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Birmingham 0 Arsenal 3: Another Hoodoo is overcome

Sunday, 02 January 11, 09:04 AM

A new year and after yesterday we can all hope a new Arsenal.  3 goals away to a side who have caused us huge problems in the last few season along with a rare and valuable clean sheet, is something we would all love to see continue into 2011.   The biggest success from yesterday was our ability to overcome a physical, bullying team with our beautiful passing game without suffering any injuries or becoming frustrated and intimidated. 

The game started in typical fashion as within moments of kick-off Cesc was too fast for the Brum defence and was recklessly taken down by Johnson.  I don't think it was a particularly malicious tackle but it was poorly timed and could have easily resulted in a serious injury to our captain.  This same Roger Johnson had a lot to say about Wilshire's red card in the reverse fixture earlier this season:

 It was not too dissimilar to the tackle on Eduardo by Martin Taylor - ankle height, could have snapped his leg.  Thankfully it didn't.

Wilshire was deservedly given a red for that tackle and the concerned soul that is Johnson was also lucky not to see the same.  There were a lot of free kicks going our way in the early encounters as we consistently pressed both on and off the ball, drawing petty fouls that irritated both the home fans and players.  Birmingham were clearly trying to old ‘in your face' tactics but we matched they efforts with a fantastic work rate that saw such success against Chelsea.  On the 13th minute RVP went down after being tugged, stepped up and slammed the free kick in on off Bowyers arms - exactly what he deserved as he later decided to assault Sagna.  Birmingham and ESPN made a huge deal out of the awarding of the free kick and although I would agree it was soft it was a stupid tackle to make, as soon as the defender puts his arm across an onrushing attacker he just gives an excuse for the attacker to go down and the ref to award a free kick.  That put us 1-0 up and we really could have had more in the first half if RVP was his usual clinical self.  On two occasions his touch let him down in the area and instead of drilling home from six yards he tried a cheeky dink over Foster that did not come off.  If this had been a RVP who had seen a lot more game time you would be sure he would have had at least 2 in the first half.  He completed the full 90 mins as Wenger clearly tries to give him the match time he needs to find that clinical edge you can only achieve when match fit. 

Although we had the lion share of chances and possession in the first half we could have quite easily have gone in level.  Fabianski had to make a good save from a Larsson free kick - after stepping onto his left side he quickly readjusted to make a solid save to his right.  He is looking increasingly solid and I still feel he is yet to make a mistake since being given his chance this season and for me he is growing as a number 1 more and more every game. Then a huge penalty appeal was waved away as RVP appeared to handle in the box.  He went to head the ball clear and simply missed with the ball hitting his trailing arm, I have seen them given and we were perhaps a bit lucky there.  Then a Birmingham free kick was flicked on in our box and although appearing offside Johnson managed to fire over from 6 yards out.  It was another let of, as nobody seemed to mention the fact he was a yard offside and so a goal would have stood had it gone in.

We started the second half very brightly with RVP dropping deep to link up with Nasri and Cesc, which enabled Theo space to run into from out wide.  The movement of our front men was fantastic yesterday and they seem to be all on the same wavelength.  This almost resulted in a goal early on in the second half as Theo rushed down the right side and picked out a great cross to the back post where Nasri laid the ball into the onrushing Wilshire's path, only for the birthday boy to volley over.  It was a great chance from only 8 yards out and he really should have done better.  Straight after this Nasri was played through and under pressure from two Birmingham defenders his dinked effort over the onrushing keeper was kept out by Foster.  At this point I was starting to become slightly apprehensive as usually us wasting numerous chances only results in one thing - a opposition equaliser.

