Arsenal tip up in Moscow taking a 4-1 advantage form the first leg. Well in a normal week you might conclude that should be enough, but this week in Europe seems anything but normal.
With Mkhitaryan out for the foreseeable and Xhaka tucked up in bed with a sniffle I think the team will be
Cech
Bellerin, Mustafi, Koscielny, Monreal
ElNeny, Ramsey Wilshere
Welbeck, Lacazette, Ozil.
I don’t have much more light to shed for you ,so talk among yourselves, after all, that is what the site is here for.
Enjoy the game.
Positively Arsenal 
I expect:
Cech
Bellerin – Mustafi – Koscielny – Monreal
Ramsey – Elneny
Iwobi – Ozil – Welbeck
Lacazette
S: Macey, Chambers, Holding, Kolasinac, Wilshere, Nelson, Nketiah.
COYG!!!!!!!!!
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Jack is presently operating at 67%, aka Theresa May.
I’d keep him off the field till CSKA’s will has been broken.
COYG!!!!!
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AMN pretty damn unlucky with the timing of his injury, otherwise he’d be in the squad at the least and likely to clock up an appearance in a big tie.
But opportunity knocks for some of these other exciting young talents in the absence of others thorugh injury etc.
Exciting times for Nelson and others. That flick to Elneny before Xhaka’s shot?
You won’t be seeing that anytime soon from diving cloggers who can’t dribble: like Alli. But to be fair he’s got a great agent who is pals with ian Wright no less! Ronaldo the lesser is also a diver, and has an even more odius agent, but at least he can dribble…
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Hopefully ok this evening, as long as they take heed of the fate of others this week.
Cannot imagine any complacency in this game or this place or with what is at stake.
Michael Oliver getting a lot of stick this morning, let’s hope Juve don’t enlist….old friends….
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“Referee has a rubbish bin where his heart should be,’ says Gianluigi Buffon”
FFS
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greetings all. am still breathing but had a major computer cock-up.
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Buffon stayed with Juve after they were relegated for working with referees and big broadcasters in Italy in order to fix their league (it happens!).
I don’t recall him returning his bogus medals in a public apology or even just chucking them into the bin after his disgraceful club were caught with their football shorts down.
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Biased and demented broadcasters who spend billions in order to fix sporting results, or who at best have a manic yet comical bias?
Louis Akindele
@Louis_Akindele
It tells you everything you need to know about the shocking state of British football Press/punditry that they criticised Aubameyang for giving a penalty to Lacazette but applaud Kane stealing a goal from Eriksen.
Blimey.
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UTA
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COYG
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I’ve been telling everyone since before the first leg that csk are better away from home than at home, however I am quite often wrong with my analysis.
Tonight I feel we should have the edge even without our missing players I’am getting excited already COYG
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Am more comfortable with Iwobi and Welbeck as they track back and put a defensive shift.
Not to sure if Jack starts that he’ll have the legs to cover or the discipline to sit back.
As for Buffon I sympathize with how it all ended but the point about him dodgy medals is well made.
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“Harry is very honest and he is not going to lie about this situation. It is not a big issue, it is not a big deal for the team.
“It was a club decision, i was not involved, but I am sure Harry and Christian Eriksen agreed on this.”
If it’s not a big deal then why is he answering questions on the topic in his press conference, giving information on conversations between the players that no one needs to know about?
Are these goals so important to St.Harry becasue he’s never scored a significant tournament (for club and country) changing goal in his career to date yet?
How he must hate Aaron Ramsey!
And Jacky Wilshere too who at the least has a goal of the season winner or two. Think we know who it was fouling and injuring our jack hehe and ruining his form of late, as opposed to when not protected by refs at WHL or at home in the more obvious and undeniable instances of clear and present bias – he’s not been fit last few games and probably needs the game tonight to get back up to speed/form we saw over Xmas, after that knock on england duty.
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Great story, Fate and all that;
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Ryan Smith got done by some lumbering Ipswich triallist making a stupid dangerous challenge and was never mentally right after. Arsene Wenger was pretty annoyed as he was on the verge of first team.
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Ryan Smith got done by some lumbering Ipswich triallist making a stupid dangerous challenge and was never mentally right after. Arsene Wenger was pretty annoyed as he was on the verge of first team.
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Markyb
Just looked it up and found a brief match report for that Ipswich game. Horribly similar scenario by sounds of it to the bastard who did for Diaby.
Ipswich signed that trialist for 10 grand soon after. Never played for them,though, and looks like never played league football either.
Who knows what they thought they’d seen in him? Aggression perhaps.
Anyway, if it was a challenge in the Sunderland Smith on Diaby mould, I don’t put all blame on the players in question, especially not if kids (he was 17, same as Ryan Smith) themselves. To really know you’d need to know what coaches said in buildup; then there’s the diffuse blame around whole of English game for bad challenges and in particular those against us.
Heard Garry from same time was also highly rated, and another whose career was wrecked by injury, though haven’t heard that had anything to do with bad challenge. Think that was something unusual, but not sure.
Anyway, fate, and shitty challenges.
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I was watching when Dan Smith made that totally unnecessary challenge on Diaby, knew it was serious soon as I saw it. Alan turncoat Smith said something along the lines of ‘ no more than a yellow’ in commentary.Twat
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I saw Ryan Smith play in the Victory shield and thought he had a special talent. Tony Adams once replied to a question about young talented English lads with ‘ have you seen Ryan Smith?’ feel for the lad.
