The Etihad experience & match report as City beat Arsenal 6-3 through the eyes of Demetri Loizou.(‘son of our very own Georgaki-pyrovolitis’. )

When my dad, a long time Gooner offered me the opportunity to come join him in Manchester to watch Arsenal take on City I deliberated for a while. My own team, Chesterfield would be at home that day meaning I would have to miss the first opportunity to see Town since coming home for Christmas.

I’d been to Eastlands before, occupying the season ticket seats of City-supporting neighbours of ours to witness a dull 0-0 draw with Wigan Athletic back in 2008, but this was an entirely different prospect: the Premier League Title Favourites v League Leaders. Joe Hart was the only player from that game to still be involved with City today. Vincent Kompany had replaced Richard Dunne, and instead of Darius Vassell they have Alvaro Negredo. The decision was made that I would extend my Spireites homecoming until Boxing Day.

Following the big media hoo-ha about the £60 tickets for City fans at the Emirates last year, I was pleased to see our tickets were modestly priced at £56 each. Good on City for listening to the pleas of the working class football fans.

We got the 10:20 train direct to Manchester Piccadilly, followed by a tram to “Etihad Campus”. A pompous name for a football complex at first glance, but it really is a campus! Across the road the Arabs are building a stadium for their youth team many clubs below the second tier would only dream of – not to mention the surrounding training facilities under construction for the entire club.  We were inside the main stadium by half twelve. Navigating our way across the crammed concourse beneath bellowing Cockney cries of “Red Army” and several abusive songs aimed towards ex-Gunners Samir Nasri and Robin Van Persie, we assumed our position behind the goal. There are a few tributes to current players in Arsenal’s songsheet somewhere; my favourite being Per Mertesacker’s “We’ve got a big fucking German!” although venturing beyond adaptations of the same few generic tunes is explored as much at Arsenal as it is at Chesterfield (not very much, if at all).

Banners decorate the inside of City’s stadium. The iconic “WE’RE NOT REALLY HERE” looms largest and reminds me of the years before the “investment” from the Middle East, when I might have had some respect for the club. “There’s Only One Football Team in Manchester” is obscured somewhat by a St. George’s cross painted with “Chinley Blues” – I let out a sigh for the lost family of Derbyshire. The most odious of banners, however, reads “MANCHESTER THANKS YOU, SHEIKH MANSOUR”.

I get it, he bought them the success they’re currently enjoying, featuring world superstars like Yaya Toure and David Silva, but to thank a man at the head of an international regime accused of human rights abuses and repression is to me at least, plain wrong. I find it very worrying that nobody seems slightly bothered by this; as long as his football team keeps winning and more importantly, dominating Man United, they’re as happy as Liverpool fans observing a minute’s silence. Nobody will convince me City fans deserve this success. Why should they have it more than any other professional club? Because some dictator in the Middle East needs a branding vehicle and no asset is more visible than an English football club. If the fans are happy to have their club whored out like this, then no, they don’t deserve it at all in my eyes.

Attention to the pitch as the teams walked out and Martin Atkinson collected the yellow (because it’s winter time? Never quite got that one) match ball from a fucking plinth with the appropriate solemnity this ritual requires. Once the pre-match handshakes – set to the backdrop of an extravagant Barclaycard stage with balloons and flags dotted everywhere – were done with the match still couldn’t get underway as the two teams and match officials had to pose for photographs like we were witnessing a cup final and not an ordinary league match.

On to the actual game of football, featuring just twenty-two players and three match officials (how do we get by without the extra assistants’ batons?), and the first quarter of an hour flies by and with Yaya Toure the hub, Man City seem in control and sure enough, following the “al-Nayhan’s share” of possession and pressure, the imperious Agüero peeled away from Laurent Koscielny at a corner to volley home. With an arrogant nod in front of the visiting supporters, he ran to the corner to celebrate with his teammates and the loudest contingent of Blues fans.

This prompted a response from the Gunners and the game became more even, with some excellent football played by both sides. Theo Walcott’s equaliser on 31’ made all the more enjoyable with the England forward’s willingness to share the moment with the presently shirtless Arsenal fans at the other end of the pitch.

