tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-74858288767147658542024-03-05T12:40:54.359-05:00The ArseNoleArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.comBlogger340125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-29358682961594202822011-05-31T16:20:00.003-04:002011-05-31T19:47:56.963-04:00Arsenal Should Sell Cesc Fabregas<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp6MHF1olT5lLhh0lB3RleuP2swzrNYXE7vEp9DNaCW7dYFsqLZbvuOOV4ReXDlbit5JhJPJ0zHwsfRqls63GzASt0gbcRq5O2PYSLUpeXB4N3IJ837JmCoqjxQjV8_NTxWfh7_eeZQSU/s1600/cescfabregas_649400.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp6MHF1olT5lLhh0lB3RleuP2swzrNYXE7vEp9DNaCW7dYFsqLZbvuOOV4ReXDlbit5JhJPJ0zHwsfRqls63GzASt0gbcRq5O2PYSLUpeXB4N3IJ837JmCoqjxQjV8_NTxWfh7_eeZQSU/s320/cescfabregas_649400.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612979081707110962" border="0" /></a><br /><div class="WordSection1"><p class="MsoNormal">I think <span style="font-weight: bold;">Cesc Fabregas</span>’ time at Arsenal is nearing it’s end. He has been a great servant since joining the club at age 16, but it may now be time to collect the fat check from <span style="font-weight: bold;">Barcelona</span>, allow Cesc to go where he wants, and use the money to move forward and improve the team as a whole. Sources say that Arsenal are looking for a fee of 35-40 million pounds for the captain, and if Barcelona, or any other club, meet that asking price, does anyone NOT think it would be in our best interest to take that kind of cash?</p><p class="MsoNormal">The importance of Cesc to this team over the past few seasons is undoubted. He has led from the front for the most part, and he has been a loyal servant since he first arrived from Barcelona. His talent is world class, and any team would love to have a player of his quality. My fear is that this current Arsenal team have become too reliant on Cesc, and when he is injured like he was for a good portion of this past year, we seem to lose our way. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Selling Cesc would give us the freedom to change formations into what I think we most suited for, the 4-4-2. That would allow Jack Wilshere/Samir Nasri/Aaron Ramsey to have the creative slot in the center of midfield next to Alex Song. Up front we could have both a target man like <span style="font-weight: bold;"> Marouane Chamakh</span> or <span style="font-weight: bold;">Nicklas Bendtner</span> (if we keep him) next to the brilliance of <span style="font-weight: bold;">Robin van Persie</span>. Or we could move Theo up front with RvP and play them in the Bergkamp/Henry roles. The wing positions could be solved with a number or options, including Arshavin (again, if we keep him), Theo, Nasri, or Wilshere, along with potential signings <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=4&ved=0CDQQFjAD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.caughtoffside.com%2F2011%2F05%2F17%2F16m-eden-hazard-admits-interest-in-joining-arsenal%2F&rct=j&q=arsenal%20eden%20hazard&ei=Bk7lTe_UHMjt0gHT6IS4Bw&usg=AFQjCNH3okAo4JehKJxjj6I0AaouibXlTw&sig2=pwEKOXB-9EipZe4m6wmTYQ&cad=rja">Eden Hazard</a> and <a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_6960817,00.html">Gervinho</a>. I think our players are more suited to a 4-4-2 formation that has been so successful for the club over the years as opposed to the 4-3-3 we have been operating with the past few seasons.</p><p class="MsoNormal">The other benefit of selling Cesc, obviously, would be the large amount of money we would be getting for him. If you need to bring a lot of players in to revamp a lineup, then you are going to need a lot of money to do it. While we’ll get some money for selling Denilson, Bendtner, Almunia, and some others, all of that won’t even add up to the money that we would get for selling Cesc. He wants to go back to Barcelona, and I can’t really blame the guy. If you watched the Champions League Final you know how brilliant a team they are, even if they are a bunch of twats. Let’s take that big money for him and reinvest it into the team instead of keeping a player around who doesn’t want to be here and eventually selling him for a lower price or losing him on a free when his contract eventually runs out. </p><p class="MsoNormal"> Cesc has been a good servant to the club, but at some point you need to move forward without certain players. Arsenal sold Vieira, we sold Henry, and we can sell Cesc too. You can’t replace a player of his talent level one for one, but with a squad that needs so many things fixed, I’d prefer 3-4 very good players to one great one. Let’s make the move that will make everyone happy and sell him this summer.</p><p class="MsoNormal">Feel free to agree or disagree with me, and if someone wants to write an article opposing what I just wrote, you have an open invitation to email me your article and I will post it here unedited tomorrow. ArseNole<at>{at}arsenole}dot}<dot>com. Cheers and up the Gunners.</dot></at></p><p class="MsoNormal">PS: I'm still <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&cd=3&ved=0CC4QFjAC&url=http%3A%2F%2Farsenole.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F08%2Fim-going-to-marry-cescs-sister.html&rct=j&q=arsenal%20cescs%20sister&ei=ik7lTdeSA8W_tgeP2oneCQ&usg=AFQjCNGPn6XFMz_oRXFMgR4A1721VGtZTA&sig2=Fh2NdWrNO8K03IasC2Kw7Q&cad=rja">going to marry Cesc's sister</a> ;)<br /></p></div>ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-38558294228295069402011-05-30T17:37:00.003-04:002011-05-30T17:55:09.810-04:00Arsene Wenger's Failed ProjectRemoving the dead wood at Arsenal is something that basically every supporter has been calling for since about March of this year. I’ve talked to several of you on twitter and the list is long and varied as to who should be shipped out, but the general consensus is that we want most everyone gone. <b>Denilson </b>and<b> Bendtner </b>I think will both be on their way, and I don’t think anyone will be saddened if<b> Rosicky, Denilson, Diaby, Vela, Arshavin, Almunia,</b> and<b> Squillaci</b> follow them. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out fellas. Some people would add <b>Clichy</b> to that list as well, but I’ve always been a bit of a Clichy fan so it’s hard for me to put him on there, although if he and <b>Nasri</b> don’t sign new deals then they will be gone too.<p class="MsoNormal">Now that we’ve got the list together of who to ship out, let’s analyze the problem a little bit more. I think if you look at that list of players that aren’t up to scratch, it shows a problem with Arsene’s transfer dealings as a whole over the past couple of years. All of those signings, with the exception of Almunia, have been in the past 4 years. Wenger expected them to develop and build the foundation of a squad that would compete for the top honors in football, and it never materialized. Is it a case of poor scouting, poor transfer decisions, or just poor coaching? Sure, they have all had moments of greatness, Vela in the Carling Cup, Arshavin’s 4 goals at Anfield, etc…but the problem has been that none of them can be consistent enough to hold down a regular place in the team, much less compete for trophies. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b>The Invincibles</b>, in my mind, was the culmination of Arsene Wenger’s first “project” at Arsenal. He had brought in the players, molded them into a team, coached them up, and reaped the rewards. He had taken players with a lot of talent and supplemented that with a lot of experience. For every young stud like Henry when he first arrived and Anelka, we had a <b>Bergkamp</b> and a <b>Tony Adams</b>. The problem with the current squad is there has never been that balance between youthful talent and energy to go with experienced players who have been through the wars. He sold off Vieira, Henry, Campbell, Lauren, and Gilberto, to replace them with the likes of Denilson, Diaby, Bendtner, and Eboue. When you look at it like that, this plan was destined for failure from the very start.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdXN0g9wPD2LVPTxlFLXvz1tpdpEJewrBxbOFFO5AT0X-rrKL3nnsYvA64UKjDegPBXy080jJVkTjiCSd2ySjc6DVoyFM9vwElknpSB-hnobNqEaxrTRVa0jukpmjIDMgcX2w5TqU4qoE/s1600/Vieira.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 220px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdXN0g9wPD2LVPTxlFLXvz1tpdpEJewrBxbOFFO5AT0X-rrKL3nnsYvA64UKjDegPBXy080jJVkTjiCSd2ySjc6DVoyFM9vwElknpSB-hnobNqEaxrTRVa0jukpmjIDMgcX2w5TqU4qoE/s320/Vieira.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612630773588482370" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal">Arsene is coming to the close of his career, and much like most of the current squad, I believe his talents are waning. He has not shown the foresight and knowledge of the transfer market that we all assumed he had. We thought the genius would eventually show through and that his master plan would somehow come to fruition. It hasn’t, and it’s time for an overhaul. If <b>Arsene Wenger</b> is unwilling to change his ideas on how to put a team together, then it will require someone else making that change. He’s been a brilliant manager for us over the years but being stubborn year after year is absolutely mental. He’s so stuck on his ideas being correct that he is unwilling to branch out and accept that this time he might have been wrong.<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKOA5Y0RgXnuSYCqBkW-0jSaoMViR7WNWo2gBELzagtZB-nHOloj9ZfHCA4tNpUW7IbdjVOGRM9Zx3QU9CqsIrBAj9xqEsW0EfJZoM6bnGZSV3hd9KCWpHySq7i1BsHuQMQdvEF9iZaTk/s1600/arsene-wenger.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 236px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKOA5Y0RgXnuSYCqBkW-0jSaoMViR7WNWo2gBELzagtZB-nHOloj9ZfHCA4tNpUW7IbdjVOGRM9Zx3QU9CqsIrBAj9xqEsW0EfJZoM6bnGZSV3hd9KCWpHySq7i1BsHuQMQdvEF9iZaTk/s320/arsene-wenger.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612630946975731218" border="0" /></a></p>I hope Arsene makes the right moves this summer and shakes up a lot of the current squad. Part of me is hopeful, thinking that it can’t get much worse than this and surely now Arsene has seen the error of his ways. Mostly though, I worry that almost nothing will change, that we’ll trot out a lineup on opening day next season with almost the exact same squad that collapsed this season. Maybe nothing will ever change while Arsene is in charge. But for now, we can all hope. Up the Gunners.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-43705403308460914002010-07-15T12:40:00.007-04:002010-07-15T13:05:12.888-04:00Thierry Quits France, Joins the Red Bulls'Ello boyos! Been almost 4 months since I wrote anything on here. Full time jobs will do that to ya, not to mention our season didn't end in the best fashion, and the World Cup has been on for the last month, so those are my excuses. <br /><br />So <span style="font-weight: bold;">Thierry Henry</span>, Arsenal legend, made two big announcements this week. The 2010 World Cup was a disaster for the French team, and <a href="http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=808865&sec=europe&cc=5739">Henry has decided to retire from International Football</a> in the wake of the fiasco. He's France's all time leading scorer, (as well as Arsenal's of course) but will probably be remembered as much for his hand ball against Ireland as he will for being a part of the side that won the 1998 World Cup and Euro 2000. Honestly I couldn't give a shit about the French team so I'm not arsed that he's retiring from internationals. But it is a blow for France for certain any time you lose a player from the golden generation.<br /><br />The second big announcement this week was that <a href="http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/sport/2010/0715/1224274737657.html">Thierry is moving to my beloved United States</a> to play in the MLS for the <span style="font-weight: bold;">New York Red Bulls</span>. Now I'll be the first to admit that I think MLS is a shit league with shit players and overpaid fucks like David Beckham only make the league look worse. This however, is in my opinion a brilliant signing. Henry still has plenty of gas in the tank, and against lower quality teams and players he should be able to get into top form. He doesn't have the pace that he used to, certainly, but he still has that knack for finishing and finding the right spaces on the pitch. When you look at him paired with Juan Pablo Angel, the Red Bulls instantly have the best strike force in the league.<br /><br />Awesomely enough, his debut for the Red Bulls is going to be against some huge cunts, Tottenham. If there's one thing I can guarantee in that match, it's that Thierry scores a goal. Out of all the people who love scoring against Sp*rs, Thierry is especially good at it. While he'll only be here for half of the MLS season this year, I would put a good bet on him to be the league's top scorer next year. I wish him all the best and hope that I can make it up to one of his matches before he finally retires. <br /><br />In other news, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Barcelona are absolute fucking cunts</span>. I don't think there has been one day since the summer began that one of their players came out and said how much they'd love to have <span style="font-weight: bold;">Cesc Fabregas</span> with them at Barcelona. Well that's good for them. Ya know, I think Cesc would fit in perfectly with my 7 a side team. We've been looking for a good midfielder this whole season and I think he'll fit right in. Cesc isn't going anywhere, so Barca should really keep their holes shut. <br /><br />The World Cup was fun, but at the same time it kinda sucked. The matches didn't really stand out, with the exception of the Ghana-Uruguay match. That was mental. I really couldn't believe the insanity that happened at the end of extra time. The Final was awful. The Netherlands played like a bunch of cunts, fouling all over the place and never trying to actually do anything. Spain wasn't brilliant but they got the job done and so fair play to them and especially to our Captain.