Arsenal FC Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread 10/11

lord lucan

Deutschlandfürimmer7 wrote: »

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_6315416,00.html

ha!i think not

Robson has been a defender of Almunia for some time now. Unfortunately i'm getting that awful feeling that AW is thinking the same thing as Robson.:(

lord lucan

_Bella_ wrote: »

I think Wenger should drop Arshavin for a few games and see if that makes a difference. At the moment Arshavins place is guranteed on the team as long as he isn't injured. Maybe having to compete for his place will give him the wake up call he needs.

I agree. He was woeful yesterday,never looked interested,constantly gave the ball away and made no effort to get it back. A spell on the sidelines might be the kick up the arse he needs.

yahoo_moe

lord lucan wrote: »

I agree. He was woeful yesterday,never looked interested,constantly gave the ball away and made no effort to get it back. A spell on the sidelines might be the kick up the arse he needs.

Somehow it strikes me that that wouldn't necessarily be the solution with someone like Arshavin.

He's had very little time to play in the same team as Cesc in his time at the club so hopefully his performances will pick up when Fabregas comes back. I'm hoping for a big season from an injury-free, no-WC-qualification-hangover Arshavin so I wouldn't bench him just yet. Blackpool at home could be just what he needs.

L'prof

Seaman wrote:

Lukasz Fabianski has a great future, but I think Arsenal need to look at bringing in a 'keeper who's going to calm the defence down and be consistent.

Neither keeper [Almunia or Fabianski] ended last season very well so the speculation to going to be there. And if the likes of Schwarzer and Given are available, then I think Arsene Wenger has to be looking at them.

Great future???

greendom

L'prof wrote: »

Great future???

Note - he didn't say as a goalkeeper

gibson

yahoo_moe wrote: »

Somehow it strikes me that that wouldn't necessarily be the solution with someone like Arshavin.

He's had very little time to play in the same team as Cesc in his time at the club so hopefully his performances will pick up when Fabregas comes back. I'm hoping for a big season from an injury-free, no-WC-qualification-hangover Arshavin so I wouldn't bench him just yet. Blackpool at home could be just what he needs.

I love Arshavin but im sorry that cant be an excuse not playing in the same team as Cesc long enough. You dont have to rely on another player to show some heart and some interest and chase the ball when you loose it. He didnt play in the World Cup so should be in top shape but doesnt look anywhere near that

yahoo_moe

Not using anything as an excuse - I'm just hoping it's a way that he might slip into gear.

Also, thinking about it they probably played together a fair bit last year (though Arshavin as a CF probably doesn't really count).

lord lucan

gibson wrote: »

I love Arshavin but im sorry that cant be an excuse not playing in the same team as Cesc long enough. You dont have to rely on another player to show some heart and some interest and chase the ball when you loose it. He didnt play in the World Cup so should be in top shape but doesnt look anywhere near that

That's what really annoyed me yesterday,giving the ball away and just shrugging his shoulders and doing nothing about it. He enjoys the fancy passing game and the glory that goes with the goals but forgets it's a team game and everyone has to muck in. In fairness he's not the only one guilty of it but yesterday was terrible,we may as well have being playing with 10 men. He's had a summer off,a full pre-season and yet RVP in his short cameo showed more tenacity and interest than Arshavin did in the whole game.

If he thinks he's a guaranteed starter he'll only get worse,a spell on the bench will sort him out i reckon.:)

OPENROAD

I don't know if I have mentioned this before but I never took to Arshavin , will be very interesting to see how he does this season but as someone mentioned maybe a time on the bench would do him good but then again might make things worse.

tony1kenobi

I think Arshavin is great craic.

FearDark

OPENROAD wrote: »

I don't know if I have mentioned this before but I never took to Arshavin , will be very interesting to see how he does this season but as someone mentioned maybe a time on the bench would do him good but then again might make things worse.

Never took to Arshavin myself, the only other Arsenal player I disliked was Adebayor Just think Arshavin is extremely lazy and looks like he couldn't give a shít at times, he seems to be ok when we're winning but when we're losing and we need him to close players down and not give the ball away he does the opposite.

lord lucan

FearDark wrote: »

Never took to Arshavin myself, the only other Arsenal player I disliked was Adebayor Just think Arshavin is extremely lazy and looks like he couldn't give a shít at times, he seems to be ok when we're winning but when we're losing and we need him to close players down and not give the ball away he does the opposite.

