This morning we have a guest post from @The_Beck_ .
We’ve come far since the start of the year, and it feels great.
It’s 2 A.M. and I really want to write.
Across my screen, news articles keep flashing every minute.
“Arsenal can win Champions League – Jurgen Klopp”
“Wenger knows best” – Nick Miller (SSN)
“Arsenal made them (Dortmund) look distinctly average” – Jamie (My Dad’s a Wheeler Dealer) Redknapp (SSN)
“I think we have to start saying it now (that Arsenal are the real thing), the questions are all being answered.” – Gary Neville (SSN)
I really want to share my joy with all the Arsenal supporters that read this site, it feels amazing for me, just to think how different it was to last year to how it is now.
And its not just one player, all of them, all of them, I love all of them.
Rosicky is composing heavy metal r & b rap based pop rock grunge classical and all sorts.
Being spoiled with both Flamini and Arteta, both proving doubters wrong, both pleasing Wenger’s tactically.
Giroud’s hold up play and how he always manages to find Ramsey is nothing short of beautiful.
Ozil can have quiet games and still find magic moments, as can Santi and Theo and Lukas (when they get back from injury) and the list goes on.
Our back four, our back six, our back even if you include Vermaelen, Jenkinson and Monreal all provide great back up and close games out for us excellently. We’re tactically fouling when we need to and our defence is just as beautiful to watch as our attack.
With Szczesny, like we were with De Gea last season, we are watching one of Europe’s best young goalkeepers steadily become one of the top 10 GK’s in Europe, his distribution and movement has improved massively.
Now I am writing on a high, and they don’t always last as you know.
But lets enjoy this high, lets enjoy what our club has done so far, in life you can’t always be worried about what’s going to come back to bite you in the ass.
Because you might be forever be worrying.
Forward,
Victoria Concordia Crescit
Positively Arsenal 
..this is not a game to show our football technique and passing etc..this is for us to go there and KILL
🙂
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Hahaha
Kill.kill.killl
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The best Arsenal partnership was Dennis Bergkamp and anybody.
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I shouldn’t be enjoying this song so much 😦 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PE3zeB-h3NA&feature=youtu.be
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Did I manage to get moderated or is my browser bananas?
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Second try! I should not be enjoying this song so much! 😦 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PE3zeB-h3NA
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That is very true. He thought and anticipated for three people. All his actions measured and calculated. There is still one DENNIS. DENNIS the menace.
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that song is excellent.
I think it would be difficult not to expect the team to mentally and physically tired after such a fantastic and important win on Wednesday. Usually this would be the time to freshen up the team however with the injury list we currently have this is a luxury we cant afford. For these reasons I think we might start with both Arteta and Flamini, we don’t need to win the game in the first five minutes. Obviously the opposing view would be for Matthew to come on for the final 30 minutes if we were tiring.
Going back to the point of the article, beck is 100% right we have to totally enjoy the good times that football brings. With only four trophies up for grabs every year those pot mongers who can only be happy with something shiny at the end of the season are cheating themselves of so many highs they might as well become goth and rejoice I misery. How do people honestly think the fans of most of the 92 survive every year its because they ride the rollercoaster and scream loudly at each time they touch their own particular sky and when you seem to be heading into the abyss still holding on to the belief you can go even higher next time. It is why I still jump up and punch the air at goals that meant so much so many years ago and why watching old hero’s like Rocky still makes me cry, it what makes being a fan a irreplaceable part of our lives.
Anyone who ignores that or doesn’t feel that is just playing at it I think we call them plastics.
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Positively Arsenal in fire today! This is like the good old days somewhere else. Only difference is today I feel much better about our chances vs the Man scum.
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Almost every time I feel the need to comment about something I find Shotta has beaten me to it.
Pundits sway in the wind of opinion, they are complimentary towards Arsenal now because what else can they do when we are five points clear at the top? (Gary Neville is the exception, he has always been complimentary of Arsenal as a club and shown great respect for Arsene). Any blip will see them return to ‘asking legitimate questions’ of the manager, board, players and tea ladies. For the moment they have moved us from top four strugglers to title favourites as they seek to crank up the pressure and expectations – build us up so you can knock us down. And knock us down they will as soon as the opportunity presents itself.
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gary neville is a wenger fan…shocking how this previously horrible piece of shit has managed to make me appreciate and respect him…. blleeaaah…..anyway..these mancs will be up for this game and will run like mad dogs ..i love wenger’s mind games on rvp….i want us to stuff them ..but since everyone is predicting we will slaughter them i will go for the draw.1-1 ..2-2….and that chelsea fucks up again…
liverpool fan today told me he would like us to beat the scum but prefers a draw so that liverpool stays close for the title …. townsend has come out saying penalty fc can win the title …….and they call us deluded ????
