After years of consistently failing to gain any traction with their lies that Arsene Wenger is under-achieving, the mainstream media is now giddy with delight. For the first time in 12 years Arsenal is seriously struggling.
All the enemies of the Arsenal-way and their fellow travelers are now “jizzing” with delight, practically drooling in their underpants. Now is a real chance to sow fear and doom, to split the fanbase and to put pressure on the Board to fire the manager who has not only been its most successful but, only last year, guided the club to second place in the Premier League and one year earlier completed back-to-back FA cup victories.
But then again, most sensible Arsenal supporters with two functioning brain cells and a working synapse are aware, long before the current political uproar concerning “fake” news, that Arsene and AFC have been victims of bias and slanted journalism for years. None of the following headlines come as any surprise.
The Sun:
“Arsene Wenger is taking the p*** out of Arsenal fans by continuing his selfish soap opera”
ESPN:
“Arsenal top-four failure would be a disastrous end to Arsene Wenger era”
It is entirely predictable that the mainstream media’s will use a poor run of form to convince the fickle public that this is sufficient reason to condemn a manager who has been the most consistent in the Premier League over the past 20 years not to mention being the most successful in the history of Arsenal Football Club. Is there a better example of George Orwell’s double-think. For those who celebrate Orwell but conveniently forget his writings, let me remind you of his definition of double think:
“To know and not to know, to be conscious of complete truthfulness while telling carefully constructed lies, to hold simultaneously two opinions which cancelled out, knowing them to be contradictory and believing in both of them, to use logic against logic… “
A perfect example was Jim Beglin, who was Jon Champion’s sideman in their commentary of Arsenal’s match versus West Brom as broadcast by NBC here in the US. He, at around the 2 minute mark, could without contradiction, make the following comment with respect to Arsene:
“He doesn’t deserve the criticism cause he has been an Arsenal great….The problem with Arsenal fans is they feel they need to voice their frustration (be)cause he is no longer an Arsenal great.”
Isn’t that a precise example of double think?
Neither Beglin or Champion, like the rest of the other sock-puppets in the mainstream media, have the “cojones” or the integrity to admit that Arsenal’s bad spell has nothing to do with Arsene’s ability to coach or to manage a team. Even Wenger’s most fervent defenders are the first to admit the team messed up on defending two corners but a fair minded observer would disclose that West Brom is very, very good at corners having scored 12 prior to the Arsenal match. Why should it take Wenger to point out that so far this season the team has been quite good at set pieces and corners?
What is even more abject is the refusal of almost all the pundits and experts to acknowledge that Arsenal was greatly weakened by the absence of its two most highly accomplished midfield technicians, Mesut Ozil and Santi Cazorla. As I have repeatedly emphasized the data shows the team relies on the creativity of both players to offensively dominate the opposition by creating chances and scoring goals.
Surely it is clear to even the least perceptive of the mainstream media that Ozil is very important to Arsenal. It was only one week earlier, in the FA cup game versus Lincoln City, that in the first 20 minutes Arsenal huffed and puffed without creating chances until Ozil joined the proceedings. The visitors were eventually spanked 5-0 as the German orchestrated the offence. Surely the mainstream media has access to even better sources of data than this lowly blogger which demonstrate that in the absence of Carzola, Ozil is more vital than ever to Arsenal.
| 2016/17 | Win | Draw | Loss |
| With Ozil | 67% | 14% | 19% |
| Overall | 55% | 19% | 26% |
| Difference | -12% | 5% | 7% |
Without Ozil, there is a 12% decline in the number of PL games won and a concurrent 7% increase in games loss compared to overall team performance
This has been the general trend ever since Ozil joined the club in 203 but is even more pronounced this year. The table below illustrates.
| 2013 to date | Win | Draw | Loss |
| With Ozil | 60% | 23% | 17% |
| Overall | 57% | 23% | 20% |
| Difference | -3% | 0% | 3% |
To back up my findings, I did some further analysis of the Squawka data I published early March and the offensive disparity between Carz-Ozil and The Rest of midfielders quite alarming. By the way: this is not to put down any of the The Rest but there is a reason why Carzola and Ozil are winners of World Cup and European Championship medals versus none for their midfield colleagues.