With the game levelled, the game reverted back to the opening quarter of an hour, and sure enough, following some fantastic movement and neat passes, Pablo Zabaleta picked out Alvaro “The Beast” Negredo who tapped in ahead of Koscielny. This was the French defender’s last involvement as he looked to pick up a serious injury from the collision and was stretchered off to a respectful applause from around the ground.

HT: 2-1

The second half began like the first and five minutes after the restart, with Agüero having just been forced off through injury, £30m signing Fernandinho capitalised on a combination of an uncharacteristic poor pass from Mesut Özil and a slip from Mathieu Flamini with an exquisite finish into the bottom corner from twenty yards out.

Again Arsenal responded: Jack Wilshere finally turned up to spray a beautiful ball to the back post where Olivier Giroud spurned what you might say is a perfect hat-trick of golden opportunities. This one was fluffed on his favoured left foot, and minutes later Sagna whipped in a fabulous cross, which met Giroud’s head and just whisked past the far post from six yards away. The Frenchman then found possession in the box with a chance to go for goal or drill the ball across, yet as he swung his weaker right foot, comically stumbled and gave a goal kick to the hosts. After a ten minute period of pressure, Ramsey finally picked out Walcott beyond City’s backline, and the pacey forward/winger stroked the ball home magnificently with an Henry-esque finish past Costel Pantilimon for his second of the day – living up to that famous number 14 jersey.

A recurrence throughout the afternoon, Arsenal relented after scoring and allowed the home side to resume control. Just three minutes after finding themselves back in the game, they were duly punished for what seems like an intrinsic lackadaisical attitude towards defending. David Silva this time applied the finish from Jesus Navas’ cross to re-assert the Sky Blues’ grip on this clash – not the first goal to come down City’s right wing.

The Gunners then had a chance to respond again and Giroud this time did find the net with a top finish on his right foot, but was possibly incorrectly ruled offside. Many in the world football might suggest this was one of those occasions when someone’s afternoon was summed up by something which didn’t quite go his way.

The extra day City had to recover from their impressive midweek trip to Europe – and the fact they rested half their team and still won in Munich – was beginning to show in the legs of the Londoners who themselves had a very tough trip to Naples. On 88’ ex-Gunner Samir Nasri dispossessed a tired Jack Wilshere and worked the ball towards Fernandinho who took his second of the afternoon very well and City put the game to bed. Chants of “Are you Tottenham in disguise?” taunted the despondent visitors.

Still though, Arsenal found the heart to respond, and Nicklas Bendtner, introduced for the frustrated Giroud, headed home a wonderful move straight from kick off only to find himself flagged offside in another questionable decision from the linesman on that side. A brilliant move then saw Walcott in for his hattrick, but Pantilimon saved well. The resulting corner saw Mertesacker head home a consolation goal to make the scoreline more respectable in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

The goals were expected to end there, but young substitute Serge Gnabry was then the culprit for another Arsenal lapse as his poor pass set City through and James Milner won his second penalty this week as ‘keeper Wojciech Szczesny unfairly brought him down. Man of the match candidate Yaya Toure accordingly converted and the rout was complete.

FT: 6-3

To be fair, with nine goals and some of the best footballers in the world, we may well have got value for money, but it is a shame to have lost what was once a great English club and all its fans to the circus that is today’s Premier League with its silly rituals and more importantly, its stolen money and false glory. I hope I speak for any sensible neutral with a moral compass that for the good of football, Arsenal needs to bounce back from this and win the league.

Well that was disappointing, to say the least.

I can’t think of a single player (with the exception of Bendtner of all people) who did themselves justice.

Theo took his goals well, but did little else.  He was by no means on his own.

City set off like a runaway train but I felt that after ten minutes we were their equals.

The sad truth is you can’t defend like we did and hope to win, you just can’t.

I thought the midfield went missing in action and the back four were terribly exposed.  It was shocking at times, it really was.

There is no point slating individual players, it would take me all day.  Almost to a man they were below par.

On the bright side we scored 5 goals away at City.

