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Arsenal goalkeeper Vito Mannone joins Hull City on loan

2010-10-18T09:26:00.000-07:00

Hull City have signed goalkeeper Vito Mannone on loan from Premier League side Arsenal until January.

Mannone has made 12 appearances for the Gunners since joining from Italian side Atalanta in 2005, but has struggled to hold down a first-team spot.

The 22-year-old, who has represented Italy at Under-21 level, enjoyed a short loan spell at Barnsley in 2006, making four appearances.

He is available for Hull's Championship match with Sheffield United on Tuesday.

From news.bbc.co.uk

Van Persie to return in time for meaningless International friendly!

2010-10-18T09:25:00.002-07:00

The Arsenal striker Robin Van Persie hasn’t played for the Gunners for the last seven weeks since he injured his ever-problematic ankle in the match against Blackburn at the beginning of the season, but he is expected to recover in the next couple of weeks.

The bad news is that he will be ready just in time for Hollands next international friendly against Turkey on November 17th, and the Netherlands coach Bert van Marjwick is insisting that Van Persie will join the squad for the match.

“Robin is expected to be back in the national team next month,” he said. “We expect to play him in the friendly match.”

This will worry Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger even more than usual, as it was in last November’s friendly (against Italy) that Van Persie’s ankle ligaments were destroyed, which meant he missed the next five months football for Arsenal and left Wenger without a recognised striker while Nicklas Bendtner was also injured.

Wenger doesn’t like internationals at the best of times, but he especially doesn’t like friendlies, and even more so when Holland are involved. I bet he won’t get much sleep that weekend if Van Persie plays in the match!

From justarsenal.com

Wenger Speaks On Wilshere Incident

2010-10-18T09:25:00.001-07:00

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has confessed that Jack Wilshere deserved to be sent off for his mistimed tackled on Nikola Zigic. The youngster who had marvelled throughout the game against Birmingham City had a slight lapse of concentration as his touch let him down – leading to a mistimed lunge on the Serbian as he tried to retrieve the ball.

Wenger himself has called for more severe disciplinary actions to be undertaken on wreckless play after seeing a number of his players on the receiving end of mistimed and ill-fated tackles – most notably Eduardo and Aaron Ramsey. Although the Frenchman admits the 18-year old deserved his dismissal, he is no doubt that Wilshere unintended to hurt the Birmingham man.

“Jack mistimed his tackle and got a red card, which he deserved.” said the Gunners boss.

“He has acknowledged he deserved it, but he did not spend his whole game trying to kick people, he was one of the best players on the pitch today. It was more of frustration and did not want to hurt the player, but we do not complain about the red card.”

“I think he mistimed his tackle, his first touch let him down. He didn’t complain about it. There was no intention to harm the player. He is not a dirty player. Wilshere will be suspended for three games and will be punished.”

Wilshere is in agreement with his manger believing he will learn from his error.

“I have no complaints about getting the red card and I will learn from this. I’m missing three matches now which I’m really disappointed about.”

The stocky play-maker will now serve a three match ban.

What did you think of the tackle? Did Wilshere deserve to go? Let us know.

From football-talk.co.uk

Arsenal vs Birmingham, 2-1: Full time analysis and player ratings

2010-10-18T09:20:00.000-07:00

The Game

It wasn’t the most spectacular games of the season at the Emirates but Arsenal were brave enough to hang on and win three very important points on a day which saw Manchester United and Chelsea both drop two points.

Not included in the “brave” part of my introduction is of course Marouane Chamakh’s dive in the first half which allowed us to level things up. Was there contact? Yes, absolutely. Was it penalty? Yes it was. But it was very similar to the Wayne Rooney dive against us at Old Trafford last season where Manuel Almunia made a big mistake in going straight at him instead of just pretending to make a challenge.

Dann was today as equally foolish to make a challenge but you can’t deny it was a dive because he went down before any contact was made. We hate it when other players do it and my feelings don’t change when it’s an Arsenal player diving, especially since it was not the first time Marouane went down so easily. Minutes earlier – in fact – he was fouled but went down with both arms flying around getting four feet off the ground which was so unnecessary to see.

Anyway, as I said the game was not an easy one to follow, we again missed numerous chances in front of goal and were again shocking at the back especially in those five minutes in which Brum took the lead and went close to double their lead.

I understand we are missing key players and how what we need to do as we wait for them is to grind out the points but we need to improve at the back because regardless who plays it seems we always have to witness poor defending, today’s coming from Johan Djourou.

As for Jack Wilshere, I wouldn’t say the red ruined his top class game. We all know Jack is always full of energy and never shy to tackle but also true that he needs to learn when to tackle and when not to, something which this red will hopefully teach him.

To conclude by looking at the positives of the game, I was impressed by Lukasz Fabianski in goal who maybe wasn’t kept busy by long-range efforts or things like that but he had to deal with a number of high balls and didn’t disappoint. Abou Diaby was very good as well and Tomas Rosicky, coming on as a substitute, was superb, doing in 30 minutes what Andrey Arshavin failed to do in 70 minutes with the Russian again showing how he doesn’t deserve to be in front of the Czech in the pecking order.

Player Ratings

Fabianski: 7,5 – Very solid and secure in the air. Nothing he could do to deny Zigic’s goal. The Serbian took full advantage of some shocking defending and produced a phenomenal leap.

Squillaci: 6,5 – Very solid performance from our captain who also managed to score though it was correctly ruled out for offside.

Djourou: 5 – Poor game. Very disappointing in the way he challenged Zigic for Birmingham’s first goal and made a very dangerous pass towards the end of the game which could have cost us dearly.

Clichy: 6 – Also at fault for the first goal as he just stared at the Serbian who went up in the air to meet the ball. Minutes later he again lost an important challenge in the air, clearly showing how he can be a big liability when high balls are thrown into his direction.

Eboue: 6,5 – Worked very hard on the right and was very good with the ball especially in the final part of the game where we needed to hold onto the ball and win important fouls.

Song: 7 – I believe Alex had a very, very good game today. He was more disciplined than he was in previous games and won some important challenges in midfield.

Wilshere: 7,5 – It was a very bad tackle, straight red, no complaints there but we all know Jack is like that, it is his tenacity which makes him special. Apart from that, he was involved in almost all our moves throughout the game, providing the assist for our second goal. He will be missed against City.

Diaby: 7 – I think many are looking way too much into his contribution in the final third. I believe he was brilliant, the way he was robbing the ball in midfield – especially from Hleb’s feet – and the way he pushed forward dribbling his way past blue jerseys was top class. Granted, as I said weeks ago he needs to be more adventurous in the final third but other than that, hats off.

Nasri: 6,5 – I feel he wasn’t involved much in the game, most likely because we insisted on pushing from Arshavin’s right-hand side even if the Russian had a very poor game. Cool on the spot though.

Arshavin: 4 – As hard as I tried, I simply found nothing worth mentioning in his performance. Nothing worked for him and instead of keeping it simple he kept on trying clever tricks which never paid off. Arsene blamed it on the two games he played for Russia. Fair enough, but I think it was pretty obvious to understand this before the game.

Chamakh: 6,5 – Enough diving please. His work rate is fantastic and yet again on the score sheet but when I say that we should learn how to win ugly, cheating is never part of my wish.

(Subs)
Rosicky: 7 – Superb game from the Little Mozart. Not shy to dribble his way past his marker, not shy to shoot from distance and produced a delicious cross for Bendtner.

From .thegunninghawk.com

Defender Bacary Sagna out for three weeks with thigh injury

2010-10-11T04:11:00.001-07:00

The French version of the Eurosport website has just reported that Arsenal defender Bacary Sagna will be ruled out of action for at least three weeks after suffering a thigh injury.

Even if the season started only two months ago, Robin van Persie, Theo Walcott, Nicklas Bendtner, Samir Nasri, Thomas Vermaelen, Cesc Fabregas and now Bacary Sagna have all suffered injuries which kept them on he sidelines for at least three weeks with Emmanuel Frimpong injuring his cruciate knee ligaments before the season kicked-off.

Ivory Coast’s Emmanuel Eboue will most likely be the one to replace Sagna with the Frenchman explaining how he already started the recovery process.

Sagna will miss games against Birmingham and Shakhtar Donetsk at the Emirates and also away games against Manchester City and Newcastle United as he will be hoping to make his comeback for the home game against West Ham United on October 30.

On his injury, Sagna said:

Everything is fine, I started rehabilitation and it will take three weeks to heal.

From thegunninghawk.com

Rafael van der Vaart: Joining Arsenal would have been fantastic

2010-10-11T04:08:00.000-07:00

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rafael van der Vaart again revealed joining rivals Arsenal would have been a fantastic step in his career.

Speaking to the News of the World the Dutchman explained how he wanted to join Bayern Munich after leaving Real Madrid but the German Club were not interested in his services. When asked about Arsenal, the 27-year old again confirmed how he wanted to join the Gunners, most likely to team up with colleague and friend Robin van Persie.

After failing to move to Bayern or Arsenal, the midfielder had to accept a move to Tottenham Hotspur during the last hours of last summer’s transfer window making his debut in a 1-1 draw against West Bromwich Albion.

The Dutchman concluded by showing his disappointment at how he was treated by Real Madrid, explaining how what he went through is part of football but was not nice to suffer.

On moving to Arsenal, van der Vaart said:

I would have moved to Bayern Munich, but they weren’t interested.

Arsenal? Yes of course, that would have been fantastic.

When Madrid sold Arjen Robben (to Bayern) and Wesley Sneijder (to Inter Milan) they asked me whether I would like to stay – I would even get my No. 23 shirt back.

What I went through is part of football – but it wasn’t nice. Football is best when you’re 10 years old.

From thegunninghawk.com

Marouane Chamakh full of praise for new France coach Laurent Blanc

2010-10-11T04:07:00.002-07:00

Arsenal striker Marouane Chamakh revealed former Bordeaux coach Laurent Blanc was an important figure in his development as a footballer.

Speaking to Arsenal TV Online, the Moroccan said how the Frenchman’s objective was always very similar to Arsene Wenger’s in terms of playing the game the way it should be played. Chamakh added how Blanc – who took over from as France’s manager after the World Cup Finals – always asked his players to express and enjoy themselves on the pitch.

The 26-year old striker, who left Bordeaux to join Arsenal last summer, also said how Blanc’s philosophy included short, yet very important speeches to his players.

Now 44, the former defender played for a number of prestigious clubs in Europe before retiring, including Barcelona in Spain, Napoli and Inter Milan in Italy and also Manchester United in England.

On Blanc, Chamakh said:

To me it was clear that Blanc’s main objective was to send us out and play football. He wanted us to express ourselves and enjoy ourselves, as that mean we would create chances and score goals. It worked really well.

He [Blanc] gave me lots of confidence. He wasn’t the sort of coach that made me work ten hours a day. Just a few words here and there from him were enough to improve me as a player sometimes.

It wasn’t long since he had retired from playing himself, and you could tell that he was still instinctively a footballer and felt the game as we did.

I gained a lot of confidence during the three years I worked under him. Thanks to the confidence I got from playing for him, I tried things out on the pitch that I wouldn’t have done otherwise.

From thegunninghawk.com

Hoofers give us something to laugh at on a slow Sunday

2010-10-11T04:07:00.001-07:00

Wow, you really have to feel sorry for the scousers don’t you? Er – NO! Just friggin’ laugh at them, how many times have you heard ‘we’re ya foookin europeeeeean coup, eh, eh?’ The response from now on could well be “Championship, Championship”. They face the real proposition that the new Yanks may not be able to buy the old Yanks out and the club could be sent into administration. Despite Scousers being confident the takeover will happen to me it seems more likely RBS will bottle putting them into administration. The News of the World are loving it today and we can all have a lovely giggle. It seems this season, how every dark some days may be, there will always be old LFC to brighten our day.

Peter Hill Wood calls it a tragedy in The Mirror today. I call it fucking funny.

Sorry to start with non-Arsenal news but this is just dominating all the headlines and Arsenal news is thin on the ground. ManUre’s debts even pick up some column inches. The ridiculous debts in football are, unpayable, surely now big business men can football is a passion and not an investment tool. Even if you’re making £100Mil a year like ManUre are, this is all just going down the drain, it’s a total embarrassment and as a fan of AFC can you imagine the board putting up ticket prices by 25% and chucking it away in interest. Sickening. Well if it was us, thankfully it’s not, we just keep it all the in the bank to look pretty on the balance sheet.

The one Arsenal story that will brighten your day is in tnotw. Brad Friedel has 3 months to sign a new contract before he can sign terms with another club. Without doubt Le Boss would look at this free transfer. Sure he is 39, positively ancient in Arsenal terms, but you’re talking absolute world class and for one season, next season, he could do a job. Certainly in my mind better than anything Schwarzer could do. It’s just a shame Arsenal didn’t go and make a sensible offer in the summer when O’Niel left. What might have beens.

Second laugh of the day comes from Shite Hart Lane, their hero, saviour, apparent miracle worker, Rafael Van Der Fart wishes he was a gooner. Priceless.

Third laugh of the day is at the Mirror, Asmir Bergovic my arse, £5Mil for Stoke’s sub keeper. Nah you can keep that one.

That’s me, I’m off to play 11v11 Fifa online, if you were playing last night about 10pm, Real Madrid v Barcelona, I missed two penalties and scored the third, and cracked one from outside the box. It was a game of two halfs but we won it in the end. Well done Real!!

From clockenders.com

Schwarzer still eyeing Arsenal switch

2010-10-11T04:05:00.000-07:00

Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer has not ruled out joining Arsenal at some point in the future.

Arsenal were on the verge of landing the Australian international over the summer but the deal never came off with Cottagers chief Mark Hughes desperate to keep the experienced star at the club.

However, the former Middlesbrough man has admitted a move to the Emirates in the new year could still be a possibility.

"Who knows, we will have to wait and see," he said.

"I'm very happy at Fulham. The supporters have been unbelievable and I've enjoyed every minute. It's been a very hectic two months or so and the fans have been great to me. I am enjoying my football again."

He added: "I think when you look at the opportunity that was in front of me, I don't think anyone can begrudge me exploring that opportunity.

"The club actually asked me if I was interested in exploring the opportunity, and I was. I'm not getting any younger, unfortunately, and you always want to better yourself."

From eatsleepsport.com

Pires Returns To Arsenal For Training

2010-10-03T19:07:00.001-07:00

Arsenal legend Robert Pirès is back training in North London. Arsène Wenger has allowed the 36-year-old use of the club’s London Colney training centre as he bids to maintain fitness and seek a fresh challenge.

Pirès will also offer words of wisdom to Arsenal’s Reserves and Youth teams as he enters the second week of training with The Gunners. The Frenchman is currently a free agent after Spanish outfit Villareal decided against extending his contract in July.

Robert enjoyed six campaigns with Arsenal after moving from Marseille in 2000. He played 189 times, scoring 62 goals in a trophy laden spell in England. Pirès is hoping he can impress potential suitors enough to win a return to the French Ligue One, whilst still offering guidance and expertise to Arsenal’s emerging youngsters.

From younggunsblog.co.uk

Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal Highlights

2010-10-03T19:02:00.000-07:00

03-10-2010 - Chelsea 2-0 Arsenal Highlights @ Yahoo! Video

Didier Drogba was once again Arsenal’s tormentor as the Ivorian striker scored the opening goal as Chelsea beat Arsenal 2-0 at Stamford Bridge. Watch the match highlights below.

From http://video.yahoo.com/watch/8331416

Chelsea vs Arsenal, 2-0: Full time analysis and player ratings

2010-10-03T19:00:00.000-07:00

The Game

A defeat is never easy to accept but there are times when you have to admit that the other team was better on the day and fully deserved the win.

By “on the day” I mean that contrary to what many thought before the kick-off, today’s game didn’t show that we’re not as good as Chelsea because with so many key players out we still managed to put up a fight and create plenty of chances.

Thomas Vermaelen at the back, Cesc Fabregas in the middle and Robin van Persie up front. That’s one key player in every department of the pitch. I’m not making excuses up, those who read me often know that I don’t hide behind the fact that we have missing players, I’m just saying that if the mentality is right, we’re second to none.

Make no mistake, I want to take nothing away from Carlo Ancelotti’s men. I again have this funny feeling that had we scored one they would have stepped it up a gear or two to score one more. The way Drogba scored the first was simply outstanding whilst Alex’s effort – pure power with a touch of curve – was also an execution which leaves you clapping your hands in acknowledgment even if it’s not coming from the team you support.

