Wolves: Why the hell did you sack Mick McCarthy Mr Morgan?

By 1970’s Gooner

I am first and foremost an Arsenal supporter but I am also very dedicated Wolves fan due to family connections. I always watch the Wolves games if they are not on at the same time as Arsenal’s.

I was very surprised when Mick McCarthy was sacked. He did after all get the team up into the Premier League and kept them there year after year. So you would expect that he would have been given the chance to guide the team in the remaining 13 games or so.

But no Mr Morgan had to take action….My arse what action he took. He sacked a tried and tested manager and replaced him with a rookie assistant coach. A coach who after all is carrying on where Mick McCarthy left.

If Mr Morgan wanted to shake things up then the last thing he should have done is replace him with his assistant!

He should have at least employed an experienced Premier League manager who would have given the team new ideas and an impetus to play for survival.

Now we are shipping fives and sixes and are going down like a sinking ship.

Arsenal find their leaders but also a weak link

 

By 1970’s Gooner

I feared that Newcastle will provide very stiff resistance coupled with offensive capability. Demba Ba along with Ben Arfa and Oberton just behind provided an attacking threat in the first half that threatened to derail us.

They were supported by a very combative central midfield which included Tiote and Cabaye. Add to that mix their manager Alan Pardew who,due to previous history with Wenger, always manages to create problems for us.

And it looked like that when they got their goal. I knew then that we were in for a hard night.

The main reason for that was Kieran Gibbs’ positioning. He was way out of position when Arfa received the ball and when he did get back into position he made the mistake of allowing Arfa on to his favoured left foot rather than directing him to the other direction.

Gibbs has not been at his best since his come back from injury. His positioning in recent games has left a lot to be desired and the same has to be said of his attacking forays. He rarely gets round his man when he is forward and his rare crosses are not up to standard.

I hope that with more games he will improve but it has to be said that due to the brilliance of all the other outfield players at the moment his displays stand out so much more. He is the weakest link now.

And what brilliant displays we are all enjoying. Brilliant displays from new found leaders running down the spine of this Arsenal team.

At the back Vermaelen has, since his return to the team but more importantly in his preferred position in the middle of the defence, been absolutely fantastic. A real leader in defence but also going forward for the dead ball situations as well of course committing to attack when required.

In central midfield Arsenal have found their maestro. An orchestrator that this team has so obviously been lacking ever since Cesc departed and Wilshere vacated due to injury. Tomas Rosicky has provided determination, speed, forward passes and tenacity. A new leader in a very important area of the pitch.

And of course RVP has been a leader since this remarkable season started. He leads from the front and this I think inspires the rest of the team to follow suit.

If Theo keeps this level of performance then he will be another ‘leader’. And what a fantastic performance he put in last night. He was simply unplayable.

The quality of the display, the pathos and work ethos of all the players and above all the quality that this team contains make them as good or even better as the two top teams in the League.

Arsenal’s new tactical approach bodes well for the near future

By 1970’s Gooner

There were many positive signs that emerged from last night’s encounter with Milan.

Firstly the Ox gave a performance that was absolutely fantastic. For an 18 year old to have performed at such a high level of quality means that he along with Wilshere, Szczeny, Walcott and Song contain Arsenal’s hopes for a very bright future indeed.

The Ox along with Song run the midfield. The Ox did everything but score. He defended tenaciously, spread the passes, went forward, took the corner kicks and won the penalty. What more could you ask for?

We all castigated Wenger for buying another kid for so much money early in August. But now we are all eating humble pies!

Szczesny, I consider the best goalkeeper in the Premier League after Friedle. He is better than Joe Hart and much better than De Ghea. His performance last night was almost faultless bar one clearance which put Gibbs in some bother.

But the most significant improvement in Arsenal’s performances of late has been a change of tactics only made possible by one man.

Tomas Rosicky doesn’t hang about. When he gets the ball the only thing in his mind is to turn and go forward. If there is an opponent in front of him then he will dribble round him. His passes are always forwards and direct. And the rest of the players follow suit.

