OleOle - Football News and Opinion

Latest Arsenal news *

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:50:44 -0600

All the latest Arsenal news that's unfit to print but floating about there anyway*

In an interview in the Daily Mail, Arsene Wenger got himself embroiled in the France/Ireland row by saying:

"France should, of course, replay the game, as Arsenal did against Sheffield United in 1999. It is the honourable thing to do and I feel sure FIFA will uphold the honour of France and Ireland. Then France can go out there and murder the dirty celtic b*st*rds".

Roy Keane disagreed saying

"Those useless Irish c*nts should just get over it." (questions have already been tabled in the Dáil Éireann with calls for his citizenship to be revoked).

Meanwhile, sources close to Henry have quoted him as saying

"Of course the fairest solution would be to replay the game but it is not in my control. And that fellow Roy Keane? He is wanker. Nobody like 'im."

I can hardly comment on the Roy Keane jibe of course, but Keane himself said:

"where the hell is my goalkeeper? These are skills and lessons you learn as a schoolboy."

and

"honestly, that Robbie Keane may have the same name as me, but what a whinging little schoolgirl. He cheats more than most players anyway!"

Robbie Keane himself was unavailable for comment.

Arsenal meanwhile have entered a team in the Disabled Premier League! The team, consisting entirely of crocked first team players will all be in wheelchairs, or with casts on, making it particularly difficult to play the fluent beautiful game Arsenal are famous for. The team is: Fabianski, Clichy, Djourou, Gibbs, Diaby, Ramsey, Walcott, Van Persie, Bendtner, and Nasri and Rosicky (both of whom are still recovering from serious injuries).

As far as the first team goes, well we could have a very different looking line up Saturday to play Sunderland, with Viera very much the man in demand at the moment. Rumours are that he will be allowed to play "on loan" prior to signing a new short term contract in January.

In view of the adverse publicity surrounding Henry, Barca president, Joan Laporta is quoted as saying

"you can 'ave heem back now, 'e is dirty.... soiled. And so, we are done with heem",

paving the way for a dramatic return to the premier league!

Strong rumour has it that Tony Adams has offered to fill-in in defence following the refusal of any other club to take him on as manager, assistant manager, boot boy, or programme seller. Though Wenger is known to be "not keen".

Charlie George, keeping fit between speaking engagements by running around Emirates Stadium (usually with a tour group in tow) himself made an impassioned please to Pat Rice, saying

"surely my vast experience counts for something, can I get a game?".

Rice himself whilst keen, cannot persuade Wenger though who feels his hair is still too long.

So we look forward to match-day tomorrow with bated breath, and hope the red & whites have a comfortable win - even if they are the dark blues on the day.

Take it easy y'all, and remember...... don't believe everything you read!

* almost all of it completely fictional (i.e. made up)

Finally some proper football but it's not all in England!

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:47:23 -0600

As I sit watching FC Basel in Swiss cup beating their fierce rivals, FC Zurich, 4-1 at home it's good to see club football back on. Tomorrow I'm off to my Bundesliga game at SC Freiburg who take on Werder Bremen. Bremen are in 2nd place and Freiburg are just above the relegation scrap but we can hope. Anyway it's my favourite league with cheap tickets, standing on the terrace and drinking a beer! It also means that by the end of the weekend wenwill have had enough referee controversy to confine the Ireland game to history! Bis Bald

The Boy’s Got Skills’ Premier League Target Alan Dzagoev

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:06:55 -0600

Russian football has been on the rise in recent years. The likes of Andrei Arshavin and Diniyar Bilyaletdinov have made their way across Europe to the Premiership. With the investment in Russian clubs at an all time high, they have finally begun to find gems in their vast country which may make them a force to be reckoned within Europe for years to come. One of these gems is a man called Alan Dzagoev. A 19 year old attacking midfielder/second striker, Dzagoev may well go on to be a world star to eclipse the likes of his countryman Arshavin.

He first came to the attention of many during Manchester United’s 3-3 draw with CSKA Moscow a few weeks ago. He scored one and played a part in the other two CSKA goals, exposing Man United’s fragile defensive pairing of Jonny Evans and Wes Brown. Born in North Ossetia, Dzagoev’s star has risen rapidly after making his debut for CSKA less than two years ago. Excelling in his first season in the Russian Premier league, he won the best young player of the season award and made his debut for Russia in a crucial World Cup qualifier against Germany in October 2008. In the process of doing so he became the youngest ever out field player to play for the national side at the age of 18 years and 116 days. Read more about him at the link at the side of the page to Football Fancast.com and go to Arsenal news.

Preview: Athletic Bilbao - Barça

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:47:02 -0600

Back to La Liga tomorrow with a visit to San Mames to face Athletic Bilbao (kick off 10pm). Pep Guardiola will have to make do without the injured Zlatan Ibrahimovic and flu victims Eric Abidal and Toure Yaya, so Johnathan dos Santos has been called up to make up the numbers. We'll just have to keep our fingers crossed that nobody else goes down with the flu as we already have other players who are not at 100% after various knocks and niggles picked up in the last couple of weeks.

Athletic will probably be without Fernando Llorente who is unlikely to recover in time from a hip injury, though coach Joaquin Caparrós will not name his 18-man squad until tomorrow lunchtime. Athletic are currently 8th in the table on 16 points and of five home games they have won three (Espanyol, Villarreal and Atletico) and lost two (Sevilla and Sporting). The teams havev played 78 league games in Bilbao with Athletic winning 41, Barça 21 with 16 draws, however in recent seasons we have a better record and have only lost twice in the last ten seasons. We have already played Athletic four times in 2009 including the final of the Copa del Rey and we have won all four games. Our last visit to San Mames was in August for the first leg of the Spanish Supercopa and we won 1-2 with goals from Xavi and Pedro. If we are worried about our missing players tomorrow we should remember that for that game we were without Messi, Ibra and Iniesta (Click here for a report on that game).