All in all I believe Arsenal played a very good game, they put a lot of pressure on Chelsea from the first minute of the game and kept on pushing forward even after they took the lead, which was admirable to see. Granted, some players could have maybe done more and our defensive department was shaky in more than one occasion but putting that aside for a second, today was big leap forward in terms of determination and tenacity when you compare the display to the WBA one.

We now go seven points from the Blues, it’s a big mountain to climb if we are to cut the gap in the same fashion we did last season but I believe we can make it. We just need to approach every single game in the same way we did today and of course hope for the other teams to drop points along the way.

Player Ratings

Fabianski: 8 – Not much he could do to prevent the goals. One mistake in the early stages of the game when he punched the ball in a dangerous area but recovered well and produced a brilliant performance. The saved he produced were maybe not the most difficult in the world but he was there and did his job.

Squillaci: 4 – Not sure if he was under more pressure because of the captain’s armband but he was shocking back there I’m afraid. Let Florent Malouda go away in the first part of the game and then made a terrible mistake in the second which could have easily killed the game off if it wasn’t for Anelka’s poor finishing.

Koscielny: 6 – His first-minute miss was very bad as we could have had a different game had he scored. Defensively I believe he was better than Sebastien though it is clear we need Thomas to be back as soon as possible.

Clichy: 6 – Nothing personal, but his contribution in the defensive department is driving me crazy. For example I’m still trying to understand what was going through his mind in the 70th minute when he did absolutely nothing to challenge Anelka who went on to pick a team mate who was luckily flagged for offside.

Sagna: 6,5 – Very strong in challenging Drogba in the first part of the game and went on to make some vital tackles and interceptions. Could have done better to prevent Ashley Cole from crossing in the first goal though.

Song: 6 – I believe his contribution when we had possession was very good, helping the forward line with some nice runs. I still believe, however, that he is to be more disciplined in his role and let the other, more creative midfielders, run the show.

Wilshere: 7,5 – Brilliant game. Was a bit anonymous in the second half but overall he was a beast in midfield, never shy to tackle or make his presence felt when required.

Diaby: 6,5 – I’m glad to see he recovered from last week’s poor performance. He was involved in many of our moves today as he looked sharp and up for it. As I always say though, he should be more adventurous in the final third, he is to believe more in himself.

Nasri: 6 – He may have seen plenty of the ball but never gave me the impression he could hurt Chelsea. Also guilty of not sticking with Ashley Cole who went on to assist Drogba for the first goal and a very poor pass in the later stages of the game which resulted in Laurent’s yellow.

Arshavin: 6,5 – Hot and cold from Andrey but I loved his contribution, especially in the first half. Unlike Samir, he did some damage to Chelsea especially when he was getting the ball, making his way past his marker and go for goal which is just what we need in the final third. Needs to do it for the whole 90 minutes though, that’s for sure.

Chamakh: 5,5 – I expected more from him but maybe that’s because of how everyone was saying how he can be our key to success today. I also believe he should stop going down so easily to win penalties as it could easily backfire in the long run.

(Subs)
Rosicky: 6 – Came off the bench to inject creativity to our midfield and I believe he made a significant impact.

Vela and J.E.T.: No Vote – Not enough time on the pitch to rate.

From thegunninghawk.com

Champions League Partizan Belgrade v Arsenal

2010-09-27T06:23:00.000-07:00

Champions League
Venue: Stadion FK Partizan Date: Tuesday 28 September Kick-off: 1945 BST
Coverage: Live text commentary on BBC Sport website, on BBC Radio 5 live and live on Sky Sports 4

Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel Almunia will miss Tuesday's Champions League trip to Partizan Belgrade with an elbow injury.

Almunia, who was at fault for two goals as the Gunners lost 3-2 at home to West Brom in the Premier League on Saturday, will be replaced by Lukasz Fabianski.

"The whole squad was very low after the weekend but I believe we will play well on Tuesday," said boss Arsene Wenger.

The Gunners are still without Cesc Fabregas, Theo Walcott and Robin van Persie, all out with injuries.

Full-back Kieran Gibbs will undergo a fitness test on Monday before the Arsenal squad flies out to Belgrade.

Arsenal started their European campaign with a 6-0 home win against Braga and Wenger, who says he would not have dropped Almunia had he been fit, is looking for a quick response to Saturday's calamitous defeat.

"There is always an easy target, an easy scapegoat," added the Gunners manager. "But I believe we win together and we lose together.

"Even if people think Manuel made a mistake on the second goal, we made a few before that as well as a team, so we all have to stand up for what happened.

"Manuel is very low, he was disappointed to have lost the game. Everyone felt the same, because we had a good opportunity and we didn't take it.

"But we are a good side and we will bounce back and I think we will have a good game in Belgrade."

Partizan, who lead the Serbian championship, drew 0-0 with Spartak Subotica on Sunday having lost their first game in the group stage of the Champions League 1-0 at Shakhtar Donetsk.

They will be looking to Serbian international midfielder Sasa Ilic and Brazilian-born striker Cleo to do the damage at the Stadion FK Partizan.

From http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/europe/9036382.stm

George Graham – Be realistic, Arsenal need a new keeper

2010-09-27T06:22:00.001-07:00

The ex-Arsenal manager George Graham thinks it is obvious that the Gunners are not going to be good enough to challenge for the top honours unless they replace Manuel Almunia with a top-class goalkeeper, and he doesn’t think they should just be looking at Mark Schwarzer.

Graham said: “I think if you’re going to really be realistic challengers for the Premier League you need a top, top-class goalkeeper.

“I think Almunia is a good goalkeeper but there’s about half a dozen good goalkeepers in the Premier League.

“Arsenal need an outstanding goalkeeper. I think they should be looking all round the world, not just in England or Europe.”

The rumours about new goalkeepers are starting to return already, with yesterday’s story about Wenger bidding for Liverpool’s Pepe Reina. I also read the other day that the Nigerian keeper Vincent Enyeama is in the last eight months of his contract. Can you guess which one I think he will go for!

From justarsenal.com

Wenger now seriously considering spending BIG money on new keeper

2010-09-27T06:18:00.001-07:00

The Arsenal fans cannot be too happy with Wenger and his first choice keeper Manuel Almunia after the latter had committed another stunt of his yesterday against West Brom at The Emirates, costing his side the game.

The Gunners fans are all fuming with one persistent question in mind: How much longer before ‘the boss’ realizes Arsenal are winning nada with Almunia guarding their net?

In fact even the Gunners former boss George Graham said that, and it’s now Wenger’s call to bring in a ‘top class’ keeper next January.

“I think if you’re going to really be realistic challengers for the Premiership you need a top top class goalkeeper,” Graham said in Five Live’s Sportsweek programme. “I think Almunia is a good goalkeeper, but there’s about half a dozen good goalkeepers in the Premier League. I think Arsenal need an outstanding goalkeeper.

“I think they should be looking all round the world, not just in England or Europe.”

However, contrary to Graham’s advise, Wenger IS looking in Europe, and precisely in England too, as he intends to up the bid on Liverpool’s Pepe Reina in hopes to lure the Spaniard out of Anfield by next January, according to the News of the World.

Wenger initially offered £15m for Liverpool to let go of their keeper, and is hoping Liverpool’s financial problems will force them to accept the cash when he comes back for another visit, especially if he tosses in £3-5m more.

From footylatest.com

Wenger now seriously considering spending BIG money on new keeper

2010-09-27T06:18:00.000-07:00

Arsenal vs West Brom, 2-3: Full time analysis and player ratings

2010-09-27T06:15:00.000-07:00

The Game

Early this week one of the topics which was being discussed in our comments section was to compare our start to the new campaign with last season’s. Before today it was more or less the same. Now, it’s worse.

Because if last season the wake up call arrived against Manchester City away from home, in a game we lost 4-2, well this year it came at the Emirates. And not against Chelsea or Manchester United mind you, but against a team which a little more than one month ago conceded SIX goals at Stamford Bridge.

Fair enough, maybe I didn’t expect such a heavy scoreline today because Roberto di Matteo did say how his players learned the lesson from the Chelsea game. But seriously, losing?

Let’s get this straight. We reached this game with a lot of positive news such as the big win against Tottenham, the Club announcing profits which apparently are being kept safe in the vault instead of using them to improve the squad and of course, Chelsea losing against Manchester City in what many thought was our golden opportunity to cut the gap at the top.

And what was the reply from our players? A pathetic, heartless performance – for a change – just to make sure to stay four points adrift of Chelsea.

We witnessed the first signs that our players were not approaching games with the right attitude against Sunderland. Believe it or not, both the Black Cats and the Baggies played better football with better passing technique and of course, showing more determination which many prefer to describe as “wanting it more”.

Arsene opted to start with Abou Diaby, a player back from injury who could barely run and Emmanuel Eboue, first on the right and then on the left, shocking on both wings. And if you believe using the “excuses note book” to go under the letter “F” and use fatigue as the reason why we lost, remember our boss made nine changes to the team that started the Carling Cup win at Tottenham in midweek, so it seems letter “I” is still your only hope.

No my friend, I suggest you put it back in your pocket because we’ve run out of excuses. This is reality and until we grow up and accept the fact that Manuel Almunia is a mistake waiting to happen and Gael Clichy is not a defender, we can be all optimistic and full of hope as much as we want but things will not change. I can’t even say at least we still play nice football because as I said up there, Sunderland and West Brom were better even in that respect.

I wish I could say it’s a one off, that the team will recover and produce super performances against Partizan and Chelsea but we’ve seen this before so you’ll surely understand why I look forward to these games with less optimism than this afternoon.

Player Ratings

Almunia: 4 – This is sad. Only days after Lukasz’ latest mistake in goal, here comes another Manuel show. Too quick to leave his goal, uncertain when he doesn’t and just like Liverpool, goal conceded at his near post.

Koscielny and Squillaci: 4,5 – Awful(both) in forgetting about Peter Odemwingie in West Brom’s first goal. Awful(Laurent) in doing very little to block Gonzalo’s Jara second goal attempt and terrible(Sebastien) in West Brom’s third goal.

Clichy: 4 – Just to spare the irony of some saying I only complain when we lose, I warned about him after the 6-0 Blackpool win. Now it’s no longer just a warning, it’s a big problem which should be fixed immediately.

Sagna: 5 – I can’t remember the last time Bacary was so shocking back there. Some of his decision making were completely wrong and the way Thomas surged past him to then cross for the second goal was depressing to see.

Song: 4 – No idea what he is doing this season, plays with no discipline at all. Stepped it up in the second half, seemed to care, but not enough.

Diaby: 4 – And the wait for Abou to be a finished product goes on. And on. And on.

Nasri: 7,5 – Almost scored a hat-trick to salvage a point but yet again, here I am, asking why only in the second half? What is the bloody reason why he sleeps for 75 minutes and wakes up in the last part?

Arshavin: 5 – I don’t care if he’s tired or still upset because Russia didn’t qualify for the World Cup. Fact is that he’s not performing. If you squeeze his 90 minutes you will get no more than 5 where he tried to do something worth mentioning. The rest was walking, going down, staying down and misplacing passes.

Eboue: 4 – Failed in everything he tried. First on the right, then on the left, no impact whatsoever.

Chamakh: 5 – Tried hard, but not good enough today.

(Subs)
Vela: 4 – Zero confidence. Only once he received the ball and tried to run with it. But can’t blame him, this is what you get when you use such a talented player the way Arsene has been doing so far.

Rosicky: 5 – Little impact, was supposed to do what basically Samir did but never managed to get close to that.

Wilshere: 6 – One of the few who seemed to care about what was going on around him. Seriously, it cracks me up to look at an 18-year old and say he is the one others should look at to learn what fighting means.

From thegunninghawk.com

Arsenal youngster Carlos Vela banned for six months by Mexico for post-match partying

2010-09-22T19:14:00.000-07:00

Arsenal's Carlos Vela and Celtic's Efrain Juarez were suspended for six months by the Mexican federation and 11 other footballers were fined for partying after a friendly.

Bad boys: Carlos Vela (left) and Efrain Juarez have been given six-month international bans by Mexico for breaking team rules Photo: AFP

The players threw a party at the team hotel in Monterrey after a friendly against Colombia on Sept 7. The Mexican federation offered few details, but local media said family members, friends and unidentified women attended the party, which lasted until dawn.

The players fined were Rafael Marquez, Manchester United's Javier Hernandez, Tottenham midfielder Giovanni dos Santos, Guillermo Ochoa, Francisco Rodriguez, Carlos Salcido, Andres Guardado, Gerardo Torrado, Pablo Barrera, Hector Esqueda and Hector Moreno.

The sanctions were announced at a news conference by Nestor De La Torre, the director of national team selections for Mexico. He said Vela and Juarez violated four rules from the code of conduct, including an obligation to "conduct themselves with respect and seriousness, taking into consideration what it means to represent Mexico."

"It's said they are young, but that doesn't exempt them from responsibility," De la Torre said. "The space for recreation should exist, but there are moments and places for it."

Following the World Cup, Mexico has no key matches for several more months. The next two big events are the CONCACAF Gold Cup in June in the United States followed by the Copa America in July in Argentina.

Mexico officials said they spoke with most of the players who were fined or suspended.

"Many of them totally accepted it," De la Torre said. "Others expressed some doubts, but in general it's an issue that involves something that is not a perception, but something that is written and specified."

He said the money collected from the fines may go to charity or to flood victims in Veracruz, which was hit by Hurricane Karl.

From telegraph.co.uk

Henri Lansbury happy for the fans: We put on a show for them

2010-09-22T19:06:00.000-07:00

After an impressive loan-spell at Watford last season, Arsenal midfielder Henri Lansbury is determined to break into Arsene’s Wenger regular squad.

His formidable run and finish started a memorable night for the Gunners on Wednesday as they went on to beat North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur by four goals to one and according to the youngster, playing and scoring at White Hart Lane was simple a dream. Lansbury, 19, also revealed how his friends kept asking if he would start before the game as he believes hard work will be rewarded.

The youngster was already showing good signs in pre-season after featuring and scoring against Sturm Graz in Austria but a groin injury halted his development and also – according to reports – a possible loan spell to Swansea City.

But having put injury problems behind him, the Englishman was one of the best players for the Gunners in the first half against Tottenham as he explained how winning against Tottenham was special for the team but also for the fans.

After the game, Lansbury told the club’s official website:

It was obviously a big thing for me to start here tonight and to show what I can do. To come in against our rivals and score is a dream.

Coming here [and playing] is massive. I’ve had all my mates on the phone today saying ‘Are you starting? Are you starting?’

Obviously I’m pushing for a place every week, that’s why I want to be in the first team. I’ve just got to keep working hard in training and hopefully I’ll get my chance.

It was good to get on the score sheet and it was a great performance from our team. Coming into a London derby is a great experience. Seeing the tempo of how the first team play – I just want to get involved in that.

To come here and win is always a great time for the fans. We put on a show tonight for them.

From thegunninghawk.com

Spurs 1-4 Arsenal: Jack Wilshere the main [young] man

2010-09-22T19:01:00.000-07:00

You sometimes wonder how Arsenal don’t score more goals, and last night was one of those events.

I think the first half possession stats said something like Arsenal 70% – Tottenham 30%. A similar statistic was measured when Barcelona came to the Emirates last season and gave us a footballing lesson in 45 minutes of scintillating football that I will never forget. It was a similar sort of dominance.

After 15 minutes youngster Henri Lansbury slotted home his first Arsenal goal, it rounded off a fantastic move and Jack Wilshere provided a lovely ball to create the opportunity in the first place – the next generation alright. The only thing is there are here and, to be quite honest, look ready now.

It must have been a sweet moment for Henri – a Gooner as a kid and Arsenal’s longest serving player.

Triangle after triangle, movement, one-two’s, flicks and through-balls. It was beautiful football. Can they all play like this? Every single Arsenal player? It is quite unbelievable.

The only down side is that the lead was not added too. There were scant opportunities in all honesty and that is testament to the fight of Tottenham, who, to their credit gave a pretty good account of themselves. It should have been 2-0 when Wilshere played a through-ball Cesc would have been proud of to Kieran Gibbs who rounded the keeper and was adjudged offside before he could slide the ball into an empty net… he was onside.

In the second half Spurs really got a foothold in the game, they grabbed an equaliser when Robbie Keane, who was a yard offside, tried to slide the ball into the near post, Fabianski should have made the save but the shot went right through him – an example of why Szczesny seems pretty frustrated with his situation at the moment despite his age.

Chamakh and Arshavin also entered the fray, there was a greater incisiveness about the side once they came on and once Tottenham were exhausted they picked them apart with ease and forced mistakes in the first half of stoppage time. Samir Nasri was felled in the area – Harry Redknapp can claim it was a dive all he wants but there was definite contact there – and, in a change in the script from the weekend Nasri stood up as captain and smashed the ball down the middle.

