Good day one and all.
It has been quite a week? After disappointment at Vicarage Road that saw us throw away a two-goal lead, we bounced back in fine style with a 3-0 victory at Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League. It is on the back of that clean sheet, a first in five games, that Arsenal welcome promoted side Aston Villa to the Emirates Stadium, looking to put end to a three match winless Premier League run.
Now, Thursday night wasn’t one of those performances that got one bouncing up and down with excitement, but considering Unai Emery made seven changes, with first starts of the season to four alongside a few fringe players… the win is a much-needed morale booster from which we can only build on.
The Villains are not having a great return to the topflight in their opening five fixtures – a run that include three defeats (W1, D1) and just one goal in their last two games – as they hover just above the drop zone. This is far from impressive for Dean Smith’s side who has invested just short of £140m in the summer. Taking into account that Arsenal has spent just as much, there’s plenty riding on this match for both teams whose off-season enthusiasm are starting to wane.
A player never short of encouragement is Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. In Lacazette’s absence we’ve become increasingly reliant on his goals and it’s a task he is shouldering with aplomb – six goals from as many matches. With Villa’s defensive boat creaking at the bits, it’s unlikely he’ll do his reputation as a flat-track bully any harm.
Arsenal’s defensive follies aside, Villa’s attack aren’t exactly sparkling in glory so this is match we are expected to win and our firepower has already showed they can strike against any side. Ergo, one can anticipate Smith to be prudent and set his team up to sit deep, try limit our movement and hit us on the counter.
Oddly enough this would favor us as it mean Emery can ditch the diamond formation as well as the passing at the back stuff.
The last five meetings between these two clubs the Gunners scored 18 goals and conceded none, making this an opportune time for our defense to bag another clean sheet.
@LaboGoon
Positively Arsenal 
Nice one Labo
Eddy, from last night’s MOTD, Cahill was even worse, put Everton’s failure down to “lack of leaders on the pitch”. It’s pathetic beyond words.
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Thanks Labo – I’m still in recovery from last week’s Passingouttheback-Gate, the abject failure to stop doing something that was clearly not only not working, but successfully putting an already under pressure defence under yet more pressure. Surreal and very, very costly stuff.
Wenger was frequently criticised for being vulnerable at the back yet this was the structural outcome of a team always looking to attack. The points squander v Watford was due to an over-reliance on a flawed tactic the opposition were almost immediately able to spot and take advantage of.
Some used to say ‘attack is the best form of defence’ yet we managed to somehow incredibly turn this on its head to read ‘defence is the worst kind of defence’ (or at least an over-reliance on risky, risky ‘defensive’ behaviour).
Emery is clearly desperate to ‘build from the back’ but this only resulted in keeping our most potent players out of the game for lengthy tracts as our attack were given way too many breaks from the game.
One awaits the Villa encounter with some trepidation, not least to see if a Plan B makes an appearance. I rarely criticise our managers but when our play descends to the level of a bunch of school boys making the type of errors schoolboys are renowned for, then it’s likely more words will be had, at least amongst fellow observers.
Fingers crossed.
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AA, what really annoyed me about the passingoutheback-gate last Sunday was that it happened cue on point each and every time – Emery confirmed per his instruction. Watford caught on and deliberately took “shots” from distance to give us goal kicks. And it’s that predictability that was our undoing.
I don’t mind it but decision whether to kick it long or short should be left to the capt and GK.
PS: George was that me? Preview nor review in the title.
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Yes, sorry Labo, I’m struggling with intermittent internet connection, when on I’m doing things at 100 mph.
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Morning everyone, many thanks Labo. For me your preview was positive yet sceptical, but still hoping, I think a lot of us feel like that.
Bloody hope we win today, Im sure none of us can be bovvered with a repeat of the frustrations that came after the Watford game. Im putting the team and Emery first on that one.
If only we had won last week, a third goal would have clinched it, we would be already on track up in the to end. Would be great if Pepé could score today and Ceb too.
News just in is that Mesut will cover at left back, and has been instructed to hööf the ball out, from the back.
Good to see Arsenal Andrew posting.
Thanks again Labo.
COYG!
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Testing
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Mills, positive, yet restrained is what I went for.
If we can just cut down the short kicks today there joy to be had. I dont think Emery loves battering bus defenses, ergo the obsession to lure opposition till they’re on the toes of our GK.