Despite our problems it is time for Barça to get back to winning ways away from home, apart from the win at Cultural Leonesa in the cup we haven't won away since beating Malaga at the end of September. Also, a failure to win tomorrow will give Madrid a chance to go top before next weekend's clasico which will be an unnecessary boost for them. Henry may have played 120 minutes for France on Wednesday and be feeling a bit guilty for his handball, Keita, Puyol and Chygrynskiy may be coming back after injuries, and we may be worried about the big games against Inter and Madrid, but I'm confident we can get it right tomorrow.

Barça's 18-man squad: Valdés, Pinto, Alves, Puyol, Piqué, Marquez, Chygrynskiy, Maxwell, Busquets, Xavi, Keita, Iniesta, Johnathan dos Santos, Messi, Pedro, Bojan, Henry, Jeffren.

Possible starting XI: Valdés; Alves, Piqué, Chygrynskiy, Maxwell; Xavi, Busquets, Keita; Messi, Bojan, Iniesta.

My prediction: Athletic 0 Barça 2

Dont shoot....yet

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:46:20 -0600

Ok..so lets take a deep breath and relax,sometimes critcism can be that thing which makes us look at ourselves and rationalise what makes this club great.I ask the simple question,when does an Arsenal player who conducts himself with dignity and respect and lives by the honoured code that the club provides,become a player who signifies none of the above mentioned qualities?

Obviously you may think of any player who no longer wears the jersey and maybe plays for a rival club,but this is untrue.Ian Wright is still an Arsenal legend,despite playing for West Ham after his career at Arsenal.Ian Wright despite plying his trade for another London club still upheld the Highbury morals of truth and decency and thus became more than just a former great.We look to the examples of David Bentley,Emannuel Adebayor,Jens Lehmann and even up until recently William Gallas as players who have at various stages of their careers put themselves over the Highbury code of decency and made moral errors against the clubs fine name.By speaking ill of the club after moving on shows a lack of distinction made fine by Herbert Chapman,Arsene Wenger and Charlie George.

It does of course bring me to Thierry Henry.Such an anus horribilis will he look upon this footballing year of his and no glossing over by any far left Arsenal Blogger can hide the sham he has brought upon himself.With one fell swoop of the hand he has distanced himself from that Highbury code that i for one could ever think was possible.Thierry Henry played in the Arsenal side that gave Sheffield United a replay in the F.A Cup over a contentious goal.A replay sanctioned by the Arsenal manager,a proud noble bearer of the Arsenal code of decency and fair play.And do i throw this particular stone through the glass house that houses Eduardo,he who dived fraudently to decieve the Celtic team?No,he was wrong to do so,but for a player so horribly injured through a close collision tackle,it may be the only circumstance whereby i feel he did the right thing.I would cry foul against Eduardo if he was atop the goal scoring charts but unfortunately that horrible challenge and his subsequent difficult time in injury rehab has made him into a much different player than the one who first graced the Arsenal banks.Thierry Henry will always be an Arsenal legend but having moved on to Barcelona,he has tarnished his career forever.His Barcelona legacy has now been damaged but he will always still get a warm Arsenal embrace.He wore the moral code so very well when he graced the Red and white but this new semblance of Catalan and French indignity has him a changed man.

We remember the warrior.Now the Villain.

Would Rafa dare try out the kids now the title’s all but gone?

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:42:04 -0600

You would only be a real die-hard Liverpool fan to believe that there is a realistic chance of the Merseysiders still winning the title this season. I myself still hold to a lingering hope that we have a shot at the title but both my brain and the league table tell me otherwise. Although we seem to be drawing less than last season, those ties have turned into defeats rather than victories this campaign and we have lost three more games already than we did the entire of last year. In anybodies book, an 11 point gap is a tall order to try and chase down. You could say I am being a bit pessimistic, but I prefer to think of it more as realism.

So to think towards the future, what should Rafa do? Benitez has mentioned recently about his delight over the progression of the youth system and the academy, so should he look towards the youngsters? Three out of the last four years, Liverpool youth teams have got to the final of the FA Youth Cup but where have some those youngsters gone? The level between the Youth Cup and first team Premier League action is pretty big, and Rafa is well aware that any leap from such surroundings into the full glare of a Saturday afternoon at Anfield is too much to handle for many of them.

Why you ask do Arsenal bleed so many of their youngsters into the first team during Carling Cup matches, while Liverpool risk so few in such matches? To put it bluntly, for the Liverpool academy at Kirkby and the reserves at Melwood, the standards have not been as high as those at Arsenal, not many would argue that some of Wenger’s young players have had a superior technical ability to those at Melwood, and it is evident by the progression of players such as Gael Clichy, Cesc Fabregas, Denilson, Kieran Gibbs and Jack Wilshere in recent seasons. Of course many of these youngsters are the product of the extremely good scouting system at Arsenal, but Fabregas, Denilson and Clichy were all taken from other clubs at the young age and developed their skills under the guise of Wenger and Liam Brady. They are still products of an Arsenal youth system. Read the rest at Football Fancast.com at the link to the side of the page and go to Liverpool news.

Has Bellamy finally found the club to turn back some of the years?

