Arsenal [Archive] - Page 36 - PESGaming Forums

Dr. Bob Kelso

11-03-2007, 19:25

Good article but totally overlooks the fact that while you are "securing the future" United's squad looks shite but still won the prem(all but), Chelski have the power to go out and buy the Prem still and Arsenal were yet again found in Europe for NOT playing defensively enough. Liverpool are steadily improving under Rafa and with the investment could be about to take the next major step.

Does anyone here think it is a coincidence that you got to the final with a more defensive line up than you are used to and you didn't concede until you got there practically ?

Yes Arsenal have humbled Liverpool at your gaff and in the FA Cup, the other "trophy" if indeed it can be called that is one that you should only care about if it is a last resort for your season and some kind of way into Europe, for Arsenal this is not the case.

Yes you humbled United home and away and should feel rightly proud but you still struggle with the sides you always have under Wenger Bolton and Boro and the like.

I think it tells a story that when you were at your best you still struggled with these sides but found a way to win, when you start doing so again then I will feel you have turned the corner.

I look at Arsenal very much like Barca in that you are a plan a side and if plan a does not work then you revert to plan a. Don't get me wrong when plan a does work it is pretty unstoppable and this is the only way you have ever gone about things under Wenger.

So is the future bright ? No one knows but I wouldn't say it is as rosey as the writer of the article writes but it isn't as bad as this season either in my opinion.

vanNistelrooy

11-03-2007, 19:30

United's squad looks shite but still won the prem(all but)
In the same way Liverpool's looks good but is infact utter shite?

Dr. Bob Kelso

11-03-2007, 19:32

In the same way Liverpool's looks good but is infact utter shite?

Typical fuckin Manc. Can't see that I am actually paying your Manager a massive compliment and would rather fuckin moan about something that had very little to do with the point in question.

Oh and for such a shite squad your own manager was embarrased to taken any credit for the 3 points at Anfield. Funny eh.

vanNistelrooy

11-03-2007, 19:39

Typical fuckin Manc. Can't see that I am actually paying your Manager a massive compliment and would rather fuckin moan about something that had very little to do with the point in question.

Oh and for such a shite squad your own manager was embarrased to taken any credit for the 3 points at Anfield. Funny eh.
Sorry but I took offence to that as I don't believe our squad looks shite, not even close. The only negative thing is the depth in numbers, not quality.

You outplayed us at Analfield, I have no problem with that, especially as your players weren't good enough to take their chances.

Dr. Bob Kelso

11-03-2007, 19:54

Sorry but I took offence to that as I don't believe our squad looks shite, not even close. The only negative thing is the depth in numbers, not quality.

You outplayed us at Analfield, I have no problem with that, especially as your players weren't good enough to take their chances.

Again comparing your squad to past years it is shite. As most experts rightly assumed you were going to finish 2nd at best more likely 3rd or 4th but as usual they forgot one thing. FERGUSON.

If you wish to continue this then feel free to start the topic on the United board as I don't want to take up to much of the Arsenal thread with our own petty bullshit.

vanNistelrooy

11-03-2007, 20:04

Fair enough, but more than anything Chelski have been nowhere near as good as in the last two seasons. If they had been we'd most likely be finishing second again.

Viperized

11-03-2007, 20:08

The reason we struggled to beat the poorer sides of the league is down to completely shit finishing.

In fact, if we were clinical against PSV and Blackburn, we would've still had a chance of winning either the CL or F.A. Cup. We could've won pretty much all our Premiership home games too, but poor finishing has cost us, from day one.

I really think Arsenal need a clinical striker and a proper winger to challenge for the title next season. Without those two, seems unlikely, unless both Van Persie and Henry can stay fit all season.

We haven't fielded our strongest eleven more than two games in a row. That says it all. We are constantly changing our team for almost every game due to injuries. This summer will be crucial for Arsenal. Why? Whether Wenger makes the signings to fix the team or not will have an affect on our next season.

Joel

11-03-2007, 20:34

Fair enough, but more than anything Chelski have been nowhere near as good as in the last two seasons. If they had been we'd most likely be finishing second again.

Don't take any credit away from your team man. You've stepped up big time.

This summer will be crucial for Arsenal. Why? Whether Wenger makes the signings to fix the team or not will have an affect on our next season.

Do you think he will spend though? I can see him buying one player, but not sure if he would buy anymore.

Dr. Bob Kelso

11-03-2007, 20:37

Fair enough, but more than anything Chelski have been nowhere near as good as in the last two seasons. If they had been we'd most likely be finishing second again.

Yeah and I would dare say that has something to do with losing their captain and best CB and their goalie when they are a defensive side.

vanNistelrooy

11-03-2007, 20:39

Yeah and I would dare say that has something to do with losing their captain and best CB and their goalie when they are a defensive side.
Should have bought better backup than Boulahrouz and Hilario then, rather than pissing all their money away on Ballack and Shevchenko. Serves them right.

Joel

11-03-2007, 20:49

Should have bought better backup than Boulahrouz and Hilario then, rather than pissing all their money away on Ballack and Shevchenko. Serves them right.

We didn't expect Cudicini to get crocked at the same time as Cech.

Boulahrouz? He had shakey games, but we won when he played. But he got injured the same time as John Terry also.

Sorry for going off-topic.

Dr. Bob Kelso

11-03-2007, 21:19

Should have bought better backup than Boulahrouz and Hilario then, rather than pissing all their money away on Ballack and Shevchenko. Serves them right.

Easy to say but I don't think Kusczac or say Brown would have had you were you are now, do you ?

vanNistelrooy

11-03-2007, 21:26

Kusczac's shot stopping would, but definately not his decision making.

Brown? Class defender!

Anyways, back to Arsenal. So, without Henry do you think you'll get 3rd place? Do you think you'll beat Chelski at The Emirates?

Viperized

11-03-2007, 22:10

Van Persie should be back by then, so it could be possible. We drew at the Bridge without Henry, Rosicky, Gallas and Toure, so a win could still be possible.

calculus

11-03-2007, 23:40

Brilliant that should cover the wages of one world class player.

:laugh:

Arsenal season has been ok...could of been better but I expect our home record to improve next season and also for players like Henry and RvP to come back fresh!

Good football is good...but next season we hope to translate that into success!

Jonny2J

12-03-2007, 11:11

I saw this and thought of you guys.

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/5940/200502shirty01vdddfsfor3.jpg

calculus

12-03-2007, 11:21

I saw this and thought of you guys.

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/5940/200502shirty01vdddfsfor3.jpg

I guess you might of 'loved it' that we beat them!? :rolleyes:

Nturtle

12-03-2007, 13:38

I don't know about you guys, but I would like to see AW bring in a naturally left-sided player as back up for Rosicky

A fair point! Don't hold your breath though...we might get Reyes back if Baptista doesn't stay!!!! HA!:unsure:

calculus

12-03-2007, 14:44

A fair point! Don't hold your breath though...we might get Reyes back if Baptista doesn't stay!!!! HA!:unsure:

That would be a nightmare!

Dundon's

13-03-2007, 06:26

I saw this and thought of you guys.

http://img135.imageshack.us/img135/5940/200502shirty01vdddfsfor3.jpg

Correct and don't anyone ever forget that. :angry:

The great thing about football is there's always next year.;)

Jonny2J

13-03-2007, 08:11

Correct and don't anyone ever forget that. :angry:

The great thing about football is there's always next year.;)Thought it would perhaps make use for someone's avatar one day as there's never a cat in hells chance of that happening for us. *sighs*

Rossy Boy

13-03-2007, 22:53

Arsenal striker Thierry Henry will be out for five months with groin and stomach injuries but has pledged to remain at the club for the rest of his career. (The Sun)

Arsenal want to sign Julio Baptista, who is on loan from Real Madrid, in a permanent £8m deal this summer. (Daily Mirror)

Rosicky, Hoyte and Flamini all return for Villa Park trip

JoeyM

13-03-2007, 23:31

I'm one of the Beast's biggest advocates, but 8m is a bit steep, but then again hopefully we'll be able to offset it by flogging off Reyes to whoever wants him.

Viperized

14-03-2007, 13:45

http://www.arsenal.com/article.asp?thisNav=News&article=454155&lid=NewsHeadline&Title=Wenger+targets+%27super, +super+class%27+players+this+s ummer

Wenger wants to buy one or two players of 'super quality'.

Possible targets? I think:
Van Der Vaart
Ribery
Akinfeev

Scarface

14-03-2007, 19:55

Ribery and Akinfeev would be excellent additions to the squad, but I can recall Arsene Wenger saying pretty much the same thing at the start of the summer transfer window in 2005, and all we ended up with was Alexander Hleb, with both Vieira and Edu departing, so i'm not going to get too excited just yet, but fingers crossed.

Yossi

14-03-2007, 21:05

From a neutral perspective, the positions Arsenal need to fill are:

Centre back with height. Toure is decent enough but size is one thing he lacks, and I don't think Senderos nor Djourou are good enough to play at the top level or even close to it to be fair. Metzelder is available on a free in the summer and Real Madrid are sniffing around him, but if Wenger put in a good enough offer he'd probably join.