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LG- the preview did the biz for me.
Luring teams in seems to shred the nerves(and confidence) of players and fans!
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Imagine worrying about playing Villa at our home? This is what it’s come to.
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well done LG,
I cant see anything wrong with passing out from the back and we have all seen it be a positive tactic, however you need players who are very technical have supreme confidence under pressure and know when to use it. For Unai to say against Frankfurt that we had identified the problem and deceided to kick long was too late and very worrying a coach is not able to think alot more on his feet. I understand what Xhaka was saying when he said the players were scared as you could see the confidence draining from the players. The city performance makes us look even worse.
ARSENAL are a different animal at home with Arsene leaving us a fortress that no one really likes visiting. Even if you enjoy defending it cant be fun seeing top quality players both on the field and on the bench come at you wave after wave. My tactical knowhow suggest its going to be sunny in London by half four and ARSENAL always play well in the sunshine COYG.
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labogoon the fact that Emery doesn’t want Ozil in his team means he has no lock picker, and so has to find a way to open them up, so the playing out from the back is his way to draw opponents on, problem is that even when we do break we don’t have an ozil to play the pass that makes a goal or an assist easy. Also all this rushing about chasing their goalie and defenders when they have the ball means that when we do have the ball our attackers are leg weary and can’t make best of the breakaway.
I watched the U23’s v Wolves on Friday and we had exactly that happening time and again. It looks a very flawed tactic
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just seen one of the wecaremorethanyouordinaryfans mob say that there is a group of fans who only rate ozil and won’t criticise him cos of his religion despite him being past it.
now that is the sort of fuckwit that makes up that band of brothers, and we are meant to take them seriously.
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Fins: This is is specially for you. am sure you are loving how Pellegrini has organized West Ham to play football, something you and I discussed at UnCensored. They are now a front-footed team who always looking to break down the opposition; none of the cowardice and fear of the opposition from the incumbent at Arsenal. Even Mark Noble is looking like a quality player as he set up their goal. need to remid people that Pelligrini won two titles at City using ex-Arsenal players like Kolo Toure, Clichy and Sagna who the usual ignorant suspects mostly disrespected. Don Raul has no fucking idea what is good for Arsenal.
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Shotts
I watched ten minutes of that match, enough to see that Pellegrini had them set up at home to play the better football then the billion dollar squad of the visitors. Better football then Emery’s Arsenal.
How on earth did Emery get the job in the first place! Shard has explained this as well as anyone else. In the meantime Daddy Raul’s PR consultants will continue their attacks Ozil.
When West Ham Utd are playing the better Football it is a very bad circumstance for Arsenal football club and only a cunning linguist could pretend otherwise.
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The Arsenal Blagger is the kind of ****er that would support Mike Ashley or Grand Daddy Raul over Bobby Robson etc. We all know why!
“Ozil and Ramsey can’t play together” after winning three cups in four years will be their epitaph and hopefully not the D**M of AFC.
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Shotts
The main thing in my humble and frankly ignorant opinion that Pellegrini has them set up to play Football…
…Man Utd may well equalise or even win given the quality of some of their footballers but at least those Hammers fans who got rid of Allerdyce for boring them to death will be going home feeling like they haven’t just watched a team that can play some football and entertain them on a weekend afternoon with some of said footy because anyone with two Football brain cells to run together can appreciate that West Ham fans don’t turn up every week to count the trophies or brag about the results.
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<…Feeling like they have just watched a football team that can play some football…
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as things stand Arsenal are down to 12th, a big enough win would see us 3rd, a draw puts us above spurs, a defeat and we’ve got our Arsenal back, no?
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fuck off Emery, he has left ozil out after resting him on Thursday, what a fucking muppet
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I guess that Grand Daddy Raul must be looking over at Master Edward the Unequaliser Woodward and at Ole’s expensive wheels spinning in the mud and be smiling ruefully whilst taking down copious notes.
In contrast to the Arsenal I didn’t care how the Utd coach got that job but given his record in management in Norway I was optimistic. And Sir Lord Woodward has stayed true to spiffing form and has not dissapointed the non Utd football fans in the land.