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:30:41 -0600

When I look at Craig Bellamy, a feeling of frustration comes over me, not because of his off field antics, not because of his history of falling out with managers, but the amount of injuries which have hampered a career that could have been so much more for a Welsh striker whose potential could have reached loftier heights. Potential seen by many managers including the likes of Bobby Robson who was once quoted as saying that Bellamy was more technically gifted than Michael Owen. Many other managers have also admired the player and the striker’s reputation did not detract Rafa Benitez when he signed him for Liverpool in 2006. What has really taken its toll on the striker is the number of injuries he has sustained throughout his career. Knee injuries particularly have been the bugbear of the Welshman’s time in football, injuries which Bellamy believes will cost him an extra few years in the game:

"I know there are not four or five years ahead of me, not with the injuries I've had. Maybe I've got one or two years at the most. It will be all over before I know it, so I'm just enjoying it."

At the age of 30 now, Bellamy’s time at the top level is not far away to coming to an end, but he is making the most of the time he has got left on the field. He has already scored five goals this season and playing mostly on the left side (vacated by the injured Robinho) he has made the position his own, scoring two fantastic goals in a Manchester derby in the process.

Many were surprised when Bellamy was bought by Mark Hughes for what some would say was an inflated price of an estimated 14million to join the revolution at Eastlands, but under the guise of a manager he knows and trusts, Bellamy has excelled this season and has belied his injuries, with his pace, fitness and desire to succeed in the light blue of City. Read the rest at the link at the side of the page to Football fancast.com and go to Man City news.

In The Name Of The Gaul

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:10:02 -0600

I pictured FIFA suits whooping and cheering- like those evil Scotrail knobjockies who see a little a bit of rain as good reason for it taking you 3 hours to get home from Glasgow by terminating your train at a station that costs you £16 in a taxi to get home from after they say they were hopeful a bus would turn up to take you to your destination- when all WC Qualifiers were done and dusted the other night.

Job done. 17 of the top 20 teams in the world qualified and all the TV Eyes of the big nations. Would they rather have had an audience of 4.2m or between 60m and 70m? No brainer.

Hell, they even got a fall guy.

French Manager Terry Henry gave us La Mein De Dieu killing off any future hope that his brand sells when his career ends and a moment he gained infamy on Maradona scale.

On a laptop screen I saw the Hand Of Gaul, Swede Martin Hansson, who looked like a gay cowboy, decided that him and his assistants didn't. I'm sure it was listed in the footnotes of FIFA's guidence that he doesn't see any incident that will disadvantage revenue streams.

It's with warped logic that I will look at Eduardo Da Silva and Henry. I see both as different but both cases when fitted in the bigger picture show the corruption and end game of the football authorities.

While Eduardo was deceitful I see nothing wrong in a player making the most of a situation if a big galoot of a defender or goalie gives them the opportunity. Henry showed a slight of hand not seen since Michael Jordan or a high class escort with a defrocked MP.

Pardon my French by it was fucking cheating of the highest order.

The end game.

The Big Cup this year changed rules to allow smaller teams direct entry on one hand while on the other ensuring the big teams got an easier passage via qualification as they were seeded. Platini with this keeps all happy when he is pimping for votes at re-election time.

While Arsenal didn't need any help to beat us it was clearly obvious to a paranoid ridden mental case like myself that in the two games the men in the middle ensured (along with our players) the passage to the cash cow would be smooth.

The need to keep the big clubs happy was cast in stone with Eduardo-gate. The initial 2 match ban was over turned after a mysterious 30 odd page document landed on Platini's desk, from a fellow Frenchman I may add, which said that Eduardo hadn't dived and there had been contact.

I believe that the document really pointed out that all big clubs have a barrel full of cheating cunts and they would dilute the competition if they banned everyone. It played on UEFA's self interest and probably talked % drop in revenue streams and advertising if Drogba had to be banned for life.

After this document, has anyone else noticed that Arsenal seem to be getting the benefit of every contentious decision in their Big Cup games? Hand balls and offsides are being ignored and being a punter a bet that they will reach the Big Cup Final with UEFA's help is worth a few bob.

Anyway, FIFA, yes...they decided to seed the play offs when France (sponsored by Addidas who are a sponsor of the WC) and Portugal (the one man brand that is CR7) made a tit of qualifying despite being given a decent hand to start with.

Is it so wrong for the govern bodies to want the best at their parties? No, Ireland won't be missed and commentators can lock away their plucky, hard working, organised, full of fighting spirit little Ireland condensing adjectives for the next glorious failure.

South Africa has had a lucky escape in that white socked flip flopped Irish won't be trying to source Guinness.

We weren't missed in the Big Cup and won't be missed from the Europa League either.

Let's just get it out in the open. FIFA and UEFA come out and say right we want these countries/teams in and the rest of you bums can fight it out for a few places at the top table.

It would save a hell of a lot of hassle.

MLS to Crown Champion Sunday

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:58:30 -0600

A long and exhausting season comes down to one game. On one side, you have the upstart Real Salt Lake, the club that "shouldn't be here." On the other, the star-studded Galaxy, complete with the world's most recognized footballer in David Beckham.

While MLS may have missed out on a marketing maven's dream match-up of Beckham vs. Blanco, there's still a league championship at stake. And believe it or not, LA needs much more from just Beckham to have a chance to win.

The defense is the critical match-up for LA. Real boasts a number of speedy and creative attacking talents, and have shown that they will not come in and bunker down, trying to score on the counter. How the Galaxy backline duo of Omar Gonzalez and Gregg Berhalter stand up against Robbie Findley, Yura Movsisyan and/or Fabian Espindola will likely determine the championship meeting.