| Carz-Ozil | The Rest | |
| Avg Performance Score | 26 | 17 |
| Avg Appearances | 15 | 18 |
| Shot Accuracy | 59% | 26% |
| Avg. Pass Accuracy | 89% | 88% |
| Avg. Pass Length (m) | 16 | 16 |
| Avg. Chances Created | 1.97 | 0.80 |
| Avg. Goals Scored | 0.24 | 0.05 |
| Avg. Defensive Actions | 1.5 | 1.83 |
| Avg. Duels Won | 41% | 49% |
The midfielders available to Arsene on Saturday are collectively inferior in quality to Carzola and Ozil.
· 34% disparity in Avg Performance Score,
· Shot Accuracy is 33 percentage points inferior
· Avg Chances Created is 59% worse
· Avg Goals Scored is 79% less
On the defensive side, The Rest has much better statistics in terms of Avg Defensive Actions and Avg Duels Won. But at the end of the day football games are won by having the ability to score more goals than the other team.
It was therefore no surprise that despite being nice and tidy and mustering over 77% possession Arsenal was unable to create sufficient Chances and Shots on Target to keep West Brom at bay as evident by the the following statistics from whoscored.com
| West Brom | KEY STAT | Arsenal |
| 12 | Shots | 11 |
| 8 | Shots on target | 2 |
| 58% | Pass Success | 88% |
| 41% | Aerial Duel Success | 59% |
| 10 | Dribbles won | 10 |
| 14 | Tackles | 10 |
| 23% | Possession | 77% |
In fact, once Pulis and his players recognized that Alexis was the main offensive threat, they set about fouling him rotationally with referee Swarbick, like most English referees, unwilling to protect the most skillful player on the field. He was fouled four times before a call was first made. The sixth foul by Rondon was a cynical clatter to prevent a breakaway, no yellow card. The seventh and most severe by Mclean was a full bloodied studs raised challenge from the side, infinitely more forceful than those which earned Xhaka his two red cards; yellow card only. Job done, however. Alexis’ ankle had been smashed and he was never the same after.
Meanwhile the representatives of the mainstream media, Beglin and Champion, treated it as one big joke:
Beglin: “McLean tackles like a fullback not a winger.”
Champion: “Tackles like a lumberjack”
The clear assault on Alexis Sanchez did not earn West Brom, its manager or players any reproach, any sanction from the combined wisdom of Robbie Earle or Kyle Martino who did the half-time analysis for NBC’s PL broadcast aimed at us rubes in North America. Nothing happened. Nothing to see here.
By the end of the game however the sock-puppet media lost no time in declaring Arsene was solely responsible for Arsenal’s loss, was somehow out of touch and should be hounded out of the club. Like any lynch mob, the mainstream media and the mindless screeching WOBs, Scarfists and assorted malcontents have no intention of letting the facts come to the fore, they hope mob rule will prevail.
Last week Sir Chips told them to eff-off. Isn’t time for more good people to step up and put the lamestream media in their place.
Positively Arsenal 
You beat me to it !!
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I think Jim Beglin’s underpants may be an image too far though
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Top work Shotts!
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Great blog.
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Sad, innit?
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A5 at 9:30 am – Imagery, my friend. Imagery.
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Well, if rumours/reports or whatever they happen to be are true, there is going to be some upset people around, it seems Wenger has indicated he is up for a two year deal.
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I’m glad I decided to check out this place today after all, as this is one of your best articles Shotta. The ravenous hordes of the media are smelling blood and the manager is an easy target, while under performing players have the perfect place to hide. Your perspective, supported by data is welcome.