<br /><br />Ok that's about all the time I have since I have to get back to work. I might do another post in the next few days (gasp!) with an Arsenal season preview. If not then I predict that we win the Treble - League, FA Cup, and Champions League. Cheers.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-77317641456878178032010-03-24T11:17:00.004-04:002010-03-24T12:12:44.745-04:00Carlota Will Be Supporting Arsenal vs Barca, but Birmingham Comes FirstBeing a blogger is like working as a web designer or a fashion designer. You really only work when you feel like it and if you don't work then nobody is really going to notice or care. Every once in a while you'll have a really great article and get a few comments, and other times you'll be lucky enough to piss off a whole group of people who will leave you angry comments, (<a href="http://arsenole.blogspot.com/2009/11/thierry-henry-reaction-world-cup-better.html">just look at this post</a>) but most of the time you're pretty much writing for yourself and a few other people who stumble upon your page and have nothing better to do. So for those of you who have accidentally rolled onto this page, here are a couple thoughts about Birmingham, Barcelona, and whatever else I think of.<br /><br />Barcelona is the match everyone is talking about, but I'd argue that Birmingham is the more important one. Don't get me wrong, I'm looking forward to the Barcelona match as much as anyone, but it's dangerous to overlook Birmingham just because Barcelona is a more attractive club. This weekend we'll be without Thomas Vermaelen, because of his suspension for a red card that should have never been, and without William Gallas, still out with injury. That leaves us with Sol Campbell and Mikael Silvestre. Not exactly a top class center back pairing for a big club. While Sol has done well, Silvestre should never be in the starting lineup for a team trying to win the league. The boss has indicated that he may rest Campbell for this match, which leaves us with Song and Silvestre in the back, which not only gives us a weak center back pairing but weakens our strength in midfield too, against a team that haven't lost at home since September. It's a scary possibility, and for a team that needs to win every match for the rest of the season, it's really making me nervous. The focus of the team needs to be 100% on Birmingham, and we can leave Barcelona until next Wednesday. Anything less than 100% will see us lose at St. Andrews and be out of the title race.<br /><br />I have to give some thoughts on Eboue while I'm writing since I haven't given him his proper due since I've been out so long. I was one of the ones criticizing him last year for his poor (and sometimes completely dire) performances. Well this year he has completely changed his attitude, his performances, and my opinion of him. He's been nothing short of brilliant for us this year, whether he's in the front three or playing right back. His runs, his movement, and his work rate have made him one of my favorite players to see in the team. I'll go far enough as to say that without him, we wouldn't be where we are in the league right now this season. So fair play to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Emmanuel Eboue</span>, maybe my player of the season to this point.<br /><br />The West Ham match last Saturday really gave me hope for the title challenge. We could have crumbled after Vemaelen's red card. It was a BS call, and we could have gone down to a team that is fighting for their lives at the bottom of the table, but we didn't. Almunia pulled out a moment of brilliance to save Diamanti's penalty, and the team stayed strong with Song and Campbell in defense. Then Cesc completed the victory by nailing that penalty after his strong run (aided by Eboue, who again was excellent.) <br /><br />Speaking of Cesc, you'll remember that about seven months ago I had <a href="http://arsenole.blogspot.com/2009/08/im-going-to-marry-cescs-sister.html">a post about marrying Cesc's sister</a>, Carlota. Well as it turns out, she finally found that I had written that and I ended up talking to her a bit on twitter. She's a very nice young lady and said that Florida is a beautiful place. I'd have to agree with her. So cheers to you Carlota and if you're ever back in Florida dinner is on me.<br /><br />Speaking of Carlota, and Cesc, and Arsenal...we play Barcelona in the Champions League! It's got to be one of the most exciting matchups in the history of, well, history. The best club in the world at the moment versus the team we all love and the team that plays by far the best football in England, if not the world. I like our chances, I have to say. Xavi and Iniesta versus Cesc and Nasri/Diaby/Denilson, Clichy versus Messi...the prospects are mouthwatering. I'll get into breaking it down more next Monday or Tuesday, but I will say that I think it will be one for the ages. Get your DVR's and your TiVo's ready to record, because these two matches should be ones you'll want to show to your grandkids one day. For the record, Carlota will be supporting Arsenal.<br /><blockquote><br />CarlotaFabregas @ArseNole I'll go to the two match and I'll support Arsenal, so don't hesitate it</blockquote><br />That's about all I've got for today. Let's focus on that Birmingham match and the Barcelona match can wait until next week. Come on Arsenal, let's get it done!ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-22080777414280143992010-01-14T10:29:00.005-05:002010-01-14T11:09:08.199-05:00I'm Sol Excited To Have Campbell BackMornin all, it's been a while. I've really just been enjoying the season lately, and didn't feel the need to write about how splendidly it's been going for us so far (Knock on wood.) There is a news story worth mentioning though, and so here I am to get on with the mention. Sol Campbell has rejoined Arsenal, and I have to say I'm thrilled to have him back in the fold. Maybe it's because he is a reminder of the Invincibles, who have all departed in the past few years, but something about resigning a player that won so much with the club really makes me smile every time I think about it. And besides that, he can't possibly be anything but a good influence on the other defenders at the club. Immediately I think of the impact he could have on the reserves, such as Kyle Bartley, who he partnered at West Ham. And while it may not be a profound impact, he can also help out players such as Thomas Vermaelen for instance, who hasn't gone through the rigors of a title challenge or a cup final with Arsenal. His attitude and quotes have been brilliant since his return, and he seems genuinely fired up to come back and help out the team and Arsene Wenger.<br /><br />I'll say it up front, I don't know how well Sol can still play. What I do know is that Arsene Wenger has watched him train for the past three months or so and Arsene wouldn't sign him unless he thought Sol could get into the team and do a job for us. I don't know how much he'll end up playing the rest of the year, and I hope it isn't a lot because that would mean Gallas or Vermaelen were out injured, but I like idea of having him ahead of Silvestre as a second choice center back. Not to mention he scored our only goal in our history in Champions League Finals. Good signing, good player, welcome back Sol.<br /><br />So we play at Bolton tomorrow, and unless I'm mistaken, I believe it's Owen Croyle's first game in charge of Bolton. I think he must be a pretty good manager to have done what he's done so far with Burnley this year, but at the same time, Bolton are absolute shite and three points will be expected, especially with the return of our captain, <span style="font-weight: bold;">Cesc Fabregas</span>, who has recovered from his injury. Denilson and Bendtner are both out with injuries, but <span style="font-weight: bold;">Gael Clichy</span> is back after a really long injury layoff. Wenger says he may be in the squad because he's training well but I would guess that if he plays it'll only be a cameo appearance. To reiterate, three points must be earned in this match, and when we play them again next week we'll need three points there as well. Bolton are tossers, and if we want to maintain our title challenge then we need maximum points heading into our tough stretch against Villa, United, Liverpool, and Chelsea. If we get through those matches and are still in with a shout, then look out for the mighty Arsenal, because it's all downhill from there :).<br /><br />Phillipe Senderos is wanting to leave Arsenal, and I can't blame him. Phil is a player I've always felt a bit sorry for. No he's certainly not a brilliant player, but I've always thought he put in a good shift when he got games. He's not gotten a chance since he came back from his loan spell so it's really no surprise he wants to go. I with him the best of luck and wouldn't mind seeing him go to Everton in exchange for Saha if Everton are up for it. Yeah he can't stay fit worth a damn but if he manages to stay a bit fit he can certainly put the goals in.<br /><br />My last point for the day is on <span style="font-weight: bold;">Arsenal TV Online</span>, which has recently lost a lot of it's usefulness and attraction. One of the best features of the service had been that you could watch reserve games live online in full. So naturally I was thrilled that I'd be able to watch Sol Campbell's reserve debut against West Ham. I was mistaken, however. Upon arriving at the Arsenal.com website, I saw a post that said ATVO would no longer be showing live reserve games or full length matches. They said they would have an improved highlight system, but that really isn't the case because I watched the highlights the next day and they were the same as always. It's a crock of shit and I honestly would recommend that nobody sign up for the service until they fix it, because that was the best feature of the station. Now you really only get random interviews and press conferences, and not much else. I used to be able to turn on ATVO and watch a full day almost of Arsenal coverage. Now I can't find 10 minutes worth of good video I want to see. Write to the club and complain if you're pissed. It's a joke.<br /><br />Alright that's all I've got for today. Leave your thoughts on Sol or Phil or Bolton or whatever. Cheers and come on Arsenal!ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-9490321833053551692009-12-14T12:50:00.003-05:002009-12-14T13:27:26.970-05:00Arshavin's Brilliance Gives Arsenal Vital Win<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMkgK6puAlIkYdJM0N1nxEe4zIC3kw0bszGsbTE59dcasAmL7_FPzSwILrE62l92b0IDmt7Gcb5Ij88Q1PAAxjPLbL9cNrByN1kRu2tNqfTatxdyqgas4pfqaR-WoL1mNaJ5ZipdRkQOw/s1600-h/Arshy.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 230px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMkgK6puAlIkYdJM0N1nxEe4zIC3kw0bszGsbTE59dcasAmL7_FPzSwILrE62l92b0IDmt7Gcb5Ij88Q1PAAxjPLbL9cNrByN1kRu2tNqfTatxdyqgas4pfqaR-WoL1mNaJ5ZipdRkQOw/s320/Arshy.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5415160195675141074" border="0" /></a><br />We're back in it. This past weekend was just about as good of a weekend as we could have asked for in the Premiership. Chelsea dropped points at home to Everton, Man City drew with Bolton, and best of all, United lost at home to Aston Villa. Meanwhile, we played on Sunday, and it was a rough match up at Anfield vs Liverpool. Arsenal came out on top, and really showed some grit and character in the process. Down 1-0 at halftime, and inspired by a special Arsene Wenger team talk, the team fought back through an own goal from Glen Johnson and an absolute cracker from Arshavin gave us all three points and effectively put Liverpool in a position where they have a real uphill battle just to get fourth. So now we're only 3 points back of United and only 6 points behind Chelsea, with a game in hand. After we lost to Chelsea not many people would have put us in such a good position right now, but here we are and we're looking fantastic.<br /><br />Arshavin's goal was really something special. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdXFrnTyTHI">This is the only link</a> I could find for it now that hasn't been removed from YouTube. If you're really lucky, like me, you'll be a member of ArsenalTV Online and can just watch it over and over in high quality. It really was amazing though.<br /><br />One of the main talking points for the match was <a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5769913,00.html">Arsene Wenger's team talk</a> at half time. Apparently it was a lot more harsh than it normally is, because Cesc had this to say about it:<br /><br /><span class="main-content"><p></p><blockquote>"The boss screamed. I've never seen him like that before. He was really disappointed in the first half and said we didn't deserve to wear the Arsenal shirt if we played like that. And I think he was right. In the second half we turned it around."</blockquote><p></p></span>Arsene Wenger gettin nice with it. I like that, even though I couldn't picture yelling saying that the players don't deserve to wear the Arsenal shirt. I think it's probably what the team needed though, as they turned around the result at a place where it's hard to get any result at all. He's normally a calm guy all the time, so you can see where this would have gotten a reaction from the players in this case, and that was exactly what was needed. He can't pull this out all the time, but he chose the time carefully and it paid off. There's only one Arsene Wenger!