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Santi is due a big match
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I doubt Wenger sets up his teams up just to showcase their beautiful passes. And if we’re going to kill, we’re not going to do it without one of Santi or Rosicky.
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Neville is not as big a Wenger fan as he is respectful of what he is capable of.
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I agree with Gains that Arteta deserves a lot of credit for his performance at Dortmund, a battling and mature exhibition playing on an early card and fending off targeting for the secon yellow from an unscrupulous diver.
It is exciting to go up to OT with strength and confidence, as well as the knowledge tat this team could even get better. We can expect more to come from Ozil. Our speed and wide play will improve with Theo, Podolski, and the Ox returning. We’ve weathered some injuries to several important players already. And we might even strengthen with a quality player in January if the right opportunity appears.
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I think Santi had one v. Liverpool, but certainly he’s just on his way back from a busy summer and injury, so he will be playing better and better in the coming games.
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yes gains but arteta cant kick both them cunts alone…..he needs help or he will get two yellows very early 🙂
neville was the only one brave enough to say things as they were ( be careful arsenal have built a stadium they had to grind it out for a few years etc etc) and not repeat the nonsense of media and morgans and hansens….for that he has my respect..compared to the martin samuel who calls our past 7 years “accepting systemic failure”……the cunt…
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If I was offered a point at Man Utd right now I don’t believe I would take it, the only thing I can see denying us all three points on Sunday is the referee. I think Man Utd, much like Liverpool, have two excellent strikers disguising an average side. After keeping clean sheets against Suarez & Sturridge and Lewa & Reus we should have no fear of their strike pairing.
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Neville is simply a realist.
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Have to say I know fans of non-top four clubs, fans of clubs that have never come close to winning anything, ever, let alone in the last few years, who utterly loathe the self-pitying amongst us who continue to demand ‘their’ Arsenal back.
And when you look at it from the perspective of those more ‘humble’ fans, unburdened as they are by the weight of trophies or trophy-expectation, it’s easy to see their point.
It’s also easy to see how those disloyal to our club show themselves up and let the club down. Hopefully the ‘deadwood’ of the existing squad will continue to provide the goals and the saves that will lead the club to deserved success and lead the idiots to pastures new.
Perhaps some suitably shitty, muddy place they can roll around in to their heart’s content.
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Neville is simply repeating what we had been saying for six or seven years. Only an idiot would deny that Wenger was producing the best possible football he could under the restraints he had to contend with, all the while the league was invaded by dodgy oilmen who poured money into clubs with zero history in order to clean up their images. This is why I will never, ever forget the dooming bastards who put their foot in while we were down.
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Here here Gains.
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ANDREW
its high time and the opportunity is there right now to get rid of our deadwood.
The deadwood in our fan base that is. A totally frustrating bunch. Even when proven wrong year after year they can keep a straight face and move goalposts.
LEO S
spot on. The referee is the only cause for concern for me. Our defense is much stronger and more organized than theirs. And our midfielders. ? Well what can you say about our midfielders. Only the best , most creative and assertive than anyone else in Europe. Maybe even the world. We will overrun them all over. Should be nice game 0-2 or 0-3.
Unless they start kicking us with impunity with the ref . Playing his part. I surly hope not but I can see it coming from a mile away. .
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sure neville was just talking sense but noone else did……………………………are they all stupid or did some do it on purpose ? compared to sya some of our own like lawrence and wright who were directly questioning wenger’s managerial qualities…it was surprising to see common sense coming from the least expected person…as for the doomers absolutely no forgiveness..weak and spineless
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The temptation is to play the line-up that rolled over Pool and Dortmund, and it is a superb and spirited formation. Or do you alter slightly to adjust for the tactics of the day, noting the high stakes for Yoo, which will see a high tempo gutsy physical encounter? Moyes will revert to default, battle of the midfield, physical, northern, don’t let us pass; speed on the flanks, long diagonal passes, send them crosses in, Yoo is the new Liverpool. And the fast counter-attack that has seen Yoo beat a dominant Arsenal in seasons past, and in which they still excel (because they do have the players). The key though is that the time-honoured tactics of yore that saw a team hold or sometimes beat Cescenal, Nasrinal, and even van Persenal simply don’t work against Artetenal, Aarenal, Santinal and Mozarsenal, never mind Kosper the scariest ghost in town. Expect an epic. I suspect Flamini might start though, as an away encounter. A huge consideration is that we do not concede in the opening period, and in a way we might see, unexpectedly, a bit of stodgy, studied, sultry and somewhat dirty game.