It’s sad to see even here that some people are falling for the current narrative that the big guy has lost his mojo. I hope the rumours are true that he is staying as I would hate for the media and malcontents to win and actually drive him away from the club after all he has done for us. He deserves to go out on a high and maybe the Board will loosen the purse strings to find the money for him to strengthen in the summer, including any wages needed to keep the players he wants to keep. Meanwhile the players need to search within to find that fight they displayed so many times earlier this season to turn losses into draws and draws into wins. That picture from behind the goal that is doing the rounds is a sad indictment of the current state of mind of the players.
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Shotts. Great stuff.
Are these papers that these hacks scribble on behalf of perchance owned by the same kind of genius’that find themselves spending approx. double what Vengarrrgh spends on the same players? No need to quote that well known communist Alan Sugar! (this Trumping reference will surely make Shotta laugh)
No wonder they and the green eyed agents want to end the marriage between AFC and AW. I guess the most voiciferous of the self declared PR experts amongst the ‘malcontents’ have either
a) completely and entirely forgotten about GG and how AFC operated in the pre-AW era
or
b) are angling for a hostile corporate takeover
Which could it be?
*wink wink wink*
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Fins: My considered view is the Board knows it has to invest heavily this summer on one or two players who can make a difference. This is in an environment where the big moneyed clubs in Europe will be in a bidding war for talent. Apart from our big three Barca and Madrid also need new blood. More than ever they will need Arsene. Football is littered with the bones of new managers who overspend. In an era where the British elite is happy for foreign non-football money to take over English clubs, no matter how dodgy, no matter how unfair to well managed self sufficient clubs. How long can AFC hold the line?
Is it any surprise that the former Chancellor, under whose watch these takeovers went unchallenged, is now editor of the Evening Standard? Is it any wonder that the lamestream media has nothing to say about the gradual takeover of English clubs by the Chinese? Do the sheeple realize that at this rate English clubs will become the PR and advertising arms of some nameless, faceless Chinese corporation? Is it any wonder they want to create a lynch mob mentality among Arsenal fans?
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I laughed when I seen many media outlets today break the “EXCLUSIVE” news that “Arsene wants to stay”, seeing as each and everyone of these outlets were told by Wenger this very same thing only 2 weeks ago in the pre match presser for our cup game v Lincoln, why is it now major headline news. Why have they tried to make it a new story, why are they including phrases like “inside sources”, “those close to Wenger”, “its felt” and many other such phrases, the fact is Wenger said plain and simple that its his “preference to stay”, and that he “would certainly be managing” next season.
As shotta pointed out, Sir Chips made it clear last week that Wenger still has the full support of the club. The club today made it clear that they have not contacted Dortmund or Tuchel, and that there is no managerial vacancy at Arsenal to contact anybody about.
One extra reason why the board will be keen to stick by Wenger, is so as to not set any perceived precedent of allowing the malcontents to believe that their protests forced the board to replace the manager. Plain and simple, if the malcontents think they have won, then every time in the future that any Arsenal team is on a bad run we will see marches, flyovers, etc etc etc. There will be no patience shown at all. Arsenal FC can not allow that to happen.
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we really have a rare breed of idiots in our fan base, Arsenal twitter just tweeted about the death of Derry City captain Ryan McBride
Arsenal FCVerified account @Arsenal
Our thoughts are with the family of Ryan McBride and everyone at @derrycityfc
and the amount of stupid wenger out replies it got is disgraceful.
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so we play Leicester City midweek between the fa cup semi final v city, and the spurs game
Date confirmed for Leicester City game
Our Premier League fixture against Leicester City had initially been postponed due to a fixture clash with our Emirates FA Cup quarter-final win over Lincoln City.
However, we have today received confirmation that it will now take place as under:
Arsenal v Leicester City
Wednesday, April 26, 2017
Kick-off: 7.45pm
Live on: Sky Sports
We are still awaiting confirmation from the Premier League on when our matches against Southampton and Sunderland will be played.
Copyright 2017 The Arsenal Football Club plc. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit being given to http://www.arsenal.com as the source
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Shotts
Nevermind Midfield as Lolo, Ramos and Pique approach their latter years can you imagine the scramble to come over CBs?