This makes Arsenal an infinitely faster team with a very high tempo. And the pressing that is put upon the opponent holding the ball by usually two Arsenal players acting as a hunting pack makes for a relentless approach that not many can live with.

If only we had a more decent bench. We could have been challenging even for the title!

Redknap fails tactically and Rosicky comes alive

By 1970’s Gooner

Arsenal’s thumping of Spurs was down to a fantastic team performance characterised by team spirit, work ethos and amazing accuracy in front of goal.

Two aspects stuck out with me most.

The first has to do with the tactics that Harry adopted. He chose to play with two front men in Saha and Adebayor. 

This meant that the midfield was manned by Modric who was more attack minded and Parker who was the defensive minded player. The result was that Spurs were outnumbered in this crucial area of the pitch as Arsenal played their normal 4 3 3 with Benayoun, Rosicky and Song  the three midfield players. 

Spurs would have been OK if their two wide men, Kranjkar and Bale tacked in to give a helping hand in midfield.

But this was where Spurs and Harry failed. For, on the occasions where their wide men failed to tack in, they were outplayed in midfield.

And when they did tack in they left acres of space on the flanks. Bale in particular was more exposed as when he vacated his line on the flank it was Walcott who benefited. And we all saw what he did to Spurs!

And Arsenal’s trio in the middle were brilliant. They chased and tackled all over the pitch especially in the opponents defensive line thus forcing their defenders into mistakes. When they won the ball they passed it to the forward players with precision.

A special mention has to go to Rosicky. He reminded us all of his best performances, now two years ago! What a player he was on Saturday. He did everything. He tackled, passed, hurried, and tackled again. He run and run and run. And he scored too!

The perfect performance.

Arsenal fans should boycott the Milan game

 

By 1970’s Gooner

                 

It pains me to suggest it. It will hurt me when a lot of Arsenal fans may castigate me for turning against the club that I and all of you love.

But I have to call it as I see it. And it is pretty obvious to me that the Board are quite happy to see the team finish in the top four every season so that the CL money boosts the revenue that is needed to pay off the banks and raise the value of the shares they hold.

 Did you know that some Arsenal shares sold for 16.500 each last week! This means that the existing shareholders are making a killing. And this value will increase with every year that passes by.

We were told that constructing a new stadium will put us up there withy the big boys. Well I have news for you Arsenal Board members. It has done exactly the opposite!

We are starved of the cash to buy the quality players that we need to compete. And I don’t mean players of astronomical value but good players, players who can, with the correct management, contribute to success.

We are instead reduced to buying either very young or average players paying minimal fees or on a free transfers! Chamakh, Park, Miyachi, Denilson, Vela, Benayoun, Almunia, Squillaci, Jenkinson.

We are fed up year after year to hear the same things:

‘We need to give time to the young players to evolve’

‘We were so close we only need some twigging to get there’

‘Our development model is sustainable’

Well I have news for you:IT AINT GONNA HAPPEN

The team is now of average quality which is a result of the club’s stingy transfer policy.

 It will not win another trophy if it carries on like this.

The shining stars of the team will always leave when they reach 27 or 28 because they will realiSe that they will win trophies if they move away from Arsenal.

Seven years without a trophy. This is nothing mates. We are looking at another 7 years without a trophy.

If we had known about this eventuality we, the fans, would have been quite happy to have stayed at Highbury. There would have been far more funds available than what we are seeing now! 

Spurs are doing alright aren't they? And they haven't moved from White Hart Lane have they.

But no the shareholders are not concerned about our views. All they are concerned is to make money. And if that can be achieved without winning trophies then so much the better as it would not involve spending any serious money.

But they seem be to missing out on one thing. The Emirates has to fill its capacity in order for them to rake in the revenue. We the fans can have a say.

And I say we should boycott the Milan game as a warning of what is to come.

You are deluded Mr Wenger

By 1970’s Gooner

                          

What a joker Djourou is! And Squillaci! As soon these two jokers got together it was pretty obvious that we were going to get thumped. One bad mistake after another. One schoolboy error after another. Any high ball over the top and we were running for cover.