<br /><br />After the match, Arsene had this to say:<br /><blockquote><br /><span class="main-content"><p>"We were a bit lucky with our first goal, but the fear was in the Liverpool camp in the second half. It was an outstanding second goal and from then on Liverpool's pace dropped. Afterwards we were not under any real threat. For us, it gets us back into it. Mathematically we're in a good position again, especially with our game in hand. We knew with what happened with the results yesterday (Saturday), that we needed to win here. We did so and that's something very positive. Now it is down to consistency." </p></span></blockquote><span class="main-content"><p></p></span>Consistency is exactly what it is down to. Beating Liverpool means nothing if we lose other matches that we should win. There are more losses by the top teams in the Premier League this year than I can remember in quite some time, so it's going to be all about who can stay consistent and beat the teams that they should beat.<br /><br />So looking ahead to the next few league matches, we have Burnley away, home to Hull, home to Villa, and away to Pompey to close out the month. So three teams near the bottom of the table, and Villa, who just beat United at home. Burnley all really tough at Turf Moor so that one certainly won't be easy, just ask Alex Ferguson. It's a stretch of games that worries me honestly, but on paper you'd say it's easier than the last month we've had. We just seem to have most of our problems against the "weaker" sides in the league and we have three of them out of the next four matches.<br /><br />It's a good time to be an Arsenal supporter. We play the best football, our players aren't cunts, and we're in with a shout in the title hunt. Raise your banners high, and come on you Gunners!ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-82669830424166122912009-12-10T12:04:00.005-05:002009-12-10T12:59:58.063-05:00Arsenal Looking For Strong Draw In Champions LeagueHello everyone. So the Champions League group stage finished up yesterday, and Arsenal comfortably topped their group even though we lost 1-0 yesterday to Olimpiakos. We played almost all youngsters because the match didn't matter and we were looking ahead to Liverpool this weekend. So today I wanted to talk about the possibilities for who we can draw in the next round, and they are as follows:<br /><br /><span class="status-body"><span class="entry-content"> AC Milan, Bayern Munich, CSKA Moscow, Porto, Lyon, Inter, and Stuttgart</span></span>.<br /><br />My theory on this (which is not really a theory but a well known fact) is that you have to beat the best teams to win the competition anyway, so it doesn't really matter who you face when, because eventually you have to beat them all. But in this case, I think I'd rather leave the work of knocking out Bayern and Inter to somebody else, like Chelsea or United or Barca. They're both strong teams when they're playing well, which is often for Inter and not nearly as often for Bayern, and could give us a rough time.<br /><br />The only other team I'd like to avoid in the next round is CSKA Moscow. Not because it's an especially tough match up for us, but because I don't want the team to have to travel to Russia in the middle of the week. It doesn't bode well for the weekend fixture if you're traveling thousands of miles Tuesday or Wednesday.<br /><br />As for AC Milan, Porto, Lyon, or Stuttgart...bring it on. I think we would beat any of those teams over two legs quite comfortably. Stuttgart looked good yesterday, but I would still fancy us to beat them after two legs. Lyon can be tough on their day, and they do have the keeper I'd like to have at Arsenal (Hugo Lloris), but we'd beat them as well.<br /><br />As for the match yesterday, I thought Ramsey was exceptional, Merida had a very good first half, and Song was as solid as ever. Biggest disappointments for me were certainly Theo Walcott and Carlos Vela (<a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5763182,00.html">who just signed a new contract today</a>.) Walcott especially is starting to worry me. He's been in the first team for over three years now and has regressed if anything. I know he's had a bad run of injuries but yesterday he looked awful. First touch was especially bad, and he consistently seems to make poor decisions on the pitch. Hopefully he'll come around with more playing time, but I'm starting to wonder if Theo will ever make it at Arsenal.<br /><br />Overall though I was impressed with the Young Goons, going to Greece and playing well for most of the match. The average age of the squad was 20, and that was WITH a 32 year old Silvestre playing. Now that's a young team. They should all feel happy about their performance, even if they aren't happy about the result. Many bright futures are on the way.<br /><br />Alright, that's enough for today. Let me know your thoughts on who you want in the draw. <br /><br />"Smoke weed talk sh*t like Lane Kiffin."<br /><br />Tiger Woods' wife is a gold digger.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-12164028354131851742009-11-19T11:15:00.007-05:002009-11-19T11:51:29.305-05:00Thierry Henry Reaction, World Cup Better Off With France In It<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGup_XRmGcTFn4GcCRwpTPS5txfnD65HVfshPiMWha98VdQ6-GmJnVRXxIYZ1oTwRsnwrYwrbQT1oPKtd-eIpRRZa3ww8AcsUsH6D-AkPTAdQKJorGzZEz6VVsNhyphenhyphenUBJjTFGxKFzIJSAo/s1600/92ea8eee46cd9d46801f9f24109e.jpeg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 208px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGup_XRmGcTFn4GcCRwpTPS5txfnD65HVfshPiMWha98VdQ6-GmJnVRXxIYZ1oTwRsnwrYwrbQT1oPKtd-eIpRRZa3ww8AcsUsH6D-AkPTAdQKJorGzZEz6VVsNhyphenhyphenUBJjTFGxKFzIJSAo/s320/92ea8eee46cd9d46801f9f24109e.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405857915830106882" border="0" /></a><br />Long, long ago, when the world was still new, there was once an Arsenal blog, written by an American. It was updated daily with all the latest news, transfer stories, and thoughts on Arsenal. It was called The ArseNole. And now, The ArseNole is back. That's right, after a shocking absence of over a month, I've made a return to the blogging realm, since there is finally a lot to talk about. Sure, I could have written a lot the past month of how well we have played and how I think we're going to win the league this season, but that would probably have just jinxed us and I'm very superstitious about Arsenal. But as I said, today I have quite a lot of things to burn on, so we'll start with what seems to be one of the most controversial topics in quite some time, and that is <span style="font-weight: bold;">Thierry Henry's hand ball</span> that put Ireland out of the World Cup and <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&ct=res&cd=2&ved=0CA8QFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fff.fr%2F&ei=encFS_61HoyJnQf0gvTMCw&usg=AFQjCNEuH6pTaF65dzExtyzqzpFN8YdOiA&sig2=kT0fUVGePAbHqLwBHBalEg">France</a> in it.<br /><br />Let me first clarify, that I am not Irish, and I am not French, and if this had happened to the USA I would have been pissed, but I would still not show the hate to Thierry that he has been getting from every corner of the globe. My loyalties lie with Arsenal first and foremost, so in that game I was hoping for a France win due to this simple math:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">French:</span> <br />Arsene Wenger <br />William Gallas<br />Gael Clichy<br />Thierry Henry<br />Bacary Sagna<br />Patrick Vieira<br />Robert Pires<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Irish:</span><br />Robbie Keane<br /><br />Yes, I know there have been other Arsenal players that were Irish, but the one that stands out is captain cunttastic, Robbie Keane, the cartwheeling cunt himself. Keeping him as far away from the World Cup as possible is just fine with me. And personally, I'd rather watch the French play all summer next summer than have to watch just one Ireland match. So yeah, it was a hand ball by Thierry, but I think it was mostly instinctual. The play happened so fast that I don't think he thought, "Oh shite I better stick out my hand here to keep this ball in play." I think he just had it as a natural reaction in the spur of the moment. It's the referee's job to make the call, not Thierry's, so why should he have to be the one taking the heat for it? Did you all expect Eboue to tell the ref he dove for that free kick in the Champions League Final? No, because it was Arsenal. And you shouldn't expect Thierry to do it either because at the end of the day, he got his country into the World Cup, and all the Irish can do about it is bitch for four years while they watch.<br /><br />To me, the fans that say Henry is no longer thought of as a good person, or as an Arsenal legend, or they see him as a cheater now, are ridiculous and stupid. That one millisecond play made you forget about all the things he did for Arsenal, all 226 goals, countless moments of magic, and some of the best teams this club has ever had? Bollocks I say. Thierry Henry is the greatest Arsenal player of all time, and if you want to bitch about him and say his legacy is tarnished because of that one hand ball, then you're full of shit. He didn't launch a terrorist attack, he didn't molest his daughter, or set his ex-wife's house on fire. He fucking hand balled. Get over it. Do I feel bad for the Irish as a whole? Sure I do. Just not for the ones that act like Thierry Henry is no longer an Arsenal legend and instead is the scum of the earth.<br /><br />Right, so that's about covered, so it's on to other matters.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/eduardo-signs-new-long-term-contract">Eduardo signed a new long-term deal with the club</a>. Solid move. He's going to have to start quite a lot while Bendtner and more importantly RvP are out injured, so we need him to stay fit and start pounding in the goals. I think he's perfectly capable of doing everything that RvP has done for us this season, in terms of goal scoring and making assists. Arshavin, Theo, Nasri, Rosicky, and Cesc are going to all have to step up their games though to make it through this period. First big test for us is this weekend when we play away to Sunderland, who are a tricky opponent. They're playing well this year under Steve Bruce, and Darren Bent has been banging in the goals. We'll probably have Silvestre in at left back, which is a worry, but hopefully our attacking play will be able to put a few past them. This is the type of game you have to win to be Champions. No slip ups allowed just because we have some injuries. Let's get it done boys.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/30537/injury-news">We also have good news on the injury front</a>. Fabianski, Carlos Vela, Armand Traore, and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Denilson</span> are all back, and Denilson will definitely be making the trip up to Sunderland this weekend, which is great news. I'd expect he may have to start right away with Diaby being out, although Arsene could opt to use Rosicky next to Cesc in the midfield. Traore could possibly slot in at left back with Clichy and Gibbs out, and honestly I'd prefer that to having Silvestre in there, but I reckon the boss will pick the experience over the youth.<br /><br />I'm really quite happy to have Denilson back, even though he seems to not get much love from the majority of Arsenal fans. He's clearly better than Diaby, that is for certain. He can pick out a pass almost as well as Cesc, can hit the long shots, and is solid defensively. I think he'll be a real boost to the squad over the next few months.<br /><br />Ok, that's about it for the day. Leave your reactions about Thierry and Ireland, or Arsenal, or whatever you want to in the comments. I'm expecting a lot of angry <a href="http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&ct=res&cd=1&ved=0CAkQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.fai.ie%2F&ei=Y3cFS4fQMsXRngfwxrzJCw&usg=AFQjCNHywV4xQBJJTFVfW-RrLqzNsUVSHQ&sig2=D1l0TMgPfUA_m645AYYn0Q">Irish</a> folk mostly. Also, if anyone plays Football Manager Live, let me know so we can play a match on there. My keeper is Fabianski, woohoo! That's about all I've got. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Vive Les Bleus</span>, hehe.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-33044457038697556022009-10-20T12:07:00.005-04:002009-10-20T12:37:32.530-04:00France Away Kit and Adidas Copa Edge BackpackMorning everyone. A fantastic Tuesday to you all. Hope you all enjoyed the win over Birmingham at the weekend, which I missed because I was out of town at my cousin's first birthday party. Good result though, and we're right back in the title race with Chelsea losing. But on to other things.<br /><br />A while back I talked about receiving an offer from <a href="http://soccerpro.com/">SoccerPro.com</a> when they allowed me to <a href="http://arsenole.blogspot.com/2008/10/best-football-boots-ive-ever-tried-nike.html">review a pair of Nike Talaria IV's</a>. Well their generosity knows no bounds because they have given me the opportunity to yet again use some of their fantastic products, including an <a href="http://www.soccerpro.com/Adidas-France-Away-Jersey-p5055/">Adidas France away jersey</a> and an <a href="http://www.soccerpro.com/Adidas-Copa-Edge-Backpack-p4334/">Adidas Copa Edge backpack</a>. I've gotten the privelage of using both of these products for the past week and a half or so and I want to share with you all my opinions on them.