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A consistent lack of protection from the officials.
There are a fair few more players at AFC who’ve had this experience.
Kevin Davies was another, from another club, a young skillful player who had to remodel his game to suit his lumbering less agile body. The Carlton Palmer struggles of the national team are not a mystery. The lack of caps for Carrick was a mystery, or just stupidty, i lean towards the latter there. But the rest is as our friend Hunter has described.
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Another “not that kind of player”
I hope the bastard gets put away and banned for two lifetimes.
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Arsenal XI: Cech; Bellerin, Mustafi, Koscielny, Monreal; Elneny, Ramsey, Wilshere; Ozil, Welbeck; Lacazette
Bingo
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People who love football and have found that there are mad people wanting to injure or even just abuse others (not nice when we’re talking kiddies footy) on a Sunday afternoon have been setting up their own leagues in London and other places. For decades now.
That old FC Utd can do attitude which stands in glaring contrast to our own Scarfists, sorry to say. But this love of the sport is a credit to the national game here as we can see with so many volunteers involved at the grass root level, coaching running community clubs etc. Doesn’t quite compensate for the lack of coaches or facilities, in investment in infrastructure, but it helps and is to be admired.
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< as in: football lovers and coaches at the grass roots level that I have spoken to gave up on the FA a long time ago!
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Nervous?
Just a little bit.
Should be a big atmosphere late at night in Moscow. Low temperatures there when playing late at night at this time of year so, will the physios compensate in their warm ups (two!).
If the football gods have any self-respect they’ll let Ramsey score and add to AFC’s lead and then come off after sixty mins, please!
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< Minus "two" add "yes"
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some confusion about how our subs are, AFC twitter shows Per in the squad, but on their insta account its Nelson
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Heartwarming story on Ryan Smith glad to see he at least got to enjoy his football finally in the MLS and is involved in something he enjoys.
Wish him well !
On to tonight very offensive we look and hopefully it will pay dividends.
A nil nil will do for me!
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George is on the money with the team selection. Yet he says he isn’t an expert. Can I post a forbidden smiley?
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Come on Arsenal!
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So far it’s been a no drama game, a little bit itsy bitsy but we’ve started with positive energy and gave them one or two things to think about.
So Elneny has been superb what energy never seems to stand still and controlling midfield superbly. It will be hard to see him getting dropped if he keeps playing like this. He’s simply Mr super dependable
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CSKA score, 1-0, (2-4 on agg)
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we are wobbling
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Ramsey gone off injured, gone down the tunnel but we have not brought on a sub yet
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Ramsey back on
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wilshere down injured, it might not be a bad thing he if goes off, he has been piss poor
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HT: CSKA 1-0 Arsenal
we have been poor, not passing well, have really wobbled since CSKA scored
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I Just don’t enjoy watching Arsenal much anymore. We are way off the pace.
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Jittery – I’m jittery and getting jitterier, we’ve had enough of the ball and chances and half chances to have won this. Crazy.
Who saw that final 15 seconds of the half ? Cech catches ball – Cech punts ball immediately to CSKA player – every other keeper in world football falls to knees and half time whistle blows – with us Home side get in one more shot.
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Spoke too soon cheap goal to concede and all of a sudden CSKA look dangerous. Could easily have into halftime 2 nil down at the end of the half.
We need a goal to kill their momentum but our final ball has been sloppy. Welbeck to his credit has played well, releasing the ball quickly and linking okay. Laca a little of the pace and Ozil final ball has been lacking too. Wilshire hasn’t offered much to be honest- his play looks laboured and he has lost that burst of speed.
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It’s never dull – no no never no more
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Kenshin
@fulgencce
11m11 minutes ago
Replying to @VieiraPaddy
I think that’s the price of Wilshere staying fit. When he’s fit, he can’t do the things he used to do
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After a rocky start, we were looking more comfortable by the minute, with at least three very good situations you’d fancy us to score from. Although I always wanted it to be Ramsey or Ozil making every important pass, preferably to Laca.
Then the old goal from nowhere. No hint of the threat growing again. No complicated play to open us up. A very good cross by look of it, but I wasn’t able to spot in replays why no centre back defending central area.
After, their energy seemed to shoot up beyond what it was in early stages even, and comfortable it was not.
Hate to make a comment worthy of a twitter asshole… but Jack should sign up quick before the offer goes down.
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1 down. Reaction time to Cech’s save was a tad slow. Monreal shouldn’t have allowed the header in the first place.
Jack hurt should mean Iwobi. A faster midfield should help. CSKA have all their speedsters on the pitch. We need a reaction ASAP. A single away goal should do it.
COYG!!!!!
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We certainly have a goal in us and we will score. We need to keep it tight and gaps will open Iwobi for Wilshire is a no brainier or even Reiss.
Wenger is sentimental and he will give Jack a chance to play himself into fitness. I expect no subs until 70 mins. And then probably a defensive one.
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Score
a
Fucking
goal
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Fuckiiing hell
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fucks sake, 2-0, once again cech makes save but CSKA quicker to the rebound, all came from us giving away the ball again. agg 3-4, CSKA only need 1 more, we need to wake up and get on the front foot.
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