Time to leave last weekend behind, for now….
Afternoon,
after being away for a couple of days I think it is time to move on from the Ramsey leg-break and start looking forward to the rest of the season. It is a topic that is bound to be revisited over and over again so for this weekend at least we should get back to the footballing side of things, starting with tomorrows game against Burnley
It seems that we will have Abou Diaby back, whether he will start is another thing but with Aaron Ramsey obviously not in the squad for the foreseeable future we are going to need Diaby to stay fit, Cesc and Denilson are fit so I am guessing those three will make up the midfield trio. Of course, Alex Song misses out and starts a two game suspension for picking up yellow cards. There are worse games he could miss I suppose but thats probably a bit unfair on Burnley.
Andrey Arshavin is also back, and its about time he scored really. He has carried little niggles all season and has been playing out of position, now is really the time for him to shine though, we know he is a class player capable of very, very special things.
In defence we could have a little bit of pant browning as Silvestre will come in to replace Sol Campbell who has groin trouble but should be fit for the Porto game, and the injured William Gallas – its unknown when he will be back but hopefully it will be sooner rather than later. Again, there are worse games that Mikael Silvestre could be starting because if there is ever such a thing as a routine victory, tomorrow should be it.
One player who could start the game is Theo Walcott, who featured for England on Wednesday night and really, flattered to deceive. This prompted Chris Waddle to claim Theo is lacking a football brain, which is a very valid arguement – not that Waddle has much of a brain himself. Understandably, the boss defended his player:
“I believe he has not only a football brain but he has a brain,” said the Frenchman. “That means he will continue to develop at a very quick pace. Don’t worry for him. I believe for a while maybe people expected too much of Theo and now they are too hard with him.
“I believe Theo will be a great football player, he is very young, he will be 21 this year, and he will have a great future. I believe in him because he has a fantastic attitude, he’s an intelligent boy and he is highly motivated. These players always improve.”
I have made no secret of the fact that Theo has disappointed this season, but as pointed out, he only started playing the game in his teens so missed one of Arsene Wenger’s most important phases in his ‘building a house’ model of a players development. (Cesc Fabregas Show)
Arsene Wenger re-iterates he admires the tackling art - but not the leg-breaking sort and rightly so.
Good news that Ramsey’s injury is not career threatening, he still faces an arduous next 12 months minimum, though.
Nicklas Bendtner is a man coming into form after three or four months out of the team, he scored again midweek with another brilliant header against Austria for his native Denmark. An in form Bendtner is a brilliant addition to the forward line, despite what other people might think, I think he has the potential to be a wonderful forward player and has now scored in three games in a row, first Sunderland, then Stoke, and then against Austria.
The “Do it for Ramsey” banner to be unveiled at the Grove – courtesy of Arseblog.
News of an exclusive 15% discount on all Arsenal goods will follow this post so watch out of that.
Til next time.
Nice summary of the happenings with the Arsenal. Looking forward to smashing Burnley tomorrow but you never know with Arsenal. Hopefully, Nicklas scores and Walcott produces some fine moments. He needs games now and I think Wenger will give him minutes each week.
Finally, very exited that van Persie could be back next month!
Arshavin Is Back! Thank God! I wish it wasn’t so but they are right about Theo. His Footy IQ is pretty awful and his finishing needs a lot of work. I do think he’ll improve a lot in the future. But for now using him as a sub is probly his best role. I want to see Arshavin, Bendtner, and Rosicky/Nasri up front this week. We should Destroy the Clarets tomorow, 5 nill sounds about right. C’Mon You Title Bound Gunners! Let’s do it for Rambo!
Theo has been out a fair while and he needs the match practice. He has looked perky in the last few games. Watching him play recently against the Egyptians he looked quick and keen to dribble at the defenders but his touch was just a little heavy and the choices he made during the game were not his best. Although to be fair we do not know what Mr Capello told him in the dressing room and he did make a great incisive run and moved one hell of a pass to Lamps in the early moments which he duly fluffed!! I think this a very good sign. I’m sure, injury permitting, he will stride from strength to strength from now until the finishing line in May. His touch will improve, his decision making will become more consistent and I expect one or two goals.
What worries me in the short-term is Porto. They really went for us in the first leg – committing God knows how many strong tackles on Fabregas alone. If they go like that at our players again I really will fear another injury. Will we rest players against Burnley?
Aside from that its all coming up roses with Cech out for a while which is going to cause Chelsea an awful lot of hurt, Boswinga becoming a frequent visitor now in their infirmary and a few suspensions to beleaguer them further. The mighty Owen out for the rest of the season (is anyone really surprised that this has happened?), continuing injury problems in Man utds back four and off the field distractions at Old Trafford. Plus both our title contenders have the harder matches to play. Chelsea having to play Liverpool and Man Utd away and Man Utd having to play Liverpool at home, Man City away and of course Chelsea. If I were an old sea-dog explorer and looking at this fixture list as a map – there be monsters for Man U and Chelsea. For Arsenal, we have set sail for the title but we know not how hard the winds against us will blow nor how much our rivals shall fight off the monsters.
Goonermagic. Check the ‘published comments’ section!
Thrilled to the gills to have Shava back. You’re 100% right, Martin…it’s time he brought some magic to the pitch. It’s been a season of struggles for him, and not entirely his fault. He’s been nursing that foot injury all season (and I don’t think we’ve ever gotten a full account of just how bad it really is – as Arsene says “Andrey’s a tough boy”), he’s been asked to play out of position and taken an absolute battering up front. It’s got to be frustrating for him, especially considering he & RVP were just getting revved up when van Persie got hurt. Tough all ’round.
But tomorrow’s match is just massive for all sorts of reasons. Win by at least 4 goals (a DEFINITE possibility) and we’re top of the table again, if only for a brief period. Still though, this just reinforces the resilience of the lads to keep fighting. Obviously the Aaron Ramsey emotions will be on full burner as well. Arsene may say that there’s not a feeling of “us against the world” in the team, but I find that hard to believe. haha It IS us against the world, and I’ll not have another word about it, Mr Wenger!
Lastly though, it’s just important for the squad to come out and continue to play Arsenal football. Just do what we do and don’t succumb to the shenanigans of Burnley and their threats of physical play. Beat them on OUR TERMS.
PS – Sorry to be away, Martin!