Winger. Rosicky and Hleb are not natural wingers, obviously, Ljungberg is past his best and Walcott is too young and not really a winger. As mentioned in this thread previously, Ribery is a great shout and £15m or so could get him.

Striker with size, strength, goalscoring ability and who can head the ball. Baptista is a great player and could be that man but he hasn't settled and I have my doubts as to whether he ever will. The rest of the striker only have one- at most- of those attributes between them- Henry has goalscoring ability, Adebayor has size, and Walcott and van Persie have none of them. The best man for this job would be Dean Ashton, who I reckon will definitely a top player, and isn't far off one now. He'd probably cost around £8m if West Ham go down and £12m if they go up- but that's well worth it in my eyes.

northlondon

14-03-2007, 21:11

WOW what a screamer from diaby!!!

\lol

Zoolander

14-03-2007, 21:56

Do you think Arsenal missed out on not signing Berbatov?

Jonny2J

14-03-2007, 22:01

Do you think Arsenal missed out on not signing Berbatov?Man Yoo did as they made inquiries about him but Spurs got there first.

Zoolander

14-03-2007, 22:06

I like his hold up play. I think Arsenal needed him more.

Rambo

14-03-2007, 23:32

I like his hold up play. I think Arsenal needed him more.

At the time Arsenal had, Henry, Baptista, Adebayor and RVP. We had Rooney, Saha, Smith and Solskjaer, so I think we needed him more.

Viperized

15-03-2007, 00:22

Viperized

15-03-2007, 00:24

Do you think Arsenal missed out on not signing Berbatov?
Berbatov wanted first team play.

Our first choice strikers are Henry and Van Persie. Don't think he'll be too happy spending his time on the bench.

martin_cranie

15-03-2007, 02:37

Berbatov wanted first team play.

Our first choice strikers are Henry and Van Persie. Don't think he'll be too happy spending his time on the bench.

He would be playing regularly for us now, considering both our injuries and his brilliant form. Of course in general terms you may be right, we might not be able to guarantee him a starting place, but there's no doubting that he would have been an excellent addition. The guy is simply outstanding.

With reference to O.J.'s post, I don't think we need to make any additions in central defence. Toure and Gallas are potentially the best partnership in the league, while Djourou and Senderos are both good players, capable of becoming world class players. We probably could use better cover for Clichy, as I'd prefer to see Gallas remain in the centre, but that's all we need in terms of defensive reinforcements, and even that idea is debatable. If Wenger actually bothered to train our defence better at set pieces, we'd be a lot tougher.

Dundon's

15-03-2007, 05:19

Something tells me that will all change before next season.

pistolpete

15-03-2007, 12:35

Theres been a few rumours of strikers coming in recently.

David Villa said he would consider a move to Arsenal but lots of teams would want him if he becomes available.

Same with Fernando Torres and Eto'o.

I read a while ago that Wenger was seeking special dispensation for a work permit for Carlos Vela - apparently there is some kind of window for special cases if a player is likely to make a considerable contribution they can speed up the work permit process.

Also i think Wenger said Bendtner will be at the club next season, Henry is already gearing up for it and after a proper rest and pre-season he will be like a new signing.

Got a feeling that Aliadiere will leave in the summer, he nearly joined Boro in January, and his missing decent chances when given oppertunities will put him further down our list of strikers, and at his age he needs to be playing regularly.

Im also coming round to the idea of Ribery joining if we can afford him, we need a bit of conviction from our creative players.

Dundon's

15-03-2007, 15:56

Ribery would be nice, we're kinda light on wide players in terms of getting injuries. Here's a question: Would he start the big games in front of Hleb?

nikos24

15-03-2007, 16:42

Ribery would be nice, we're kinda light on wide players in terms of getting injuries. Here's a question: Would he start the big games in front of Hleb?

I'm sure Wenger will start any Frenchman ahead of his 'foreign' players, plus that's Ribery, not a joke he's well talented. ;)

Viperized

15-03-2007, 16:49

Not really.

If that was truly the case, he would be starting Flamini in every match. :P

Ribery is a class act though. He is a better player than Hleb.

Dundon's

15-03-2007, 16:50

I dunno dude, I don't doubt the bloke is quality, he was one of the best players in the world cup and has proven he is a class act at the highest level, but Hleb fits into our style like a coil with his give and go ability.

Saying that I won't say no to getting in Ribery, he reminds me a lot like Robben.

Viperized

15-03-2007, 16:56

Ribery isn't a creative player, but neither was Overmars, who was awesome for us.

We have far too many creative players in the team. We need someone who will stretch defenders and make runs off the ball. We need someone like Ribery.

Quaresma is also another winger we could look at, but I really don't think he would be good in 442 because his work-rate is shocking, as we encourage our fullbacks to bomb forward. If we were to get Quaresma we would have to play 433, so Ribery is my ideal choice.

nikos24

15-03-2007, 17:00

Yeah, I personally think when Rib leaves Marseille I can see him going to Arsenal. I don't know if he will top Hleb in the pecking order, but I believe he can.

JoeyM

16-03-2007, 06:38

It's not really the fact that he's better than Hleb, which is debatable, it's more so that he offers something drastically different to both Hleb and Rosicky who imo are too similar to play together 100% of the time.

Dundon's

16-03-2007, 06:55

Aye, they're totally different players. Rosicky for me is the better all round player, a player that isn't afraid to shoot from out side the box. We all seen the difference he made in the Liverpool game and I'm sure that (like the whole fucking squad this year) if he wasn't injured for most of the season would of made a much bigger impact.

Ronaldo_is_fat

18-03-2007, 07:11

Quaresma is a poorsman C.Ronaldo and I would rather get Ribery as he has incredible workrate unlike Quaresma. Ribery will provide us the penetration and the width in midfield. We need more players that provide width as having the full backs pushing up is inadequte and is often dangerous as it creates more space for the opposing team. If we are successful in signing Ribery we'll definitely be a tough contender for the title next year.

I agree with Joel that it is debatable that Ribery is a better player than Hleb because they're both different players. Ribery is a RMF who has the potential to fill in Ljungberg's position and Hleb is more like an attacking midfield playing wide.

JoeyM

18-03-2007, 15:16

Arsenal and Chelsea - Your Stars Aren't Good Enough For Spurs

http://www.sportingo.com/football/arsenal-and-chelsea-your-stars-arent-good-enough-for-spurs!/1001,2735

Comedy gold.:D

Joel

18-03-2007, 15:27

Arsenal and Chelsea - Your Stars Aren't Good Enough For Spurs

http://www.sportingo.com/football/arsenal-and-chelsea-your-stars-arent-good-enough-for-spurs!/1001,2735

Comedy gold.:D

:laugh:

That has to be the funniest article I have ever read. Hilarious!

Dundon's

18-03-2007, 19:00

Yet another sickener for my blood.

Brilliant.

calculus

18-03-2007, 19:58

:crymore:

Scarface

18-03-2007, 20:53

Another poor performance, but we asked to lose by...

a) Fielding Gilberto Silva in central defence. How many mistakes does he have to make before Arsene Wenger realises he can't play there, for crying out loud!?

b) That horrible formation at the end, which seemed to be something like this:

Lehmann
Toure-Gilberto-Gallas-Hoyte
Ljungberg*-Denilson-Fabregas-Diaby-Hleb
Walcott

*seemed to have a free role, running around aimlessly, falling over the ball etc

Flamini out? Get this useless, whingeing, overpaid hasbeen out first.

That system isn't good enough to take points off West Ham, let alone play in difficult circumstances at Everton. We could have played for another 5 hours and come no closer to scoring.

Stella Artois

18-03-2007, 20:56

Show me another team that would win without its three main strikers and your moaning shall be vindicated.

calculus

18-03-2007, 20:58

Liverpool up next!

greenegg

18-03-2007, 20:58

Show me another team that would win without its three main strikers and your moaning shall be vindicated.

Plymouth Argyle :cool:

Stella Artois

18-03-2007, 21:00

Yes, if you were playing a team of spastics, you may indeed just sneak a win.

Scarface

18-03-2007, 21:05

Show me another team that would win without its three main strikers and your moaning shall be vindicated.

I'm complaining about the tactics, not about failing to pick up 3 points. It was always going to be difficult, but if you have 3 strikers out, make use of what you're left with - in this case, Aliadiere and Baptista. They may have been having poor games (they weren't the only ones), but at least they were having a few shots, and were two of our more likely goalscorers. What was Walcott ever going to do up there on his own? We went from a team with limited goalscoring power to no firepower whatsoever.

Anyone have any idea why Gilberto is starting ahead of Senderos? The Swiss isn't carrying an injury, is he?

Stella Artois

18-03-2007, 21:07

Probably because against anyone with the slightest bit of pace he struggles immensely.