A few minutes later Chamakh was fouled, another penalty, same taker, same result, 3-1.

After that Arsenal hammered in the final nail, Arshavin was put through and he finished nicely to wrap it all up, a pretty comprehensive victory.

Jack Wilshere – along with pretty much every player out there, was immense. He was so difficult for Spurs to pick up, his darting runs pulling players out of position and making him impossible to track. Spurs took turns in fouling him, rotational fouling, time after time he was clattered and he just brushes it off. At 18 it is remarkable maturity. In his post match interview Arsene said that he is “much ahead” of where he expected him to be this season.

Its a big statement to make but I think we are seeing the birth and blooming of a massive, massive footballing star at this club. Both for England and Arsenal. It is well within his capabilities to be one of he all time greats at this football club – he is with the right manager, the right club and he seems to have a decent head on his shoulders too.

It was only the 3d round of the Carling Cup but its a sweet victory all the same, the biggest win for us at White Heart Lane in 30 years and it means if the draw is good in the next round, we can see some more of the next generation.

There may be some very bad injury news to follow with Nasri’s hamstring trouble and the news of a probable break to Kieran Gibbs foot… that news will be along shortly.

Right now though, lets enjoy the win.

Til next time.

From thegoonblog.com

Marouane Chamakh ready to feature against Tottenham in the Carling Cup

2010-09-19T21:56:00.000-07:00

Having dropped two points away at Sunderland by conceding a late equaliser, Arsenal will try to forget what happened at the Stadium of Light when they face Tottenham Hotspur in tomorrow’s Carling Cup game.

Throughout the years, manager Arsene Wenger has always used the competition to field a very young squad so as to understand who can be promoted with the regular squad as it was the case with 18-year old Jack Wilshere. But one already-established player who is looking forward to the game is Moroccan striker Marouane Chamakh who believes he can be an asset at White Hart Lane.

The 26-year was kept busy by the Gunners since his arrival by featuring in every single game played so far but speaking ahead of the clash he admitted how he is ready to be involved if Wenger opts to use him either from the start or as a substitute.

Chamakh explained how missing key players like Robin van Persie, Theo Walcott and Nicklas Bendtner up front and considering how big the game is, the Frenchman could decide to use some experience alongside the young generation, adding how he simply loves to play in big games.

He said:

I have spoken to the French players here like Gael Clichy and they told me that the atmosphere against Tottenham is hot, very hot – in fact they say it’s boiling!

And in the absence of the other players, if the coach wants me to play I will do so willingly.

I know the importance of the match against Tottenham. It is important for the players and for the supporters to win.

I do not know yet if I am playing but if I am picked I am happy to do so.

I understand that over the years the manager has picked young players for this competition but with the number of players we have injured maybe I will play.

The nearest we had to a derby game when I was at Bordeaux was against Toulouse. It was also a big atmosphere when we played against Marseille.

But they have told me that Arsenal and Tottenham is a huge game with a fantastic atmosphere. I love that kind of game.

From thegunninghawk.com

Video : Sunderland vs Arsenal highlights

2010-09-19T21:41:00.000-07:00

Thank you video from http://rutube.ru/tracks/3595196.html?v=02249d9fcd3e97449b085473006712d9

Sunderland vs Arsenal, 1-1: Full time analysis and player ratings

2010-09-19T21:35:00.000-07:00

The Game

To start with, yes, Darren Bent’s goal should have never taken place because when you give four minutes of stoppage time and when the clock reads 94:02 the ball is cleared, you blow the whistle.

But, a draw would have been flattering to us. Not because of Sunderland, mind you. I mean if you analyse the game closely you will see that Sunderland enjoyed more possession and put more pressure on our back four but they played at the top of their game and we blocked all their attempts bravely. Can you remember one menacing shot by the home side before the equaliser? Neither can I. Enjoying plenty of possession does not necessarily mean you deserve to get something out of the game.

And yes, we scored a lucky goal but it’s also true we created chances and won a penalty when reduced to 10-men. So ultimately, we deserved to win more than they deserved to get a draw. But to go back to my remark on why we didn’t deserve to get all three points, well that’s because when you are a defender and you don’t behave like one, you deserve to be punished. Our central pair, Laurent Koscielny and Sebastien Squillaci as well as Bacary Sagna on the right were phenomenal but Gael Clichy doesn’t belong there, I’m sorry.

The first sign that trouble was looming was when he tried to dribble his way out of our penalty area, was robbed of the ball but we survived. Things didn’t change in the second half as I immediately remember when he tried to pass it to Rosicky instead of clearing it long. And then the goal, embarrassing in hitting his own team mate in his panicky attempt to clear the ball.

Believe me, I love Gael’s determination, the commitment he puts in every single game and what he gives to the side when pushing forward but he’s an awful defender and this is not an isolated case. It’s time for him to learn to take the right decisions back there or else give Kieran Gibbs a chance to show whether he can adequately replace him or not.

Wenger will be upset in his post-match interview and rightly so, the referee was shocking, but I said it weeks ago, our left-back position is in an emergency state and needs to be addressed. Immediately. Just notice how in almost every game that’s the flank our opposition target. It’s not a coincidence.

All in all I have mixed feelings about the game. I am not completely devastated by the outcome but I find myself asking questions, actually not just about Clichy but also why the likes of Samir Nasri and Andrey Arshavin were shocking when we needed their creativity the most, the first half that is. Please don’t feed me the excuse that the Stadium of Light is a difficult place to win as based on what we saw these are two dropped points which I’m afraid could see Chelsea take a comfortable four point lead at the top.

Player Ratings

Almunia: 7,5 – He’s gaining more and more confidence with every game, bossing the penalty area and dealing exceptionally well with high balls.

Koscielny: 8,5 – Perfect, no other adjective to describe his game. Especially when down to ten men, he was still rock solid answering all the questions the Sunderland players kept asking over and over again.

Squillaci: 8,5 – As equally good, and really, today’s game has showed that we are covered at the back. Well, at least in the centre and on the right.

Clichy: 5 – Started well, very well, blocking all attempts from the right and was a beast when going forward but he went downhill as the match progressed. Seriously Gael, you’re one of the true fighters of the team but learn to defend or give way.

Sagna: 7,5 – Handled everything in the air and made sure to keep Sunderland at bay on the right flank.

Song: 5 – Decided to be our Cesc Fabregas today, surging forward which meant leaving poor Jack Wilshere all alone in midfield. Regardless of the decision of not booking Bramble minutes later, Alex’s second yellow was deserved, he simply didn’t care about the ball, went for the man.

Wilshere: 6 – Very, very poor start though he did improve as the game went on. Some of the tricks he tried in the middle of the pitch were so uncalled for though.

Fabregas: No Vote – Not easy to rate our captain who only stayed on the pitch for 29 minutes. The news is that it’s a hamstring injury which usually means two weeks out.

Arshavin: 5,5 – Awful. I understand some players can create magic at any time and he went close with a nice right-footed low shot but it would be fair to give someone else a chance to shine, Emmanuel Eboue or Carlos Vela to name a few.

Nasri: 6,5 – As equally shocking as Andrey in the first half, but stepped it up a gear in the second half especially after we were reduced to ten men. Still disappointed, a game lasts 90 minutes not 45.

Chamakh: 7 – What more can you ask from him? Shields the ball to perfection, helps the midfield and was crucial when we went down to ten men to ease the pressure off the defensive department. Misplaced a number of passes but I can accept that.

(Subs)
Rosicky: 6 – Penalty aside, his performance was not that bad. He held the ball nicely in midfield and created some nice gaps for his team mates.

Denilson: 6,5 – Showed all the good and bad he brings to the team. Phenomenal in breaking up Sunderland’s game and surging forward after winning the ball but the one-minute fiasco started with the back pass to Almunia was horrible. The way he let Ahmed Al-Muhammadi surge past him on the left was no good either.

From thegunninghawk.com

Sunderland 1 Arsenal 1: match report

2010-09-19T21:33:00.000-07:00

Last gasp: Sunderland striker Darren Bent scored deep into stoppage time to earn the home side a point Photo: GETTY IMAGES
Alex Song - Alex Song is shown the red card by Phil Dowd
Seeing red: Arsenal's Alex Song is sent off for a second bookable offence by referee Phil Dowd after a block on Steed Malbranque Photo: PA
Cesc Fabregas - Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas pulls up after scoring a goal
Pleasure/pain: Cesc Fabregas feels a twinge after scoring the opener for Arsenal - to the obvious concern of team-mate Samir Nasri Photo: ACTION IMAGES
Tomas Rosicky - Tomas Rosicky misses a penalty for Arsenal
Spot of bother: Arsenal's Tomas Rosicky wasted a glorious chance to put the game beyond Sunderland after blazing over from the penalty spot Photo: GETTY IMAGES

Darren Bent would regularly sit on Highbury’s North Bank as a youngster. He might not be quite so welcome on his next visit to the Emirates after denying boyhood club Arsenal their place at the summit of the Premier League.

Sunderland have developed an unwanted reputation for shipping late goals under Steve Bruce, but the roles were reversed five minutes into added time as England international Bent pounced from close range after a goalmouth scramble to earn his side a deserved share of the spoils.

The visitors, at a numerical disadvantage for most of the second half after the needless sending off of midfielder Alex Song, appeared to have held on as they came under severe pressure from the hosts, who stretched an impressive home run which has seen them beaten just once at the Stadium of Light in the last 10 months.

A 75th-minute penalty miss by Tomas Rosicky, who sent the ball over from 12 yards after Samir Nasri was tripped by Ahmed Elmohamady, proved to be a pivotal moment.

It provided the hosts with a psychological boost as they eventually found a last-gasp equaliser, much to the chagrin of Arsène Wenger, who seemed to jostle Martin Atkinson, the fourth official, in the wake of Bent’s goal.

Atkinson had indicated four minutes of stoppage time, but Bruce insisted afterwards that referee Phil Dowd was within his rights to play beyond that. “It’s a minimum of four minutes. I think there was about 15 seconds overtime. I certainly didn’t sense any atmosphere between Arsène and Martin Atkinson,” the Sunderland manager said.

Arsenal led courtesy of a freak goal by Cesc Fabregas inside the opening quarter of an hour. At a venue where they had emerged with a single point from their previous two visits, the unexpected gift provided them with a release of pressure and allowed them, at times, to play their sumptuous passing game.

Sunderland, who paid the visitors every respect by opting for a 4-5-1 formation, played their part in a flowing encounter, and posed a significant threat from set-pieces.

From one of those, a Jordan Henderson corner, Nedum Onuoha headed wastefully over the bar when meeting the ball unmarked six yards from goal.

It looked easier to score, and would have proved the perfect riposte to the hugely-fortuitous opener for Arsenal, who were, predictably, unchanged from the side that beat Braga 6-0 in the Champions League.

The visitors took the lead when Fabregas showed the merits of refusing to give up on a seemingly hopeless situation, closing down Anton Ferdinand as the Sunderland defender, barely 15 yards inside his own half, prepared to launch upfield a ball laid back to him by Kieran Richardson.

Ferdinand’s connection was true but Fabregas’s firm block astonishingly ballooned up and over goalkeeper Simon Mignolet, stationed between the penalty spot and six-yard box, and into the empty net.

It proved to be the Spanish midfielder’s last contribution, as he trudged off injured shortly afterwards with a hamstring problem. Following that, Arsenal may have looked the prettier team when in possession, but it was Sunderland’s industry that helped to carve out the better openings.

The clearest opportunity they created, after Onuoha’s glaring miss, was just before the interval when Paraguayan midfielder Cristian Riveros met an inviting centre from Elmohamady just six yards out, but he was unable to direct his header on goal.

Half-time punctured the momentum built up by Bruce’s side, and it showed as Arsenal wasted three decent chances to claim the decisive second goal immediately after the restart.

Andrei Arshavin was the culprit on the first two occasions, from close range and then from the edge of the area, before Mignolet, with his first real save, did well to block at the feet of Marouane Chamakh.

Arsenal’s ambitious were reined in somewhat after the needless departure of Song 10 minutes after the restart for obstructing Steed Malbranque – though the Cameroonian’s departure was rather more due to being brainless than brutal – and they were fortunate to escape when Bent missed from 12 yards out.

But there was still time for the former Tottenham striker to ensure his welcome on his next visit to the Emirates will be a frosty one. Bruce added: “We warranted at least a point for the way we played and the chances we created.”

By Jason Mellor at the Stadium of Light
From telegraph.co.uk

VIDEO GOALS Arsenal’s 6-0 Win over Braga

2010-09-16T09:28:00.000-07:00

Arsenal’s 6-0 Braga

We are the champians.

Video from rutube.ru/tracks/3587244.html?v=df95612384f7ead19e0ee71c2bd3fb76&autoStart=true&bmstart=0

Arsenal vs S.C. Braga, 6-0: Full time analysis and player ratings

2010-09-16T09:25:00.000-07:00

The Game

Can it get any better than this? Maybe, but we’re simply a goal machine at the Emirates and even though Braga looked like a Championship side at the back, it is the hungriness and determination of our players which really stood out tonight.

A lot and a lot of questions were asked on whether Cesc Fabregas is still interested in playing for Arsenal and like a true professional, captain and leader, he answered the doubters with two top class performances in five days. There are players who are irreplaceable, who are special and Cesc is one of them. He is our captain, he is our man in midfield and without him, believe me, we wouldn’t be as fluent and menacing as we are.

Other players were amazing as well. Andrey enjoyed himself out there, Jack showed why he’s first-eleven material and Manuel Almunia was again very confident at the back. Also of course, thrilled to see Carlos Vela hit a segmented “hat-trick” in less than 45 minutes. Vamos Carlos, a regular place is not that far away.

The win will of course boost the morale of all our players as we approach two tricky away games against Sunderland in the Premier League and of course, Tottenham in the Carling Cup. But anyway, brilliant game, brilliant display from our key players, let’s just hope we can replicate this form when the going will get tougher, much tougher.

Player Ratings

Almunia: 7 – He’s more and more gaining the confidence he needs ahead of much tougher games which he will have to face very soon. Keep it up Manuel.

Koscielny and Squillaci: 7,5 – Very little was asked from these two tonight, yet they never lost concentration and produced a fine display at the heart of our back four.

Sagna: 8 – With this rate he will not only make the EPL squad of the year for a second time but will also be one of our best players of the seasons. Hoping of course he can keep it up!

Clichy: 7,5 – Apart from that first half lapse in concentration which was not good to see as other teams would have punished him, he was a beast on the left. I still believe he needs to improve his defensive side of his game but in terms of willingness and workload when pushing forward, he is still one of the best.

Fabregas: 10 – How can you give less to someone who scores two goals, turns provider for his team mates and keeps on fighting until the very last second of the game?

Song: 6 – My lowest rate for today’s game. I counted something like 5-6 passes missed by Alex tonight as he looked out of sorts.

Wilshere: 8 – He will not be one of the best players in England in the future. Because he already is. Granted, he needs to gain that bit of experience required to do well against tougher opposition but how many 18-year olds play with such confidence and have such quick feet?

Arshavin: 8,5 – Like Cesc, Andrey scored and turned provider for his team mates when required. He enjoyed himself out there, loved to take on Braga defenders and when he’s enjoying himself, the end product can only be one.

Nasri: 7 – Back from injury and not as sharp as he will be in a week or two as he faded away in the second half. But still a very good game from Samir who I feel will benefit from the competition Tomas Rosicky will provide this season.

Chamakh: 8 – I love Nicklas Bendtner, I feel he is one of the most underrated players in our squad but Marouane is exactly what the Dane has to be when he reaches Chamakh’s age, 26 that is. And he’s mature, just look at how he stopped and grabbed the ball when flagged for offside so as to make sure not to be yellow-carded.

(Subs)
Eboue: 6 – I feel he tried one trick too many out there Emmanuel although you’ve got to love how he’s the first one to hug players when they score.

Denilson: 6,5 – Again very tidy in midfield and produced some nice tricks in the middle of the field.

Vela: 8 – Can he miss? Scored three goals in five days even if he was on the pitch for less than 45 minutes. I honestly believe Eduardo gave him a tip or two before leaving for Ukraine as Carlos is slowly becoming the new “Dudu” of Arsenal. I so much want to know if he can be so influential during the first part of a game and not just when the game is already put to bed.

From thegunninghawk.com

[VIDEO GOALS] Arsenal 4-1 Bolton: Gunners Beat 10-Man Bolton at the Emirates

2010-09-11T18:37:00.000-07:00

Arsenal beat Bolton 4-1 at the Emirates this afternoon but the match wasn’t without controversy as Gary Cahill was sent off for a challenge on Marouane Chamakh with the scoreline at 2-1.

