I’m having terrible trouble getting going this season. After a prolonged summer break recovering from the effects of the interminable internationals I crept from the long grass, blinking in the light of day, just in time to preview a routine victory against Watford. I was then immediately given the bum’s rush and booted back into touch once again. Why did they need to play more internationals so soon? It beats, as our American friends are so fond of saying, me. You might have thought they’d have learned their lesson, especially the English, following their débâcle en France.
It is, as a consequence, with heady sense of déjà vu, that I float the suggestion that our season proper starts today. Actually, I don’t think it is déjà vu because I’m pretty certain I said as much in my previous preview. Although if it were déjà vu I would think that wouldn’t I? Bloody awkward organ the brain.
Never mind all that. What matters as far as the stale and uninspiring football fodder we’ve been served since last we witnessed the real thing, is did our players come through their ordeals unscathed? All I can tell from Arsène’s remarks to the reptiles yesterday is that Ospina and Alexis didn’t get home until late on Thursday night, the implication being that they may be a little groggy still. With a big game on Tuesday evening one might be forgiven for wondering if our Chilean action man may miss out today.
With Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain champing at the bit to prove himself this season and the Premiership’s most exciting young player, Alex Iwobi, back in the squad we are more than capable of filling the left flank of our attacking triumvirate, but it will still be a shame not to see our diminutive number seven. His first half display against Watford was a joy to watch. He wasn’t just fast, eager and full of running – let’s be fair any moderately healthy and enthusiastic young person can show willing and trot about a bit – but he linked exquisitely with team mates and really terrorised the home defence. Apart from one howler when he chose not to pass with Theo unmarked in the area and the keeper committed his decision making and passing were exemplary. It would have been wonderful to see him build on that, put Southampton to the sword and really make opponents sit up and take notice.
One of the advantages we used to have was players of whom other teams were properly scared. It’s a vital ingredient. I remember Tomáš Rosický scoring a goal against some side from the north. I think they were from the north anyway. They wore red. Possibly. I must confess my memory for the superficial details of life is a little lacking. Blame my great age. Either way my point is the space he created was due in part to the headless chicken act from the opposing defenders as they contemplated a certain French fox in their midst. Henry created room for his mates to exploit simply by being on the pitch. It’s an unmeasurable quality certain people bring to bear on a game often decided by slender margins. Suarez did it for Liverpool and made some fairly good but not spectacular players look very much better for a season. Heck he made Brendan Rodgers look like a half decent manager. Briefly.
I believe Alexis can be that kind of player for us. I think Mesut is the one they really ought to fear but his position on the pitch and his all round game are such that he tends to be the one passing the stiletto rather than sliding it between the ribs. It’s the pugnacious presence of Sanchez which really gets the defender’s attention and when he performs as he did for the first forty five at Vicarage Road they end up chasing shadows or just falling over.
Oops, I’ve done it again. I’ve ignored the laws of The Professional Transfer League and not been talking about the right players have I? No one wants to hear about yesterday’s chip papers when there are new kids on the block. The big question is which, if any, of our recent additions might play today.
Looking back, I think Arsène has a tendency to bung defenders straight onto the grill and see how they sizzle. In contrast I believe he prefers to ease his strikers more carefully into the side. If we take Eduardo as the template he started a lot of cup games but wasn’t the immediate first choice in the league. Of course this is a blog and in common with all other football blogs is based on wild assumption, unsubstantiated guesswork and amateur opinion. If my mind has done me a disservice I apologise. I was simply pulling some vague notions from the dusty, cobwebbed, crumbling back room of my memory to support the hypothesis that while we might see poor Noddy Holding reduced to an also ran despite as good a start to an Arsenal career as one could ever hope to see, I doubt that señor Perez will join Herr Mustafi in the starting line up at 3pm.
I just feel that while we are still bedding in a new midfield linchpin, altering our back five and adjusting to life without Aaron and (potentially) Alexis too, throwing another new face into the mix could only be disruptive and unhelpful. But what on earth do I, you or any of us know about it? Luckily enough, while we fill the hours before kick off with idle speculation, there is a man who makes such decisions for us and all we really need to do is sit back and watch the show.
It needs to be a better show than any we saw against the Saints last season that’s for certain. While their inability to win a league game at the Emirates disqualifies them from being a bona fide bogey team they have been a right royal douleur dans le dos. In fact we’ve only won once in our previous six matches against them in all competitions. The shocking nature of their victory on boxing day when a win would have put us on top of the league still causes me to push my spoon around the mulligatawny in a disconsolate manner (if that match happens to pop into my mind over dinner that is). We simply must do better today. I don’t subscribe to the idea that we can lose too much ground in September but two home defeats on the bounce is seldom title winning form.
