he can get back to being the maestro we know he can be, the better.

As for the rest of our team tomorrow, Fabianski will be looking to get another solid performance under his belt, a little bit of me thinks he prefers playing away from the Emirates where there's not so many eyes waiting for him to mess up and not so many groans if he drops a cross. He is becoming a better keeper with every game and long may he continue to improve. At Fabianski's age he could find himself our number one keeper for the next ten+ years and with the rest of the team as young as they are, the understanding between everyone will grow every year and that can only be a big, big positive for the club.

The defense again picks itself, Koscielny remains suspended and Vermealen remains injured So Djourou and Squillaci will have the opportunity for their partnership to grow. The only question is between Clichy and Gibbs. Gibbs is available again but I don't see the tough trip to Goodison the right place or his return.

I have to admit, apart from Song and Fabregas, the rest of the line-up is almost a complete guess. We have so many options available to us that I don't know if Wenger knows his best XI so God help the rest of us who are trying to work it out. Personally I'd like to see Theo start. Baines is a very good player but he is very attack minded and I can' think of anyone else I'd prefer to be available to exploit all that space he will leave behind him.

Bendtner has apparently been mouthing off in he week, if you missed his comments I talked about it in yesterdays blog, he has been saying he believes he is fit and ready to be our main striker but after his brace on Wednesday, if he's fit enough in Wenger's eyes, Chamakh must start. I'd also like o see some more of Van Persie but expect if anything he'll be introduced from the bench. Arshavin has started to show a new lease of life and has really been showing an effort in his past couple of appearances, I've said it many times but I'll say it again, if Arshavin can match his work rate to his skill and ability he will become one of the best players in the world.

Goonerfish's line-up:

Fabianski


Sagna - Djourou - Squillaci - Clichy


Song


Fabregas (c) - Nasri


Walcott - Arshavin


Chamakh



Score Everton 2 - 3 Arsenal

This will either be a goal fest or will end up 1 - 0, thanks to my positive nature, I'm opting for the goal fest. We will need to wach out for the power of Cahill in the air but more importantly we will need to cut out the supply. I think if we have enough of the ball we can restrict Everton's chances. As I said Walcott (if he plays) should enjoy a lot of space behind the attacking Baines and could really hurt the toffees.

With Man Utd and Man City dropping points and Chelsea facing a tough game at the Stadium of Light (I fancy Sunderland to get a point BTW) today is a perfect chance to gain a couple of points on our rivals and finish the weekend in second place a maximum of only 5 points of the leaders.

Till next time Gooners,
Goonerfish.

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More evidence of press bias, Dirty Arsenal & Nik needs to be careful!!

WOW!! A few days off from blogging and I come back with what seems to be more going on than during a transfer window, right, where do I start?

Let's try and do this chronologically, Wolves first. The game wasn't great if we're honest but at risk of being unpopular, I don't care. I don't mind if in more than a few games this year, especially away from home at places like Molineux, Brittania Stadium or the Reebok Stadium, we turned up and played ugly football in aid of getting the three points. It has often been said that Arsene Wenger has put style in front of results, I think we are slowly seeing Arsene admit we can always win playing pretty football and is now adding a well needed bit of grit to the squad.

At Arsenal we have for years complained that we do not have a goalkeeper that can earn us the points that VDS earns Utd or Cech earns for Chelsea but Fabianski has stepped up when he's been given the chance and is slowly starting to fill that description. He made a mistake that cost us points against Newcastle and Fabianski of old would have put his head down and we would have seen a string of mistakes follow but our new improved Fabianski took it on the chin, trained hard and be certain there was no mistakes to regret in his next game. Well played good sir!!
Fabregas was rightly booked for a bad challenge on Ward and later he went on to apologise to him which was excepted by both the player and his manager. The challenge was jumped on by the press and our captain was publicly criticised by everyone. However, Henry challenged Arshavin with studs showing above the ball which could easily have broken AA23's ankle and was at least as bad if not worse than Fabregas' challenge yet only a handful of the press actually acknowledged its existence let alone criticised it (yes MOTD, I'm looking at you as you even failed to show it in the highlights at all), yet another example of the anti-Arsenal prejudice this counties press seems to have.

Another thing that came out this week is that Arsenal are officially the dirtiest team in the Premier League. In the fair play tables points are given for fouls conceded, bookings and red cards. I don't know how those points are awarded but obviously a red card gives a big old chunk of points which is why, with four red cards already, we top that table. This obviously was pounced on by the press calling it ironic that Wenger complains so much while his own team are the dirtiest players in the country. Now as much as I enjoy stats, I wish these people would do their research, Arsene Wenger has been publicly attacking bad, reckless potentially career ending tackles and teams that set out to be over physical and given the chance will go through the player to get the ball. If we look at Arsenal's reds this year Koscielny has half of them and the first at Liverpool was unlucky to say the least and his latest was for denying a clear goal scoring opportunity (apparently) by pulling the player back, not exactly violent in either case. Alex Song's red card was for two silly yellows so again not reckless. I can't defend Jack Wilshere's red so won't try to. My point is that black and white stats don't always tell the full story and I just wish the professional press would take account for that sometimes.

More recently, just as it seems that the Arsenal camp has become a happy one one of our players has decided to talk to foreign press in the hope it never reaches us in England. Nik Bendtner abandoned his normally shy, retiring, humble personality and has gone on record saying that if he doesn't become Arsenal's first choice striker then he will look to play the game somewhere else. He said:

“I’m very disappointed that I haven’t played more. I feel I’ve done the right things in the rehab and that I’m in the form of my life. I feel that I’m better than before the injury where I after all was in the line up every time and close to fulfilling my potential.

When I’m 100 per cent fit I can’t accept sitting on the bench. I’m 100 per cent good enough for the starting XI in Arsenal. I have the qualities and I’ve been sitting enough on the bench in my career.

I’ll soon be 23 and at this point in my career it’s important to play regularly game after game in order to continue my development. I’ve been patient for a long time but I’m not anymore. I’ve shown that I’m fit – both in training and the games I’ve played.”