Speed is the one weakness that the Galaxy duo struggle with -- Gonzalez is far from the slowest defender in MLS, but most central defenders in the league cannot handle the speed of Findley. Stifle the Salt Lake attack, and the Galaxy are halfway to the Cup. Failure to do so, and they'll be staring at a massive deficit -- that is, if Movsisyan and Findley bury those chances, something they are not always apt at doing.

With Landon Donovan and Beckham keying the attack, it'll be a tough task for the Salt Lake defense to keep them at bay. However, as Beckham fights through a niggling ankle injury, perhaps he won't be at his best playing on turf. A shadowing tactic could be deployed using Kyle Beckerman to man-mark Beckham, though in the past that hasn't proven the most successful option.

Jamison Olave must keep his cool in this one -- something he's more or less managed to do so after a few incidents in the regular season results in the erratic defender earning a red card. At his best, Olave is a calming presence that keeps the opposition at bay, and at his worst makes poor decisions that prove costly for his side.

So what will this game come down to? MLS, for all its parity, the favorite is surely LA. They have a balanced attack, are strong in defense, and have the league's best player. RSL isn't a massive underdog by any means, but they've backed their way into the playoffs, and much like last year's Red Bulls, seemed destined to be taken down in the final round by a superior side. Donovan will at least score once in what will be a narrow win for Los Angeles.

Prediction: Los Angeles, 2-1

VfB v. Hertha Berlin | Match Preview

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 10:41:45 -0600

After a successful campaign last time around, which finished in 19 wins, a total of 63 points and fourth place in the table, Hertha BSC Berlin, who visit the Mercedes-Benz Arena on Saturday, November 21^st, are currently stuck at the bottom of the Bundesliga table, having taken a mere four points from their first twelve league games thus far. Hertha's 1-0 win over Hannover 96 on the first match day of the season was followed by an unprecedented run of eight consecutive defeats. It took until the 10^th day of the season before the ‘Alte Dame' (Old Lady) finally managed to pick up a point again, with a 0-0 draw against title holders VfL Wolfsburg. For the game against the ‘Wolves' new trainer Friedhelm Funkel, who took over from Lucien Favre at the end of September, was on the sideline.

The most glaring problem for the two time German champions (1930, 1931) at the moment is their lack of goals scored (7) compared to the number conceded at their own end (26). There has been no compensating for the losses of Marco Pantelic and Andrej Voronin up front, whilst defender Josip Simunic's move to Hoffenheim has also proven a painful one. At management level, former Hertha striker Michael Preetz replaced the extremely experienced Dieter Hoeneß. Preetz quickly signed Arthur Wichniarek to bolster the attack, but the former Armenia Bielefeld man has as yet failed to convince - not having managed a single goal in his first eight games for the club. As the transfer window came to a close, striker Adrian Ramos was brought in from America de Cali, but he too has failed to hit the net in seven games for his new club. Berlin's currently most effective goal-scoring weapon is midfielder Gojko Kacar, with two goals to his credit.

The insecurity and lack of confidence within the side was clear to see last Saturday, as Hertha managed a narrow 3-2 win over fourth division Türkiyemspor Berlin. The task ahead for Friedhelm Funke, who is well known for rescuing seemingly hopeless cases, is the toughest he has had to face in his career according to the trainer himself.

At Thursday's training session, Ricardo Osorio was also back amongst his colleagues following his muscle sinew tear as he hopes to be fit in time for the clash this weekend.

Due to a calf problem, Stefano Celozzi joined Serdar Tasci and physiotherapist Gerhard Wörn for a few light laps of the training facilities. Sami Khedira and Martin Lanig were the only absentees on the day. Both went through separation sessions as they work towards their returns.

Danke to vfb.de

Real Madrid Vs Racing Santander | La Liga Preview, Podcast & Live Streams

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:56:47 -0600

Nothing but a win.

I usually don't like international breaks but this one has been thrilling! France Vs Ireland, Algeria Vs Egypt and Portugal's quest to qualify for the World Cup without Cristiano Ronaldo have been all thrilling, emotional and amazing. My team is Italy and they only played a few friendlies so my attention was instead on how our Madridistas were performing.

I'm not going to talk about these games, because La Liga is back but If you want my take on the France game, listen to what I had to say on this week's podcast which can be found below.

In this round of La Liga, Real Madrid take on Racing Santander at home and Barcelona face Atletico Bilbao at the San Mames. These are the last two games before EL Clasico so it would be interesting to see If both teams will be thinking about that encounter and lose focus (they still have a Champions League clash each) or will completely concentrate on their current games.

Santander first...

The Verdiblancos are one of the teams that I consider dangerous and surprising but their form this season has been terrible. They sit 17th on the table and have only won ONE game. They do, however, have a decent away record but it is worth to note that they are not generally motivated and their performance during the game is quite inconsistent. They tend to score in the last 15 minutes of the game so we have to keep that in mind.

Club President Francisco Pernia sacked their coach Mandia and hired Real Madrid's former director Miguel Angel Portugal a couple of days ago. This could either make or break the team, but I think they'll not be largely affected by such a major change.

Santander have a few good players including Tchite who is in form after scoring and helping his team beat Salamanca in Copa Del Rey. They also have dangerous wingers in Oscar Serrano, Munitis and Luis Garcia who all have pace and are talented with the ball.

Their weakest point could be their defense. They have conceded 19 goals so far making them the third most scored upon team in La Liga. The weird thing though is they have some good names at the back. One to mention in particular is Henrique (on-loan from Barca), also Nasif Morris (who played for Huelva), Moraton, and Torrejon (whose name sounds like a computer virus!).