I agree the tactics were poor, but its because we're suffering with the loss of key players. Its been a nightmare season.

calculus

18-03-2007, 21:08

I think he doesn't want to play Gilberto in Midfield at the moment and with Clichy out would prefer Toure at right back!

Viperized

18-03-2007, 21:20

Terrible decision to play Gilberto, who is an absolutely shocking defender, as we had Senderos available to play at CB. I would've assumed Wenger would've learned from earlier mistake of playing Gilberto as a CB against PSV and Villa, but no. Again, he had a terrible game in defence.

Wenger should not have taken off Baptista, Aliadiere and Rosicky. They are the only players in our team who could actually shoot towards a goal.

Hleb could not score if his life depended on it. He prefers to pass the ball.

Ljungberg's finishing has ran away from him last year. Fabregas hasn't even scored in the Premiership yet.

Dundon's

18-03-2007, 21:26

I just sick of missing every single chance and then getting hammered on the counter, saying that Everton were by far the better side, half time just came too quickly for us.

What did we make of Baptista's effort?

Would you like to keep him?

Viperized

18-03-2007, 21:26

Well Wenger is prepared to spend £13m on Baptista if you believe whats read in the papers. Based on his performances so far, not worth it. That money could be better spent elsewhere. Plus we will have Bendtner returning from loan next season, who surely can do no worse than Baptista!

I agree with Joel that it is debatable that Ribery is a better player than Hleb because they're both different players. Ribery is a RMF who has the potential to fill in Ljungberg's position and Hleb is more like an attacking midfield playing wide.
It doesn't matter what Hleb's 'natrual' position is. Ribery is still the better player than him. Ribery is more direct, more incisive, makes runs off the ball, is a better dribbler, is quicker, can take shots (!), can score.

Hleb is better in terms of vision and passing, but we already have too many ball passers, such as Fabregas and Rosicky, although Rosicky is more direct when he has the ball. Hleb needs to learn how to shoot. He has got in many good positions, but chooses to pass the ball instead.

As for Ljungberg, he is clearly past his best. He doesn't contribute much anymore other than falling down on the ground. He struggles to get past players anymore.

Ribery doesn't have the 'potential' to fill in 'Ljungberg's position'. He has the ability to make the right-wing his own.

Zoolander

18-03-2007, 21:47

Show me another team that would win without its three main strikers and your moaning shall be vindicated.

Inter Milan & Chelsea.

Dundon's

18-03-2007, 22:00

I can't imagine Chelsea winning a game without Frogba alone never mind Sheva as well sorry.

Zoolander

18-03-2007, 22:04

Stick Bridge up front & Lampard would get a deflected goal or penalty.

calculus

18-03-2007, 22:19

Stick Bridge up front & Lampard would get a deflected goal or penalty.

:laugh: Thats probably true and Inter Milan's 3 main strikers are Adriano, Ibrahimovic and Crespo...after that they have Cruz and Recoba not bad!

martin_cranie

18-03-2007, 23:45

Well Wenger is prepared to spend £13m on Baptista if you believe whats read in the papers. Based on his performances so far, not worth it. That money could be better spent elsewhere. Plus we will have Bendtner returning from loan next season, who surely can do no worse than Baptista!

It doesn't matter what Hleb's 'natrual' position is. Ribery is still the better player than him. Ribery is more direct, more incisive, makes runs off the ball, is a better dribbler, is quicker, can take shots (!), can score.

Hleb is better in terms of vision and passing, but we already have too many ball passers, such as Fabregas and Rosicky, although Rosicky is more direct when he has the ball. Hleb needs to learn how to shoot. He has got in many good positions, but chooses to pass the ball instead.

As for Ljungberg, he is clearly past his best. He doesn't contribute much anymore other than falling down on the ground. He struggles to get past players anymore.

Ribery doesn't have the 'potential' to fill in 'Ljungberg's position'. He has the ability to make the right-wing his own.

With reference to the bolded segment, I have to ask; have you ever seen Hleb play?

calculus

19-03-2007, 00:09

With reference to the bolded segment, I have to ask; have you ever seen Hleb play?

:laugh:

3 names...Bergkamp, Pires and Ljungberg(will the real Freddie please stand up!) Too many goals have gone missing from our team in the last 2 years and we need to get them back!

Viperized

19-03-2007, 00:14

With reference to the bolded segment, I have to ask; have you ever seen Hleb play?
Of course.

Hleb has better close-control, but when was the last time Hleb ran 30 metres with the ball to beat his marker? He has the ability, but he doesn't seem to do it.

cracky

19-03-2007, 00:19

One thing you can't say about Hleb is that he can't dribble. That's his main attribute, he beats people for fun; and he's quick.

martin_cranie

19-03-2007, 00:32

Hleb has better close-control, but when was the last time Hleb ran 30 metres with the ball to beat his marker? He has the ability, but he doesn't seem to do it.

Just because I haven't seen him do it much, if at all for Arsenal, doesn't make Ribery the better dribbler. Ribery has several strengths that Hleb does not, and vice versa, but there's no way in hell that Ribery is a better dribbler. I won't deny that Hleb needs to be more adventurous, but the guy could dribble his way through the Sunday night headline crowd at Glastonbury, he's that skilful.

I think you're putting too much emphasis on what Ribery can do for us. There's no denying that the guy can tear a full back to shreds, and provide some natural width, but he's hardly a goal machine. 3 goals in 20 league appearances this season, according to skysports.com. And as far as I'm aware, he's better suited on the left hand side, so his chances of replacing Hleb are small.

If we do get him, I imagine we'll opt for a 4-5-1 more often to include all our midfield talent. That's fine for Europe, I guess, but not great for the Premiership.

calculus

19-03-2007, 00:41

4-5-1 In other words drop Van Persie? :no:

martin_cranie

19-03-2007, 00:43

Who knows if it'll actually happen or not, but I wouldn't be hugely surprised.

Viperized

19-03-2007, 00:47

He has been injured for the most of this season, but he scored more goals in the previous season; 8 goals.

Rosicky and Hleb rarely make runs off the ball to get in space, which isn't surprisingly why they haven't scored many goals.

As Ribery can play on both wings we can easily rotate the midfield. Rosicky and Hleb both can get injuries here and there, and won't last 50-60 games in a season.

martin_cranie

19-03-2007, 00:59

He has been injured for the most of this season, but he scored more goals in the previous season; 8 goals.

Marseille have only played 29 games, so he's missed 9 games. Even 8 goals a season isn't that impressive. There's no denying that they'd come in handy, but we're hardly talking about a classic Pires contribution.

Of course he'll improve as he gets older, but I really don't like the idea of him being viewed as the answer to our problems, as I simply don't think he is. That said, I'm not against Wenger bringing him in, as I do believe we need better options in the wide areas.

nikos24

19-03-2007, 01:01

Pires, that guy was a legend. :no:

Top Gun

19-03-2007, 01:04

I think that Arsenal would do well if they had a sort of diamond formation in their midfield, this would work brilliantly when they have all of their players back as it could accomodate Van Persie, Henry and Adebayor aswell.

It would look like this,

----------Gilberto----------
---Fabregas---Hleb/Rosicky-
----------V.Persie----------
------Henry----Adebayor---

Gilberto can play the defensive midfield position naturally, Fabregas will be in the middle of the park where he is at his best, Rosicky/Hleb would be given the freedom to roam as they know that Gilberto will be covering. Van Persie will be just behind the strikers which is arguably his best position. The formation wouldn't be lacking width as Eboue and Clichy are great at getting forward and Henry always drifts out wide left.

JoeyM

19-03-2007, 01:09

Not a bad performance by any means, but we lacked any type of cutting edge. Thought the Mad One had a fine game and Gallas oozed class. Diaby was good in patches, Cesc played well also. Freddie was decent. Aliadiere was pretty much invisible and missed a sitter. Baptista was somewhere between shit and good. Had a shocking first 10 minutes but improved as the game went on. It's amazing how he can make some great flicks then fuck up a 10 yard pass. Kolo was fine down the right.

The fact that we had no strikers wasn't helped by the fact that our other attackers were nothing to shout about either. Rosicky was merely decent, and Freddie as I said was nothing special. When the strikers aren't playing well you need these players to step up, unfortunately they didn't.

And IMO Wenger's substitutions cost us a point. Until then we'd looked the most likely side to score, but once Theo and Denilson came on we basically lost all of our shape and ball retention, which invited pressure on ourselves. At least Liverpool drew.

Scarface

19-03-2007, 01:24

I really don't like the idea of him being viewed as the answer to our problems, as I simply don't think he is. That said, I'm not against Wenger bringing him in, as I do believe we need better options in the wide areas.

Agreed. I think his possible contribution to the Arsenal team is being over-estimated by a lot of Gooners.

I'm a fan of Ribery, and would be happy to see him sign, but there are more important areas of the team that need strengthening. It's a familar story of the team being too narrow, so Ribery could help stretch teams, but I can't imagine him chipping in with a great amount of goals, and would he even create as much as Hleb does for us? Hleb is frustrating in that he overplays in the area and fails to shoot enough from good positions but, overall, he's been one of our best performers this season, while Rosicky is fast becoming a star man, so he's hardly likely to be replaced.