He did however try to stop fans turning on him by stating:

"I hope I can be here for a long time yet. For me, Arsenal, right now, are a dream club."

Normally I don't pay much attention to quotes like these unless I see the players saying the words myself however, Arsene Wenger has felt the need to respond to this one. He said:

"He works hard, he has been out for a long time. I must say I have been very pleased with his attitude and spirit. He has to continue to work and when he is completely match fit he will play.

"I must say his attitude has been extremely committed and I can understand [his frustration] because he has put a lot of effort in. Now he has to be a little bit patient.

“When you try to convince a player that he has to be patient, then you waste your time. That’s what you’ve got to do, but you ask a player if he is fit after two training sessions and he says ‘yes’. That’s it, that’s normal. I was the same.”

Now from my point of view, NB52 is lucky to be at our club and as talented as he his, he is still our third choice striker behind RVP and our goal hero from Wednesday Chamakh. I hope he's patient enough to stay but Nik, listen hard, you can be replaced so please don't let your ego ruin what you have at this club.

Anyway, we look forward now to Everton tomorrow now and with Man Utd and Man City dropping points today it provides a great chance to gain some ground and finish the weekend in second place.

I'll finish with a big well done to Vito Mannone who played his first game for Hull on yesterday and after a shaky start turned it into a very solid and confident debut keeping a clean sheet in the process.

Till next time Gooners,
Goonerfish

Wolves Preview: Can the real Arsenal please stand up.

First of all, apologies for the late and rushed post, Today has been mental but I always think it's better to get a match preview up BEFORE the game actually starts.

Who would have guessed that an early November game away to a team expected to be fighting against relegation would feel like a must win game? Not me for one but that's where we are.

After an over-whelmingly disappointing performance against Newcastle at the weekend it's time for the real Arsenal to step up and be counted. Players like Fabregas, Clichy and Arshavin need to find the form that they have been lacking lately. We know that everyone of our players has the ability to be world class but at times I feel that our players think the game has been won before it begins.

Wolves are in form at the moment beating Manchester City and very nearly getting a deserved draw at Old Trafford. We on the other hand are not in form at all suffering two defeats in our last two games and only scrapping past West Ham in the game before. Arsene has expressed the importance of the game, he said:

“We do not want to lose this game. Especially after the games against Shakhtar and Newcastle where, because of our quality, we feel we should not have lost. So it is important we become efficient again and the confidence remains there.”

Our team drives on confidence and dropping points today will only bring more bad form. We do need to remember though that if we beat Wolves and Man City can beat Man Utd then we return to second in the league five points behind Chelsea (assuming Fulham don't nick a result at the ridge) and in my opinion being in that position after a run of bad form can only excite us when we think of the position we'll be in when we strike a spell of good form.

We will travel without Vermealen, Ramsey and Diaby through injury and Koscielny because of suspension after the appeal against his red card was thrown out but the good news is Robin Van Persie looks set to continue his return but probably only from the bench.

Our defense will pretty much pick itself. Arshavin put in more effort during his cameo against Newcastle than I have seen over the rest of the season so if he comes back into the team then I hope he will continue that work rate for 90 minutes tonight, I've said many times before that if AA23 can combine his undoubted skill with a decent work rate over 90 minutes then he could be one of the best players in the world. Chamakh has experienced a run in the team that was much longer than he expected so early in his Arsenal career and as a result is understandably shattered so I expect him to take a place on the bench tonight but who will replace him? Options are Bendtner, RVP or a wilcard option of Theo. as I said, I think RVP will start from the bench so the decision rests on how fit Wenger deems our great Dane to be, I'd love to see Walcott start in the middle but expect Bendtner will get the call-up. If that is the case then we get back to the Walcott/Nasri choice for the right of our attack.

Goonerfish's line-up:

Fabianski


Sagna - Djourou - Squillaci - Clichy


Song


Fabregas (c) - Wilshere


Nasri - Arshavin


Bendtner




Score Wolves 1 - 3 Arsenal

I think that our players realise that these games our not 3 points in the bag anymore and we need to fight for every point. I think it will be a tighter game than 3 - 1 suggests but reckon we'll nick a third in the last 10 minutes as Wolves chase a point.

Wenger has stated that great teams do not lose three games in a row, he is right and it is up to our players to show we can be great.

Apologies again for the short and sweet preview but time has not been my friend today.

Till next time,
Goonerfish.

Arsenal attitude needs to change quick!! Newcastle Thoughts.

Heart. Passion. Effort. These are three simple things I as a fan ask from anyone who is fortunate enough to wear the Arsenal shirt. These simple values should be given IN FULL whether we are playing Barcelona, Man Utd, Newcastle, West Brom or Acrington Stanley.

Yesterday against Newcastle our players attitude was wrong from the start, we didn't seem to have any hunger, there was no bite to our game and more importantly we seemed to almost except defeat as soon as Carroll scored. I saw no evidence that we are title contenders and I would love to say that it must be a one off but I said that when we lost to West Brom at home so in the sense of the term itself it can no longer be a 'one off'.

Please don't get me wrong, I am an obscenely optimistic Gooner but even I have to say that our current attitude stinks and I have to say that no-one portrayed that attitude yesterday more than our captain. Again, I am a huge fan of Fabregas but every time you saw him in the game yesterday he had his head down, he looked like he was complaining or sulking the entire 90 minutes and for once misplaced more passes than he completed.

This was a game that Arsenal fans expected to win, the problem however is that the Arsenal players did too. We started the stronger team and as normal held most of the possession. Walcott struck the woodwork and Fabregas hit the bar from a free kick and then Samir Nasri demanded a fantastic save from Krul in the Newcastle goal after a Fabregas cut back.

I said in my preview that Carroll would cause our defense enough trouble to either score or create a goal for Newcastle and he did so just before half time from a Joey Barton free kick. Fabianski came, he flapped and he missed. The keeper played a big part in their goal but was not the only reason we conceded and he is certainly not the reason we didn't finish any of the many chances we had to score. But please lets not restart all the scape-goating and hate campaigns against our keepers.

