@GoonerReverend ponders the hereafter this morning and the Great Leap Forward
Football waits for no man and as recent events at Arsenal have shown the show always goes on no matter what is happening or who is leaving the game that is the English Premier League. Arsene Wenger & Arsenal have parted company after 22 successful years and the club is much stronger & much better positioned than when this partnership started back in 1996. The King is dead “Long Live the King” but now we have to prepare for the next chapter in the history of The Arsenal Football Club. Replacing a manager is never easy replacing a long serving manger is nigh on impossible and you only have to look at Manchester Utd to truly understand the scale of the task facing the powers that be in the Arsenal board room. Everyone has a view on who should be Arsenal’s next manager but at the end of the day the only opinion that matters is that of the Arsenal board members designated to choose Wenger’s successor.
The future is both exciting and frightening at the same time because nobody really knows what is going to happen when the new man takes over. Arsenal supporters all have their ideas on who should be the next manager with many demanding the appointment of a high profile manager like Max Allegri or Luis Enrique but the reality is that Arsenal have never been a club that appoints this type of manager in their entire history & are more likely to appoint a young manager with ties to the club as they feel that appointing a manager that fully understands and believes in the Arsenal values & principles will be of far greater benefit to the club’s stability than employing a short term fix that may or may not bring instant success. Fans have always been good at spending money that is not theirs because they don’t need to worry where this money is coming from and it is no different with the forthcoming appointment of the new manager.One of the fan favoutites & Juventus current manager. Max Allegri reportedly wants to know how much the Arsenal board will give him to spend on new signings & has supposedly said he would need to bring in up to 5 new players to make the team competitive. Now this is all media speculation as Arsenal never publicly divulge any discussions they are having or may have with candidates they have identified, The other alleged issue is that he is unsure if he can work within the new management structure implemented by Arsenal. Ivan Gazidis has now taken a hands-on role with the football club and moved his office to the training ground to be closer to the action along with Raul Sanllehi Head of Football Relations and Sven Mislintat Head of Player Recruitment.
This new structure is not going to suit everyone and Gazidis stated that he is looking for a manager that will be similar in his philosophy to Wenger’s along with the clubs philosophy of developing young players while working within the club’s self sustainability model. In this current climate of spend spend spend the Arsenal manager position may not be as attractive to some big name coaches as many Arsenal fans would like to believe it is. Luis Enrique has reportedly priced himself out of the position which is very believable when you look at Arsenal’s spending policy. Joachim Low has just extended his contract with the German National Team & despite the numerous rumours and many Arsenal fans insistence that he is coming Allegri is still contracted to Juventus and they will be very reluctant to let him go. If you believe the British press former Arsenal mid-fielder and current Manchester City No.2 Mikel Arteta is the red hot favourite to be the next manager of Arsenal. Sure there are a number of reasons why Arteta is not seen by many fans as the ideal replacement for Wenger as they believe his lack of managerial experience counts against his ability to transform the current squad into a title contending squad.
Some Arsenal fans had convinced themselves that the board would plump for a big name coach no matter what the cost but if you look at Arsenals history there is nothing to indicate that they were ever going to do that. Bertie Mee 1966-1976 Terry Neill 1976-1983 Don Howe 1983-1986 George Graham 1986-1995 Bruce Rioch 1995-1996 Arsene Wenger 1996-2018. Arsenal prefer managers with some connection to the club as they feel that if the manager has an intimate connection with the club they are more likely to respect the values of the club. Arsene Wenger was a left field appointment with no connection to the club but over the next 22 years became the focal point for the clubs values that he enthusiastically embraced and championed. Should Arsenal appoint Arteta as many are predicting it will clearly be a gamble but it will be a calculated gamble because they will be appointing a manager that clearly knows the culture and values of the club as well as many of the key stakeholders and football club staff and players he will be working with. There has been some negative comment about the possible appointment on social media but that is to be expected because everyone has their personal favourite and social media is the focal point for voicing disappointment.