I see more chance of Ribery joining Real Madrid and us signing Robinho, who is another player that, despite being very talented, isn't what we particularly need. Very skillful and would fit into the Arsenal style, but he'd more than likely be another one that overplays and fails to shoot when the target is in sight.

I know it's become fashionable to slate him, so don't expect many to share the same feeling, but i'd like us to move for Fernando Torres this summer. His likely valuation is a deterrent, but if we could use Reyes as bait, he'd become more affordable. He's one of the few forwards I believe can be a regular goalscoring striker (and potential 20+ goal a season man) while fitting into the Arsenal way of playing. Javier Saviola and Tuncay Sanli (slightly less so, as I doubt he'd score quite so regularly) would be the other two i'd be delighted with, that are currently on the market.

Viperized

19-03-2007, 01:30

Marseille have only played 29 games, so he's missed 9 games. Even 8 goals a season isn't that impressive. There's no denying that they'd come in handy, but we're hardly talking about a classic Pires contribution.

Of course he'll improve as he gets older, but I really don't like the idea of him being viewed as the answer to our problems, as I simply don't think he is. That said, I'm not against Wenger bringing him in, as I do believe we need better options in the wide areas.
Pires was hardly prolific before he came to Arsenal.

We will definitely need to sign a winger. Rosicky and Hleb on the wings isn't just enough.

Who else could you suggest? The only other player I could think of is Quaresma, but his work-rate is appalling would only work in a 433 formation.

Viperized

19-03-2007, 01:37

Agreed. I think his possible contribution to the Arsenal team is being over-estimated by a lot of Gooners.

I'm a fan of Ribery, and would be happy to see him sign, but there are more important areas of the team that need strengthening. It's a familar story of the team being too narrow, so Ribery could help stretch teams, but I can't imagine him chipping in with a great amount of goals, and would he even create as much as Hleb does for us? Hleb is frustrating in that he overplays in the area and fails to shoot enough from good positions but, overall, he's been one of our best performers this season, while Rosicky is fast becoming a star man, so he's hardly likely to be replaced.

I see more chance of Ribery joining Real Madrid and us signing Robinho, who is another player that, despite being very talented, isn't what we particularly need. Very skillful and would fit into the Arsenal style, but he'd more than likely be another one that overplays and fails to shoot when the target is in sight.

I know it's become fashionable to slate him, so don't expect many to share the same feeling, but i'd like us to move for Fernando Torres this summer. His likely valuation is a deterrent, but if we could use Reyes as bait, he'd become more affordable. He's one of the few forwards I believe can be a regular goalscoring striker (and potential 20+ goal a season man) while fitting into the Arsenal way of playing. Javier Saviola and Tuncay Sanli (slightly less so, as I doubt he'd score quite so regularly) would be the other two i'd be delighted with, that are currently on the market.
Torres would be too expensive, and I can't imagine Wenger spending that much money.

Top Gun

19-03-2007, 01:40

I don't really think that a striker is what you need, you already have Henry, Adebayor, Van Persie, Alliadiere, Baptista and Wallcott. All of those apart from Henry are still getting better and should be good enough for years to come.

JoeyM

19-03-2007, 01:43

Pires was hardly prolific before he came to Arsenal.

He scored 11 goals a season for 3 consecutive seasons at Metz, once he moved to Marseille he went through a bit of poor form and only scored 8 in two seasons. But the potential was always there.

Stats are according to FM 2007 btw.:cool:

And a new winger is a must IMO. Ribery would be nice, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Wenger go for another player like Pires. Someone who's clearly got talent, but for one reason or another is mispriced.

cracky

19-03-2007, 01:44

I don't really think that are wingers are that bad, Hleb's always impressed me when I've seen him play and Rosicky's a class act IMO.

I'd say we still could do with a striker ebcause Adebayor is never gonna be a WC striker in my eyes. RVP is a very good player but still I think if we offload adebayor and alidiere then we could do with another striker. I'd like to see Huntelaar, Torres or Villa. Maybe they'd be too expensive but I think they'd be worth it.

The only problem with this arsenal side tbh is inexperience. With players such as diaby (impressed me alot this season, esp. CC final), denilson, eboue, clichy, rvp, walcott etc.

JoeyM

19-03-2007, 01:48

Rosicky and Hleb are both quality, but both are attacking midfielders playing on the wing instead of actual wingers. Considering Freddie's decline we desperately need another alternative.

AgentZero

19-03-2007, 04:32

http://img92.imageshack.us/img92/4536/henryte4.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
what a champ!

Dundon's

19-03-2007, 04:34

For me Fred was all about speed and intensity and both are lacking from his game right now, this might also be due to the long lay off he had, we mustn't forget he missed most of the season too.

Ronaldo_is_fat

19-03-2007, 13:53

I do not understand why Wenger put so much faith on Ljungberg. I don't see the reason of him being injured is enough to justify his performance on the pitch as we had already gave him more than enough time to gain back his form. He loses out in every 50-50 balls and is not able to contribute anything from his workrate. He is currently not good enough for us and I doubt if he'll be good enough for the likes of Watford or West Ham.

wrigh2uk

19-03-2007, 18:27

Apprently skysports news are saying Walcott is out for the season now aswell...

Viperized

19-03-2007, 18:31

I think Arsenal should consider to recall Bendtner.

Almost all of our strikers are missing, except Aliadiere and Baptista.

pistolpete

19-03-2007, 23:17

not much goal threat in the team, seems that to score, the whole team has to be playing well, no chance of any individual brilliance.

I think Wenger should look at Quaresma, can play wings or upfront and is tricky enough to get chances in the box, also when he dribbles he has conviction - im a fan of Hleb but he doesnt look like doing anything once he has beaten his man.
Man Utd have Ronaldo who can produce something out of nothing, Chelsea have Robben, both players who can break with speed on the ball and dont often get caught cheaply as an attack starts, i think thats something we need.

AgentZero

19-03-2007, 23:19

i think Quaresma would be devastating in the epl...at sporting he was miles better than ronaldo

JoeyM

19-03-2007, 23:24

not much goal threat in the team, seems that to score, the whole team has to be playing well, no chance of any individual brilliance.

Yep I agree. atm we don't have anyone who can consistently produce moments of magic that win games. Rosicky and Hleb are as good as anyone on their day, but that's not often enough. Assuming Henry returns to his normal self next season we have a player that can win games on his own, but it can't hurt to have two.

Viperized

20-03-2007, 00:25

Rosicky is more likely to create that moment of magic though, as he has done so for us against Spurs, Liverpool and Manchester United.

Dundon's

20-03-2007, 00:29

Apprently skysports news are saying Walcott is out for the season now aswell...

To be honest I thought he was supposed to be out for the season even before the Everton game.

Yi-Long

20-03-2007, 00:29

Maybe Arsenal should consider getting Alves from Heerenveen. He's been very good this season (his first in Holland) and is a natural goal-scorer.

Danko Lazovic of Vitesse has also been tremendous this season, not just as a striker but also as a teamplayer.

Plus ofcourse AZ has Dembele and Koevermans. But I doubt AZ will allow them to go.

Arsenal could also try to go for Kenneth Perez, who is at Ajax, and one of the best players in holland, but he's on the bench regularly,so he's not very happy. But whenever he plays he's very very good, scores good goals. Only problem would be his age, which is over 30 I believe.

I really hope Arsenal will manage to fullfill their potential next season. they have so many young talented players, so I dont think Arsenal need to buy a lot of new ones. But I do hope they'll show what they're capable of next season, cause this season has been very disappointing.

BarnDoor

20-03-2007, 00:44

One problem - those cunts play in the Dutch league and are therefore, shit. If they came to the UK they'd show that. Don't think they have talent just because they play against shit teams every week. Again you make another shit point which no one cares about.

Shouldn't you be balls deep in a kid by now? They'd probably die of boredom with you talking about shit football points before you destroy their wombs. You are a fucking prick.

JoeyM

20-03-2007, 01:54

Rosicky is more likely to create that moment of magic though, as he has done so for us against Spurs, Liverpool and Manchester United.

But my point is he doesn't do it nearly enough or consistently, not on the left at least. Look at how many points Henry almost single handedly won us last season. We need someone like that.

Ronaldo_is_fat

20-03-2007, 13:54

We need a young Henry.

Yi-Long

20-03-2007, 13:57

One problem - those cunts play in the Dutch league and are therefore, shit. If they came to the UK they'd show that. Don't think they have talent just because they play against shit teams every week. Again you make another shit point which no one cares about.

Many of the biggest players get their start in the Dutch eredivisie, you cumbucket. Where-as pretty much ALL english players FAIL miserably when they go play overseas, Dutch players and players who have played in the Eredivisie usually adjust very easily and perform well.

Shouldn't you be balls deep in a kid by now? They'd probably die of boredom with you talking about shit football points before you destroy their wombs. You are a fucking prick.

