By Billy the Dog McGraw
It was a week of high pleasure and much rejoicing as the news finally broke about me ol’ mucker Dennis B. We had of course both been malarkying around the cement factory watching his statue reach God-like proportions and having the drunken warlords who scribble for our nation’s national newspapers, fall over themselves to try and find something negative to say about Arsenal’s latest statue (the fourth) at the Ems and about Dennis himself. They failed.
Dennis and I were having our regular get-together at the Executive End of the Enfield Allotment where we seem to spend increasing amounts of time contemplating climate change and the decline of Torquay United as an attacking force.
Mr B was doing the occasional forking over the ground which seems to be incumbent upon allotment owners at the start of March, while I chose to spend my time in a more contemplative mode.
“You like it then, the statue,” I asked eventually as Dennis turned one more sod with a quick flick of the boot against the bifurcation.
Dennis looked up, and then down on me (him being the taller of the two by several centi-inches). “An honour,” he said at last. “I was shocked, amazed, astounded and amused. The goal – ‘that goal’ as you English like to call it, was practised, rehearsed, tried, tested, and eventually used to torment. Were you there?”
I admitted I was, and that my screams of delight could be heard across six independent nations as the move was executed. According to the good lady wife (favourite saying, “if it quacks like a duck, walks like a duck and swims like a duck, it hasn’t been in the microwave long enough”) my mouth then got locked in the open position, a position that could only be relieved by pouring copious amounts of vodka and ginger beer into the aperture throughout the subsequent evenings.
“We’ll never see the likes of that again,” says I, and he nods sagely in the way he does.
“So how do we beat Tottenham?” I ask him.
“Easy,” he says. “Do Bale in the first minute.”
“Isn’t that a bit Stoke-like?” I retort.
But he shrugs a Netherlandish shurg and turns another sod. Then, entering once more his reflective mood he says, “I don’t know if you know that sort of feeling you get on these days in early March, when the sky’s beginning to lighten a trifle, and there’s a breeze gently blowing up the A10. Romantic, if you know what I mean.”
I shuffle a few feet back from the old boy, and wait to see where this is going.
“I’m not much of a philosopher,” he continued, “but this morning it seemed to me that what I really wanted was some bright young lady footballer to buzz up and ask me to save her from the anarchists who run football throughout this benighted country and develop her footballing prowess so that she could show the world how it might be done.”
I looked at him carefully, and suggested we might meander across the North Circular and take a view of the offerings in the Duchess of Cambridge Tea Shop.
Dennis laid down his fork, and agreed.
Once there Dennis seemed to recover his spirits. “I’ll have a cup of cocoa, cold veal and ham pie, slice of fruit cake, and a macaroon,” he announced and I knew at once we were back on track.
In Society circles, I believe, the Duchess of C’s T Shop, as we know it on the A406, has a fairly fruity reputation as a purveyor of fine food. I don’t think I can remember a single meal there since I was a kid at Devonshire Hill Lane Primary which has not been something that should be entered in the Good Food Guide.
So we set about the food with a relish, but were interrupted a bunch of hearty ruffs in the doorway who broke into a chorus of “Walking in a Bergkamp Wonderland”. Dennis smiled benignly, until the police were called and the lads sentenced to six years exile in N17.
“The teams,” I say at last, and Dennis obliges…
“We’ve finished above Tottenham each year since 1995, largely because they get a nose bleed when they look down on us. They are unbeaten in 11, and that means they either have a megastar player in every position or else they will get beaten one day or another, and history shows when that happens they will fall apart.
“On the other hand at no previous time in history have we won 5-2 twice running. You could give them lasagne.”
I pondered this and phoned Mrs Dog to see if it could be done. She agreed it could so that’s one step forwards.
Dennis told me the teams…
Szczesny
Jenkinson, Mertesacker, Vermaelen, Monreal
Arteta, Ramsey;
Cazorla, Wilshere
Walcott, Giroud
“I also expect 50% of Diaby to play,” he concluded
“The fact is that we have recovered in the past from being 10 points behind the Tinies,” Dennis continued proving that the notion that he had concluded was somewhat premature.
On the beach we have:
Mannone, Miquel, Koscielny, Coquelin, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Dia, (or perhaps aby), Podolski (who I forgot totally last week, sorry), Rosicky, Gervinho.
“And the stats?” I asked.
