You have to have some depth in your squad to rest the kind of quality we rested last night. But it’s more than just the players who took a breather, who will therefore necessarily return refreshed and stronger for their recumbent relaxation, the significance of the sheer depth and quality of the squad Arsène has patiently put together is best exemplified by the example of Theo Walcott.
In recent seasons we would have missed Theo horribly. I believe that we have missed him this time and in fact would have been winning our games by a greater margin with him in the team. However the difference is that we haven’t needed to rush him back. Players are allowed to ease themselves back into fitness and contention. Players approaching the autumn of their careers to who’s form three matches a week would surely be injurious, can be omitted from the starting line up and then come back into it with the running and enthusiasm of younger men. Ask yourself what good it would have done to have rushed Theo back into the team after his operation, the weight of an expectant fan base on his fragile shoulders only for his stitches to burst and his spleen and various other significant organs to spurt down the front of his tunic spoiling the effect of the prettily designed red and white strip. This tasteless scenario was avoided because of the riches available to our illustrious leader and I think the gains will be long term and evidential.
In case you were wondering, I was planning to deliver one of my contemporaneous match reports but my wife contrived to find me something better to do and so I missed Nic Bendtner’s opening goal and spent a frustrating time stream chasing eventually finding myself in no fit mood to invent a match report for a game I couldn’t watch. However I caught up towards the end of the first half just in time to see Hull enjoy a few brief moments of possession in between our magical passing football. None of their moves amounted to much but I’m sure twitter went into meltdown because the opposition dared to have a go. I don’t join any social media based conversations during the match because people simply prove themselves, time and again, incapable of any calm sense of perspective or in fact the ability to actually enjoy the match they’re watching. Instead all you read are trotted out clichés about how we ‘need a second goal’ are ‘playing nice football but must kill off the game’, and how much they ‘hate Nic Bendtner but will support him as he’s wearing the shirt’. It is tiresome in the extreme and they need to get a grip on themselves.
Talking of our Great Dane, when I finally got to see the highlights of the first half I was amused to see how his goal (very very well taken) came at the end of some superb slick one touch passing culminating in contributions from two of the candidates for scapegoat of the season. Carl Jenkinson’s perfect run and cross and Nic’s beautifully skilful header were all the sweeter for those of us who support the entire Arsenal squad without the self serving need to add the word ‘but’ and some mealy mouthed qualification to that sentence. They are both excellent understudies to two extraordinarily good players. Carl has a huge future in the game, anyone who can’t see it is watching the wrong sport and Nic is a proven international goalscorer. Surely good enough qualifications for our or anybody else’s reserves?
I cannot talk about those who stepped up last night without a mention for one of my absolute favourite players in the first team squad. Nacho Monreal has accepted the second fiddle to Kieran Gibbs virtuoso Left back role with apparent equanimity. Never a murmur of discontent and always leaping from the subs bench to play out of position with an irrepressible enthusiasm and lively passionate ebullience and no little skill. I was delighted to see him given a start yesterday and I speak as one who has followed Gibbs career with a keen appreciation. I think if we have players of Monreal’s undoubted talent waiting in the wings we can put to bed the tired lie about us lacking depth in our squad. Theo, Jack, Mikel Arteta, Tommy Vermaelen, Bacary Sagna, Abou Diaby, Olivier Giroud, not in the starting line up last night and yet the team were scintillating.
All of this raises the question – what more do people want from our reserves? It really is pathetic how some supporters cannot just support without telling the world how important and hard won that support is, how the club and it’s staff must in some way ‘earn’ it. If you are one of those all I want to say to you is this. How about you just enjoy what the team have served up so far this season. How about you STFU and enjoy the beautiful football. How about you STFU and enjoy the wonderful goals. How about you STFU and enjoy the solid defending. How about you STFU and enjoy the winning runs. How about you STFU and just enjoy being top of the league.
Oh and if things start to go wrong and we suffer a dip in form and you are so distraught and spineless as to be incapable of getting behind the team when it needs you most, then how about you just STFU altogether.
