Just one word.
Where to start?
I assume you have all seen the game, so no point me going through it blow-by- blow.
It was quite simply a thing of beauty.
Wengerball at its finest. This was not merely sterile possession, oh no. It was quite simply football at its very best. Napoli were going to be the big test, ‘they’ said. Well from the first two minutes right up to the whistle at the end of the first-half, Napoli did not get a foot on the ball.
Remember, this was a side wracked with injury, cobbled together from a paper-thin squad supposedly lacking depth, and a manager, we have been told, who doesn’t do tactics.
It was just devastating stuff from the home team, total domination and a joy to behold.
The poor Sky Sports pundits were left without a twig to beat Arsenal with; critics of the club were left scrambling for crumbs of negative comfort in a cupboard that is patently bare; once again, the sound of scripts being torn up were all but audible.
The second half was Wengerball (Part 2) and you could sense the whole of Europe taking heed of the warning now emanating from North London.
We just slipped back into third gear and controlled the game in a way that really makes you think that this team is the real deal. We waited and waited for a counter-attack that simply never came. Napoli knew we would ruthlessly pick them off if they risked anything and sensibly opted for a respectable defeat, three points lost. The other option did not bear thinking about and had season-ruining potential written all over it.
I really can’t think of one of our lads who were not magnificent.
Ok, I don’t have enough superlatives to do the performance justice, so let’s enjoy talking about it in the comments section.
Have I said I love this team?
Oh, ok.
Positively Arsenal 
It was indeed great, and the first half show had been coming for a long time. The players enjoyed it, Ozil was in his element, and the crowd rocked. In fact, it is almost possible to say last night was the first time that The Arsenal had played at the Emirates. It felt not just like a coming of age, but also a coming home. We are back.
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Morning George.
Looks like you’ll need to issue some more ‘let’s not get too carried away warnings’!
But it’s hard not to, all things considered.
Some great comments last night – especially enjoyed reading Passenal’s take on the game.
Interesting benchmark moment coming up at the weekend with our fixture against the Baggies who of course just upset Manure’s cart still further a few days ago. A convincing win by our paper-thin squad could really set alarm bells ringing in the EPL.
Funnily enough, I expect little else; George – warning please.
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Scrambling for crumbs of negativity in a cupboard that is patently empty.
THAT……
as PASSENAL said in yesterday post and many before her
TOTAL FOOTBALL BABY.
Coming to a theater near you…..
Very nice roundup by HUNTER 13 also in yesterdays comments.
Goodmorning everyone. I think the era of the new dawn is here.
Behold & enjoy…..
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Anyone been commenting on EndofanEra.com recently?
How is that theory working out for them ?
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I love this team.
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Excellent comments from Oliver, that won’t surprise real supporters
http://espnfc.com/news/story/_/id/1570107?&cc=5739
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john henry asked in july what they are smoking in north london.
so henry, now you know what we are smoking!
higuain must be cursing perez yesterday. even barca will loathe facing this team now.
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flamini is far far better than gustavo. him and arteta in the team allow allow and ramsey to do their thing without the handbreak
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Wenger’s Army! Wenger’s Army!
Are we, are we, are we!
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Napoli could have had Higuain, Maradonna, Pele, Messi & Ronaldo playing for them last night, but If the couldn’t get a touch of the ball off us it would have been useless.
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As fine a half of football as I can remember, devastating quickness of thought and movement, two chances, two bulges in the back of the net.
And lets have none of the “but Napoli were poor on the night” nonsense I have read and heard elsewhere – actually I thought they did ok when they finally managed to get into the game. It was a testament to our defence and combative midfield that all Napoli could really do to threaten Szcz’s goal was to hit shots from 25-30 yards all evening.
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Well said ‘coll
WTF could Napoli have done? We were irresistible
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sagna was great again yesterday. he shows he can play wengerball when necessary. wonder what those who want us to buy debuchy will be saying now. loyal servant to the core.
just to add someting about W17, it’s some fact about arsene reign yesterday. out of 17 times arsenal have scored 100 or more goals in a season,.10 has come under arsene wenger. and even if arsenal goes on to lose 130 matches without a single victory, he will still have the best win ratio. unbelieveable!