I'm beginning to wonder if his first season with us was a case of putting himself in the shop window. With no Russia in the WC and him talking in May of loving to play for the Catalan cnuts i'm thinking his heart isn't in it anymore and he wants out!

patrickc

wengers view..





Wenger: We lacked a bit of spark

Dear Arsenal Supporter,
I felt 1-1 was a fair result on Sunday.
It was a game where we had a lot of possession and in the first half we were in control. But in fairness Liverpool defended well, we had the ball in their half a lot but didn't find any openings.
I thought in the second half we could do that better after Joe Cole was sent off but they had a strong start and it was very difficult at 1-0 down against ten men who played very deep. They intelligently took the fluency out of the game. We just kept going and throwing more and more people forward and in the end we got a deserved equaliser.
I couldn't see us losing a game like that without being deeply hurt because we had a lot of possession. We lacked a bit of spark in the final third but overall my players have shown the right attitude.
I didn't see Cole's challenge on Laurent Koscielny at first because it was completely in the corner. He is usually a fair player, he is not someone who tries to hurt people, it is not his style. Maybe he was a bit rash in his tackle but Koscielny had a big knock on his shin and fortunately his shin pad protected him well. We were scared at first that his leg was broken.
What did I learn from my team at Anfield? That we are quite solid as a team, our passing is still decent and we need a bit more penetration in the final third to take advantage of our possession. That is normal because many players are just coming back from the World Cup and some from injuries. It is a positive that the spirit is there and the attitude was good.
As you will know I signed a new contract with Arsenal and I did that because I love the Club and I don't see myself going anywhere else.
I believe that signing a new deal is the only way to show my commitment to this Club. I don't know if it will be my last job but if I can finish these next four years well, I will already be happy. I am at an age where I do not plan in decades anymore, I plan month by month!
Going back to the team, we finished third last year and our ambition is to progress, to improve. I feel the two players who we bought have done well - I believe Marouane Chamakh and Koscielny had impressive performances on Sunday. But I also feel we are still a bit short defensively.




again no mention of goal keeping though

KCAccidental

Arshavin is a luxury player. I don't think he can be relied on to provide what we need at away games (a Dirk Kuyt type figure if you will). I would have him starting the home games, but only put on the bench for away games (especially against blackburn et al). for those away games i'd almost put gobbs on the left in front of clichy. it would be better defensively while gibbs has a decent attacking dimension to his game.

Fanny Cradock

lord lucan wrote: »

With no Russia in the WC and him talking in May of loving to play for the Catalan cnuts i'm thinking his heart isn't in it anymore and he wants out!

Barca are in no position to buy anyone at the moment and they wont be until they sort out their major cash flow problems. He be start putting in the effort.

Quazzie

patrickc wrote: »

again no mention of goal keeping though

The reason for this is pretty simple. Defensively as mentioned above he states we were lacking. If he states "defensively" it covers a lot of things but can also be specific. If he mentions Goalkeeping he is singling out Almunia and no manager that has a clue what they're at, will single out a player after a match.

cson

patrickc wrote: »

I didn't see Cole's challenge on Laurent Koscielny at first because it was completely in the corner. He is usually a fair player, he is not someone who tries to hurt people, it is not his style. Maybe he was a bit rash in his tackle but Koscielny had a big knock on his shin and fortunately his shin pad protected him well. We were scared at first that his leg was broken

Anyone else lol at that?

Ush1

cson wrote: »

Anyone else lol at that?

Yeah but this time it wasn't his player making the tackle!:pac:

I actually think he said the right things, meanwhile, Gerrard intimating that the defender wasn't injured at all. I think that's rubbish.

_Bella_

The one thing about Arshavin though is he can win a game for us through one moment of magic. I agree his lack of defensive work is frustrating but he scored the third most goals for our team last year and he doesn't take penalties. It is clear though he no longer wants to be at the club but he can change games in a second whether through picking the perfect pass to put someone through or scoring with one of his great strikes.

