Hello Positives.
I have no idea how I can write a blog that makes that dull as dishwater game interesting. So excuse me if I rely on cliches to sound like an expert from a real blog.
Well it was a game of two halves, the first being as dull as dishwater and the second as boring as listening to Piers Morgan talking about himself. They say it’s a good team that can win when not at their best, Let’s hope that’s true eh?
Three points is three points, any away win is a good win, they stopped us playing, who cares, we won?
I feel our man of the match was Watkins, he somehow missed two open goals, he’s an Arsenal fan, if I was a Villa fan I’d be asking questions , or at very least checking the far east betting markets.
To be fair, we perked up a little in the second half when Saka, White and Martin remembered how to link up and move the ball a bit faster. As simple as it sounds, the game changed when Trossard came on for Martinelli, who had been as under par as Tiger Woods has been since his car accident. Surely Trossard has to start next time out?
Declan Rice appears to be suffering a hangover from hell following the Euros, and he’s not being helped by Partey moving the ball with the speed of a sedated sloth.
I recorded the game and as a rule I would watch it again before writing the review, but I assure you, I’ll not be doing that, once was bad enough.
Now, on the bright side, that’s 6 points from the opening two games and no injuries. What has gone is gone and done is done. We will have to play much better than that going forwards and I’m convinced we will. Maybe start Trossard instead of Martinelli, sign the new Mikel to play left centre-mid, put Rice at the 6 he was bought to play and take off like a team of fast things going down hill with a wind behind them? Hope springs eternal. We’ll see.
Pedantic George.
Positively Arsenal 
I don’t think anyone could write a review that was more on the button as that.
Villa are a very good side and we struggled with them. Many places putting in sub par performances and Odegaard probably chalking up one of his worst for us.
Yes the sub and the goal changed the game but we needed a change far earlier and Martinelli wasn’t the only one who should of been hooked.
Now Vieira has gone and if Reiss and Eddie are going then surely Edu has something up his sleeve because if not we are in trouble.
Anyway that’s for the future but for today that’s a fantastically important away win and three points gained on last season, city have only gained one so we are two points ahead.
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Well I enjoyed it.
The side clearly played to a plan to draw Villa onto them. If Villa didn’t bite that’s on them, they were after all the home team.
Partey was our heartbeat, Rice playing as if he’s still at West Ham, left our Ghanian giant to run the midfield alone. I particularly love the way Partey uses his body when he receives the ball, always ready to twist away from danger or lean into his opponent then get us moving again. His recovery from his injury woes is clearly taking a while but he’s still a vital cog.
I wanted two things from this game. A goal from TP and Martinez to fuck up majorly at least once. So yeah I’m a very satisfied customer.
My favourite moment? Ben White’s instant response to the clown that booted the ball into Big Willy. He cannoned the ball into the Villa villain so quickly, so accurately (the biter bit) and actually diffused a situation in doing so. That’s a very neat trick and good to see the boys sticking up for each other.
What can you say about Trossard? Ice in his veins. I love the combination of him and Martinelli. The one softens them up for and hour or so the other strolls through them and breaks their hearts.
One last word for the vision of Gabriel and the skill in his pass to set up the second goal. Yes everyone else after his ball over the top for Trossard did brilliantly but that was the key in the lock.
Stay Positive PA. Two wins, two clean sheets, last season’s menace vanquished.
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I think, on reflection, I might have started watching the game feeling bored with life, and looked at the proceedings through that lens.
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I didn’t want to sound miserable, certainly if you’d seen me dancing like an idiot when we scored and at the final whistle it would be difficult to say I wasn’t happy. I think when I know a game is going to be difficult and we are struggling then my nerves limit my enjoyment.
We obviously played well in patches but most players didn’t have their usual game. Oliver done his best to stutter the game and with the villa players falling like flies then try to find a rhythm would have been elusive even for Cryuffs boys in orange.
I certainly didn’t enjoy the amount of chances villa seem to create, although the stats show they only had four shots on and off so maybe I was just feeling sensitive.
This is probably the most difficult fixture list I can remember to the start of a season so two wins from two is absolutely wonderful.
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Charlie Patino the latest of very talented young players to leave Arsenal permanently. 1 million plus sell on fee in the deal.
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One thing that occurred to me during the game is that Arteta may well be about to face a major problem in man management with Trossard. I have seldom seen a player look angrier when he came on and scored: positively seething he was. He clearly sees himself as a starter and I can’t see him remaining content to be a game-changing sub. But neither can I see Arteta ducking the issue if he feels that Martinelli is worth more at the start of a game. One to watch I think.
I am glad that Nketiah is Palace bound and I shall adjust my Fantasy team accordingly in the hope that he does well there and turns into the top striker that will find a regular place in the the England side
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Just a holding message to see if my word press account still allows me to post.
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I didn’t think we played particularly well on Saturday, possible reasons being:
we are not yet up to speed
they are quite good
Emery has worked out that the main way to stop Arsenal is to sit on Odegaard
we aren’t as good as we think we are.
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I find the August start to the season frustrating because the first three gameweeks take place before the clubs have done all their transfer business – and because the moment they have there is a wretched International break, which ruins any momentum that might have been building up. It seems a strange way to organise things.
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And the best of luck to Nketiah, who I hope will be a great success at Palace. I shall adjust my Fantasy team accordingly.
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Well, one thing you can say about Mikel and Edu is they do love a goalkeeper. If Joan signs, as suggested, we would of signed another four keepers this window.
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What do you guys think of the new Champions League system? I can see what they’re trying to do, including trying to spice up the drudgery of the group phases, will be interesting to see if it will work, although I’m not sure(not that that means anything). I get the feeling they might revise it after this year?
But it also could be a crafty look at how a Euro super league might be?
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New post is up.
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