We must share different hobbies, cumbucket. I guess your dog-daddy always mounted you after he got some head from your momma, so you must think it's normal?
How's your rabies, btw?

BarnDoor

20-03-2007, 14:37

Many of the biggest players get their start in the Dutch eredivisie, you cumbucket. Where-as pretty much ALL english players FAIL miserably when they go play overseas, Dutch players and players who have played in the Eredivisie usually adjust very easily and perform well.

We must share different hobbies, cumbucket. I guess your dog-daddy always mounted you after he got some head from your momma, so you must think it's normal?
How's your rabies, btw?

You tried to sound funny once again and embarrassed yourself. With the use of "Cumbucket" you have tried to bring humour into the argument and seem to think that i or anyone else might find it amusing. Sadly, we don't and once again you have made a total cunt out of yourself.

Oh and if i do have rabies i obviously got it when i ate out you ugly cunt of a mother

Yi-Long

20-03-2007, 14:47

BarnDoor

20-03-2007, 14:54

I didnt try to be funny but stated a fact, using the word CUMBUCKET.WHich is what you are.

And you didnt get rabbies from my mom, but you got it from your dog-dad when he mounted you over and over again, cause you kept begging for more.

Your dog-daddy has made your ass so wide, it now officially is known as a tunnel.

Maybe if your mother had the common decency while she was pregnant to prise her flaps back with a crowbar, drink herself unconscious with a bottle of vodka and then got the back alley abortionist to drag you out her womb with a rusty coathanger and then throw you in a canal this insane babble may have been avoided.

Yi-Long

20-03-2007, 15:01

Maybe if your mother had the common decency while she was pregnant to prise her flaps back with a crowbar, drink herself unconscious with a bottle of vodka and then got the back alley abortionist to drag you out her womb with a rusty coathanger and then throw you in a canal this insane babble may have been avoided.

Why? Didnt help for you...

Viperized

20-03-2007, 17:05

But my point is he doesn't do it nearly enough or consistently, not on the left at least. Look at how many points Henry almost single handedly won us last season. We need someone like that.
But how can you expect Rosicky to be a match winner for us when its his first season here?

wrigh2uk

20-03-2007, 18:37

One problem - those cunts play in the Dutch league and are therefore, shit. If they came to the UK they'd show that. Don't think they have talent just because they play against shit teams every week. Again you make another shit point which no one cares about.

Shouldn't you be balls deep in a kid by now? They'd probably die of boredom with you talking about shit football points before you destroy their wombs. You are a fucking prick.

Ruud Van Nistelrooy ?

Stella Artois

20-03-2007, 19:30

Ruud Van Nistelrooy ?

Is half the player Henry is.

Barndoor take your vendetta elsewhere.

wrigh2uk

20-03-2007, 19:50

Is half the player Henry is.

No shit sherlock

And that has what do with the argument of Holland imports can't suceed in the epl ?

Stella Artois

20-03-2007, 19:53

I don't believe I made a comment on that - unless you can find one somewhere?

JoeyM

20-03-2007, 22:54

But how can you expect Rosicky to be a match winner for us when its his first season here?

So we shouldn't buy a winger because Rosicky could become world class next season? He's a great player but there's a reason the only other team battling for his signature was Atletico Madrid. Tomas hasn't been playing to his potential for a while.

Again don't get me wrong, I like the guy and he's had a very good first season and will most likely improve, but "most likely" is what got us into this mess in the first place. After last season Senderos was most likely going to improve. Eboue was most likely to become the best right back in the league. Henry was most likely to come back and score another 30 goals. I'd prefer us to sign someone rather than hope that Tomas suddenly becomes a prolific scorer and Hleb can cut out the inconsistency.

Viperized

20-03-2007, 23:02

I didn't say we shouldn't buy a winger. In fact, I've said we need a winger all season.

Did you expect Pires to be a match-winner after seeing him in his first season? He was hardly outstanding in his first season here. Look how he then turned out.

Rosicky has looked more consistent than Pires did in his first year.

JoeyM

20-03-2007, 23:04

Then what are we arguing about?

alpine goal

20-03-2007, 23:34

Pires our best left sided player in the last 25 years.

BarnDoor

20-03-2007, 23:55

Is half the player Henry is.

Barndoor take your vendetta elsewhere.

Go fuck yourself Stella. That cunt brought it into the Newcastle thread so I'm going to finish it in this shit thread.

Viperized

21-03-2007, 00:25

Pires our best left sided player in the last 25 years.
No.

Overmars and Merson were damn good wingers too.

Yi-Long

21-03-2007, 00:36

Go fuck yourself Stella. That cunt brought it into the Newcastle thread so I'm going to finish it in this shit thread.

Why dont you finish it in the Newcastle thread, Bonzo-boy?

Anyway, Pires best left-sided player in the last 25 years? Hmmm... don't know... what about Overmars? He was pretty good as well.
Pires used to be pretty good, but I was never a real fan of his, I believe. Not quite sure why.

Barry

21-03-2007, 10:55

Ruud Van Nistelrooy ?

Dennis Bergkamp/Ronaldo/Romario/Van Basten/Cruyff? We're shit :ninja:

Viperized

21-03-2007, 16:29

A possible Arsenal away kit for next season:
http://arsenal-mania.com/uploads/20070321_kit_concept.gif

Barry

21-03-2007, 16:47

I think that looks pretty slick.

Stella Artois

21-03-2007, 20:37

I'd absolutely refuse to wear that. The dirty fucking scum up the road wear white.

Red and yellow. Nothing else.

Barndoor, grow up.

vanNistelrooy

21-03-2007, 20:40

A possible Arsenal away kit for next season:
http://arsenal-mania.com/uploads/20070321_kit_concept.gif
Why are the colours reversed? Makes the kit look more white than red, and when that's your primary colour I think it'd be silly.

Stella Artois

21-03-2007, 20:43

Why are the colours reversed? Makes the kit look more white than red, and when that's your primary colour I think it'd be silly.

Why would it be the other way around if its the away kit?

Think, then type.

vanNistelrooy

21-03-2007, 20:46

Why would it be the other way around if its the away kit?

Think, then type.
More like READ, then type.

Didn't see the "away" bit.

I agree with you though. Opposition could still complain of a bit of a clash also.

What about a blue kit again?

Stella Artois

21-03-2007, 20:48

You properly did read it, just didn't think.

Anyway, our colours are red and yellow. I don't think we've ever won much in blue so that's a no-go for moi.

vanNistelrooy

21-03-2007, 20:50

Trust me, I didn't read it...

Fair enough, didn't see you as the superstitious type.

Stella Artois

21-03-2007, 20:56

I'm very superstitious. I'd say it's almost OCD like when it comes to football. ;)

Anyway, getting on to things Arsenal-related, can anyone see anything other than a Liverpool win? We look like we couldn't score in a brothel right now and its incredibly frustrating.

vanNistelrooy

21-03-2007, 20:58

Who's likely to start up front for you?

I can see you scoring, but I think the bin dippers will be up for it after the countless times you've embarrased them.

martin_cranie

21-03-2007, 21:03

I'd absolutely refuse to wear that. The dirty fucking scum up the road wear white.

Red and yellow. Nothing else.

Agreed. Historical trends aside, it also looks hideous.

Stella Artois

21-03-2007, 21:03

And incase the bin dippers have forgot, the scores were:

3-0, 1-3 and 3-6

Adebayor will start up-front for sure. I wouldn't be surprised if we went 4-5-1 to be honest.

Come back Robin. :(

vanNistelrooy

21-03-2007, 21:12

As long as Baptista doesn't start, he doesn't look like he can be arsed at the moment.

Unfortunately I'm going for 2-1 to the bin dippers.

EDIT

I thought you won 3-0 at Analfield in the FA Cup, not 3-1?

EDIT EDIT

Just remembered, the blow up doll scored for them.

JoeyM

21-03-2007, 21:16

I expect to see:

Jens
Hoyte Phil Toure Gallas
Freddie Cesc Gilberto Rosicky
Baptista
Ade

Or at least that's what I'm hoping for in regards to the backline. Hopefully one of Eboue or Clichy will be back.

If The Beast were to get the winner I think I'd start a Baptista worshipping religion.

Yi-Long

21-03-2007, 21:18

That new kit looks pretty awfull if you ask me...
Just very very boring, and just plain ugly TBH.

It's like going back to the late 80's, early 90's.

Stella Artois

21-03-2007, 21:19

vanNistelrooy

21-03-2007, 21:21

Senderos, yet another blow up doll (to go with Kuyt and Jarosik).

He's just so damn...slow! What's wrong with playing Gallas at CB and Clichy at LB. Is Gael injured?

Stella Artois

21-03-2007, 21:23

Yes, both he and Eboue are injured.

I think we've had our best back four out twice this season. Bah.

Edit: Both are expected back for the Liverpool game, but it could be risky to play both.

vanNistelrooy

21-03-2007, 21:26

Djouru(sp) injured too?

Traore didn't do too bad a job against them last time, he could slot in at left back?