Their midfield consists of Arana, Lacen, Colsa and Serrano. There is also the inconsistent Luis Garcia who played for Liverpool and Atletico Madrid and Moral who happens to be a former Castilla player.

Don't ask me about who will start because they have a new coach and I haven't been following them but I'm confident that their two most dangerous men Munitis and Tchite will feature upfront. They can form a good partnership so Pepe and the boys will have to mark them very well.

Now Los Blancos come!

Real are coming off a harsh exist from Copa Del Rey and hectic matches played by their international players so many would expect an average performance from Pellegrini's men. Add to that the injuries to Ronaldo, Van Nistelrooy, Lass and Guti (yes he received a knock from Higuain plus he is still being punished) and there is also Ramos who is serving his suspension.

The two injures that could complicate things for us are Lass' and Ramos' as they are key players in their respective positions and not having them will impose a great tactical change in our lineup.

With that in mind, Pellegrini will have to move Arbeloa back to the right-back position which means either Marcelo or Drenthe will feature on the left. In the center we might see Pepe and Garay or Albiol depending on the later's fitness following his knee injury with Spain. Another possibility is Metzelder whom I could see starting even though many people think it is unlikely.

In midfield, we should see Alonso and Diarra the first performing his role as our creative mind and the second replacing Lass. I have my doubts over Diarra as to how effectivey he can handle Santander's fast midfielders but when it comes to solidity and not pace, Diarra will surely win. My only hope is that Gago doesn't start because in all honesty I don't have faith in him anymore.

If Pellegrini wants Marcelo on the wing he will obviously use Drenthe in the back, but I think he might move Marcelo to the left-back position and start with Van der vaart or Granero instead. I wouldn't mind if either started because they both deserve more chances especially Rafael who tried as hard as he can against Alcorcon.

With three midfielders we should also see another yet attacking-minded midfielder in Kaka. He has been playing better than before and I'm sure he will continue to do so, and against a pathetico Santander side he shouldn't have any problems compared to the strong defensive sides he used to face in Serie A.

Upfront, we should see Benzema who was benched against Ireland and Higuain who only played one game for Argentina so they are both fresh...... and YES, Pellegrini could also use Raul and it isn't something that I will rule out, but I would love to see those two continue upfront.

If Raul starts that's fine, the most important thing that the team plays well collectively and we win convincingly.

On the podcast I predicted a 3-1 win for Real with Ruud scoring twice but since he is out (I had recorded the podcast before the squad list was published) I'm going to say Benzema will :)

I'm very excited about Ronaldo's return and I hope we'll see him against Zurich. The Clasico will be played on the 29th at 19:00 CET so he still has nine days and a few hours to get ready!

Don't forget to listen to the podcast below. I host Kevin and Corey and we talk about Henry, Ibrahimovic, Ronaldo and Santander. I apologize for my crappy hosting skills (hey I'm improving) and the sound quality.

As always, you can subscribe to the podcast using this feedburner link, or you can either download this episode or listen to it below.

Sunderland v Arsenal: team news

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:18:38 -0600

We'll soon find out if we can cope without Robin van Persie, won't we? I suspect that we can cope, but a trip to the Stadium of Light was never going to be easy and although I don't think the Dutchman's absence will be crucial I do think our task is harder without him.

I was looking forward to see Kieran Gibbs showing his England credentials at left back, but thanks to his foot injury we won't see that...and in the meantime, maybe Mikael Silvestre will establish himself at our club. Yes, I saw a flying Rooney this morning (well, it was my neighbour's tubby cat 'Rooney' falling off a tree, but it's still a good sign!), so I'm predicting the unexpected - i.e. Silvestre winning our fans over...slowly but surely, starting at Sunderland.

Denilson's back. Hurray! Hip, hip...Okay, it's not that exciting is it? But believe it or not, there are some Gooners, who think the Brazilian's the best thing since sliced bread. I prefer croissants myself, so that analogy doesn't work for me.

The old taco king though, that's a different story! How about playing Carlos Vela? That would go down well with the nacho noshing punters at the Emirates Stadium! Oops...it's away from home. Still, it's the thought that counts and a lot of us will be glad to see Vela get a run out.

But it looks like it'll be Eduardo who steps up to the plate (I bet he's got a few in his leg now & thanks to cuddly Martin Taylor it must be hell for the Brazilian to go past metal detectors without getting stopped & searched) and I'm not sure we can expect too much from him.

Other than that, Armand Traore and Jack Wilshere are supposedly fit, but I won't believe they're in the team until I see it with my own eyes. I'm not even sure they'll be in the squad, but I really hope they are as they're both talented kids. I've just got a feeling they're going to get overlooked. As much as I care about that, I care more about the three points so let's hope whoever Wenger picks are up to the task!

STOP PRESS: Wilshere's still injured, or is he? Could it be he caught Almunia's bogus chest infection. At least, we can safely believe Theo Walcott's still out. Plus Arshavin's not back from Russia yet...don't you just love international breaks!

Barça - Real Madrid Sunday 29th November Kick Off 7pm

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:02:42 -0600

The kick off time for the first Clasico this season has been fixed for 7pm on Sunday 29th November. You have been warned. Don't go making any silly family plans for that time.

Bank on Barclay to say something sensible about Arsenal legend!

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:52:41 -0600

Sunday Supplement 'star' Patrick Barclay is the only big name journalist so far (that I've noticed) who's spouted anything other than nonsense over Thierry Henry's so-called 'Hand of Frog' assist.

Barclay, The Times's 'Chief Football Commentator' (nice job title, what is it you do again, talk about football is it? Oh, right! Write about football, I see...not!) is calling for video replays to be introduced.

