Manchester City 4-2 Arsenal: What the?

No seriously, what the hell happened? I'll tell you what happened. For what seemed like hours Arsenal played like losers, yet some how managed to only concede a single goal. Then a masterstroke of a tactical change allowed the gunners a window of opportunity, which consequently led to the equalizer. It was all downhill from there however, as the Citizens managed to do what the Arsenal boys could not: capitalize on all their chances. Three goals from Bellamy, Adebayor, & Wright-Phillips effectively sealed a win for the world's richest club, and consequently a second straight defeat in Manchester for the young guns.

Here's what went wrong: Arsene Wenger got real high and decided that it would be funny to play four holding midfielders on the field at once. This is where the gaffer should have exercised his usual tactical inflexibility, but decided to save that for another inclusion of Nicklas Bendtner on the right flank. Honestly, I had no idea who was doing what, or even who was supposed to be doing what. The result: confusion in defence, influidity in attack, and an exhausted Cesc Fabregas trying to pick up the pieces. It gets worse. With Cesc Fabregas preoccupied, playmaking duties were handed over to Denilson and Bendtner. I need not speak further.

There was one glimmer of hope for Arsenal however, with Denilson coming off to make way for the Czech that never fails to deliver; everyones favourite Tomas Rosicky. With the Gunners no.7 involved in every end of the Arsenal attack, few would believe it was his first competitive game since early 2007. Not surprisingly, the Czech Republic captain capped off a true playmaker's performance with a goal and an assist. Sadly, this wasn't enough.

Before I leave, I'd like to say a few words about our old friend Emmanuel Adebayor. The Togolese striker didn't win back too many Arsenal fans with his performance tonight, but personally I'm proud to see a former Gunner move on to further sucess; frankly he deserves it. When the guy played at Arsenal, he got booed no matter what. So why not leave and rebuild your career elsewhere? With that, I'd like to conclude with good wishes for good old Sheyi; the striker we drove away. Emmanuel Adebayor, I salute you.

Group G Underestimated

There seems to be a common belief that Arsenal's Champions League group is a walk in the park. So I'm going to take it upon myself to prove thats not true by writing three individual posts over the next few weeks about our European foes. Keep following. Yeah right, I know its just Nazneen and Ibrahim reading this. Nevertheless, I will continue to post.

P.S. Im hungry. I want iftari. FFOOOODDDD!!!

Man United vs Arsenal - Played like winners, came out losers

Saturday night wasn't exactly the evening I'd planned out. I was supposed to call over some friends and watch Arsenal play their beautiful game boasting their new navy blue's, which by the way are just plain sexy. There. I said it. I hoped to end off the evening by seeing Arsenal beat Manu mercilessly 3 or 4 nil, much like the way Inter did against Milan around the same time. After this I planned to revel in my victory by jumping up and down, yelling Arsenal slogans, and calling up my good friend Mr. J and giving him my victory "ha-ha-ha". However, as we all know, things didn't go exactly as I had planned.

Yes, Arsenal did play their beautiful game in their fabulous change strip. And yes, a phone call regarding a certain victory "ha-ha" was involved. Alas, we failed to fulfill the thing that mattered most; We failed to beat the Mancs. This match was a real eye opener for those who believe football is all about skill, teamwork, or form, but at the end of the day the simplest mistake can turn a result around. Arsenal controlled the game by the end of the first half, carried it on to the second, only to concede a penalty from an Almunia mistake. Rooney steps up, puts it in the back of the net, and cancels out Arshavin's super goal. Before we could all say theres still time, the in-form Abou Diaby sealed the game with a wonderful header at the wrong side of the pitch. Its as simple as that.

Strangely for such a big game, I don't have much to say. Both goals conceded were mistakes, avoidable mistakes, but mistakes none the less. One thing I'd like to point out though is that Diaby's attacking form seems to have distracted people from seeing he has a lot of work to do defensively. On a positive note, we all got to see what Andriy Arshavin is capable of. Good scene.

Also, fuck you Mr. J. Fuck you hard. In the ass. With herpes.

