Massive Fixtures Ahead : Arsenal Title Credentials On The Line

They said "Arsenal will be tested by Swansea"; Arsenal won the match. They said "It will be Napoli who will really test Arsenal"; Arsenal won the match- comfortably I should add. We lost against Dortmund but they were champions league finalists last season and Arsenal did not make it a walk in the park for them did they?

Arsenal Flying High But Tougher Tests Lie Ahead

Arsenal are 2 points clear at the top of the EPL and there still remains doubts, in the minds of the so-called football pundits at least, whether Arsenal are genuine contenders to the title. Who cares what they think, Arsenal are top of the league and Arsenal fans are loving the view from the top :). My honest opinion is that it is too early to predict who will win but we will get a better idea at the end of December.

Moving on from foretelling the title winner, Arsenal are heading into the start of a very difficult period in the season with some tricky ties coming up. Staring with the home match against Chelsea tonight in the Capital One Cup, Arsenal host Liverpool followed by a visit to Dortmund in the Champions League and then to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in the League and they face an equally daunting task against a flying Southampton side at home in the league.As if that was not enough, Arsenal will arguably have an even tougher December to follow with games against Everton(H), Machester City(A), Napoli(A) and Chelsea(H). It is incredible how these big fixtures have all been put together. No wonder people are reserving their thoughts on Arsenal's credibility, because if Arsenal get past this storm of massive fixtures unscathed, or at least not battered, the title would be Arsenal's to lose.

A short note on tonight's match. Arsene knows that a critical phase is approaching in the season and I think he will be forced to prioritize here. He would want his best players to be fit for all these fixtures ahead and I think he will take a big gamble if decides to start with any of his regulars in tonight's match. Whether he will take that risk remains to be seen.

Wenger: I Am Waiting For Christmas!

Arsene Wenger

Ok those were not exactly the words that came out from Mr.Wenger but as they say, actions speak louder than words so it could not me more obvious now could it.

If you are wondering what I am talking about, I am talking about our transfers. Mr.Wenger is waiting for Christmas to  arrive before arriving at his decision to buy a good player. The more worrying thing is that it is more likely not be be this year's Christmas!

As I mentioned in my previous post (link), we continue to be linked with all the players but we have not made a single signing while on the other hand, the teams above and below us continue to sign players. If you want to be the best, you have to buy the best or produce the best. We do neither. In fact, if some player becomes very good at Arsenal, we sell them off!

Some may say we do not need signings at all because of the way we played at the end of  last season. True. We played well to get to top 4 when it looked like we were destined to falter this season at the beginning. But we must realize that we finished way behind the winners and none of our performances in the cups were something to be proud about.

And why does Ivan Gazidis have to come out and say we have enough money to spend on big players when we actually do not spend on such players? Why should he compare our club with other clubs like Bayern and Dortmund when we show no ambition to succeed like they do? Why does he want to play with the fans' minds and make them go crazy?

The sad truth is that Arsenal FC are no longer a football club. It is  purely a business club. It is more like Arsenal BC; B for business. The fans pay the most to watch Arsenal at the Emirates, the club generates one of the highest revenues in the world and most annoyingly, it gives back nothing to the ones that are the essence of the club, the fans.

POLL : Will Wenger Break The Bank?

Arsenal fans need no reminding of the bitter truth that the club manager Arsene Wenger has been very miserly when it comes to spending on good players. Although Arsenal have been linked with moves for many top players in the past and present, in the end, the fans have largely been disappointed. There have been numerous talk of "war-chest" and "large transfer kitty" made available to the manager but fans have never seen funds being fully utilized to take Arsenal to another level.


As the season closes and the transfer window re-opens, the media is full of talks of funds available to Arsene and the list of players linked with moves to Arsenal seems to grow by the day. History suggests this will be another disappointing transfer window for Arsenal fans. But like every year, most fans, if not all, still believe that this will be "the" year when ARSENE WILL BREAK THE BANK.

Do you think this will finally be "the" year?

Will it Be Thumbs Up From Arsene To Break The Bank This Year ?