AFC have covered the homegrown rosta requirement on CBs with two very good prospects (Boro’s defensive form before Chambers’ injury was better then it is now!), Mustafi needs to learn from his errors this season if he wants to be the one who’ll try to guide them to the upper/top levels of the game in the years to come.
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It looks like those wobs who are trading on the Wenger era and the parasites in the press will be kept in their employment for the next two seasons at least. They will be happier than us when Arsene confirms he is staying.
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<
Shotts we can't ignore the deterrence on top talent joining AFC as a result of the observable, recorded and palpable lack of protection like that which reduced AFC to ten men* on Saturday has had on AFCs position or posture in market place. Just like say Ozil playing on after that hack against Gasprom, I don't expect any player or coach to sub the injured player off.
To ignore this is to ignore the football on the pitch and so disingenuous that it's beyond satire.
I wasn't talking about Alexis previous hack/push induced injure for no reason other then to remind somethat AFC players getting hacked off the park in greater frequency is banal in it's predictability and relatively high frequency. No, I'm not a prophet, this is simply an observable pattern
Please: support your team.
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Ian: I doubt they will be happy to see Wenger stay. But they will turn lemons into lemonades.
Parasites do need a healthy host, you know.
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Gary Lewin joins Arsenal Ladies
Arsenal Ladies are delighted to announce that former Arsenal first team physiotherapist Gary Lewin has rejoined the club as maternity cover for Mary Shiels, our lead physiotherapist.
Gary – who served the England men’s first-team up until July 2016 – is highly respected throughout domestic and international football.
Upon his return, Gary said: “It’s a pleasure to join the team at Arsenal Ladies and see how much the women’s game has come on since I was here with the men’s team from 1986 until 2008. With the upcoming SSE Women’s FA Cup rounds and the Spring Series, it’s a very exciting time to be part of this club.”
Everyone at Arsenal welcomes Gary back to the club.
Read more at http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/20170320/gary-lewin-joins-arsenal-ladies#YxM83L4AAOHusIOL.99
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Forget about Chinese corps or even Gazprom!
Those who own the papers attacking AFC today would like to see the club reduced to the same predicament as Nottingham Forest, another club that wasn’t the darling of the FA, but is now the toy of one crook or another.
Clough’s relationship with the English FA is the the most appropriate reference for AFC today, completely ignored by the click merchants who are apparently “against modern football”
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finsbury
Can you elaborate on that Clough bit. Before my time and I only hear of him as this legendary manager. (and a bit of a drunk, which maybe led to his death?) What was his relationship with the FA to which you refer?
I know that he was watching when we beat the 42 game unbeaten record set by his team, and he was full of praise for us, despite saying that he was brought up to hate Arsenal.
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Fins: Who can blame Alexis if he decided to say goodbye to English football when a journeyman like McLean is allowed to smash his ankles with Swarbick hesitant to dish out a yellow, not even the deserved red? Your ankles is one of the most impt joints for a footballer. Ask Diaby. Even Santi.
Yet the English media thinks it only merits a laugh as in the case of Champion and Beglin. The sockpuppets in America didn’t even see it as an issue.
When will our fans recognize and oppose these unfair tactics used against our club?
Know your real enemy and for heavens sake support your team.
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For years we’ve been told how poor Arsenal are, and that the top 4 was no achievement. Now after 20 years we MIGHT miss out on the top 4, and this is treated by them as some ultimate failure?
It’s a self fulfilling prophecy. I remember when Peter Hill-Wood called the AST idiots when they put out a statement after Arsenal lost the league cup final to Birmingham and had gone out to the RVP red card match vs Barcelona. We were still in with a chance of the title and the AST thought it appropriate to use their (club given) status to make a name for themselves, rather than support the club. Since then, only more of these worms have crawled out of the woodwork and they’ve spent the past 6 years constantly belittling and undermining our manager, our players and our achievements. Constantly shifting goalposts, and benchmarks of other clubs to be used as blueprints for Arsenal. Ignoring the fact that NOT A SINGLE club grew (organically) more than Arsenal in the period of Wenger’s tenure. Many actually declined.