<br /><br />I'll start with the <a href="http://www.soccerpro.com/Adidas-France-Away-Jersey-p5055/">France kit</a> first because that was what I tried on right away as soon as the package came in the mail. I had never gotten an Adidas kit before so this was my first experience with the brand, and it's probably already one of my favorites now. The shirt feels great when you put it on, whether it's for playing a match or just wearing it to watch a match on tv. The embroidery is perfect and if you saw me wearing it you would most likely mistake me for being William Gallas or Thierry Henry, that's how authentic it looks. The shirt has Adidas' Clima365 technology so it is perfect for any weather, hot or cold, rain or shine. It really looks great and if you're a fan of France or any other nation, I highly recommend you check out the wide variety of club and country <a href="http://www.soccerpro.com/Licensed-Soccer-Jerseys-and-Gear-c3/">soccer jerseys</a> they have available at <a href="http://soccerpro.com/">SoccerPro.com</a>.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibwlH80tDCYyqRviO1Vwx15Ml30ct355TlZ6pYjZiZSBC1UBe-RONWpmkgk0VrEkUXQSQgQed3O3anSsnuyQZyiW9Z1FXe4doMyLCAgYSD1dzRdqxib8ZS0nJSP1yFHUW7nphqTNBwT1U/s1600-h/618916_adidas_France_away_jersey_zm.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibwlH80tDCYyqRviO1Vwx15Ml30ct355TlZ6pYjZiZSBC1UBe-RONWpmkgk0VrEkUXQSQgQed3O3anSsnuyQZyiW9Z1FXe4doMyLCAgYSD1dzRdqxib8ZS0nJSP1yFHUW7nphqTNBwT1U/s320/618916_adidas_France_away_jersey_zm.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5394721979250686434" border="0" /></a><br />The other product they let me use was the <a href="http://www.soccerpro.com/Adidas-Copa-Edge-Backpack-p4334/">Adidas Copa Edge Backpack</a>, which I was extremely excited about. As you know if you read the blog regularly, I coach a team of Under-9 year old boys, and it is a real hassle carrying my ball, cleats, socks, keeper gloves, keeper shirt, cones, whistle, and other stuff to practice and to the games. Well with this backpack, I can fit everything I'm carrying all into this one bag. It's got a pocket with ventilation for your ball and cleats, a large pocket for carrying any other stuff you have like your jersey, shorts, or shinguards, or for coaches like me your cones, keeper gloves, and anything else you need. It even has a cell phone pocket on the inside to keep your phone safe while you're out on the pitch. I really don't know how I ever lived without it now, it really is an amazing product. And on top of that, for all you Arsenal supporters, it's available in a variety of colors, including red and white, which I got of course. It makes transporting all of your <a href="http://www.soccerpro.com/">soccer gear</a> extremely easy and I highly recommend it to anyone that plays or coaches. You will not be dissapointed and I guarantee that this product will make your life easier and less hectic when you're trying to get ready on match day.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuIn8miCPsHfh2QcBSZ65uzqMJijxK_xNWnNtpWe7zoyibGk38QrgjFYgdKIpG9BkNGY-bb_6yPg0ePkRB-oq7ckJufr_quP3oviKX40KFEIAHLDdS6XRqZ5ugKfvuzI-O6AT7vo6SHKs/s1600-h/957156_adidas_copa_edge_backpack_red_zm.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuIn8miCPsHfh2QcBSZ65uzqMJijxK_xNWnNtpWe7zoyibGk38QrgjFYgdKIpG9BkNGY-bb_6yPg0ePkRB-oq7ckJufr_quP3oviKX40KFEIAHLDdS6XRqZ5ugKfvuzI-O6AT7vo6SHKs/s320/957156_adidas_copa_edge_backpack_red_zm.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5394722088888180402" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://www.soccerpro.com/">SoccerPro.com</a> has been good to me, and they will be good to you. They have great prices on a variety of soccer gear, including cleats, balls, <a href="http://www.soccerpro.com/Licensed-Soccer-Jerseys-and-Gear-c3/">soccer jerseys</a>, and anything else you could possibly need. They also give out regular discounts and clearance sales where you can find great products for real bargains. I recommend you conduct all your football related business with them, as you will not ever be dissapointed. Cheers!ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-75006303828413770362009-10-14T10:53:00.006-04:002009-10-14T11:20:41.618-04:00The Latest On Charlie "Stanky Leg" Davies<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQtneohKtXorowqaWD3mjbV2iVR7laao8cQ8SLSQgRBps52SFdathD7muaIL8b1JqAe15gRpaWg_ZzjiKPBvVLsEoLtBPjG7CNNB7NbM-MF5ZmUJdaQgPpFrz1HXwWOkC4rtSrXsTZiMk/s1600-h/alg_charlie_davies_kicks.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQtneohKtXorowqaWD3mjbV2iVR7laao8cQ8SLSQgRBps52SFdathD7muaIL8b1JqAe15gRpaWg_ZzjiKPBvVLsEoLtBPjG7CNNB7NbM-MF5ZmUJdaQgPpFrz1HXwWOkC4rtSrXsTZiMk/s320/alg_charlie_davies_kicks.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392474898205383922" border="0" /></a><br />Hello everyone. It's been kind of a sad last 24 hours or so for fans of the US Men's National Team, with the news that <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_Davies">Charlie Davies</a>, USA and Sochaux striker, was seriously injured in a one car crash Tuesday morning. A woman, named Ashley J. Roberta, was killed in the accident. Davies and Roberta were both passengers in the car, and the name of the driver has not yet been released. At 3:15 am Tuesday morning, the car Davies was in crashed into a railing in the suburbs of Washington DC, and the pictures of the crash are really frightening.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbPoQr5A7iChv3u7dY4FELfKjsYGSgbdseFebhkLKwJ6EVWc0TfVRGXLMtlIFG8C500CHuyX3VcGCA84vlFUdEM4rrb9Q9knPQbQR67XB0GtzwY5nQ67PLhq8tauKsz43qh1ftAQRERpg/s1600-h/davies+crash.jpeg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 202px; height: 152px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbPoQr5A7iChv3u7dY4FELfKjsYGSgbdseFebhkLKwJ6EVWc0TfVRGXLMtlIFG8C500CHuyX3VcGCA84vlFUdEM4rrb9Q9knPQbQR67XB0GtzwY5nQ67PLhq8tauKsz43qh1ftAQRERpg/s320/davies+crash.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392470178704617074" border="0" /></a><br />Yes, that is half of a car being taken away on a tow truck. The other half was carried off on another truck. Davies was airlifted to the hospital where he underwent emergency surgery on his many injuries. First, doctors had to repair his ruptured bladder, then they inserted titanium rods into both his tibia and femur bones in his leg. The emergency surgery took about five hours, and National Team team mates did not even know of the accident until he was entering surgery at about 11 am, because there were no team functions before lunch on Tuesday.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNNz1UCIT2RHf5Pz8YAFsIQYdhlRJESerZw8-XSB0LAQxpeKruUHKrFGV13_bNFubdcIMDqL1crWTZTO44NzVhErrP5ck1O7pZpcAAg_vBzx3bUYb-UF8MA3Rfj6Hn5wv7pZwEsspjgTg/s1600-h/child_rotational_def_anat01.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNNz1UCIT2RHf5Pz8YAFsIQYdhlRJESerZw8-XSB0LAQxpeKruUHKrFGV13_bNFubdcIMDqL1crWTZTO44NzVhErrP5ck1O7pZpcAAg_vBzx3bUYb-UF8MA3Rfj6Hn5wv7pZwEsspjgTg/s320/child_rotational_def_anat01.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5392471669557483362" border="0" /></a><br />Davies also suffered facial fractures and a fracture of his left elbow that could require more surgery in the coming week that he will be spending in the hospital.<br /><br />The best news for Charlie Davies right now is that he was a young, fit, athlete, which greatly improves his chances of making a full recovery.<br /><blockquote><br />"Injuries of this nature usually require a recovery period of six to 12 months and extensive rehabilitation," said Dr. Dan Kalbac, a U.S. team doctor who collaborated with the doctors at the hospital. "Due to Charlie's fitness level, his prognosis for recovery and his ability to resume high-level competition is substantially improved."</blockquote>There is, as of yet, no word on whether or not the driver of the vehicle or any of the passengers were under the influence of any substances, but the best we can all hope for at this point is the full recovery of Charlie Davies and pray for the girl's family who was killed. Apparently <a href="http://www.sportingnews.com/soccer/article/2009-10-13/us-soccers-charlie-davies-injured-fatal-car-accident">Charlie did break the curfew</a> set for the National Team when he was out until 3:15 though. His injuries mean that he will almost certainly miss the <span style="font-weight: bold;">2010 World Cup</span>.<br /><br />National Team coach <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bob Bradley</span> had this to say:<br /><blockquote><br />“Obviously, as a team we were saddened to learn this news. Our thoughts and prayers are with Charlie and his family, as well as the people in the car and the families of the others involved. As a team, we are relying on each other in a moment that has for sure hit us all hard.”</blockquote><br />As a tribute to Charlie Davies, fans have come up with the idea to <a href="http://www.bigapplesoccer.com/teams/usa2.php?article_id=20606">have a full minute standing ovation in the ninth minute</a> to recognize Charlie in the match tonight against Costa Rica. Davies wears number 9 for the National Team and his club team, so that is why the ninth minute was picked. The game will be televised at 8pm Eastern Time on ESPN2, and I encourage everyone to watch and give their support if you aren't able to get to the match.<br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" ><span style=";font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" >If fans want to send cards their best wishes to Davies, they can mail them to:</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:georgia;font-size:100%;" >Washington Hospital Center<br />110 Irving St. NW<br />Washington DC 20010</span></span><br /><br />Also, you can email your wishes to <span style="font-weight: bold;">charliedavies9@yahoo.com</span>, and his family will be printing them all out and bringing them to him. Show him the love guys.<br /><br />There are times when we all act like football is the most important thing in life, but things like this make you realize that it's not even close to that in the grand scheme of things. Get well soon Charlie, and I hope everyone will send their best out to him and keep him in your prayers.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-80408319173625321642009-10-12T12:35:00.004-04:002009-10-12T12:54:29.991-04:00Cescual Chocolate, Barcelona are Cunts (Still)Hello there everyone. A fine Monday to you all. Hope everyone had a good weekend even though there was no Arsenal. Mine was pretty good. My Under-9 boys team got their first win of the season in our third match of the year. We won 6-1 after losing 8-0 and 7-0 in our first two matches. So it was a big victory for us and we'll be looking to keep that run going. <br /><br />I didn't really watch any of the internationals this weekend. Why? Because the USA match wasn't on tv and I was watching American football most of the weekend honestly. International Qualifiers interest me about as much as Cesc to Barcelona stories, which is not at all really. But seeing as there isn't shite to write about at all besides Cesc to Barcelona stories, that's what I'll be writing about today.<br /><br />In a week where <a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5622257,00.html">Cesc had to leave the Spain squad</a> to be with his seriously ill grandfather, Barcelona thought it would be a prime opportunity to reiterate <a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5622744,00.html">their desire to sign Fabregas</a> in January. Stay classy, eh Barca? Check out these quotes from the cunt Txiki Begiristain:<br /><blockquote><br />"He's a player who fits the Barca profile. He was born suckling on football here and one day he will end up playing at the Camp Nou. I am sure.<span class="main-content"></span>"</blockquote>What in the hell does that mean? I don't want to picture Cesc suckling on anything, much less Barcelona football. I'd think he could do a bit better than that honestly. I have some advice for Txiki, laid out in a few steps.<br /><br />1. Get a real name. I cannot pronounce Txiki, nor have I ever met anyone else who would name their son that. <br /><br />2. Stop talking about Cesc Fabregas. He's said at least one hundred billion times that he's happy at Arsenal. If he does go to Barcelona one day, then it will be when he and Arsene both decide that it's that time, and when it is you'll fork over about a kajillion dollars to us for him. So until then, just leave him alone.<br /><br />3. When someone's grandfather is really sick, sick enough that you have to leave your team to go be with him, it's probably not the best time to talk about a transfer bid for him. It makes you look like the piece of shit that we all know you are.<br /><br />4. Next time you think about opening your mouth, shoot yourself in the leg instead. That will probably make you reconsider, because I'd imagine that would really hurt.<br /><br />Follow those steps and life will be better for all of us. I promise.<br /><br />In other news, Senderos, Fabregas, Gallas, Vela and Gibbs all scored for their countries this past weekend, and the injury front isn't looking too bad either. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Theo Walcott</span> suffered a dead leg but hopefully he'll be back soon enough. Also, Alex Song's Cameroon beat Togo 3-0 so they only need one win to reach the World Cup and Adebayor's team lost which makes it even better. So a good weekend for the Gunners on the whole.<br /><br />I haven't heard any more news about <span style="font-weight: bold;">Samir Nasri</span>'s recovery, but hopefully he'll be back before the Sp*rs match at the end of the month. <br /><br />That's about all I've got for the day, so I'll talk to you tomorrow or Wednesday. Thank God the international break is almost over. Cheers.