Thankfully these fears were banished just before the hour mark as Cesc played a fantastic one two Nasri and with the defenders backing of the Frenchman fired the ball perfectly into the bottom corner for his 13th goal of the season.  It was more like a pass into the corner of the net, which showed the new fans favourite extreme confidence at the moment.  Something that I think was overlooked in the goal was the captain's run when Nasri picked up the ball.  By running round Nasri he gave the defender something to think about as he was forced to either track his run or close down the ball and in the end he did neither, allowing Nasri the chance to shoot and score.  The 3rd goal was something of a prolonged one two between Cesc and Nasri, who really have gelled into a partnership that causes serious problems for any opposition defence - add in the pace of Theo on the other flank and we have a really balanced attack.  Cesc and Nasri played the ball around the Birmingham box and back out again before Cesc played in Nasri, who played a delightful reverse flick back to our captain who's vicious shot could only be parried by Foster and deflected in of Johnson for an own goal.  The link up play was sublime and reminded me of a Xavi, Iniesta combination for Spain.  Cesc for me is undoubtedly on par with this pair and had another fantastic game yesterday, showing huge desire and passion for the team as well as his skill.  He is looking back to his best and appears to have overcome both the mental and physical issues his hamstring has caused for much of the season. 

After this we held strong and could have had more as Cesc shot over from the edge of the box and the substitute Arshavin forced a save from Foster.  We probably could have had a lot more notable shots but we began to play some fantastic passing football in every attack and should have shot more, which most likely have resulted in more goals.  My only concern regarding this was that in other games we will not this number of chances and we must not be afraid to have a shot, rather than trying to walk it in.   However a repeat of last years horror show was never on the cards as the defence had another great game with Djourou at the heart of things.  With him next to our other defenders we seem to have a lot more shape and confidence and he is fast becoming a key member in our team.  With the Verminator yet to play with him or Koscielny there is promise in the centre of defence.  On the flanks Clichy looked a lot better again and it is worth noting the improvement in his performances with Nasri in front rather than Arshavin.  The increased protection that Nasri offers appears to be helping Clichy back to his better days as the Russian leaves him too exposed and vulnerable to overlaps.  On the other side Sagna had another fantastic game, so much so that Bowyer decided to try and take him out of it with a malicious stamp and late challenge of the pitch.  If he is not banned by the FA it will be a huge surprise as the ref clearly did not see the stamp as even the TV missed it as Sagna refused to make a meal out of it as he got up and got on with things.  He has been our most consistent player this season, being solid at the back whilst always offering an attacking threat with huge energy week after week.  Certainly a contender for player of the season so far and he will be particularly missed against Barcelona in the first leg!  Song also had a great game again yesterday along with Wilshire.  He appears to have managed to find the balance needed between attacking and defending as he coped with a physical and feisty battle in the centre incredibly well last night.

Afterwards Wenger said:

 We were aware that we had to match Birmingham physically. We were prepared today to face the challenges, physical challenges.  We prepared ourselves as well not to lose our game plan, to be calm and to focus on putting the ball down and playing our game.

This was certainly the case as we refused to bullied and got on and played our game which ultimately ripped a tired looking Birmingham to pieces.  On the other hand we looked incredibly fresh and perhaps this justified the changes on Wednesday, as it would be hard to say if we could have played so well without our stars being rested.  Regardless it is time to move on and on the back of a fantastic away win we need to carry this momentum into the game against title rivals City in the week.  It pains me to consider them as rivals but with the money they spent and the position they are now in it is impossible to ignore them and a victory over them would be another huge result!

Until then

MrGunnerBaines

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Arsenal 3 Chelsea 1: A Corner Turned

Tuesday, 28 December 10, 01:30 PM

Last night was something we have not experienced in a long time, a win over the ‘top two' sides in league, which was undoubtedly our best performance of the season so far.  On the pitch every player was fantastic with a few notable changes in Theo and Djourou both producing man of the match performances - proving Wenger's team selection to be perfect.  Add to this the availability of Van Persie and Fabregas, for there first start together for what seems like a season, and barring Vermaelen we had probably our strongest XI available.  Interesting to note that with our strongest side available for the first time in years against Chelsea, we won!  