The Fall From Grace - Part II

A Ray Of Hope

So, where do Arsenal go from here?


In my opinion, the way forward for Arsenal is to look back.

The Arsenal team with which Arsene initially  had so much success was handed down from George Graham. This team had the meanest defense on the land.So much so that"1-0 to Arsenal" was the cliche at that time. What Wenger did to this team, after he came in, was that he bought some players with attacking flair to give our club some "Style". However, and most importantly, the back four remained unchanged. What I am trying to say is that we have to have a strong defense if we are to succeed. The team must be built from the back. If Wenger looks back in time, he will realize it. Obviously,he has not done so yet. He has even claimed many times that he will be happy as long as his team scores more than the opponent! That will just not work.Definitely not if the club sells its best attacking players each year!

We all know how the teams that have the best defenses or defend the best get to win trophies(Chelsea anyone?). Our defense is among the worst in the league. You might argue that we have conceded the third lowest number of goals in the league. But, at least in the league,the defense with the most clean sheets win. Just look at Manchester City last year or the Manchester United team this year and the previous years and Chelsea. It would be very bold to predict that Arsenal will keep a clean sheet, even if it is against a "lesser" side. Just look our recent matches. Bradford, we conceded 2, scored 2. Blackburn, conceded once and lost.Bayern,we conceded 3, scored 1. If we had managed to keep a clean sheet in all these matches, we would have still been these competitions. The thing with keeping clean sheets is that we give ourselves every chance of winning.

The worst part of all this is that, we can just sit there and point to our team's nooks. We know that our protests will fall in deaf ears and we can do absolutely nothing about it. Its painful and difficult. To look at a club's rise to the top and fall so dramatically. Well, we were with the club when Arsenal were at the top, lets get behind the club when we are on the way down. "Through Thick and Through Thin" as they say.

The win yesterday was a pleasant welcome. But again, we made it difficult for ourselves and until the final whistle blew, we never knew what could have happened, against one of the league's minnows this season, Aston Villa.

The Fall From Grace - Part I

Is he to be blamed?

So we are out of the trophy hunt. Yet again.
Our hunt for a trophy(if we are looking for one at all!) continues for yet another year.

I doubt anyone would have expected such a trophy drought when Arsene was sweeping everything before him when he first arrived at Arsenal. The pinnacle of his achievements would unquestionably be the 2004/2005 season when Arsenal won the league without a single loss all season. After the victorious campaign, I still remember what he claimed to the world : "There will be a new power shift from Manchester to London". He could not have got it more wrong.

It would not be wrong to say that Arsenal are no longer a power house.(The talk of "power shift" is out of the window)! They are a good club no doubt. But, we are no longer a force. It was made apparent by our tame defeats against Manchester City, Chelsea, Manchester United and more recently against Bayern Munich.We were well outclassed in all these matches. Even Arsene admitted it. After the defeat to Bayern, Arsene claimed "Bayern were class". (Of course, that means we are not!). Defeats against League Two side Bradford and Championship side Blackburn suggested we were not even close.

Is it the fault of the Board or Arsene or both? We can blame whoever we want to but the fact remains that Arsenal have become just another average team.

New Heights In Poor Defending And Bergkamp Back At Arsenal

Poor Defending Cost Us Vital Points

 Arsenal have never known what is defending...it seemed that way when you watched them in action yesterday,especially for the goals. That was no defending. That was calamity. No wonder Arsenal are lingering at sixth. No wonder Arsenal are written off to win any trophy at all.

Not that we were defending like champions before last night. But last night, it almost seemed like we were trying to beat our own mark at defending poorly! We all know that a good team is built on the foundations of a strong defense(at least I do...just read my previous posts). Based last night...we were far from a good team. Yes, we came back after going 2-0 down and created a lot in the second half, maybe we could have nicked a win. But, we have to remember that we were playing against a side that had, before last night, never won against a to 10 side in the premier league and had just lost to a league one side. Liverpool are a big club but no longer do they have a competitive team at the highest level. Sadly, nor do we.