Arsenal took the lead when Cesc Fabregas set up Laurent Koscielny to poke home from 2 yards, but the French centre-back’s mistake then let in Bolton winger Choo-Lee who found Elmander to head home the equalizer.

Arsenal re-took the lead when Fabregas was again the provider, this time finding Chamakh who headed home from close range. Cahill was then sent off before the game was all but over when Alex Song scored the third with a delightful close range chip. Vela added a fourth late on to secure the three-points.

Watch all the goals below…

11-09-2010 - Arsenal 4-1 Bolton W. @ Yahoo! Video

thak vidoe from http://football-talk.co.uk/7624/video-goals-arsenal-41-bolton-gunners-beat-10man-bolton-emirates/

Arsenal vs Bolton, 4-1: Full time analysis and player ratings

2010-09-11T18:04:00.000-07:00

The Game

That was fantastic. Not perfect, but fantastic. Putting aside for just one second the awful defending which led to Bolton’s equaliser, for the second consecutive week our players demonstrated how they are no longer intimidated by assassin-like tackles.

The referee was shocking, Bolton deserved to have three players sent off but at the end of the day this is not important, Bolton is now history, and we go second, enjoying a day which saw Manchester United, Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur all dropping points. We can look forward to the Champions League game knowing that in midfield and up front we’ve got plenty of solutions to choose from. At the back, well, it’s not yet perfect but we can get there.

Laurent Koscielny is incredibly solid and has great vision in keeping his player at bay but if caught on the back foot or quick decisions are to be made, his lack of experience is immediately shown. But I’m sure he will learn from the mistakes he made against Blackburn and today. As for Sebastien Squillaci, wow, that was one helluva debut. He didn’t put a foot wrong and looked incredibly fit and as fresh as a daisy.

Cesc Fabregas, in midfield, had a slow start but as he promised in the matchday programme he clearly showed that he’s still special for Arsenal. Some of his passes were simply phenomenal with Andrey Arshavin not taking advantage of one of them in the first half. Carlos Vela, however, made no mistake in front of goal, finishing a move made up of more than 20 passes. Amazing.

The Mexican was very hungry, it’s not easy to be given only 10 minutes and show that you can be an asset up front with your runs and finishing skills, but it seems he always manages to do it. I believe he was supposed to be involved earlier but had to delay his small show after Abou’s injury, which by the way, could keep him out for some time. Shame.

Anyway, I’m a little upset about the way we conceded although as long as we score one more than our opposition, I’ve got no problem with that. Problem is that one day we’ll play against a team where such mistakes, simply, cannot be made.

Player Ratings

Almunia: 6,5 – Can’t blame him for the goal, he was as surprised as all of us to see Koscielny making a mess of the clearance and did well to push the Bolton player wide. As for the rest, he was pretty confident in dealing with high balls.

Koscielny: 6,5 – If it wasn’t for the first half mistake I would have given him an 8 as I think he was successful with ALL his tackles, but you can’t forget it’s the second game in a row in which he was at fault for the conceded goal. He will improve, I’m more than certain, it’s only experience he’s missing.

Squillaci: 7,5 – Welcome to Arsenal, Sebastien. Together with Thomas Vermaelen, the Frenchman will probably be our regular centre back and I feel the two can form a formidable partnership at the back.

Eboue: 6,5 – Many of our moves came from Kieran Gibbs’ wing with Emmanuel having a quite game but it’s always nice to see him involved knowing that we have proper backup for Bacary Sagna, at least when there is little defending to be done.

Gibbs: 6,5 – I wanted Kieran to start to understand what he can give defensively as compared to Gael. Unfortunately, the way he challenged Elmander shows that we have big problems on the left when defending is to be done, it was very similar to how Clichy failed to challenge Gary Taylor-Fletcher when we played Blackpool. If we can see it, other teams will as well.

Fabregas: 8 – “I was out of form and during the [Blackburn] game I knew it, but hopefully you’ll see an improvement [against Bolton]“. We did, Cesc, we did.

Song: 7,5 – Very shaky on the ball in the first part of the game but come on, that’s a goal every striker would be proud of. After Abou was replaced because of the injury, Alex moved in a more advanced position and caused all sorts of trouble to Bolton.

Wilshere: 6,5 – I believe Jack had a good game, he was brushed aside easily in more than one occasion but all in all he showed he’s not there to warm the bench.

Arshavin: 6,5 – I always have mixed feelings when I have to rate Andrey. Missed three very good opportunities which on a different day would come back to haunt us but stepped it up a gear in the second half though he still failed to beat the offside trap. Still not as good as I know he can be.

Rosicky: 7 – Was a bit anonymous in the second half but was by far our best player in the first 20 minutes of the game. The through pass he invented for Arshavin was simply amazing. It’s great to see Tomas play regularly, he’s finally back.

Chamakh: 7 – Works incredibly hard the Moroccan, just what a football player has to do on the pitch. And he scored that so important second goal which started our easy run towards the three points.

(Subs)
Diaby: No Vote – Shame. It was just what he needed, 10-men Bolton leaving gaps at the back for him to exploit. Wenger said “he cannot move his leg”, it doesn’t look good.

Denilson: 6,5 – Took over from Wilshere(and Diaby) brilliantly, keeping it simple and covering the back four well.

From www.thegunninghawk.com

Walcott out 4-6 weeks

2010-09-09T11:42:00.000-07:00

Gunner’s fans worst fears where realized with the news that Theo Walcott is expected to be out for 4-6 weeks with an ankle injury.

“The tackle looked quite bad,” Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger said today. “When you see how it turned his ankle I thought it would be three or four days or it would be four to six weeks. Unfortunately it will be four to six weeks. We had some good news about the scan because at some stage we were scared it could be worse. But overall it is a question of patience and rehabilitation.”

It’s s shame as Theo had had a really good start to the season. Assuming six weeks which is the end of October Walcott will miss probably six Premier League games including the matches against Chelsea and Man City.

From wearearsenalblog.com

Winterburn: Fixtures have been kind on Arsenal

2010-09-09T11:41:00.001-07:00

Former Arsenal hero Nigel Winterburn believes Arsenal are heading into a good run of games following the international break.

The Gunners face Bolton at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday, before a home tie in their first game of the Champions League.

Winterburn admits that Owen Coyle's Bolton side will be no pushovers, but believes that Arsène Wenger can have no excuses after the dates of the international qualifying matches were moved a day earlier, giving the team more time to prepare for the weekend.

He explained: "Arsène Wenger has been asking for the international break to be altered for years and he finally got his way this week when the games were switched to Friday and Tuesday.

"It makes a lot of sense to me, and now the players will be back in training today and can have a proper preparation for the return to action on Saturday."

Winterburn believes that as long as Arsenal are focused, they should have no trouble going into these next few games.

He said: "Bolton have started the season well and will be no pushover, Owen Coyle has got them playing a bit more football and has made some interesting signings.

"But you can't help but feel the fixture list has been kind to Arsenal after the international week, and they are also at home in the Champions League next week.

"It all depends on how the players react to being back, but I fully expect Arsenal to win well on Saturday and get off to a good start in Europe against Braga on Wednesday."

From arsenal-mania.com

New season, but same old problems for Arsenal

2010-09-09T11:38:00.001-07:00

The new season is barely three weeks old and already Arsenal players are dropping like flies. Yes, Arsenal’s nemesis is once again threatening to hamper our search for glory. If you don’t know what i’m talking about yet let me spell it out for you I-N-J-U-R-I-E-S.

Firstly Emmanuel Frimpong did his crucial knee ligament after looking like he was breaking into the first team squad, then Samir Nasri did his knee in and was originally ruled out for a month, serial injury-victim RVP then twisted his ankle after just 30 minutes of his first start this season and was ruled out for at least a month, now Theo Walcott, who has easily been Arsenal’s best player so far this term, has also twisted his ankle while on international duty with England.

Three weeks and four injuries, and this doesn’t even take into account the fact that Bendtner is already out with a serious groin injury, Denilson hasn’t featured yet this term and of course Ramsey is still out with his leg brake. If it wasn’t Arsenal it would be unbelievable but us Gooners are used to it by now. I had hoped this year would be different but it seems we’re in for more of the same.

Arsenal.com have provided us with some good news in that Nasri is expected back in full training this week and might be in contention for Saturday’s game against Bolton. But the bad news is that RVP has predictably been ruled out for slightly longer than expected and is now not due back until mid October. Sigh.

Now on to Walcott. Theo went over on his ankle early on in England’s game against Switzerland, looked in some pain and had to be stretchered off the field and went to hospital for x-rays. At the time of writing this article, there is no official news yet on the severity of his injury. After the game Capello said “It’s a little problem or not so big problem,” so the early signs are good, and Sky Sports News are reporting that the x-rays were positive and he should be back within 2 weeks.

Fingers crossed because Walcott has been ridiculously unlucky with injuries so far in his short career and just when he started to look like the player we all hoped he could be, another long lay-off would be a bitter blow for all concerned.

But one thing i know is, Arsenal really need to take a serious look at why we keep getting these injuries. I know, I know, these injuries were all accidents and could have happened to anyone. But they didn’t, they happened to Arsenal players and is anyone surprised it’s RVP and Walcott in particular who are injured so early in the season? Not me.

From football-talk.co.uk

Vermaelen honoured to play for Arsenal

2010-09-09T11:36:00.000-07:00

After revealing that Cesc Fabregas wanted to leave the club in the summer, Thomas Vermaelen has now come out and said that Arsenal are a team that everyone wants to play for.

The Belgian joined the club from Ajax last summer, and feels honoured to be first choice at such a presitigious football club.

The centre-back has praised manager Arsène Wenger for the way he was brought into the team, and believes last season was a great experience for him, and one that many are envious of.

He said: "For me Arsenal is one of the best Clubs in the world.

"If you talk with other people they are so jealous because they want to play for Arsenal. They are happy [to talk about the Club] because for them it's such a nice Club who plays nice football. I know every player wants to play for this Club.

"Pressure was not that high [when I arrived] but the most important thing was that the boss gave me the confidence from the start. He let me play the first game, didn't put me on the bench, that was really important."

Vermaelen earned praise for his performances last season, which included eight goals, but insists he is still looking to improve this year.

He said: "I've learned a lot from last season, training with good players, with the boss, who gives me advice. I hope to do better this year."

From arsenal-mania.com

Andoni Zubizarreta: €40m were not enough to sign Cesc Fabregas

2010-09-02T19:27:00.000-07:00

Barcelona technical director Andoni Zubizarreta has revealed the fee the Spanish giants were ready to pay to secure the services of Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas.

According to the ex-goalkeeper, both the club and the player wanted the transfer to go through but Arsenal was determined to keep the captain and rejected a €40 million offer. Zubizarreta added how as soon as the North London Club replied by saying they were not interested, no more pressure and no more offers were made to sign the 23-year old midfielder.

The technical director concluded by saying how not signing Fabregas was a big blow for the Spaniards as he described negotiations as impossible to conclude.

In a statement published on Arsenal’s official website last month, the player explained how he understands why the Club opted not to sell him, a decision he respects, adding how he is now totally committed to the Gunners as negotiations with Barcelona have finally ended.

On signing Fabregas, Zubizarreta said:

Both the club and the player did as much as possible. Our second offer was €40 million. From the moment Arsenal said they didn’t want to negotiate, we respected their position.

We would have liked to have signed him, but we weren’t able to negotiate. It wasn’t a disappointment – it was simply impossible. Thanks to the conversations, we have re-established contact with Arsenal.

From thegunninghawk.com

Nasri returns to training

2010-09-02T19:24:00.001-07:00

Arsenal midfielder Samir Nasri has reportedly given Arsenal a major boost in terms of fitness by returning to training.

The Frenchman underwent a knee surgery about a fortnight ago, and was expected to be sidelined for about four weeks.

This Gunners boss Arsene Wenger had previously confirmed that the midfielder was recovering quicker than expected, and now Tabloid report that the 23-year-old has returned to training.

It is believed that Nasri is hoping to regain full fitness during the international break to be fit in time for Bolton Wanderers' visit to the Emirates Stadium next Saturday.

Meanwhile, Arsenal are still without strikers Nicklas Bendtner and Robin van Persie, who are out with groin and ankle injuries respectively.

From arsenalfcweb.co.uk

Merson: Arsenal should have signed Given

2010-09-02T19:23:00.000-07:00

Former Arsenal man Paul Merson believes Arsène Wenger should have made more of an effort to sign a new goalkeeper this summer.

The Gunners were linked with a new 'keeper throughout the transfer window, particularly Fulham's Mark Schwarzer and Man City's Shay Given.

Merson, who made 327 appearances for Arsenal, told SkySports that although Schwarzer was perhaps not the answer, he would have liked to have seen an improvement on current first choice 'keeper Almunia.

He believed Given to be the answer, saying: "I played with Mark Schwarzer and he's a good goalie, but I don't know if he's that much better than Manuel Almunia.

"He has played for Middlesbrough and Fulham, but playing for Arsenal is a different kettle of fish.

"For me, Arsenal should have broken the bank and got Shay Given because he would save you 10 points per season. I'm not sure of the other two would do that. If Arsenal signed Given, they would have had every chance of winning the league."

A deadline day move that DID happen saw former Gunners winger Alex Hleb make a surprise move from Barcelona to Birmingham City, and Merse believes the Belarussian would still be good enough for Arsenal's first team.

He said: "He was one of the best players at Arsenal in his last season there and at times he was a different class. He could still play for Arsenal and he'll be an absolutely brilliant buy for Birmingham.

"He's a proper footballer who can play on the wing, but he comes inside and he's so hard to pick up."

From arsenal-mania.com

Bendtner prepares for “big step forward” next week

2010-09-02T19:21:00.000-07:00

Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner has begun his well-awaited return from injury by taking part in running exercises at London Colney, and the Dane admitted that he faces “a huge step forward” next week as he trains with the ball for the first time in 3 months.

The 22-year-old feels that his troublesome groin problem has finally gone away, while his comments also rubbish reports from the Danish FA which suggested that Bendtner had aggravated the injury.

My basic form is now fully in place, and I have started to sprint. Next week I’ll try to train with the ball and it will be a huge step forward,” Bendtner told Sporten.dk.

He started up front in all three of Denmark’s World Cup group games, scoring in the 2-1 win over Cameroon, as the 1992 European champions missed out on a place in the last 16.

However, the injury flared up again, meaning Bendtner is likely to be out until mid-October at the earliest.

Leave your thoughts on Bendtner’s possible return in the comments section below.

From goonertalk.com

Premier League: Blackburn Rovers 1 Arsenal 2 HIGHLIGHTS

2010-08-28T11:16:00.000-07:00

Walcott 20
Diouf 27
Arshavin 51

Blackburn Rovers 1 Arsenal 2: match report

2010-08-28T11:07:00.000-07:00

The repetitive nature of this rivalry does little to diminish the pleasure given by its pantomime nature but, even with a Robin van Persie injury to contend with, it was Arsene Wenger's turn to enjoy a sense of vindication.

Theo Walcott had given his side an early lead that was cancelled out by a first Premier League goal for Blackburn Rovers from on-loan Manchester United forward Mame Biram Diouf.

But after Van Persie, who was making his first start of the season, limped off with an ankle problem, Arsenal restored their advantage just after the break through Andrei Arshavin to pick up a first away win since March.

Although Blackburn had the better of the opening period, they had an early scare when Abou Diaby's shot bounced off Vince Grella and Paul Robinson when it had looked destined for the corner.

Walcott has once again spent the week having his sporting intelligence compared to Jeff Probyn and Jason Leonard but the watching Fabio Capello must have been impressed to see the winger anticipate Van Persie's pass behind Gael Givet and drill a shot across Robinson and into the corner.

Chris Samba thumped a header over at the near post from Morten Gamst Pedersen's corner but the Congo defender had a key role in the equaliser.

He strode out of defence and squeezed a pass through to El-Hadji Diouf, who drove into the area and pulled back between Thomas Vermaelen and Gael Clichy for Mame Diouf to tap in.

Van Persie had to be replaced at the interval but, five minutes after the restart, the visitors regained their advantage.

From Bacary Sagna's cross, a shot from Cesc Fabregas hit Michel Salgado and rebounded to Arshavin, who guided past Robinson.

Having made his first start of the season, Fabregas was withdrawn with 20 minutes left and even when Samba was thrown up front Arsenal were able to hold out.