Many fans believe that only a top coach with a history of winning trophies can manage Arsenal and turn them into a championship winning team but if you look at the growing influence of Josh Kronke you will understand where the club is possibly heading. In 2016 the Kronke’s fired Head Coach Jeff Fisher from their Los Angeles Rams football team and replaced him with 30 year old management rookie Sean McVey. This was a calculated gamble which has proven to be a good decision and it has become clear that Josh Kronke was central to this decision. Arsenal have always been a club that do things their own way and Josh Kronke is also a man who is very much his own man who likes to do things his way and is not adverse to taking calculated risks. There is no guarantee that the Arsenal board will appoint Arteta as their next manager but its even more doubtful that they will spend 10-15 million pounds a year on a high profile manager trying to buy success. Whatever happens and whoever they decide to appoint it is exciting times for Arsenal supporters because changing manager is a leap into the great unknown. No one really knows how it will turn out and in todays football world every new managerial appointment is a calculated risk. If Arsenal are going to take a gamble on a young manager with potential and give him the time & support to grow into the role we really are heading off into a brave new world and in the process we could be creating a new era of sustainable success for our grand old club.
Positively Arsenal 
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Joe Willock, Reiss Nelson and Eddie Nketiah have been withdrawn by Arsenal from the England U19 squad, so that they can be available to us for the full preseason
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Abramovich is in the gulag then – bad luck that
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Appreciating the talents skills and the achievements of the “Panic Buys” Arteta, the BFG, Saint Cazorla, the best target man in the world only acknowledged as such only after he leaves the Arsenal, of course, Giroud, not forgetting those already here like Koscielny and Ramsey.
that is not to say The Arsenal are Doomed but simply to have had a great team there before the current transition a team who were unlucky not to win a title. They put some pressure on though. heh.
and they also set a new record that the special one couldn’t equal in spite of his having waved around a rather large wad of wonga.
It was Salah and KDB who’d have been D**Med if they hadn’t cut loose when they did.
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< It was a remarkable rebuild forged in testing circumstances.
And it's hard to disagree with Rosicky that AW had more then early the right to finish off this current transition, what with a record in recent seasons that would be the envy of your Klopp's and Poch's (Coyle? Moyes!!!??? TBF Good Old Moysie signed that contract with Rooooneh, which is speculatively and most likely still being subsidised: job done eh? Nevermind the…).
Though I expect a well rested Liverpool should beat a Real Madrid who haven't performed close to Atletico this season, perhaps only in the CL SF? stange to feel that the team that have been in recent CL finals are the underdogs but I feel that they are!
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our last trophy was the FA Cup in 2017 and from the final 18 man squad we have already seen the last in a red and white shirt of starters, Mertesacker, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Alexis and subs Coquelin, Giroud and Walcott, we don’t know if we will see Perez play for us again either,
Ramsey, Welbeck, and Cech are in the last year of their contracts too, Ospina has made comments about wanting to be first choice somewhere if not here.
Koscielny who missed the final is out for at least half of next season, and Wilshere is out of contract in a few weeks time. As is Cazorla.
Six players out of the 18 already gone, doubts over a few more of the final squad, and even bigger doubts over 3 who did not make the squad.
That is one hell of a turn over of players in just 12 months.
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Wow. One of most controversial uses of VAR yet.
Lazio- Inter, Champ League qualification and its millions on line; ref, with good view, awards Inter pen for handball with score 2-1 Lazio.
Ref then talks with VAR assistant for a bit and then goes and watches it on pitchside screen; quickly decides to reverse decision.
It was surely the right call. This introduces an element that has hardly been discussed with VAR- a ref overturning something he had a clear view of first time around after reviewing images again.
Ha, while writing this Inter have won a pen- is a pen, won’t be overturned. Lazio player who made the foul, a stupid lunge, Di Vrij, is joining Inter next year.
Ha ha- player now sent off for Lazio for 2nd yellow after diving in. Oh boy
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The state of the gallant blaggers and podcastateers all piling in with that panic buy meme. As in all, which is how and why we ended up here.