Bergkamp Heading Back To Arsenal

In other news, Arsenal.com announced yesterday that Liam Brady, our youth coach, is leaving the club after 25 years of service to the club. He is a true club legend and had a glittering career, both as a player and as a youth coach. It is sad to see him leave. However, it has emerged that Dennis Bergkamp, the legend himself, is poised to fill in the vacant post left by Liam Brady. At least, we can be assured that our youths will be in good hands. And who knows, it could be a trial for Bergkamp to ultimately take the helm at Arsenal's first team!

Yet Another Loss For Arsenal Fans

Clash Among Arsenal Fans Is Not Good For The Club

 News of clashes between Arsenal fans protesting with "Wenger Out" banners and those against it in the FA cup tie against Brighton is something that is not a complete surprise but certainly not something that you like to hear as an Arsenal fan.

There are many fans who are frustrated with the Club and the manager.They seem less interested in making a good team than making more money. Most of all, they seem to have complete disregard towards the fan. Yet, what is also true is that there are those who think we should stick with the manager and get behind the club. That is not wrong by any means. A coin has too sides to it.

What is wrong is fighting amongst ourselves. It is as if we were not satisfied with a weak team, now we are making the unity of fans more weaker. What it only does is create divisions and make the club weaker. We are entitled to have our opinions. Lets not force our opinions on others, especially on those who support our own club!

Why Arsenal Proved Again They Won't Win Any Trophy For A While

Arsenal's Defense Not Scary Anymore

Arsenal lost against a league two side Bradford.
We were taken all the way by Championship side Brighton Hove & Albion, conceding 2 goals in the process.

I can't remember when we last kept a clean sheet..can you.

Where am I going with this?

Our defense is no longer mean. It seems like ages ago that we had a mean defense and teams would be scared of our defenses. They knew it would be tough to score against Arsenal and more than that, they knew that they would get hassled and kicked throughout the the 90 minutes. Team were genuinely scared of the presence of Martin Keown, Sol Cambell and Patrick Viera. They were the enforcers,leaders,commanders... whatever you want call them. I don't think I need to tell everyone that we won when these players were in our side and when they left, we never won anything....zero....zilch...absolutely nothing at all. You don't need to know rocket science to know that we need such players in the side to win trophies do we?

THE TEAM THAT CONCEDES THE LEAST GOALS WINS IN THE END. This is a golden rule that applies to all winning teams. We need to look no further than last season when Manchester City won the league on goal difference because they conceded less than they scored compared to Manchester United.

The most sickening part of all this is that even after 8 years since the last of our "commanders", Patrick Viera left, there has been not a single player who has come in and claimed to have come close to replicating them. Many compared Diaby to Viera but just because they look alike does not mean they have the same presence. Who would be scared of seeing Diaby in the team sheet?

We keep conceding goals against every side and cannot keep a clean sheet at all. The manager says that as long as we keep scoring more than we concede, he is happy with this team. But until and unless we are capable of keeping clean sheets with the use of some "commanders", 8 years will soon be 16years.

Wenger: We Won't Sign Anyone And Other Teams Should Do The Same!

Arsene At it Again

 These were not the exact words of Wenger but he sure meant it when he said:

 "I think the transfer window should be all completely cut out or limited to two players.It is unfair for the league." 

He also confirmed that the rumors that Arsenal are chasing  Barcelona's David Villa and Dortmund's Mats Hummels are not true.

"We have been linked with David Villa. We are not on the case.I can't imagine Dortmund selling their defenders in the middle of the season anyway and we have not made any approach there."

Here is what he had to say when asked if he would make any transfer dealings at all:

" We have a good squad with two players playing in every position. We will only buy if there are exceptionally good players in the market and if we think they are good enough to play for Arsenal."

The fans who were expecting to see some money being spent, this comes as a major blow, especially after it was claimed by the media that Arsene had been given "significant" amount to spend in this window. Even Arsene himself came out and said we were short in terms of quality in the squad and we needed some strengthening. But this was when we were going through a bad patch. Now, all of a sudden, Arsene has made a U-turn on his own statements. 

What do you think.....is Arsene right if he does not bring in any signings in this window?