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com60tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-56035371866385716962009-10-07T16:07:00.009-04:002009-10-07T23:58:08.455-04:00International Break Gives Us Time To Get HealthyYeah I probably just jinxed the team, because since I said that they'll probably all get injuries playing for their international teams. So if Fabregas, Sagna, Gallas, Song, Theo, and Arshy all come back with injuries, you know where you can point the blame. Right here. But really, think about it. After this break is over, we'll probably have Nasri back, hopefully Theo will be fit enough to go the full 90 minutes, and while Denilson is going to take longer to recover, it's at least 2 weeks worth of matches that he won't miss, if that makes any sense, which it probably doesn't.<br /><br />Apparently there are some big football nations that could miss out on the World Cup, which I think is fantastic. Why? Because it makes it somewhat easier (hopefully) for the US to get out of the group stage. I think it'd be quite nice if we didn't have to play France or Portugal. Honestly though I like France because they always have so many Arsenal players, so I do hope they make it. Portugal can choke on dog shite and die though.<br /><br />I've been rocking out to the Miley Cyrus song "Party in the USA" for like an hour. Yeah, I'm a 22 year old male listening to Miley Cyrus, so what? I'm a fan. You should like her too. Plus she's ballin rich and if it doesn't work out with me and <a href="http://www.blogger.com/twitter.com/carlotafabregas">Carlota Fabregas</a> then I'll most likely go for Miley. Tell me you don't think she's hot and you'd be lying.<br /><br />So after the international break our next five league matches are home to Birmingham, away to West Ham, home to Sp*rs, away to Wolves, and away to Sunderland. You'd like to think that Birmingham and Wolves would be three points pretty easily. If it doesn't work out that way you have to look at that as a disappointment. Sunderland and West Ham aren't nearly as good of a team as we are, but they are tricky teams to play on the road. You'd like to think we'd get six points from those as well, but I think I'd be happy enough with four.<br /><br />The key match though is the one at home to the scum. Obviously Sp*rs are shit cunts and they almost never beat us. However, this year they are making an attempt to be less shit than they normally are and are currently ahead of us in the table, which makes this match really f'ing important. We also have a game in hand on the top three teams in the table right now, so if we won that we'd be in third right now. But about the Sp*rs match again, it's one that we have to win. A draw is not acceptable, and a loss should simply be out of the question. If we beat them, they turn right back into pretenders who aren't going to ever get near the top four. If they get a good result at the Emirates though, and we have to go to the shithole later in the year, they're going to get a real confidence boost and have the belief that they can hang in the top four. The best way of making sure we win would be if Robbie Keane and Jermain Defoe were hit by busses, meteors, or a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tc8W-Lg8nzU">turtle-eating-pigeon</a> before the match. So if you drive a bus, you know what to do. We'll all thank you later.<br /><br />In other news, <a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5616123,00.html">Mikael Silvestre says the best is yet to come</a> from him. I suppose it's easy for him to say that since he's never been very good anyway. Also, <a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5614190,00.html">Sol Campbell could start training with Arsenal</a> to keep up his fitness while he has no club. I say he shouldn't be allowed to. Don't go sign with Notts County saying you "embrace their ambtion" and quit after one game. Sol's a looney.<br /><blockquote><br /><span class="main-content"><p>"It will be great to train here and get fit. I've spoken to Arsene, hopefully we can get everything right and speak to the right people and get a couple of the physios and fitness guys to help me and train. My overall fitness is OK. But something else might happen before then."</p></span></blockquote><span class="main-content"><p></p></span>That last part is him saying that he hopes Arsene will sign him. That's not going to happen. We have Djourou and Senderos who are both better than him and still can't get in the team. Sorry Sol, every since you left at halftime of that match a couple of years ago you lost all credibility among most Arsenal supporters. Piss off please.<br /><br />On to other business besides Arsenal now.<br /><br />If anyone knows about computers, this one is for you. My monitor shows everything giant now, and cuts off like half of what should be on the screen. I tried adjusting the display settings and resolution, but it hasn't fixed anything. I don't want to wait on the phone for hours with customer service if I don't have to, so if you know how to fix this then please get at me.<br /><br />So I've been out of work for about three weeks now since baseball season ended (at least in the minor leagues.) If anyone knows of any job availability for someone with no real skills, hasn't gotten their college degree yet, and doesn't want to work long hours, then please let me know.<br /><br />That's about all I've got for the day. Leave comments on any of this stuff and I promise I'll write back unless you are an absolute cunt. Peace!ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-72795440804541035622009-09-22T12:35:00.004-04:002009-09-22T12:50:40.619-04:00Thoughts on the Season So FarHello all. It's been a bloody month since I last posted, and I'm quite ashamed of it actually. Sometimes, when you write every day, you just get burnt out and feel like what you write isn't that interesting anymore and just don't really get in the mood to write very much. That's what happened to me, and I feel like I'm not doing my job as an Arsenal blogger when I go that long without writing. So I apologize and I'll try to get back to it. So for today I'm just going to write a bit about what I've noticed from the season so far.<br /><br />I really like the 4-3-3 formation, I'm just not sure we have the right players to run it at the moment. I think ideally we'd have Theo as the forward on the right and Arshy on the left with RvP or Bendtner as the center forward. I don't think Bendtner is good as a wide player and I don't think he ever will be. He's a center forward, and he's the second or third best center forward at that, so I don't like seeing him start on the right. Theo can't get back soon enough for me. It's a bit weird how long he's been out. Same with Vela. I worry that they were supposed to have little injuries and now they've been out for quite a while. Hopefully they get back soon because we could use the depth. When you look at the bench we've had for some of these matches, it's just pathetic. I think when we get Nasri back, he should probably start next to Cesc to add some more creativity in the midfield.<br /><br />Thomas Vermaelen is a fucking beast. The guy is a strong defender who spends most of his time smoking fools and lighting up chumps, while also making time to get up the field and score goals to the point that right now he's our leading scorer. Now it's not really good that a central defender is our leading scorer mind you, but it just accentuates the fact of how brilliant a signing he was. I can't get enough of the guy. Keep it up Verminator.<br /><br />Alex Song needs some help. He was good the first few games but against both Manchester teams he looked like he was in a little bit over his head. It'd be nice if we could rest him every once in a while without having a drop off. And also, what has happened to Manuel Almunia? He's been pretty terrible this season so far in my opinion, and Clichy, even though he's one of my favorites, has also been sub-par.<br /><br />I worry a little bit about Cesc. I think sometimes his head is in Barcelona. We really, really need to win something this year. Other than the Manchester games though, you'd say the season is looking pretty decent. We're beating the teams that are weaker than us, which has been a problem in the past, so maybe we're on the right track. Remember that we still get City and United at home to make up for those losses, and we still have a lot of players coming back from injury. I think the season still is looking bright. Keep the faith Gooners.<br /><br />Cheers.<br /><br />PS: Adebayor is a cunt.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-81065256972936881442009-08-21T14:07:00.006-04:002009-08-21T14:31:50.443-04:00I'm Going to Marry Cesc's Sister, Portsmouth PreviewHello everybody. How's your Friday going? First home match of the year is tomorrow, and we're playing Portsmouth, who are shite. In face, they're probably going to get relegated. I've put some money on Arsenal to win -2 goals, so we pretty much need to win by three for me to get paid. I'd very much appreciate it if you could pull that off Arsenal. <br /><br />Theo Walcott, Rosicky, Djourou, and Nasri are all out with injuries, and Carlos Vela is apparently sick at home with <a href="http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Spattergroit">Spattergroit</a>. I really have no idea what has happened to Vela, but I wish he'd get a chance to play sometime, yet there's been no sign of him. Eduardo is passed fit for tomorrow's match though and he could maybe make a start. <br /><br />We need a win, simple enough. For one, I can't handle seeing Sp*rs at the top of the table, and for two, we need to keep ahead of Man U after their loss to Burnley. We play them next weekend too so this match is really important to take all three points from. I don't think that sentence even made sense but you know what I'm getting at. <br /><br />There's really not a whole lot more to say about the match. Let's just get three points and get it done and get out of there. That's like the shortest preview I've ever done but I really can't think of a lot to say about it. I'd expect to see most of the same team we've had for the other two matches to play, but maybe we'll give Song or Denilson a rest along with RvP. Diaby could start or Ramsey could start, but we'll see. <br /><br />Now on to more important topics.<br /><br />I've figured out how to be related to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Cesc Fabregas</span>. It's going to be tricky, and take a lot of work since she lives in Barcelona, but I've got the right attitude and resolve to see that I complete this goal of mine. You see, I've decided I'm going to marry Cesc's sister, <a href="http://twitter.com/carlotafabregas">Carlota</a>. How am I going to pull this off you ask? Well. That's the tricky part. I suppose I'll just move to Barcelona and woo her with my delightful American charm. I haven't really thought it through much more than that, but that's the plan anyway. I can cook pretty well too, seeing as how I do attend culinary school. Now I just have to learn to speak <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalan_language">Catalan</a>. I believe with hard work and perserverance and a lot of luck, I'll soon be related to the Arsenal captain. Love it.<br /><br />Wish me luck.<br /><br />C'mon you Gunners.<br /><br />Cheers.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-88122143883615683632009-08-19T12:34:00.003-04:002009-08-19T12:53:37.497-04:00Celtic 0-2 Arsenal ThoughtsHello all, two posts in two days, bit crazy isn't it? It's lucky I'm in a good mood, probably because Arsenal has put me in a constant good mood with their performances. We had another win yesterday, 2-0 over Celtic in Glasgow, which is a great result. We've been to two very tough venues this year already, and we've won both fairly easily. It's fantastic. Today I'm just going to give you all my thoughts on the match yesterday, and my thoughts on whatever else pops into my head as I'm writing, because I can't very well write just about the Celtic match for thirty minutes.<br /><br />I thought we controlled the game for the most part. Song was once again fantastic, winning the ball back over and over without fouling, and his distribution was pretty good as well. He'll never be a passer like Cesc, but he's good at getting the ball to the attackers quickly and winning it back when we lose it. Vermaelen was once again immense in defense, and I think almost 100% of the Arsenal supporters have already fallen in love with him. When he tracked back for that Celtic counter attack when it could have been an easy goal for Scott Brown and made the tackle, I cheered out loud I'll admit. He looks like a great signing and like Wenger said, it's interesting having someone left footed back there and it really makes a nice contrast to William Gallas. I also really love the way he isn't scared to smoke fools and light up chumps in the tackle. He's all business when he's going for the ball. I wanted someone on the team that kills people, and he sure does that. Love the Verminator already.<br /><br />On the attacking side, we weren't great. RvP, Arshy, and Bendtner did ok at times, but I didn't think any of them really stood out today. Arshy eventually came off for Diaby, who didn't really have a great game when he came on, except for one shining moment of brilliance where he evaded the defender and fed the ball to Clichy who crossed for the own goal. It's typical Diaby, he has a rare moment of brilliance then he loses the ball because he dwells on it too long. I think he's one of the weakest players in our squad honestly. <br /><br />The weirdest thing this season so far (yes it's still really bloody early, but still) was the goal from William Gallas off of Cesc's free kick. He tried to duck to get out of the way of it, it hit off of his ass and into the net. But nobody complained, the away goal was important and the second was even more so. It means Celtic have to score at least 2 goals without reply to even force extra time at the Emirates. It's a great position to be in, and I'm supremely confident that we'll be going through to the group stages. That was crucial, and we got the job done.