“In the previous games the Tinies have won 309 while we have won 428 victories. So they have a long way to go to catch up. The Tinies also went ahead in both those 5-2′s. Olivier Giround will head the ball a lot (as he always does). Adebayor scored in both the 5-2s.”
“So its Lasagne and Adebayor?” I asked.
Dennis nodded, and turned another sod. I thought that was it, but he stopped turning, and suddenly asked, “What is the longest sequence Tottenham have had without winning a trophy? And when did they last win the league?”
I told him I had no idea about either – although I doubted that I was alive when Tottenham last won the league.
Recent posts…
The books…
- Woolwich Arsenal: The club that changed football – Arsenal’s early years
- Making the Arsenal – how the modern Arsenal was born in 1910
- The Crowd at Woolwich Arsenal FC: crowd behaviour at the early matches
- Royal Arsenal: from the Common to the Manor. Coming next.
The sites from the same team…
- Other Web Sites from the same team
- Referee Decisions - just what are the refs up to this season?
- Parent News - what is going on in schools these days?
- The weight loss programme: The only guaranteed way to stay fit
- The Arsenal History Blog from the AISA Arsenal History Society
- Untold Dylan - the music, the lyrics, the meaning
- The Massage Centre, serving Northants and Rutland
- Teacher News – UK schools from the teachers’ perspective
- UK Education News - rolling news service
Doublegooner, No my job involves keeping the population of England safe. What does your job entail?
Arronz, From you I take that as a compliment.
@Untold, you run the risk of having all your hard work undermined, I understand the need for objectivity but that shouldn’t encompass just this site. There are many platforms for these negative, media brainwashed dickheads to view their opinions. The minority, are places such as untold, Its a shame but you really should protect what you have started.
At the moment you are allowing this negativity to be spread.
Aaronz, Please explain why people like me are responsible for (in your opinion) Arsenals decline.
Also, what type of person you perceive me to be?
@Adam
Support the club, question the club. But don’t rejoice in a loss or hope for us to lose.
Maybe its about time this site revisited its decision not to sensor(sic) its commenters. We need positivity not these idiots who think their thoughts are their own.
Let them read the site. but don’t give them a platform to spread their bullshit.
- See more at: http://blog.emiratesstadium.info/archives/27613#sthash.fgXR9g4i.dpuf
I’m with you.
Today was sort of funny for me watching as I wanted both teams to come away with no points.So whilst not a 100% good day for me wasnt that bad
You came flying out of the blocks and seemed to have a clear offensive game plan and that seemed to knock Spurs off their plan someone forget to tell your covering midfielders that part of their role was to cover and then someone clearly tried to play the high line. You havent got the players with the defensive skills to play in such a way.
Spurs are at the top of their game it would be stupid to suggest otherwise just as it is strange to suggest that other than Man U you are favouites to take 3 points in your other games. Swansea for instance are far from mugs.
Chelsea, Spurs and Arsenal will all drop points in their last ten games an I wouldnt want to predict what added pressure players will come under as the season draws to a conclusion.
@adam and these other twits rasing arms about these call to ban…ban for what eh you idiots? for telling the truth? for saying this team is absolute shite? for saying we haven’t and wont win nothing with this clown at the helm?> Get to reality you wenger smoking weeds. fo you remember Gallas was stripped of the captain’s armband when he was with us and one of our best defenders and now we have a dummy for a captain who is obviously the worst of the three central defenders. How much longer can we live with him? AW is just a fool for turning a blind eye or staying loyal to players who do not deserve it. First goal Mert played Bale on and second goal the dummy in Vermelen was watching how nice the run of Lennon was. I am sick of so called first-team players playing below par and getting on week in, week out. After all the hard work done by the midfield our central defenders gifted them two free goals. Sad the best defender we have had to sit and watch some clown play just because he is captain. Poor man management once again.
So you still cannot tell me what sort of person you think I am then?
Cheers Mike, You are a Chelsea fan if I remember right?
Question for you.
How well do you think would Chelsea have done since Abramovich took over, if they had had Wenger at the helm?
@aaronz, What did you think of Monreal handing over Lennon (at full speed) to a static Vermaelen?
Podolski is way better than Giroud but you cannot expect Wenger to pick his players based on merits and quality. It’s favouritism, pure and simple! Favouritism to the detriment of the team.