In the second half, in fairness, Newcastle played very well, kept us out and frustrated us, even if it was the keeper taking 4 hours to take a goal kick. Our day got rounded off nicely a few minutes from the end when Koscielny got turned by his man on the touchline and responded by pulling him down and received a red card for his troubles. Now, Kos was given his marching orders for preventing a clear goal scoring opportunity, I repeat, a CLEAR goal scoring opportunity, he was about 45 yards from goal and Squillaci was about 20 yards away, the math doesn't lie it was a rushed decision and in my opinion, a wrong one.
Hopefully we will appeal so that he does not miss any more of this vile month. All in all, if you reflect on the game honestly, Arsenal did not deserve to win the game.

Some people will tell you that the defeat doesn't matter as much as it could because Chelsea. YES IT DOES. The likes of Chelsea and Man Utd will not drop many points and we need to take advantage when they do. If anything it is more important to win games like today so we do not land ourselves in positions where we have to take maximum points from the big teams because as much as we want to, we cannot expect to.

It was not all negative though and as I said, I am a positive Gooner. Jack Wilshere looked really up for the game and showed that he is still improving his game, today it was his tackling that showed, in my opinion, quite significant improvement. Arshavin came on in the second half and he worked his bollocks off. If the Russian Meerkat can add that sort of work rate into his normal game then he will become close to unstoppable. The biggest plus sign from a miserable day was the return of Robin Van Persie. Our Dutch number 10 played just over 30 minutes and with almost his first touch showed some lovely skill by the touchline to beat his man. He is still some way off match fitness but it's fantastic to see that he's getting closer.

Minds have to turn to Wolves now and our players need to sort out their attitude quickly because if we face the game the same way we did against Newcastle we will drop points again and frankly we cannot afford to drop any more.

Till next time Gooners, keep it positive,
Goonerfish.

An angry rant and Newcastle preview

Morning Gooners,

I started to write a separate blog yesterday, to be fair, I wouldn't call it a blog so much as a rant. Two stories in two days from the lazy sods at the nations 'favourite' paper got me more pissed off at lazy journalism than I had been for a very long time.

The first story was written by Steve Howard and entitled "Now Bale's left Theo standing" first of all WTF!! They have compared a player who has two goals and a single assist after playing every minute of every game in the league this year with a player who has scored four goals and aided with one assist in only 5 games, only two of which being starts and one of them only lasting 6 minutes. But obviously because Bale has had two good games against Inter Milan then he is the brightest player in English football and no one, especially an Arsenal player can touch him!

Secondly the groundbreaking story that Wenger is a dirty lying cheat and has been sleeping around with a blond French rap star. Firstly, Wenger doing the dirty with a rap star...... Really? To be honest I don't want to give the tosh more advertisement however I'll just add my favourite line from the front page "They kissed on the cheek and held hands at the table in an airport hotel" They kissed on the Cheek? THEY'RE FRENCH FFS!!!! and just a little point, Arsene is one of the smartest people in football, would he really air his dirty laundry this easily and openly? Look, even if Le Boss has been having an affair then it's his business and if it's been going on for two years then it's not effecting our football is it?!? Anyway, It's not like he's sleepy with OAP prostitutes or maybe regular prostitutes while his wife was pregnant at home or getting it on with his wife's sister or even shagging a team mates wife is it, I mean seriously, who would be sick and twisted enough to go down that route? Bottom line is Arsene Wenger has earned enough trust and respect for us to just leave him to it.

Right, rant over, on to the preview:

November traditionally sucks for Arsenal fans. Shakhtar ensured that the month started on a bad note now Newcastle come to town to try and make it worse. Newcastle will face a different and stronger side to the team that beat them at St James Park in the Carling Cup which should be great for us but we will also face a different, stronger Newcastle team. The big differences for the Magpies and the only ones we should be concerned about are Nolan, Carrol and Barton. Kevin Nolan is bang in form at the moment after his hat trick in the Sunderland game, Carroll is in my opinion hugely over-rated but he is big and strong enough to cause our defense all sorts of problems, he is also good in the air and our full backs are not the best at stopping those crosses coming in so our entire defence will have to be on their game. Those crosses will be pinged in by a certain Joey Barton. Now I'm not going to pretend to like the man but he does seem to have actually been quite good this season, the big problem we will face with Joey 'Jailbird' Barton is the legs of our very, very, very fragile players. The referee will have to be right up with play and as strict as he can be otherwise I can see someone getting hurt.

In our midfield, Jack Wilshere serves the last game of his 3 match ban for his red card against Birmingham so won't be involved, Song, Denilson, Arshavin and Fabregas are all back in contention after their *adopts sarcastic tone* "injuries" that kept them out of the mid week defeat to Shakhtar *drop sarcastic tone* The real question comes around where will Samir Nasri and Theo Walcott slot into Wenger's plans. Wenger has spoken of Walcott taking up that central role but I don't see it happening for a while and Wenger seems reluctant to play Fabregas and Nasri together in the middle of the park. I can't see Walcott being left out as he's the player back from injury, in form and scoring goals so that leaves a couple of options, play Nasri in the middle with Fab (please, please, please), drop Arshavin and play Nasri or Walcott on the left but seeing as our Russian wizard got a rest was injured mid week I don't see that happening either, the other option is dropping Nasri to give him a breather, all I can say is that it makes a gorgeous change to have these sorts of selection problems rather than our normal 'everyone's injured' problems. I have a feeling that Wenger will play Song and Deni in midfield to keep a close eye on Nolan which means either Walcott or Nasri will miss out.

Goonerfish's line-up:

Fabianski


Sagna - Koscielny - Squillaci - Clichy


Song


Fabregas - Denilson


Walcott - Arshavin


Chamakh




Score Arsenal 3 - 1 Newcastle

I think we have enough in our locker to see this one through but I think that Carroll will be enough of a pest to either score or create a goal for the visitors, especially if they team him up against Koscielny. Walcott should hit this game running whether it be from the start or the bench and Fabregas is due a league goal.