I love his q&a page too!

gosplan

_Bella_ wrote: »

The one thing about Arshavin though is he can win a game for us through one moment of magic. I agree his lack of defensive work is frustrating but he scored the third most goals for our team last year and he doesn't take penalties. It is clear though he no longer wants to be at the club but he can change games in a second whether through picking the perfect pass to put someone through or scoring with one of his great strikes.

I love his q&a page too!

Meh, I began to have doubts the minute I saw he had his own clothing label.

He can turn games in a second but we just don't see it anymore. In fact, since his first season, he's done very little. Couple of excellent goals but that's about it. I appreciate he was played out of position a lot in the latter part of the season but he didn't really seem bothered getting in on the act early on when Cesc and RVP were rampant.

If Rosicky plays with the same motivation he did the other day, then it's a no-brainer for me.

I don't really expect Arshavin to track back, he's not that type of player but at the moment he's just sitting out on the wing looking disinterested and waiting for things to happen. Frankly, we can't afford that.

Paleface

Wenger on Arshavin's performance

I felt he worked hard but he was a bit tired from the [international] game in midweek. He travelled to Russia and came back on Thursday. He tried to push himself today. Glen Johnson played well against him and he is the kind of player who can always create something special. But it was a difficult game for him.

I think most people are forgetting that he travelled to Russia midweek but at the same time he did look lazy when he didn't have the ball.

He's still a player that opposition teams are worried about and I wouldn't be so quick to drop him just yet. He could easily score a few goals next weekend.

_Bella_

John Cross is reporting that the Schwarzer deal will be finalised today, with Schwarzer playing in goals on Saturday.

I'm in two minds about this. I wish we had gone for Afinkeev but Schwarzer does command his defense well and is good at claiming corners but he is not a great shot stopper.

Ush1

That is a fair point on Arshavin having travelled alot from Russia, but I think he was sorta like that for periods at the end of last season.

I will say though that only really him and Fab have that X factor that threatens teams. Nasri sometimes flirts with it but isn't consistent enough.

Paleface

Ush1 wrote: »

I will say though that only really him and Fab have that X factor that threatens teams. Nasri sometimes flirts with it but isn't consistent enough.

RVP has it aswell in fairness to him. He's always a threat.

shano_88

_Bella_ wrote: »

John Cross is reporting that the Schwarzer deal will be finalised today, with Schwarzer playing in goals on Saturday.

I'm in two minds about this. I wish we had gone for Afinkeev but Schwarzer does command his defense well and is good at claiming corners but he is not a great shot stopper.

I will be happy if we sign him. He is an improvement and his main strength is dealing with crosses and organising his defense. Now a central defender please Arsene!

Ush1

Paleface wrote: »

RVP has it aswell in fairness to him. He's always a threat.

Sorry yeah, him also when he's fit.

keano_afc

Still would prefer Given but Wenger doesnt like him for some reason. But meh, Schwarzer will do. Much better than what we have.

Wont mean a lot unless we strenghten the centre half position though.

Paleface

What if we do sign Schwarzer and the goals are still being leaked at the back?

Surely that will point the finger at the defensive tactics and not the goalkeeping position.

gibson

Paleface wrote: »

What if we do sign Schwarzer and the goals are still being leaked at the back?

Surely that will point the finger at the defensive tactics and not the goalkeeping position.

I dont think our defensive problems are suddenly going to be solved by signing Schwarzer but hopefully it'll go a long way to solving issues of stupid goals being conceeded.

gosplan

Paleface wrote: »

What if we do sign Schwarzer and the goals are still being leaked at the back?

Surely that will point the finger at the defensive tactics and not the goalkeeping position.

We're not going to become rock solid. Our defenders are always going to look to get forward and even the invincibles leaked quite a few.

I'll settle for not sh1tting myself every time we concede a corner though.