Once again Wenger showed the world how incompetent he can be. After all these years, he still has no clue how to sort the defence. Top manager? Don’t make me laugh! To organised a defence and make your team defend as a unit you don’t need a sheikh Mansour or Abramovich to give you millions to spend. But Wenger doesn’t understand the basics. Pathetic!
Actually, under Wenger, Vermaelen has gotten worse and worse as a player. This speaks volumes about Wenger’s lack of defensive acumen.
The worst thing is spuds didn’t even look that good. A half decent team could do the job, but Arsenal is plagued by an incompetent manager, so this defeat came with no surprise(once again stupid defensive mistakes).
Wenger has destroyed his legacy and many supporters can’t wait to see the back of him.
Wenger is now just a delusional, arrogant and egotistical fool with nothing to show off.
When you see Spuds and Chelsea supporters singing ‘Wenger, we want you to stay’ you know pretty well things are terrible and change is desperately needed.
And as usual the rats came out the sewer they are hiding in when we win a game.
I couldn’t see the game as I had to do my own game today but when I read the reports from media outside England it looks as if Arsenal was the better team but didn’t put it on the scoreboard.
Maybe it was written in the stars that the outcome of both the NLD would be the same as last season.
Maybe it is written in the stars that the outcome of the season will be the same as last season?
I’ll say it again and again we have been undone by an inept display of management from The Dictator. He picked the wrong side, employed the wrong formation, made the wrong substitutions and compounded it by not taking off Giroud who was our poorest player. Our defending has been a joke for 6 years, the fact anyone can actually think it’s good, needs to be sent to a doctor. Our players push up far too high, and when players run at us they back off and back off. It’s amateurish, you wouldn’t see that sort of tactic employed in pub football, especially when our two cenre backs are so slow. Monreal doesn’t impress me one bit, another poor signing, our best outlet Jenkinson gets taken off and Wenger moves Ramsey there WHY? Arteta and Cazorla went around in circles, Jack played on his own and Theo was again played out of position. Wenger and Bould obviously just dont get on and the Dictator is becomming even more stubborn if that’s possible. Trust me, this is only going to get worse unless Wenger is sacked, a lot worse.
Geez,
some really are enjoying this.
@Adam, banning people hardly seems like a constructive way to deal with forceful opinions. Reasoned arguments are the best way of responding but I’m afraid after yet another defensive horror show and what may well be the game that kills of any CL hopes for next year one has to expect an outpouring of emotional ire.
This season has been one long slump with utterly inexplicable losses to lower league teams in cups and poor performances against what used to be our main rivals for honours plus the usual capitulation to relegation fodder.
Nothing has improved and really anyone who still believes Wenger is the manager to take Arsenal any further is probably too hooked on nostalgia. The guy should be gone at the end of the season and certainly not given a new contract but I suspect the board are too in awe of him to do what needs to be done.
Not sure how you think Arsenal are in a great position to win the league in the next few years Adam but I do admire your optimism.
And you all can say it again and again and again each time when we lose.
And then you stay away from Untold when we win.
If you don’t want to enjoy a victory together with us, there is no need to come here when we lose. You go to those sites where you go when we win.
@Walter, we didn’t win, we lost.
Yes we had lots of possession but as usual did little with it. Sound familiar.
It would still not surprise me if we DID manage to finish 4th, although I sincerely hope we don’t. Next few fixtures for the Spuds are difficult, whilst we could pick up a lot of points from the next 6. The defence is a genuine embarrasement. Is there honestly ANY coaching that takes place at the training ground?
There are only 2 ways “change” will come in the short term. If Usmanov / Arabs takeover the Board or the fans revolt against W@nger.
The 8 years of deterioration should be enough to make the fans constructively plan for a change….how do we get this properly moving ??
@walter, i disagree….there is nothing better than seeing arsenal winning and i have,sorry I HAD the utmost desire that it would be under wenger,the man who brought such great times for us BUT now I see a man who has lost his ways, blinded by his past success and failure to address the same glaring problem season after season is a joke. C’mon mate give up all the silly excuses,you are only conning yourslef.
aaronz
You hope we don’t get fourth?
First goal, Bale makes a run unchecked, Vermaelen steps up, instead of following the runner, but some people blame Mertesacker?
Second goal, Monreal tracks Lennon then stops, But some people blame Vermaelen?