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Six changes from our #UEL win in Frankfurt
➡️
Leno, Maitland-Niles, Sokratis, Guendouzi, Ceballos, Pepe
⬅️
Martinez, Chambers, Mustafi, Torreira, Smith Rowe, Willock
Leno
Maitland-Niles, Sokratis, David Luiz, Kolasinac
Xhaka, Guendouezi
Pepe Ceballos Saka
Aubameyang
subs: Martinez, Chambers, Torreira, Willcok, Nelson, Ozil, Martinelli
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Ozil out at home and of course Guendouzi is back in the starting eleven.
Fuck me where is Mark Noble when we need him?
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Two nil for the Hammers!
Anyone reading the comments above can be forgiven for thinking we are not surprised at this result.
West Ham fans singing the Ole’s as the busting Man Utd team can barely get a touch of a the ball which is the conventional, dare I say it normal method of defending a two goal lead in football…
Wilshere on the pitch too.
Get in there MP.
It’s a thing when as an Arsenal fan you look forward to watching the Hammers play some football at a level above the Gunners.
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All in all though, still a strongish team for the Gunners (save in midfield), so who knows what will happen? Not Emery, that’s for certain!
COYG!
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eh? Why is Mesut out? This is bullshit. If we lose today, the perhaps UE should be left out.
I know its anti PA policy, soz for that,but Guen was kack against Watford. Kack.
Weird, on the website, the only pics of the squad arriving are Guen and Emery.
Chop and change, chop and change. Yet we havent built up a squad that plays interactively under Emery, despite its strengths.
Fork it,
COYG!
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Great to see Saka get a BPL start, hope the lad has a very good game. But does his inclusion now mean Nelson is rubbish, isn’t that how it works
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Ozil on the bench and Chelsea Liverpool on the telly. As the saying goes, fcuk my old boots.
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Continental Cup Result
London City Lionesses 0-5 Arsenal Women
Beth Mean with a hattrick
Jill Roord and Emma Mitchell with the other goals
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Anyone got a stream?
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11 minutes in and Maitland-Niles is booked
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try this george
http://feed2all.org/soccer/feed-arsenal-aston-villa-2all3n7sc#
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Emery balls 0 Villa 3rd from bottom 1
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mcginn totally unmarked six yards out flicks the ball past leno, 0-1, woeful defending
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34 minutes Xhaka booked
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ffs. Arsenal meltdown before HT. AMN off. Bad first half for us so far.
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amn sent off as he is being carried off
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When it was 11 vs 11 after 35 mins:
Goals
Home 0 Away 1
Possession
Home70%Away30%
Shots
Home6Away6
Shots on Target
Home2Away5
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blimey that was hard work. Get Chambers on, get Saka off, get Guen off, get the Hööf on?
Grim old Arsenal.
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Not watching but all sounds grim.
Was it Moss the Merciless again with Ainsley’s bookings?
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Well that was poor, we can’t seem to unlock the door who knew maybe we could do with a world class assist maker, if only.
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Man. Arsenal football is really boring right now.
No quick movement. No one touch passing.
Defensively no pressure on the person with the ball.
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One thing though at least the referee is worse than us.
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Rich yes lol that well known disciplinarian John Moss!
Probably won’t seem strange to anyone reading this after the last 12 months of Emery but I find it a lot easier to empthaise with Pep’s battles against the obvious pgMOB bias’ then our own…crazy as it sounds I guess it must make an impact on the fans when you make an effort to score a goal?
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ceballos has slowed down so much of our attacks its unreal
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The Arsenal haven’t had a shot since the 35th moniyte let alone a shot on target.
Seeing as the football is so boring and shit (for the last 12 months) I’m entertaining myself with guesses on how few shots the Gunners will have this half. Would’ve been just as much fun with eleven on the pitch.
I’m too scared to guess how many shots Villa will have.
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Eds it’s almost as if he’s a Spanish rookie who has hardly played league football as a starter in the last two years being dumped into the PL and being asked to carry a midfield with neither the stamina or experience (both as explained above) or even strength for the role.
Almost as if the person(s) tasking him (or Suarez!) with such responsibility is a total and utter fraud(s).
…
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Back in it. COYG!
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pepe with his first goal from the spot after guendouzi was pushed over
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Guen with a good run. Nailed on pen. Back in it.
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Back out of it. Fck off Emery.
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