15 + 17 + 4 = A New Arsenal

This first post is about why I believe in the current Arsenal squad. Just to be clear, I wont be writing about the usual suspects like el-capitano Cesc Fabregas or the phenomenal Andrei Arshavin. It's not new boy Vermaelen either (the guy was criticized for his height and his aerial ability, and ended up being the best man in the air, what more is there to say?). My focus is on three young players who were the cause for some good laughs for many from the anti-Arenal camp last season round, who in my opinion are no longer the same 'children' (as Patrice Evra so accurately put it) the were last year. Numbers 15 and 17, the holders of which are now household names in any gooners home, but not for the right reasons.

First, the Brazilian samba boy Denilson, who bore the enormous weight of filling in for the departures of both Mathieu Flamini and Gilberto Silva. Denilson was not only last season's highest appearance maker, but also last season's most under-appreciated player. Before you get me wrong, I too agree that the boy's lack of experience led to a forgetable season for Cesc Fabregas, however my dear gooners, what many have overlooked was the development of a formidable partnership between the former Sao Paolo youngster and a certain Alex Song, which I'll get to later. What few people realise is that Denilson was never an under-performer, he was just playing along with the small role assigned to him in an unfavourable formation, which once again I will come to later. The young Brazilian's role was simply to provide passes from the centre, and to act as the link between defence & attack. With that in mind, Denilson has more than played his part. Before I can speak more on the 5'11" man, I must first move on to the other under-appreciated gunner.

Alexandre Dimitri Song Billong, or Alex Song as we all know him, is an interesting case. We've all heard Wenger say time and time again that Song is a centre-back of the future, and we all thought he'd simply be an occasional feature in the backline for the 08/09 season. This as we know was not the case, as the 21-year old Cameroonian went to be a regular feature in the absence of Cesc Fabregas alongside Denilson in midfield; too bad, we all thought he would follow in uncle Rigobert's footsteps. The pair weren't exactly the best central midfield partnership, and honestly as a duo they still probably won't be making any headlines. However, some things have changed since last season. The young lads have a whole season's worth of experience, add to that a successful pre-season and you get a new look midfield. Song has noticeably become stronger, and has improved in the air. Denilson on the other hand, has made great strides in both defence and attack, which we could all see in the fantastic 6-1 win over Everton.

There is another change at the Arsenal that makes this team work, and thats the new formation built around el'Capitano. Since the departure of Emmanuel Adebayor, Arsene Wenger has favoured what resembles a 4-3-3 formation, similiar to the one used by Liverpool last season. The key for Liverpool was the balance in the 3-man central midfield, with Mascherano bringing in defensive cover, Alonso providing the passes from deep, and Gerrard playing that free attacking role in front of the two. With Song, Denilson, and Fabregas filling in those roles respectively, we have a recipe for success. We've already seen what wonders this new tactic does for the young skipper, who scored two great goals last weekend. This formation, along with an ever improving team, can go on to win Arsenal some long awaited silverware.

0- Arsenal Weekly Begins 21/08/09

Every week I will be writing my views on Arsenal's exploits of the 09/10 season, from post match reviews to locker room bullshit, anything I feel is not being covered well enough anywhere else. I'll try my best to post every monday or tuesday to share my insight and analysis of the red & whites over the weekend. For those of you who read these, please do so with patience and an open mind. This is my first blog, and if you choose to follow my posts, I promise continuous improvement.

For post zero I've decided to present a timeline of events preceding this blog I'd like my readers to know before hand in reverse chronological order:

Celtic 0-2 Arsenal = One word...Vermaelen

Arsenal tipped after Chelsea to win league by bookies - Chelsea better watch their back

Everton 1-6 Arsenal = Adeby-who?

Havard Nordveit loaned to Bundesliga side FC Nuremberg - Centre-Back of the future

Emirates Cup- Jack Wilshere bursts into the scene

Adebayor & Toure move to Manchester City - Arsenal morale goes up

Enter Thomas Vermaelen - Arsenal fans confused, but they like it

08/09 - Another trophyless season for Arsenal