No matter which way you look at this we see a back four who have only played together a few times, since Monreal’s arrival. Yet people want instant defensive stability. They say we have seen it all before.
Wenger out?
What some of you cannot understand is that football is a game based on mistakes. The team that makes the fewest mistakes usually wins. Today that was Tottenham at White hart lane our local rivals, so that hurts. If people think it doesn’t then they are mistaken.
Settled sides usually make fewer mistakes. We all witnessed how good Bayern are and how well AC Milan can defend. You can probably put Real Madrid in there as well for “drop and deny tactics”.
Arsenal do not play that way and will not under Wenger. How can a club such as Arsenal, who want to be the best in the world. Play a defensive game against our local rivals. Are you fucking kidding me.
We might as well pack it all in and say Tottenham are the better club not just the better team on the day. Neither of these are true, We are a club with huge potential. Tottenham have a long way to go before they can reach a position of sustainable challenges season after season. We on the other hand are not far from that.
Do you think that when Tottenham start building there bigger stadium, that they will be able to mount a challenge up the table? They will be lucky to be in the top half of the Premier league. Champions league football for spurs whilst rebuilding White hart lane? You are delusional.
Let them enjoy this win. We won 5-2 at home, so we have beat each other this season. 3 points a piece. We have scored 6 they 4.
You want defensive stability you have to keep your players together, When we went unbeaten we had the same back four together for 3 years prior to an unbeaten charge. But people want instant success without the background knowledge that goes with it.
Arm yourselves with information before mouthing off.
aaronz,
then where are you when we win a game??
aaronz,
yeah the dream £1.5B offer. So what about the FFP rules?? Use your brains please.
That route is closed down from the end of next and even this season.
And the invincible defense conceded 42 goals the season before we went a season unbeaten. And it included some of the greatest players we had in our history.
If we would have listened to some of you in the season we conceded 42 goals I’m sure that we would have sold the lot that went the season unbeaten after that.
If we would have listened we wouldn’t have gone a season unbeaten
Season 90/91 we conceded 18 goals and only lost once (to Chelsea if my memory is correct).
The next season we concede 37. Should we have sold Adams? Got rid of Bould? What of Dixon and Winterburn, Their shit sell em.
You want defensive stability, it comes with patience and allowing these players to learn from mistakes even if they happen again.
Remember “Donkey” Adams?
The season we only conceded 18 goals we had the same back four together for the previous 3/4 years. You want instant domestic success. Go support Chelsea or Man city and even then its not guaranteed.
We are the Arsenal.
Can i say that the Arsenal fans were an utter disgrace today with bananas being thrown at Bale and songs about coach shootings.It appears that falling behind Spurs on the pitch (and please don’t tell me we have a better squad),has brought the bitter,twisted side out of some fans.No class,shame on you.
I commented about the Villa game and I made it clear that an uncomfortable win against a shite team couldn’t hide the fact that Arsenal has serious problems.
It’s not about a win or defeat anymore. It’s about what has been going on for years at the club.
Wenger has been a disgrace and I won’t change my mind simply because the French manager keeps doing the same things every season without accepting any sort of accountability. He’s laughing all the way to the bank to collect his nice (and undeserved) paycheck with very little regard for the fans and the club.
UCL? Well, as soon as Arsenal face a good team they get knockout. We have no hope to win UCL under Wenger. Not even Europa League to be honest.
‘Oh, we need UCL to attract top players’. Just look at our squad. Most of the players are not good enough.
In fact, the quality of The Arsenal squad has deteriorated while the wage bill has increased significantly.
It’s becoming more and more difficult (and embarrassing) for the Wengerites to defy logic and come up with some lame excuses to protect their ‘Lord Wenger’.
We have a better squad:) There I’ve said it.
As Adam pointed out, the Totts are playing their best game in a long time. They are using their speedy players to great effect. We on the other hand have recycled the team almost completely in 3 years (Vermaelen was the only one from the current squad that played the NLD 3 years ago, as Sagna is injured), are struggling for attacking efficiency, and had more than the fair share of unfriendly refereeing (not today but it accounts for lost points – Chelsea anyone?). So don’t come with lines like that you false supporters. There are 10 matches left to play. A lot of things can still shake up. The ones that display such a negativity are either leading sad lives, have never known what a winning mentality is, or have no idea what keeping the faith means. Shameful either way for not doing anything about it.