Arsenal Vs West Ham: Preview

After 22 games in the EPL, Arsenal are sitting "comfortably" at 6th position, 7 points adrift of the fourth placed Tottenham Houtspur and 4 points behind Everton. I don't think I need to emphasize on the fact that we have been poor this season.

It seems like this is going to be the season that Arsenal will finally finish outside the top 4 as it stands. People had been predicting Arsenal to finish outside the top 4 ever since Henry left the club. They were proved wrong every year. Every year, they predicted Arsenal to finish outside the top 4 and every year, they were proven wrong. This year in no different. But, we are still in it mathematically and until the end of the season, you never know. We might yet pull it off again.

Tonight's game is against West Ham, who are themselves going through a bad patch of form. They were very promising at the start of the season but have been quite inconsistent from then on.( It is almost like I am talking about Arsenal!)Arsenal too had a good start but then the inconsistencies crept in.

In all honesty, we could win this match very easily, 4-2 or 5-3( We cannot defend well to keep clean sheets at the moment.Fact) or we could lose 2-1, 1-0,2-0. That is what the problem is with Arsenal this season. We cannot predict what they will come with because they have been so inconsistent. Yet, it is also a fact that we seem to win quite a lot of the matches against Allardyce's men, although most are goal fests(which I don't like as I love our team to keep clean sheets). I still remember the 5-2s and 4-2s scorelines which we achieved against Blackburn when they visited the Emirates with Sam in charge.

Arsenal Slip Further Into Mediocrity

Arsenal 0 Manchester City 2
The scoreline was by no means a major shock. The EPL champions were in town.
You call them a "plastic" team or "money-bags" or whatever you want. They have a good squad and we knew it would be a difficult game. The Arsenal team have not covered themselves in glory by giving very erratic performances all season. On top of that, we had to play with 10 men for most of the game after Koscielny was sent off just 10 minutes into the game.

The most worrying thing for me after the match was that we never had the zeal, the drive to beat or at least compete with the opponents. That was the most disappointing aspect of the match. Yes, Wilshere,Sagna and to some extent,Szczesny had a good match, yet again. But a team consists of 11 players. Where were the others? There were a few sparks here and there but not consistently for the full 90 minutes.

Very few people would say we do not deserve to be mid-table, where we have been for the whole of the season. We are likely to finish mid-table come the end of the season on this form. I am not telling fans to switch teams or start calling for Wenger's head or put pressure on the board for spending lavishly in transfers. We should not react to the situation; we should respond to it. Keep supporting the club and get behind the team and the manger. They desperately need our support. What is true though, is the fact that the fall of Arsenal is truly complete. It really has been a great fall from the top to mid-table mediocrity.

Let Us Pray For Arsenal

Lets Pray

We must think positively. We must be optimistic.....True.

But if you tell Arsenal will win against Man City, even when Man City are not at the top of their game, even if they have not won at our home since 1975, that is asking too much, at least for me.

Here is an Arsenal side who have been so up and down this season. They have not hit the "world-beaters" level this season when they went "up" but when they stooped.....they stooped so low that they lost against a league one side playing with first team regulars and missing out, perhaps on the only chance to win a trophy in all these years. We have been very poor and inconsistent all season. There were a few bright sparks in some matches.....which were duly distinguished in the following match.

If you still tell me we will win.....that we can rely on the team that we have(at least this season)....that is beyond optimism....And if we tell this to the Arsenal board....they don't have ears to listen to the fans but fingers to count the money they make......The only thing I(and we) can do is....pray. Pray that Man City have a bad day in front of goal and Arsenal nick a goal or two.

Let Us Pray Together For Arsenal.

We Won't Sign Anyone of Note In January

Wenger Playing Waiting Game.....Again?

It is already January 11th and although Arsenal have been linked with many players, they have not made a single singing. The manager has conceded that Arsenal need reinforcements and that we will only go for "exceptional" signings.