Galvasean

If we cut out the sloppy goals from crosses etc. our defensive record wouldnt become stellar, but it would certainly improve us no doubt. We have dropped many points/been eliminated from Cups in recent years because of the (too frequent) goalie kock-ups. Look at the reactionto Reina's howler against us - it was a freak occurance from a solid keeper. Happens once in a blue moon. With Almunia and Fabianski it isn't a surprise when stuff like that happens. There is a very good chance that something like that will happen to us in any (if only we had Shay) given game.
Prime example was last season's 2-1 loss against Porto. Porto were a very average side, but somehow came out beating us thanks to two crazy goalkeeping errors. Luckily it was a two legged affair and we hockeyed them in the next leg. Being so prone to goalkeeping howlers makes us vunerable even in matches we should be comfortable in.

gosplan

Galvasean wrote: »

If we cut out the sloppy goals from crosses etc. our defensive record wouldnt become stellar, but it would certainly improve us no doubt. We have dropped many points/been eliminated from Cups in recent years because of the (too frequent) goalie kock-ups. Look at the reactionto Reina's howler against us - it was a freak occurance from a solid keeper. Happens once in a blue moon. With Almunia and Fabianski it isn't a surprise when stuff like that happens. There is a very good chance that something like that will happen to us in any (if only we had Shay) given game.
Prime example was last season's 2-1 loss against Porto. Porto were a very average side, but somehow came out beating us thanks to two crazy goalkeeping errors. Luckily it was a two legged affair and we hockeyed them in the next leg. Being so prone to goalkeeping howlers makes us vunerable even in matches we should be comfortable in.

The Utd loss was the big one for me. In fairness Diaby was as culpable as big Al but to go from controlling a game like that to self destructing really seemed to drain the confidence from the team.

We performed poorly in all the big games after that.

Arsenal1986

FA cup semi final for me in 08-09, Fabianski rushing about a mile out to the ball and Drogba lifting it over him although in fairness Silvestre should have taken Drogba out and taken the red card after that.

greendom

Hopefully we won't concede from a Delap throw-in this year.

gibson

Given been told he can leave according to BBC

gosplan

gibson wrote: »

Given been told he can leave according to BBC

Can't find that.

Doubt he'll come to us anyway.

yahoo_moe

KCAccidental wrote: »

for those away games i'd almost put gobbs on the left in front of clichy.

This can look awkward enough in a 4-4-2 with a LB not really having a breeze what they're at further up the pitch - but I definitely think it'd be a mistake in a 4-3-3 / 4-5-1. Plus I'd like him to keep learning LB - he's being converted from a winger after all so don't want to pull him both ways at the same time.

gosplan wrote: »

The Utd loss was the big one for me. In fairness Diaby was as culpable as big Al

Diaby's was the stand-out howler that day. Almunia doesn't even come into it for me - not great goalkeeping on the pen but it wasn't great "not falling over" by Rooney either. As with the goal the other day, I think people need to be careful about piling everything onto the poor guy.

gosplan

yahoo_moe wrote: »

Diaby's was the stand-out howler that day. Almunia doesn't even come into it for me - not great goalkeeping on the pen but it wasn't great "not falling over" by Rooney either. As with the goal the other day, I think people need to be careful about piling everything onto the poor guy.

Yeah, I just felt it was a challenge he really didn't need to make though. Unless it's really necessary, throwing yourself at the feet of forwards in the box is a mistake.

I'm not his biggest critic, he's still a competent shot-stopper and Fab is much worse. As I see it, he just gets decisions wrong a bit too often.

greendom

gosplan wrote: »

Can't find that.

Doubt he'll come to us anyway.

May help us to get Schwarzer though

MaxPower89

I cant wait to see the back of Big Al at this stage. His performance at the weekend was woeful, and not up to standard. Some people are saying it was a good shot at the near post and that we shouldn't really blame him for it, but I totally disaggree.

His dive to get the ball was lame, there is just no spring in his step, he tends to dive backwards and not upwards. Not to mind coming for crosses, he has no command of the box. That attempted punch clear at the weekend was pathetic for a premiership goalkeeper.

Compare him with Van dar Sar last night, didn’t have much to do, but came for the crosses when needed, made the routine saves with little fuss. At least if we had Schwarzer we would have someone reliable.

Antoher thing that struck me last night watching the United game was the performance of Fletcher, and I was comparing him against Diaby. Diaby gave it away constantly at the weekend. Taking too much out of it, slowing it up. However, Fletcher passes it simple everytime, doesn’t lose it in the tackle stupidly, hold onto it too long and lost it...etc

I dont consider Fletcher a top midfielder, neither Diaby. But Fletcher is streets ahead of Diaby, because he is doing the simple things well.