Can’t really listen to any of these hapless discredited backwashing idiots myself, so thanks to Eds and the G&G crew for providing some content this season that doesn’t induce the noro virus in an innocent listener.
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Anyway, pitchside monitors have been used for VAR at least 3 times in huge German and italian games this weekend.
It’s the only sensible way to do it. Our lot didn’t use it for 2 prime candidates yesterday, and have only seen it once so far over here: Liverpool West Brom in cup when it was used to good effect.
It took a long time and drew a lot of criticism at the time, but bloody hell, bigger picture and getting decisions right is what matters. How they can believe best practice is to try avoid use of pitchside monitors is ridiculous.
Inter now 3-2 up and CL looks to have slipped away from Lazio in truly heartbreaking fashion.
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several media outlets reporting that Wilshere has agreed a new 3 deal with AFC
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I think you guys are being harsh on Aaron’s agent. He comments often to people on Instagram, particularly to those who support Aaron. He replied to me once, a comment I took to be a positive sign that Aaron is looking to stay. (He also burns stupid people who are abusing Aaron, and I love that he does that). This is not a recent thing, he does it all the time. It’s just that the media have picked up on it this time. If you read the actual tweet, Baldwin is responding to the “get it done” comment directed at him. I thought the “not quite” phrase was a telling qualifier. Maybe I’m just seeing a positive spin on it, but that read is every bit as legitimate as the negative one, since none of us know anything anyway. I’ll say this, he seems to know Aaron and his family well, based on the back and forth on IG. As agents go, he seems to care personally about his client.
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alabamagooner
I’m not sure how I was harsh on Ramsey’s agent. I think he’s doing his job. I agree with you that Ramsey wants to stay, and based on the earlier comments of his agent to ‘fans’ who abuse him, I’d agree he cares about him too. Maybe he’s just stating fact, but if he’s saying Arsenal haven’t offered a contract yet I think he’s aware that it will put pressure on the club.
Although Wenger said/implied that the club has made an offer, I think it is likely that the club is holding off on offering an improved deal making him one of our highest paid players (which is what he deserves) until they get the new manager on board. Which I am sure Ramsey and his agent know, and they wouldn’t sign without talking to the new manager anyway.
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Pitch side VAR Rich ? According to Shotta the very essence of corruption!
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eduardo792
May 20, 2018 at 9:16 pm
Re player turn over
It had to be done.
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James Ducker
Verified account @TelegraphDucker
1h1 hour ago
Mourinho signings as #MUFC manager: Mkhitaryan (sold), Ibra (left), Bailly (frozen out), Lindelof (didn’t make Cup final 18), Pogba (future v uncertain), Sanchez (playing like a drain), Lukaku (felt he could have done more to be fit for final), Matic (the one he’s happy with
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To be fair we i.e. professional football and me as a fan while I have made up my mind what I want VAR to do – to reduce mistakes by officials – I have not sorted how they should go about it.
Two options appear feasible.
First, you have a man in a studio 100 miles away monitor the game and only intervening if he sees a clear and obvious error. A voice pipes up in the referees ear “you have made an error, reverse the coal, offside, penalty etc” and that is done. No input or further consideration from the on field official. Neat, clean but totally dependent on the technology available to the official in the box and his interpretation of what he is seeing.
Second, you have the referee able to review his own incident and his own decision using a pitch side set of monitors, using the same technology as the man in the studio but also informed by his own unique perspective on the incident, if he is”unsure” of the decision he has made.
I prefer option two on the basis that referees are likely to make better decisions if they have access to as much information as possible, and they may have access to a perspective on the incident that a studio based reviewer does not.
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I think we’ll find Lukaku will be fully fit for the start of the World Cup eddy
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The very essence of corruption?
Not sure that’s how I’d describe a few thousand people watching the hockey and the NHL referee down in Tunbridge Wells and East Grinstead when they have access to video, and are all miked up for thecrowd inside and outside the ground to listen to their chat, these past few years!
