November 27th, 2004 06:53pm
gilbertosilver
At least, it would be if I had my way.
At the start of this week, I argued that “Cesc needed a rest”, and that “The answer could be Mathieu Flamini”.
Following Flamini’s impressive substitute performance against PSV, I feel that now could be the time for his first Premiership start.
Xabi Alonso and Gerrard are a very very strong midfield partnership – if Cesc is just one step off the pace, we will be punished. The kid is only 17, and has been forced into action far more than anyone with his best interests at heart would have wanted.
Flamini’s no-nonsense, tough-tackling style could be exactly what’s required to combat this sort of thing:
The man you see above, I ought to add, could still end up at our beloved Chelsea, if you listen to Arsene.
One man who I reckon probably won’t start is Jose Reyes, who isn’t in the best of form. However, his international team-mate and bloody good midfielder Xabi Alonso has labelled little Jose a “genius”.
Good man.
I’ll leave you with some statistics that either show you:
a) How unlucky we are, or
b) How rubbish Jens is.
November 25th, 2004 05:26pm
gilbertosilver
..and aren’t you glad about it.
Arsenal, the bad boys of British football, are back, and it feels great.
With the sendings off of Lauren and Patrick Vieira, and all this “crisis” talk, we’ve backed ourselves into a corner. The very same corner which last season we fought out of to claim the League following the Old Trafford fracas. The same corner that we burst from, under fire for our poor disciplinary record, to claim two doubles in 1998 and 2002.
Now, our season could well take a turn for the better.
The pressure of the unbeaten record is gone.
Chelsea are many peoples favourites following their strong start to the season.
Sol Campbell is now returned from injury, and we’re one win away from European advancement.
Smile.
It’s not all bad.
And what’s more, Mauricio Taricco‘s career is in tatters.
Marvellous.
November 24th, 2004 03:47pm
gilbertosilver
Or ladesses, should that be the case.
It is a massive game. I’d explain all the possible permutations, but I can’t, because I don’t really understand them. So I’ll leave it to Goodplaya – a very new, very decent Arsenal blog indeed.
Sol Campbell could well return, and I’d suggest it’s worth rushing him back, because, frankly, we’re a bit desperate defensively.
In other news, Arsene has denied the charge levelled against him by the FA over calling Ruud van Nistelrooy a “cheat”.
In even more news, I’m so tired I can’t really type anymore.
Rock on.
November 22nd, 2004 09:49am
gilbertosilver
On Saturday 18th September, Gooners everywhere were cursing a Radhi Jaidi goal in a 2-2 draw.
This weekend, to a man, they celebrated one.
But Bolton coming back doesn’t excuse an Arsenal performance against West Brom which was way below par.
We should be gutted we didn’t take advantage and go top, not celebrating clinging on to Chelski’s coat-tails.
Against West Brom, however, we lacked imagination, and were defensively shambolic. I could spend all day talking about the different reasons for our poor record at the back, but I’d like to focus upon one particular apsect of it: the lack of protection from midfield.
Perhaps the most obvious reason for the above is Gilberto’s injury. We’re missing “The Invisible Wall” like never before. His positional know-how and tidy tackling are noticeably absent from the side.
Add to this Edu’s injury, and it’s easy to see why we might be struggling in midfield.
And yet, we still have Patrick Vieira and Cesc: what some would argue is our strongest midfield pair.
But Vieira has not reached his peak this season. His ball-winning skills have not been up to their usual standard.
And in Cesc we have seen a big change of late. When he first burst on to the scene, the thing that immediately impressed was his frantic energy and high-octane tyro tackling. However, since then, as he has settled into the side, he has developed a more relaxed, upright grace. Some would certainly say he looks a “classier” player. But I feel that we’re missing that gritt. It may be simply due to exhaustion, but he is not showing the same ability to cover ground and get those blocks in that he did in the first few games of the season.
And it shows. Our defence, already hindered by the absence of Sol Campbell, has been left exposed by the weakening of the screen directly in-front of them.
The answer could be Mathieu Flamini. His hyper-active, combatant style has led to comparisons with the great Rino Gattusso (who, I must reinforce, is a far superior player). However (surprise surprise) – he too is injured.
I can’t see Arsene dipping into the market for a midfield player, especially if Edu signs a new deal.
What’s clear is that Cesc needs a rest. So as soon as he returns to fitness, I’d expect Mathieu Flamini to be given a run in the side. And you never know, if he grasps the oppurtunity, we might just have a new star on our hands.
November 20th, 2004 12:44pm
gilbertosilver
Arsenal yesterday confirmed the story that we brought you long, long ago – Manu Eboue has signed.
Going the other way out of the big revolving doors at Highbury is Stuart Taylor, who has completed his evolution and actually become Ian Walker, having joined Leicester on loan for a month, with a view to a permanent deal. Injuries have blighted Stu’s career, and a move to the Foxes could be just what’s required to get him back on track. We wish him all the best.
Today we face West Brom, and the likely team is show below:
Cesc Fabregas continues his run in central midfield as Matthieu Flamini recovers from a knock sustained playing for the Reserve Team last week.
Gilberto, terrifyingly, could be out all season.
Sadly an injury to Kanu should prevent him scoring past us loads and loads of times. Which should be nice.
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