What are people opinion on him??

x PyRo

Regardless of who is in goal our defense is still crap. The same thing will continue to happen until we have aerially dominant center backs. Schwarzer/Given/Whoever will catch a few crosses and save a few shots but at the end of the day any of our keepers or new keepers will still be constantly under pressure and things won't change. Mark my words, assuming we get a keeper.

_Bella_

People should stop blaming Almunia for the goal, N'gog should never have been in that position anyway. It was due to Wilshere trying to be too clever around the box. Hopefully he will learn from his mistake and it won't happen again.

Quazzie

Wasn't Giggs' goal in the 99 FA Cup semi final similarly placed to Ngog's and there wasn't too many words said about Seaman at the time. I think if we look for mistakes with Almunia we'll always find them. He isn't a magnificent keeper but to be honest whilst Schwarzer is an improvement he's not the answer to our problems and another CB (preferrably capable in the air) should be our priority.

Peyton Manning

Quazzie wrote: »

Wasn't Giggs' goal in the 99 FA Cup semi final similarly placed to Ngog's and there wasn't too many words said about Seaman at the time. I think if we look for mistakes with Almunia we'll always find them. He isn't a magnificent keeper but to be honest whilst Schwarzer is an improvement he's not the answer to our problems and another CB (preferrably capable in the air) should be our priority.

Spot on. You get the feeling that had it been Torres rather than N'gog who scored, a lot less criticism would have been thrown at Almunia (for that incident). I thought it was a fantastic goal tbh.

Paleface

I think its just the way the goalkeeping errors played out at the club last season everyone is just waiting for another one to pounce on it and cry foul rather than give credit where credit is due.

Ngog's shot was a rocket. I never thought of him as much of a striker but if he scores more goals like that he'll have no problems!

MaxPower89

_Bella_ wrote: »

People should stop blaming Almunia for the goal, N'gog should never have been in that position anyway. It was due to Wilshere trying to be too clever around the box. Hopefully he will learn from his mistake and it won't happen again.

I think we realise that Wilshere was sloppy giving the ball away, but given that I think the attempted save was very poor.

What about his missed punch clearance at the corner, and poor distribution, are we to not blame him for that either? They could of easily led to goals, just lucky they didnt this time.

gibson

gosplan wrote: »

Can't find that.

Doubt he'll come to us anyway.

Says it as part of the Milner story

Mancini added that he would like keeper Shay Given to stay but will not stand in the way of a transfer.

shano_88

Think its a good time to bring up that Jermain Defoe interview from a view weeks ago!

ottenham striker Jermain Defoe has boldly predicted that Harry Redknapp’s team will do better than Arsenal in this season’s Champions League.

Tottenham will find out their first ever Champions League opponents when the draw is made today for the play-offs for the group stage. In contrast, Arsenal share the record with Real Madrid for ten consecutive appearances at the knock-out stage of the competition. Arsene Wenger also led the Gunners to the final of the competition in 2006.

Nonetheless, a confident Defoe told the Daily Mirror, “No disrespect to Arsenal, because they have a good record in the Champions League and for them it’s become part of the furniture, part of their regular season, it’s the norm.

“But I can’t wait to experience the buzz around White Hart Lane on European nights, the place will be absolutely rocking.

“I do believe, if we can make that first step, that we will be contenders. We’ve got the squad, younger players like Gareth Bale have come on a bundle since we were last in Europe, and the gaffer would love to show what he can do as a manager in Europe.

“Harry was the top English manager in the Premier League last season, and there’s no reason why he can’t be successful in the Champions League.

“He’s a special manager. Down the years there are loads of people who have tried, and failed, to achieve what he did in his first full season at Tottenham, and I know he’ll be up for it in Europe.”

amacachi

Quazzie wrote: »

Wasn't Giggs' goal in the 99 FA Cup semi final similarly placed to Ngog's and there wasn't too many words said about Seaman at the time. I think if we look for mistakes with Almunia we'll always find them. He isn't a magnificent keeper but to be honest whilst Schwarzer is an improvement he's not the answer to our problems and another CB (preferrably capable in the air) should be our priority.

I was only 10 at the time but I remember complaining about Seaman at the time. Wasn't it around that time he started being really ****?

kronsington

is the spahic deal dead in the water?

i wouldnt be surprised if he made no more signings