We need to make November a good month for us this year as I have previously said, it is a month that on paper at least, we should be looking to gain maximum points and hopefully Liverpool can do us a favour and take points off Chelsea.

Here's to some change of fortune for November for us Gooners so when we get to our tough fixtures in December we can get past Christmas confidently top of the league.

Till next time,
Goonerfish.

It's not the end of the world, Tierry Walcott & Stupid Dutch FA.

Morning Gooners,

I'm still feeling a bit fragile from Wednesday night, the last bits of disappointment are just seeping out of my
body so I can start preparing for the Newcastle game.

Arsene Wenger pretty much wrote my review of the game for me in his interviews after the game. He said:

"I felt we moved out of the game altogether and moved into the game altogether so it was more of a team problem, a kind of complacency problem more than an individual problem."

"We had a good start but after we lost our urgency and let Donetsk come into the game too much. We lost concentration in the duels"

These sorts of comments are coming out  a little to regularly for my liking, we had similar comments after Sunderland and West Brom. We need to stop treating supposedly weaker teams as easy wins an actually follow the old cliche that there are no easy games in football. It seems to me that players come out expecting to win and seem to be sure that they don't need to make the effort because "we're Arsenal, how could we lose?!" We play the best football in Europe on our day but need to treat every game with the same urgency otherwise we will lose silly points in games we should be winning comfortably which will cost us points and inevitably will cost us silverware.

If we were going to lose the game then it was inevitable that Eduardo was going to score the goal but it was the fashion of the goal that disappointed me most, Clichy was inexcusable, that ball should have been punted up field or at the very least put out for a throw but even after that, the organisation in the box was dreadful and Wilshere just let Eduardo jog into the space.

It's not the end of the world though, we lost to a team who are unbeaten at home in over two years, we had eleven players missing, we're top of the group and a point against Braga will see us through, a win will see us win the group, if that was the situation in the Premier League and we needed one win from two games to secure the league title then no-one would be complaining.

Lets not forget the positives either, Jack Wilshere's passing range was superb, Squillaci was solid, Fabianski had yet another good game (a run of good games that have seen him recalled to the Polish national side which will only add to his confidence) Djourou showed he is getting better with every game he plays although I am still worried by the amount of times he gives the ball away in our defensive third of the pitch and Theo Walcott's goal was frickin awesome.

No one else in our squad could have scored that goal, the pace, the control, the composure and the finish we're all perfect and will only add to the comparisons being made between him and Henry. I don't really want to add to those comparisons because Theo still has a way to go before he is on that level but it was a very Henry-ish goal.

Wenger has talked about Walcott moving into the central striking position for a while now and it seems those days are getting closer with Wenger saying he's not far off being ready and Walcott himself is excited about the prospect saying:

"I will play anywhere for the Arsenal, but it is nice to know the manager has got different hopes for me playing up front because for me personally I am a striker,"

"hopefully in the next couple of years you will see me be up front and I am looking forward to that."

I love that attitude from players, makes a change from players moaning that they're being played out of position. Walcott also talked about his goal count so far this year:

"It is nice to get within the goals because I have tended to miss out at times - I am trying to catch up a bit of time."

Theo is in great scoring form this year, his goal on Wednesday made him our joint top goal scorer in all competitions with Samir Nasri.

Talking of Samir Nasri, we need your help Gooners. Super Sam has been short listed for player of the month and needs your votes. Fans votes only count for a part of the process but we need to do what we can. Please follow the link here and vote for Samir (bottom right of the page)

My last note today is used to solely throw abuse and insults ant the Dutch FA. Robin Van Persie has been called up to the national side despite Wenger bluntly saying he is not fit, therefore not available. Wenger has stayed political in the situation saying he is "surprised" they would call him up, I however will not be. How can they be so f*****g stupid? If RVP was anywhere near fit, do you not think that we would be using him? A fit, match sharp RVP is one of the best strikers in the world why the flying f**k would we leave him out if was able to play you stupid dopey f**ks!!!! If he plays for you and aggravates his injury and has to spend more time out of the Arsenal side then I have a good mind to fly over there and smack each one of you round the head with a f*****g clog!!!!!

*breeeeeeeeath*

OK, on that happy note I'll leave you to the rest of your day and start looking forward to the Newcastle game.

Till next time,
Goonerfish.

A point from Qualification (ish) Shaktar preview

Here we go then, our fourth Champions League game of the season - That's "of the season " not fourth Champions league game EVER!! (Just in case spuds stumble across us on a high from last night)

We're currently sat top of group H and we technically need 3 points to guarantee qualification if Braga win and even then if you allow for the possibility of a ridiculous goal swing in our next game against Braga and we lose the next two games and Shakhtar and Braga win their remaining games, then and only then could we finish in 3rd in the group. If Braga fail to beat Partizan and we win then we are guaranteed to go through top of the group.

*scratches head to make sure all that rubbish above made sense*

Wenger has done his best to convince us that the team aren't becoming complacent saying:

“I will remind the players that Shakhtar are a good side that we caught maybe on a good day. They will try to
get revenge at home and we have a good opportunity to qualify to directly from the group. We want to take this chance.

“This game will demand a proper focus because Shakhtar are a good side with top quality. They have won the Europa League and certainly they have been hurt by what happened to them at Emirates. They will give absolutely everything. Don’t forget they played on Friday so they have all the needed preparation before this game.“I felt the first match was tighter than the score indicated. The pitch is good, so should be a good game because the two teams will attack."

At least Wenger knows all the ins and outs, however he will be without a lot of first team regulars due to injury but I use that word loosely. The likes of Almunia (although wouldn't say he's first choice now) and Vermealen are out with long term injuries but miraculously since Saturday Arshavin, Song and Denilson have all picked up 'injuries' and Fabregas has missed the trip but that is due to the slight hamstring problem he got during the West Ham game, the club have said he's fit but don't want to risk him.

Some of our young guns have travelled with the squad so it would be fantastic to see them play a part in the game. I fancy Eastmond to get a chance, especially with Song and Denilson both out.
Walcott and Bendtner should both start to add to their match fitness and sharpness and just as it was in the Carling Cup at Newcastle it should be between Vela and JET to play on the left.
Nasri may be given a rest tonight too with Rosicky itching to be involved and lets not forget that a certain Jack Wilshere has had a nice rest and will be looking forward to getting back on the pitch.