@walter “but when I read the reports from media outside England it looks as if Arsenal was the better team but didn’t put it on the scoreboard.”
Not really Walter. Not incisive and a mess in defense.
Spurs were the better team, but Arsenal aren’t a bad team at all, just one plagued with self-doubt. And indeed on another day the same 11 could probably play Spurs off the park. The problem is as much mental as anything.
A ‘true’ Arsenal supporter telling spuds are playing their best game in a long time.
No, they’ve been decent and organised this season and AVB has a game plan but nothing to get excited about.
Wenger made easier for them when he once again opted for a high defensive line against very fast players (‘tactical genius’LOL) and stupid errors gifted spuds the two goals.
Please, let’s stop pretending the problem with the defence is something new, down to lack of time/stability/new players.
Wenger can’t coach defence to save his life. All the comic errors over the past years (when players had more time together) are more than enough to convince anyone about Wenger’s defensive problems.
Add to that Wenger’s apparent disregard for the goalkeeping position and the truth is staring you in the face.
Top 4 profit trophy again? Yes, this is ambition…Satan Kroenke’s pockets will be pleased.
Adam,Spurs’ new stadium is being paid for by a mixture of private investment and a huge naming rights deal.They will NOT be hamstrung like Arsenal have been with repayments.As soon as it is built,they will be able to spend all that extra revenue.Funnily enough,they managed to spend £50 mill on building the best training ground in Europe,and still managed to buy players.Who would have thought it? Just like the club,many Arsenal fans arrogantly assume that just because we built a stadium, we will always be ahead of Spurs.Sell our best players? Doesn’t matter,the cheaper alternatives will be just as good. High ticket prices?Doeswn’t matter,the ground will always be full.This crisis has been brewing for a few years now at Kroenkes’ Arsenal,where complacency and arrogance are the order of the day,and profits are king. Well,Spurs finally DO have a better squad than Arsenal,and Wenger is going to have to improve his performance in the transfer market, because his recent judgement has cost the club millions of pounds in fees and wages for players not fit to wear the shirt.He is living off past glories,and for every Henry or Pires,there is a Park,Gervinho,Squillachi,Mertesacker,Santos and Arshavin.How far £40 mill will go is a moot point,especially with no CL football on offer.One more point,why did the club not say that the Emirates deal is Performance related when they had their triumphant press conference? It was left to someone from Emirates to tell the truth about the deal.It will be nearer £100 mill if we consistently fail to get CL football,and therefore is actually NOT a good deal at all.I mean 5 years, and all the commercial team can come up with is a deal with an existing sponsor with penalties attached.Before anyone asks,yes i do remember the late 70′s and 80′s,and do not want a return to those days thank you,which is where i feel the club is heading,especially as the manager declared,for the SECOND time in a fortnight,that he couldn’t understand why we had lost a game.Well,if he can’t see the problems,then there is no hope.
Then we are DOOMED I say DOOMED.
Private financing? Do you know if that comes with interest or is it an interest free loan from sources unknown? (honest question I would like to know the answer to).
Do you know if any public money is going in to the project?
Are we looking at ENIC as sole owners of the future White Hart Lane (NDP) or will the investors own a percentage?
Naming rights for the stadium (NDP)will go to funding the stadium build. Investors only invest to see a return on their money, how will Tottenham be able to use the added income straight away? Also the new development carries over on to the old property so we should see phases of construction with Tottenham moving in to and playing in an incomplete stadium. With a finished capacity of 56,000 one wonders how many supporters will be allowed in to an incomplete building site to watch football matches?
This money will not be used to fund the squad. So that’s one source of income already chewed up for many years to come.
What I don’t understand is why would Tottenham use a FFPR friendly financial resource such as naming rights, to finance the build they should hold that back for squad improvement or wages and look for more private investment that will not have to meet FFPR. Why waste the source of income?
Surely their partnership with Sainsbury’s new investors will help with financing. I.E Qatar?
Arsene’s way is all about offensive/defensive play as an unit, which means no ‘park bus’, no talk about defence first attack later. The only time in recent games I’ve seen Arsenal being pinned back was the win against Barca at home. But it’s because Barca was that good in possession and nothing we could do to turn it at around except in a counter attack when they did lose the ball. You see, Arsenal enjoys possession in most of the games played at the EPL, either by their own skill or by other’s tactics of defending around their own half. Nothing really changed since Arsene took command. The only difference is the change of players. That’s the crucial point I’m trying to point out here. How well Arsenal performs as a team is all down to the players themselves, and the reality of it is Arsenal doesn’t have the required players in all positions to make a strong challenge to the top. Simple but true. Sad !!