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A superficial version of the very tactics we employed against Dortmund are the most likely against us. They cannot outplay this Arsenal midfield, so better not to try at home.
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As always, the best outcome for us is when teams attempt an open game and play football (all credit to them, I highly admire these teams and their managers, every time), but I cannot see Moyes taking such risk. He will take no risks. He will look for the old-fashioned 1-0 win, Rooney or v.P score and then retreat to the trenches.
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The key is Giroud for me. These guys haven’t played him much, and don’t know what he’s capable of in that back to the goal ball-holding role.
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Zelalem played full 90 minutes for the your against Dortmund in a 2-2 draw!!
Anyway, just had to re-post this, in full, and no apology.
By Walter Broeckx
As this game was played in Germany and those of us living in Belgium have the major German TV stations in our basic media package it was very interesting to have the view of German football pundits concerning Arsenal, the game and of course Mr Wenger.
First of all the club. I think people in Germany see Arsenal as the best run club in England. People in Germany respect Arsenal for what they have achieved over the last 8 years. Unlike pundits in England who cannot repeat the 8 year mantra enough, this is not an issue at all in Germany. People in general respect the fact that Arsenal has build a completely new stadium where everyone can have an perfect view on the pitch. And more they totally admire the fact that Arsenal paid this stadium with their own money.
The fact that Arsenal is running at a profit is also something that people in Germany like. It is the way they think that football clubs should operate. Arsenal would be a perfect team that could operate in the Bundesliga and be in line with their financial fair play rules. That is what is important for them.
And the fact that Arsenal has a growing German influence is something that makes them feel proud. They consider Arsenal London (as they usually call us with the addition “London”) as a club that with the bigger German influence is helping to develop the German players. In particular before the game they couldn’t hide their pride about the fact that the 3 Germans won the land a plane contest against the English players. They adore their players very much and are extremely proud about the fact how players like Per, Podolski and Özil have made an impact at Arsenal.
About the game I listened to the match commentator and the talk after the game. And the general feeling was that Arsenal did what Dortmund did to Arsenal 14 days ago. In that game they felt that Arsenal was on top for a long period in the game but couldn’t put that advantage on the score sheet. And this time when Dortmund came racing out at the start of the second half it was this time Arsenal that caught them and scored a goal. Just like Dortmund did it at the Emirates.
They said that Arsenal soaked up the pressure, were very focussed and strong in their defensive work (praising Per most of course) and were waiting for Dortmund to make a mistake, to get tired and then punish us. A very mature performance one could say. And maybe that is what it was.
They didn’t make a big fuss about the penalty shouts in favour of Dortmund. Both correctly handled by the ref. Arteta made no foul at all and Per was having his hand on Lewandowski but didn’t pull him back. So no fouls, no penalties was the conclusion.
Immediately after the game they interviewed a Dortmund player and he couldn’t understand the questions as us Gooners were singing too loud. Sorry, gentleman of the TV but well we were a bit happy at the time. They also interviewed Per and he was glowing with pride. I think the Germans at Arsenal know even better what a great win this was for Arsenal. Dortmund at home is a game most teams fear and I remember Werder Bremen with Mertesacker (I think) getting a big defeat around their ears a few years ago. So now being the winner of this game was very meaning full and important for our Germans in the team.
Arsenal getting their revenge for their not fully deserved loss 14 days ago was the verdict about the game.
Let us move on to Wenger. We all have heard the friendly words from Klopp about Wenger. Or should I say Sir Wenger?
Before the game the German TV showed an interview he gave to them in the stadium before the match. And it was amazing to hear how fluent Wenger speaks German. I am familiar with English, French and German and know something of how accents sound when one speaks one of them speaks another language. And my god if anyone watched that interview he would have had no doubt that Wenger was a German manager.
No foreign accent that I heard. The questions in German and the answers came out in fluent German apart from the normal Wenger hesitance to not say it all. And when the interview was finished the host of the game mentioned what an amazing chap Wenger is for giving an interview in such fluent German.
You could feel the way they hold him in high regards. Not just for his managerial status and competences but for the way he behaves himself in the world of football. And the more German players he has under his guidance the more his good name and fame is being spread in Germany.
You could feel the respect from all in Germany not just for Arsenal as a club. But most certainly also for the fact that this club has a manager like Wenger.
Of course for some this will be no reason to change their opinion on Wenger. After all….what do football experts, other managers and football pundits know about football and Wenger. Because our Wenger-haters know much better than all of them.
Of course if you look at the level of success German football has known over the years why should we believe and trust those Germans? Well I do believe them a bit more than the ordinary Wenger-Out fan from Arsenal.