Wenger's bold team selection saw Arshavin dropped to the bench along with Squillaci who were replaced by Theo coming in on the right and Djourou taking his place in defence.  Personally I was extremely happy to see Djourou given his place in the starting XI, after some very impressive performances away from home, but was surprised that it was the older Frenchman who lost his place meaning we had a virtually fresh pairing facing Drogba.  However this proved to be of little worry as for the first time in years we do not have to wake up to headlines stating how the ‘Drog' has ripped us to pieces once again.  Apart from one early run and shot that fizzed just wide of our goal, created by a naïve Koscielny pass out of defence he barely had a sniff.  Both Djourou and Koscielny matched his aggression for the duration of the game and the young Swiss in particular hustled and outmuscled Drogba, ultimately dominating our former nemesis.  Shutting out Drogba was always going to be key if we were to win and along with the brilliant performance of Djourou the intense work rate of the midfield meant that Chelsea were never really settled and could never properly feed their target man.

From the start every player came diving into every tackle, harassing and chasing Chelsea meaning they were unable to play how they would have wished.  The crowd responded to this attitude as it was clear the players were up for the occasion and there was a fantastic atmosphere inside The Emirates which in turn pushed the players on further.  It is obvious that the two work in tandem and it is a shame that every game cannot see that work rate and atmosphere as it is clear we are capable of working hard of the ball and getting stuck in.  Although we had a good deal of the first half the chances were not coming and Chelsea were always a threat on the counter.  Nasri had a free kick comfortably saved before having a fine chipped effort from the edge of the box acrobatically tipped over by Cech.  This was not one of the new stars finest performances but he always a threat and had the run on Ferreira every time he got the ball.  The breakthrough came at a perfect time as Song linked up with Wilshire; taking the return ball after Fabregas had been followed to fire a smart left footed finish into the far corner.  It was a fantastic move started by Song as played a brilliant ball out wide before linking up with Wilshire.  Last night was Song's best performance of the season as he managed to get the balance between his new attacking freedom and his defensive duties spot on - getting another crucial goal as a reward.  In past seasons the last 15 minutes of the first half have been the time when Chelsea have caught us out and we never recovered and so it was vital we converted our dominance onto the score sheet. 

Song is mobbed after scoring the opener

After this solid first half it was important we came out of the break and did the same from the whistle.  Against the Spuds earlier this season we had a fantastic first half and came out for the second without the intensity needed and paid the full price.  However it was clear this was not going to happen again as we nicked the ball instantly.  We were fully focused and motivated and by the 50th minute we earned our reward as Theo was quickest to react to an Essien tackle on Van Persie, tearing towards goal and drawing Cech out only to square the ball for the captain Fabregas to tap into the empty net.  It was the ruthless nature that saw us punish one Chelsea mistake that so often we have been on the receiving end of that was so fantastic.   It was a deserved goal for the captain who had a world class night, playing some fantastic stuff and showing what we have missed from midfield at points this season.  This class was summed up as 3 minutes after his goal he returned Theo the favour. 

The high pressure paid off again as the front men closed down fast, Malouda was caught on the ball by Theo which dropped to Cesc who played an exquisite dinked ball over the onrushing Terry into the path of Theo who's finish was top draw, smashing the ball low and hard into the far corner.  It was a fantastic couple of minutes for Theo after he had worried our favourite man Cole all night.  After picking up an early booking Cole backed of Theo allowing him the space to turn and run which caused Chelsea problems all night.  Theo also for me played a vital role in stopping Chelsea scoring.  Never have I seen Cole get forward so little in a game and he posed no threat as he was preoccupied by Theo who tracked his every move.  In past games Cole has been the producer of many of Drogba's goals but Theo justified his manager's decision and for me this was a tactical stroke of genius from Wenger.  That goal made the score 3-0 in the 53rd minute and we were in dreamland.  I think the last time there was such bedlam at The Emirates was Henry's headed winner over United in the last minutes all those years ago. 