EDIT

Just found this, which some of you may like to use...

http://eur.i1.yimg.com/eur.news1.yimg.com/eur.yimg.com/ng/sp/reuters/20070110/07/3506882340.jpg

Joel

21-03-2007, 21:48

And incase the bin dippers have forgot, the scores were:

3-0, 1-3 and 3-6

Adebayor will start up-front for sure. I wouldn't be surprised if we went 4-5-1 to be honest.

Come back Robin. :(

Shouldn't have typed that.

I feel a history lesson approaching us soon...

Viperized

21-03-2007, 21:51

I'd absolutely refuse to wear that. The dirty fucking scum up the road wear white.

Red and yellow. Nothing else.

Barndoor, grow up.
Or blue. We've had plenty of blue away shirts. I'd love to see another one.

But Arsenal have had a white kit once or twice apparently so its nothing new.

vanNistelrooy

21-03-2007, 21:54

Shouldn't have typed that.

I feel a history lesson approaching us soon...
How come?

Viperized

21-03-2007, 22:04

That new kit looks pretty awfull if you ask me...
Just very very boring, and just plain ugly TBH.

It's like going back to the late 80's, early 90's.
Well its just a mock-up design.

Hopefully it isn't real. There were hundred of fake pics shown on the net last season too.

Viperized

21-03-2007, 22:06

I'd like this team v Liverpool:

Lehmann
Eboue Toure Gallas Clichy <- looks like a fantastic backline on paper. Don't think we've played with this defence.
Hleb Fabregas Gilberto Rosicky
Aliadiere Adebayor

Joel

21-03-2007, 22:06

How come?

In response to Stella's post, a Liverpool fan is bound to post "5 times", or "where were you in Instanbul", or "18 times League Champions".

I just refer to it as The History Lesson.

Stella Artois

21-03-2007, 22:08

It's called cuntitis.

calculus

21-03-2007, 22:23

Who's likely to start up front for you?

I can see you scoring, but I think the bin dippers will be up for it after the countless times you've embarrased them.

You can see us scoring? Liverpool have only conceeded 4 goals at home all season and we can't seem to score at the moment! :rolleyes:

So yeah I see your logic we'll just go and put 3 past them :D

pistolpete

21-03-2007, 22:36

WestHam08

21-03-2007, 22:54

Viperized

21-03-2007, 22:56

Gilberto has been crap at centre-back, but what else did you expect? It's like asking Makelele to play in defence.

Wenger should never put Gilberto anywhere outside the central-midfield position. He has made so many mistakes as a CB, which ain't surprising.

Calzone

21-03-2007, 22:59

off topic from you convo but is arsenal a newer team in english league. I mean how long have they been a club.

Viperized

21-03-2007, 23:03

Arsenal are oooold.

Arsenal were founded in 1886. Moved to Highbury in 1913. Have never been relegated from the first devision.

Calzone

21-03-2007, 23:04

Arsenal were founded in 1886. Moved to Highbury in 1913.

thanks

Viperized

22-03-2007, 00:00

I've just realised Arsenal are now the most popular thread in the official club thread. D:

JoeyM

22-03-2007, 00:07

Has Flamini disappeared, havnmt heard anything of him for a while?
Is he injured or out of favour?
Id like to see him play LB if Gael and Traore are both out, Gallas has to play in the middle - and get Gilberto out of there, if he has to play, put him in midfield where someone can clear up the mess he makes almost every time he gets the ball.

How ironic that people are talking about him having had a great season - in my opinion he has been shocking, and all the players with great technique around him have shown him up - wont be long before Diaby replaces him.
A good goal haul though but quite a few pens and he has missed 2 big ones too.

I think Flamini's refusal to play left back when we needed him dropped him down a few pegs in Arsene's mind.

And I don't see how anyone could discount Gilberto's contribution this season, goals aside. He was shocking last season and I was hoping he'd be replaced, but he's been excellent for 90% of this season. He's not technically brilliant, but that's not really his job. I don't see how you can discount the importance of a holding midfielder. Just look at how often are defence was exposed against Everton because we didn't have a holding player.

Zoolander

22-03-2007, 00:27

I've just realised Arsenal are now the most popular thread in the official club thread. D:

Due to the amount of problems they have. ;)

pistolpete

22-03-2007, 12:06

I think Flamini's refusal to play left back when we needed him dropped him down a few pegs in Arsene's mind.

And I don't see how anyone could discount Gilberto's contribution this season, goals aside. He was shocking last season and I was hoping he'd be replaced, but he's been excellent for 90% of this season. He's not technically brilliant, but that's not really his job. I don't see how you can discount the importance of a holding midfielder. Just look at how often are defence was exposed against Everton because we didn't have a holding player.

ok JoeyM, i will accept that he has done his covering midfield work well but anyone who plays in that position, has only 1 responsibility.
Gilberto, for me, playing in the position he is, at the highest level, in the most technically gifted team in the country, should be able to pass the ball to one of his own teammates at least most of the time, just watch next game how many times he gives the ball away.

I didnt discount the importance of a holding midfielder, i just want a new one.

Personally i think we can find a better player in that position, i would have gone for Mascherano.
Gilberto is in there, taking penalties, vice captain, because of his experience in my opinion.

-Rafa-

22-03-2007, 12:27

I've just realised Arsenal are now the most popular thread in the official club thread. D:
Apart from about everyone 1 in 2 posts in the last 2 or so pages have been saying things about Liverpool fans, in the Arsenal thread....

Viperized

22-03-2007, 17:23

In case you didn't realise, Arsenal next opponents are Liverpool.

Stella Artois

22-03-2007, 19:57

He's a gloryhunter, he hasn't got a clue.

vanNistelrooy

22-03-2007, 20:36

You can see us scoring? Liverpool have only conceeded 4 goals at home all season and we can't seem to score at the moment! :rolleyes:

So yeah I see your logic we'll just go and put 3 past them :D

Yeah, and ONE of them was JOHN O'SHEA..

Need I say anymore?

Jonny2J

22-03-2007, 21:00

He's a gloryhunter, he hasn't got a clue.Most folk are on this site.

calculus

22-03-2007, 23:44

Due to the amount of problems they have. ;)

:laugh:

Most folk are on this site.

:mellow: Name names! :ninja:

alpine goal

24-03-2007, 01:40

there is no silverware but we have NO PROBLEMS things have not worked like a lot of clubs but thats football.

Dundon's

24-03-2007, 02:09

Gunners sign new French wonder kid...

Taken from sky sports news...

Arsenal have struck a deal that will see French teenager Gilles Sunu move to Emirates Stadium on a four-year contract in the summer.

Skysports.com first revealed back in December that The Gunners had won the race for the highly-rated Chateauroux striker, beating Premiership rivals Liverpool in the process.

Now Sunu has turned 16, it has been confirmed that the French youth international will continue his footballing education under Arsene Wenger in North London after the two clubs came to an agreement.

Arsenal are believed to being paying between €1-4million (£680,000-£2.71million) for the teenager who is hoping to become the latest French starlet to shine for The Gunners.

Sunu will move to England in July and is expected to put pen-to-paper on the four-year deal when Chateauroux president Michel Denisot meets Arsenal vice-chairman David Dein in April to finally ratify the deal.

Wenger already has a fine selection of youngsters at his disposal in North London, and the capture of Sunu demonstrates his focus on youth recruitment shows no sign of slowing.

Nturtle

26-03-2007, 06:18

Yet another youngster...heh....well...I hope we get Bendtner in the team properly next season...and I have high hopes for Vela...he seems really good!

calculus

26-03-2007, 11:43

Yet another youngster...heh....well...I hope we get Bendtner in the team properly next season...and I have high hopes for Vela...he seems really good!

They will all be in the Carling Cup and FA Cup teams!

Rossy Boy

26-03-2007, 12:44

Yeah i Herd about them signing him

Viperized

28-03-2007, 22:54

According to the Times, we are set to sign Ribery:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/premiership/arsenal/article1582561.ece

Franck Ribéry, the dynamic Marseilles winger who has been a target of Arsene Wenger for the past year, is believed to have reached a verbal agreement with the Arsenal manager that will see him arrive at the North London club this summer.

Wenger believed that he had secured a deal with Marseilles to sign Ribéry for a minimum of £13.5 million in August, but the Frenchman was persuaded to agree a new deal at the French club until 2010, increasing his wage to about £40,000 a week and providing a one-off bonus of £400,000.

According to France Football magazine, however, Marseilles have agreed that Ribéry could leave the club this summer, provided that they do not qualify for the Champions League, which is unlikely as, at present, they are in eighth place in Ligue 1.

Marseilles rejected a bid of £15 million from Lyons for the winger in the summer and Bayern Munich and Real Madrid have also expressed an interest.

If true, I think he could be a great signing.

Dragonfly

28-03-2007, 22:58

This story has been around so much, that I will only believe it when I see it.

Rambo

28-03-2007, 23:13

Didn't he say he would prefer to play in Serie A?

Marseille have a good chance of making the champions league this season so it's not certain, hopefully they do make it.

