I can only apologize to those calling in to taste Stew’s normal breakfast feast. He has been tied up with real life stuff and you are stuck with me.
It’s a tea-time game in the land of the Orcs. A fixture that we normally come away from battered, bruised and short of points. They really don’t like us up there, ever since Aaron Ramsey made Shawcross cry and his Mum had to pick him up from the ground, so upset was he with Ramsey who broke his own leg and blamed poor little Ryan.
I have no doubt that the usual roughhouse tactics will be rolled out by their very unlikeable manager, Mark Hughes.
We will have to be physically and mentally strong because you know if we go in with similar tactics we will soon find ourselves a man or two short.
This being our 3rd game in quick succession and a 4th coming on Tuesday I have no idea what team Arsene will put out. But regardless of the personnel, we have no option but try to win. A win will put pressure on Liverpool and it really is the last chance saloon.
I’m sure it will be 3 at the back, but which 3? No idea.
So all in all I’m not much help really. I just hope the game is fair and free from controversy.If we can’t win, let it be because we didn’t play well enough.
I have to say, despite everything, I’m quietly confident.
Enjoy the game and keep the faith.
Positively Arsenal 
Steady, determined, and we have the better footballers.
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Cheers George for the intro to todays game. Im with you and Andy Nic on this one, I think we can do this one, the momentum is with us. Time to slay the Orc! My major hope though, is that we come out of this one injury free.
Today is a big day for my Bros team that he runs, for years they were thrashed week in week out, then things changed. This season they came second and are today in the cup final.
You can imagine how everyone is feeling. Brilliant that even at grass roots the game can still be so exciting.
COYG!
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Morning all and another cup final coming up ahead of us.
Only marginally more unpalatable than the opponents is the choice of ref – did I read it’s Mike Dean, somewhere? Or is he pencilled in to ruin our actual cup final.
Granit’s not been sent off in a while, could be an unpleasant confluence of unpleasantness ahead but let’s hope for the best.
I’ve no doubt the team will be in full dogged mode after dogged performances against Man U and Southampton. Let’s also hope the Orcs have one foot on the beach in Blackpool (or wherever they take their summer hols); a tough attritional battle, even with 3 points earned could prove to have certain hangover qualities ahead of the next battle.
It’s still all up for grabs!
Fingers crossed boys and girls – COYGs.
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well done George, suprised Andy didnt LIKE your effort and feel let down by Steww’s lake of passion after all he’s only done about 50 match previews so far.
Steww did partly preview this game in his last post, as he mentioned stoke away are another monkey on our back and as part of the hardest run in I can remember it could be the place we fall.
However work hard, play quick and get a bit of luck and we can grind out another result to keep the pressure on. It would be nice at this stage of the season to be playing teams on the beach and there league position suggest they should be but we know they dont like us and will want to kick us of the park. Yes they are more technical under hughes as they proved when destroying city but I think today it will be two parts crunch, one part hoof with just a little tech thrown in.
As far as we are concerned I think this is definetly a case of the next game is the most important and the cup final is miles away and should be treated as such. If the Boss is fit then he has to play and up the other end I think Oli might be a better option for his attributes at both ends of the pitch.
Against the saints and manure the area just in front of the back three seemed wide open especially when we were defending crosses this is an area we need to close down to stop the orcs shooting from this distance or putting the ball back in the box.
The wide players will also need to get out to the stoke wingers earlier than we have previosly to stop the supply of crosses.
At the end of the day we know we have a very special team with subs that can make a difference, play well and we will all be happy tonight COYG
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Just hope Mike Dean is not a key player
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I’ve no doubt with the cameras on him Mike Dean will ensure he’ll be a key player one way or the other. I imagine the guys over at Untold make a healthy living successfully gambling on as much.
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The last thing that goes is hope. Keep hope alive!
Hope that sounds like a rousing battle cry PA.
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We can beat Stoke. But can we beat Stoke plus Mike Dean?
I hope it won’t come to that. I hope for a good game of football (even allowing for some rugby tackles) and I think we should win this.
3 games plus an FA Cup final to go. Let’s enjoy this season while we can. Because ‘horrible’ as it has been, it says something that we’ve still got something to fight for, and a trophy to win.
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YimdonT think Leicester have much to play for vs City.
On you even other hand, this is the orcs annual cup final.
Dean will let them away with murder, while finding imaginary ways to penalise Arsenal. (Look at moss at southstoketon).
