Hello and how are you? Tuesday the 20th of January sees the Mighty Cannon take a trip to Bella Italia and to Milano, to take on last year’s finalists, Inter Milan in the CL. KO at the San Siro is 9-00pm local time (8.00pm UK time). Expected weather partly cloudy, temps at 3° feels like 4°, with 0% chance of rain.
Within a single point of the heavy-weight rounds of the last 16, we go into this one top of the CL and with a perfect record. Inter were also Perfetto in their early games but notched up successive defeats to Liverpool (who extinguished an 18-match unbeaten run) and Atlético. Inter haven’t lost three in a row in the CL before, and with their level of pride I’m sure they will do everything they can to avoid it and the gruelling knock-out phase.
However, Inter bounced back and are five wins in eight, with a draw and one loss, with four clean sheets in the last six)leaving Chivu’s lads top of Serie A. So Arsenal are meeting Italy’s Arsenal?
Di Gennaro (hand) and Palacios (thigh), Calhanoglu (calf) and Dumfries (ankle) despite being key players are out for the Nerazzurri, but beware, Bastoni and Thuram will both be back and were rested for this clash at the weekend. We will also meet up with our old friend Mr. Mkhitaryan, whom I’m sure will take no prisoners despite being an ex-Gunner.
Merino, Norgaard and Mr Rice are all a card away from a suspension, so they will tread where angels fear to. Dowman (ankle), Hincapie (thigh) and Calafiori (muscle) are unavailable.
I reached out to Statto HQ who were engaged in an argument about the Riemann Hypothesis, and handed me a scrap of paper with the stats. Inter Milan have been given a 34.2% chance of winning and the Arsenal 37.5%. Next up farmyard frolics with Manure at the Emirates. So COYG!
Mills.
Well I suspect our friends at Statto HQ haven’t taken into account that we should be resting key players. And they need a rest because grafting is our top priority, none of this fancy Dan expansive entertaining football, that’s for the last century, apparently. Still whatever, I hope we win and my eyes stop bleeding.
Pedantic George.
Positively Arsenal 
Raya, Timber, Saliba, Mosquera, Lewis-Skelly, Merino, Zubimendi, Eze, Saka, Trossard, Jesus
Subs: Arrizabalaga, Setford, White, Gabriel, Norgaard, Rice, Nwaneri, Odegaard, Martinelli, Madueke, Gyokeres, Havertz.
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The pressure is off for this game. The football world will not be expecting anyone going into Milan’s backyard to be favourites to win. You would imagine that should help us.
Inter are very good defensively as you would expect for an Italian side and are also very good in the air.
This will be a very difficult match but we are very good at finding a way in Europe COYG.
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with this evening early kick off results Arsenal are now guaranteed a top eight finish in the CL League Phase table, avoiding the play-off round and directly advancing to the round-of-16
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Jesus puts Arsenal 1-0 up, VAR checking for offside
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goal stands, 1-0 to the Arsenal
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fucks sake, 1-1, we started the game on the front foot, had them at sixes and sevens, but since we scored we have sat back and let them come at us and its 1-1, why do we do this so fucking often
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Jesus taps in after the ball comes back off the bar, 2-1 to the Arsenal
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HT: Inter 1-2 Arsenal
Jesus with both our goals.
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White and Rice on for Timber and Eze
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Gabriel on Mosquera off
Gyokeres on Jesus off
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Martinelli on Trossard off
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Gyokeressssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssss makes it 3-1 to the Arsenal
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FT: Inter Milan 1-3 Arsenal
Jesus x2 and Gyokeres with our goals. The result means we are certain to finish in the top 2 of the CL group stage, almost certainly top. We have won 7 from 7 so far and we are at home to the bottom team next week who have 1 point from their 7 games.
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Declan Rice will now be suspended vs. Kairat (h) next week following his yellow card today, anyone think he got booked on purpose
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Merino booking too means he misses next weeks game too.
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Gyokeres goal tonight means he has scored 9 goals across all competitions for us so far this season.
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seems now that the Ajax deal to sign Zinchenko will be a permanent deal, for a small fee. It was initially agreed as a loan deal, but is now set to be a full time move.
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The move for Nwaneri looks like a good one. Marseille and Dezerbi can be a great stepping stone for him, I hope it all works out.
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Arsenal U21 team v Burnley U21: Porter, Nichols, Kacurri, Salmon, Ogunnaike, Ibrahim, Julienne, Harriman-Annous, Bailey-Joseph, Zecevic John, Sagoe Jr.
Subs: Talbot, Clarke, Washington, Agustien, Stevens.
the game is live now on Arsenal.com
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HT: 0-0
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Brandon Bailey-Joseph gives Arsenal the lead after a good run and finish form a tight angel
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FT: 1-0
a much needed win for our U21’s in a poor enough game, Burnley are not a good side. After last weeks 7-0 drubbing at Liverpool, Arsenal needed a win and BBJ got the only goal on his PL2 debut.
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our Women’s team beat Chelsea away for the first time in about 8 years. A well deserved win and puts us 3rd just one point off CFC, but still well back on man city
our U18’s lost away to Southampton 1-0, and haven’t won a league game since September, might be no problem replacing Per Mertesacker.
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Ethan Nwaneri scored 13 minutes into his debut for Marseille today
the goal
https://x.com/i/status/2015160131521069407
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Geroge, sent the preview over. COYG!
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It’s up.
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