Everton 1-6 Arsenal

You have to love the English press:

"Chelsea 2 Hull 1: Drogba gets Carlo era off to the perfect start"
2-1 at home to Hull is a perfect start? Then 6-1 away to Everton surely deserves:
"Arsenal wins league on first day"

I wrote a comprehensive analysis at half time, but I don't think I will go that route with the usual long description of the match and a comprehensive player rating. Instead I am just going to point to the key points and keep it sweet.

I would like everyone to keep their feet on the ground and head below the clouds because while Everton started well, they fell apart. If Arsenal keeps this up consistently week in week out then it will be another story.

1) Song
Song was great today. He was tidy, strong, and covered a lot of ground. He held the ball well and broke up a lot of attacks. Maybe he is the reason Arsene refuses to buy a new holding midfield as he is looking better and better.

2) Vermaelen
Vermaelen gelled in quite well with our defence. He was disadvantaged from the start against Fellaini but kept him quiet most of the game. His positioning and tackles were a highlight and generally looked quite lively. Something he seems to possess is awareness and intelligence, which I am sure will make this Gallas-Vermaelen partnership that much better. Theres nothing like two intelligent players linking up, offensive or defensive.

3) Goals
So only 1 goal came from our striker today, and to be fair it probably should have gone to Arshavin.. This is a positive sign. While strikers score the bulk of the goals, when the whole team chips in, it suggests we are playing like a unit.

4) Set-pieces
The set-piece goals were very impressive considering how much we feared them. Everton did not get to enjoy this advantage over us and instead we were the ones popping in the headers. We shall see if Arsene has actually addressed this area.

5) Formation
This new formation is quite interesting. It is not quite like Barca's traditional 4-3-3 system, but you can definately draw some comparisons. Fabregas and Denilson are going more forward with Song in behind. Arshavin and Bendtner wide and coming in to link up with Van Persie while the full backs provided the much needed width. While this leaves us vulnerable at times, it is very fluid and once we are used to it could be very interesting.

6) Bendtner
I left Bendtner last because I feel this is an important point. This lad was critisized and villified quite a bit, and I am glad his confidence is growing and as are his skills. He played wonderful today and I and lots of other fans expect a great deal from him this season. The talking point here is that instead of Van Persie on the wide, Bendtner goes wide. This is interesting because Bendtner enjoys a lot of aerial advantage over the usual attacking and compact fullbacks. This provides an outlet for our long passes as he will hold on to the ball and link up with options from midfield or strikers or our full backs. A target winger if you will.

We travel to Celtic next week for our crucial qualifier. This has been a great start to our new season and I cannot wait for our team to answer their critics and prove all the pundits and media wrong.

Arsenal to win the title and fight it out with Barca/Real in the CL!

In other news, Ade(insert joke involving barns and a person considered sexually promiscuous) scored for Man City, Villa lost at home to Wigan, and Fulham and Sunderland both enjoyed 1-0 wins.

Until next time, keep it Arsenalive!
Travis

Melo? + Playing out of position

I know that ever since Flamini, Gilberto and Diarra has left, our midfield had a large gap, one which Arsene attempted to fill with Diaby, Song and Denilson. Now we had an arguable poor season, seeing us again dropping out of the title race and fail to secure a trophy. This is the fourth consecutive year and we will definitely need to improve this as we are a quality side that deserves to win.

A lot of fans are calling for new signings in defense and especially the midfield. We already have a new center back coming in, and senderos returning on loan, so unless someone (toure/gallas/eboue/silvestre take your pick) leaves, we will not be signing any more defensive covers (sakho/naldo).

I know a lot of buzz has been generated aroud Melo, and I have to say I am not sure he is the answer to all our woes. Flamini played well with Cesc because he was a hard worker who covered a lot of ground and harassed our opponents constantly, and Melo is not the same type of player. Melo likes sitting back and covering the back four while Flamini ran up and down the field. Melo is definitely a powerful player, and you don't play for Brazil without being quality, but is he really what we need?

I wonder if our boss considered playing Nasri in a more central position. It seems that Arsene has taken a liking for playing players out of their preferred position and this really bothers me. We've seen how successful Henry's conversion was, but has Arsene lost the plot I wonder. Eboue converting to right wing, Fabregas behind the striker, Diaby thrown on the left, Walcott on the wings, Nasri on the wings, Arshaving on the wings. These aren't the natural positions for these players and I do not understand Arsene's reasonings behind these conversions.