By Graham Chase at Ewood Park
From telegraph.co.uk

Gunners seal Squillaci deal

2010-08-26T08:44:00.000-07:00

"Wenger happy to bring in fellow Frenchman"
Arsenal have wrapped up the signing of defender Sebastien Squillaci from Sevilla for an undisclosed fee.

Sevilla confirmed earlier in the week that an offer had been accepted for Squillaci and the France international was heading to Arsenal to undergo a medical.

The 30-year-old has now finalised the move to Emirates Stadium to become Arsene Wenger's third signing of the summer.

Wenger had been looking to improve his defensive options, particularly at centre-back, after losing William Gallas, Mikael Silvestre, Sol Campbell and Philippe Senderos since the end of last season.

Laurent Koscielny has been brought in from Lorient and further depth has been added to the Gunners' back-line with the acquisition of Squillaci.

The former Lyon centre-half will also be eligible for Arsenal's UEFA Champions League campaign after pulling out of Sevilla's play-off tie against Braga.

Real defender
However, Squillaci is unlikely to make his Gunners debut until after the international break as he will not be involved against Blackburn in the Premier League on Saturday.

Wenger confirmed: "We needed a centre-back of quality and experience if possible, and at the right price - he was all of that.

"He is a real defender and is good in the one against one, good in the air, and can score goals on set-pieces as well.

"I believe he will be suited to the English game.

"He will train with us tomorrow morning, but will not be involved on Saturday."

In addition to Koscielny and Squillaci, Gunners boss Wenger has signed Marouane Chamakh this summer and reportedly remains in the market for a new goalkeeper.

Wilshere and Lansbury in England U-21 squad

2010-08-25T03:07:00.000-07:00

Jack Wilshere and Henri Lansbury have been selected in the England Under-21 squad to face Portugal and Lithuania.

The Young Lions will play two UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifying matches at the start of next month. Lansbury has two Under-21 caps to his name and Wilshere has five. The 18-year-old made his full England debut against Hungary earlier in August.

Nico Yennaris and Benik Afobe have also been called-up by England. They will represent the Under-19s in a home match against Slovakia on September 2. Emmanuel Frimpong was also selected for the match but had to withdraw after suffering a cruciate knee ligament injury.

Zak Ansah is in the England Under-17 squad for a four-day tournament in Lincolnshire which starts on Wednesday. Australia, Portugal and Turkey are also taking part in the competition.

From arsenal.com

Arshavin gets a giggle from Blackpool fans

2010-08-25T03:06:00.000-07:00

By CARL ELDRIDGE Andre Arshavin is slowly getting used to the fan culture here in England and even had a little help from Theo Walcott to bring him up to speed during the game against Blackpool.

The Russian winger, who scored from the spot in the 6-0 demolition of the ten-man Tangerines at the home of football, was spotted chatting with Theo and thanks to Arshavin's personal website we have the answer to the topic of debate.

The pair were discussing the away supporters virtually non-stop support for Ian Holloway's men and AA says he was impressed with their humour and loyal backing for their team.

He said: "Yes, they are good fellows who supported their team. They didn’t stop doing it even when the score was 0-5. Theo told me: Andrey, do you hear what they are singing about? I asked him to clarify.

"It turned out that they were singing that the score was 0 - 5, but they will win 6-5. That was funny. I like it when people have a sense of humor when supporting their clubs."

AA was further educated in our terrace culture when a friend went to the opening game of the season at Anfield where, of course, we picked up a 1-1 draw and a point thanks to their clown of a keeper.

He explains: "My friend was at the match against Liverpool. He said that the fans were hurling insults at each other for the entire match but after the game they left the stadium together and went to London in the same train. There was not a single clash. It was surprising for him."

And for me, I have to say. Twasn't always the case. COYG.

From arsenalinsider.com

Arsenal rumours Aug 25th – Ben Arfa, Montolivo, Juan and the Squillaci saga

2010-08-25T03:05:00.000-07:00

Entering the final week of the window at last, and there are lots of Arsenal transfer rumours flying about. The main one at the moment is asking why Sebastien Squllaci hasn’t signed yet, despite Sevilla announcing he was to have a medical at Arsenal on Monday.

The rumours are saying that he has failed and Arsenal are demanding further tests, along with many more outlandish suggestions, but there is absolutely no proof one way or the other. Arsenal fans should know by now that there is never anything straightforward when it comes to signing anyone……

The good news is that Sevilla must be certain it will go through as they have acquired his replacement, the 25 year-old Alexis Ruano from Valencia, subject to the usual medical. Hopefully we will get confirmation of Squillaci’s arrival today, and he should be holding a Arsenal shirt if they can find a “Q” somewhere at the back of the club shop……

There is some interesting news from France saying that Hatem Ben Arfa has told Marseille that he is leaving immediately, and has been negotiating with an un-named English club, who is “believed” to be Arsenal. The rumour goes that Wenger is worried about not having enough midfield cover now that Samir Nasri will miss the next month, and he has made a last minute bid for Ben Arfa at £12m. I am sure that Ben Arfa is a very talented individual, but I would think that Arsenal were more in need of cover for Alex Song than Nasri…….

Another midfielder linked with Arsenal is the Fiorentina and Italy star Riccardo Montolivo. He was one of the few Italians that actually looked good at the World Cup, and it is reported that Arsene Wenger is a long-term admirer of the 25 year-old. Apparently the Gunners are preparing a bid of around 18 million pounds, which is where I started doubting the story!

The most likely bit of Arsenal gossip today is the report that the Brazilian defender Juan is the next most likely arrival at the Emirates. Although a vastly experienced Brazil international, the 31 year-old is reaching his sell-by date, would be ideal as third cover for the centre-back role at Arsenal if any disaster should occur to Thomas Vermaelen and Laurent Koscielny. This sounds like one of Wenger’s “making up the numbers” signing………….

From justarsenal.com

Jose Mourinho: No, Arsenal will not win the title this year

2010-08-25T03:04:00.000-07:00

New Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho believes Arsenal are still not ready to fight for the Premier League title as he tips Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea to be contenders.

Speaking to Sky Sports News HD, the Inter Milan hat-trick hero believes it is always the same story with Arsenal where it looks like they can get back to winning terms but at the end of the day they just have to accept defeat. Mourinho also added how the “young” squad of Arsenal is no longer that young, most likely referring to the likes of Bacary Sagna, Andrey Arshavin and Gael Clichy.

The Portuguese believes it’s time for the Gunners to deliver as many of their players are reaching a stage in their career where winning is a must although he added how they will not do this year.

Mourinho, who also believes Liverpool are not in the frame to win the title, concluded by saying how Manchester United and Chelsea – the “usual suspects” – will fight for the title, with Manchester City joining the group as he described them as a “great squad”.

He said:

Arsenal too, year after year it looks likely – but no.

Always the same type of comment, ‘it’s a young team, we’ll be next season’. I remember we (Chelsea) played them in the Carling Cup semi-final with a team of young boys.

But the team of young boys is no longer the team of young boys. In this moment they are a team that are 25, 26, 27 years old.

(Cesc) Fabregas, (Theo) Walcott, (Gael) Clichy, (Alex) Song, (Bacary) Sagna. They are not a team of kids anymore, they are the team at the age to win things.

But I don’t think they will do it, I think it will be again Man United and Chelsea, and of course Man City because they have a great squad.

From thegunninghawk.com

Premier League: Liverpool – Arsenal 1-1 HIGHLIGHTS

2010-08-15T18:22:00.000-07:00

1-0 David N’Gog 47′

1-1 Pepe Reina 90′(own goal)

Laurent Koscielny red card

Arsenal saved by late Reina error Liverpool 1 - 1 Arsenal: Match Review

2010-08-15T18:20:00.000-07:00
Arsenal earned a late point at Anfield as an uncharacteristic Jose Reina error gifted the Gunners an equaliser.

Liverpool had Joe Cole sent off late in the first-half, but took a surprise lead in the opening minutes of the following period through David Ngog's fine near post striker.

Arsene Wenger left Cesc Fabregas, Theo Walcott and Robin van Persie on the bench, and the later two would come on along with Thomas Rosicky as the north London club pushed for a goal in the second-half.

But it was Reds keeper Reina who made the telling contribution in the 89th minute, fumbling a poor cross onto Marouane Chamakh and then running the ball into his own goal after it came back off the post.

Laurent Koscielny was sent off on debut in injury-time for a second bookable offence, but it made no difference to the outcome.

The usually brilliant Spanish keeper had denied Rosicky less than five minutes earlier, saving a goal-bound strike from the Czech international as the Gunners carved out their best chance of the game.

Wenger's side struggled to break down Liverpool, who ran the clock down wherever possible after taking the lead. They were even down to nine-men for a brief part of the closing stages, with Daniel Agger suffering from an apparent concusion after all three substitutions had been made.

A relatively poor first half came to life close to the break, with Ngog forcing Gael Clichy into a goal line block from Steven Gerrard's corner. Three minutes later, Cole was sent off as the period found its major talking point.

Koscielny took the ball towards the right touch line, and Cole slid across in an attempt to block the long clearence down the line. Martin Atkinson instantly produced a red for the clumsy challenge, with the French defender stretchered away and the Englishman bemused after the first red of his senior career.

Roy Hodgson's side seemed rejuvenated after the interval, and struck almost immediately at the Kop end. Ngog's strike beat Manuel Almunia on his near side, but was struck with such venum that the keeper couldn't take too much blame.

From then on the Gunners toiled with little success, and neither side had chances of note until the closing stages. Reina's own goal was quickly followed by Koscielny's red, and Gerrard had a free kick saved in injury time as both sides briefly looked for a winner.

Neither will be too dis-heartened with a point on the opening day, although Liverpool will feel they lost two due to the manner of the equaliser.

From givemefootball.com

Liverpool vs Arsenal Match Preview

2010-08-15T00:32:00.000-07:00
Well, here we are, the moment has arrived ! The 1st game of the season. Four interminable months of reading posts predicting the end of arsenal, watching a world cup devoid of quality and dreading the announcement that Cesc would be off to Catalonia. Did anything happen of any real sporting significance between the end of last season and now ? The world cup ? Nah… a FIFA sideshow with an unpredictable ball and Vuvuzela din, superseded now by the main event, the premiership.

We now know of course that Cesc is staying, well, we knew he was staying, and the word is that Wenger has been pulling a fast one by saying he will not start. In all probability, he will start, and we wouldn’t put past Wenger introducing VP as well. According to the super information highway, Diaby is also fit. This means that the predicted start of season injury crisis looks to be, well, … a load of old bollocks.

So what of our opponents today, Liverpool ? Well, don’t know about the general feeling amongst gooners, but they do seem to be the lesser of all evils. We all hate the chavs. That is a given. We hate the mancs and fergie red nose. I think we probably now hate the northern chavs, because, they seem to be, well, indecent and somehow grotesque. But the scousers, I think we probably have a soft spot for them. Perhaps it is because of the events of 1989, one famous May night. Not sure, could be wrong. Invite your comments on that one.

Roy Hodgson is now there. Torres and Gerrard have been retained whilst Liverpool have been adding players to their squad. Joe Cole (free transfer), Christian Poulson, Danny Wilson, Jonjo Shelvey (free transfer) and Milan Jovanovic (free transfer) have joined. It seems that Christian Poulson is a replacement for Mascherano, who, at the time of writing, is said to want a move, and is probably on his way out of the club. Does this make Liverpool any stronger ? Difficult question to answer. What one might suspect is that there is renewed optimism at Anfield, which will make them a very dangerous proposition indeed. An in form Gerrard, with the tactically adept Hodgson, we will do well to come away with a point. That is my view. And it is not a slur on our current capabilities or line up; it is just the impetus that comes with a team who are playing for a new manager.

The other factor is that there appears to be not money following money, but money following debt, with megalomanic billionaire investors looking to buy their club. This must be pleasing to the players, who will welcome a change of ownership. The comedy american director duo, Laurel Hicks and Hardy Gillett, backed by RBS, a bank with the liquidity of Enron, are in the death throes of their last act.

Back then, to us. We seem to be well prepared. An excellent pre season in which we won all of our games bar AC Milan. The last one jinxed as I was there. The insistent call for a top class keeper and centre back shows no sign of abating. This means that we go into the game with either Almunia or Fabianski, and Koscienly. I saw Koscienly against AC Milan, and his performance was top top class. Let’s not make too many hasty judgements about the guy until he has had at least 20 games. The team ? Well, it is difficult to predict because we know that there are late fitness tests on Denilson, Song, VP and Cesc. Assuming they are all available, perhaps the line up will be something along the lines of:

Almunia, Sagna, Clichy, Vermaelen, Koscienly, Song, Diaby, Cesc, Nasri, Arshavin, Chamakh

Subs: Fabianski, Gibbs, Denilson, Rosicky, Walcott, Eboue, VP

If either Denilson, Song or Diaby are not available, then expect to see Wilshere or Frimpong.

Enjoy the game, wherever you are.

From aculturedleftfoot.wordpress.com

[Rate The Rumour] Arsenal Transfer Rumours , Mark Schwarzer or Shay Given?

2010-08-15T00:30:00.000-07:00
Starting the last week of April and going through the summer, The Gunning Hawk will bring you one article of the most creative and sensational of Arsenal transfer rumours. Of course, please understand that most of them – if not all of them – are “wrong”, to use the same word used by Arsene Wenger. But, it will interesting to discuss what it would be if one or more transfers do indeed go through.

Arsenal will today face Liverpool at Anfield with manager Arsene Wenger – yet again – saying how he is yet to take a final decision on who his goalkeeper will be for the day.

Wenger said how who will be picked this afternoon will be the regular goalkeeper for the Gunners at least for the first part of the season. In the meantime, both Mark Schwarzer and Shay Given were not utilised on Saturday and this has of course saw many linking them to a possible move to Arsenal. Soccerway.com, for example, believes that Shay Given wants to quit Eastlands with the Gunners in pole position to sign him.

On the other hand, The Sydney Morning Herald reports the same on the 37-year old Aussie, although it seems manager Mark Hughes revealed the reason why the goalkeeper didn’t feature on Saturday was an injury and how nothing has moved in terms of the future of the Australian.

As it seems one or the other will eventually join Arsenal, what we today ask in our poll is who would you prefer. Is it Given or Schwarzer? 526 of our readers said they would be happy to see the Fulham keeper join two days ago but has this changed?

Arsene Wenger, “The guy who plays on Sunday will be No. 1″

2010-08-15T00:18:00.000-07:00

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has revealed that whoever starts in goal today against Liverpool will be the regular No. 1 for the Gunners at least for the first part of the season.

According to reports, it is very difficult to predict whether it will be Manuel Almunia or Lukasz Fabianski to start this afternoon, with Wojciech Szczęsny right behind them in terms of Wenger’s preference. According to the Frenchman, all his goalkeepers are great and ready to feature as he added how his decision will be based on what he saw during pre-season.

On the youngest of the three, Wenger explained that it would be a gamble as he’s yet to play a game in the English Premier League so it seems that the decision is between 33-year old Almunia and 25-year old Fabianski.

Fulham’s Mark Schwarzer and Manchester City’s Shay Given are both heavily linked with a possible move to Arsenal with Fulham manager Mark Hughes playing down speculation saying how he wants to keep the 37-year old Australian.

On his goalkeepers, Wenger said:

The goalkeepers are great, all ready to play. I just wait for my decision and you will get it soon.

The guy who plays on Sunday will be No 1. It is never for definite but it will be a consequence of what I have seen in pre-season.

[Szczęsny] has not played one game in the Premier League. I believe he has huge quality but I believe it would be a great gamble to play him.

Man United play with a goalkeeper who is 40 years old and Chelsea with a keeper with seven years in the Premier League. You need experience at the back.

From thegunninghawk.com

FIVE things Wenger must do to ensure success this season

2010-08-11T10:01:00.000-07:00
Having not won any silverware since the 2005 FA Cup triumph, Arsenal supporters will be desperate to see their team pick up a trophy this season. Arsene Wenger though, will need to do certain things if Arsenal are to end the wait in this campaign.

1. Sign a centre-back

Arsenal currently have only three recognised centre-backs in their squad. Thomas Vermaelen is top-class, but new signing Laurent Koscielny is unproven and Johan Djourou is injury prone. Although William Gallas, Sol Campbell and Mikael Silvestre will not be terribly missed, Wenger will have to bring in another central defender if Arsenal are going to mount a serious challenge in the Premier League and Europe. Wenger has linked with a host of names this summer, including Per Mertesacker, Neven Subotic and Phil Jagielka. Jagielka has proven Premiership experience and is a quality centre-back, if Wenger can get a decent price for him, he would worth a serious look.