Everyone else of note in the world of sports journalism, and many who perhaps don't even fall into that category - in particular, Myles Palmer of ANR - seems to be saying how outraged they are by Henry's cheating.

I think I've missed a trick here. What was so bad about it? Henry admitted the ball hit his hand before he crossed for Gallas to head home and ensure France progressed to the World Cup finals at Ireland's expense. I call that honest!

Yeah, I'd be upset if my team got knocked out in such controversial circumstances. But, come on! It's happened to us a lot. And when it does, we moan for a while and then we get over it...which is why I can't remember the last time it happened to us!

The Irish should take a (clover) leaf out of our book. Let it go! Yeah, I felt upset for them to go out of the competition in that way. It was a valiant performance by the Irish that deserved some reward. But you don't always get what you deserve in football.

Talking of injustice, what about when Gary Neville kicked Jose Antonio Reyes off the park at Old Trafford and got away with it! That was a case of persistent fouling to gain advantage. It even seemed to me that Neville's agenda was more about nullifying Reyes than playing football. If he had to use more foul means than fair, it wasn't an issue to Neville....And Man Utd won.

So really is what Henry did worse than that? Was it worse than Martin Taylor's tackle on Eduardo? It seems the media think so. The amount of fuss they make about such an issue is disproportionate to the 'crime'. And that IS outrageous!

Swine Flu Hits Barça

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:37:00 -0600

If we thought it was bad yesterday with the news of Zlatan Ibrahimovic's hamstring injury, today it is worse as news arrives of two cases of Swine Flu in Barça's first team squad. Eric Abidal is the first player to be confirmed as having the H1N1 viral strain of influenza A while Toure Yaya is suspected of having the virus but is waiting for conformation. We may feel relieved that Abidal has caught the bug while he is already out injured but Toure, who is thought to have picked it up while on international duty, trained with other players yesterday and may have passed on the illness. We will just have to wait and see if any of the other players get ill. Presumably if a lot of players get it then there may be a case for postponing matches but I don't suppose we'll get much help from the Spanish League who seem set on doing everything to complicate our defence of La Liga.

With the big matches coming up against Inter and Madrid this is a dreadful time for us to get hit like this. Toure is considered to be very doubtful for the Inter match but he may be ok in time for Madrid on November 29. We will just have to hope that none, or very few, of the other players go down with the virus.

The Hand of Frog

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:03:18 -0600

I thought as I try to blog at a minimum of a monthly basis, I should knock a quick one out (blog that is)...

Let’s start with the furore that is the TH14 incident, or the ‘Hand of Frog', as I am very, politically correctly, dubbing it. Yes Ireland were beaten unjustly. It was a bad handball, and no-one likes to see cheating of that degree in the game full stop. Also I would much rather see Ireland at the world cup than France. On the other side of the coin though, does it really deserve this media uproar? Would Ireland have won anyway? When these things have happened in the past to other nations, does it get the same mention? Also any Irish friends I have seem to laugh their arses off if something like this happens to England, (when they are rooting for whoever it may be England are playing), and I am sure they would laugh if it ever happened to England in the future, so although I can understand the Irish fans getting annoyed, and rightfully so, I cannot understand why so many England fans are getting on the band wagon. Easily wound up by the media and gooner haters I reckon. So as he was such a legend for Arsenal, I for one still hold TH14 in high regard. I mean it is not as though he makes a habit of doing this sort of thing, I don’t think it’s in his nature, and anyone who plays football competitively at whatever level knows that sometimes, for no reason, your body does things, your mind doesn’t actually tell it to do, sometimes it works out good, sometimes bad, and other times a bit naughty - and I am sure this was one of those moments. Admittedly though had this happened against England I may think quite differently, so I’m glad it didn’t - had it have been Arsenal, against Barca and Henry still the culprit, I would be hurt and confused, so hopefully that will never happen. Who said Interlulls don’t create talking points...?

Anyway, England looked positively crap against Brazil, I just hope it has clarified one thing – don’t take Wes Brown or Ben Foster anywhere near South Africa. Anyway enough on that and on to gooner news....

It seems that big AW jinxed our asses when he said we would be injury hit in November. It’s like De Ja Fooking Vu. If anyone uses Physioroom.com to help them with their fantasy footy, it also gives the injury league table, which for about the 5^th time this season Arsenal are top of. What happens in November to us? I am this year a bit more confident in the squad than I have been in the past mind you. I just hope Eduardo remains fit, with no Bendtner or RVP it could be quite a struggle up top. However, I would quite look forward to the prospect of Arshavin and especially Theo, in their self proclaimed preferred role, as centre forwards, and see what they can offer there. The other place for serious concern seems to be left back. If Traore is not injured still we may be ok, and give him his opportunity to shine. He impressed me in some of his performances last season at Pompey, he looks a good prospect, albeit at going forward, as Pompey more often played him on the left wing, the jury is still out on his defending. Anything is better than sticking Fish Face Silvestre there. I mean he is not even that quick, and I would have thought that would be a prerequisite for a full back nowadays. Luckily, it seems Gibbs injury isn’t as bad as it first seems, and he will return sooner rather than later, which I am very glad about, as Gibbs has always impressed me, and I want to see more of him. I am sure he will go on to be one of the best left backs England has ever seen, much better than Cashley Judas Cole....