Almunia
Sagna Toure/Gallas/Vermaelen Clichy
Walcott Nasri Fabregas Rosicky
Arshavin
RvP/Eduardo/Adebayor

I believe this formation would be the deadliest one we can field, with Nasri and Fabregas dictating play from the middle, while Arshavin playing that dangerous role just behind the striker. He can be our own steven gerrard.

What do you guys think?

Is this our season? Plus the summer so far.

Welcome back to the first article in around a month! I am glad to announce that the blog will be up and running again, so expect tons of articles in the future!

As we all know, we are what is in the midst of "silly season", where Arsenal is linked with at least 3 players a day, 7 days a week. Sadly this reduces us to nothing but a pack of hungry hyenas circling around NewsNow articles.

It has been quite an exciting summer so far. We have all heard about the Real Madrid dealings, so I won't talk about them much. I expect that the egos at the Bernabeu are big enough and the new signings wont be doing them any favors, but I'll save this for another article.

Arsenal completed their signing of the Ajax captain Vermaelen (whose name I still can't quite spell without consulting Google). I won't pretend I know much about him, but at least Arsene realizes he needs to sort out our defense and add some experience to the squad. I am quite pleased that we completed this signing so early, now we shall see if le boss has anything else planned for us. I expect some young signings, and depending on who leaves the squad (Adebayor/Eboue/Toure) we might see 1 or 2 replacements.

Man Utd just lost Ronaldo, and Tevez is leaving as well. No matter how much money they have, they will not be able to replace these two. Ribery is a pale imitation of Ronaldo at best, while good. Benzema won't be able to cope with the EPL as well and noone works harder than Tevez (cept maybe Rooney and Kyut). VdS is also past his prime, and they will need a good replacement keeper, as well as a full set of fullbacks, and a LOT of work in their midfield.

Chelsea has an aging squad, Drogba is old and no longer in his prime (same can be said about Ballack). Lampard is overrated. The only quality player they have is Essien. But the biggest esset they lost is Hiddink, that man is a genius tactitian. We will see how well Ancelotti fares at such a club, after someone as brilliant as Scolari was sacked within a season.

Liverpool is losing Mascherano to Barca because his wife just had a kid and she doesn't want to return to England. Alonso refuses to commit a long contract and he could be on his way as well. The fact that they couldn't even compete with Man City for the 12 million signing of Barry tells you of their financial situation. They desperately lack in defence and another striker to partner Torres, so I think they will struggle next season.

I know this is silly, but THIS IS OUR SEASON. I hope Arsene realizes this, but this is our season to steal back the EPL and have a good run at Barca in the champions league.


Now here is a little squad analysis for our up and coming season, divided up by position.
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GOALKEEPER
Almunia has become quite solid, so no need to buy a replacement. Definately one of the better keepers in the EPL, other than maybe Reina. Maybe someone for reserve because Fabianski is still a little shaky at times.
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DEFENSE With the recent addition of Vermalean, our defense has improved a lot too. This guy (so I hear) is a tough tackler and strong in the air. I want to keep Eboue as cover for right back, and with Traore coming good we will be covered for Clichy too. Toure wants to leave, which is sad because he was quite the player before Malaria struck. Gallas is still solid and I vote to keep him for one more season. What I do know is that I don't want to lose Senderos and Toure without replacement.
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MIDFIELD
Last season, we lost Diarra, Gilberto and Flamini all in midfield only to be replaced by Song Denilson and Ramsey, who couldn't get the job done (don't get me wrong they improved lots, but they aren't quite there yet). Now imagine if we add just one tough strong midfielder (Melo has been tossed around plenty of times), to add the experience to partner Cesc and tutor both Denilson and Song.

