And a good Tuesday morning to the Positive Arsenal fans,
Interesting game last night. A change of “formation” but not really much difference in the set up the side as we had the ball or when we defended as far as I could see. Defenders defended, midfield players did their box to box running, tackling and passing thing, wingers ‘winged’, mostly. Not quite sure about the striker but I will come back to that.
I thought, as I see many others did, the Ox was our stand-out player on Teesside. A genuinely dynamic influence in quickly pushing forward, ball at his feet and taking the Boro full back on, even getting his crosses in from the bye line (!). When young Alex was called on to defend while he was not elegant he was always where he should be, with his head, foot or other body part thwarting the home side’s efforts. I am sure we all shed a tear when Ox’s entirely accidental damaging of Fabio in the 17th minute saw the Brazilian limp off. So unlucky, yet so unusual it is one of theirs rather than one of ours. AOC is just 23 years old but the post match speech he delivered was the footballing equivalent of the Gettysburg Address compared to the vast majority of claptrap spouted by footballers. This young man has a future far beyond the green square.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtCRIbWT7bU
Other good performances from Mesut, from Granit and from the current boo boys target Alexis.
Remarkable that some sad anorak wearing tosser spends their time counting the number of misplaced or intercepted passes that our players manage, then posts it on the internet for the mob to beat the worst “culprit” with. Hang, him. Sell him. He’s shit. Blah blah blah. I remember when the PA ethos was to support every player, through thick and thin. Aye happy days they were.
Rob Holding was rather good too. Not an easy task fitting into a new formation, on a wet and windy Monday night but the youngster performed more smoothly than a badger’s codpiece. Never jumped in, never flustered.
The one puzzle last night, and it has been a puzzle for the past few weeks was Giroud, and if not Olivier, Danny. We just do not seem to have strikers who are involved in the game. Are they not getting the ball ? Are they not getting the support ? Or are they getting enough ball and support but just not using it properly ? Earlier in the season OG was terrifying defences, physically dominating them, shooting, hitting the target with his head. Recently not. Arsene has some serious thinking to do before Sunday.
Our opponents ? Not very good although I thought their goal was class. Perfect cross, poacher’s finish. They need a lot more of that, and probably a bit less reliance on the ‘set-piece’ wrestling match to clamber out of the bottom three. Traore is still a handful though – In the Boro relegation clear-out I would take him to the Ems.
So three points safely gathered in. Not a convincing but enough quality shown by us, wrapped in a little steel, to take the season forward again. Clearly Wembley will be a very different stage, but some of the good qualities the players – and the fans – demonstrated last night will ensure we set out with confidence on Sunday.
Enjoy your Tuesday.
*nice picture at the top from the Telegraph of a football team enjoying a goal.
Positively Arsenal 
GREAT article mate.
That win felt like such a relief. On to the Cup match now. Will he stick to three at the back? who knows, but I’ll behind my team every step of the way!
COYG.
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Just looked at the lunacy at Birmingham – they sacked their previous manager Gary Rowett in early December with the club in 7th inn the Championship, just out of the play off places on goal difference.
Appointing Arry I hope the owners, the snappily titled Trillion Trophy Asia Limited, have lots and lots of money.
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Fins you are spot on about the futility of trying to make a player into something they are not. People have been whinging at Aaron for years to “cut out the tricks and flicks”. If you see him cut those out, then that is the time the club should sell him, because he’s stopped trusting his instincts. That spells doom for any player. That chested assist to Mesut was instinct. If it had gone wrong, we would have screamed bloody murder! But, he would try it again when his instincts told him to. Same with Sanchez, for me. The key is to harness the instinct, I guess, and that’s why Arsene is one of the best man managers in the world. He doesn’t tell them to stop, it’s more “you do this well, now, lets tweak it like this and you’ll be even better.” Who doesn’t want to work for someone like that?
BTW, here’s a link to Aaron’s interview. Well worth a watch, as is the one with Arsene:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=ADI5RCdYiiY
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Fins: Proof positive that dodgy agents and dirty money is alive and well in football is news that our supposedly retired ex-Spurs, ex-Portsmouth slick Harry Rednapp is back in management at Birmingham. Saw an internet meme that he made calls to Crouchie, Niko Krancjar and Glen Johnson to put the old band back together again. Too bad Kanu is really retired; that would have been a nice gig.
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Forget about Arry check out Mackay’s latest CV:
After the comedy at Cardiff and Tan’s revenge (for not paying his cut) to smear him just as he got the Palace job, Mackay found himself offered a job by that stand up guy and well respected local businessman (lol!) Dave Whelan to manage Wigan “in spite of fan opposition”.
He got the sack eventually.