Gonnefish's line-up

Fabianski

Sagna - Koscielny - Squillaci (c) - Clichy


Eastmond


Wilshere - Diaby


Walcott - Vela

Bendtner




Score Shaktar Donetsk 0 - 2 Arsenal

Shakhtar will not be a push over tonight,  They will be a much tougher team tonight, that being said I still don't feel they'll be a match for our side even with the injection of reserves and youth.

Lets hope that Partizan can nick a point so we can relax for the next two group games especially as we travel to Aston Villa and then Man U directly after each one.

Till next time,
Goonerfish.

Jack gets reward & change to the formation?

Afternoon Gooners,

Now, we all know that Arsene Wenger's policy at our club has been to invest in youth to buy loyalty in the hope that as the players stick together, play together and grow together they can develop relationships with each other on the pitch that cannot be replicated or found by the £30 million players that rivals are bringing in. The long term goal is to have a sustained period of absolute dominance in the game like that of Man U when the premier league was launched.

Wenger has gifted players like Denilson, Diaby, Djourou, Vela, Walcott, Fabregas, Song, Clichy, Fabianski etc massive contracts for players of their age at the time, he even did it in his early Arsenal career with Anelka (although he moved on to 'greener' pastures). A lot of criticism comes with these deals especially for the likes of Denilson and Diaby who in some fans eyes aren't near the quality needed to wear the arsenal shirt but this has been and I can only guess, always will be Wenger's method.

The latest player to get a massive new deal is our local lad Jack Wilshere. If reports are to be believed then Wilshere is now taking home £50k a week, which for a 18 year old is beyond mental but the difference with Jack is that he loves the club, he describes it as 'his' club and I reckon - if agents didn't exist - he's among the rest of us fans who would play for nothing. Jack was obviously really pleased with the deal saying:

 "Arsenal Football Club has been like a second home for me and my family since I was nine years old. To be offered a new contract means everything to me.

"At this point in my career, when I'm only 18 years old and still learning so much about the game and myself, this is the perfect club, the perfect team-mates, the perfect fans, the perfect backroom staff and most importantly, the perfect manager to help continue that."

He also talked about improving himself:

"I've got a long way to go before I can become the player I dream of becoming and I'm sure I'll keep making the odd mistake, but it is a massive help for me having a special manager like Arsène Wenger and so many quality team-mates and the unbelievable Arsenal fans around me. I believe there is a lot more to come from me."

For those who follow him on twitter (@jack_wilshere), reading his tweets yesterday made you feel great that he's our player and you could really tell he was genuinely excited to have committed. Even Cesc came out on twitter to congratulate him, I know it was only his duty as captain but twitter makes it feel more personal and it was great to read. Hopefully we will see Fabregas and Wilshere lifting trophies together for years to come at Arsenal.

Well done Jack!

Changing the subject a tad, I've been watching games since the Chelsea game and I can't help but wonder, has Wenger changed his formation again? Last season we saw a back four, a DM, two CM and an attacking triangle, this season we seem to be setting out in a sort of 4-2-3-1 formation, using two DMs. This theory was emphasised on Saturday against West Ham when like everyone else I was surprised to Song and Denilson in the starting line-up, especially at home and even more especially against a team sat on the bottom of the table. It would also explain why Song as been more attacking this year already claiming a couple of goals. It would seem that we are playing two DMs and they are taking it in turns to hang back while the other one attacks, What do you think Gooners? Have we changed our system, but more importantly, is it a good thing?

In more negative news, Sczcesny has reportedly been stalling on a new deal. His current deal expires at the end of the season so he is free to talk to other clubs in January, can someone please give this kid the phone number for Alex Hleb,  Mathieu Flamini or any of the many other players that have left thinking that they are too good for Arsenal only to realise they were good BECAUSE they played for Arsenal. It is nice that this sort of diva behaviour is not too common at our club and hopefully these stories are all bull being spread by agents but the best way for Sczcesney to put a stop to any fan's backlash before it starts to sign a deal and commit to fighting for a place at the greatest club in the world.

On that note, I'll leave you to the rest of your Tuesday,
Until next time,
Goonerfish.

It's never over till the blond Song sings. Hammers thoughts.

Phew!!

Our boys don't half make things difficult.

Robert Green is awful for 36 games a year but seems to have absolute stormers against us and he continued this trend yesterday keeping us out with a string of top saves.

Despite having the likes of Fabregas, Nasri, Arshavin, Chamakh, Walcott and Bendnter all having chances it was Alex Song that stepped up to save the day yesterday, throwing his bleach blond noggin onto a gorgeous Gael Clichy cross with just two minutes left on the clock to put Arsenal 1 - 0 up. At first I had a mixture of relief and disappointment, as Arsenal fans we are far too used to dominating games and then not getting what we deserved out of them and for 88 minutes it seemed that horrible 'should of been' feeling was going to haunt me over the weekend yet again. But as that final whistle went and the three points were confirmed I realised that the fact we are used to losing these games means that today we proved again that we have grown as a team and are finally learning from lessons that are being taught to us. Maybe, just maybe we have turned a corner.

I won't go through the game minute by minute as you will find hundreds of news reports or blogs that will do that however I'll point out some key points we can take from the result. The old saying goes, and I'm sure it will be repeated over and over again, "this is a game that last year, Arsenal would have dropped points" and to a point, those people are right. In games against teams that fought as bravely as the Hammers did yesterday Arsenal very rarely picked up all three points, it's a horrible truth but a truth all the same.
Yesterdays three points could show that we can now win those games that last year we fell just short and with those extra points gained we can possibly see a real title challenge.

Another point that may get overlooked is that yesterday marked our third successive clean sheet. Real credit for a clean sheet must go to the goalkeeper and two centre backs so the fact that we have had different trios in each of those three games is even more impressive. Not bad for a team who are missing their best centre back and apparently don't have a goalkeeper good enough for premier league football.