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Interesting from a pundit on my EPL tv-provider (Kyle Martino) that 3rd is impt for City.
The hypocrisy still amazes me.
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COYG
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Shotts there are hundreds of millions of reasons for their ludicrous & risible hypocrisy.
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Rambo rested. Cup final in mind. A risk worth taking? I’d say so.
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Stoke City FCVerified account @stokecity
📝 #SCFC Starting XI v @Arsenal: Butland; Johnson, Shawcross, Martins Indi, Pieters; Whelan, Cameron, Allen; Arnautovic, Diouf, Shaqiri.
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Unto the breach, strode the valiant PG.
I can understand a player looking at the proffered salary to play for Stoke City FC. Come the dreary month of November, who wants to stay in Stoke-on-Trent.
I took a look at the Stoke Sentinel, to test the morale of Stoke-on-Trent.
First up Mathew Upson, formerly of Arsenal FC, no mental strength in that lot of misfits.
Second up, a certain Charles Watts , Arsenal correspondent of footballlondon.com. Sez he, the majority of Arsenal fans wish to say “cheerio” to Mr Wenger, sooner the better!
I must admit, my briefcase is a Wenger, Yes, I am so what biased.
When they leave London Colney, I have no idea of the various moods of the temperamental players, who must cross the white line into the cauldron of hatred and naked hostility of the denizens of Stoke-on-Trent.. Into the shadow cast by the setting sun, stands Mike Dean!
IMPARTIAL.
COTG, it is only 11 against 11, for whom the shadow whistles?
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Monreal miscontrols the ball when played in
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Monreal hits the post with a header
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Early signs, with 20 minutes gone, Stoke have one foot on the beach …
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Dean couldn’t wait to book Mustafi there
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Bandog @Bandoguk 7m7 minutes ago
Again, being Mr Obvious. We need to score while we are in charge.
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Giroudddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd 1-0 to the Arsenal
bellerin passes the ball along he six yard line and giroud taps home. no more than afc deserve
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Nice. Few more please!
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giroud’s 11th bpl goal in his 11th start this season +18 as sub
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can’t wait for the pundits to say the goal should have been ruled out for offside cos Alexis was strolling out from an offside position when bellerin was played in, and he then once back onside he tried to get involved. you know its arsenal and all, so rules are different as far as the pundits are concerned
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V professional performance from 1-11 so far
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HT: Stoke 0-1 Arsenal
Giroud with the goal, Arsenal by far the better team so far, Monreal close to scoring twice, hit the post with a header. Stoke fans booed their team off, probably as much to do with how negative they are set up, as it is with afc winning.
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™ @TheFalseNein 4m4 minutes ago
Coq crucial in the buildup to a Giroud opener. Deleted tweets everywhere. Gol de Wenger squad selection
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James OlleyVerified account @JamesOlley 9m9 minutes ago
#afc fans: “1-0 to the football team.”
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™ @TheFalseNein
Suspect Arsène Wenger has done more for this club than the plane wankers have done for their families.
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the banner wankers inspiration
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ug_7TsTzOfI
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ht in the championship play off first leg semi – fulham 0-0 reading
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just heard a pundit say that there was no point in Arsenal putting in good performances now as they have not done it for all of the season. Are they all special needs people
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Looking very, very good so far…where has this performance been these last few months. This is EPL winning quality
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Orbinho @Orbinho 58m58 minutes ago
This is the 100th consecutive Premier League match that Arsenal have played without their club captain in the starting line up.
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Arsenal
Happy 2⃣6⃣th birthday to Francis Coquelin!
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Arsenal have been sluggish so far in the second half, giving away the ball very easily, need to up it again
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Ozilllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll 2-0 to the Arsenal
alexis with the assist, ozil with a sublime finish
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What a beauty…….
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Nice. Few more please.
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by the way it was a thirty yard one two between ozil and alexis
Wenger done a little jig of delight when the goal went in
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Dean misses Shawcrosses elbow…what a surprise!
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stoke just missed a great chance
elbows crouch coming on as is beharino
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mills not sure it was a deliberate elbow, of course its one of those where he probably knew what he was doing
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stoke have come to life, hoof ball stuff from them
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Good point Ed. Dean having a daft period in this game.
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its stoke corner after stoke corner at the moment
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Need a third to destroy the Orcs. If they grab one, Mordor will wake up.
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Arsenal corner
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Dean the cunt, Bellerin taken down on a breakaway and no foul given.
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