Sunderland is next and I do hope we give the Makams a thrashing like we rightfully should, and that Football Guys gut feeling is wrong, Bent seems to be scoring for fun, but then, our whole team do, so, I can’t see a clean sheet, but would hope for a comfortable win by at least 2 clear goals. After that in the league, it's a big one and Chelsea, both teams on the back of champs league games. We both seem to enjoy scoring goals for fun, so could be quite a rollercoaster, I wouldn’t bet against Drogba scoring against us as the stupid fraggle always does. Therefore I think the best way to play is the old Brazil mantra, and classic Fat Les line, “we’re going to score one more than you”. If we go on to beat Chelsea, I think then, finally, pundits the media, and non-gooners, will finally start to take Arsenal as serious contenders for the premiership, as we still don’t seem to get the backing off people yet. Saying that, I do quite like it when Arsenal are slightly classed as the underdogs, and the press aren’t on their side. They seem to play better once written off...

Finally in all things Fantasy league. I am doing quite well, top of Lady Arses league, and 2^nd only to fantasy expert Amer in Jamrocks Ole Ole league, but most importantly beating fantasy footy experts football guy and Jamrock (even though jamrock is breathing down my neck). If I stopped making silly schoolboy errors in my team, I could have possibly been top of both, and put a bit of light between me and Jammy, but these things happen. I am also top of Jamrocks score prediction league, and score predicting expert FG seems to be bottom of that (not sure he still does it). However I am losing my lead in that every week. I better stop gloating, as it may come back to haunt me

P.S. Not trying to make you guys too jealous - but I will be away from the blogaspehere end of Nov and beginning of Dec for 2 weeks, on holiday, and I will be looking for places in the caribbean to watch the Chelsea, Man City, Stoke and olymipiakas games - so if anyone has been there, I'd be most grateful if you let me know how easy it is to catch premiership / champs league footy matches over there..... Cheers

So till next time guys, take care, and trust in Wenger!!!

US Soccer’s Seven Deadly Sins: Gluttony

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 07:58:47 -0600

The Sin: Gluttony is one of the most digusting sins, and Maradona exemplifies it in the pic at left. By the time this shot was taken, the man who was the best player in the world (maybe ever) had indulged himself to excess on food, wine and drugs. He failed to abide by Proverbs 23:21, which states that “[f]or the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty; and drowsiness shall clothe a man with rags.” Gluttony wages an ugly war vs. the virtue of moderation. Read more... (471 words, 4 images, estimated 1:53 mins reading time)

It’s Friday and there’s a 3 O’Clock kick off to make this Saturday, I’m cockerhoop

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:50:19 -0600

Oooooooooh I’m all of a quiver, real footyball is back, COME ON!! So we’re down by RVP, Bendy, Vela, Theo, Denilson, Clichy, Fabianski, Jackie Wilshere, Diaby, Djourou, Traore, and Gibbs. But we could still field at team that features Almunia, Sagna, Gallas, Vermaelen, Eboue, Cesc, Song, Rambo Arshavin and two from Nasri, Sicky, and Eduardo. Not a bad line up at all. The problem may come when Le Boss assess Gallas and Sagna’s condition after a lot of football this week. Plus Arshavin is likely to be down in the dumps. So it may seems a simple selection but I’m not totally sure it is and Sunderland are no mugs, especially at home. The Mirror are trying to stir up shit, the headline in their rag says Brady called TH14 shameful, I can tell you he didn’t. Read a bit further and Chippy actually says it was not Henry’s fault so stick that up your media smoke pipe and choke on it. Then the other Keane steps in with a witty ditty; What goes around comes around. Well done Manq-boy, love it, the fat Keane from down the lane says; I blame FIFA still, when I was one-on-one with the keeper, one of the shouted and it made me shank it wide. How will he recover in time for a loss to Wigan this weekend. The ideal situation is in the 90th minute, Titus Bramble dives in the box for a penalty to the mighty Latics. Hugo Rodallega crashes the penalty in to the post and as fat Keane clear it, Won-Hee Cho superman punches it in to the back of the net for one-nil. COME ON WIGAN!! So Tottescum lose, Manqs to draw, Ricky Hattons back, UFC106, and most importantly 3 points to the might Gooners. Have a good weekend Gooners, enjoy the wet road trip Upt North.

Preview: Liverpool vs Manchester City, Saturday 21st November.

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 06:13:02 -0600

This time last season we were enjoying an emphatic start to the Premier League campaign which would culminate in us topping the table for the first time under Rafa Benitez, thus stating our intentions as serious challengers for the most coveted prize. Manchester City, however, were just happy to be mixing it with clubs like Liverpool and anything they could take from us would of been regarded as a bonus as they pursued a place in the second tier of European football. Now, though, the playing field has been more than levelled by the injection of cash into Man City that now makes them the richest club in the world, bar none.

All our prestigious history and honours, then, will count for nothing on Saturday as we line up against a probable future superpower of the game. Could this match be the catalyst for change in the forces of the English game? Could we finally realise our biggest fear and be left behind by those who simply flex bigger financial muscles? Or will this finally be the game in which we bounce back (again) without crashing back down to earth with a thud in the very next game? We will all be hoping for the latter but given that our recent form has seen us blowing hot and cold more so than a Travelodge shower, few will be seeing 3 points as a certainty.

For all our woes this season, it has to be said that Manchester City haven't exactly covered themselves in glory either. The age old problem of getting a team to gel seems to have held back City's superstars thus far and although they have enjoyed some very positive results, like Liverpool, they have been unable to string them together. Even at such an early stage, then, this game is of huge importance to both sides. Although nothing will be decided in November, there is certainly an underlying narrative of the chase for European football next year being closely contested between the two clubs that will step out at Anfield on Saturday.

This early battle for the rights to the big stage next season is a far cry from hopes we harboured at the start of the campaign of battling it out for the title all year long. However, circumstances dictate that we must set our sites on realistic goals and take things one step at a time, starting with the 3 points that are up for grabs tomorrow.