By Stew Black
Positively Arsenal 
apparently when the female official disallowed the goal nufc fans “sang she said no robin she said no”!…priceless
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PG, so why a 3 this time or is it simply the times getting it wrong
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Or Arsene getting older?
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How many of you remember 2-3 years ago when many of us said elsewhere that Man Utd was deteriorating as a team especially in midfield? That signing Cleverly and Jones were signs of weakness, not strength. One year ago we said, by signing Van Judas, Slur Alex was overpaying for a top-top goalscorer as a short-term solution to a lack of talent in midfield. They won the title and we were treated as delusional. Who is having the last laugh now?
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Seeing the name Yohan Cabaye today and I remember our bid for him over the summer. Do you guys also think like I do that it was a smoke screen for the Ozil deal? Not to be arrogant about our midfield, but I am struggling to see how he could have gotten games. Maybe as a sub for Arteta and Flamini?
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I think he usually signs as a contract extension… so it probably still boils down to the 4 yr deal cos it seems he delayed the signing this time around a little more than usual… Not too sure though… Much guess work in this
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Osvaldo!
Southampton 1 City 1
The way Southampton have played is encouraging when thinking about next week. City’s mutant squad always dangerous but there is much to admire from Southampton.
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Southampton is all over Man City and Chelsea can’t get around a Stoke team which can’t string two passes together.
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Oswaldo made Konpany look like Ryan Shawcross.
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SA, Cabaye’s name was being bandied about before Flamini was on anyone’s radar. I imagine he would have taken turns playing n the middle for Arteta.
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The ‘mousers are 2-0 and unlikely to throw it away at home against the hammers.
Now it’s going to be a very interesting second half for the blue mercenaries against plucky red and white teams.
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Stephen (I don’t want to play for) Ireland!
2-1 to the Orcs.
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Drat.
2-2 back at the Orc pit.
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Seems Chelsea is further en-route for another hockey or is it cricket score again after 4 -3 the last time out. hope its stole that finishes ahead though
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Thanks gains. I thought we had already got Flamini when we bid for Cabaye.
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I think that Soton is a better team without Wanyama who may win the ball in midfield but, often or not, simply passes it back to the opposition. A bit like Song to be honest.
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Looks like Gazprom don’t fancy it on a cold afternoon in Stoke.
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Bwahahahahahahahaha. Fuck off, Mou, you sour bastard.
Pellegrini’s subs were awful.
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Chelski barely beat West Brom the other day. This loss was coming for a while.
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SA
My thoughts about Cabaye are the same. Who could he replace in our midfield? He was be a bench warmer
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Fins
Are you rubbing it in? A bit of schadenfreude perhaps?
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Come on the macams…….
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Just adding to the speculation on AW’s contract extension, 3 years takes him nicely up to the next World Cup and could theoretically enable him to have a stint as an International Manager (presumably for France), from 2017.
Results today continuing to validate Arsenal’s achievements in games that were not previously considered ‘tests’.
And tomorrow represents a further wonderful opportunity to confirm our place at the top of the league although at this rate we may yet struggle to beat anyone above us (just in case anyone was trying to extract what little negative there can be surrounding AFC).
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What do Schrödinger and Özil have in common? An umlaut……well done Bradyesque…
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a great weekend so far
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Any Positivistas going to the ManShitty v Arsenal game next week? Happy to meet up with anyone…..
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Hunter
Have you just woken up?…well you were not dreaming……
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heh… something like that.
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There were no few doomers that wanted Moyes or Coyle to replace Arsene…..well I would love to hear from them now…..
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A minutes silence for Nelson Mandela……….Here! Here
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Gains @ 4:57pm
“Pellegrini’s subs were awful.” He seems uncertain about the way he wants to play. He is all over the map:.4-4-2, 4-3-3, 4-2-3-1. I am not sure he knows how to control games. His best attacking players (Nasri and Aguero in particular) are not very helpful defensively. Contrast the two with Giroud and Ramsey.
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It’s up to Arsenal not to miss this opportunity tomorrow.