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Thanks Zimpaul. It fills you with pride to see how much Arsenal is respected in Germany, France, Spain, etc. I have felt that Arsenal is appreciated more in other countries than in England and more by other fans with a brain than our brainless ones. Even though genuine compliments are few, a single one can negate a thousand stupid criticisms. I would take a few compliments over mainstream fake over-hype all day. I think all of us here would.
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ZIMPAUL
most amazing write up by WALTER. hats off. He does ARSENAL proud everytime. Thanks for reposting that.
The average German spectator or pundit is far more mature and educated about the sport and how it should be played than the rest. They also seem to have more wholesome values and higher ethics as far as sustainability issue. And they are more capable of patiance. Respect back……
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A further tribute to Wenger, I was first pissed with him referring to van traitor as a gunner, but I realize that’s what makes him an extraordinary manager in its true meaning. I don’t think we can even phantom how hurt and betrayed he must feel by some former players. Yet he always contains the negativity and comes out with positive words for them. That’s a fantastic trait to have as manager. All current and future players under him will deeply appreciate that. Hallelujah
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dont bite apropos he is playing with robin’s mind …”remember who made you”….hehehe …
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Did you notice he now refers to him as “Robin Van Persie” rather than “Robin” as he used to.A subtle indication of him not having any personal relationship with him any more
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What I like is that the “German” perspective is simple and rational, anyone can get it; it looks at us from the outside and what’s not to understand? The successes are glaring, and that’s not counting form over the last 12 months (most number of points in EPL, November ’12 to November ’13, as Anicoll said). So where is the sense of failure and trepidation, the expectation of failure, that so poisoned the fan sense of wellbeing coming from, if not anti-Arsenal crusade by media/pundits and blogs openly anti-Wenger? Therefore, why are “we” (some Arsenal supporters) so infected and timid?
It is because, secretly, deep down, these are the enemy within that wanted us to be Manchester United if not Chelsea; by which I mean wanted the public accolades of the “conventional route”, and not the rebel path, and the sacrifices entailed. I pity them because chickens tend to come home to roost.
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Sensational Arsenal November 9, 2013 at 8:47 am
my explanation is identical to that masterpiece from arsenal vision ( brookshaw i think) talking about the limitations of english football school of thought compared to what wenger brings to their game…the islanders jealousy and spite and not wanting to admit that he owns them in their national sport…and we are racist anglophobes for speaking the truth..lol…
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Oh, Wenger’s is a lightning fast knife-thrust to the conscience and the confidence of vP, delivered with a smile, make no mistake. He joined so young, about 20. He was impatient. He was tapped up. Does he regret? That’s a question you must ask him.
Ouch!!!!
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Wenger has just said, “you and I know the truth of it Robin, now we’re coming to visit you, are you man enough? do you have the respect and humility that makes a man?”, knowing precisely what happened, why and when.
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A must read … excerpt below
http://www.sportingitelligence.com/2013/10/24/arsene-wenger-what-is-he-good-for-251001/
This in depth analysis by Sporting Intelligence is mainly focused on Arsenal whose net spending on transfers over the period 2000-12 was one tenth that of Chelsea (57m versus 570m). It attempts to assess how successful or otherwise Arsene Wenger’s strategy has been.
It does have data about other clubs, including the spending on net transfers and wages by the ‘top six’ clubs over the twelve year period.
Chelsea come top with a spend of £2.078 billion. The two Manchester clubs are close to each other, United on £1.43bn and City on £1.4bn. Liverpool follow on £1.1bn with Spurs on £777m
By Nick Harris
24 October 2013
APART from helping to transform English domestic football culture, on and off the pitch, and delivering Arsenal fans two Doubles, an Invincibles season plus multiple domestic and European finals – what has Arsene Wenger ever done for Arsenal?
The research laid out in this article and in the supplementary material concludes:
FIRST: Consistently and with the rare exceptions of two seasons out of the 17 between 1996-97 and 2012-13, Wenger has produced teams that have either out-performed expectation on the pitch given the resources available to him off it, or met those expectations.
It is well established that he has not spent much, net, in the transfer market. This research shows, using official club accounts, that in the 17 seasons from 1996-97 to 2012-13 inclusive, Arsenal spent £444.5m on transfers, and received £341.3m, so spent £103.2m net in 17 years.
BUT the research also shows that much of that net spending was laid out on agents’ fees and other ‘normal’ costs of deals, and the ‘real’ net spent over those 17 years was more like £23.4m. This is tiny compared to any of Arsenal’s main competitors.
Arguably more important, Wenger has very frequently out-performed Arsenal’s wage spend – and wages are a key determinant of success in elite football.