2. Sign a new goalkeeper

Manuel Almunia and Lukasz Fabianski are not good enough for Arsenal to win the title. As much as he needs a centre-back Wenger needs to find another ‘keeper. A top-class goalie can make a massive difference in the season, preserving crucial clean-sheets and gaining the team a few extra points along the way. Mark Schwarzer has been linked throughout the summer, and whilst he is preferable to Almunia and Fabianski, he does not provoke huge confidence. If Wenger can bring in a goalkeeper such as Joe Hart, Maarten Stekelenburg or Igor Akinfeev it would stand Arsenal in good stead for the season. Whatever happens, Arsenal will need a new goalkeeper.

3. Sort out defensive frailties

This is easier said than done, but if Arsenal are to challenge for the top honours then Wenger will need to sort out Arsenal’s defence, which leaked too many goals last season. He will hope Koscielny can bring solidity to central defence, but the mentality will also need to be changed. Too often Arsenal’s defence was caught too far up the field last season, with top-class teams especially punishing them with counter-attacks. Although Vermaelen is an attacking threat, he may have to rein himself in more than last season. Defence was Arsenal’s weakest link last season and it will need to remedied if a title is to be brought to the Emirates.

4. Shoot more often

Arsenal’s passing style is unmatched in the Premier League, and it is an effective form of football. However sometimes it is true that Arsenal can overplay it, especially in the final third. Too often a player has a good shooting opportunity only to pass it to another player in an attempt to create a perfect scoring opportunity. When the move breaks down, this can be frustrating. The more shots a team has the more they are likely to score and there is no problem with players shooting from outside the box. If Wenger can put it into the minds of his players to shoot a little more often, it could be of great benefit.

5. Toughen the mentality

Although pundits like Alan Hansen and Mark Lawrenson are over-the-top when they lambast Arsenal’s lack of mental fortitude, there is a slight issue here. When Arsenal are losing and especially against the top sides, there can be a tendency for heads to go down. Even when Arsenal do take the lead, there is never total confidence they can ride out the victory. This though, is as much the players as the manager and both will have their parts to play in becoming that little more resilient. If Arsene Wenger can achieve all these things, then Arsenal will stand a good chance of winning silverware.

From footballfancast.com

Ray Parlour on Arsenal's Premier League chances

2010-08-11T09:59:00.000-07:00
The former Gunners midfielder gives his thoughts on Arsenal's chances in the upcoming 2010/11 Premier League season.

Parlour expressed optimism for the north London club to do better than expected in the upcoming season. Declaring that people are wrong to write off Arsenal at the start of the season, he said that the club would be able to go all the way and win the Premiership title.

Stressing the importance of players such as defender Thomas Vermaelen, World Cup winner Cesc Fabregas and World Cup finalist Robert Van Persie, the ex-Gunner stated that if the senior players were supported by a number of impressive younger players at the club, Arsenal would "have a real chance" of surprising many and lifting the Premier League trophy in May next year.

from telegraph.co.uk

Tottenham Plan Sensational £4.6m Move for Veteran Defender: Redknapp Tries to Land Arsenal Man Gallas

2010-08-11T09:51:00.000-07:00
William Gallas ‘to consider Spurs free transfer before weekend’
Former Arsenal defender William Gallas has reportedly been asked by his representatives to consider joining Spurs on a free transfer after rumours of an enquiry being made by Harry Redknapp.

William Gallas – formerly of Arsenal – could be set for a shock move to Spurs

According to reports, Redknapp has contacted Gallas’ agent to ask if the France international would join Tottenham this week amid a defensive injury crisis at White Hart Lane.

Gallas left Spurs’ north London rivals at the end of last season after Gunners manager Arsene Wenger refused to buckle to his wage demands.
The 32-year-old has so far failed to find a new club, despite reported interest from a variety of clubs including Real Madrid, Panathinaikos, and a number of teams in the Middle East and the United States.

Gallas is thought to have been demanding around £90,000 a week from any potential suitors this summer, although Redknapp is hopeful he will compromise to stay in the capital.
The offer of Champions League football, which Spurs will enjoy if they can beat Swiss side Young Boys over two legs later this month, is also expected to be a draw for Gallas.
Redknapp already looks to have missed out on a number of defensive transfer targets this summer, including Fulham’s Brede Hangeland and Micah Richards of Manchester City.
However, the acquisition of Gallas – who remains one of the top-rated defenders in Europe despite his advancing years – would be regarded as a major coup by the Spurs board and coaching staff. (Metro)

Lets forget for a moment that on occasion the French international centre back can behave in a manner similar to an insane person and concentrate on the ability he possesses. The 32 year old former Arsenal and Chelsea man could well be what Harry Redknapp is looking for ahead of the historic season that awaits the north London club.

He is fit and raring to go and would be a great player to have in the club’s armoury, either as first choice or as back up for those injury prone members of the Tottenham squad. The sticking point appears to be the length of contract the defender is after, as much as it is the £90k a week he is looking to net from a new employer.

Redknapp is apparently willing to get close to the asking wage, which would work out at a whopping £4.6m a year, but is unwilling to budge on offering more than a rolling one year deal. Gallas must now weigh up this offer with those he has had from elsewhere.

There has been a great deal of speculation about interest in the player’s services from across Europe but actual offers seem few and far between. The chance to stay in London and to be part of a Champions League push may well be too good to pass up.

Such a move would indeed be something of a coup and would go some way to averting a potential injury crisis at the back.

From caughtoffside.com

Bartley back with Blades

2010-08-10T08:57:00.000-07:00
"Blackwell delighted to re-sign Arsenal youngster on loan"
Sheffield United have brought Arsenal youngster Kyle Bartley back to Bramall Lane on a season-long loan deal.

Bartley impressed during a three-month stint with the Championship club last season and has been a summer target for Blades boss Kevin Blackwell.

He has now followed Stephen Jordan in agreeing a deal with the Blades and Blackwell is delighted to have re-signed the young full-back.

Blackwell told the club's official website: "I think this is a great move for both Kyle and Sheffield United and I am delighted to bring in effectively a new player but one who knows how we operate and is comfortable at the club.

"We saw last season that Kyle is a young player with great potential and the association was of great benefit to both of us.

"It is very gratifying that he has made public how much he enjoys being with the Blades and that Arsenal trust us to look after him while he is with us.

"Getting him for a year means he can really concentrate on what we want from him and along with the signings of Jordan and Nosworthy it gives us real stability at the back."

From skysports.com

Hit the road Jack (make sure you come back)

2010-08-10T08:55:00.000-07:00
After much talk, this week promises to be a huge week in the life of Jack Wilshere. He's in line to make his England debut at Wembley tomorrow night, albeit in a friendly which might see the national side barracked remorselessly- their only crime? Being slightly more crap than usual at the World Cup. Mind you, they do bring it on themselves, don't they? The captain of England and Liverpool the latest to open his mouth without engaging his brain when talking to the Match of the Day magazine. He said,

"[Lionel] Messi can do some amazing things, but anything he can do Joe can do as well, if not better. He used to shock us in training by doing footy tricks with a golf ball that most players can't even do with a football. I really fancy Joe for the [player of the year] award this season."

Right, so Joe Cole's prowess with a golf ball means that he's better at football than one of the most genius footballers in the modern era- that's a logical leap to make, isn't it Stevie G? Er, no, actually, it's not. Yes I would have liked to have seen us sign Joe Cole, but I don't think he's patch on a man who, at the risk of offending any religious types out there, puts the Messi in Messiah. I certainly don't see Joe Cole single handedly destroying us on Sunday afternoon the way that Messi did a few months back. And yes, you can remind me I said that if he proves me wrong on Sunday.

Back to Jack. The England debut alongside Keiran Gibbs would be enough to get excited about under normal circumstances, but as Messrs Song, Denilson and Diaby look increasingly unlikely to feature on Sunday afternoon, Jack may well be looking at his first Arsenal start. This is what the phrase "baptism of fire" was invented for, I believe. I'd feel more excited about his chances were he to be partnered by a central midfielder with first team experience, but by all accounts I'm going to be getting to know more about Emmanuel Frimpong. Starting on Sunday. This is not the jump off point for the new season that we wanted, but it seems to be the one we've got. Knowing our luck Wilshere will end up getting injured tomorrow night, most likely by Wayne Rooney.

That Wilshere is in line for any sort of action on Sunday is basically down to the fact that club captain Cesc only returned to training with Arsenal 5 days ago. No sooner do we get him back then he's off again with the Spanish national squad, flying out to Mexico- I'll say that again- to Mexico for a bloody friendly, three days before the new season starts! I know other clubs are in similar boats, but it strikes me as ridiculous in the extreme that FIFA have created a situation where we are without our club captain on the opening day of the season. We may at least have RvP available. Clearly, we're quite likely to be without Carlos Vela too, although he's had a bit more of a pre season than Cesc and, as yet, has not assumed the same importance to us as the captain. You feel that with Eduardo now out of the picture, not to mention Bendtner's medium term absence, this is a massive season coming up for our Mexican.

Bemusingly, the Shay Given link will not die- Given himself says it's too soon to talk about a move to Arsenal, wary of disrespecting the (Trade Description alert!) goalkeepers already on our staff. One of the more intriguing rumours on Twitter yesterday surrounded Martin O'Neil's departure. The story being that his abrupt resignation was down to not wanting to sell Brad Friedel to Fulham. That sale would, theoretically of course, allow Fulham to sell Mark Schwarzer to us. I'm not sure I believe that but let's run with it for a second. I may be alone on this, but whilst Schwarzer would, in my opinion anyway, be better than Almunia, I'd rather have Friedel than either of them. This speculation does point to a man in Arsène Wenger who at least knows he has a problem that needs resolving. Which must be encouraging for those of you who believe he is blind to it.

Finally for today, Nacer Barazite- the young Dutch forward who seems to be have been at Arsenal forever- has been taken up to Glasgow Rangers on a trial basis. I don't think Nacer will be adding to his three first team appearances for us, so I'll take this opportunity to wish him well during his time in Scotland and for the rest of his future career.

That's your lot!

From arsenal-mania.com

Barazite handed Gers chance

2010-08-10T08:52:00.000-07:00
"Arsenal youngster to play in friendly against Glentoran"
Rangers have taken Arsenal youngster Nacer Barazite on trial with a view to a possible move to Ibrox.

The 20-year-old striker has represented Holland at all youth levels and has three caps for their Under-21 side, but has struggled to make an impact at Arsenal.

Barazite has been at the Premier League club since 2006 and has made three first-team appearances, the last of which was against West Brom in the Carling Cup last season.

After spending the 2008/2009 season on loan to Derby County, he failed to establish himself at Arsenal last term after suffering from shoulder injury problems that required surgery.

But an impressive performance against Glentoran on Tuesday in front of Ibrox coach Ian Durrant could convince Rangers to offer Barazite a deal.

"Nacer will be on trial for us," Durrant told the Evening Times.

"It's a good opportunity in a competitive match for us to have a look at him."

From skysports.com

Gunners boss confident of title bid

2010-08-09T09:32:00.000-07:00
Arsene Wenger has talked up Arsenal's season and believes his side are good enough to lift the Premier League title.

Arsenal have enjoyed an impressive pre-season, beating Barnet, winning the Emirates Cup and also taking in a victory-laden tour to Austria.

They rounded off their preparations for the new campaign with an eyebrow-raising 6-5 win at Legia Warsaw on Saturday and Wenger says his side are in good shape ahead of a tough trip to Anfield on Sunday.

On Arsenal's chances of winning the title come next May, he said: "I believe we have a good chance.

"The most important thing is that we have that belief.

"We finished third last season, so we have two stairs to climb and I am confident that we can do it."

From eatsleepsport.com

Arsenal ‘Given’ hope as Shay suggests either he or Hart will leave City

2010-08-09T09:30:00.000-07:00

Arsenal have been boosted in their search for a new No.1 as Manchester City’s Shay Given has revealed he will look for a move elsewhere if he doesn’t start against Tottenham this weekend, and the same goes for Joe Hart.

City are in the privileged position of having two outstanding goalkeepers to choose from, something Arsenal can only dream about, and both Given and Hart have been linked with a move to the Gunners in recent weeks as Arsene Wenger looks for a new goalkeeper.

Given was first choice at Eastlands last season but now faces stiff competition from Joe Hart who excelled while on loan at Birmingham last term. But 34-year-old Given has stated he wouldn’t be content with settling for a place on the subs bench, should Roberto Mancini opt for Hart on Saturday.

“Yeah, we’re both at a stage when we need to be playing football. If i don’t start then I’ll sit down with the club next week and see where my future is and maybe vice versa with Joe as we both feel we should be playing.

I’m 34 and I’m at a stage where i need to be playing, I’ll hopefully play on Saturday but whatever decision the manager makes I’ll respect that and maybe sit down with the club next week.

I hope it’s going to be me, but if it’s not we’ll see what happens.

A loan move could be an option for Given, should he lose his place to Hart this weekend:

He added: “Ideally I would like to stay at the club because it’s a big club and an ambitious club, with fantastic owners and I want to be part of that, that’s why I joined in the first place.

“Possibly, if I didn’t start, then there could be a loan and then I’d come back and see where that takes me.”

It’s interesting that Shay suggests he and Joe have talked about the situation and that whichever one is on the bench on Saturday will look for talks with the manager about their future. So it could be that either Hart or Given are available for transfer (or loan) this time next week. To be honest, i would take either Hart or Given so i don’t care too much who starts, but if one of them is available then Arsene should jump at the chance with both hands!

It’s about time Arsenal stopped having to worry about the troublesome goalkeeping position, which seems to have been a talking point for years now, and gets a reliable No.1 between the sticks.

From football-talk.co.uk

'England call-ups great news for Academy'

2010-08-09T09:29:00.001-07:00
Liam Brady believes Kieran Gibbs and Jack Wilshere's call-ups to the England squad is great news for the Arsenal Academy.

The Gunners' Head of Youth Development is also confident the duo will handle the pressure ahead of what could be their international debut against Hungary at Wembley on Wednesday evening.

Fabio Capello's current squad contains four players who have passed through Arsenal's Academy - Ashley Cole, Theo Walcott, Gibbs and Wilshere.

"It is great news for the Academy," Brady told Arsenal.com upon hearing of the most recent call-ups on Saturday.

"It is great news for Jack and for Kieran and I am sure they will handle it very well.

"When I didn't see them in the England Under-21 squad I thought they would make the senior side. It seems Capello is making a statement that he wants to bring new blood in.

"It reflects very well for the Academy to have two players picked for England. And remember we [developed] Ashley Cole as well."

Another Academy graduate, Henri Lansbury, is in the current England Under-21 squad. Thomas Cruise has just returned from England duty at the European Under-19 Championships, and both Benik Afobe and Chuks Aneke were both selected to represent the Three Lions at the Under-17 European Championships earlier in the summer.

By Nick Teale
From Arsenal.com

Highlights Legia Warsaw vs Arsenal, 5-6: Full time analysis and player ratings

2010-08-09T09:26:00.000-07:00
The Game

No, Legia Warsaw will not serve after the change of ends to take us into a tie-break, it was football which we watched this afternoon, not tennis, and the score is a ridiculous one.

With Liverpool waiting next week, today’s friendly game – the last for Arsenal – was supposed to provide important signals on how we will face Roy Hodgson’s new team at Anfield but based on what we have seen we end up with a pile of questions, many of which, unfortunately, are yet to be given an answer. And please, don’t say it was just a “friendly.

Lukasz Fabianski was again very insecure in defending set-pieces although our whole back four should sit down, talk and try to understand what went wrong at the Wojska Polskiego stadium as some of the defending was simply shocking. In midfield we also were a little weak with both Jack Wilshere and Emmanuel Frimpong failing to show the same tenacity showed at the Emirates Cup.

Luckily, there’s some positive to take from the game such as Samir Nasri, who for the umpteenth time this summer was one of the best players on the field. Marouane Chamakh was also very lively up front and so was Carlos Vela when coming in as a substitute, providing two assists to help us start the comeback from 3-0 down.

We now start the week which will end with our lads facing Liverpool in a very tough Premiership opener. After today I would keep my cash in my pockets as it is very, very difficult to predict what will happen at Anfield.

Match Video Highlights

Player Ratings

Fabianski: 4,5 – I’m afraid we saw no improvements coming from the 25-year old. When important decisions are to be made when defending set-pieces, almost always the wrong ones are taken.

Vermaelen and Koscielny: 5,5 – Five goals conceded today and I am very, very worried about our central pair at the back. It seems they needs at least one more month to find the right chemistry, but do we have so much time on our hands?