Quickly after the 3rd Chelsea pulled one back as Ivanovic headed home a Drogba free kick virtually unchallenged.  Koscielny was caught out but I think it is harsh to blame him alone as there were 4 Chelsea players around him as we switched off and most forgot to track their man.  With 30 minutes still on the clock it could have been a very edgy affair but Wilshire and Song continued to work their socks of in midfield and the introduction of Diaby and Chamakh meant fresh legs to keep the work rate going.  In the header from Ivanovic was the full extent of Chelsea's attack as Drogba sent a similar set piece sailing over.  We could have had more with Nasri pouncing on a Kakuta mistake only to see Cech palm his dinked effort away before Diaby forgot he had a left foot as he was set through, only to spend to long trying to shift the ball onto his right allowing Terry to make the block.  By the final whistle Fabianski had literally no saves to make and it was a comfortable win brought about by a fantastic organised team performance that forced Chelsea into looking very average.

Chelsea's Slump continues... oh dear!

In my opinion there were three crucial factors resulting in our victory.  The first was the work rate that the whole team put in off the ball, similar to how Barcelona press, that never allowed an already fragile Chelsea to settle and resulted in two goals.  The next was the availability of our key men, in the big games you need your star men to play and last night was the first time I can really remember having RVP, Cesc, Nasri and Theo in the starting XI ready to play along with a bench containing the likes of Arshavin and Chamakh.  Finally, Wenger got his team and tactics spot on, with Djourou and Theo coming in with huge performances, as well as instilling an attitude in the team where they believed they could win, banishing that ‘fear'.  It was a fantastic result that will give this team huge confidence, which you could see at the final whistle.  However it will mean nothing if we cannot win our next two games away to Wigan and Birmingham, the latter could certainly be a tough game.  Hopefully we can take 6 points into next weeks game at home to City which will again be a huge game.

Until next game

MrGunnerBaines

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Wolves 0 Arsenal 2: A vital 3 points

Thursday, 11 November 10, 10:08 AM

So once again i am writing a blog after another vital 3 points.  I don't know if it is just me but watching Arsenal sometimes if like a workout as my heart goes into overdrive as balls are thumped into our box as we cling onto 1 goal leads.  I think my heart rate trebled for much of yesterdays game until Chamakh finished, maybe slightly luckily, in the 94th minute for his second. He earned himself the record for the longest gap between two goals by the same goalscorer in the same premier league game at 92 mins 26 secs (credit to @optajoe on twitter) but more importantly the win for Arsenal.  Unfortunately, perhaps for me the win was somewhat tainted by Match of the Day last night.  In the match there were 3 bad tackles: Milijas stamp on Song, Henry sliding studs up over the ball into Arshavin and a late scissor from Cesc on Ward.  Now I admit and believe that Cesc made a poor tackle and is right to reprimanded for his actions.  My problem comes when watching MOTD they completely ignore the fouls committed by Wolves players and focus entirely on Cesc, showing the foul numerous times before listening to Alan Hansen jabber on about it for way too much off their pressure airtime (much of which had already been wasted on the dire Manchester derby).  It was disgraceful and once again a witch-hunt not only to Arsenal players but on a wider scale to foreign players, which i am sure the tabloids have hoped onto this morning.  For those who missed it here is Henrys 'tackle', which by the FIFA rules is a straight red.