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Arteta & Flamini?
Arsenal are double D**Med.
(& former D**Mer pin up, Inler the DM, was on the pitch too!)
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We are all used to Wengerball and the beautiful quickness and crispness going forward but the determination to get the ball back quickly and in dangerous areas was phenomenal and set the stage for wonderful performance that followed.
If we keep going like this were all going to need not get carried away pills
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Oh by the way the real test is wb away this week
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Rosicky had a few loose passes, (take me out and shoot me).
but Solid Gold never rusts.
He will be at his very best within weeks.
(please don’t go to back to Prague for the internationals Tomas).
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Wenger ball at at its best at the Emirates yesterday. Aren’t we allowed to brag and boast today? Take a look at Arsene’s reactions after the Ozil goal.
http://t.co/TaFW3o34Jq
End of an era my ass. The numpties, cowards, and middle-of-the-roaders who simply withdrew their support from one of the best coaches in the world (says Rafa Benitez) at the darkest hour. It was an act of betrayal of Van Persie like proportions to give up on the manager who had sacrificed so much of his own credibility to ensure that we remain competitive while having to pay for a £390m stadium.
They denigrated those of us who insisted that 2012-13 would be a “transitional” year. Three new players of the caliber of Cazorla, Podolski and Giroud would take take time to bed in, to acclimate to the pace of English football and the standards of Wengerball. Yesterday we saw the fruits of having a stable team as the squad as the former deadwood like Mert, Kos, Giroud, simply bossed Napoli giving Ozil a platform to strut his stuff.
George says we are hearing scripts being torn up (lack of depth, blah, blah) but another audible sound is the rush onto the Arsenal bandwagon.But before some stealthily make their way back, let us save a word for the awful Tim Payton and the Arsenal Supporters Trust. If had any shred of credibility left they would immediately recant that awful statement made in mid August:
“In recent weeks Ivan Gazidis has spoken of the club’s intent to offer Arsene Wenger a new contract. The AST believes this is inappropriate.
A decision on whether to offer an extension to the manager’s contract which ends in May 2014 should only be taken following the closing of the transfer window and assessment of the team’s performances in the weeks ahead.
Considerable improvement must be shown for us to be convinced this should happen, and we believe that other senior football appointments must come first.
The failings we highlighted in Arsene Wenger holding far too much power have only been amplified in recent weeks. These must be addressed as a matter of urgency.”
The AST should be on their hands and knees begging AW to “sign da thing” and pledge to never stick their snout into matters outside their remit..
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finsbury October 2, 2013 at 9:59 am
The most significant thing about Arteta yesterday was not merely being restored to captaincy but that in general he played as the deepest lying midfielder. The assorted football reactionaries keep banging about the importance of a defensive midfielder who merely acts as a screen but completely ignore the fact that Flamini was pushed pushed further forward with Arteta as the anchor, the one who act as the outlet for the release ball from defense. When will people accept the fact that in modern football technical security is more important than acting as a negative defensive player?
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Well said Shotta.
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spot on shotta….i think they should get on their knees and apologise on camera … while the rest of us throw eggs and tomatoes at them…..
boss so happy…
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Both posts
Mikel had a 99% passing accuracy .Famini only 94% (seems he is a bit more than a water carrier to me)
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hey pass ( fm last night) did you hear it at the 87th minute? haha…
cheers gkam ( 8:50 am) i was still a bit drunk tbh…had just got back..
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DC, eventhough it was his first game back, did you see his understanding and interchanges with Ozil? Giroud and Ramsey have a very good connection too. Also, both Ramsey and Ozil seem to be enjoying playing with each other.
I read a great comment that said that it should not be legal for Ozil and Rosicky to play together.
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DC, Ozil also had a few loose passes, but that is what happens when attacking players are trying to make something happen – not everything comes off.
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Sensational Arsenal October 2, 2013 at 10:41 am
“I read a great comment that said that it should not be legal for Ozil and Rosicky to play together. ”
What of Ozil-Cazorla? Maybe a UN resolution to have a “No-Skills zone”.