Any organisation that would wilfully ignore a working model like that when trying to catch up after a few decades of negligence can helpfully be described as: stupid incompetent if we’re being generous. don’t worry Delaware’s food and employment policy/wages are not free of critique. Fair is fair after all.
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Remember when I first Tested the reaction to the prospect on video replay elsewhere. 90% of people were against it! L.O.L. To be fair some of those souls were of the ideology where they stated that Hazard was not a top talent purely so that they could attack the club and manager and claim that petrodollars have had no impact on the PL. So, yeah, not an enviable record there!
There’s really no debate required on VARs.
Other then the obvious: why are they ignoring the proven (over decades!!!) working models?
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I would include the provision for a manager to appeal for a review. But with guidelines for what this appeal could be used. Potential red card offense, penalty, or offside. I know some managers will use it just to cause a delay in the game.
We should take offside calls away from the linesmen, and let them look out for off the ball incidents. Let a video ref track offside and if it is, he can inform the ref within seconds, who can choose to let play continue if needed.
Oh and make conversations between refs public. (Set up an online live feed if they don’t want it on tv) They already lie about what they do, which we know because of Ol’ Misguided Moss.
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As Shotta will tell you it is impossible for referees to monitor their own performance in any fair way as, like judges, they are desperate not for their decisions not to be over-turned.
I have no idea about hockey or East Grinstead Fins but the mikeing up of referees in rugby works fine and the way that VAR works in top rugby also seems to attract v little criticism now everyone is used to it.
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Good point Shard about referees being miked up and cursing or obscenity should therefore be punished as I do not want to hear it on my TV. I’d give it about two weeks, and a blizzard of yellow cards, before every player learned to curb his tongue.
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In the cricket (can’t comment on the rugby!) it’s an old and now evolved set up and no induction into the mysteries is required!
But as we are reflecting on the football then I’d recommend referring to the happy structures that are in play in what the likes of Cruyff describe as the sister sport of ass. football: field hockey.
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Referees with mikes would certainly put a dent in one of Simeone’s key tactics!
But would Mike Riley agree to it?
Why hasn’t he done so already?
How is he still in that job?
L.O.L.isms
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My problem with an on field review is simply one of time. It seems unnecessary to me to have the ref run over to the sideline to watch a replay. If refs won’t self evaluate, it’s not like their peers won’t maintain a quid pro quo arrangement.
I’ve seen cheating even with the 3rd umpire in cricket so it’s not like anything will stop it entirely. Subjective analysis will come into it. But a) it takes away the excuse of not having seen it properly or only at high speed. And b) over time, a catalogue of videos will build up showing what is the general line taken in regards to certain types of incidents. (No Xhaka special case reds)
Also, the PL should make sure the broadcasters and commentators know the rules instead of spreading confusion through their made up, expedient nonsense. As a matter of fact, they already have ex refs in the studio to advise them on ref related issues. (More like protect the refs) Oddly this advise never reaches actual knowledge of the rules.
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andy, as it is we have examples from other sports. Rugby of course enforces respect for the referee strictly, and it works. The NBA decided a few years ago it would not tolerate players on the bench using abusive language (since they have mics there), they cannot leave the bench to join a brawl if one breaks out on court, and players get hit with technical fouls and ejections (yellow and red cards basically) for showing disrespect to the ref..though the last one remains a fine balancing act.
But they had a rash of fines and since then the players behave themselves. Enforce it strictly but fairly and the players will fall in line, no question.
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Football is different to Cricket, certainly.
In cricket a spot fixer gets sent to jail.
In football a match fixer gets rewarded with a big job at a big club with a history of match fixing and when touted by the same old predictable idiots & crooks in the media including the blagging PR experts (who declare they are PR experts working in sports) is apparently the No.1 candidate for the Arsenal job.
Lest we forget the Headline Arsene Who from twenty two years ago started with the familiar line: “Crisis club Arsenal…”
Which is quite funny when you think about it. Sweet FA to do with the Arsenal manager, for some reason going back plus 22 years these news media just don’t like The Arsenal: This is apparent to anyone who is willing to read. As to why, we can only determione from the evidence before us…such as the BBC attacking Arsenal Football Club for “being difficult for agents to work with”. They said it, not me.