Back to the game itself and it was a positive performance overall, with the defense and Fabianski having a good game.  We came flying out of the blocks and with just 37 seconds on the clock we were in the lead.  Rosicky burst through midfield far to easily and played it wide to Song who wiped in the best cross we have produced all season for Chamakh to power home.  Now with Chamakh and Bendtner upfront it is a wonder why we don't and can't produce crosses like this more often as it is clear we can score plenty of goals in this way, as shown on this occasion.  It should probably have been all over a few moments later when Arshavin stole the ball from the centre back only to fire his left shoot straight at the keeper when one on one.  Now Arshavins form has been scrutinised a lot in recent weeks and he has found himself on the bench but yesterday to me he began to look like the player he was when he first arrived.  Yes if he had been completely on form he would have rifled that one on one into the net but throughout the game he was picking the ball up and running and players, forcing them to back off and they were certainly wary of him.  This was opitimised in the second half when he picked the ball up midway through the wolves half before running and the left back and cutting in only to see his effort bounce perfectly out off the post.  Again people may say an in form Arshavin would have buried this but I think it was a good performance from the little russian and hopefully he can start to produce those kind of runs with the finishing product more in the next weeks. 

After Arshavins missed one on one in the first half, Fabregas had a shot from 10 yards out saved by the keeper and Arsenal began to lose their stranglehold on the match.  Wolves came back into things with Doyle having a header go just over the bar before a deflected cross was brilliantly clawed away by Fabianski before a Wolves player could nod the ball in.  That was it for the first half but Wolves came flying out of the interval and almost equalised immediately when Wilshire slipped in the area allowing Jarvis to cross but with Milijas looking certain to score Sagna made an excellent block to keep our lead in tact.  Wilshire looked off the pace last night, probably having his worst game of the season so far as he looks to be lacking that bit of match fitness that makes all the difference.  Soon after this some calamitous Wolves defending allowed Rosicky to play in Cesc who fired a shot narrowly wide when he probably should have scored.  At the moment things are not quite clicking for him and he was clearly rattled by Wolves yesterday, once of twice making silly late tackles barges before his bad challenge late on.  The rest of the second half was largely a story of the Arsenal defence and Fabianski who were all brilliant and were the largest positive from the game in terms of performances.  Djourou and Squillaci both looked assured at the back and made some good tackles and interceptions generally reading the game well.  One the pair really should have scored mid way through the second half when an Arshavin corner was poked towards goal Squillaci lost control of the ball with the goal gaping only for it to fall back to Djourou who was unlucky to see his shot blocked on the line by Henry.  I have been really impressed by Squillaci who looks a very good signing by Wenger.  Both full backs had a good night, covering well for the centre backs when balls went through and generally clearing their lines well.

The man to grab the plaudits in defending our goal is Fabianski.  He is a man full of confidence and is looking increasingly assured in goal.  Personally i don't blame him for the goal on Sunday, as i think the defenders should be stopping the run although i would prefer a free header with a keeper on the line than what happened.  However last night he once again made some excellent saves.  As mentioned before in the first half he tipped the ball away from a Wolves player with really his first involvement in the game.  In the second half though he made two incredible saves.  The first, tipping a dipping Doyle shot acrobatically over the bar when the pressure was on.  The second was a save that simply won us the match.  In stoppage time Berra slammed an effort through a crowded box that I thought was destined for the bottom corner, only for Fabianski to get down low incredibly quickly to virtually catch the ball with one hand.  That was what made the save so good, he smothered the ball instead of letting it rebound back into the danger zone.  He was then alert enough to for the second time set up a goal, throwing the ball quickly out to Rosicky who rolled the ball onto Fabregas to chip a lovely ball over the top for Chamakh to slot home.  It was a goal i celebrated wildly as we went from me believing we were drawing to winning in a matter of seconds.  For me the great thing about Fabianski yesterday was not just the amazing timely saves, which he also produced to arguably lead us to victory against City, he is doing the more basic and simple catches and collections with confidence and composure that before he would have fumbled in some way.  The two goals were also great for Chamakh who scored his first away from home, and vital goals they may well prove to be.

So a cleansheet and an away win against potentially tricky opposition.  Definitely a good result but one that will be irrelevant if we continue to drop points at home.  Nonetheless it puts us back on track before a very hard run in of games where we will face Everton and Villa away as well as the Spuds at home in what shall be a good North London Derby!  A nice touch that demonstrates our class was Wenger and Fabregas both personally apologising to McCarthy and Ward for the captains foul tackle, something i doubt you would see most players who are proud of their bullish style do.  A final bit of good news is that our other polish keeper Wojciech Szczesny has signed a new deal which will keep him at the club for years to come.  And on that i shall end.