FIVE!!!! I hear you say? Well yes, the three that stood and the two perfectly good ones ruled out by phantom off-side decisions.

We had a clear penalty turned down and they got awarded one for a Tom Daley moment produced by Milner.

So with the correct calls we may well have won 5 – 6  and that is a fact.

I just hope we can put it down to fatigue, but even I can’t imagine how those who didn’t play in Napoli could  be offered that excuse.

I can’t bring myself to write any more, I’m sounding like someone I despise.

Anyway, we are still top and look like a team that can go on to better things.

Lets hope we do!

PS. Having reflected on it, it must be pointed out that the awful officiating at the most crucial part of the game,  when we were fighting back and matching them, may just have been the straw that broke the camel’s back.

I am really not up to this today.  Are you any day, you might well ask?

I’ve been struck down with a terrible case of man-flu.   Never mind though, I’ll struggle on [Takes out onion and weeps – Ed] because I know without my expert opinions you would not know what to think.

So we play Manchester City, the favourites to win the league, at their gaff.

Should we not take all the points that will be 3 games without a win.

I can feel the knives being sharpened.

Arsene said  “We don’t complain about the fixtures”, which is his way of saying “City have a huge advantage and its not fair”

I have to say I was disappointed with our approach in Napoli.  I don’t like it when we go all “Chelsea”, and I hope Arsene picks an attacking team up in the rainy city.

Given our relative fatigue I would take a point now and be very satisfied.

When it comes to team selection once again I don’t have a clue.

If I was doing the team talk I would say “go hard and fast in the hope of getting a lead and upsetting them, and hang on in the second half when your legs are weary.”

I know, I know – I’m a genius.

Lets hope for a great game of football and a positive result.

One thing is for sure, we will be top of the League come Monday.

And that can’t be bad.

A tricky hand …

The boys are off on a jaunt to Italy then.

As far as I can tell, a draw or a win puts us top of the group.  A defeat by less than a 3 goal margin leaves us runners-up if BVB win in France. I am sure there are all sorts of complicated equations but that’s the gist of it, I think.

Goodness only knows what sort of a team we will put out given that we play City early on Saturday. It could be anything between the best eleven and a shadow team. I really don’t have a clue.

Nor does anyone else, bar Arsene.

A quick scan of some blogs tells me nothing other than what some experts recommend Arsene does.

I suspect no matter what happens on the night he will have made the wrong choices. If we play a strong team and win, we should have rested key players. If we play a weakened team and lose, we should have played a stronger team.

You know how it goes.

So I think its best if we experts decide in the comments section what Arsene should do.

Today’s piece is penned by our very own @anicoll5.

In line with house policy I shall not recite the events of Sunday afternoon on the pitch as you have seen it, or heard it, or followed it on Twitter, or missed it. If the latter, my poor expression would be inadequate to describe an excellent game.

As for the result the words ‘fair’ and ‘result’ were used in 24,727 social media references to the game on the period between 6pm and midnight GMT last night. The people have spoken and, I admit gentle reader, I was one of those statistics.  For either club to have gone away pointless would have been injustice.

Were we expecting much different? Not me and I suspect I was not the only one on PA. The three points would have been a good prize but in recent seasons EFC have proved a difficult, awkward side to beat at home. I recall peering at the game through a snow storm two seasons ago when the home side, Tomas I think, snaffled a late equalizer. And they have a little more football quality now and are less reliant on the boot and fist that Fellaini personified.

Some Arsenal fans were relying on that old leveller ‘fatigue’ to kick in, with Everton having won late at Trafford Park on Wednesday. By the last 20 minutes they would be knackered. Well as we saw on Saturday, and have seen quite often this season,  a win against ManYoo away is not deserving of the accolades what it was. As for ‘fatigue’ – Pah! Arsenal had played 23 club games this season going into Sunday’s game, Everton just 16. Add in our Champions League traveling and our player’s international football commitments, then why the visitors should feel tired is a mystery.

So a good result and one that gently extended our lead on Chelsea and did not diminish the gap with Citeh. No more injuries, and no one banned for that 5^th yellow card.  We sail on toward the City of Manchester stadium with a strong wind in our favour.