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Certainly a sea change would be required if referees were miked up. I don’t think I can ever recall player or players being admonished or criticised by their club for verbally abusing or physically intimidating a referee. A bit like diving managers and coaches consider that it is “all part of the game”.
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On VAR: I watched Atlanta United yesterday, and there were three VAR incidents. 1) ATL goal ruled out due to a foul by the goalscorer in the buildup, 2) ATL straight red card reclassified as a yellow 3) ATL straight red card upheld (ATL had an uncharacteristicly bad day). All calls reviewed by the ref on pitchside monitors. I did not find it obtrusive, or feel that it took too long, and we knew on TV exactly what had happened. Based on crowd reaction (and it was a loud ATL home match), they also seemed to know, but it is routine in the US to show replays in the stadium, so they were probably watching what I was watching. That’s not done in the UK, I don’t think? That, IMO, is the biggest impediment to acceptance of VAR in the PL: the crowd seems clueless. I haven’t been to a live MLS match yet where it’s been used, but I’m curious to see how it feels in the stands.
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Here is where I fundamentally disagree with you andy. It is not for the clubs to enforce this without the FA/PL/Pgmo taking a lead. Nowhere else did this change come from the clubs. It won’t. We can feel proud of our club generally exhibiting better behaviour (despite being punished for it) without having the same expectation for everyone to follow purely for moral reasons. It has to be a top down approach. Clubs are commercial entities and will look to maximise their ‘profits’. The governing bodies are supposed to be not for profit entities looking after the well being of the game. Any regulation has to start from them (even if the regulation is to self regulate)
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Kelly, it’s job to go to a match and report back, get to it
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We do indeed fundamentally disagree – the notion that clubs are not responsible for their players’ behaviour, or are only gong to change the obscene and threatening aspects of that behaviour if they are forced to is bonkers. It bloody well ought to. The clubs own the PL, the PL owns the regulators, and the FA.
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no andy what is bonkers is that the Refs do not enforce it, the rules are there, they can stop any breaking of the rules by players if they want, that includes diving and foul and abusive language,
they question remains why won’t they and why don’t they.
I played GAA here in Ireland and refs used to get lots of abuse from players, even assaulted, the Refs decided to stamp it out by carding players for it, and even sending off, match reports would include any incident of abuse, verbal or physical, the governing body backed it up with suspensions, some very big ones, 50 weeks bans happened right across the country,. It almost instantly cleaned up the game and has left the game much easier for refs.
The change in how the Refs dealt with abusive language etc was decided upon after consultation with their Rugby counterparts. The first principle was to enforce it with zero tolerance, backed up by the governing body.
Its not perfect, as counties and clubs still fight suspensions, using any technicality they can find to overturn a ban, but from memory that is not usually where players have abused the Ref, its more for other sending offs.
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Monreal in the Spain World Cup squad
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Andy, I find it a little amusing that you think it more outrageous that clubs won’t self regulate, than the fact that they own the would be regulators.
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Monreal has been exceptional this season, sans the semi… just didn’t understand his crossing in that game!
so happ for him. Maybe Lacazettw missing out is more to do with his last struggles with injury. there are more world cups ahead of him so no problem i think.
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Aren’t all regulators owned by the teams, club or international, in professional sports ? If not then who pays for them.
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IFAB is made up of representatives from each of the United Kingdom’s pioneering football associations—England’s Football Association (The FA), the Scottish Football Association (SFA), the Football Association of Wales (FAW) and Northern Ireland’s Irish Football Association (IFA)—and Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the international governing body for football. Each UK association has one vote and FIFA has four.
IFAB is made up of representatives from each of the United Kingdom’s pioneering football associations—England’s Football Association (The FA), the Scottish Football Association (SFA), the Football Association of Wales (FAW) and Northern Ireland’s Irish Football Association (IFA)—and Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the international governing body for football. Each UK association has one vote and FIFA has four.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Football_Association_Board
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Where is Bellerin?