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Sens & Pass
I was being a bit tougue in cheek,
TR7 was excellent for his first game back, we are so spoilt now with midfielders.
As I said – soild gold never rusts.
Looking forward to Diaby coming back in December too. That’s not far off.
Santi could be ready for the West Brom game?
wowzies.
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Ticket to Liverpool on the 2nd November safely gathered in after an hour at the on line box office – what a damn fine morning
I shall see you there boys and girls (smiley thing)
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Shotta
There might be a contract clause in the Premier League when we have to let the opposition see the ball for a few minutes during the game.
‘Cause they’re not going to touch it.
Cue MC Hammer video……….
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I’m top of the world…oh bollocks why did I say that?
Ok, I’m off to Paris…..
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I read a great comment that said that it should not be legal for Ozil and Rosicky to play together.
add cazorla and its same old arsenal always cheating…also i suspect flamini ramsey and giroud should be tested for doping…very high testosterone levels….arsene needs to scout the best miss worlds for post match recovery.
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Damn anicoll, I forgot about the Liverpool tickets! They’re probably all gone by now (banned sad face!)
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DC showing your age there. “Can’t touch this” Ha,Ha,Ha.
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sagna and tomaaas want to win stuff…
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It’s an interesting idea Shotta, that those fans guilty of truly turning on the club and manager are as guilty of treason as RvP was …
Some of them should think about that.
Great comments, by the way.
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No skills zone. I like it.
You should adopt it for twitter shotta: ” In light of attacks by Ozil and Rosicky and the imminent additional threat of Cazorla, the UN has mandated that the Emirates be declared a No Skills Zone.”
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SA – George probably already has; no flies on him.
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@passenal
Thanks for pointing that interview out. Some sections of supporters tend to understate the influence we fans can have on the players, but if they aren’t feeling the confidence from the fans, it can and will reflect in their game. Case in point Gervinho, who has been doing well for all his clubs (Roma are top of Serie A and Gervinho is their top scorer) as well as being an important part of his national team, but he is a confidence player and without the supporters backing him, there is little surprise in the lack of success he has had with us.
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have a look at this:
and then this:
who is scarier ?
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Evil
Totally true.
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Thanks anicoll5 I just got my ticket for the Liverpool game – must have been one of the last ones as it is now sold out! Gotta get back to work now. See you all later – have fun!
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is there any centre farward better than giroud at the moment?
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Well done Pass – getting tickets these days is murder, I have not managed to snap one up for my son all season and love him as I do I am not paying £90 for an adult seat
Cant understand why they are suddenly so popular ??
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@layksite
Depends on the definition. If you are looking for pure finishers? Maybe. But if you are looking for a complete forward, who can do it all, i.e. score goals, hold the ball up, win headers, bring the rest of the team into the game and so on, then no, I don’t think so. But he and Lewandowski are probably on the same level in that regard. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t want to swap Giroud for any other striker out there. And it’s all the sweeter considering how many people were upset about Arsene signing some unknown French bloke that used to play in Ligue 2. Arsene knows best.
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You’re a Boom writer, PG. Great stuff.
Shotta@1030:
Spot on.
H13@1150:
Scarface won’t “break his balls”. Flamini will, and is therefore, clearly the scarier.
“In your face”, or summat. (Is that the modern vernacular?) (What’s a vernacular?)
Great pics, thanks.
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I wish we still had Gervinho.
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rantetta
October 2, 2013 at 12:31 pm
hihih…
even though one of them is holding a gun with blood on his face, im more afraid of the other one….
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Personally, what makes me especially happy about our good results and fantastic performances is to see the happiness back in Arsene’s face. There have been times over the past few seasons where Arsene looked devasted and understandably so: players betrayed him when he was on the cusp of greatness and some fans were looking for a mutiny. I actually started to fear for him, because surely it can’t be good for your health to be under so much stress and with hardly anyone out there to support you? But despite all that, he continued in his dignified ways and yesterday, when he was celebrating that brilliant Özil goal, is the happiest I’ve seen him in years.
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love flam
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Evil
October 2, 2013 at 12:48 pm
yep extremely disrepectful on our fans part to kick him when he needed us the most…. pathetic really..glad to see him happy
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