MrGunnerBaines

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Arsenal 1 West Ham 0: Thank God for that

Saturday, 30 October 10, 10:16 AM

Looking back on yesterdays game it can be seen as a valuable 3 points that if we were the Chavs or Mancs would be described by the press as, 'a sign of champions' and we would be listening to Hansen scoffing away at how great they are at grinding out 1-0 victories on MOTD.  Fortunately we are not but yesterday is certainly an important result, on a Saturday that looked like it was just going to be on of those days - not a great performance from the Arsenal but the woodwork and opposition keeper keeping what we do create out.  It reminded me a lot of last seasons game at home to Wolves, where nothing seemed to be going our way until Bendtner popped up with a last minute winner.  Thankfully that is what happened yesterday when our newly converted attacking midfielder Song popped up with another headed winner.  Normally i would be inclined to ask what he was doing so far forward being our holding player, but he scored and so i simply don't care on this occasion.

Song shows the hunger needed to get on the end of a fantastic Clichy cross to score the winner

The first half was slow with little of the creativity and movement we know.  Often Fabregas was pushed to  far up the field attempting to support Chamakh but with Denilson and Song playing deep there was nobody to connect the play and the front men became isolated as West Ham pressurised Denilson into mistakes.  I am a fan of Denilson and believe he does a good job in keeping things moving quickly with his accurate passing and is a hugely underrated player.  However games at home against teams who are going to park the bus and apply pressure in midfield are where he struggles as his lack of incisive passing is exposed.  This is where we missed Jack Wilshire who would have been able to pick up the ball from deep and link up with Fabregas and the forward men.  Another issue in the first half was a lack of width with both Arshavin and Nasri coming inside to try and pick the ball up from midfield and work it forwards.  On too many occasions we had 3 or 4 players trying to pass the ball around in a tiny central area and we were pushed back or lost the ball.  On the one occasion we got the ball wide to Sagna he made a brilliant cut back to an unmarked Cesc who fired a shot at Green who made a very good stop.  You would probably have expected him to score but he did not put enough power on his shot allowing Green to make the save.  It was a below par performance from the captain who afterwards admitted he had struggled to get into the game:

‘The first half was probably the worst first half I have done in my life because I didn’t have the confidence.  I couldn’t turn I couldn’t sprint and I was losing every ball but after in the second half I had strapping it was a little bit better and maybe because we wanted to win so much I didn’t think about it’

It is good to see Cesc knows when he has not performed to the high standard we expect even if he puts this down to an injury.  I really think he has the hunger and desire to lead us to glory this season, which was demonstrated by his desperation to play against Newcastle in the week, even if this was not the best decision in terms of his fitness.  I think the best thing now is to rest him midweek against a hostile Shakhtar side and hope he will be back to full fitness for the game next weekend against the Geordies, again.  He may have picked the injury up in the first half when a serious of poor and late tackles were going in on our players.  Now i am often upset and angered by referees performances at the emirates and think that generally these days refs are useless, but yesterday was one of the worst i have ever seen.  M Jones did not make any huge blinding errors that would draw the attention of the media but throughout the game he consistently got things wrong.  On numerous occasions in the first half he failed to book West Ham players for late challenges and the longer the game went on the less and less control he had on the game as he failed to produce cards tackle after tackle.  For me the most infuriating thing was his inability to play an advantage and let the game flow.  I lost count of the number of times that Jones stopped Arsenal attacking whilst pushing for an equaliser only to pull back play and needlessly talk to players for what seemed like hours on end without producing a card.  When the crowd (who were pretty pathetic for most of the game) unleashed chants of 'you don't know what your doing' we were completely justified.