 However, it is a fact that there are only a few "exceptional" talents available for transfer and only the clubs that are quick to snap them up will get those players. Most "big" clubs are quick to get the players they want. Arsene himself resorted to the prompt signing of Cazorla this season, which would suggest, unlike the previous years when he waited till the last second of the transfer deadline, that he has realized that good players need to be snapped up quick.

It now seems however, that he has resorted to his "age-old" practice once again. Rumors are ripe that he has already missed out on Lewis Holtby, who, as I already mentioned in my previous post, would have been a great signing for us(He is a free transfer too!). I dare say we will miss out on a few more. In the end, even if Arsene does sign an "exceptional" player, it will be at an expense of not singing 5-6 "exceptional" talents. Maybe Arsene has a different way of looking at Mathematics.

Ba's Gone As The Eve of The Transfer Window Is Upon Us

Demba Ba is In Talks With Chelsea

So, we are finally there. The eve of the New Year 2013(HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!) and most exciting of transfer windows approaches. Not that transfer windows were not exciting before. But the Manager himself has come out and claimed that this transfer window will be busy for Arsenal, which is not something you heard from him recently.Who goes in, who goes out, to Arsenal, from Arsenal, to the Premier League, from the Premier League....fans love the transfer window(if your club does not lose its best players!).
Arsenal have been linked with quite a few names this time around, like always. But as Arsene himself claimed, Arsenal would only be looking at "exceptional talent". Llorente,Holtby,David Villa, Demba Ba among others would perfectly fit the tag of "exceptional talent" and are apparently available for transfers if rumors are to be believed. Demba Ba is however holding talks for a move to Chelsea. He would have been a good addition to our squad given his proven abilities in the EPL and his price tag (7.5mil Pounds). But, it seems he is destined for a move to Chelsea, although you never know unless he actually completes the move.
Arsene, after the game against Newcastle claimed that Arsenal are not "short" in forward area. So, it could be an indication that he would go for a mid-fielder and/or someone to play in the back four, especially the left back position where we are desperately short on numbers and quality.
We can speculate all we want, but the transfer window always throws up quite a few surprises. Brace yourself, because there will be more than a few this time around. 

Holtby="Exceptional Talent"

Lewis Holtby is Undoubtedly an "Exceptional Talent"

Lewis Holtby has recently claimed that he will be leaving Shalke after he confirmed that he will not sign a new contract with the club. Now, there is no doubt about the talent instilled in this particular player. He has proven time and again how good he is through his exploits on the fields. He has not yet reached the heights of Mario Gotze, who has arguably become a world-class player and is a Bundesliga hot property at the moment. But the good thing is that most people admit that Holtby is next in line to "greatness". I still remember a few seasons ago when he was so influential in getting Mainz, a team that had just been promoted to the Bundesliga that season, to the top of the league for half the season beating almost all of the heavy-weights of the Bundesliga on their way. Holtby took the Bundesliga by storm that season. His performances even got him a place in the German senior side. He was all over the news that season and although he does not make the front page as often now a days, very few can question his performances and talents.

The news that he will not be extending his contract would have alerted a lot of clubs, ofcourse. Le Prof would also be looking at this as an opportunity, to strengthen our beleaguered squad as well as to add an "exceptional" talent, as he puts it. It will be difficult, but if he pulls this one off, it will be one of his major coup during his reign. 

El Shaarawy to Arsneal?,Wenger Wanted In Real And Neville Defends Wenger

EL Shaarawy To Arsenal? Too Good To Be True

Mourinho Out, Wenger In?

The English Daily "Metro" has revealed that Arsene is looking at El Shaaarawy, the top scorer in Serie A with 13 goals, as a potential signing in January(yes it is ridiculous). Do you think we have a chance?

It has also emerged that  the hierarchy at Real Madrid want Arsene Wenger to replace Jose Mourinho at the Bernabeu if Mourinho leaves at the end of the season. It is not the first time Wenger has been linked to the Real Madrid post. However, many critics and fans would wonder if Wenger is someone to replace a coach like Jose Mourinho, especially after a disappointing, trophy-less  7 seasons at Arsenal.