As we come into November, which is traditionally not a very good month for us, we can look forward to a month of fixtures that are all games that we should win but at the same time not be overly surprised if we drop points. We travel to Wolves, Everton and Villa while we welcome Newcastle and the Spuds for a good old fashioned Emirates spanking. These are five games we could pick up a maximum 15 points from, especially if everyone stays fit and we don't have to worry about the Champions league qualification, however, 11 points from those games - dropping points to Everton and Villa wouldn't be surprising, realistically we should be looking to take maximum points from every game until at least December 13th when we go to Old Trafford, Chelsea and Man Utd will not drop too many points over the season and we cannot afford to drop needless points against teams like those named above.

Anyway, back to yesterday, three point is three points and I don't care how we got them. It's time to keep enjoying that winning feeling and look forward to officially qualifying for the knockout stage in the champions
league on Wednesday against Shakhtar.

Till next time Gooners,
Goonerfish.

West Ham Preview: More of the same please

Afternoon Gooners,

Arsenal are a team who feed on confidence and on the back of comfortable away wins against Man City and Newcastle within the last week, confidence should be the one thing we're not short of.

We bring our confidence back home this weekend and invite the troubled West Ham to join it. The Hammers are sitting on the bottom of the table and have only won one game in the league this year (quite humorously against Spurs) and considering our recent form I'm pretty sure they will not be looking forward to the trip.

Fabianski will return in goal and Koscielny should have done enough to regain his place in the centre of defense alongside Squillaci. Gibbs is out injured so Wenger's mini dilemma of who should be our regular left back can take a back foot with Clichy keeping his spot.

Alex Song recently came out explaining his ridiculous hair style, giving the credit to his girlfriend who told him there were too many players with dreadlocks and he should try something different, personally I think that's a cover a story and the truth is Wenger grabbed him by his legs and shoved his head down a recently bleached toilet and threatened to keep it there until he agreed to stop his pointless forward runs, Alex refused to agree and Wenger gave in to his losing battle once the hair turned white. Whatever really happened may actually be a good thing as his pointless forward runs are starting to produce an end product and against teams like West Ham he'll have the opportunity to continue adding to his goal and assist tallies.

Fabregas has built up game time over the last week and should now be ready to pull all our strings again and work his magic from the midfield, the question is who will be the third member of our midfield? Nasri has been outstanding recently and fully deserves a place in the team but with Walcott back, will it be a straight battle for the attacking spot or will Wenger move Nasri back into the centre of the park? I hope Nasri ends up playing next to Fabregas because that combo makes me stupidly excited.

Bendtner has come back in great form but I feel it's still to early in his return for him to start today so Chamakh should keep his place and Arshavin should return.

Goonerfish's lineup:

Fabianski


Sagna - Kocsielny - Squillaci - Clichy


Song


Fabregas (c) - Nasri


Walcott - Arshavin

Chamakh




Score Arsenal 4 - 0 West Ham

Today should be a comfortable game for a team over flowing with confidence, as long as that confidence doesn't turn into complacency but I think our players will have learnt that lesson from the West Brom game.
I fancy Walcott and Fabregas to get on the score sheet again today in a game should again give us all that feel good factor for the weekend.

Till next time,
Goonerfish.

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Drooling as options start to outnumber injuries

Evening Gooners,

I still can't get over how much I've enjoyed the past week and the good news just keeps coming in. Arsene Wenger has announced that both Robin Van Persie and Aaron Ramsey should be back in training by the end of next week. He has however stressed that Ramsey is still much further away from a first team return, he said:

"Van Persie and Ramsey are very close to coming back to full training now,"

"They should be back in the group at the end of next week. Of course we should not set the same [recovery] time to Ramsey as Van Persie.

"Aaron will need a longer period to be completely match-fit. But Van Persie is not far away now."

I still can't believe how big and strong our squad is going to be once all these players return. Lets not forget we still have Vermealen watching from the sidelines too. Van Persie has always been one of my favourite players in an Arsenal shirt and I still maintain my view that if he had a full season without injury he would be proven as one of the best strikers in the world. You only have to look at his contribution to the team when he is involved, we went through a spell of about 6 weeks last season where Van Persie either created or scored every goal Arsenal scored. Chamakh has offered a huge amount to our team but I still cannot wait to see a fully fit dutch master filling out number 10 shirt again.

Ramsey is an entirely different case. Last season was supposed to be his introduction to the Premiership, playing in the Carling Cup and possibly a few sub appearances and if he really impressed a start or two in the league but this quickly turned into a season that our young Welsh wizard started to build a real reputation in the footballing world as not only a player with potential but a player that already could hold his own in a very competitive league and do it with grace, power and skill. I am really excited about Ramsey's career, especially when you imagine him playing alongside Wilshere in years to come
*drool, drool, drool - wipe mouth clean*

On the negative side of the injury world Kieran Gibbs will again miss "a few weeks" with a knee injury. It seems to be a strain rather than anything more serious so hopefully he should be fit again for the Carling Cup quarter final at the beginning of December.

Competition for places is really strong in our squad at the moment and I can't remember a time in recent history where our squad was so strong. The only players that Wenger doesn't have to think about putting on the team sheet when we have a fit squad are TV5 and Cesc, every other position has quality options and that can only lead on to good things.

I can't wait for the West Ham game to see some of these options take the field to destroy the Hammers but I'll cover that in the preview tomorrow.

Till then Gooners I'll leave you all drooling over the thought of a fully fit Van Persie returning to destroy the Spuds in a couple of weeks time.

Goonerfish.

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Bring on the Toon: Newcastle preview

Another day, another cup.

Tonight's game has come a little early fro my liking. I'm still bathing in the great feeling from Sunday's victory at Eastlands. Hey ho suppose we all need to move on at some point.

Arsene takes our boys up north tonight for the Carling Cup clash with Newcastle. The Toon Army beat of Chelsea in the last round and it wasn't exactly a particularly weak Chelsea either so this should not be considered an easy game.