Now the biggest problem we have is on the wings. I don't like how Diaby/Nasri/Arshavin is always stuck on the wings. Arshavin deserves to play through the middle like he is used to, and so does Nasri. Walcott needs to be more decisive and not just play with his pace. If Rosicky is as good as he was prior to his (how many years has it been) injury, then he should be a fine addition to the squad. The season before we did well because Clichy and Sagna's overlaps and crosses were good, but this was not the case last season and Arsene needs to address this.
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STRIKER
Eduardo hopefully can return to his tip top finishing form. I remember prior to his injury he was amazing. I hope he returns to his best. Van Persie is on the verge of a new contract, which is good I suppose. I know he is technically gifted, but I've always felt his attitude wasn't the best. I recall he was sold by Fernabache because of his attitude problems. And he certainly has quite an ego as well. Bendtner is one player I feel will become better and better as time goes on, and he is starting to grow on me. I know a lot of fans don't like him but I am willing to stick by him for a couple more seasons. Vela needs time, he was really hyped up and this didn't help him settle in.

Now I know most fans want Adebayor out, and I would agree because his attitude and work rate has been horrible, but I don't know if Arsene can find a replacement. AC wants Dzeko more than Adebayor, and with the Kaka fees burning a hole in their pocket, I am sure they will get him. So we won't get Dzeko, and we won't be able to sell Ade. So lets hope this season he gives us his best and return some of the support we the fans have shown him.
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I hope you all are enjoying the confederation cup as much as I am, at least it keeps me busy from all the gossiping.
Until then, keep it Arsenalive
Travis

Picture courtesy of Arsenal.com

Temporary

The blog has been dead for a week or two. There are several reasons for this.

One, I have no access to internet, and it is increasingly difficult to blog an article every week about our team, as much as I want to. I have to come to the school computer just to check my emails. Trust me being cut off from the internet is not fun.

Second, I am disappointed with the team. Yes I watched the game against Man Utd where we lost it within the opening minutes. Yes I watched us get trashed by Chelsea at home for the biggest defeat. Yes I watched the game where Man Utd won the title.

School's been busy, I am in a tough program right now and I will try to put aside some time to blog but it is really hard.

Anyways look forward to more articles as the summer rolls on, maybe we shall see some changes to the team. Here's hoping for an exciting transfer window, maybe I will have my internet running by then.

Arsenal Eases By Pompey

picture taken from Setanta Sports

8 changes to the starting XI from Wednesday saw Arsenal outplay Portsmouth away 3-0, keeping Arsenal on a 21 game undefeated streak.

Arsene Wenger rests several key players ahead of what promises to be a fierce semi-final second leg with Man Utd headed to the Emirates with a 1 goal lead. Captain Fabregas is rested and the armband is handed to Arshavin.

Arsene came out in the press this week and announced that England will need the fine goalkeeping of Almunia for the World Cup 2010 campaign, after his impressive display limited Manchester United to just one goal, effectively keeping Arsenal in the tie. The current keeper David James, will not have done himself any favors when his mistake led to the opener from Bendtner.

Arshavin earned a controversial penalty which Bendtner (who else was nervous haha) put away.

Arsenal wrapped things up when Carlos Vela came on and scored a skillful goal against the run of play.

It has to be said that Arsenal was back to their fluid movements and passing today and while the team is lacking experience, the fans got a glimpse of what our youngsters are capable of.

Arshavin has been something of a creative force this season, 11 starts sees him with 6 goals and 9 assists. That is what a world class player can do for you, Arsene hopefully has learned his lesson. Arshavin was bought at an absolute bargain price, with the likes of Tottenham paying much more for players like Bentley. I have absolute confidence Arsene will have learned his mistake and we shall see an overhaul of the team in the summer.

I've decided to drop the player rating system, as it is unoriginal and done way too much. Instead from now on we shall have a Key Man Watch, and a somewhat brief description of the performance. This blog will focus more on unique and interesting articles from now on, such as the views of fans, team analysis, etc.

Arsenalive 'till we die,
Travis

Player Analysis and Rating V Manchester United

Arsenal fans will be breathing a sigh of relief, as a superb (to say the least) display by Almunia ensured the loss was manageable and only 1-0.
_____

Match Summary:
From the start the game was high tempo by the home side, not allowing the visitors to settle. Within the opening 10 minutes or so, United bossed Arsenal around the pitch, holding down possession and playing a penetrative game down our left hand side. Ronaldo drew in both Gibbs and Song, allowing space on the right for O'shea to burst forward. Our defense struggled to contain the dynamic runs of Rooney combine with the work rate of Tevez and the blistering pace of Ronaldo.

From the beginning a looping header from Rooney nearly finds the net, as Almunia leaps back to dip the ball that looked destined for the net.