<br /><br />Bakary Sagna had thoughts on the atmosphere, saying:<br /><br /><p></p><blockquote><p>"I think the atmosphere is one of the most amazing in Europe and it was great to play in front of those fans. It was hard to stay focused on the pitch. It's difficult to play against this kind of atmosphere."</p><p>"It is one of the most amazing I have ever witnessed. But we did quite well with it. The danger was to come here after such a good win and take it easy but we stayed focused and defended as a team and played as a team."</p></blockquote><p></p>And that's the bottom line, is that our defense is playing well and we're playing as a team. We look dangerous. It's early and I don't wanna set my expectations too high yet, but God it's exciting to look this good so early in the season isn't it? When you think of how we still have Walcott, Nasri, and Rosicky still to return, it's just scary.<br /><br />That's about all I've got for the day. If you have a facebook and you like the blog, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/search/?q=the+arsenole&init=quick#/pages/The-ArseNole/64607213154?v=wall&viewas=5232294&ref=search">click here</a> to become a fan of it. I'd appreciate that. Cheers all.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-26452252347722856802009-08-18T11:53:00.003-04:002009-08-18T12:12:04.245-04:00Thoughts on the Everton Match, Celtic PreviewMorning all, hope you're well. Been a bit busy over the last week or so so I haven't had much of a chance to write quality articles, and in my opinion it's better to post a few quality articles than post shite ones all the time. <br /><br />What a start to the season we've had then, eh? I'll admit I was worried that we might draw or even lose at Everton to start the season. It's a tricky fixture every year and I'd say by far the toughest first match of the season out of the big four clubs. Some would argue that Liverpool had it tougher but since we haven't lost to Sp*rs in the league since about 2000 I don't really think of them as being any good. What a performance though by the Gunners. 6-1, and the 1 was in the 90th minute. I will say that I was a bit pissed off when we allowed that goal right at the end, because 6-0 looks just ridiculously good and a clean sheet would have given Almunia and the defense a lot of confidence going forward. But 6-1 is still bloody good and we're top of the league!<br /><br />Just a couple of thoughts from the match then. I thought Alex Song was absolutely terrific, his work rate exceptional, his passing good, and his closing down extremely good. Something happened to Alex last year that completely turned him around and now he's become almost essential to the team. The problem is, he'll be leaving for the African Nations Cup in January...<br /><br />I love the 4-3-3 system that we're using now. While I'd maybe consider putting Bendtner up top and RvP on one of the wings, I'm not Arsene Wenger so I have no say. I thought having Denilson and Song in there as defensive players behind Cesc was fantastic, because you saw what Cesc can really do when he can play openly and not worry about tracking back quite so much to cover in front of the back four. Cesc was immense, as he always is when we play well, and it's amazing to think that we scored 6 goals yet none of them came from RvP, Bendtner, or Arshavin. 2 from Cesc, 1 each from Gallas and Vermaelen (who had a very solid debut), an absolute gem from Denilson, and a late one from Eduardo who came on as a sub. That's what we've been missing the past few years is goals from players other than our strikers, and we really got it done against Everton.<br /><br />Everton were clearly not at their best, and yes it was only one match, but it's just what we needed to start off the season. It should raise the squad's morale and confidence in the team, and push us going forward. Top of the league is a nice place to be, so let's keep it that way lads.<br /><br />So in just over two hours we play <span style="font-weight: bold;">Celtic</span> in Glasgow. An intimidating place to go for sure, but you'd have to say that we are the better team if each team was playing their best on a given day. <span style="font-weight: bold;">Injury worries</span> are for Sagna, Denilson, and Cesc, who are all questionable according to Arsene Wenger. It's a problem if both Denilson and Cesc aren't able to go, although I suspect that Cesc at least will be out there. If neither one of them are able to go, who plays in the center of midfield? Song and Diaby, most likely with Aaron Ramsey, who looked good in the preseason but Celtic Park is a tough place to play for anyone, especially someone as young as Ramsey. He and Jack Wilshere exude the same confidence though in almost any situation you see them in, so if he is in there I have all the faith in the world in him to get the job done.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.arsenal.com/match-menu/171494/first-team/celtic-v-arsenal?tab=preview">Walcott, Rosicky, Nasri, Djourou, and Fabianski are all still out for sure</a>. The best news of all though is that Andrey Arshavin can finally make his Arsenal debut in the Champions League. Of course last year he was cup-tied after playing in the CL for Zenit St Petersburg, so this will be his first taste of contenental action for the Gunners. I'm going to go ahead and pick Andrey and RvP to score goals as <span style="font-weight: bold;">Arsenal win 2-1</span>. Looking forward to the match immensely, and I'll try to get a match report up tomorrow.<br /><br />Cheers all!ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-47574959005927100622009-08-08T11:33:00.003-04:002009-08-08T12:04:47.778-04:00Arsenal Draw Celtic, Arsenal Ratings By PositionMorning all. Let's get right to it then. Yesterday was the Champions League 3rd Round Qualifier draw. The general consensus was we wanted to avoid Atletico, Fiorentina, and Celtics. Well, two out of three's not bad, <span style="font-weight: bold;">we drew Celtic</span>. Seems to me that a lot of people are worrying when I don't really think they need to. Yeah Celtic are a decent team but with fresh legs, another year of experience under our belts and a good preseason, we should be able to beat any Scottish team. Atletico and Fiorentina would have been much worse draws than Celtic in my opinion, and I do think that we'll get through Celtic fairly easily. If we don't, then you can blame it on me for being so confident, but I just don't see us struggling that much.<br /><br />The first leg is supposed to take place in Glasgow on Tuesday, August 18th, but <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/celtic-v-arsenal-important-fixture-info">due to a U2 concert</a> there on the same night, they may have to move the match to Wednesday the 19th. Isn't that just wonderful, we have a match later in the week because of f'ing Bono.<br /><br />So we've got seven days, just one week, until the Premier League season kicks off away to Everton. How we got that as our first match I haven't the slightest idea, because that's a pretty tough one. So while a lot of the transfer talk has died down, yeah we still may sign Chamakh or maybe someone else out of the blue, we pretty much know the squad we're going to have for the new season. So I wanted to try and break it down a little bit and see where we think our strongest/weakest areas are heading into the new year.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Goalkeepers:</span> Manuel Almunia, Lukasz Fabianski - I'd give us an 7 out of 10 here. I think Almunia is pretty solid. He's shown over the past two seasons that he is an above average Premier League goalkeeper who generally makes the saves he's supposed to make. If you were ranking him among Premiership goalkeepers, where would Almunia rank for you? I think I'd have him behind Reina, Van der Sar, and possibly Robert Green and Petr Cech, but nobody else. That's not that bad considering for a long time he was a career backup for us. Fabianski is a good backup, who with some playing time can be good for us down the road.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Right Backs:</span> Bakary Sagna, Emmanuel Eboue - 9/10 for me. Sagna is clearly one of the best if not THE best right back in the league. Solid defensively and good going forward, even if his crosses are sometimes a bit lacking. Eboue is also a much more effective right back than anywhere else on the pitch.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Center Backs:</span> William Gallas, Thomas Vermaelen, Mikael Silvestre, Johann Djourou - I'm going to go with a 7/10 here, although I'll say it's still an incomplete judgement on this group. We haven't gotten to see enough of Vermaelen to know how he'll do when he's up against players like Drogba and Torres. Without Toure on the team, Djourou needs to make this be his breakout year, and Gallas needs to really step up and be a leader on the back line. I just hope they glue together and we find a good partnership in there.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Left Backs:</span> Gael Clichy, Armand Traore, Kieran Gibbs - Before last year I would have said this was a 9, but this year I'll say it's an 8. Clichy had some sketchy moments last year, but I still think he's a great player for Arsenal. He's great getting forward (even if he hasn't ever scored for Arsenal yet) and he's pretty good defensively, not to mention he's still definitely young enough to improve. Gibbs and Traore are both super pacey players who are in the same mold as Clichy and Cole before him. I think they can both be great, although Traore may be moved up to the left wing.<br /><br />I'll get to the midfield tomorrow, so we can make this process last through this week that will undoubtedly be full of anticipation for next weekend, and it'll culminate with my season preview, which will probably come on Thursday.<br /><br />Just one more thing today. I went to see Green Day in Orlando this past Wednesday, and we had tickets in the pit. Amazingly, I ended up right next to a fellow Gooner, Dan from London. So it was great to be able to talk Arsenal in such a random place so far away from London. He even wore an Arsenal wrist band, so I have to give him a shout out. Cheers Dan, and up the Gunners!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibOh3DdUMXAV3_fj2Uy5H7ysUggpB-tzlZhybqPhcsczCkjR5-CLiZD0z8csoZv_NYlroUpUwjJKeuJa3IluGwNjoakq-7jXjdap0LGTQEfgldnoC-M9bvKIBbGZVLG5LoboT2eODHwII/s1600-h/DSCN1083.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibOh3DdUMXAV3_fj2Uy5H7ysUggpB-tzlZhybqPhcsczCkjR5-CLiZD0z8csoZv_NYlroUpUwjJKeuJa3IluGwNjoakq-7jXjdap0LGTQEfgldnoC-M9bvKIBbGZVLG5LoboT2eODHwII/s320/DSCN1083.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5367624311223595346" border="0" /></a>ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-34500447192447401122009-08-04T10:39:00.006-04:002009-08-04T11:10:40.889-04:00Vieira Coming, Senderos Going, Toure and WilshereMorning all. I'll be the first to admit I haven't been posting nearly enough this Summer, but I've been reinvigorated by the upcoming start of the season and so I'm back and I wanted to give my thoughts on everything that has happened in the past week or so while I've been in New Hampshire.<br /><br />So first off we had the <span style="font-weight: bold;">Kolo Toure</span> transfer to Manchester City. My thoughts on this are that, while it's a shame that Toure left after all these years, he hadn't been at his best ever since he contracted Malaria on that African Nations trip. So I think it was good business to sell him. When you look at our center back situation now, do you feel that it is a strong enough area without him? Arsene is clearly convinced that <span style="font-weight: bold;">Thomas Vermaelen</span> is the real deal and is ready to go right away, and he also must have a lot of faith in Johann Djourou as a back up for both him and Gallas. After that I think it's a little weak, as Silvestre is just terrible and Senderos looks to be on his way out. (more on that later) Of course Alex Song can cover at the back if need be but that isn't ideal. So while in terms of numbers I don't think we have a lot of cover at the back, but I think in terms of quality, losing Toure isn't a huge deal. He's been a great servant to the club and always had the right attitude, but it was time for him to go. I wish him the best of luck when he's playing United, Sp*rs, the scousers, and Chelsea, and of course horrible luck when he plays us.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw-4F6GWcZkt6RgV2RUkd83EUneSBjBmrmpAU5bka2IorPqpG4mXvIW9elo37-geRQCgquJtAWfSkwd-p2fpyooHKtFxnrc8casLXtqRhajDiOCKsrV5khTiKmWg_diLAdOVaNlpQUbWQ/s1600-h/Vieira.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 220px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw-4F6GWcZkt6RgV2RUkd83EUneSBjBmrmpAU5bka2IorPqpG4mXvIW9elo37-geRQCgquJtAWfSkwd-p2fpyooHKtFxnrc8casLXtqRhajDiOCKsrV5khTiKmWg_diLAdOVaNlpQUbWQ/s320/Vieira.