Sagna: 6 – Had an awful start, missing easy passes and allowing players to get past him with ease. Recovered as the game progressed, providing the right support as we surged forward.

Clichy: 5,5 – Like Sagna, Gael also made some poor mistakes at the back and his decision making in delivering the final ball when he pushed forward was very disappointing.

Frimpong: 5 – This will go down as the most disappointing game of pre-season from the youngster. He gave way too much space for the local side to attack and looked tired in the final stages of the half.

Wilshere: 5,5 – As per his usual, fought very hard in the middle of the pitch but unfortunately failed to make an impact.

Rosicky: 6 – Started really well Tomas but faded away as Legia started to dominate in the first 45 minutes of the game.

Walcott: 4 – Very poor game from Theo. I’m not sure he will start against Liverpool as both Andrey Arshavin and Carlos Vela showed better things in pre-season.

Nasri: 8 – Top class again from the Frenchman, our best player in pre-season. If Cesc does not recover in time for Anfield, Samir should definitely start at the centre.

Chamakh: 7 – Scored a very important goal to give us some hope at the end of the first half. All in all Marouane did well in pre-season, settled down straight away in the side and will surely be fired up for his first Premiership game next week.

Szczesny: 6,5 – Much, much better than his compatriot. To be fair on Lukasz, Wojciech wasn’t put under the same amount of pressure from set-pieces so really, I honestly don’t know where we are in terms of goalkeepers.

Gibbs: 7,5 – Super game from Kieran who was very lively up front and scored a very good goal.

Nordtveit: No Vote – Only 10 minutes for Havard, not enough to rate.

Eboue: 8,5 – Saved the day for Arsenal, immediately involved in our moves, scored two goals and looked as fit as a fiddle.

Lansbury: 5,5 – Poor Henri gifted Legia a goal which gave them hope going into the last minutes of the game. But it would be harsh to judge him on today, he’s much better than this.

Vela: 7 – Like Eboue, Carlos wasted no time to make an impact on the game, delivering the free-kick from which Emmanuel score and turning provider minutes later when he set up Gibbs to perfection.

Emmanuel-Thomas: 6,5 – Less than 20 minutes were enough for JET to end his pre-season in style. He was impressive in the summer and I hope to see more of him in the regular season.

From thegunninghawk.com

Pires: I wanted to kill him!

2010-08-07T03:47:00.001-07:00
Former Arsenal winger Robért Píres has admitted that he wanted to "kill" goalkeeper Jens Lehmann when the German was sent off during the Champions League final in 2006.

Píres has made no secret in the past of his disappointment, and to a certain extent, grudge, against manager Arsène Wenger for the decision that resulted in him only having played 18 minutes of a Champions League final.

The 36-year-old Frenchman, now plying his trade with Villarreal, was the player Wenger chose to sacrifice in order to bring on substitute keeper Manuel Almunia.

Although we opened the scoring through Sol Campbell, we couldn't contain Barcelona with only 10-men and eventually lost the match 2-1.

Speaking to FourFourTwo magazine, Píres said: "I will never forget that. I knew Villarreal wanted me but I hadn't made a decision, yet what happened in the final left me feeling very bad. That was the end; my mind was made.

"I knew a player had to go off after that red card but I never thought it would be me. When I saw it was my number, it killed me.

"I didn't want to kill Wenger, but Jens? Yeah, I'd have killed the German! B*stard! It was the worst moment of my career. When I saw the number I thought, no, no, it can't be!"

From arsenal-mania.com

Barcelona regret Arsenal’s ‘no’ to Fabregas move

2010-08-07T03:46:00.002-07:00
Barcelona said Friday they were disappointed at Arsenal’s refusal to allow Cesc Fabregas to move back to the Nou Camp.

The Spain midfielder confirmed he would stay with the Gunners this season after the London club refused to countenance a move to the club where he started out as a teenager even though Barca were willing to pay a reported 48 million dollars for his signature.

“Barcelona regret the decision of Arsenal FC to declare the player not for sale and their decision not to take into consideration the offers proposed. None of those offers, in any way, exceeded 40 million euros,” the Catalan club said.

Fabregas, who is under contract at Arsenal until 2014, returned to training on Thursday after a lengthy break following Spain’s victorious World Cup campaign.

He was greeted warmly by 10,000 Arsenal supporters at a members’ day at the Emirates Stadium this week, with banners and chants making it clear how much they wanted the 23-year-old to stay.

From soccernews.com

Arsenal to buy Reina for £25m, Fabianski to be Number One, and Spurs will win the League (And other jokes!)

2010-08-07T03:46:00.001-07:00
It is no wonder that journalists call August the “Silly Season” as there is nothing but ridiculous stories to read in the papers. Today is the perfect example.

The first preposterous Arsenal transfer story is in the Sun, and they headline with: Arsenal in Reina raid! ARSENAL have launched a stunning £23million raid for Liverpool keeper Pepe Reina.
Arsene Wenger sees the Kop star as the man to solve his problem position.
And the Gunners boss is prepared to go up to £25m to land the Spaniard.

There is absolutely no way in the world that Arsene Wenger will pay £25m for Lionel Messi, never mind a goalkeeper that has just signed a new six year contract at Liverpool! All this goes to show is that the Sun has suddenly discovered a sense of humour!

The second funny headline is also from the Sun, and it said: Anelka: Spurs can nic it!
They asked Anelka if Spurs could be a danger to Chelsea, and he replied: “I rate Spurs very highly. They are absolute favourites to win the title.”

Now I never imagined that the surly Chelsea striker Nicolas Anelka had a sense of humour, but he was obviously joking when he said that! But he answered seriously after that when asked what his aims were for the new season. He replied: “Our aim this season is to finally win the Champions League.

“Could we win a treble, the way Inter Milan did last season? Not so fast – it will be a tough job just to defend our league title.

“Our biggest rivals will of course be Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal, while Manchester City could play a major role.

“But I believe that this will be the most thrilling season ever in the history of the Premier League.”

No mention of Tottenham there then? Perhaps the Sun missed his wry little ironic smile the first time around…

The third crazy story this morning comes from that well-known witty magazine Arsenal.com, and includes a quote from Arsene Wenger doing his funny-man impression. He said that Luksz Fabianski could be Arsenal Number One in the new season! I was laughing so much I had to read it again. His exact words were: “Tomorrow Fabianski has another opportunity to show that he can play No 1.

“Wojciech is a goalkeeper of huge quality. At the moment we want to play for the title so I believe he needs some more experience to compete directly for the first goalkeeper position.

“But it depends a little bit. We have four goalkeepers, one of them will go out on loan, three have to stay so we do not know yet who will go out.”

Both Szczesny and Fabianski will be playing in todays friendly game against Legia Warsaw, and as Wenger doesn’t think Szczesny is ready, does that mean that Fabianski is likely to be the goalkeeper against Liverpool next week? Somebody tell me that Wenger was just having a little joke………..

From justarsenal.com

Arsenal Take Stuttgart’s Gnabry On Trial

2010-08-06T11:39:00.000-07:00
The powerful attacking midfielder has linked up with the Under 16′s for a week-long-training stint.

The Gunners have beaten a whole host of European club’s to take a closer look at Gnabry, who won the Player of the Tournament award at the Nike Cup. Although born in Germany, Serge is the son of Ivorian immigrant Jean-Hermann Gnabry, who works as a coach and trainer for Stuttgart. Jean-Hermann took his son to VfB after he moved from TSV Weissach, where Serge began his early playing career.

The 15-year-old is a tall and powerful attack minded midfielder who can also play wide on the right. Blessed with superb pace and excellent quick feet, Gnabry also has a collection of athletics medals. His 100 metre sprint times are among the best in Europe for his age group, and other notable success has come in various high jump events.

Gnabry shone during the recent Nike Cup after a season for the Under 15′s where he’d bagged 30 goals from midfield. The player himself is open for a move to Europe and lists Barcelona as “the dream future move”. Tall, strong, powerful and with a combative all action style, Serge looks to be a real player for the future.

Fabregas puts an end to speculation

2010-08-06T11:38:00.000-07:00
Cesc Fabregas has given Arsenal a massive boost by insisting he is going nowhere and is fully focused on the challenges ahead.

The Gunners' captain has long-been linked with a return to Barcelona, who have had two bids in the region of £30m turned down for the player, but now the 23-year-old has pledged his immediate future to the club, allowing boss Arsene Wenger to concentrate on matters on the field.
Punters looking to use their free bet will no doubt have taken note of Fabregas' comments as he says he is "100% committed' to the Arsenal cause and their push for the Premier League title.
Fabregas said: "I owe a lot to the club, manager and the fans and I will respect their decision and will now concentrate on the new season ahead with Arsenal.
"I can assure all the fans that now the negotiations have ended I will be 100% focused on playing for Arsenal.
"I am an Arsenal player and as soon as I step out onto the pitch, that is the only club I will be thinking about.
"I am looking forward to the start of the season and putting this speculation behind me."
Arsenal have been handed a tough start to the new season with a trip to Liverpool, before they entertain Premier League new boys Blackpool in their opening home clash the following weekend.

Youngster happy to wait for chance

2010-08-04T04:00:00.002-07:00
Arsenal youngster Harvard Nordtveit is happy to learn his trade in other positions of the defence before getting the chance to play centre-back for the first-team.

The Norweigan has had spells away from the club on loan playing in midfield, and has spent this pre-season at right-back for Arsène Wenger's side.

Although Wenger has hinted he will be signing another centre-back this summer, a move has not yet materialised and Nordtveit currently finds himself as fourth choice in that position.

Despite making Arsenal's first-team as a central defender so far, the 20-year-old believes he can make an impact in that position in the near future.

He said: "I went to Lillestrom for four months on loan and played 17 games at right back. From there I went straight to Nurnberg. I was there for ten months and played one game at centre back and 19 games in central midfield. Then I came back here and played right back.

"So I am not sure, many big players have to take the same road. Steve Bould played right back before he went to centre back, so it is a good experience to play there because when you are playing centre back you know how the right back is thinking.

"I don't think it is negative to play at right back as well."

From arsenal-mania.com

Koscielny - I'll gain muscle for new season

2010-08-04T04:00:00.001-07:00
Laurent Koscielny intends to "gain a little muscle" as he braces himself for the physical challenge of the Premier League.

The French defender is in the frame to start Arsenal's first game of the season at Liverpool on August 15 and did his prospects no harm with a fine performance against Milan in the Emirates Cup when his anticipation and assurance caught the eye.

Koscielny knows he is on a steep learning curve after his summer transfer from Ligue 1 side Lorient but he is prepared for whatever English football can throw at him.

"I feel ready," said the 24-year-old.

"I like the physical challenge of the English league. I will gain a little muscle, but I am not afraid of anything; I just want to get stronger."

Koscielny and Thomas Vermaelen have linked up well in pre-season but the Frenchman knows that communication will be key to their on-field relationship. That's why he's brushing up on his language skills in time for the new season.

"Thomas and I help each other a lot on the pitch," he said.

"The job demands a lot of communication, being in defence. I am trying to make as much effort as possible to speak in English so that the communication is fluent on the pitch, and slowly it will come. It will get better and better."

From arsenal.com

At last Arsenal fans can forget about signing Schwarzer!

2010-08-04T03:58:00.000-07:00
It has been rumoured that Arsenal have been close to signing Mark Schwarzer since the second the transfer window opened, and it has been relentless ever since. The thing is; there has not been one shred of evidence to support it, even though it was once said that he had even been to the Emirates twice for medical examinations!

When Roy Hodgson accepted the job at Liverpool, it only helped to increase the rumours that Schwarzer would leave Fulham, but at last his replacement has been announced, and the incoming Mark Hughes has now made his first proclamation, and that is that Schwarzer is not for sale! Hallelujah!

Hughes said: “There is always interest in quality players and it is not my intention to allow the better players to leave Fulham.

“There was a conversation with Schwarzer some time ago but I have only just come through the door and will have to refresh myself about the conversations that happened.

“But we want to resolve the situation as soon as possible but we are not in the position of letting our best players leave and Mark falls into that category.”

So can we all just face the fact that Wenger will be choosing between the four keepers that he already has on the books? And considering that Almunia and Fabianski were the two that were used in the Emirates Cup, I would imagine that it likely to be between them again in the coming season…..

From justarsenal.com

We all want Cesc - Iniesta

2010-08-03T09:27:00.001-07:00
Barcelona star Andres Iniesta insists everyone at the Catalan giants wants Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas to come back to the club.

Fabregas quit Barca as a teenager for the North Londoners and has gone from strength to strength under Arsene Wenger's stewardship.

The 22-year-old is now one of the world's best young midfielders and played his part in Spain's World Cup triumph over the summer.

"Barca star eager for Gunners ace to return"
Iniesta insists Fabregas can take the Spanish champions to yet another level as he is the complete player.

However, Barca still have to reach an agreement with Arsenal, something that seems unlikely given the Gunners' hard-nosed stance on retaining the star.

"We all want him to come because he will help us to go up a level - he's very complete," Fabregas told Barca TV.

"However, he belongs to Arsenal and the two clubs must understand each other (in order for a deal to be done)."

Barca have already added to their squad in the shape of David Villa and Iniesta believes their free-flowing approach will suit his game.

"He will be very happy here - Barcelona's style of play is very well suited to him," he continued.

From skysports.com

Almunia not leaving and Bendtner unsure of return date

2010-08-03T09:26:00.001-07:00
Acouple of snippets of news today regarding our illustrious Number One goalkeeper Manuel Almunia and our I’ll-be-best-in-world striker Nicklas Bendtner.

The first story seems to pour cold water on the ongoing rumours tha Arsene Wenger is going to sell Almunia to make room for a replacement, as the Spanish stopper has no intention of leaving until his contract ends, in two years time!

“I don’t need to convince anybody, I just do my job.” said Amunia in the Telegraph. “I have a couple more years on my contract and that’s it, I’m an Arsenal player.”

But the paper still thinks that Wenger is trying hard to buy Fulham’s Mark Schwarzer, and says the club will have some news when Mark Hughes is finally unveiled as new manager in a few days. I doubt it myself…

Poor Nicklas Bendtner is still suffering from the groin injury that he (thinks) he sustained in the car crash before last Christmas. It has plagued him all through the summer, and it seems that it just refuses to get better.

He said yesterday: “It is a difficult injury and hard to say when I’ll be back, but hopefully I’ll be training as soon as possible. We haven’t set a date yet, we’re taking it easy.”

It’s bad news for the over-confident Dane, especially as Marouane Chamakh has looked impressive up front for Arsenal. As long as Van Persie and Chamakh stay fit, there is probably little chance of Bendtner getting a game anyway……

From justarsenal.com

Fabregas gives his Spanish fans hope, while Arsenal target Ozil

2010-08-03T09:11:00.000-07:00
There are a couple of interesting stories in the papers this morning, and the most worrying is a report in the Mail about Cesc Fabregas. The Arsenal captain spent an emotional evening with 2500 fas in his hometown of Arenys de Mar in the north of Spain, where they laid on a celebration in recognisance of him winning a World Cup medal.

As part of the fiesta, the Daily Mail relates that a video was shown of Fabregas’ early years at Barcelona, and the crowd cheered every time they saw him in a Barca shirt. It seems Fabregas then took the stage in an emotional state and said: “‘I hope to see all of you more often and closer.”

Wenger won’t be pleased as he issued a plea to Fabregas to come out and announce his loyalty to Arsenal just a couple of days ago, but it seems the Spanish midfielder has done just the opposite!

In another story in the Daily Star, they say that the German international midfielder Mesut Ozil, who was so impressive at the World Cup, has asked Werder Bremen to reduce his asking price, so that he can complete a move to either Man Utd or Arsenal. Ozil is entering the last year of his contract, and after refusing to sign a new one, Werder risk losing him for nothing next summer if they don’t compromise on the price this year.

Personally, I think Ozil would be an adequate replacement for Fabregas even if he cost £20m, but if Wenger can get him for £10m then I wouldn’t complain

From justarsenal.com

Sol “Fat Belly” Campbell admits he is out of condition!

2010-08-02T10:16:00.000-07:00
Sol Campbell was called “Fat Belly” on some Newcastle blogs after he was pictured whilst training with Newcastle at the weekend, and he called the fans abuse ‘pathetic’. He said that he refused to listen to ‘idiots’ and begged them to wait until he had been training for a month before judging him.

“It’s pathetic,” Campbell said. “I had been training for three days – just three days. I am three weeks behind everyone else in pre-season. Don’t they know I have just got married and been on honeymoon?

“I accept that the picture wasn’t flattering, and I do need to catch up on my level of fitness, but the training kit was not very flattering and showed up all sorts of things.