Now this disgraced former manager who was accused of having dodgy relationships with agents and for taking bungs now works for he Scottish FA! They “appointed Mackay as its performance director, responsible for overseeing the development of young players.”
Wow. So a fellow with the rep for the above was placed to work with up nd coming talent in Scotland. Hmmm. Remind me never to ask the Scottish FA for a reference for a plumber!
I can see this helping to reverse the twenty year decline in Scottish football (reflected in spite of sky’s best efforts in England too: Iceland etc…), no wonder the agents and their pals in the broadcasting studios hate the arsenal and AW particular so much. There are literally hundreds and hundreds of millions of reasons for their “industry” to dislike The Arsenal so much. It’s not as complex a tale as the Arsenal Stadium mystery!
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Thank the football gods for The Arsenal
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There’s two ways of looking at Alexis’ game yesterday. 53% passing! Terrible!! Or, his worst game and he still scored a beauty and created a goal with a beautiful pass. The fact that Wenger keeps playing him should suggest he isn’t bad for the team play as is being made out.
And did you see him celebrate at the end with the other players? It seems to me he’s realised that his natural response is interpreted in a bad light and decided to express himself differently.
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The Meerkat has discovered a taste for blood. It’s disturbing.
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http://www.arsenal.com/match-menu/g855495/first-team/middlesbrough-v-arsenal?tab=statscentre
Steady tiger – the chilean’s passing accuracy last night in his 50 efforts was 70% according to Arsenal.com
That is compared to 84.2% accuracy for all Arsenal players’ passes and 78.3% for AFC passes made in the Boro half.
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Fantastic Ramsey interview. And you know what. I think Arsenal should do more such pitch side interviews. It seems to me a less hostile atmosphere than journos who stay off camera and basically abuse the guys sitting on a podium. I somehow don’t think they’d be as keen to make ridiculous accusations like cowardice or failure or whatever, when they’re standing next to them. Even their ‘controversial’ questions were tempered with some politeness and tact.
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Alabama
Ramsey had a good game, but his strength is going forward. I think the 3 man defense helped cover for his occasional lack of defensive discipline. Not that he was bad, but I noticed one instance in the first half where he rushed ahead to ‘close down’ a player, and left Xhaka alone. Ozil ran back to cover and Ramsey then made no effort to get back quickly.
I don’t know, it seems to me to be a weakness in his game. Actually, if it were up to me, I’d play him on the right. A Ljungberg/Thomas Muller type. Reduce his defensive burden and make the most of his technique and ability to time his runs and take a shot. But I believe he has stated he sees himself as only a CM, so that would be a non starter.
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And there, Shard, you have the Ramsey conundrum: Andy notes he was “hesitant” in the first half, you note the time he went forward and left a hole. The poor boy cannot win. If he goes forward, people complain he leaves a hole. If he stays back, people say “he didn’t do anything!” You noticed the time he didn’t track back fast enough in the first half, I noticed the time he lost the ball in the 2nd and steamrolled a Boro player to get it back. Confirmation bias is well at work with this one. Luckily he listens to one man: Arsene Wenger. Well, and he also said once before that he listens to his Dad. Such a good son.
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alabama
A conundrum it certainly is. I didn’t say he never tracks back or generally doesn’t put in enough effort. But I think his instincts are to go forward and that this has the effect of sometimes leaving us vulnerable to the counter. He had a fabulous season when Arteta was playing next to him because Arteta was very intelligent in the defensive phase, and able to find a pass from deep, to Ramsey or further ahead. .
Basically, if you find the right partner for him (and he can stay healthy) he could be a great asset. But without such a partner (though I have hopes for him and Xhaka), I think his positives don’t outweigh the negatives.
On the whole, I like Ramsey. I’m just not sure if he is part of our best team.
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On another note, Ozil. He is fast becoming the player he always should have been. Look at some of his games at Werder and you see a fast, skillful attacker, who very much poses a goal threat. Not just the specialist passer floating around looking for space that Mourinho and Ronaldo’s ego turned him into at Real Madrid. That finish yesterday with his weaker foot was just so emphatic.
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No worries, Shard. The Case of Popular Fan Opinion vs Aaron J Ramsey has been litigated many times over, both in these pages and all over the Interwebs. I remain, as always, Chief Counsel for the Defendant.
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Alabama/Shard
I am getting a pain in the butt sitting on the fence, but that is the trouble with life – there are no hard and fast rules where humans are concerned – absolutes? I don’t think so, and that is why all players can be great or poor depending on the eye of the beholder.
Rambo on his day has been and still can be top class. Unfortunately the dreadful injury bestowed on him by Shawcross has meant he has not only had to overcome the injury, but to adjust his style of play.
