Arsenal at the end of the world
By Walter Broeckx
Yes Sunday 31 January was the end of the world. We lost a home game against Manchester United with 1 goal against 3. The result made me sleep bad and again I was thinking: what if. And yes it did hurt me deep that defeat and I really didn’t think it was that deserved but I will try to analyze that.
Let’s start with the game. The first half our until Nani missed his cross, I will never believe he did it to score, we had more possession and were rather in control and had some good chances which we didn’t take. I know football is about taking your chances but these things can happen sometimes.
Sometimes the ball flies in from the goal line from an impossible angle and on the other side the ball always hits someone or a shot goes wide as you were sure we would score.
In such a game the first goal is vital and if we would have scored we would have won. Now they did score and for some reason a part of the team panicked and we ran out of position and gave them the second goal on a plate.
If we would have stayed calmer in those first minutes after the first goal we would have come back. But we committed ourselves too much and too early and paid the price.
United could play their favourite game on the counter and a for a few players the two goals in quick concession was a mental blow. They tried but maybe we didn’t believe in ourselves until our goal but then we had, again, made a terrible mistake by letting them score their second on yet another counter.
So yes we paid the price for the fact we ran out of position against one of the best teams in the league. And we lost 3 points. If I should believe some blogs we lost 30 points in this game.
But let us sit back and look at how a season goes sometimes. Last year in March Liverpool went to United and won 1-4. I know how the rivalry is between those two teams and apart from losing to City this is the game they never want to lose. But they did and they were well beaten with an even bigger score line then our defeat.
And what did the MU fans do? They went into hiding, had a bad taste in their mouth, and felt miserable for a few days. But I really don’t think they asked the head of Ferguson or one of their players. No they got behind the team in those difficult days and supported them and let them feel they still believed in them.
They knew that they had lost a battle but the war was still going on and they had only lost 3 points. Nothing more, nothing less. And at the end of the season, just 2 months later they were the champions and the humiliation against Liverpool was a long forgotten memory.
So shit happens sometimes and Sunday was a shit day for us, but if you step in to a dog shit on the street, you swear a bit, and then you have 2 options. Either you clean it up and carry on or you could go and sit in a corner ask for the prime minister to resign as he was clearly incompetent to deal with dog shit in the streets. Once again these things happen sometimes and it is all part of the game and part of being a fan.
The next day on the internet you could see what one could see coming if one understand the way the brains of the D and G brigade works. Of course the D and G brigade was asking for the sacking of everyone involved .
Wenger had to be sacked and all the team had to be sold or even given away to the spuds, the board had to replaced by some craze billionaire who would spent billions of money and buy all the shining superstars of the world at any cost. The only player who didn’t have to be given away was Cesc but according to them he is off to Barcelona anyway now. Pat Rice had to be given the empty (I read the book Making The Arsenal), the ground staff had to go, the ball boys had to go. If we would let the D&G brigade do we wouldn’t have a team to play on Sunday.
We would be like Chelsea in 1905 (sorry I’m on your territory again Tony), who in fact had a Football League club but no players, no officials, no staff, and no support.
When I see those things on the internet I really don’t know what is the worst thing: losing against MU with 1-3 or seeing all those so called fans asking the sacking of everyone involved ?
Yes I usually don’t sleep after a defeat and relive the game over and over again in my head. Yes it saddens me deeply to see our team lose but please keep some perspective on the facts. Like I said last year United had the same with the defeat against Liverpool. Those things happen to everyone at times.
The fixture list is difficult for us for the moment. We have still a fair number of important players out, the ones that have come back after months on the side line are not completely ready to compete at the highest level and we have some players that had to play so many games they are a bit tired.
And don’t forget players like Arshavin who are playing with pain every game but as we are short they play and others had to be prepared to play like Vermaelen. And in that period we have to play 4 top teams in a row. So even if we only get 5 or 6 points from those games then nothing is lost.
The other top teams have to play each other and in those games one or even the two teams will lose points. And then comes our moment. We then have to be ready and take all the points against the lower placed teams. This also will not be easy but WE can help our team, WE can help our players. Instead of asking all the players to be given away to the spuds – no real Arsenal fan can say such a thing I think – we should say: okay, bad day at the office but we are still behind you. Come on you Gunners we support you.
I once wrote some lyrics of what it means to me being a Gooner and somewhere in there I say something about losing a game, a thing that belongs to football like the ball, and I just want to share it with you:
And if defeat hurts us so bad, on a rare and seldom day
We will not desert you, our Gunners in arms.
Thanks Walter for this nice piece..
Although I saw some bad defending from Denilson in last 2 games but I would put it under the off say. Is it not better to look more at the brighter side than to look at the worse side.
Also Cesc said that even Messi would have struggled. I dont know how true it is but surely Man U played well and we had an off day. Why so serious..