You moaned a bit about Arsenals deal, but this deal is only for 5 years. By the time Tottenham actually move in to their completed stadium we will be looking to renegotiate.
sperez,
Yes, their best game and yet they are only decent:)
At both goals, the scorer made a run behind Vermaelen, so he couldn’t see them, and there was a lack of communication between the defenders, otherwise the runs would have been tracked down. It was always a risk, and we paid for it, as Nacho had 3 matches at Arsenal under his belt, and I’m not sure about his English speaking abilities.
But I wonder what kind of tactical genius you are for making such allegations as “Wenger can’t coach defence to save his life”. You must be coaching what team exactly? Oh I forgot it’s called Fantasy Football. Well stay in your fantasy land if you can’t find a positive way to deal with the reality.
@Adam
In truth AW wouldnt have survived at Chelsea under RA for even a week. Come to that nor would SAF .
Why you may ask well quite simply football has changed and with the money and power the new breed of owners have (and I include your owner) they all clearly see the eueopean organisational model as being more appropriate.
This model removes the coach/ manager from the player dealings, club administartion etc.When SAF & AW leave you too will proably adopt the same model. In reality the modern coach doesnt deal with player recruitment, scouting,contracts sports medicine each department is manged by specialists and even when the caoch gets sacked these departments carry on working to the director of football just as the caoch does.Its the DOF that deals with the owner not the manager
AW is into too many areas at your club.He would have wanted to adopt the same stance at Chelsea and that would never have happened.
The job has changed and AW hasnt whereas SAF has. He, SAF is unique and when he goes it will be difficult for MAn U because they wont just have to change manager but they will also have to change the structure within their club.
The suprise is why your billionaire owners are allowing it to happen.Had you won a lot of things then you could undestand why just like SAF at Man U so the question is what do your owners see as success? If sucess is the balance sheet , which it seems it is, then there is a problem brewing there.
On Sky yesterday they looked at your owner plotting his other sports companies and whilst the concensus was that they all perform well in cash terms the on field sucess isnt anything to celebtate. The view of the sports journalists was that AW hasnt the access to the funds that people are suggesting.
I had read that some £70 million will be made available come the summer but it seems that this sum is the contract cost meaning transfer fee, agents and other costs and wages. So when you think two £100k a week players will cost in excess of £50 million over a 5 year contract meaning £70 million wont quite buy as much as you would think.
@Mike T. Kronke seems quite happy to let his US teams flounder as long as they bring in profits. I expect we’ll get the same treatment. Personally I want rid of him asap but I imagine we’re stuck with him for quite some time. Things may change because English fans maybe more vociferous than their US counterparts and Kronke may get tired of the opprobrium but I think that’s wishful thinking on my part. I think we have many years in the wilderness to look forward to.
@Rupert
Love your comment about English fans being more vociferous lets face it Man U fans have had lots to say about the Glazers but hard nosed absentee owners dont give a toss about the supporters weraing yellow and green they care about the return on their investments.
For me its very interesting, no amusing, how so many Arsenal supporters have such strong anti feelings about benefactors, inventing phrases or should I say adopting Wengers language but the same people ignore what is going on in ownership terms at Arsenal and are in denial about what is likely to happen in the future.
Mike, cheers for the reply, and food for thought.
Adam,i just googled Spurs stadium and read a load of articles! Yes,they are getting some public money for “regeneration” of the local area,i would assume private investors WOULD want some sort of return, and the club has been looking for a 200 mill naming rights deal.They have already spent 80 to 90 mill on work at the site,i assume much of that has gone on buying up the surrounding properties.Given that ENIC is a rather secretive organisation,and given Levy’s business acumen,i really wouldn’t rule out them getting that naming rights deal,especially with CL football and a superstar player in Bale.BTW,Barca have just done a 50 mill a season,front loaded deal with Quatar airlines if anyones interested.
@Linz
How do you allow yourself such an unhealthy interest in all thing Spurs?
@Mike T, Manu fans’ ire has been somewhat diluted by the fact that their club wins trophies frequently and buys players that are of a superior calibre, certainly to any we buy. I wonder how loud they’d get if they had as little reward as we’ve had in recent years.