There are legitimate problems with the team and how we have been playing without Cazorla in the centre of the park. We’ve lost our defensive reliability too now and we are struggling for a relief. None will be forthcoming from supposed Arsenal fans because the decade old x years without a trophy schtick has finally had its desired effect. Media bias, combined with ref bias, have done the job of shifting the centre of the debate to the extreme. Wenger’s position is under threat if only simply because of the circus around it.
It’s up to him and the board how they react. I’d be inclined to go all out war with those ‘fans’ who can’t see that they are acting against their own stated goals because they are obsessed with the manager as some sort of sacrifice to them. I hope the club stick it to them and their like. Ban them from the stadium, ban AFTV from club grounds and events, give positive (and considered) blogs increased access to the club and personnel, and fight back against every nonsensical media claim. And I mean regardless of whether Wenger stays. If this leads to a media backlash, so what? It’s no different, and at least then the club will control the narrative.
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shotta
Absolutely correct. If I were a professional footballer and I saw the pattern of decisions that we get against us, the way the media talk about our players (nicking a living), and the way that the fans treat their own, what would be my motivation for joining Arsenal?
It won’t be money because we don’t offer the best wages. It could be London, I suppose. But I think the only thing they’ll come for is knowing that the club and the manager look out for them as persons as well as footballers, and the desire to play football with a certain philosophy.
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This is all interesting, and part of it made me think again about a point I made recently. The defensive superiority, relatively speaking, of “The Rest” makes it all the more puzzling that we have not seen a return of the response to wobbles past: Tighten things up, accept a draw or two, then build from there.
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shotta, the bbc (MOTD), did not even show the assault on Alexis, it was not even worth that much.
On saturday several pundits, journos and commentators all described Xhaka as a liability, yesterday that jerk henry winter stated that Xhaka is always suspended – the truth of the matter is that Xhaka has been suspended twice this season, the first one we were informed at the time was due to a new rule, only thing is, no such new rule exists.
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shard i agree fully, none of the protesters should be given a season ticket renewal, the club should tell RedAction to fuck right off, the club spends loads of money on their displays, and the thank them by protesting. AFTV have had the luxury of getting interviews from Ivan Gazidis, again the club need to refuse all interaction with them, and make it clear why.
Plain and simple, if you are not with us you are against us, and if you don’t like it, then hard fucking cheese.
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members of AST and AFTV have been claiming that the pro wenger flyover was paid for by the company of our chairmans brother. but the group that did organize it and pay for it, have released a statement denying that sir chips or Jardine Mathesion holdings had anything to do with the flyover at all. I hope Jardine Mathesion take legal action against these internet warriors.
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http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2896/premier-league/2017/03/20/33835252/pro-wenger-banner-fans-we-only-want-more-respect-for-the-manager-?ICID=HP_BN_1
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eddy
At least a few years ago, Bayern was run by a professional committee and a sporting committee. Ex-Footballers constituted the second, but the commercial side was handled by professionals from industry, including Adidas and Audi who I believe have shares in the club, AND the media with some magazine editor put there.
I would want Arsenal to find suitable candidates from the mainstream media and make them a part of the club so that attacking us is the same as attacking themselves. Give them a vested interest in at least being balanced.
If I were in charge I would also promote blogs such as this through contests (essay writing, lucky draws, photos whatever), through regular features on the running of the club and how we plan our long term growth, interviews with ex and current Arsenal players and officials, and outside football professionals who can provide some perspective. Not all of it needs to come directly from the club, but making that content more slick and attractive can come from the advise of the club’s media services.
Change the story. Refuse to talk about what the media wants to talk about. Talk about what the club would like to talk about, and punish even the professional journos that fall out of line.
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the statementt from the Gooner20 group
We are Gooners20. Started by 20 Arsenal-supporting fans who always believe that respect is a core virtue. We arranged an ‘In Arsène we trust #RespectAW’ aerial banner over the Hawthorns on 18th March 2017 Arsenal v West Brom. To clear up any possible confusion that our aerial banner may have caused to the public by false rumours, we are writing this letter to explain our actions and the intention behind them.