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366125243908070626" border="0" /></a><br />Speaking of great servants for the club, there's been a lot of talk in the past week about <a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5470022,00.html">Patrick Vieira returning</a> to Arsenal! This one is a really tough one for me, because I love Patrick Vieira. He's probably in my top three players of all time. But didn't we sell him 4 years ago because he was getting older and wouldn't be able to play at the same level much longer? And now he's 32 years old, has a lot of trouble staying fit, and Arsene is saying he may bring him back. No offense to the legend that is Patrick Vieira, but is he good enough at this point? Even on a pay as you play deal, surely we should be able to find someone younger, healthier, and better to play as a defensive midfielder? Maybe Wenger thinks Vieira can still get it done, or he just wants him to play sparingly in some of the big matches, which I'd love. To clarify, I would love to see Patty back at Arsenal, I just wouldn't want to leave the midfield too thin if Vieira gets injured or isn't up to the level we need to compete for honors.<br /><br />So earlier I mentioned <a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5472006,00.html">Philippe Senderos</a>, and it looks like he may be on the way to Everton. There have been lots of reports that the deal has already been done, but I won't believe it until it's on Arsenal.com. I kind of think we'd be better off keeping him, but if we can get 7 or 8 million quid for him I wouldn't be too upset about it. I do think he's always gotten a bad rap though even though he's a pretty decent player, but it doesn't look like he'll be an Arsenal player much longer.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDKYuGq_MjBfXpAtvn6G-tI8Ta7Z1t9_4xCVbym-YlqoltgimlbxnSNJnq6zf37Udkpxg3gQCtpyFiXbIiHrmjeqGQzXG37mNvN-UnJjMccuPr-lje2E4eURcUulbZ7RcGbzIiN_rPLbM/s1600-h/Wilshere.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDKYuGq_MjBfXpAtvn6G-tI8Ta7Z1t9_4xCVbym-YlqoltgimlbxnSNJnq6zf37Udkpxg3gQCtpyFiXbIiHrmjeqGQzXG37mNvN-UnJjMccuPr-lje2E4eURcUulbZ7RcGbzIiN_rPLbM/s320/Wilshere.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5366125330244894242" border="0" /></a><br />So on to what everyone is talking about at the moment, and that's <span style="font-weight: bold;">Jack Wilshere</span>, who's performances in the Emirates Cup were nothing short of magical. And they would still have been magical if he was 27 instead of 17. The guy is just so far ahead of his time it's ridiculous. <a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5469593,00.html">Arsene Wenger</a> has moved to calm everyone's expectations about Jack, seeing as he hasn't even made it onto the pitch in many first team matches yet. At the same time though, you've got to wonder how long we can afford to keep this boy off of the pitch. He brings so much to the table, that especially with Nasri out early on, I think we need to get him on the field. His composure and skill on the ball rivals that of Cesc and Arshavin already, and frankly I'm obsessed with him. I've already put in my order for a Wilshere kit for this year. At the same time, we need to not do like we did with <span style="font-weight: bold;">Theo Walcott</span>, and put unneccessary and unrealistic expectations on Jack at a young age. He's not always going to have fantastic games and score crazy goals and make much more experienced pros look like schoolboys. We can still be excited for one of our home-grown talents though!<br /><br />That's about it for the day. I'll probably post again tomorrow, amazingly, and I intend to keep that going too. A couple more quick things, make sure you <a href="http://arsenole.blogspot.com/2009/07/win-tickets-to-2010-world-cup.html">sign up to win tickets to World Cup 2010</a>! It's really easy so don't pass up that chance. Also, I recommend you all have a look at <a href="http://tinyurl.com/lajnqz">ThirdGen's Portal</a> e-mag. It's good already and it's only going to get better. Alright everyone, have a good one. Cheers!ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-63698906112038998022009-07-31T09:46:00.003-04:002009-07-31T10:09:12.844-04:00Win Tickets to the 2010 World Cup!<span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >Hello everyone. Today I have a really fantastic offer for all of you, a chance to win a free brand new <a href="http://www.sonyericsson.com/cws/products/mobilephones/overview/w995?lc=en&cc=gb#a">SE W995 handset</a> courtesy of Sony Ericsson. It's a </span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Verdana","sans-serif"; color: black;"><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >£500 </span><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size:100%;">value, and all you have to do to win is answer a simple trivia question! Even better is that one of the handset's will come with a golden ticket (Willy Wonka style) and if you find that, you could win a trip to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa! The prizes are as follows:<br /><br /></span></span></span><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: "Trebuchet MS","sans-serif";"><b>Grand Prize: 1 x 2010 FIFA World Cup™ Golden Ticket</b><br />This golden ticket entitles the winner to a pair of tickets to every game their country plays – including the final. This once in a lifetime prize includes flights and 4-star accommodation are included.<b><br /><br />Weekly Prizes: 2 x pairs of tickets to the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ </b><br />Winners will see the drama unfold. Each week we’re giving away two pairs of tickets to a 2010 FIFA World Cup™ match. Flights and three nights in 4-star accommodation are included.<br /><b><br />Daily Prizes:1 x Sony BRAVIA TV</b><br />Every day a stylish 40-inch Sony BRAVIA TV will be won so fans can follow all the action live for edge of the sofa viewing.<br /><br /><span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >I don't think it gets any bigger than that for a football fan really. Imagine taking your new phone on your trip to South Africa to watch every match your country plays at the World Cup. I think that's something everyone wants to do.<br /><br />So how do I enter you ask? All you have to do is answer this trivia question by emailing me at <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">ArseNole[at]arsenole.com</span>. The question is: <span style="font-weight: bold;">Who scored the first goal in the 2006 World Cup in Germany? </span>The winner will be randomly drawn from all of the correct answers and you'll receive your handset from Sony Ericsson in the mail shortly after. <span style="font-weight: bold;">The contest runs until August 23rd</span>.<br /><br />So get to answering! Remember, all entries must be receieved and in my inbox by August 23rd. If you win, I'll contact you for your shipping details and then your handset will be sent to you shortly after. <br /><br />I hope everyone enjoys this contest! Start entering!<br /></span></span>ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-23630666062690303562009-07-21T01:53:00.002-04:002009-07-21T01:55:32.524-04:00I Like TurtlesYeah, I could talk about Adebayor leaving, or who his potential replacement could be, or even about tomorrow's friendly match. But instead I'm going to show this video, because I haven't been able to stop laughing at it, even after watching it at least a hundred times. Enjoy.<br /><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/CMNry4PE93Y&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/CMNry4PE93Y&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-17703143561267884892009-07-16T12:09:00.003-04:002009-07-16T12:36:20.386-04:00I'm Going to Try To Defend Adebayor (Sort of)Morning all. Hope everything is going well for you. Not much has been happening with Arsenal in the last week or so, besides the ongoing Emmanuel Adebayor to Manchester City stories. Just yesterday it was reported that a fee (25 million pounds) had been agreed and a he was given a work permit for the move. Now though it seems there has been a snag, and <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/jul/15/emmanuel-adebayor-manchester-city-arsenal">Adebayor has asked City</a> for a little bit more time to think if this is the right move for him. Financially it certainly has to be, as he'd be making much more money there than he ever would at Arsenal. However, he doesn't want to be seen as greedy back in Togo, where apparently Arsenal is much more popular than Manchester City (go figure). <br /><br />Everyone is eagerly awaiting this deal getting done, because nobody wants Adebayor at Arsenal it seems. And while I think 25 million for him is good business for us, I don't think he was nearly as bad for the club as most people think. I've compared him side by side with RvP, who everyone loves, in the past. Adebayor has been a more accomplished goal scorer for Arsenal, a player who manages to be in the side much more, and has lead the line on his own countless times. Sure, sometimes it looked like he was being lazy, but Bendtner looks the same way running around up top on his own. He's also been criticized for everything from being offsides too much, to missing easy chances, to kissing the badge on his shirt. (which almost every player does at some time or another) He's taken more stick from Arsenal fans than anyone I can remember that has played for this club. <span style="font-weight: bold;">So why on earth would you expect him to be loyal?</span> Can you blame him for wanting to display his talents somehwere that they might actually be appreciated? If your own fans aren't even going to cheer for you that isn't exactly a motivating factor. Do you think it's coincidence that players that the fans have loved over the years have stayed longer? If I felt like I was getting no love from my own club's fans despite scoring 30 goals in a season then I would want to be somewhere else too. So yeah, he may be a bit greedy, but it's no different than anyone that came from a poor background and made it out. Wanting to get paid for your craft isn't wrong, so yeah, when you combine the money and the fans giving him so much shit, I can't blame Adebayor one bit. <br /><br />As for his potential replacement, <a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5434698,00.html">Marouane Chamakh</a>, he's biding his time and waiting for an offer. Sunderland is interested, as well as Arsenal, and I would expect a bid to be tabled for him should the Adebayor move go through.<br /><br /><span class="main-content"><p></p><blockquote>"I have good contacts from clubs and the possibility to join a Premier League club. I will take my time because there is some very interesting interest and I have to make the best choice."</blockquote><p></p></span><br />I don't really watch Bordeaux, but I'll expect he's a pretty good player or else Arsene wouldn't want to sign him. Either way, when we're getting in 25 million and only spending 7 million for the replacement, it should leave us lots of cash so spend on a defensive midfielder. <br /><br />That's about all I've got to talk about today. I'm going to go drink some coffee, eat some goldfish, then go to the gym in a little bit. Boom, outta here.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-68380719807392893812009-07-10T09:43:00.004-04:002009-07-10T10:03:53.955-04:00Kroenke Leapfrogs Usmanov, Melo Goes to JuveMorning everyone. A couple of things have been happening in the world of Arsenal in the past few days so I figured I'd keep everyone up to date.<br /><br />First of all, it's only 8 days until the first preseason match! We'll get to see that annual match vs Barnet, which while not an overly competitive match usually, it is the return of football each year and that is something to be celebrated. I'll get more into a preview for that match in a couple of days.<br /><br />The big news I guess this morning revolves once again around one Alisher "The fat Uzbeki money grubbing cunt" Usamanov and one <span style="font-weight: bold;">Stanley Kroenke</span>. A few days ago, Usmanov offered to inject 60 million pounds into Arsenal's coffers for transfer activity. Mind you, all this money is questionable and sketchy at best. Needless to say, Arsenal rejected the offer. Ivan Gazidis had this to say:<br /><br /><blockquote>With regard to players, the Board decided not to issue permanent capital in the hopes of signing one or two players in an inflated transfer market. Instead, the focus continues to be on securing the services of talented young players we have on long-term contracts and making very selective acquisitions, only where a new signing will add real value to our already strong squad.</blockquote><br />Some of you will say, "Shite, why would you turn down 60 million quid to spend on the team?" Well because it's not how Arsenal does business. It never has been that way, and I hope it never will be that way. The club is built on a sound business model that, while sometimes is frustrating, is crucial to the club's long term success.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD3hSlhwuhNdi7ljiCD0IpbzAlvUGqgP11UWJqQQZGhKEna8GRiUH8apW2XfvfH9lSEWY6-edegBLOK_kZ-Tzjiq76A_BwhdNKpHcb1qyx5Zv8UBdrk-VJV5mENSnXpGMOQ8gT7qEfkng/s1600-h/1710101886_f6d047040b.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD3hSlhwuhNdi7ljiCD0IpbzAlvUGqgP11UWJqQQZGhKEna8GRiUH8apW2XfvfH9lSEWY6-edegBLOK_kZ-Tzjiq76A_BwhdNKpHcb1qyx5Zv8UBdrk-VJV5mENSnXpGMOQ8gT7qEfkng/s320/1710101886_f6d047040b.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5356831865749186194" border="0" /></a><br />Along these same lines, <a href="http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=660109&sec=england&cc=5901">Stan Kroenke has today increased his shares</a> by 1,600 shares to now own 28.5% of the club, making him the club's largest shareholder, passing Usmanov. Some people are still skeptical of Kroenke, but I personally place my faith in the Arsenal board, who have been around Arsenal for decades. There's a reason they invited Kroenke to join the board and continue to reject Usmanov. Kroenke, they feel, is someone who has the club's interest at heart, while Usmanov is a horrible person who eats kittens for lunch and baby seals for dinner.