SECOND: Analysis suggests that Wenger’s worst ever Arsenal season, in terms of performing less well than finances should have dictated, was in 2005-06, when as well as finishing in the top four of the Premier League (again), he also took Arsenal to the final of the Champions League.
THIRD: That season, 2005-06, was the worst ever not just because Wenger had more to spend than key rivals yet finished behind them, but because Arsenal amassed the fewest points of any Wenger season (67), finished as low as any Wenger season (fourth), and had less ‘team stability’ than any other season of the Wenger era.
FOURTH: That perhaps Wenger is telling the truth when he speaks, often, about wanting value in the transfer market, and wanting to buy players when they are better than he already has. Because he knows, from that 2005-06 season, and from the following season and a few others, that all business is not necessarily good business. And too much business can have a negative impact on the team, if selection becomes too ‘unstable’, which we can show, in a general sense, for Arsenal and key rivals, is a bad thing.
FIFTH: Evidently there is some issue at play hindering Arsenal in recruitment. Whether this is the loss of key ally David Dein still being felt from 2007 – a view to which I still subscribe – is debatable.
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Extraordinarily, the article does not factor in (or mention) the complexity of new stadium and training revamp on finance versus results on the pitch; it looks squarely and simply, with tables, at how far overall spend and net spend, transfers + wages have produced results on the pitch. Predictably Arsenal leads to the table of six (Yoo, City, Pool, Spurs, Chelsea, us), and compared to the big spenders, to a massive degree.
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in arsenal.com there is a video of his latest press conference( 18mins)..at some point between minute 14-16 he says …” look we had to go through years where we were financialy tight but without fading too much from the top” . this is viewed by english journalism as systemic failure….. hihihi ….so who is biassed? who is the real bastard in the last 7-8 year story ? wenger ? or the english media and perceptions on the game who are either doing it intentionally or because they are thick and cant comprehend his genius …
why would a journalist intentionally choose to compare arsenal in the middle of its biggest transition in its history with chelsea or united who were specifically investing to win titles ? and how fucked up is the arsenal fan for not seeing the bigger picture?
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This is so wrong.
Why all the mirth and happiness?
Don’t you all know we are playing the red scum tomorrow and their ref pals?
Ahh, fuck it.
I as giddy as a kid on Christmas Eve today.
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I thought Andrew Oliver refereed the NLD very well – kept the game moving and did not fall for the theatrics – a clown like Webb would have whipped out at least one red card, maybe more, and made himself the star of the show
So don’t let me down tomorrow Mr Oliver
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Hunter, it is not just that. We didnt follow the conventional flavour of the past decade and get ourselves a sugar daddy. While everyone was getting excited over how much player x cost, Wenger would go out and buy an young kid despite everyone telling him that the recipe for success was to buy such and such superstar. While all of them whipped themselves into frenzy, Wenger would calmly say no, this is what we are going to do.
What is more glamourous? Chelsea buying two players for 30 million each or Arsenal being conservative and paying off the debt?
Arsene basically pissed on their capitalist binging and they hated him for it.
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Not to mention all that Wenger and his team did from 96 to 04.
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I hope Koscielny catches Ashley Young in mid air as he dives. Rooney is too fat to catch. Persie dives too. The penalty box is going to be a spring board for Manure players tomorrow.
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Just watch the manuoo plastic fans tomorrow.
The don’t sing much these days.
The Saints fans silenced them early and out voiced them for that game.
Our away boys and gals will deafen them, as usual.
……and it’s ARSENAL, Arsenal FC, We are by FAR the GREATEST team the world has ever seen…..
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Hunter, it is not just that. We didnt follow the conventional flavour of the past decade and get ourselves a sugar daddy.
and shouldnt we be admired and respected for that? what kind of mentality makes it ok to bash us ? thats my problem……it takes a serious evil wanker to talk such shit about us….
exactly ..the period between 96-04 was wenger pissing on their football practices/theories/customs/traditions and making them look obsolete, stone-age, neanderthals…….and they hate him for it and consequently arsenal
so .. it is more like the peasant who cant identify with progress and prefers the known and familiar. .even though it is outdated and wrong….to me it is clear as day that it is a ” this is england” mentality against the open-mindness of a wenger type figure….. that is why i will never forgive them for they instigated premiditated assaults on arsenal and our players after being brainwashed for years that to beat arsenal you have to kick them and get stuck in their faces instead of trying to outplay us. ……
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and for our fans to not be able to see that and turn against the club manager and players now thats a red card offence…out!! …no not even red card…life ban from stadiums or anything to do with football
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Looking forward to the end of an E(v)ra tomorrow!
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