In other news, former Manchester United  player turned football pundit, Gary Neville has hit out at critics of Arsene Wenger, especially former Arsenal manager George Graham for his comments that Arsenal would never win a trophy. Gary argued that Chelsea and Manchester City had to invest a lofty 2bn pounds before they landed trophies while Arsene has done an excellent work at Arsenal given the shoe-string budget that he has had to work with.

Fell free to share your thoughts on these stories.

Prudence Costs Arsenal Dearly

WILL HE WON'T HE SPEND?

For quite some time now, Arsenal have always shown prudence in the transfer market for which they have been criticised by some and hailed by others. However, it is now clear that their policy of not spending at all was a complete failure. They have not won anything because of that.

One could argue that when they did spend last year, they still managed to win nothing. However the singings that were made(Arteta,Mertesacker,Benayoun), with all due respect, though were quality signings but are by no stretch of imagination, world beaters.

Seemingly out of greed to save a few million pounds, Arsenal missed out on signing good players (apparently including David Silva!) or keeping their own players. It has backfired,big time. Now, they will need to spend far more than what would have been required had they spent those extra millions if they are to make this team more competitive. How us Arsenal fans would have loved those in the Arsenal hierarchy to have the same greed for trophies rather than for money. Will we live to see that happen?

Dives and Lenient Refereeing: Just What Arsenal Need To Win

You Know You Faked It Santi!

A dive for the first goal and a foul, that was not given, before the penalty.
So now we need such decisions from the referee to win games?
Not being too critical here, and I know these kinds of decisions sometimes go for you and sometimes go against you. But it never pleases me when any team wins with goals literally "awarded" to them. Yes, Arsenal were in deep crisis. We desperately needed the 3 points. But not like the way we did.

We could have done little regarding the decisions  though. The right to make the final decision rests on the referee. It is the referee who decides what is a foul and what is not. He saw it his way and made his decision, right or wrong. The apology from Wenger regarding the dive from Santi was a real welcome. It seems his "I didn't see it" line is going out of fashion!

We created numerous opportunities in the game but it never looked like we would score with the players on the pitch. Arsenal need to be concerned. They won't get things their way in every game, will they?

COULD MISSING OUT ON TOP 4 BE A BOON FOR ARSENAL?

THINK ABOUT IT MR.WENGER - NO TOP 4 THIS SEASON

Arsenal have finished in the top 4 in every season that has been managed by Arsene Wenger, i.e. the past 16 consecutive seasons.During this period, we have come very close to finishing outside the top 4. The closest that we came was in the 2005/2006 season when we secured 4th position only in the final day of the league. Though we did not play well in the last few seasons, the top 4 position was secured quite easily in the end (to the surprise of many ofcourse!).

There is no doubt about the degree of importance of finishing in the top 4. Wenger himself has claimed many times that even winning trophies is secondary to finishing in the top 4. However, Paul Merson, a former gunner himself , told sky news that finishing outside the top 4 would be actually more beneficial to Arsenal because it would wake up everyone at the club.

It is actually something that had come across my mind a few years back. Arsenal are in slumber at the moment and they need to be woken up; simple. For that to happen, maybe we must finish outside the top 4. Maybe that will push the board and the manger to invest in the team rather than just making money for themselves. What do you think?

WINTERBURN:ARSENE STILL THE MAN FOR ARSENAL

IS WENGER STILL GOOD ENOUGH FOR ARSENAL?

Arsenal FC legend Nigel Winterburn has come out in defense of Arsene Wenger. He said:

  "I think Arsene Wenger is the right man for the football club and I'm sure he can get Arsenal Football Club back to where they were several seasons ago if he was allowed to bring in some real top-quality players."


He further said:

"I love the style of football that Arsenal have played over the years under him"

Do you agree with Nigel? Should Arsene be given a chance based solely on his past credentials? If so, for how long?

In other news, Arsene has named a second-string squad for the trip to Olympiacos with  some completely new faces in Akpom,Ansah and Monterio in the first team squad(click to view complete squad list). It is quite clear that Arsene is happy with 2nd place in the group. I don't blame him for that. We can keep our regular players fresh for the weekend.