Right then, football tonight against Alkmaar and I really hope they're just plain old AZ tonight and not the typical Ronald Koeman AZzzzzzzzz.

Every time we play a Koeman side it's inevitably a truly dire spectacle. A tedious, coma inducing draw of some kind and I could really do without that tonight. I'm hoping the high we're on from the weekend will enable us to give them the kind of spanking they deserve. Not that they're particularly objectionable as a team or anything, I've just had quite enough of Koeman's teams and their dull as dishwater approach. 

Arsene Wenger was asked if he had a special motivation to win tonight because he'd never beaten a team managed by Koeman. Rightly enough he said no, that wasn't a factor at all, which is fair enough. They didn't ask me though, did they? I'd have done pantomime yawny faces every time I said his name. I think, after being subjected to so many insipid games, we deserve a good one tonight. AW wants the same kind of performance as against Sp*rs, saying:

We have to show that we can go into the game with the same seriousness that we have done on Saturday. There are a lot of things that we have still to accomplish. It is all in front of us. We have to show that we can focus every three days, that we can play for each other every three days all along the season, also that we can prepare every game with the same kind of conscientious attitude and that we can win.

Splendid, can't argue with that at all. The team news is so-so. While happily Tomas Rosicky returns, not to start but to the bench at least, there's bad news for Nicklas Bendnter who is 'seriously' injured according to the boss. Whether or not he needs surgery remains to be seen but he's going to be out for at least 4 weeks. It is a bit of a blow because Bendtner provides a measure of physicality and workrate in the forward three that helps balance that of, say, Arshavin who is polly-pocket sized and doesn't necessarily get involved in the defensive side of things. It'll be interesting to see who he plays there tonight. I know he's gone with Eboue before but with Eduardo fit and needing a game or two, and Nasri back in the frame, I'd hope he'd go with the more positive option.

There was also bad news for Gael Clichy who has a stress fracture of his back. I think that probably means a vertebrae rather than his spine but like Bendtner he's facing up to two months on the sidelines. You have to say though that if there was one area of the back four where we could probably cope with an injury best it's at left full. Kieran Gibbs will replace Clichy and after that the manager has spoken about Armand Traore as back-up. Our almost identikit left backs save the day. 

It's a big chance for Gibbs though, the manager says:

I have no doubt about his quality and I have said that many times. There is suddenly a huge stress on Gibbs to play in every game. Capello and England will be happy because they want him to play but it is still a shame for us to lose Clichy.

Again with the Capello thing. To be perfectly frank I couldn't care less if Capello wanted a trumpet playing elephant called Hamilton who starred in an animation short that I saw when I was a kid and have never been able to find again. And it really shouldn't be of any great interest to Arsene either. I think saying stuff like that puts pressure on Gibbs that he probably doesn't need. Maybe it's motivational, I dunno, perhaps I shouldn't second guess Wenger's ability to say the right thing to get the best out of his player, but let's hope the young man just gets his head down and plays well. Arsene also said he's a bit like Ashley Cole. Let's hope it's in his football ability and not the fact that he's a swerving off the road, money hungry, odious little cunt.

Meanwhile Abou Diaby reckons he's stronger and more focussed this season while Arsene Wenger lauds him for being very strong in the challenge, good in the air, having a high work rate and giving us good balance in midfield.

I was wondering about Wenger's comments in particular when I watched the press conference yesterday as they confused me. Then I realised Diaby was alongside him, heh. I don't think it's unfair to suggest that Diaby, having been given a run of games in his favourite central midfield position, has still to convince a lot of people that he's got what it takes. If his effort on Saturday against Sp*rs showed his 'high work rate' then it's very worrying indeed. We know he did extra training in the summer so he would be ready to grab his opportunity when it came, and while he's had some decent performances I don't think he's done enough to make himself indespensible by any means. If he really wants to to make it at Arsenal he needs to step it up, and quickly.

In a quick look at other news Fran Merida's agent, Joseba Diaz (you might remember him from such other young Catalan players as Cesc Fabregas), says Fran has an illness for Atletico Madrid. I assume he means some kind of vomiting bug every time he sees them play as they're so awful this season, but he hints that the young man would be tempted by a move back to Spain.

And finally I'm on the other side of the mic for the ArsenalFCblog podcast, if that's your bag.

Right then, here's to a good old thrashing of AZ tonight. A night when Oles can ring out after we score goal number 9 and not when we're 1-0 up and which then cause us to concede a late equaliser.

Till tomorrow.

Good morning all, it's surprisingly quiet I have to say.

There appears to be nothing new to tell you regarding Hooty McOwl. Zenit say they're negotiating with Arsenal but the price is going up and down and sideways and twirling, twirling, always twirling. Now we have his agent saying Zenit need to be more realistic with the price, Owly saying he wants to prove himself at a top club, and it can all just be condensed into one 'We really want to get the fuck out of here' statement. The whole thing is beginning to stink of the Beast.

Was it summer of 2005 or 2006? Every day there was a new story about how close Arsenal were to signing Julio Baptista from Real Madrid. One day it would be all agreed, personal terms done and very much dusted, the next day it was a different story altogether before it was once again all agreed and just a matter of dotting the 'I's and crossing the 'T's.

As we all know it never happened and so much time, energy, speculation and words, valuable, precious words, were wasted. So much so that when we did sign him on loan a season later the Gods decided to punish us for such linguistic frippery. They removed 97.53% of the Beast's footballing ability and we ended up with a bloke who made Kaba Diawara look like Johann Cruyff.

Now we have an owl who stinks like a Beast so until such time as we see any kind of official announcement I may treat every story that emerges with a certain amount of something that isn't quite disdain but sounds more jovial and light-hearted than that but means more or less the same thing. Note how I am refusing to waste good words on this situation lest he arrive and become the Russian Jimmy Carter?

I shall treat the stories that are sure to follow in the same way I might treat one about Emmanuel Eboue going to Inter Milan. The Ivorian is quoted as saying:

I have been linked with Inter before, but at the moment I am happy at Arsenal. I am happy at the club. Inter are a great club as well, but I don't know what will happen. Let's wait and see.

I suspect we'd be waiting a very long time for anything to happen in terms of Eboue and Inter Milan. I was speaking to the Italian correspondent for the week in football podcast yesterday and asked him if he'd heard anything about this particular story. He said that during January there have been hundreds of names linked with transfers to Italy but Eboue certainly wasn't one of them. Which is no surprise really.

Kieran Gibbs talks about his emergence as back-up for Gael Clichy in the left back position. He's taken the same route as Cuntley Cunt, he was an attacking player moved back (but hopefully that's where the similarities will stop - apart from being a good left back. You know what I mean). It's always nice to see a young guy make the breakthrough from the youth set-up and while he does look a bit raw at times he does look to have something about him as a player. It'll be interesting to see how he goes. 

Apart from that there's not much else happening. We're bound to get some team news ahead of the game against Bolton on Saturday so we'll catch up with that and preview the game over the next couple of days. The Arsecast will return tomorrow as well.

Till then.