I see Howard Webb came in for some criticism for not picking up fouls and taking more robust, card-type action, but I did not think he had a bad game. I have noticed that referees are much more willing to wave play on when a player goes down this season. While errors are being made – and will be made – I prefer a system where referees give a foul if they see a real actual foul, not just in response to a theatrical scream and tumble.

The man from Blackburn was on form last night, baiting the mob and their efforts to find the guilty man, or men, responsible for the Everton goal. The pitchfork wielding rabble rampaged through the cyber streets and alleys in search first of Szcz, then Gibbs, then Arteta, even Rambo was accused by the vengeance seeking multitude. They were stopped in their tracks however by the revelation – it was Bendtner wot done it.

Hoot hoot

Everton this afternoon then. A good team playing well.

So what? We are a great team , playing great , in our own stadium. We are stronger in every position including the dug-out.

Everton will come and play football. Good, lets see how that works for them.

Following yesterdays results we can go 7 points clear of second placed Liverpool. I think we will.

Bearing in mind the magnitude of our following 3 games ,  I have no idea what team Arsene will pick, but it will be good one no matter what.

However. a word of caution, if yesterdays results told us anything, its that any team can lose or drop points anywhere. Should we lose we will still be 4 points clear and a draw will see it increase to 5.

Lets hope for a great game of entertaining football and no controversy.

You have to have some depth in your squad to rest the kind of quality we rested last night. But it’s more than just the players who took a breather, who will therefore necessarily return refreshed and stronger for their recumbent relaxation, the significance of the sheer depth and quality of the squad Arsène has patiently put together is best exemplified by the example of Theo Walcott.

In recent seasons we would have missed Theo horribly. I believe that we have missed him this time and in fact would have been winning our games by a greater margin with him in the team. However the difference is that we haven’t needed to rush him back. Players are allowed to ease themselves back into fitness and contention. Players approaching the autumn of their careers to who’s form three matches a week would surely be injurious, can be omitted from the starting line up and then come back into it with the running and enthusiasm of younger men. Ask yourself what good it would have done to have rushed Theo back into the team after his operation, the weight of an expectant fan base on his fragile shoulders only for his stitches to burst and his spleen and various other significant organs to spurt down the front of his tunic spoiling the effect of the prettily designed red and white strip. This tasteless scenario was avoided because of the riches available to our illustrious leader and I think the gains will be long term and evidential.

In case you were wondering, I was planning to deliver one of my contemporaneous match reports but my wife contrived to find me something better to do and so I missed Nic Bendtner’s opening goal and spent a frustrating time stream chasing eventually finding myself in no fit mood to invent a match report for a game I couldn’t watch. However I caught up towards the end of the first half just in time to see Hull enjoy a few brief moments of possession in between our magical passing football. None of their moves amounted to much but I’m sure twitter went into meltdown because the opposition dared to have a go. I don’t join any social media based conversations during the match because people simply prove themselves, time and again, incapable of any calm sense of perspective or in fact the ability to actually enjoy the match they’re watching. Instead all you read are trotted out clichés about how we ‘need a second goal’ are ‘playing nice football but must kill off the game’, and how much they ‘hate Nic Bendtner but will support him as he’s wearing the shirt’. It is tiresome in the extreme and they need to get a grip on themselves.

Talking of our Great Dane, when I finally got to see the highlights of the first half I was amused to see how his goal (very very well taken) came at the end of some superb slick one touch passing culminating in contributions from two of the candidates for scapegoat of the season. Carl Jenkinson’s perfect run and cross and Nic’s beautifully skilful header were all the sweeter for those of us who support the entire Arsenal squad without the self serving need to add the word ‘but’ and some mealy mouthed qualification to that sentence. They are both excellent understudies to two extraordinarily good players. Carl has a huge future in the game, anyone who can’t see it is watching the wrong sport and Nic is a proven international goalscorer. Surely good enough qualifications for our or anybody else’s reserves?