Good response, Walter, but we were poor against Man Utd. I think you’re entitled to say that as a fan. We looked like winning the game at Old Trafford, but we lost it 1-2. And we lost at the Emirates 1-3, despite doing well in until they scored the first goal? Why not just say we’re not good enough? Even Wenger was dumb-founded by our performance. We’re not a title-winning side. 3rd place is a good accomplishment for this team, but it’l frustrating to look at the potential for this season, and the slide we’re in at at the moment.
it’s now a routine….ARSENAL lose – D n G group start asking for wenger’s head and predicting doom’s day….and here, same article gets repeated asking fans to be patient, giving financial conditions of some clubs, saying hw ARSENAL are different and hw everyone gonna sink except ARSENAL….
well any1 from above can be true as future is unpredictable bt for present ARSENAL are better than any1 in premier league but not good enough to come any where near top 2 which are man utd and chelsea..
so as this blog waits for clubs to go bankrupt….D n G waits for a refreshing change in club…that change may be competing for carling cup with full strength side so that team develops a winning mentality or may be signing someone which can instil winning mentality which is clearly missing in the current squad…..
enjoy the following upcoming days till sunday when arsene will be hit again by reality bomb…..may be these days are last days when u can rightfully call, ARSENAL title contenders….may be…. not….
Look I don’t really agree with any of this. I don’t really care if you l think I am a D&G merchant either. We know Arsenal can beat lower teams on a good day at home, but Arsenal’s recent record against Man U and Chelsea is awful and you are not identifying how that will ever change. I am not suggesting spending megabucks- only getting a better keeper and playing a tighter formation and buying a real striker. Tell me does that have to bankrupt us?
Thanks Walter, I needed this article.
I think I have D&G tendencies and watching the game on Sunday made me fear the worst but the people on this blog, writers and commenters (if that is the correct term), really help to get perspective.
After reading this bitter drival
http://www.arsenalnewsreview.co.uk/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=1513&cntnt01origid=30&cntnt01returnid=42
by king D&Ger Myles Palmer I came straight over here and feel so much better. We can’t expect to get three points every game and we’re still well on track for a good title push. The point about Liverpool last season is a good one and with teams around us dropping points to the likes of Hull, Burnley, Sunderland etc we can never be ruled out anything.
It’s just three points and we’re only six adrift.
its ok.still got time to improf.gunner play well that day but the defender no do their job.gallas and vermallan no need to score.their job is defending.pls do the thing.
I could live another 100 years, and watch Arsenal win the League in 99 of those, but I still would not get over this defeat.
I agree with well endowed gunner: 3rd place will be superb for this squad.We will still win the pound-for-pound trophy.
There are always 2 types of Arsenal fans, The Naive troll brigade and the D&G brigade as they call each other…..It’s not fair to allow one man run the team as if we had a poor farmers budget, at the same time it’s not right to go shopping with the credit card as if you won’t pay it back…I don’t believe anyone really wants to send Arsene packing, but we have seen a lot of clubs fire the manager for some decisions that are head scratching. I think the masses who are angry and i wouldn’t call them doom and gloom, are just fed up with the lies…If we don’t have it, then admit it, stop promising “2-3 quality players” every season or don’t sit on the shareholders meeting and tell them you have money to spend and you will win a trophy or 2, but treat the domestic cups as if you were playing the FA youth cup. Arsenal coould have built a lot of confidence by winning the Carling Cup…set the goals on a realistic level, the same way we won’t overspend for the sake of winning, we should wear our competition coats accordingly. We have a Carling\FA cup team at best, and until we win these, we should stop fooling ourselves. Whether the trolls loke it or not, “Money rules the world” and we don’t have that philosophy. Also tactics is just off…How we keep playing Arshavin (hurt foot) and Nasri and Rosicky as strikers, when we have 30million at hand is just not acceptable. Now i don’t like the d&g brigade, but i don’t like the “all is well, support the manager or go support spuds” brigade..you have no right to question anyones alliance to the club, if they wanted to support the scums, they’d be laughing at us not upset…”through anger, the heart speaketh”
There’s just tto much blind faith supporters on most of these blogs, always bashing others for being upset at obvious mistakes, I mean come on! When a manager purposely makes tactical errors and refuses to budge on anything realistic..what do you expect? playing yo-yo withthe club…it’s as good as wasting money when you can’t deliver the goods you promised or have a potential of delivering. I mean the blind faith in Denilson and Almunia, when there are better players available? spending 2,3,4 million on players that aren’t ready to start inthe EPL???? What was so wrong with getting in some English grit inthe squad??? What is so hard in bringing in some muscle here and there to compliment the technical players?? Go onkeep the “Faith” 5 years and counting….I support my club, i could careless about one man, if he cannot deliver the goods, then maybe he should move upstairs and cout the beans. Ambitious clubs do the business, they don’t hope other teams drop points or go broke to prove anything.
Sunday’s lost is just not January 31st alone, from last year, this has been repeated over, you would think a stubborn mule would move after being beaten the same way so many times.