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“As well as permanent changes to the Laws, IFAB also authorise trials of potential amendments.[8]”
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bellerin has not been in many Spain squads, so no surprise that he is not there, but CFC trio Alonso, Cesc and Moratta are surprise exclusions
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Oh true he has been in the U 21 squad
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Arsenal players called up to World Cup squads
Opsina
Monreal
Elneny
Ozil
Campbell
Iwobi
Welbeck
Xhaka expected to be in the Swiss squad when its named next week
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unusually few for arsenal
Kos out injuured
Mustafi should have been
also expected Lacazette to be
Giroud would have been an arsenal player called up
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Sorry, AndyNic, but I prefer to speak for myself. Based on the history of bias by the PGMOL, starting with headman Mike Riley, the PGMO is rotten to the core and biased vs Arsenal. Pitch side VAR in the hands of their referees, the Mike Deans of this world, will make very little difference to their on field decisions. Do you really believe these goons will overrule themselves?
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Anicol
By looks of it method being used elsewhere is that refs and VAR are happy to let VAR make call, after refs initial call, unless it falls firmly into the subjective/close category.
For instance in lazio Inter game, the ref said pen initially, VAR looked at it for a while, then presumably recommended to ref he should look at it on pitch-side monitor; he did, then he correctly reversed decision. Beauty was he had a good view and felt sure initially, but with the benefit of a couple more views was willing to change mind. That seems totally natural to me and captures much of the essence of VAR and the benefits replays can provide over instant one-time only views from a specific angle
Minutes later he gave another pen; again quick consultation with VAR; they presumably said ‘definitely right’, which it was, so no use of pitchside monitor.
Other big game I watched this weekend used pitch-side twice in closing stages. Once after a goal was scored where it hit a hand on start of break- used monitor, after VAR flagged it; decided accidental; good call. 2nd time, in dying seconds, ref was alerted by VAR there was potential pen; quick consultation; went pitchside; decided against it. A really close call.
Looked a pen, until I started considering it was the notorious martinez, and the contact was on back of his left leg, which he had moved a little to put it in path of opposition player, and that Martinez flipped up in air in manner that had nowt to do with contact. Maybe a great call, but certainly one it seemed best, as a subjective decision, to let referee make.
Three of the four were very subjective calls. They all came back to ref after VAR had presumably made that point. Very close; you’d better take a look. Seems the better way to do it by a big distance to me.
There’s something wrong in the scenario, for me, where a ref has decent view of something firmly in subjective/ close call territory (as the majority of handball calls are), and the VAR official happens to have the other view, and reverses it. Much much better to bring it back to ref in those situations.
The Young handball incident was one; the Jones yellow or red also a very strong candidate. If on VAR duty, I would not have seen enough to emphatically say red. But at same time I’d encourage him to look at it again and make sure he felt Jones had a real chance of reaching that ball, or at least believed he did. For me, he had basically no chance of getting to it on right side of Hazard, from his position, so it’s very debatable whether it constituted a genuine attempt at the ball.
It feels like they reacted here to the strong media criticism of VAR use in the liverpool West Brom cup game and made a decision to cut out use of pitchside monitors. Let’s hope they see sense later on.
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Would you prefer Mike Dean sitting in the studio 100 miles away telling Michael Oliver what to do and that he has made a mistake Shotta ?
If they are, as you say, hopelessly corrupt and rotten to the core then there is no purpose in VAR is there ?
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If I were a referee, and I had made an incorrect call. I would prefer the chance to put it right via a pitch side review, I cant see it would be any skin off my nose.
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In cricket and also in hockey i think the third umpire is usually at the ground?
They could give the fourth official something to do other then not use a stopwatch? Chance would be fine thing I suppose.
I do recall the 4th official using video replay in the 2006 World Cup Final. Which was remarkable then and now. Here we are twelve (that is indeed a dozen) years later!
Progress!
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