I shall not, however, entertain such negative thoughts this morning and I adjure you to abstain from the same. Let us instead anticipate the return of our brave boys from the far flung reaches of the globe, welcome the new faces and eagerly anticipate a similar display to that with which Watford were so comprehensively dismantled. If you’re going to the game I hope you get your money’s worth, if like me you’re confined to the watching on the small screen, I’ll see you here at 3pm.
Positively Arsenal 
Well done steww.. never fear your form will continue to pick up with more games… class is permanent and can clearly be seen throughout this write up as per usual.
Definitely will be a better display! that boxing day match was one of the weirdest last season that I too cannot get my head around… the ref being generous to allow a few extra fouls and offside goals notwithstanding… and goal keeper having the game of his life against us as per usual, we were capable of much mich better!
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ts – I watched their recent game against Sunderland and they were unlucky not to be four up very early on – some days it goes your way and you beat the mighty Arsenal other days you scrape a draw against the likes of Sunderland.
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Its always a great way to start the day, reading the words of Mr. S.Black.
COYG!
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Hello Mills.
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Hello George, hope you’re doing well?
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Hello Mills, Hello George.
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Hello Stew!Hello George,hello ts,hello Mills.
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Hello everyone.
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yeah steww true that… our early game against Liverpool springs to mind..
unlucky not yo be 4 nill up at half time and then sadly losing d game with 2 injuries to boot!
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LOL!!!!
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Mills LOL @ hello Mills.
hi all…. we are set to see the season continue from wtford!
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Cheers, Stew.
It will be interesting to see who starts today in some respects but, the situation we have, where there are now so many possibile combinations each of which will do for me, I find gives me goosebumps. Our depth is there for all to see…all the way to our players on loan.
Southampton games always seem to find me walking alongside some of their fans pre game, for some reason, and on each occasion I have had pleasant football chat, often about the good players they produce and sell on (a large chunk of them to us of course).
I haven’t met a miserable saints fan yet.
I’ll likely meet another or two today and will look forward to a chat and walk, exchanging pleasantries each of us hoping the other is a touch disappointed a couple of hours later. No malice anywhere in our meeting.
It’s what football fandom should be and, with most, is.
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Morning Stew, I see little sign of ring rustiness – though it is not my approach to inspect too closely.
I did not realise that we had quite such a series of results against Saints. A bit odd considering every season someone nicks their manager and 3-4 of their top rated players. Interesting.
Like you I anticipate a blaze of movement on the flanks today, the heavy rain is due to fall all afternoon so it will be a fast pitch with plenty of sliiiiide in place. I expect a little rotation today with Alexis and/or Ozil off in good time if we are 2 goals up.
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Morning you lot.
Steww is 100% correct when he says we all look at the exciting players starting when maybe the most important decisions may lie elsewhere, centre of the park for instance.
We have to control the game first and stop the breakaways before we can impose ourselves on them, is that a good enough cliche.
The main thing is we have squad exciting and talented enough to fulfil these fixtures. COYG
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Morning Mills, morning everyone as the late great RB almost said. And thanks Stew for kick-starting the season proper. Maybe Im getting more patient, but this last interlull hasn’t seemed quite as interminable as previously, but for all that it is good to be back with a run of games to enjoy. We haven’t had quite the rain promised here near Reading yet, so not sure if it will be as wet as all that. Southampton away has been dodgy for the last few seasons, mainly I think because it has been part of the strange Christmas fixture pile-up which often causes odd form reversals. We put five past them not so long ago, with a Podolski special setting the tone: more recently the chances have been there but not the finish, Everything crossed for today. I’ll be listening to the wretched Arsenal Player which will make it seem like we’re losing even if we aren’t!
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Hello FH!
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Afternoon Tim. Arsenal player is at least one step up from Talk Sport
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Morning Stew. Morning everyone. (In Ritchie Benauds voice). Quite remarkable.
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Thanks Steww. Perhaps you’ve been distracted by the Indian summer? Understandably so. Autumn will find us soon enough. The football season has arrived.
–
Southampton have been bringing in good footballers and not at plus three times the going rate. Plus what appears to be the most productive acadamy in the land.
I can’t imagine where they got such a crazy idea, carrying on like they are some kind of football club.
Losing Mane and company will have been a blow but they’ve got other experienced and good players on the books. A good football team, with yet another good manager who is a former student of of our own gaffer.