Pre-Shawcross he was intelligent, skilful and had a good turn of pace, all linked to a great motor [he could run and run without seemingly getting tired]. Now he is more prone to getting subsidiary injuries [OK at this point I have to admit I am not a doctor] and missing games, but these latter injuries are caused, perhaps, thru adjusting his gait and musculature, as a result of the original injury, in order to stay at the top of professional football.
He does not get as much game time now because of these chronic injuries, and neither does he have the pace he previously had. However, his intelligence and skills are undiminished as is his great heart, and in those games he does grace the pitch, he covers pretty nigh every blade of grass in his efforts for the team.
I find myself, sometimes, yelling in exasperation when he does not get to the ball quickly enough, or chooses the ‘impossible’ pass or strike, but he often can do something extraordinary, like last night, where instead of spinning and perhaps fruitlessly striking the ball, he chested it beautifully into Mesuts strike area – result? the winning goal.
Rambo for me must stay, but he needs more game time, and if I were to choose a captain – on condition he is not injured so frequently – he would be the one for me.
You may have gathered that I like him – and he is a team player!
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Wow, Alabama Ding Dong — you are an attorney for Rambo? Then he has no case to answer – wish you had said so earlier, as we are on the same ‘side’. {lol}
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Seems like all the British bloggers are taking a time out, maybe to reflect on the news that the UK are going to have yet another General Election in early June.
Who knows, Trump may invoke his mother’s Scottish heritage and stand for election as Prime Minister of the UK, as well as President. Yikes!!
Good luck with that!!
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That season with Arteta I saw Ramsey as the then aging Arteta’s ‘legs’, a perfect CM combo of youth and experience. Ramsey’s numbers for his all round game were jaw dropping. Alongside all the goals assists and passing his numbers for interceptions and tackles were up with the best in the league: like some kind of complete all round midfielder.
I think there are relatively few such midfielders, think Veratti, that people forget how they play: like few others can! On top of that there’s the much derided but dominent within the pgMOB and FA Don Revie not Arry Cult with has so undermined English Football match fixing and all (Don Revies match fixing) that views any act of skill as blasphemy which we can accurately interpret to be an expression of the green eye of envy!
I commented on his non-stop running as few others have also had this thought: that he will improve his in-game judgement in relation to a league season on how to conserve his energy levels/look after his hammies, this will come with greater experience at some point in the next few years if not by the time he reaches the age Arteta was when they had that combo.
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Spot on, Finsbury!!
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Good evening, to one and all.
A late thank-you to Stew and AndyNic.
HenryB made a number of good points, during his coffee-break, which AndyNic carried on with his take on the game!
I would suggest that with Monreal and Bellerin, the door is wide open for the quick break and the thank you very much, for the wide-open spaces for Sam Allardyce to exploit?
The Arsenal has 70% possession, and lose games 3 goals to NIL!
Giroud, should be an asset, at set-pieces at both ends of the field of play. Welbeck and Walcott, neither of whom, are so adept.
So, PG, who is more likely to score for the Arsenal, at the right-end? Sanchez, Sanchez, Sanchez.
The question is, with 2 upfront against us on Sunday, will the manager continue with 1-3-4-3?
The general positioning of the assistant referees, is:
Apparently it’s the second last defender or ball, if the ball is closer to the goal.
“2. General positioning during the match
The assistant referees must be in line with the second-last opponent or the ball if it is nearer the goal line than the second-last opponent.
The assistant referees must always face the field of play.”
Are the officials impartial? Cut-out the crosses and interceptions, instead of tackles, to cut-down on the set-pieces in dangerous areas.
PG, Arshavin, and his ignoring of his 3 children, is inexcusable. Sink your teeth in, meercat!
COTG
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Aaron Ramsey is a great CM, a great wide right forward that floats into all areas, but most importantly he is a world class AM and Lad. He should be Arsenal captain .
The end.
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NOTH, I have no knowledge of Andrey’s private life, I doubt anyone has. So in my normal way, I will not judge a subject I am ignorant of, I’ll leave that to people that are experts at doing it.
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Thanks Henry,
I don’t know much but I do know that my friends who I love to watch the football with (who don’t always agree with me on the negligence on display from the pgMOB roster, they don’t have to!), they love watching Ramsey (& others) play some football.
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NOTH
Happy to hear from you as always!
To be fair to the Arsenal they can’t do much if braying donkeys like Taylor award the opponents a kick every time they choose to flop, which was exactly as DC described last night.
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Finsbury,
Taylor pee’d me off, too, last night – well actually, everytime he is the ref in our games.
A prat, if ever there was one.
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Finsbury,
You know as much, and more, than many of the self-claimed ‘experts’ — there is a strange dichotomy here, in that those who claim to know so much, inversely know eff all.
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Kelly did you know Elvis’s middle name was Aaron
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George, you are a fine co-counsel for the Defense. I believe we wrap up our argument right there.