People today are enjoying the convenience of the Internet and its easy information flow without questioning what they perceive while reporters are writing fiction on sports pages. We have learned that there is a circulating rumour that Sir Chips Keswick and Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd were behind the pro-Mr. Wenger banner. The rumour is completely false. The banner was designed and paid for by us whereas Arsenal Football Club and its affiliates have never been involved.
Biased media outlets make up stories and stir up our fan base. A small group of irrational and disrespectful people who claim to be Arsenal supporters have recently been causing embarrassment and harm to our club, the manager and fans around the world. The actions and abuses from the small group of disrespectful radicals are intolerable as what they have been doing clearly do not represent the majority of Gooners. To defend our club, the manager and fans who truly love the club, we decided to answer to the abusive manners. The banner was our answer. We planned and implemented the whole action from scratch to finish within two days. This is how easily and quickly a decision can be made when it comes to defending the club that we support, the man that we respect and the cannon that we love.
The flying ‘In Arsène we trust #RespectAW’ banner was a spontaneous movement from us without any organisational affiliation to Arsenal Football Club in response to the agenda-driven biased act which involved an insulting banner being flown during the West Bromwich game financed by a crowdsourcing campaign supported by small group of irrational and disrespectful people. In contrary to the disrespectful banner, our ‘In Arsène we trust #RespectAW’ banner flew over the Hawthorns was a mark of respect for the glorious moments Mr. Wenger delivered to our beloved Arsenal Football Club. Respect, together with unconditional support, are what we have always been giving to our beloved club.
The two banners that flew over the Hawthorns were labelled a ‘banner war’. It has never been a war. We have never wanted to fight anyone, not even those who do not share the same values or opinions with us. We did not try to stop anyone from flying their own banners or speaking up.
We are making this little extra effort to let Mr. Wenger know that we will always have your back. It is always more important for us to get behind the team rather than getting into a nonsensical fight with those who cannot endure hard times with the club or easily get stirred up by media outlets who have an agenda against the club or the manager. As much as we want Mr. Wenger to stay at Arsenal for more seasons to come, we also understand that it is Mr. Wenger and the club’s decision to make. And we would respect whatever decision is made mutually by the club and the manager.
It has never been our intention to stop anyone from expressing opinions. We only want more respect for the manager on and off the pitch. Respect Mr. Wenger. Respect each other, including people who do not share the same values with us.
We apologise for any inconvenience or trouble caused to Arsenal Football Club, Sir Chips Keswick and Jardine Matheson Holdings Ltd.
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the best line of the statement
“Biased media outlets make up stories and stir up our fan base. A small group of irrational and disrespectful people who claim to be Arsenal supporters have recently been causing embarrassment and harm to our club”
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Good point 900ftgooner. They were horrible for those two corners. Mustafi was also caught underneath for the ball which fell into their possession for goal #2. Tbf McLean was offside for the thru-ball although he should have long seen red for scything down Alexis.
But all in all the midfield was neat and tidy defensively and held their own in tackles. But where we may differ is the importance to putting opponents under pressure offensively.
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We don’t really do the “two banks of four and defy the opposition to get past us” thing. Pity really because because while it ain’t Wengerball on a cold night in Stoke etc it may be just what is required.
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MOTD did not show the hack on Alexis?
Oooo, er, aunty!
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Good on the Gooner20 group!
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http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/20170320/the-breakdown-west-brom-a-
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I would like to see the club fight back a bit as well Shard. Execs have a word about the way our players are clearly targeted with impunity….lets face it, it would not be hard to compile a dossier on such matters….and if done in public, it may even give our CEO a bit of visibility, he seems to lack at the moment. If they are worried about actions making things worse….well, how bad does it need to get?
Thy cannot control the media, nor of course should they, but yes, they can be selective in their interviews, maybe they could do more to seize the narrative.