Southampton FC like football, we like football, I’m looking forward to the football.
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Southampton FC @SouthamptonFC 1m1 minute ago
54: GOAL #Arsenal U18s 2-0 #SaintsFCU18s (Vlad Dragomir)
The hosts’ number ten crashes home a 30-yard strike.
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Ta Stew.
Good afternoon all.
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Southampton FC @SouthamptonFC 12m12 minutes ago
75: GOAL #Arsenal U18s 3-0 #SaintsFCU18s (Reiss Nelson)
The substitute races into the box and slots the ball under Adam Parkes.
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Lucas Pérez @LP10oficial 31m31 minutes ago
First match as a gunner, @Arsenal . #excited #Arsenal #AFCvSFC #ARSSOU #PL
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City beating Utd
Arsenal beat City when they had some for CBs in pre-season.
COYG
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< fit
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Arsenal U18s: Joao Virginia (GK), Jordi Osei-Tutu, Kostas Pileas, Josh Benson, Joseph Olowu, Danny Ballard, Joe Willock, Josh Da Silva (c) (Reiss Nelson 70), Eddie Nketiah (Robbie Burton 70), Vlad Drogomir, Emile Smith Rowe (Tobi Omole 81)
Unused substitute: Arthur Okonkwo
Goals: Nketiah (21), Drogomir (54), Nelson (75)
Southampton U18s: Adam Parkes (GK), Connor Langan, Jake Vokins, Harry Hamblin, (Ollie Gardner 75), Christoph Klarer, Aaron O’Driscoll (c), Harlem Hale, Callum Slattery (Javen Siu 86), Siph Mdlalose, Will Smallbone, Tyreke Johnson
Unused substitutes: Neal Osborn (GK), Jamie Bradley Green
Read more at http://www.saintsfc.co.uk/news/article/2016-17/20160910-under-18-report-arsenal-southampton-3299329.aspx#04jjGXoq5CresKaV.99
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What vitriol would the ‘Experts’ be pouring all over the ether if an AFC defended like Mourinho’s Utd have doing today?
Blimey.
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What a job by Steww? None of that pretentious, psuedo-ITK preview that we must endure elsewhere. We are damn lucky at PA.
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today is our new signing Lucas Perez’s 28th birthday, so maybe a debut, a goal or two, and a win will be in order for a proper celebration
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Fins – I just tweeted almost word for word the same thing. We’d be scorched for letting in goals like that.
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Mourinho can’t coach D-fence?
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Fins; It is not the defending by United which is so dire. It is the manner in which their midfield is being over-run. Despite £350 million in player transfers the players look like strangers on the field. They scored one goal due to a diabolical mistake by Bravo.
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Pep loves these novelty tactics which looks good when they work but pushing up Stones in midfield is an accident waiting to happen. Mark my words.
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Jesus – hope City’s defence gives the ball away to us like this when we play them
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I’m breaking my rule of not watching other teams and I must say this is quite entertaining – for all the wrong reasons of course.
Straight red if a midfielder had tackled like the City keeper just did.
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Bravo mistake again. This is not La Liga where strikers stand off the goal-keepers.
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Nothing wrong in watching Steww. The conventional wisdom is that either of both teams are nailed on to win the title based on their transfer spend and acquisition of big name mgrs.
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Think Mourinho needs to bring Pogba on
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Shotts – I don’t think it’s wrong I just don’t enjoy watching a game where I don’t give a fuck who wins and don’t like, know or care about the players
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Shotts, based upon my (severely) limited knowledge and even more limited experience (watching Dortmund at the Arsenal)
Sanogo > Mkhitaryan
Nolito at CF for city ATM.
Be interesting to see how AFCs new striker gets on in this league.
One hour till KO!
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As I predicted Stones was found out. Pushed up a bit and Rashford outran him for a 50:50 ball and nearly scored. Ball was in the back of the net but ruled offside.
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Rooney is such a graceful, elegant and beautiful human being isn’t he?
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Well. My predictions were wrong wrong and wrong. Which is why they’re a mugs game. No Xhaka? Huge surprise.
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Steww @ 1:44 pm – I enjoy watching other clubs play. I am not as stressed.
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Ah but Shotts that stress is because you care, ergo the opposite of that stress…
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That City keeper is worth the entrance fee on his own.
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AFC with one fit senior CB beat City with Aguero
City without Aguero beat a full strength Utd at Utd.
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Morning, all. How was the derby? Did they kill each other? Does anyone care? I don’t. On to the real stuff. Great article from Stew, and just enough time for a quick cup of coffee before kickoff. COYG!
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