Viperized

29-03-2007, 07:42

"If I leave, my destination will be Spain or England. Those are the two Leagues I like. We shall see how things get on then. I know the supporters like me a lot. They have given me a lot and I also do my best to be happy with the club and fans."

Only mentioned Spain or England. Why would he goto the Italian league anyway? There aren't any Italian clubs interested in him.

But Bayern Munich, Lyon and Real Madrid are interested.

pistolpete

29-03-2007, 10:39

Would like to see him at the club but that sort of money is a bit of a gamble IMO.

Is anyone else a red member at Arsenal?

I am and i want to know when tickets go on sale to us for the Chelsea game, the website only says it they are on sale to Silver members and Junior members, it doesnt say anything about when and if they will go on sale to Red members.

Something is definately wrong with the ticket scheme, the Fulham game is sold out but im sure when i watch the game on tv there will be plenty of spare seats.
Hopefully the club can sort it out for next season.

calculus

29-03-2007, 10:45

pistolpete

29-03-2007, 11:01

Check about a few days before the match day and if there are any excess seats they will put them on sale to Red members but I doubt you will get tickets for this one mate!

Yeah i thought not, thanks anyway.

only managed to get to 3 games on red membership, Dinamo Zagreb, Sheff Utd and Hamburg, admittedly havnt tried much more than that.
The least they could do though is put a date - if any are left.
bet ther will be no atmosphere at all for that game, 45,000 corporates!

calculus

29-03-2007, 11:03

Yeah i thought not, thanks anyway.

only managed to get to 3 games on red membership, Dinamo Zagreb, Sheff Utd and Hamburg, admittedly havnt tried much more than that.
The least they could do though is put a date - if any are left.
bet ther will be no atmosphere at all for that game, 45,000 corporates!

:laugh:

Yeah it's harder to get tickets for Band A matches!

Viperized

29-03-2007, 15:37

Preki-USA

29-03-2007, 15:42

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=417390&cc=5901

Rosicky spends night with six prostitutes. chances are he has a several STDs now but this puts him a few notches higher on the balla scale...

pistolpete

30-03-2007, 12:10

£13m is a gamble? Lol, no it isn't. Ribery was one of the best wingers in Europe last season.

I'm guessing you'd prefer us to sign some kid from Mozambique for £120 instead, or another average player for £5m.

No, i said i'd like to see him at Arsenal.

Course its a gamble - what if he doesnt adapt?

Reyes was the same price, he didnt adapt, and he was one of the best attackers in the Spanish league the year before.

I would say £13 million is a gamble on most anyone.

Scarface

30-03-2007, 12:21

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=417390&cc=5901

Rosicky spends night with six prostitutes.

I didn't think Tomas could go up in my estimations any higher, but he's managed it.

13m isn't too bad for Ribery, despite him not having a particularly good season. He'd give us much needed options on both flanks. I was expecting them to want over 15m. Hopefully, Ljungberg can be sold for a few million, to ease the cost.

hazman79

30-03-2007, 12:33

pistolpete

30-03-2007, 12:42

calculus

30-03-2007, 12:49

This is good news for Arsenal fans, Ribery is a genuine threat, quick, excellent technique and an eye for a pass. Perfect for this Wenger team because he offers the same basic requirements with the addition of intelligent, energetic running beyond the play to the flanks providing further counter attacking options.

Whats more they mostly speak French at the club anyway so he'll fit right in.

Lunjberg should deffinately be sold, he's past his best.

What we(Arsenal) need is goals from midfield...would he score the goals to make up for Pires, Ljungberg and Bergkamp?

Im on board with the signing of Ribery - i think he would be a good asset - but didnt Wenger say earlier in the season that he didnt have room for anymore wide men what with Hleb, Rosicky, Fredy, Walcott and Diaby has shown he can play wide, also i think RVP would make a good Pires style wide man, plus he has the tenacity to track back and make tackles.

If we were to see Ribery sign - who would everyone like to see dropped to accomodate him? Rosicky? Hleb? Theo is going to need some games.

If we sign any players I think it should be in place of Baptista but I think that we have just been unlucky with injuries this season and Man Utd haven't and that has reflected in their wonderful season and also they have added goals from Ronaldo to their armoury he is their top EPL scorer add goals from Scholes, Giggs, Saha, Rooney plus Vidic from corners and there you see that we don't get enough goals from other areas on the pitch!

Surprised that nobody's mentioned the LIVERPOOL match! :laugh:

Scarface

30-03-2007, 12:58

Im on board with the signing of Ribery - i think he would be a good asset - but didnt Wenger say earlier in the season that he didnt have room for anymore wide men what with Hleb, Rosicky, Fredy, Walcott and Diaby has shown he can play wide, also i think RVP would make a good Pires style wide man, plus he has the tenacity to track back and make tackles.

If we were to see Ribery sign - who would everyone like to see dropped to accomodate him? Rosicky? Hleb? Theo is going to need some games.

I'd like to think they could all be accommodated, but it probably is too much to ask, when Van Persie, Gilberto and Fabregas need to be playing.

-----------------------------???-------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------
-----Eboue--------Toure-----------Gallas--------Clichy---------
---------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------Gilberto-------------------------------------
---------------------------------Fabregas----------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------
----------Hleb------------Rosicky------------Ribery-------------
----------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------Henry-------------------------------

In Europe, we could use a similar system to above, with Robin van Persie coming in for Hleb or Ribery when necessary. In the Premiership, I guess they'd just have to be rotated, but it might be an idea to have Rosicky partnering Gilberto in the centre when Cesc needs resting, although I doubt that will be the case, with Diaby and Denilson both pushing for spots in the team. He could even be used as a second striker to Thierry, depending on the opposition.

calculus

30-03-2007, 13:00

I'd like to think they could all be accommodated, but it probably is too much to ask, when Van Persie, Gilberto and Fabregas need to be playing.

-----------------------------???---------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------
-----Eboue--------Toure-----------Gallas--------Clichy---------
---------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------Gilberto-------------------------------------
---------------------------------Fabregas----------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------
----------Hleb------------Rosicky------------Ribery-------------
----------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------Henry-------------------------------

In Europe, we could use a similar system to above, with Robin van Persie coming in for Hleb or Ribery when necessary. In the Premiership, I guess they'd just have to be rotated, but it might be an idea to have Rosicky partnering Gilberto in the centre when Cesc needs resting, although I doubt that will be the case, with Diaby and Denilson both pushing for spots in the team. He could even be used as a second striker to Thierry, depending on the opposition.

You should be AW's Assistant Manager! :D That team looks beautiful!

pistolpete

30-03-2007, 13:02

If we sign any players I think it should be in place of Baptista but I think that we have just been unlucky with injuries this season and Man Utd haven't and that has reflected in their wonderful season and also they have added goals from Ronaldo to their armoury he is their top EPL scorer add goals from Scholes, Giggs, Saha, Rooney plus Vidic from corners and there you see that we don't get enough goals from other areas on the pitch!

Surprised that nobody's mentioned the LIVERPOOL match! :laugh:

I agree about the goals from midfield, as good, and tidy as our midfield are - they dont pose a goal threat.
In the league
Cesc 0
Hleb 2
Rosicky 1
Not really good enough considernig as you said Ronaldo - he has 20 odd.
i would like to see Baptista come good, i think he has a lot to offer but i suppose you have to draw the line somewhere.
I can see him signing permanently too, cause of the Reyes situation.

As for the Liverpool game i would take a draw, but looking at the players we have returning, we could ask for more.
then again considering the inept last few nonperformances i wouldnt be surprised to lose.
Should be a good game all the same.

hazman79

30-03-2007, 13:26

[QUOTE=calculus;966608]What we(Arsenal) need is goals from midfield...would he score the goals to make up for Pires, Ljungberg and Bergkamp?

Short answer is no. 3 this season for Marseille but then again Pires wasn't renowned for his goal scoring at Marseille, then we know what happened in his second season and beyond for you lot.

Bergkamp was a unique entity and cannot be replaced.

calculus

30-03-2007, 13:34

Viperized

30-03-2007, 16:06

I didn't think Tomas could go up in my estimations any higher, but he's managed it.

13m isn't too bad for Ribery, despite him not having a particularly good season. He'd give us much needed options on both flanks. I was expecting them to want over 15m. Hopefully, Ljungberg can be sold for a few million, to ease the cost.
Ribery has been injured all season.

I'd be over the moon if we signed Ribery. It'd give us real depth in quality on the wings.

Hleb, Rosicky, Ribery and Walcott. Doesn't look too bad on paper, eh?

We're always having injuries, so it is necessary to buy a winger. Plus Ljungberg has been off the scale all season. We've played Diaby, Flamini, Fabregas and other players on the wings for odd reasons, so Ribery, Hleb and Rosicky will obviously get plenty of games.

Apparently, during Wenger was spotted in a game to watch Holland. He was supposedly scouting a player or two. Probably is either Van Der Vaart, Sneijder or Huntelaar imo.