As you read around the news stories and blogs you can tell that Arsene is taking the Carling Cup a touch more seriously this year but it won't stop youngsters being involved. The fact is the gap between our youngsters and first team is shrinking all the time the players that were the young ones are now reserves or even better, considered regulars in the first team squad.

The third goalkeeper of the season should make his debut tonight. Szczesny has been banging on the door for a while (a little too publicly for my liking, but that's a different story) and has had a lot of hype built around him, tonight will be his first chance to live up to that hype and prove he's good enough to fight for our number 1 shirt.

As for the rest of the team, we'll see a few players coming back from injury looking to regain fitness and a few players who are on the fringe of the first team looking to stake their claim for a regular spot in the starting XI.

One of the biggest questions is who will take on the 'Fabregas' role. Fab and Nasri should be enjoying a rest tonight with at least one of them on the bench, hopefully not needed. Wilshere will be serving the second of his three game ban so I think Rosicky will be given the chance to play in what seems to be everyone's favourite position. Denilson should continue in midfield and fully expect Lansbury to get the chance to carry on where he left off against Spurs.

Walcott and Bendtner should both get starts on their bid to get match fit and it'll be a battle between Vela and JET to get that final spot and considering Wenger lustful comments about JET he may well grab that spot or on the other hand it may be Wenger making him feel good in preparation for telling him he's not starting. Koscielny should also return from injury tonight

Goonerfish's Line-up

Szczesny


Eboue - Koscielny - Djourou - Gibbs


Denilson


Rosciky (c) - Lansbury


Walcott - Vela

Bendnter




Score: Newcastle 1  - 4 Arsenal

I know I said this game won't be easy but I am going on the assumption that Newcastle will rest a few of their stars such as Carroll and Nolan as they did against Chelsea and our team contains enough players fighting for a place in the starting line up to really give it their all.

This may only be the Carling Cup but we need to keep up our winning momentum and lets be honest, is there a gooner in the world who wouldn't want us to win this competition?

Till next time,
Goonerfish.

Liverpool to Manchester: Lessons learnt.

Three points, three goals and a fantastic feeling for finally coming out of a weekend beating another top team.

Sunday afternoon almost felt like a make or break game for many fans, had we suffered a defeat after Man U and Chelsea both winning we would have really found ourselves on the back foot for the rest of the season and with the dreaded Christmas period coming up we cannot afford to have to enter a long run of games playing catch up - not because we don't have the quality to get through them but because we would not of had the confidence or 'winner' experience to see those games through.

As soon as Man City went a man down we had to leave Manchester with all three points and our boys did not disappoint. We showed against Liverpool on the opening day of the season that we could struggle to play against 10 men, we didn't spread the play, make Liverpool work hard enough or follow any rules that apply to playing with an extra man. At City we did everything right, they could not cope with our attacking play, we moved the ball over the entire width of the pitch and the boys in blue struggled to keep up with us.

So, what have we learned between Anfield and Sunday?

We have learnt that in Fabianski we have a good keeper who can make those important saves to earn us points. We have learnt that we have two players for every slot of the back four and any one of them can put in a performance. We've learnt that we have a more mature midfield with players showing more defensive awareness and ability, in particular Diaby. We have also learnt that our future is still very bright with the likes Jack Wilshere showing the footballing world just how much of a phenomenon he is going to be.  We have learnt that we have a attacking force within our squad that would make most clubs jealous, the likes of Walcott, Nasri, Chamakh, Arshavin, Rosicky, Bendtner, Vela and lets not forget a certain Mr Van Persie give us plenty of options and all of them are quality options. Can you name another team in the Premier League with options like that? What about in Europe? We have learnt that Arshavin is lazy..... oh hold on, we knew that already but we have, thanks to Wenger pointing it out, learnt that despite his apparent laziness he has a massive contribution to our teams goals. 

Arsene Wenger has also taught us ( a lesson that I hope continues on Wednesday) that he is taking the Carling cup a little more seriously by playing reserves rather than the youth team.

We have learnt that our injury curse is not going anywhere but in all seriousness, did anyone expect it to?

Samir Nasri has taught us that out number 8 shirt has found yet another superb occupant, he showed in pre-season that he had improved as a player and has done nothing to suggest he won't continue to improve.

We have unfortunately learnt that we still fall short against Chelsea but I for one am looking forward to the return leg of that game after Christmas. We outplayed them but failed to finish our chances. We have also learnt thanks to West Brom, we cannot underestimate anyone.

Lessons will continue to be learnt as the season progresses but from what we have seen so far we can be optimistic. The Man City game is not a reason to get over excited or complacent but the difference between that game and the game at Liverpool in performance, attitude and of course result has to be a positive note and a great feeling for everyone involved with Arsenal FC.

Till next time Gooners,
Goonerfish.

Welcome home Eduardo - Shakhtar Preview.

OK Gooners, lets be honest, the only player that can dominate almost any preview for this game is Arsenal's ultimate 'what if' number 9, Eduardo.

As soon as Eduardo said his goodbyes to the Emirates in the summer we all knew that Shakhtar would join us in whatever group we ended up in for the Champions league. I am actually glad Eduardo gets a return, I'm also glad it is in the first half of fixtures where the environment will be a little more friendly. I wouldn't even mind if he scored, as long as we score three goals first. If he does score, he has said he won't celebrate because he respects the club. We love you too Edu.

On to the players that still play for us. Fabregas has been declared fit but Wenger has already said he may not start. I think Wilshere's red card at the weekend would of made up Wenger's mind for him, wilshere will not be available after tonight's game so will probably get a full 90 minutes before his three match rest.
Our defense still picks itself at the moment apart from left back. Due to injuries we should see our 2nd choice right back, our third and forth choice centre backs and to give him game time we should see our 2nd choice left back too.

Song is oddly probably the first name on the team sheet at the moment purely because he's the only player we have that can play in his position (no, I haven't forgotten Denilson, but he's too attacking). I don't see many other changes either except maybe Rosicky and Walcott being given starts unless Arsene Wenger is still playing safe with Theo in which case we'll probably see him introduces later on.
The big thing on Wenger's mind will be Man City at the weekend so for tonight expect a mix of making sure players are either ready or rested for our trip north.