Everton are really good this season and Arsene has to keep one eye on the Napoli game, which isn’t an excuse our so called rivals can use today.
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Certainly some surprising results today. Tomorrow is anotehr day but today things went our way in most relevant games I think. The bin dippers are something of a hot and cold team it seems although have to admit their current ‘hot’ is ‘very’.
“Any Positivistas going to the ManShitty v Arsenal game next week? Happy to meet up with anyone…..”
Unfortunately not Georgaki. Got ticket for the newcastle game (gambling the snow won’t stop the trains/game/world) and am at every home game and one day I WILL bump into folk from here I hope.
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Just as im celebrating the results today my nerves for tomorrow start growing a 7 point lead would be brilliant
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Goooooooooal! For the macams……
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There is a guy who describes himself as ‘Bejing Red’ and tweets as a Manure fan.
After the game today he tweeted this:
@Beijing Red:
“SO EMBARRASSING THAT WE LOSE TO FUKING FISH MONGERS #NUFC.
THE TOWN PEASANTS WILL BE CELEBRATING THAT IN THE BIGG FISH MARKET TONIGHT. FFS!!”
To which a Newcastle fan responded.
“@andyhare28: @Moyes_Must_Go Take it youve never been to Newcastle then?”
Beijing Red:
“FUK NO. — ADVERT IN CHINA WARN ME OF NEWCASTLE PLAGUE AND FAMINE”
He then said:
Beijing Red 4 Lyf @Moyes_Must_Go
‘WHICH OFFICIAL DID #MUFC FORGET TO PAY THIS SEASON!? CANNOT BELIEVE MY LOYALTY BEING TESTED LIKE THIS! NOT FAIR ON ASIAN FANBASE!!”
The Manure fans are frequently incensed by him – I think he must be an Arsenal fan in reality.
It’s brilliant!! 🙂
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HenryB at 6:16 pm
Fact is sometimes stranger than fiction. Beijing Red is comedy gold.
Remind me of a shot of plastic fans leaving Old Trfford in extra time today but the Asian tourists held strong. What will they tell their friends when they return home.
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He spreads his worm upon the water and the fishes bite week in week out Henry – he is a master of the one line insult
Do I follow you on Twitter ?
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anicoll, as if. 🙂
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My prediction for the Sunday headlines ?
‘Arsene stalls on contract while Glazers open talks’
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Henry – yes, that Beijing Red is almost up there with The Arsenal Gentleman as one of Twitters top, top accounts; about as off-message and un-PC as you could wish to get and thoroughly entertaining. Almost as hilarious is the number of people who don’t realise it’s a spoof account and hit the roof with him/her! At which point he goes even more off-message etc.
Spuds slowly turning the screw on Sunderland but nonetheless making pretty heavy weather of things and the game could still yet go either way despite advantage lying with the tiny tots at 1-2. Unimpressive by totenham.
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I dont find Arsenal Gent funny.Is it just me then?
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It’s not just you PG.
John O’Shea – A wanker yet again.
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He’s bit of a Bale PG, a one trick pony…
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Anyone reading the other blog recently?
It’s like a school where all the bright kids have been moved to a better Academy (thank you PG).
All that’s left are the Nelson Muntz’s and Ralph Wiggum’s of blogdom over there.
We have the Lisa Simpson’s & Martin’s (the A,B,C of science fiction) here.
Although Hunter = Bart
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PG is Smithers obvs…
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Shut up Krusty
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I dont read “the other blog” DC .
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Seriously,Is it still the end of an era there? Or have they shown some contrition and humility?
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Hey hey heeey!
Well I don’t think we could have hoped for better results today. Well not realistically anyway. Now for the game tomorrow and a win is a must. Already nervous, gawd knows how Ill be by 4pm tomorrow??
As good as Everton’s win was vs ManU, the fact that the Toon did exactly the same today kinda tells me its more down to the manc team being in piss poor form more than everton being an excellent side. Martinez’s team are playing well, but we should have far too much for them.
Im going for yet another 2-0.
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