@ Rupert
Good question and my guess is that time will come when SAF waves a cheerful goodbye. Hic!And I suspect that will happen a fair bit more when AW leaves.
SAF , just like Sir Matt Busby are/were the glue that held their club together and just as when Sir Matt retired SAF`s shadow, when he goes, will be every where at Old Trafford .
Its worth remembering that after Sir Matt retired Man U went 20 odd seasons without winning the league they were a club struggling with itself and although I very much doubt the post SAF era will see two decades of not winning the league I suspect that they will never replicate this, their golden era.
In a way the fact that AW has been in charge at Arsenal for so long may well cause much the same sort of problems at Arsenal.
The irony is people talk about Chelsea not being able to attract top managers I wonder despite the obvious attraction will the ghosts of the three long term managers(AW, SAF and Moyes at Everton) haunt their eventual successors?
@ Rupert
Good question and my guess is that time will come when SAF waves a cheerful goodbye. Hic!And I suspect that will happen a fair bit more when AW leaves.
SAF , just like Sir Matt Busby are/were the glue that held their club together and just as when Sir Matt retired SAF`s shadow, when he goes, will be every where at Old Trafford .
Its worth remembering that after Sir Matt retired Man U went 20 odd seasons without winning the league they were a club struggling with itself and although I very much doubt the post SAF era will see two decades of not winning the league I suspect that they will never replicate this, their golden era.
In a way the fact that AW has been in charge at Arsenal for so long may well cause much the same sort of problems at Arsenal.
The irony is people talk about Chelsea not being able to attract top managers I wonder despite the obvious attraction will the ghosts of the three long term managers(AW, SAF and Moyes at Everton) haunt their eventual successors?
Florian, I am not blind. The whole world can see Wenger CANNOT coach defence to save his life. I have all the previous seasons of comic mistakes to prove my point. And you? Stop being so deluded.
There are defensive mistakes so basic, so fundamental that even a pub team would have performed better.
Besides, Wenger is a tactical clown. Even Fabregas, during the World Cup, told nobody at Arsenal studied the opposition. How can anyone know about tactics if there’s no regard for the opposition?
Sprerez, how do you go a season unbeaten in the league if you cannot coach? When they were on a level playing field, David Beckham had a boot kicked at him causing injury by the much admired fergie because he told his manager ” wenger made a c@£t out of you” in an after match inquest when we had done Utd. You wenger haters love fergie so much, but wenger won the league at OT as he did at WHL. The only difference between wenger and Utd or anyone else these days on a consistent basis is money, not coaching
Mandy, how has someone who CAN coach completely forgotten about this over the past few years?
It’s common knowledge that Wenger was never that good about defence(he had knowledge of other things) He had players who didn’t need to be instructed about how to defend properly when he first joined the club.
Then, he brought a beast like Sol Campbell. Toure benefited from having someone like Sol as his defensive partner. Could we say the same if instead of Sol was Vermaelen?
Oh, the invincibles, many years ago. Wenger surviving on past glories…Wenger was a good manager, but now…
Let’s talk about NOW, this season.
Wasn’t Wenger brilliant when he put a high defensive line with a CB as slow as Mertesacker against the likes of Bale and Lennon?
Then, Wenger’s stroke of GENIUS, moving Ramsey to right-back.
He definitely knew what he was doing. What’s next? Szczesny as our main striker?
In case you didn’t notice, Wenger has lost the plot. C’mon it’s not so difficult to conclude that. You just have to see the games.
If Wenger is so good then why he has been unable to sort out the defence after all these years? Schoolboy mistakes all over the pitch year after year.
Why doesn’t he even bother about the opposition anymore? You change your tactics according to the opposition. So, let’s conclude something logic: to understand tactics you have to KNOW THE OPPOSITION.
Remember what Fàbregas said about Arsenal during the World Cup…
But let’s pretending everything is ok. Let’s pretend Monsieur Wenger’s incompetence is only down to money. He is as good as Fergie though the latter has adapted to the changes in football while the former keeps doing exactly the same things and spouting the same old tired excuses season after season.
Yes, money is everything. Forget about tactics, motivation skills,team selection, delegation, accountability, socialist wage bill…
How about swapping Wenger with a donkey then? At least it won’t cost £7.5m a year.