Goonerfish's line-up

Fabianski

Eboue - Squillaci - Djourou - Gibbs


Song


Wilshere - Diaby


Walcott - Rosicky

Chamakh




Score Arsenal 4 - 1 Shakhtar Donetsk

Three point and we're as good as through and this should be an easy win for us as has become the norm for
home group games in the champions league but the next two games are far more important so expect to see
I'll finish today with a simple welcome home to Eduardo, lets join together and give him a massive welcome as we were unable to give him the farewell he deserved.

Goonerfish

Fair press? Brum thoughts.

Evening Gooners,

Job done. I won't go through the game minute by minute because in all honesty it wasn't great. Basically, we kept the ball, missed some chances, Birmingham scored, Chamakh dives, Nasri scores penalty. Half time. Chamakh scores, Wilshere gets sent off, full time.

The result will not matter at all to the press today, as soon as the final whistle went you could almost hear journalists sharpening their swords to point at Arsenal and start swinging. I am not going to launch an attack at the double standards of the press or raise the fact that Arsenal seem to be harshly criticised for offences that are played down, put down to bad luck or just simply ignored when committed by players from other teams. I will not mention the contrast of the reaction to Eduardo's dive in our champions league qualifier and Ashley Young's double dive the very next night. I will not mention Drogba, Gerrard, Rooney or Ronaldo because they have never exaggerated a challenge let alone performed a full blown dive. I won't mention Shawcross or any Bolton player because they are not "that sort of player"
The truth is Arsenal are just dirty, violent, thuggish cheats and thank God it has finally been brought to the public eye.

*Stop, count to ten and breath*

OK back to the game, we were not at our best at all, but we did what we needed to, we battled the opposition and dug out a decent result. Wenger went for a bit more cover for his defense allowing Diaby to keep his spot in the midfield with Nasri positioning himself in a more attacking role on the right.

Arshavin seemed miles away yesterday, he failed to really get involved in the game at all. Wenger put it down to playing two internationals in the break but we all know far too well Arshavin has too many games on the edge of the action, there has to be a point where Arsene Wenger decides he has to go for a player more reliable in the big games which could see Rosicky finally take his place as a regular starter.

I thought Squillaci and Djourou played OK together but am still very much hoping that Vermealen hurries up and gets fit, we have missed him desperately.

Chamakh had a great game, yes he dived for the penalty, but he put in a solid performance, he linked up well, held the ball up, caused the defence all sorts of issues and continued proving that he is going to be an absolute class act in an Arsenal shirt. Jack Wilshere will be slammed for his challenge, he was, late and high and it was reckless. before the red card he was the most influential player on the pitch, in all honesty, the three match suspension will actually do Jack some good, as long as Cesc is fit again Jack can now enjoy a well earned break.

The biggest thing to come out of the red card is that both Jack Wilshere and Arsene Wenger have both said that it was deserved, Not like some managers who come out and say "he's not a dirty player", "the red card was harsh" or "some players just don't like to be tackled" Our little kid did what grown men couldn't and said yep, it was stupid and high, I deserved to go. Fair play to you Jack and just to continue with my theme of not mentioning press biased, I won't mention how the MOTD team would have chuckled and said, "he never could tackle" if it was Paul Scholes.

Anywho, as long as we ignore the rest of the press we can enjoy the feeling that only a victory can bring whilst we watch Man Utd and Chelsea fans sulk.

Till next time,
Goonerfish

Bring on the Brum: Birmingam preview

Hurrah, real football is back.

Injury news seemed really positive a few days ago, but as we wake up to match day it seems we've got two in and two out.

Theo Walcott and Nic Bendtner both return to the squad but Sagna and Koscielny both miss out thanks to a thigh and back injury respectively. The scenario is far from ideal, gaining two attackers is great but in losing two defenders, the negative outweighs the positive, we have plenty of attackers available so we were not particularly short there however decent defenders are very hard to come by at Arsenal.

With Vermaelen still ten days away according to Wenger, it's going to be a big day for Johan Djourou who you have to assume will start next to Squillaci in the centre of defence. I like Djourou and think he could become a fantastic defender given a run of games and some confidence but that being said, I'm glad we're playing a team like Birmingham and not a Manchester club or Chelsea. I have a feeling he'll put in a good performance today.

Eboue is the other player to benefit from injuries. He will surely replace Sagna at right back, unless Wenger is having a look at some of our younger players ready for the Carling Cup game at Newcastle, then we may see a lesser known starter such as Eastmond or Nortveit, my money is on Eboue though.
Cesc is still short for a return so Nasri or Wilshere should take up his role joing Song in midfield. Nasri is a hard choice for Wenger when Fabregas is not in the team, not for selection because he's pure quality, but where to play him. With Fabregas in the team recently Nasri has been played on the right of an attacking three but when Cesc is not playing super Sam has proved his worth in that central position. It all depends on how Wenger shapes the rest of the side.

Although Bendtner and Walcott are back in the squad, I don't think we'll see either of them start the game. Walcott is more fragile than your Gran's finest china so Wenger will want to bring him on when the oposition are more tired and less likely to catch him and cause him as much of a physical challenge. Bendnter on the other hand will effectively be playing his pre-season over the next few games so I expect him to see no more than 25 minutes, probably replacing Chamakh who will probably be grateful for the break.

Goonerfish's line-up:

Fabianski


Eboue - Squillaci - Djourou - Clichy


Song


Wilshere - Nasri


Rosciky (c) - Arshavin


Chamakh



Score Arsenal 3 - 1 Birmingham

Birmingham will offer a physical game today as most lower clubs now seem to be doing when they come to the Emirates but they are not as strong as Bolton or Blackburn so I don't see them being able topush us about too much.

Today marks Arsene Wenger's 800th game in charge of Arsenal, I wrote my Ode to Arsene yesterday so won't go over just how much I love the man again but lets all hope that our boys can celebrate the event by sending the boys in blue back to Brum hurting from their beating.

Till next time,
Goonerfish.