Scott Parker produces a tackle that epitomises the problems of english football.. he got the ball so it must be ok. Amazingly escapes a yellow in the game

Early in the second half Nasri sent a 35 yard central free kick fizzing of the bar that would probably have been a contender for goal of the season if it had been a few inches lower, with the inspired Green (the opposite of World Cup Green) beaten.  Things were still not clicking and Wenger sent Theo on for Denilson, a substitution that pleased me as it showed that Wenger was willing to changes things around rather than making a like for like substitution, even if it came a little later than most would have liked.  The crowd roared Theo on and he was hugely unlucky not to make an instant impact as Fabregas sent him through with a perfect pass, only for his well executed shot to pounce out of the inside of the post into Greens arms.  This was the only time Theo was sent through on goal and I was frustrated as we failed to release him early for the rest of the game.  When Theo's second effort of the game was palmed away by Green I began to think it was going to be one of those days.  Bendtner was thrown on for Arshavin who had a poor game and with Theo clearly ready for a start it will be interesting to see if the Russian starts next weekend.  I am one who favors Arshavin but recently he has not shown the quality that keeps his starting position and I think it is time to drop him, perhaps giving him time to regain some fitness.  Bendtner almost scored one of his crucial goals as a Fabregas shot was well saved by Green but the rebound just evaded the Dane. Then with 2 mins of normal time to go Song picked out Clichy on the left side who cut in and sent a brilliant right footed cross where Song burst from the pack to send a diving header past Green.  It was brilliant play from Clichy who has had a strong few performances in the last weeks, perhaps due to the competition being produced by Gibbs, but i must admit i was surprised at the quality of the ball on his wrong foot.  As for Song it was his desire and commitment to get on the end of the cross that led him to evade the defence and meet the ball.  There were a few potentially nervy moments as West Ham pumped balls into the box in injury time, the time they had wasted turned into their advantage which i think is an issue that needs to be addressed in football.  However Fabianski was assured and claimed the ball well, as he had done throughout the game.  The Pole really seems to be coming into his own and long may it continue.  His confidence is clearly sky high, demonstrated perfectly here as he literally pulls the captain into position to defend a corner.

Credit to @dreamfight3r on twitpic for that.  It must be pointed out that Fabregas was the one to clear that corner with a header and so Fabianski clearly got it right.  Generally the defence played well with both Squillaci and Koscielny looking composed, making good tackles and dealing with what West Ham did produce on the counter.  They both increasingly fill me with confidence and it was good to see the younger frenchman back to replace Djourou who still looks seriously short.  When Vermaelen returns there will strong competition to partner him and with 3 cleansheets in a row hopefully we have turned things around after a worryingly long time without one.  So a vital 3 points and we now move onto a tough midweek away fixture in the Ukraine.  Personally i think the group is virtually won with a home tie with partizan to come and would like to see a few players rested ahead of what looks like a tricky game against Newcastle next Sunday.  Playing Cesc would be foolish and i think Nasri and Chamahk could have a rest, perhaps giving Jack some game time before he hopefully returns next weekend.

Until next time

MrGunnerBaines

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Why England are going nowhere

Wednesday, 13 October 10, 11:41 AM

When Capello took over over two years ago i must admit i was excited at the prospect of change in the England setup. The promise of equal opportunities for all regardless of name or reputation, along with a focus on the development of the youth was exactly what the national team needed.  Perhaps when he claimed he would "learn English in one month" I should of recognised that what he said was not necessarily going to happen.

So here we are over two years on from the Italian maestros appointment and nothing much has changed.  After watching yet another tedious England performance last night against lower rated opposition and a dismal World Cup campaign it is obvious that Capello has not delivered.  The World Cup was embarrassing (admittedly not as bad as France or Italy) and we were shown the way forward by our almighty enemy - Germany.  Their blend of experienced talent who always deliver, Klose being a prime example, combined with the energetic and exciting youth of Ozil, Muller and Khedira blew England away.  Yes if Lampards 'goal' (his only contribution during the WC) had been given it could have been different but any football fan, even blinded by pure patriotism, would find it hard to argue Germany deserved nothing less than to thump us.   In the end they were only stopped by eventual World and European champions Spain, who's squad boast a very similar blend of players.
 