Djourou dithered on the ball, allowed the opponent to close him down and gave away the foul from which we conceded. He had a nightmare of a game. And he does this in every game. Yet he gets a new contract!

You can’t just play with a centre back who is League 2 standard. You will get punished. And we played with two centre backs who are League 2 standard!

And as for Ramsey I don’t really blame him for another inept performance. It’s Wenger that should take the blame for starting him. Why on earth doesn’t he trust Rosicky? When he came on we had more direct passes to our forwards and had a better shape.

Wenger is deluded. I am convinced. Do you know that he praised the players’ performance saying that they were tired and that we were unlucky!!!

You are deluded Mr Wenger, badly.

Is it the 7^th season now without a trophy? How many more can we endure?

The trouble is that he will not walk away because his ambition is not necessarily to win trophies. It is to win them with the young players he develops.

Well it aint gona happen Mr Wenger.

He seems happy if we finish 4^th every year. The Board seem happy if we finish 4^th every year!

All that they are concerned about is making enough profits to pay off the debts to the banks and thus raise the value of the shares. So that when they do sell off they make a big killing.

They don’t give a shit about the fans.

The only way they will listen is when we fail to make 4^th spot or if we stop buying the expensive season tickets.

Hands up to Wenger and Arshavin

By 1970’s Gooner

We all crucified him. Some of us thought he was loosing the plot. He brought on Arshavin against Man Utd and we lost that game. 

But he brought on Arshavin today and the little Russian did in 15 or so minutes what he practically failed to do all season. He produced a wonderful cross in between the central defenders for Henry to knock in at ease!

                        

We all crucified Arshavin before. And Wenger. Today we have to take our hats off to both of them.

Wenger made all the right substitutions. They were positive ones. All trying to win the game. First came Ramsey on with Song dropping back in defence.

He produced the first goal!

Then he brought Henry on. He got the winner!

He brought Arshavin on. He produced the cross for Henry!

Thank you Mr Wenger. Thank you Andrei. Thank you Thierry.

Another tactical mess by Wenger results in lost points

 

By 1970’s Gooner

I call it as I see it and once again Wenger got things wrong, this time at Bolton.

Firstly, tempo

Bolton were there for the taking. Arsenal had the majority of possession but this was not concentrated in areas where we could hurt them. The reason was that we were playing at a slow pace allowing the opponents to put men behind the ball.

In parallel Arsenal’s players were not pressing high up the field nor were they pressing hard enough to make them make mistakes. If there was something to learn from the Villa victory it was the high tempo, pressuring and hunting them down in packs all over the pitch.

This was non existent against Bolton.

Secondly, wrong choice of starting eleven and tactical positioning of Song.

If there was another lesson to be learned from the Villa victory it is that Rosicky is back to form. His high tempo game, tenaciousness but much more importantly creativeness and running at their defence head on were badly missing at Bolton.

Ramsey who was wrongly selected ahead of Rosicky had nothing of the above. He is weak in defending, distribution and of course putting his chances away. Rosicky would have had us 2-0 up by half time if he was presented with those chances.

As a result of one mistake another is inadvertently made. As a result of wanting Ramsey to be the creative midfielder Wenger obviously instructed Song to sit back. Song sat back too much in my opinion. But this meant that he couldn’t share the creative part that was so sadly missing. And he has proved that he can do it.

Thirdly, Wenger got the substitutions wrong again.

Rosicky should have come on much much earlier than the 81^st minute! The team was crying out for some creativity and sparkle but no, Wenger had to insist on keeping Ramsey on the pitch!

Instead of putting Rosicky on first he opted for Henry (in the 69th minute for the Ox). I said it before, Henry cannot cut it any more in the Premier League and it showed last night. He is slow, ponderous and added nothing to the team when he came on.

So there you have it. I call it as I see it. Who else can I blame?