Arsenal simply failed to hold down possession and gave the ball away. With Adebayor as the only outlet, the pressure was constant from Man Utd as they bombarded down the right hand side. Almunia made a fantastic save to deny Tevez's close range effort.
Arsenal conceded a goal in the 17th minute from the resulting corner. Carrick dribbled into the box and a low cross deflected off of Silvestre and found O'shea waiting at the far post (Completely Unmarked I might add), who blasted the ball through the roof of the net.

Another cross from Tevez found Ronaldo and needed another world class save from Almunia.

Walcott had a tough evening against Evra, who managed to keep him quiet most of the time. Fabregas scoffed a shot or two and had one saved by Van der Sar (who had little to do all match).

Tevez again burst through the center and Almunia had to put his body on the line to smother the ball. Tevez collides into the keeper, kicking him in the chest and chin, and is booked. Simply brave from the Arsenal keeper.

Arsenal started to settle into a bit of possession after the initial 30 minutes of anarchy. It has to be said that their attacks lacked any form of penetration, with Adebayor often dropping too deep to be a threat, and Fabregas left with little options as the midfield was pinned back. Walcott was kept quiet and offered one or two flashes of brilliance but was mostly disappointing.

Second half saw a much more calm Arsenal side poke the ball around the United box with little intention of scoring. A sideways pass to the wings, a pass back, a one-two with the keeper, you get the idea. United looked a lot more passive and has withdrew a bit, allowing Arsenal a bit of possession.

Giggs is thrown on along with Berbatov. Ronaldo almost scores a scorcher from distance that clatters off the crossbar. Bendtner is also thrown into the mix for good measure. A goal from Giggs was "declared" onside by the commentator and rounds about Almunia for what looked to be the second goal, but was actually offside. Bendtner had a chance as Fabregas lofts a teasing freekick into a sea of 10-12 bodies. Van der Sar comes flying and takes out about half of them, but Bendtner gets his head to the ball somehow, and heads it towards the stands, away from the net.

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Player Ratings:

Almunia: 8.5
The one player on the pitch that looked like he wanted the team to win the match. Very solid goalkeeping, glad to have you back Almunia.

Gibbs: 6
Started the tie nervously, but played better towards the end. Offered some penetration going forward, but struggled initially keeping control of the left flank. I will be very glad to have Clichy back because he is still very shaky, the experience will do him good.

Toure: 6
Covered well in defense on several occasions. His pace offered some protection against the runs of Ronaldo, Rooney and Tevez.

Silvestre: 6
Much more solid in the back than the Liverpool game. His lack of pace however saw him struggle to keep the United front line quiet.

Sagna: 6
Average performance from Sagna. His scintillating bursts forward last season has been toned down due to his inability to cross the ball. Did well against Rooney on the flanks covering.

Song: 5.5
Song had a hard time with the United and gave away possession on occasion was the general opinion of the other writers (hence the adjusted rating). I felt that he played well today, yes there were some mistakes but I felt he was one of the hard working players today and deserved better from his teammates.

Nasri: 6
I know he is a good player, good dribbling, vision, passing, just needs to get in the game more. Didn't see him at all first half. Hopefully he will be allowed to play in the center, as he looks much more comfortable there.

Diaby: 3
Gave the ball away in dangerous areas, dribbles into several players, passes go astray, offer nothing in offense..

Fabregas: 5.5
Not his usual creative self. Struggled to dictate play, and had several opportunities to test the keeper but failed to do so. Suffering from having to constantly track back and ease the tempo of the game, and had little options up front.

Walcott: 6
Had one or two runs against the United defense, other than that pretty quiet. Expect more from him next game.

Adebayor: 5
Worked hard but was starved up front. Drifted too deep and wide to be of any contribution to the attack. Lacked the aerial domination offered last season, and generally looked sloppy. Review the offside rules thoroughly before playing again.

Bendtner: 5.5
Had a half chance but opted to pass to Fletcher instead. Also had a header way off target when anything towards the direction of the net would have meant an equalizer. Sigh same old Bendtner.

Eduardo: n/a
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Generally Arsenal fans will hope the team can perform much better at home next week. It is hard to see where the goals will come from if the team continues to play like today. Man Utd will be in the driver's seat with this goal, and they will be looking to score away from such a weak defense. Very lucky to escape with 1-0, could have easily been 2 or 3.