In light of this experience we have arrived at the Euro 2012 qualifiers, interrupting the far more entertaining, exciting and generally better football of the Football League.  The results up to last night had been generally positive beating Bulgaria 4-0 and perhaps slightly impressively beating Switzerland 3-1 away.  These results came fairly easily without much competition from the opposition and we have seen this all before: easily qualifying for the World Cup before collapsing when it comes to the real deal.  These qualifiers and perhaps the whole Euro 2012 competition are a chance for England to build a new team and squad that will be able to compete with the likes of Germany, Spain and Brazil when it comes to the next World Cup in 2014.  It is the time to move aside players who have consistently under performed for England such as Lampard, SWP and many others.  Don't get me wrong they are good players and perform well for their clubs but how they are still in the set up is a wonder to me (especially considering SWP has barely made the City squad this season).  It is time to change the way we play, removing the hoof ball to the big target man approach, to bring through players who can pass the ball and play in more versatile  formations than a 4-4-2 that the modern game requires.
 
Instead these qualifiers have become a World Cup reunion for the players who underperformed.  The players cannot be blamed for this as they do not decide if they play or not and it is down to Capello to take this opportunity to make one of his big moves that he claimed he would make two years, bringing through a new look England side.  The talent at his disposable is clearly very good and mixing players like Wilshire, Rodwell, Gibbs and perhaps Carroll (although i think the hype around him is exaggerated at this moment) with talented experienced players such as Cole, Gerrard and Rooney could make for a team similar to that Germany has at its disposal, whilst allowing these younger players to learn and develop around our stars. This could be particularly effective in turning Gibbs into a player as good a, if not better than A.Cole.
 
However, Capello and his almighty stubborn ego seems to think that everything it just rosy as it is.  Last night, admittedly weakened by injury, a England side were held to a energy sapping 0-0 draw by the newest nation in International football, Montenegro. England were stuck for ideas when faced with a well disciplined side who clearly had done their research as they stifled anything England could produce.  In the end the minnows probably deserved the results, excluding a lucky penalty decision and a few great saves by their keeper.  Unfortunately in this game Capellos stance on how he intends to advance with England was made blatantly obvious.  As we struggled to break down the well ordered Montenegro side he had two options to turn to on the bench - 33yr old bruiser Kevin Davies or the young talented 18yr old Jack Wilshire - who had been pulled from the U21s to be in the squad.  He chose the bulk of Davies for his international debut at 33yr old, changing nothing in our style of play, thumping balls at Davies instead of Crouch.  Wilshire would have been perfect, replacing the slow passing of Barry with his quick and clever passing and movement that I believe would have resulted in a goal.  Davies stats say it all (credit to @OptaJoe):
 
Mins played: 20
Shots: 0
Passing Accuracy: 43%
Fouls Conceded: 3
Fouls Won: 1
Yellow Cards: 1
 
So with Capello at the helm it is obvious that nothing is going to change regarding our style of play or the members of the squad.  I find this terribly disappointing as i genuinely thought he was going to bring a new image to England.  Unless?! After yesterdays match Capello stated he "wanted to look at some new players" from the "U21s" and so maybe it is not over just yet.  We can only hope these players who come in really show their full potential and prove to Capello they are worthy of coming into the senior squad in place of some other aging household names.  So come on Capello lets see you keep your promise, even if it is only two years and a World Cup failure later.
 
Until then,
GunnersaurusSays

Davies recieves yellow minutes after coming on for England debut 

(This is my first piece of writing and any feedback and following would be thoroughly appreciated)

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