Player analysis and ratings Vs Villa

By 1970’s Gooner

Fabiansky

Needs to improve his kicking. Other than that had a good game. Came out to collect the high balls when he could and relieved the pressure that we all feel when crosses come in. 6

Coquelin

Improves with every game and plays with confidence. With Jenkinson still out I think he will be a very able understudy to Sagna. Djourou should have a rest now. Another Flamini in the making and with a bright future. 7

Vermaelen

You somehow feel a sense of security when he is in the line up. Anywhere he plays he plays well. What a shot he has in him. I think he will be scoring many more goals this season. Should he be kept at left back even if Gibbs or Santos get fit enough to start? probably not! 6

Mertesacker

Had one of his better games for Arsenal. He was very strong in the air and nearly scored from a corner. Looked solid today and I hope he continues in this manner. 6

Koscienly

Excellent performance. He is this season’s revelation for me. He has settled in his role as a centre back in the Premier League and is able to deal with the physicality of the game here. What a run out of defence which saw him play the one two with Song and then drive in the Villa box to win the penalty for the winning goal. 9

Song

Back to what he does best today after a poor performance against United. Won the balls in the midfield and distributed simply. 6

Rosicky

Tomas is improving by leaps and bounds this season. He is becoming more effective with every game he plays and is strongly starting to challenge for a first team spot at the expense of the other two more creative midfielders, Arteta and Ramsey. I think Ramsey will probably be rested next game. 8

Ramsey

Put in a better performance today. Kept the ball well and took up dangerous positions in the opponent’s area. Won the penalty by moving on to Song’s pass touching it away from Dunn’s reach. 6

Walcott

A much more improved performance from Theo today. He was everything that he should have been against United. He found space to run in, put in good crosses and got a deserved lucky rebound for the goal. 7

The Ox

Carried on where he left against United. This boy is a fantastic player. He can run at pace, dribble, place his crosses and defend when needed. Above all he has no fear. He should be a starter every game now. No need to rest him. Arshavin can warm the bench until the summer when he will go back to Russia. 8

RVP

Two very well taken penalties and a very good all round performance today. Kept the ball and linked up play well. His positioning and peeling off players always causes problems for defenders. 7

Sagna and Arteta

Welcome back

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Man of the Match: Laurent  Koscienly

Five Arsenal players return next week!

By 1970’s Gooner

Savic is a young 21 year old Manchester City centre back. He has been a starter for his team in recent games because the first team choice centre backs Kolo Toure (Afica Cup of Nations) and Kompany (red card) are unavailable.

The young lad has looked out of sorts. His mistakes are costing Manchester City. Spurs were allowed to get back in the game from 2-0 down through his mistake and he gave away the penalty in the 1^st leg of their Carling Cup defeat to Liverpool. He was that bad he was substituted at half time in the return leg. Kind of reminds you of Djourou doesn't it?

Why do I go on about Savic and Man City you would ask. Because he is the only weak link in an otherwise strong side. Yet they suffered badly in the games he has played.

Compare this with Arsenal missing FIVE first team players against United: Arteta, Gervinho, Sagna, Gibbs and Wilshere. Can you imagine what would have happened if they were available? I think we would have taken sweet revenge for the 8-2.

There are promising news emerging from the injury front.

Sagna has returned to full training today with the first team and apparently came through unscathed. He may be available for selection for the next league game at Bolton next Wednesday!  If not for the Blackburn game at home on the 4^th of February.

Gibbs is due to return to training in a few days time. I would think the Arsenal physios will be a bit more cautious in this case due to the player’s history with injury. But he could come back within the next two league games.

Both full backs, if all goes well, will be available for the CL game against AC Milan on the 18^th February.

Arteta will return to first team action probably against Aston Villa and so will Henry.

And there are good news about Coquelin. He is also returning to training next week.

 Wilshere is now only three weeks away. So is Gervinho (from the Africa Cup of Nations).

Arsenal will bounce back that’s for sure and our performances when these players return to action will be out of this world.

I predict that we will go on a run similar to that in the early part of the season after the disastrous start and challenge for 4^th spot and beyond, strongly.

We have added a new feature on the site detailing the injuries to Arsenal players, the nature of the injury and the expected date of return.