I exempt the manager from this, he has shown from day 1 he is up for a fight, will take on the media, and highlight a few of the PGMOL issues.
but, it seems the board are a little too passive on some issues, not sure they are doing the club…or themselves any favours. Maybe we should behave more like certain other clubs, and fight our corner a little more
If Wenger really is up for more, he has my admiration, but I fear he is in for a very rough ride…not as if he gets a lot of backup from most quarters
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Fins @ 3:09 pm The silence and blindness of MOTD (BBC) speaks loudly. Orwell would tremble in his boots as to what this and other previous instances of ignoring the truth signals for the British people.
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Hey – its Henry Winter on the club’s weekly podcast
YAAAAYYYY ( banned multiple smiley happy faces)
( Henry. Winter. I give up I really do )
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Why not Have Piers Morgan on and go the while fucking hog eh ?
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AndyNic – Unlike us truthtellers, the club has to keep the mainstream media on board because they still hold major sway over the public. A bit of keeping your friends close and enemies closer. Usually they don’t abandon these liars and hypocrites until the fans demand it. Take the case of Stewart Robson for example. It wasn’t until fans said no more of this shit was he removed from Arsenal Media.
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Only reason they should keep Winter close is to throw him off the back of the upper tier.
I am sure Stalin never had these problems.
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anicoll
Stalin may not have, but our own Mugabe does.
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Im totally baffled as why the club would invite HWinter on the podcast. A5 as you say- why not invite PMorgan, or what about AFTV, and the wobs from there can have a good rant. Then what about guest star Peter from LG?
But perhaps its just some ironic patronizing? Irony is pretty boring these days(imo).
Meanwhile Wenger still soaks up all the negativity from all angles,cover the board and players.
Perhaps AW should go to the Times and criticism HWinter on his journalism, which s often sadly lacking.
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For anyone who wishes to say hello I see Hunter has popped up on Untold this afternoon – may he become a fixture on that esteemed organ long into the future.
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I saw him on there to A5, and was pleased to see it! Best ever though was watching him razz the fork out of the Le Grovers! Bu going there is over for me, those people are too extreme for my taste.
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My eyes little bit wet.
Having read the review (ta,A5) I skimmed thru most of the comments – noting Passenal & Alabama’s ‘displeasure at possible blame game’ utterances. I avoided everything, everywhere. After all, I hadn’t even seen the game, and I knew what was going to happen (it’s Pulis, FFS), but didn’t want to sully Steww’s preview by telling anyone EXACTLY how the match (rest of the season)? would play out!
It’s accidental that I visited here. Force of (enjoyable) habit.
Shotta. Superb, sublime, inc. your follow up comments.
Fins, Shard, Edu (that link & mention of not even showing the assault on Alexis, BBC) and others – you’ve done a brilliant job. Shame on me for being afraid of what I might find.
Thanks, Ars20. Thanks PA. Thanks Arsene. Thanks AFC.
COYG
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Shard sorry about the late reply,
Clough is probably best explained by those older and wiser then me, before my time.
What is clear is that he was the best English club manager of all time, a pioneer, an inspiration, and he was ignored for the England job in a favour of Don Revie who was famous for teams that clogged, for match fixing and whose most pioneering act was to head out to the Emirates as a pioneering match fixing exile, hard to think of anywhere more appropriate save Bangkok – a record that our dear old friend chummly warner Henry Winter failed to airbrush out of history
https://www.theguardian.com/media/greenslade/2011/mar/14/sunday-telegraph-daily-mirror
If Winter is an ally or mouthpiece of the current stewards, well, then there it is!
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Ranty: I assumed you saw Saturday’s game and was still in recovery. We all know how you are allergic to rotational fouling. Lol.
Good to see you are back my friend.
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Shotta
You are a star, thanks!
I’m afraid my strategy following such a sequence of disappointments is to go incommunicado. I try to think of other things and remind myself that football is only entertainment. However, the issue of Arséne Wenger is not just that for me. I interpret the current developments in the context of current affairs in general. I view the WOBS as another expression of authoritarian populism, mob rule, anti-evidence yobs.
I hope he stays….
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