You don't need me to tell you of the repercussions that injuries have had upon our performances of late; it is clear for all to see that we lack the quality in depth to replace our key men. It is welcome news, then, that we will be able to recall some of the big guns on Saturday. And we will need them, too, as Manchester City have some rather explosive firepower of their own.

We are all set to welcome back Steven Gerrard to the fray but, as seems to be the trend, when one big player returns another is lost. Yossi Benayoun will join Fernando Torres on the sidelines meaning Ryan Babel is likely to get a chance to stake his claims for still being here next season.

Manchester City have some injury problems of their own. But perhaps problems is the wrong word in the context of their squad. Inconveniences, perhaps, is a more suitable term. While being without the services of such talented players as Craig Bellamy and Robinho would cause major headaches for most sides, Man City enjoy the luxury of being able to call upon the likes of Carlos Tevez and Emmanuel Adebayor, no less.

Dom's got in there first with his prediction of the starting lineup and it is one that leaves little room for negotiation given the current list of names of Rob Price's 'to do' list. In the interest of being interesting, though, I've had a slight tinker. Here's what we think the team could look like:

Dom:

------------------Reina-----------------

Johnson----Carra----Agger-----Insua

------------Masch---------Lucas----------

Gerrard--------Aquilani-----------Babel

-------------------Kuyt----------------------

Liam:

------------------Reina-----------------

Johnson----Carra----Agger-----Insua

------------Masch---------Lucas-------------

Kuyt-------------Gerrard-------------Babel

-------------------N'Gog----------------------

Dominic is going for a 2-1 home win. Undoubtedly, we both make our predictions with rose-tinted spectacles firmly on face and as a result of my inability to admit inferiority, I am going for a blindly optimistic 3-1 win for ourselves.

While I am under no illusions about the quality of the Manchester City side who sit a point above us in the table, I just refuse to accept that we are destined to take their place as the perpetual underachievers of English football.

I am so sick and tired of hearing about how we will bounce back from our current troubles and finally kick start our campaign. So far it has been all talk and no product as despite showing our ability to bounce back, like in the game against Manchester Utd, we have also shown a distinct inability to build on it, the obvious example of this being the game against Fulham, amongst many others.

Let's be clear about one thing; being an historic and decorated club gives us no divine right to future successes. We have to fight tooth and nail for honours just as the Liverpool of the 1970's and 80's did. If we don't start to string some good results together there is absolutely no reason why a team of Man City's quality can't step in and take our position at dizzying heights of English and European football's elite.

While the the 3 points at stake in this game is not the be all and end all of the season, there is certainly a feeling of the old master in red lying stricken, and the young apprentice in blue smelling blood and sensing an opportunity to go for the jugular. It is up to those men in red on Saturday to put the pretenders in their place and show them that all the money in the world can't buy you a Steven Gerrard, or such strong team spirit or such unwavering and inspriational support.

With their infinite resources, Man City will undoubtedly go on to make history in the game. It is up to those with a Liverbird on their chest to ensure that they do not do it at our expense. We, too, are a club with ambitions of going on to make history for many years to come. However, if we do not do something to stop the rot soon, then we we won't be making history at all. We will, instead, be confined to it.

Can Arsenal win the title race...without buying a Lloris Minor?

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 05:14:59 -0600

Hugo Lloris's performances for Lyon and France have really put him in the spotlight, so the question remains: why is he not at Arsenal?

Our goalkeeping problems are well-documented: Almunia was ok last season, but has lacked concentration in this campaign; Mannone's just a promising rookie; Fabianski may never fully recover his confidence after the Carling Cup game against Spurs last season; and Wojciech Szczesny will probably never make it on the team-sheet until he changes his name to something more memorable! I have visions of Pat Rice being told by Wenger try to write 'Szczesny' on the team-sheet, but defying Le Boss and spelling out Mannone instead and handing that to the officials instead. Then it would have been too late to change it. Let's face it, not many of us would have put Mannone in ahead of Szczesny, unless we had to physically write down the name on the team-sheet. Then, how many of us would have taken the easier option?

I mean, it's hard enough to say it. I just think of Chesney Hawkes and then I can just about manage to say Szczesney's surname. The first name's a bit like Wool Cheque...I suppose, so think 'money' and 'lambs', but not in that order and you're halfway there.

Lorris must be easier to pronounce than that! Although if he signs for Arsenal, we'll hear commentators making him sound like a Morris Minor with a 'L' instead of an 'M' at the start.

Wenger clearly rates the 22-year-old Lloris. Le Boss was quoted in the Daily Mail earlier this month describing him as a: 'A fantastic keeper, who will be a fantastic keeper in the future.'

Le Boss wouldn't rule out a move for Lloris, but he said: 'At the moment, we don't need a keeper.' Reading between the lines, I think he's saying: 'We can get by without a decent keeper.'

Personally, I don't agree with that assessment. I think a good keeper is a basic requirement if you want to win the league. I remember back in the day when Nottingham Forest won the league. The key signing for me was Peter Shilton.

Now looking at Almunia, hands up those who see him as part of a title-winning team? Not many hands up, are there?

The point is, it's really hard to think of a team that's won the league without a decent keeper. Recent title-winning keepers (reeling them out off the top of my head, so please excuse any omissions etc) include Jens Lehmann, David Seaman, Peter Schmeichel, Edwin van der Sar, Petr Cech...and if you go back far enough Tim Flowers!

At the time, Flowers was more highly-rated than Almunia, so if we do win the league with the Spaniard in goal we will have really done it the hard way!