<br /><br />This increase does put Kroenke awfully close to the limit of 30% before you are obligated to make a full takeover bid. It seems almost inevitable that there will be an eventual bidding war between Kroenke and Usmanov, and I'm fairly sure the board is doing their damndest to make sure Kroenke wins that war. And I'm backing him too. While I'd rather have the ownership split up like it is right now, if it's going to be one of these two it's not even a question.<br /><br />In other news, Arsenal target <a href="http://www.goal.com/en/news/10/italy/2009/07/07/1369874/breaking-news-juventus-sign-felipe-melo-report">Felipe Melo has signed for Juventus</a>, effectively ending that transfer saga. I did think he would be a perfect fit for us, but I guess we didn't want to spend as much as Juve did. The question is who do we look at for that holding role now? There's Inler of course, and Veloso, but my guess is that Arsene will go for someone totally off the wall that we've never heard of. Your thoughts?<br /><br />That's about all I've got today. Thoughts on Kroenke, Usmanov, Melo, and Barnet are all acceptable, as well as anything else you want to say. Have at it. Cheers.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-14851164262239718362009-06-30T11:23:00.004-04:002009-06-30T11:47:30.006-04:00Arsenal Need A Brazilian, 8 Youngsters Leave the ClubMorning all. It's been awhile yet again. I've decided I really do hate transfer season. It's the same every year for us. Teams are signing players for ridiculous fees that we would never ever pay for anyone, and we're linked with 34,592 players and don't sign any of them. It makes me not want to read about Arsenal, but I have been watching a lot of football lately in the form of the Confederations Cup, so I wanted to talk a bit about that today, so if you don't care about it then turn off your station.<br /><br />First of all I have to give some credit to the US team. While I've been a huge critic of Bob Bradley, Landon Donovan, and the entire rest of the national team setup, I have never seen such a turnaround from the start of one tournament until the end of it. From losing against Italy and the 3-0 defeat to Brazil at the start to somehow getting into the semi-finals with a great show against Egypt, then going on to beat the best team in the world, Spain, was an amazing turnaround. Even in the final against Brazil, without one of our better players (Michael Bradley) we managed to go up 2-0 and had to withstand a second half barrage from a team that can attack as well as any in the world. Yes, the result was a loss, but the overall result is a lot of confidence to take forward to the World Cup next year.<br /><br />Landon Donovan should have been named the player of the tournament for what he did. Off the ball he was amazing, and the counter-attack goal against Brazil was a thing of beauty. I've never seen the US score a goal like that.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/cSZRHeeY4Oc&hl=en&fs=1&"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/cSZRHeeY4Oc&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Felipe Melo</span> was a big player for Brazil in this tournament, and since he's a holding type central midfielder, he's been linked with Arsenal. I think he'd be a great addition personally. After watching him several times in the past few weeks I think he's the type of player we could really use. Problem is, <a href="http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=658233&sec=transfers&cc=5901">he's just signed a contract extension</a> with Fiorentina. It does say there is a buy-out clause in the contract, but who knows how much it is. If we could get him for 12-15 million though I'd be all for it.<br /><br />Some youth team news today as <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/news/reserves-news/four-youngsters-turn-pro-while-eight-depart">eight of our young guns will be leaving the club</a> and four have signed professional terms. The list is as follows:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Released:</span><br />Amaury Bischoff<br />Paul Rodgers<br />James Dunne<br />Rui Fonte<br />Abu Ogogo<br />Rene Steer<br />Vincent van den Berg<br />Anton Blackwood<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Signed Professional Terms:</span><br />James Shea<br />Craig Eastmond<br />Luke Ayling<br />Cedric Evina<br /><br />No real surprises there then. I'm glad Bischoff is gone. What a terrible waste of money he was. I know he was signed for free, but he still got paid, so don't leave comments telling me it didn't cost any money.<br /><br />That's really about it. There's some bollocks in the paper about how Andrey Arshavin would love to play for Barcelona. So would I. But it doesn't mean they'll be signing me any second now, and the same is true for Arshy.<br /><br />Leave a comment or follow me on twitter. Peace.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-41291920370631846922009-06-19T13:18:00.002-04:002009-06-19T13:35:49.930-04:00Vermaelen Officially Signs for ArsenalHello all. I've been on a bit of a hiatus since June 2nd. Why, you ask? Well simply because there's been absolutely nothing to write about. I don't want to write about how we might sign a 16 year old Frenchman, or about how Cesc might leave, then the next day he might not leave. It's just boring. Besides that, I've been kind of busy, so that's my excuse. But I'm back now and I'll be posting every day just like I did before. Now on to Arsenal.<br /><br />I suppose there's pretty big news today. <a href="http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/thomas-vermaelen-completes-move-to-arsenal">Thomas Vermaelen</a> was introduced officially as an Arsenal player. We've been trailing him for a couple of weeks now and we've landed our man. We've all known that we need a center back for a while now so it's good that we've locked one up. Problem is, as is with most of the players we sign, I haven't seen much of him at all since I don't ever watch the Dutch league or the Belgian national team. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Arsene Wenger</span> had this to say about him:<br /><br /><blockquote>“Thomas is a great signing for Arsenal Football Club, and we are all delighted that he is joining us. Thomas is a solid performer with good experience of Champions League and UEFA Cup football and is also a regular with the Belgium national team. Thomas is primarily a left-footed centre back, but he’s multi-functional and can also play at left back. He is strong technically with a positive winner’s attitude and I have no doubt his arrival will strengthen our team. Thomas Vermaelen will be a huge asset to Arsenal.”</blockquote><span style="font-weight: bold;">Vermaelen</span> responded with these quotes:<br /><br /><blockquote>“I’m just so happy to be joining Arsenal. This is a great Club with a world class manager, high quality players and a fantastic stadium. Everything is set up for Arsenal to be very successful for years to come and I joined this Club because I know Arsenal will be challenging for trophies.<br /><br />“I have had a good taste of the Champions League during my time with Ajax and this is something I am looking forward to experiencing again with Arsenal. I’m also looking forward to playing in the English Premier League, which for me, is the best league in the world. Also, I just want to assure the Arsenal fans that I will give everything for this Club and I hope we can enjoy winning some trophies together next season.”</blockquote>I like him already. I know everyone goes on and on about how great a club Arsenal is and how they are going to give their best for the club and the fans, but it still never gets old. If every player actually stuck to that mentality life would be wonderful.<br /><br />While I can't comment all that much on the actual player we've signed, I can say that I'm pleased with the way this deal got done. We didn't wait until August 30th to start negotiating like we did for Xabi Alonso last year, we identified a target and went and got him, which is how it should be. This will allow him to get a full pre-season camp in with us and get accustomed to the style and to all of his team mates.<br /><br />It'll be interesting to see what happens to not only Kolo Toure and William Gallas but also Phillippe Senderos. I forsee at least two of them being sold with Vermaelen coming in, and the only question is which two. If Milan want to keep Senderos, I'm absolutely sure we'll let them, but that is a big if. Then it comes down to Toure and Gallas. Gallas has played better than Toure as of late, but he's also older and is a bit of a cunt. We also have Djourou coming up who I think is going to be an exceptional player. Who do you think will be our first choice pairing at center back next year? It's really hard to predict.<br /><br />Last but not least for today, I'm seriously considering getting an Arsenal tattoo. I haven't decided exactly what or where though yet. I may just get Arsenal down the inside of my forearm, or across my back. Anyone got any sweet ideas that I can steal from you? Let me know. Thanks. Peace.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7485828876714765854.post-4766655264291354452009-06-02T12:07:00.004-04:002009-06-02T12:29:50.575-04:00Arsenal Linked With Matuidi, Madrid Want Alonso<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVi-puMy3rozDcvLkyAuJYvsxwg-LzsameX5mSb_RUrQGYWlaXgfG42L_Axw-bQVCTzpyoVZcjtiFcg_lRNKe-sdaEdNAL0dFgJ3FamplW4A2W6PBBB86bwKm-B3KJuk0uiIRjMR9luAI/s1600-h/matuidi-2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVi-puMy3rozDcvLkyAuJYvsxwg-LzsameX5mSb_RUrQGYWlaXgfG42L_Axw-bQVCTzpyoVZcjtiFcg_lRNKe-sdaEdNAL0dFgJ3FamplW4A2W6PBBB86bwKm-B3KJuk0uiIRjMR9luAI/s320/matuidi-2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342767878672858066" border="0" /></a>Hello everyone. Not a lot happening in the world of Arsenal today but I'm posting anyway. I'm pretty much starving by the way, but that does tend to happen at lunch time. I'll probably make some coffee and have a microwave pizza, because that's clearly a good combo.<br /><br />First off today is Arsenal have been linked with <a href="http://fourfourtwo.com/news/england/31965/default.aspx">St. Etienne midfielder Blaise Matuidi</a>. He's 22, plays as a DM, and really wants to join Arsenal.<br /><p></p><blockquote>“I asked myself questions at the end of August after Arsenal showed their interest. <em></em>An opportunity to join them is not something ordinary. It gives you great self-esteem, it is Arsenal."</blockquote><p></p>I tell you, it is REALLY hard to find any videos or anything on this guy, but <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zc4sA5I892s">I did find this one</a> of a really nice goal he scored this season. If anyone knows more about him, feel free to fill us all in.<br /><br />If <span style="font-weight: bold;">Xabi Alonso</span> is really a target again this summer for Arsene Wenger, then the competition for his signature just got a lot tougher. <a href="http://www.setanta.com//uk/Articles/Football/2009/06/02/Premier-Fabregas-urges-Alonso-signing/gnid-55399/">Real Madrid are interested in signing him</a>, and since they'll pay just about anything to get the players they want, it could price us out of the picture. I've given you my views on this subject. Xabi Alonso is a good player, one who I would certainly like to have at Arsenal, but I'd rather have someone who will knock some dudes out. The only dude I remember seeing Xabi Alonso knock out is...well, Cesc...last season. Not nice. Still, if that's the way Arsene wants to go with it I'll be quite happy to have him because he really is an excellent passer with mounds of Premier League experience.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5359538,00.html">Kolo Toure has called for the squad to stay together</a> this summer, and says it is the key to really improving.<br /><blockquote><span class="main-content"><p>"I think keeping the team together is the most important thing. When you stay with your team-mate for three or four years you start to learn how he plays. That helps you for the games and I think we have been together for a while now. It's important for our improvement next season. Sometimes when you bring somebody else, these players have to settle and that can take a year sometimes. The Premier League is already difficult so if you play six months badly it's difficult to come back."</p></span></blockquote><span class="main-content"><p></p></span>That's a really long quote but it all needed to be shown. While I agree in principle with Kolo on this, and would like to keep most of the squad together, there is no doubt in my mind that we need additions to it like Andrey Arshavin was last year. The impact he made was unquestionable, and it didn't take him six months to adjust to the league. So yes, keep the squad together, but add to it as well. Depth never hurts any team.<br /><br />And last but not least today, good ol' <a href="http://www.screendaily.com/news/europe/german-footballer-jens-lehmann-follows-in-cantonas-footsteps/5002012.article">Jens Lehmann is getting set to make his film debut</a>. He's apparently going to play a talent scout in the movie <span style="font-style: italic;">Themba</span>, which is a pretty weird title to me but fair play to Jens.<br /><br />So yeah, that's about it. <a href="http://arsenole.thefreeforums.com/">Join the forums and start talking</a>, because it makes the world a better place. <a href="https://twitter.com/ArseNole">Follow me on Twitter</a> too. Man's game. Cheers.ArseNolehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00548152275204163872noreply@blogger.com4