Vote for your player of the game on the poll on the side (Almunia cough cough).

Until next week,
Travis

pictures taken from telegraph.co.uk

Man Utd V Arsenal

Perhaps the greatest rivalry in the EPL, these two are the best managers in the game. Both have command absolute respect and control, and achieved great things with their respective clubs.

Arsenal has had a disappointing (relatively) campaign, and lost recently in the FA semi-finals against Chelsea with a controversial team selection from Wenger. With only the Champions League left and fourth spot cemented, Arsenal will be looking to reach the finals of the Champions League for only the second time in the club's history.

Manchester United on the other hand go into the clash as favorites. With the league pretty much wrapped up, will look to be the first team in the competition history to retain the trophy.

Played 37; Manchester United - 14 wins; Arsenal - 15 wins; Draws - 8

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Manchester United V Arsenal: Wednesday April 29, 2009

Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester

Kick off: 1945 BST; 1445 EST

Arsenal Team News:
Plagued by injuries, Arsenal are missing a good chunk of their defense. Young full back Gibbs is a doubt, struggling from an ankle injury, while Silvestre is also a doubt after back problems sustained from the Boro game. Clichy (back) is reported to be 50-50 for the second leg next week. Gallas (knee) is out for the rest of the season. Robin Van Persie has a groin problem and will also miss the leg. New signing Arshavin is inelligible.

Possible Line-up:
-----------Almunia------------
Sagna-Toure-Djourou-Gibbs
---------Song-Denilson
----Walcott-Cesc(c)-Nasri
-----------Adebayor

Subs: Fabianski, Bendtner, Diaby, Eboue, Silvestre, Ramsey, Eduardo


Manchester United Team News:
Gary Neville is out due to a foot injury. Ferguson will have a hard decision to make with his forward line up, with Tevez expressing concern at the lack of first team starts. Tevez came on at half time during the weekend clash with Tottenham and inspired a come back for the Red Devils.

Possible Line-up:

-----------Van der Sar-----------
O'Shea-Vidic-Ferdinand-Evra
Ronaldo-Scholes-Carrick-Park
-------Rooney-Berbatov-------

Subs: Foster, Brown, Evans, Rafael, Nani, Giggs, Tevez


Both teams have been shaky lately in Defense. Arsenal are missing many key players in defense, and have had a hard time against the likes of Liverpool and Chelsea. Silvestre in particular has been identified as the weak link in defense along with young Gibbs, who will have his hand full trying to deal with Ronaldo and Rooney. Nasri will have to constantly track back in support of Gibbs.

On the left wing, Evra will have his hand full with young Theo Walcott, whose blisttering pace and runs have wrecked all sorts of havoc for teams. Ferguson will most likely deploy Park on the left wing instead of the veteran Giggs for support.

In the middle of the park, Arsenal will have the option of parterning Cesc with Diaby, Denilson, or Song. Song has been the subject of much praise from the fans and will attempt to take control of the midfield. Diaby has been inconsistant in form and Denilson has proved to be distinctively average during his recent performances. Both youngesters will have to step up to the occasion if Arsenal are to gain anything from the tie. Man Utd however, have arguably the weakset midfield of the so-called "big four", and if Arsenal can keep possession and control of the middle, we will have a much easier game.

Up front Man Utd are very strong, with the excellent link-up play and skills of Berbatov and the work rate and pace of Rooney and Tevez. Look for Rooney to drift onto the wings and exploit open space with his runs. Arsenal will deploy a lone striker once again in the form of Adebayor. We will need the extra man in midfield to help control the flow of the game, and we pretty much have no other options due to injuries.

I watched the Barca-Chelsea game today, a 0-0 draw at Camp Nou. Chelsea packed the midfield with the likes of Mikel and Essien, and Barca struggled with the physical side of the game as they were unable to break down Chelsea's defense. Overall Barca dictated play, but will be disappointed with the scoreless home draw. Drogba had an excellent chance to put the visitors in control but missed his one-on-one with Valdes. Eto'o and Henry both had chances as well but Cech stopped them well. Young Bojan missed a free header and Hleb squandered a chance towards the end of the game.

I hope fans are as excited and nervous as I am, because tomorrow could prove to be crucial if we are to gain anything from this season. Look forward to a match analysis shortly after.

Keep it Arsenalive,
Travis