Ian, I did in fact know that Elvis’ middle name was Aaron. Our Aaron even has a bit of that same crooked (charming) Elvis grin. Coincidence? Who knows.
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Notoverthehill usually the last defender is the goalkeeper, and the second last defender is the last actual defender
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Can’t help but notice you never see Elvis or Aaron in the same third of the pitch.
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Superb game at the Bernabeau
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Referee sends off Vidal for a perfect tackle – fucking hilarious- come on Bayern
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And that, unfortunately, is why anything-to-win players and teams complain vociferously even when they know decisions are correct.
Can’t be sure Ronaldo knew he was off for the one he complained about 5 mins before his goal, which was correctly called offside, but as I watched replay after replay of him doing so it went through my mind that it would lead to extra pressure for the linesman if he had to make another call against him soon.
Lo and behold.
And now the hattrick.
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Nice to see Bayern aren’t above getting ripped to shreds when desperately chasing goals and a player down tho
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And an offside goal for Ronnie
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The spotty Madeiran slots two offside goals to turn the game around – obviously the Hungarian PGMOL a hotbed of corruption !
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Shameful capitulation by Bayern #CarloOut
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Steve Hills @Merse10 1m1 minute ago
Bayern lack leaders. Collapsed after red card. They are too nice. Team of son-in-laws
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Spanish Giants getting ref assistance…..again this year….getting the most out of it before VAR…maybe
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Aw – bless
Owen Hargreaves ranting about crap refereeing
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Arsenal’s Jeff Reine-Adelaide ruled out for rest of the season
by jeorge bird
Arsenal youngster Jeff Reine-Adelaide has been ruled out for the rest of the season due to injury.
The prospect, who can play as a central midfielder or out wide, has made six senior appearances for the Gunners this season but hasn’t featured in the Premier League.
Reine-Adelaide will hope to return to full sharpness in time for pre-season training.
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Jack Wilshere likely to miss rest of season as scans show fracture to lower left leg
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2017/04/18/jack-wilshere-likely-miss-rest-season-scans-show-fracture-lower/
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Jack eh? The poor fucker. He is done as a top level prospect.
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Ah, got to feel for Wilshere. One serious injury must take a lot of getting over mentally. The troubles Jack has had are just absolutely brutal.
Not that it matters, but did anyone see what caused this one?
Was it pure rotten luck, bad tackling technique, or did Kane take a free hit after Jack had made a tackle?
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Been a while i spoke on here. I dont miss the write-ups of Stew ,Shotta and co. A few of my random, considered thoughts if I might.
The one thing I suppose is most important is the fact that the board members value Arsene immensely. They won’t be inclined to let him go.
The issue of the fans is quite exaggerated. The silent majority of fans are nuanced people who still deeply respect Arsene. They still sing the chants of ‘one arsene Wenger’ from time to time.
The views of a few hundred’s holding placards and organising pathetic protests that dey couldn’t evn sustain 4 3 weeks . I suppose the board members can sense how the majority still feel about Arsene.
I’m not saying Arsene is beyond criticism or that even some if d nuanced fans don’t think it may be time for him to go. I’m just saying dt it won’t be coz of some yer das holding placards and screaming wenger out dt will influence the boards decision. Certainly not mine if I was on the board.
No smart investor, business man throws away reason and logic and subscribes to emotions keeps up success.
People who don’t have the slighest idea of running and growing a small scale business spout a lot of bullshit about the board members at Arsenal and Kroenke himself dt makes me sometimes think that freedom of speech needs to be re-evaluated as a right. My faith in the human specie has reached that point.
Arseneify
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Hmm. I loved that Aaron Ramsey interview. That dude is smart and confident. Leadership material.
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On the subject of Elvis, his birth certificate first recorded his name as Elvis ARON
https://images.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search;_ylt=A0LEVjcp9PZY0oMAaJ4PxQt.;_ylu=X3oDMTByMjB0aG5zBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzYw–?p=elvis+presley+birth+certificate&fr=yhs-adk-adk_sbyhp&hspart=adk&hsimp=yhs-adk_sbyhp#id=2&iurl=http%3A%2F%2F2.bp.blogspot.com%2F_meFQ4KfcZig%2FTG6GctFHpKI%2FAAAAAAAADx8%2Fl3swt4EcexY%2Fs1600%2Fbirthcertificate.jpg&action=click
Apparently his father could not spell “Aaron”. There appears to have been a later change to the correct Aaron.
Other
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Apparently the Bayern players went in the refs room afterwards and started giving him a load of poop, saying they were treated unfairly.
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6-3 aggregate score after extra time heh! What if Vidal got his marching orders two minutes into the second half? 10-2 aggregate score would not be out of the question…
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