They’d lose those games instead of going up and then lose the lead. I mean don’t give them that much credit guys, they DID lose points already and though they didn’t lose a lead they just played badly. It’s time for our players to really focus and prove their worth.

PS: it’s so convenient now after a good long happy run that a draw would give the gloomers bashing rights to bash the team again. All of the sudden many of them popped up around the globe in front of their computers to smack the so called lack of quality in this team. Look at the table and you’d wonder “are we really in crisis?” “being 3rd with a game in hand?” “ohhhhhh we won’t win a thing with this squad, I really wish they wouldn’t ’cause they I’ll have to bite my own tongue and brains”

It’s very scary when being where we are and our own (so called) set of fans complain and bitch about their own player while giving a lot of cunts undeserved credits. Henry must feel like a little kid believing in this team and Wenger too right? By making stupid statements against Arsenal FC they’re insulting a person like Henry along the way too.

Yes the handball by Upson was a penalty. Upson threw himself to the ball with his hands out stretched. It doesn’t matter than if it is hand to ball or ball to hand, if you stick out your arm to make yourself bigger you have the intention to stop the ball at all cost so it was a penalty. On behalf of the defence of the ref I would like to point out that I don’t think he could have seen it because there was some players standing in the line of the ball between him and Upson. Typing this did hurt my fingers but I try to be honest so on this occasion must give him the benefit of the doubt.

On the RVP header, to be fair I think the player jumped in his back after the header but if I can bring myself to it, if I haven’t deleted the match om my digicorder, I will try to review it.

For the Alan – I never stopped hating the Arsenal since 89 – Hansen pundit comment: wrong, wrong and wrong. If the ref should have blown according to Hansen comment: “there was contact so it was a penalty” during his career I think Hansen would have conceded some 1989 penaltys.
There is no such rule in the lawbook that says: if you touch an opponont it is foul and/or penalty. Then you would have 10 or 12 penalty’s for every team each game. Cole fell to floor because he felt a contact but Song did not kick out at the feet of Cole to bring him down, in fact the contact was minimal.
It was a nice dive from a nice bloke. Did you see the interview with Cole after the game where he said he had to see it again on tv ? he just meant: I have to see it first because when I say I was really fouled I would make myself a liar. The smile on his face said enough to me. He(they) was searching for a penalty because they felt the ref had fallen to the pressure of the crowd and knew they would get it.

And for Hansen: I really would like to give him the advice to start a referee course and go and do some games yourself before making yourself ridicoulous with saying what is a foul or not. It’s not because you have played football that you know the rules. I could write a book about the silly interpretations given by players of the rules.
JC, I said I would be short….

Mannone, to me, clearly has better goalkeeping skills than Almunia. I just wonder how would Almunia had cope tonight. But saying that reminds me that without Vito we’d be 3 points worse that where we are right now. And that Green had to stick his leg against that ball huh, 3 inches further away from RVP’s afford would give us the win. Football sucks sometimes.

I just wish and hope that out bad breaks end tonight.

Fair play to Zola’s side though, I’ll be cheering for them for the draw tonight against any other team but us, the
way the at least tried to play and fight til the end did make me feel JUST a little less stomach ache.

I did say that we need to concentrate at all times, regardless of what the ref did wrong we should have cope better. But it’s not really a bad result you know, win the game in hand then we’ll match man u and be 2 points behind chelski.

Now, Just beat spuds next week!

We didn’t lose 2 points today, the ref took them away.

I hope I would have bet more money on my hunch this time…

Next up Gallas? Also one penalty denied from us already..

Rosicky is just a class footballer. He could literally play just about anywhere on the pitch. He is smart enough and disciplined enough to play DM and it is only a question of his fitness.

And about squad strength thing, I agreed that the other teams are not stronger than us at all. We only lack one ‘experience’ back up DM, the Djourou thing was unfortunate or else it won’t be a problem at CB. All teams have a place where if one get injured there’s not a proper replacement.

i cant see either gallas or vermaelen being rested so we should expect to see them up n down like proverbial yoyos.

i have a feeling that this forward play is yet another of arsenes little projects that he is perfecting on a game by game basis. last season after a rotten start he concentrated on defence and we went a good while unbeaten.

i feel that we will get to be more composed at the back while still allowing the yoyo boys to do their thing.

as has been said before, (ad nauseam) manu only dropped 2 points against bottom half opposition last season. this is a must win match for us, not least so that we can be above the spuds when we meet next week.

This is a good point Tony, however I hope he gets a yellow today, because that will be his fifth in the season and he will miss a game for it. If I am correct, domestic cups count in these games, and thus it would be the Carling Cup game. And he would not play in that anyway.

Marc, I don’t think Gibbs is very suitable for DM, not yet at least. He’s played in the flanks all his career so positioning in the middle would be problematic. Also he is very very left footed player and almost never does even the simplest of passes with his right. In midfield this can be exploited by the opposition and it looked to me that they did in some of last season games. It is something I’m sure they are working on and for basic passing it’s also a confidence thing.

The positioning thing also applies to Eboue. For Senderos it is not a problem. His passing is not as good as Song’s but it would be easy to open the game from Gallas or Vermaelen because obviously Phil can slot in when either of them go up. I still think that Denilson, Diaby and Ramsey are ahead of him for DM and Coquelin is right there with him.

Tuesday will be interesting, Rafa may see it as their best chance for silverware and field a stronger than expected team. In their last CC game, I think Torres and Gerrard were on the bench and came in late in the game. If Bendtner only gets something like 10-20 minutes today, I think he might start at Tuesdays game.

Exciting game today as well of course, West Ham can be a tricky opponent. Let’s hope that Arsenal is on it’s best form, RvP and Gallas are due a goal I think, so Hammers need to score at least two to get a point

sedo: my bad, Eduardo slipped my mind when I did the write-up. I blame the hangover!