I cannot talk about those who stepped up last night without a mention for one of my absolute favourite players in the first team squad. Nacho Monreal has accepted the second fiddle to Kieran Gibbs virtuoso Left back role with apparent equanimity. Never a murmur of discontent and always leaping from the subs bench to play out of position with an irrepressible enthusiasm and lively passionate ebullience and no little skill. I was delighted to see him given a start yesterday and I speak as one who has followed Gibbs career with a keen appreciation. I think if we have players of Monreal’s undoubted talent waiting in the wings we can put to bed the tired lie about us lacking depth in our squad. Theo, Jack, Mikel Arteta, Tommy Vermaelen, Bacary Sagna, Abou Diaby, Olivier Giroud, not in the starting line up last night and yet the team were scintillating.

All of this raises the question – what more do people want from our reserves? It really is pathetic how some supporters cannot just support without telling the world how important and hard won that support is, how the club and it’s staff must in some way ‘earn’ it. If you are one of those all I want to say to you is this. How about you just enjoy what the team have served up so far this season. How about you STFU and enjoy the beautiful football. How about you STFU and enjoy the wonderful goals. How about you STFU and enjoy the solid defending. How about you STFU and enjoy the winning runs. How about you STFU and just enjoy being top of the league.

Oh and if things start to go wrong and we suffer a dip in form and you are so distraught and spineless as to be incapable of getting behind the team when it needs you most, then how about you just STFU altogether.

By Stew Black

You have to have some depth in your squad to rest the kind of quality we rested last night. But it’s more than just the players who took a breather, who will therefore necessarily return refreshed and stronger for their recumbent relaxation, the significance of the sheer depth and quality of the squad Arsène has patiently put together is best exemplified by the example of Theo Walcott.

In recent seasons we would have missed Theo horribly. I believe that we have missed him this time and in fact would have been winning our games by a greater margin with him in the team. However the difference is that we haven’t needed to rush him back. Players are allowed to ease themselves back into fitness and contention. Players approaching the autumn of their careers to who’s form three matches a week would surely be injurious, can be omitted from the starting line up and then come back into it with the running and enthusiasm of younger men. Ask yourself what good it would have done to have rushed Theo back into the team after his operation, the weight of an expectant fan base on his fragile shoulders only for his stitches to burst and his spleen and various other significant organs to spurt down the front of his tunic spoiling the effect of the prettily designed red and white strip. This tasteless scenario was avoided because of the riches available to our illustrious leader and I think the gains will be long term and evidential.

In case you were wondering, I was planning to deliver one of my contemporaneous match reports but my wife contrived to find me something better to do and so I missed Nic Bendtner’s opening goal and spent a frustrating time stream chasing eventually finding myself in no fit mood to invent a match report for a game I couldn’t watch. However I caught up towards the end of the first half just in time to see Hull enjoy a few brief moments of possession in between our magical passing football. None of their moves amounted to much but I’m sure twitter went into meltdown because the opposition dared to have a go. I don’t join any social media based conversations during the match because people simply prove themselves, time and again, incapable of any calm sense of perspective or in fact the ability to actually enjoy the match they’re watching. Instead all you read are trotted out clichés about how we ‘need a second goal’ are ‘playing nice football but must kill off the game’, and how much they ‘hate Nic Bendtner but will support him as he’s wearing the shirt’. It is tiresome in the extreme and they need to get a grip on themselves.

Talking of our Great Dane, when I finally got to see the highlights of the first half I was amused to see how his goal (very very well taken) came at the end of some superb slick one touch passing culminating in contributions from two of the candidates for scapegoat of the season. Carl Jenkinson’s perfect run and cross and Nic’s beautifully skilful header were all the sweeter for those of us who support the entire Arsenal squad without the self serving need to add the word ‘but’ and some mealy mouthed qualification to that sentence. They are both excellent understudies to two extraordinarily good players. Carl has a huge future in the game, anyone who can’t see it is watching the wrong sport and Nic is a proven international goalscorer. Surely good enough qualifications for our or anybody else’s reserves?