Viperized

30-03-2007, 16:45

What we(Arsenal) need is goals from midfield...would he score the goals to make up for Pires, Ljungberg and Bergkamp?
Van Persie has scored so many goals this season, so cross out Bergkamp in the list.

Rosicky, Hleb, Fabregas and Ribery should easily outscore Pires and Ljungberg to be honest.

Fabregas should've scored 6 or more goals in the league already. Same as Rosicky and Hleb, but the latter never shoots.

Fabregas has potential - gets in so many positions but just fucks up with the finishing. Surely he'll start to score more goals, one day or another? Rosicky has potential - he is definitely a great striker of the ball. He can really hit them well, both from in the box and from range.

Ribery, once if he comes, would probably be the most likely midfielder in our team to score goals in my opinion. Why? His off-the-ball running.

For example, look at this goal:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8GPJLH2uLmk

We need more movement and directness, and Ribery is one of the view wingers available who can help provide that. The other could be Quaresma who is another player I kind of like but he is a bit of a lazy, diving cunt.

Neither Rosicky and Hleb make runs off the ball. They both seem to be ball players. Same as Fabregas.

Scarface

30-03-2007, 17:25

Ribery has been injured all season.

I'm sure he has played at least 20 games this season.

Hopefully it's Huntelaar that Wenger is keeping an eye on. We need him a lot more than Van der Vaart or Sneijder.

Viperized

30-03-2007, 18:24

Just checked. 18 games, 3 games.

He has had a few injuries though.

Huntelaar would be great, unless we offload a striker.

Next season Bendtner is returning. Unless Wenger decides to sell Adebayor, there is no way I can see us getting Huntelaar.

JoeyM

30-03-2007, 20:24

I have my doubts over whether Huntelaar could adapt to a 4-4-2. Granted I've only seem him a few times but he looks a bit immobile for our game.

Joel

31-03-2007, 12:09

Is this the first time you have ben able to put out your first choice defence this season -

--Eboue----Toure---Gallas----Clichy--

?

calculus

31-03-2007, 12:27

I'm sure he has played at least 20 games this season.

Hopefully it's Huntelaar that Wenger is keeping an eye on. We need him a lot more than Van der Vaart or Sneijder.

Hunterlaar is a finisher who is only young and would develope nicely under AW but apparently SAF is after him so you know if it comes down to transfer fee alone we won't win!

Is this the first time you have ben able to put out your first choice defence this season -

--Eboue----Toure---Gallas----Clichy--

?

I think we played them against liverpool last time out but I am not too sure!

greenegg

31-03-2007, 12:57

Nice goal by the Pool there.

Viperized

31-03-2007, 13:47

Completely crap performance. We're playing shit.

Hleb is the definition of inconsistency. He'll either have a good or bad game. He has never had a 'normal' game this season.

Baptista has shown despite 100 chances he gets each match, he can't finish. Thankfully he is on loan. If Wenger buys him, then I don't know wtf is going through his mind. He is not good enough.

The midfield looks non-existant. Why was Rosicky left on the bench? Is Diaby our first choice left-winger now? He isn't even a left winger. Diaby is a central-midfield for crying out loud.

Should started a 451 instead of 442

With this team:

lehmann
eboue toure gallas clichy
hleb fabregas denilson diaby rosicky
adebayor

I can't see us scoring. It's so painful to watch the game considering we've lost our last couple games. I'm not sure if I want to watch the second half. It's obvious we're going to lose.

We aren't going to improve unless Wenger addresses some problems in the team.

We need a striker who can actually finish. And he needs to tell our players to shoot, even if it means shooting outside the box! (Thats you, Alex Hleb). Hleb had a chance to volley the ball from the edge of the box. He was clear. What did he do? Pass the ball.

We need a greedy cunt in our team, like van Persie. But even then, Wenger is mutating Van Persie into more of a team player. We will never ever win games unless we start actually taking shots. Fucking hell. I really miss Van Persie. But if Rosicky started the match, maybe we might've seen some penetration down the wings.

Our defending has been quite poor as well.

Is this the first time you have ben able to put out your first choice defence this season -

--Eboue----Toure---Gallas----Clichy--

?
Probably is.

Scarface

31-03-2007, 13:57

Apparently it's the third time they've played together, and the last time they played together was in the 3-0 win over Liverpool at home. :erm:

Treating this as if it's a pre-season game. Very poor performance and attitude in general.

vanNistelrooy

31-03-2007, 14:10

Henryless
van Persieless
Hopeless

Really wanted you lot to turn them over again too :(

Hunter

31-03-2007, 14:14

Well I can safely say I never expected this scoreline. :mellow:

Arsenal have been poor so far, it's be decent to watch, the atmosphere seems good enough and a sunny day always helps. Shame it's so one-sided. Not sure why Arsenal are playing so horribly though.

vanNistelrooy

31-03-2007, 14:23

Gallas! Come on, ATLEAST two more!

martin_cranie

31-03-2007, 14:25

I don't know what I'm more shocked by - the fact we've scored or:

http://img249.imageshack.us/img249/6638/hlebshottq0.png

:O Remember this one guys, you won't see many.

Scarface

31-03-2007, 14:32

Must have been trying to pick out Adebayor but overhit it ;)

No effort or passion. I feel for the Arsenal fans who travelled all that way to see this careless performance. If the scoreline isn't embarrassing enough, the goalscorers are.

Roll on the end of the season.

The Dubes

31-03-2007, 14:36

Fucking shit that Crouch lad ain't he Stella?

:laugh:

Joel

31-03-2007, 14:41

I'm not surprised that Liverpool won - because Liverpool will not lose to the same team four times in a season - but the scoreline is quite shocking.

Some weird decisions by Wenger like Rosicky on the bench and Diaby on the left, when maybe Diaby in the centre and Rosicky on the left would have been better.

If you win your game in hand, you will go back to third place, so you are probably still favourites to finish third.

Viperized

31-03-2007, 14:49

Terrible, terrible performance. Hopeless. Spineless. There was a complete lack of desire to play today.

I'm not going to single out any names, but some players aren't good enough for the club (anymore).

Not going to say much else. I expected Liverpool to win, but I didn't expect them to completely hammer us. They looked more threatening on the attack, while when we had the ball we done fuck all other than passing it around.

Viperized

31-03-2007, 14:50

I don't know what I'm more shocked by - the fact we've scored or:

http://img249.imageshack.us/img249/6638/hlebshottq0.png

:O Remember this one guys, you won't see many.
It was probably a poor attempt to pass it in the box

:O

Cannon ball

31-03-2007, 14:50

Viperized

31-03-2007, 14:52

Yes, West Ham.

Joel

31-03-2007, 14:54

By Cannon Ball's actions, it must be Manchester City...am I right?

Cannon ball

31-03-2007, 15:11

Yes you are my good man.

Dan

31-03-2007, 15:22

If you win your game in hand, you will go back to third place, so you are probably still favourites to finish third.

Not that I'm too bothered who finishes 3rd or 4th, but their final few fixtures are much harder than ours.

Arsenal v West Ham
Newcastle v Arsenal
Arsenal v Bolton
Arsenal v Man City
Tottenham v Arsenal
Arsenal v Fulham
Arsenal v Chelsea
Portsmouth v Arsenal

calculus

31-03-2007, 15:46

Not that I'm too bothered who finishes 3rd or 4th, but their final few fixtures are much harder than ours.

Arsenal v West Ham
Newcastle v Arsenal
Arsenal v Bolton
Arsenal v Man City
Tottenham v Arsenal
Arsenal v Fulham
Arsenal v Chelsea
Portsmouth v Arsenal

The problem for us is our 2 top scorers are out for the season which is good for nex season but bad for this season and we don't look like scoring goals!

Baptista - A good player? This guy is slow and very suited to maybe Serie A more than the premiership because he does nothing for us up top look at the difference Ljungberg mad ewhen he came on!

As for the rest of the team we just didn't look up for it and we didn't look like we were going to influence the game what a shame...Well done Liverpool but 3 out of 4 is not bad ;)

PS I'm going to get it at work on Monday!

pistolpete

31-03-2007, 16:46

Ashamed of that performance, there was no movement off the ball at all.
The defence had no protection from the midfield at all, that is the worst i have seen Cesc play and Denilson looked quiet.

It says something when Peter Crouch, playing upfront on his own tore our 1st choice defence to shreds.

The worst thing is not that we lost but the complete spinelessness in defeat, i was watching it and my mate asked me at half time what would i change? and i couldnt think of anything other than Diaby in the middle and bring on someone to play left midfield for Cesc or Denilson.

Adebayor was unlucky a couple of times but we didnt look dangerous going forward.
Why did Rosicky not start? - he always seems to be unfit for us and fit for internationals - he is the exact opposite of Giggs.

Looking forward to the end of the season - id take 4th at this point.

Dundon's

31-03-2007, 21:15

I'm not going to single out any names, but some players aren't good enough for the club .

http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/fifa/06/c/BRA/181415_l.jpg

Viperized

01-04-2007, 00:24