I cannot talk about those who stepped up last night without a mention for one of my absolute favourite players in the first team squad. Nacho Monreal has accepted the second fiddle to Kieran Gibbs virtuoso Left back role with apparent equanimity. Never a murmur of discontent and always leaping from the subs bench to play out of position with an irrepressible enthusiasm and lively passionate ebullience and no little skill. I was delighted to see him given a start yesterday and I speak as one who has followed Gibbs career with a keen appreciation. I think if we have players of Monreal’s undoubted talent waiting in the wings we can put to bed the tired lie about us lacking depth in our squad. Theo, Jack, Mikel Arteta, Tommy Vermaelen, Bacary Sagna, Abou Diaby, Olivier Giroud, not in the starting line up last night and yet the team were scintillating.

All of this raises the question – what more do people want from our reserves? It really is pathetic how some supporters cannot just support without telling the world how important and hard won that support is, how the club and it’s staff must in some way ‘earn’ it. If you are one of those all I want to say to you is this. How about you just enjoy what the team have served up so far this season. How about you shut the fuck up and enjoy the beautiful football. How about you shut the fuck up and enjoy the wonderful goals. How about you shut the fuck up and enjoy the solid defending. How about you shut the fuck up and enjoy the winning runs. How about you shut the fuck up and just enjoy being top of the league.

Oh and if things start to go wrong and we suffer a dip in form and you are so distraught and spineless as to be incapable of getting behind the team when it needs you most, then how about you just shut the fuck up altogether.

Well, who knew?

I was minded to write a post about the ridiculous notion put forward by the malcontents that Arsene has changed. An idea put forward to justify their stupidity over recent times.

Yesterday in the comments section of PA, people did it for me.  Have a read of some of them …

Anicoll:

“Yes its all a bit hard to follow the ‘Arsene has changed’ debate Harry

I think almost certainly Arsene has changed his approach and precisely how he does things – he is a bright, energetic professional man who constantly reviews what he does, how he goes about his work, to eliminate error and tries to devise better ways to secure the results he wants to achieve.

And I am sure he has done that every day of the time he has managed a football club, and is doing so today, and will be at it tomorrow too.

If he did not constantly change, adapt, improve, discard, test this approach and that, then he would not be the exceptionally good manager he undoubtedly is.

The notion however that he underwent some form of Damascene revelation and ‘changed’ at some point in the past few months is however a theory too far – imo”

Leo S:

Ozil to Ramsey, Ozil to Flamini and the Theo/Aaron axis brought about the goals – Three fine goals, I might add.

There is no doubt that Ozil has made a difference to our fortunes. His composed passing in the final third is always going to lead to chances. The latest step in Ramsey’s development is obviously a huge factor too. Goals win games and Ramsey scores goals. These are huge factors.

Yesterday, however, we saw a clear example what I believe to be the biggest factor of all. At 1-0, Cardiff were mounting a fight-back, and why wouldn’t they. Last week they kept the current champions within sight and earned themselves a draw – why not do the same to the future champions?

We know our team is good enough to create chances but I can’t recall any team in all my years of watching football who are good enough to not concede chances. Every great football team needs a great goalkeeper to bail them out from time to time.

When a cross came in from the Cardiff left and found their striker’s head just a couple of yards from goal, the game was set to go level.

When I used to collect the World Cup ring-binder things, they would always have an illustration of a save by England’s Gordon Banks. The ball was all but in when suddenly Banks was on the deck scooping the ball over the bar. Well, Szczesny didn’t get the ball over the bar but the Cardiff header was all but in and the save had this Gooner on his feet.

If Cardiff got back to 1-1, the whole thing would have been different. Perhaps we would have won but it would have been against a side with something for which to fight. It would have been against a stadium of Welsh fans who were no longer full of respect for their former player. At 1-1, they would have tasted our blood and wanted more.

From that moment, it looked like Cardiff realised that it wasn’t to be. Our boys battled to regain supremacy and the familiar pattern resumed. We were back in control.

So, I say that many of these wins –particularly yesterday’s— have been hugely down to Wojciech Szczesny. The guy is truly one of the top players in his position.

Thank you and keep going Chezzer!

Thanks for reading,

Up the Arsenal!