“The truth is that I am now in better shape than when I started off back at Arsenal after a long lay-off. I got myself back into shape at Arsenal, and I think I had a reasonably good end half of the season.”

“I am a naturally big guy, but I cannot rush my conditioning, otherwise trying too much too quickly could result in injuries,”

“Of course I can understand the manager wants me to be in the side, but the season starts in just two weeks and I really need three to four weeks to get back to peak fitness.

“I’ve seen it all before, done it all before, heard it all before, but that means I also know exactly what to do. It’s a long season and I cannot listen to idiots. I know these things cannot be rushed. What I do know is that I will achieve peak fitness given the time I need to do it. It might be that I will need to play and then put in extra training in between games.

“My message is simple to all the knockers: I am knuckling down and want to play my football with a great club and a great manager. Then you can judge me.”

Ooops, it seems he did have a few pies while he was on honeymoon. Could that be the reason why Wenger didn’t resign him?

From justarsenal.com

Gunners coy over Mertesacker

2010-08-02T10:13:00.000-07:00
Gunners coy over Mertesacke

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has claimed that he is not close to signing any new players but has refused to confirm or deny interest in centre-back Per Mertesacker.

The giant Germany international has been repeatedly linked with the Gunners this summer as they search for additional replacements for Sol Campbell, William Gallas and Mikael Silvestre.

Wenger has already signed Laurent Koscielny this summer and he is thought to be interested in Udinese's Cristian Zapata as it is expected that he will sign another defender before the end of August.

But after Sunday's victory over Celtic, which clinched the Emirates Cup, the Frenchman insisted that he was "not close to signing anybody".

Asked if Werder Bremen's Mertesacker would fit the bill, he said: "I wouldn't like to comment on names because it raises the price straightaway 50 per cent."

From skysports.com

Wenger backs Wilshere call-up

2010-08-02T10:11:00.000-07:00
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes that Jack Wilshere could be the man to solve England's problems.

The 18-year-old was the man of the match in the Gunners' 3-2 victory over Celtic on Sunday, which clinched the pre-season Emirates Cup, with a trademark display of all-action passing football.

Wilshere, who spent time on loan at Bolton in the second half of last season, also starred in the competition 12 months ago and as a result was referenced as the long-term replacement for Barcelona target Cesc Fabregas.

The England Under 21 international's development is also thought to have placed him in contention for a senior call-up after the World Cup failure and, although he has warned against over-hyping the teenager, Wenger would not object.

With the Three Lions' friendly against Hungary on 11th August in mind, the Gunners boss said after the defeat of Celtic: "At the end of the day, when you're a good football player, you have to deal with that.
Top level

"Theo Walcott was at the World Cup at 17 years of age; he had not played one game in the Premier League, and it didn't kill him.

"To play at the top level, you have to deal with these kinds of situations."

Wenger added: "I believe he is stronger than last year, physically, and the few months he played at Bolton has given him something.

"He will be used at the club, of course."

Wenger continued: "The problem at that age is to be patient; you don't have patience.

No guarantee

"If you look at the number of good players we have in midfield, nobody can guarantee a position to anybody."

Wenger also made a strong case for the Football Association to snap up fellow midfielder Emmanuel Frimpong, 18, who is eligible for both England and Ghana.

The Frenchman said: "He's a bit less of a dribbler but he's a fighter and a winner.

"Here you have a boy who can choose between England and Ghana.

"So if I was in your place, I would have no hesitation, and invite him to play very quickly for England."

From skysports.com

Almunia plans Arsenal stay

2010-08-02T10:10:00.000-07:00
Manuel Almunia insists he is not worried about trying to convince Arsene Wenger that he deserves to stay at Arsenal.

The goalkeeper has been linked with a return to Spanish football amid reports Wenger is looking to bring in a new No.1 at Emirates Stadium.

Fulham veteran Mark Schwarzer is reportedly a target for Wenger and that has led to doubts over Almunia's future with the Gunners after six years in North London.

"Keeper does not feel he has to convince Wenger"
However, after a solid performance in Sunday's Emirates Cup win over Celtic, the 33-year-old confirmed he is planning to stay with Arsenal.

"I don't need to convince anybody, I just do my job," Almunia told Sky Sports.

"I have a couple more years on my contract and that's it, I'm an Arsenal player."

Jack Wilshere also caught the eye in the 3-2 success over Celtic and the teenage midfielder feels he has benefited from his time on loan at Bolton last season.

"Obviously I had six months out at Bolton last year and I think that really helped me," said Wilshere.

"I think I showed that I've got a bit more experience now and I hope to push on and get more games for Arsenal."

From skysports.com

Arsenal v Celtic highlights – Gunners win Emirates Cup 3-2

2010-08-02T10:06:00.000-07:00

Arsene Wenger is still waiting for a few of his senior midfielders to return (especially Cesc Fabregas), but the youngsters Jack Wilshere and Emmanuel Frimpong did well enough as cover.

Vela scored right at the start, and when Sagna made it 2-0 just before half-time it looked a clearcut win for Arsenal, and even more so when Nasri made it three.

But like against Milan, the young Gunners seemed to tire in the last 20 minutes, and conceded twice before the end. And if Samaras hadn’t missed a penalty it could have ended a draw!

Overall though, Wenger was pleased with the weekend’s work: “I believe it was similar for 70 minutes, we played very well. In the last 20 we collapsed a bit physically and you could see that not everybody had the 90 minutes in their legs. But I’m pleased with the two days because we had good opponents – teams who did not give up. I have seen what I wanted to see; the two new players can fit in well and I am pleased with the fact that the young players who played in the two games have done really well. You will be pleased with the fact that they are English, so we are all happy!”

Lets hope that by the time Arsenal face Liverpool they have regained the fitness to last the full 90 minutes!

From justarsenal.com

Coyle plans to keep Cahill

2010-08-01T09:39:00.000-07:00
"Trotters hope centre-half will stay and help top-half push"
Owen Coyle accepts that a player of Gary Cahill's calibre will attract interest, but he has no plans to sell.

The Bolton centre-half continues to draw admiring glances from afar, with Arsenal reported to be among those keeping a close eye on his situation at the Reebok.

Coyle acknowledges that he could cash in on the 24-year-old and generate some much-needed finds, but feels he would be foolish to part with a player of such talent.

The Scot believes Cahill has the ability to grace the very top of the game, but hopes he will stick around with the Trotters for some time yet.

"Gary could play for anyone, with his pace, power and threat at set-pieces," said Coyle.

"He wants to be the best player he can be and that is something I like in a player."
Ambition

Keeping Cahill will be crucial to Bolton's plans going forward, with expectations around the club have risen again under Coyle's guidance.

Those within the camp believe European qualification is not out of the question in the near future, with club captain Kevin Davies among those setting high standards.

"We will want to get into the top 10 this season," he said.

"With the top six or eight teams spending loads, it will be difficult, but Fulham proved they could do it last season so we must look at them as role models.

"We've got everything in place here now to do that."

From skysports.com

Chamakh Shines For Arsenal

2010-08-01T09:38:00.000-07:00
Before the serious business kickstarts in a fortnight, the Emirates Cup proves a beneficial precursor. Its also an opportunity for the new signings to ease into the squad, and that's exactly what happened. Marouane Chamakh showed why Wenger so relentlessly pursued him in the transfer market by netting our opening goal against the Italian heavyweights AC Milan. Even then, we were pegged back by an Alexander Pato goal as it finished all square at the Emirates. 11G delves deeper into the contest and into our new #29..

Wenger's main incentive was to get the new boys going in a competitive environment and some groomed youngsters like Wilshire and Emmanuel Frimmpong also got a chance to prove their mettle in the top flight. The manager believes that these players will be a regular feature this season and will have a crucial role to play in our title challenge. Regulars like Robin Van Persie and world cup winner Cesc Fabregas were absentees for this one and the uncertainty surrounding our skipper's future is definitely getting on the nerves of we Gooners; but we'll leave that discussion for another day, for now hope is what we live on!

It was important to get our passing and movement on track from the start and the manager should be pleased with what he saw if not overjoyed. Nasri, Rosicky and Arshavin probed the Milan defence and it was Arshavin's darting run past a clueless Milan defence that set up Marouane Chamakh for a tidy finish, the hallmark of a prolific striker. He has netted 79 goals for Bordeaux and that finish showed his composure infront of goal, something that we as a team have been lacking on many occasions, often proving to be costly.

It would have been a real confidence booster to notch up a victory but it wasn't to be as some sloppy defending from a free kick allowed Alexander Pato to capitalize and equalize for the Italians. A soft goal to concede, doesn't hurt in the pre-season but we need to be more careful once the serious stuff begins.

However the performances were appreciable. The other new boy, Laurent Koscileny showed assurance and poise in the defence, we are keen to see how his partnership with Thomas Vermaelen blossoms during the season. Nasri and Arshavin showed attacking guile and upfront Chamakh's finishing exudes confidence.

Next up is the game against Celtic tonight. let us hope that the boys can turn on the style and notch up a victory to lift the Emirates Cup!

From footbo.com

Emirates Cup: AC Milan 1-1 Olympique Lyonnais

2010-08-01T09:36:00.000-07:00
Emirates Cup 2010 - AC MilanEmirates Cup 2010 - Olympique Lyonnais

AC Milan 1-1 Olympique Lyonnais
Emirates Cup, Emirates Stadium
Sunday, August 1, kick-off: 2pm

AC Milan goalscorers: Borriello, 55
Olympique Lyonnais goalscorers: Briand, 80

Three games, three draws. That's the story of the Emirates Cup so far, not that many of those who have been watching will complain.

AC Milan took the lead against Olympique Lyonnais in match one of Day Two of this summer's tournament, but Jimmy Briand equalised for the French side with 10 minutes to go.

Just as they did against Celtic yesterday, Olympique Lyonnais started brightly. In the second minute Miralem Pjanic turned away from Rodney Strasser and skipped passed Clarence Seedorf, only to see his low drive hit the post. His wonderful trickery deserved a goal.

A minute later, Les Gones found the back of the net but the offside flag had been raised against Bafetimbi Gomes.

After his stunning goal yesterday Michel Bastos' first free kick was greeted with anticipant applause from the crowd, but it was hit low to the near post and was easy for Marco Amelia to scoop up.

Milan's first clear-cut opening needed a brave and alert Hugo Lloris to deny Borriello, who had looked to latch on to Alexander Merkel's near-post flick on from a left-wing cross.

Just before the half hour Briand forced Amelia to save at the near post and shortly after Bastos excited the crowd by twice lifting the ball over his man before volleying a pin-point cross to Briand, whose first touch let him down. Moments later Pjanic placed a good chance too close to the keeper.

Ten minutes into the second half AC Milan broke the deadlock.

The Italians kept possession from Olympique Lyonnais and Seedorf displayed wonderful vision to chip the backline and find Borriello through on goal. He exchanged passes with Merkel and slotted into the bottom corner.

A clutter of substitutions followed, though Alexandre Lacazette should have done better when a corner fell to him inside the area in the 70th minute. Moments later Briand was denied by Amelia at the near post.

With 17 minutes to play, Olympique Lyonnais hit the bar.

Jeremy Pied surged into the area, and despite slipping on the turn picked out Maxime Gonalons whose powerful shot cannoned off the woodwork. Lyonnais' search for an equaliser had accelerated several gears in a matter of minutes.

At the other end Milan had a dangerous free kick on the edge of the 'D'. Seedorf sliced it high and wide.

The goal Olympique Lyonnais had been pushing for came with 10 minutes remaining. Pjanic picked out Briand at the back post and he headed home. The pair had looked dangerous all afternoon and had come together to provide the equaliser their side deserved.

Harry Novillo flashed just wide of goal in the closing stages, but neither side could find a winner.

AC Milan: Marco Amelia, Clarence Seedorf (c), Rodney Strasser, Sokratis (Mario Alberto Yepes, 62), Mathieu Flamini (Gennaro Gattuso, 46), Massimo Oddo, Gianluca Zambrotta (Luca Antonini, 68), Borriello (Giacomo Beretta, 77), Daniele Bonera, Alexander Merkel (Mitja Novinic, 80), Simone Verdi (Pato, 58)
Substitutes not used: Flavio Roma, Alessandro Nesta, Ignazio Abate, Michelangelo Albertazzi

Olympique Lyonnais: Hugo Lloris, Lamine Gassama (Anthony Reveillere, 60), Cris (c), Jimmy Briand (Yannis Tafer, 90), Miralem Pjanic, Ederson (Kim Kallstrom, 80), Michel Bastos (Jeremy Pied, 46), Bafetimbi Gomis (Alexandre Lacazette, 64) (Harry Novillo, 84), Aly Cissokho, Maxime Gonalons, Jeremy Toulalan
Substitutes not used: Remy Vercoutre, Dejan Lovren, Thimote Kolodziejczak, Jean Makoun, Clement Grenier

Referee: Minoru Tojo (Japan)

From arsenal.com

Manchester United and Arsenal target Mesut Ozil vows to honour Werder Bremen contract

2010-08-01T09:34:00.000-07:00

Mesut Ozil expects to see out the final year of his contract with Werder Bremen and not follow Germany team-mate Sami Khedira to Real Madrid this summer.
Staying put: Ozil has vowed to honour his contract

Staying put: Ozil has vowed to honour his contract

The 21-year-old has been linked with a move to the Spanish giants as well as after turning down a new contract with the Bundesliga club, which means he will be available on a free transfer next summer.

Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham are also reportedly interested but Ozil does not expect any offer to tempt him away from Germany a year before his contract expires, like Khedira who left Stuttgart last week.

'I am really, really happy for Sami and I am keeping my fingers crossed for him,' Ozil told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper.

'It is very good for German football that big clubs are interested in German players. 'In recent years, there has only really been Michael Ballack who represented German football at a top club.

'For now, my situation for the next 12 months is clear. Only the facts count and the fact is, I am under contract with Werder. 'I cannot know what comes after that.'

Ozil insists a move before the end of his contract will not happen unless Werder insist on selling him.

He added: 'I am a friend of honesty. Many people extend their contracts long-term for better conditions, but two weeks later, they want to leave.

'I have never done that but have rather always respected my contract and been happy to fulfil it. 'Why should now be any different?"

from dailymail.co.uk

Fabianski feeling positive after Milan game

2010-08-01T09:22:00.000-07:00
Lukasz Fabianski believes there are a lot of positives to take from Arsenal's 1-1 Emirates Cup draw with AC Milan.

The Gunners were pegged back late on having taken the lead through new signing Marouane Chamakh, and the goalkeeper believes the performances of Chamakh and Laurent Koscienly were encouraging.

Speaking to Arsenal TV Online, he said: "Not only the goal, he [Chamakh] played well collectively. He always wanted to give a good pass, he has great movement as well, so I think he can improve us.

"Koscienly did well, he's a good reader of the game and he's strong and aggressive with his tackles. He has a good understanding with Thomas Vermaelen as well."

The Pole concluded that it was a fairly tight game, but believes Arsenal possibly edged it in terms of chances created.

He was, however, disappointed at the manner in which Arsenal conceded the equaliser.

He added: "Maybe it was a fair result, but I think we created more chances to score a goal. Overall, I think it was a tight game.

"It's always difficult to defend that kind of free kick, so we got caught on that, but overall I think we played quite well."

From arsenal-mania.com

Wenger hoping to improve on third place as Cesc Fabregas finally speaks

2010-07-29T22:32:00.001-07:00
Having returned from Austria after enjoying easy wins in their first three pre-season friendlies, Arsenal will be now looking forward to the Emirates Cup and the English Premiership.

Speaking to the club’s official website, manager Arsene Wenger revealed he is confident the Gunners will do better this season as he hopes they will improve on third place. Wenger did add however that their task will not be an easy one as more and more clubs are spending big money to break into the so-called Top Four.

With the Gunners set to face AC Milan and Celtic this weekend, it will be a very important tournament for the manager who will be given important signals on who is fit and in-form to start against Liverpool.

He said:

I am very confident [we'll do better than last season]. We know in England that the Premier League is the biggest league in the world and everybody invests a lot of money.

We invest in our work, in our beliefs, in the quality of our behaviour and I am confident that will pay off.

We finished third last year and we hope we can improve on that. But the race will be tough.

Meanwhile, in an interview published on DIR Emotions, captain Cesc Fabregas has finally broke the silence on his future. The 23-year old midfielder explained how just like his family members he is a fan of Barcelona, saying how he felt the colours of the Catalan club from a young age.

But, the Spaniard also said how he is a Gunner and how Arsene Wenger is a second father to him explaining that they did speak about his future with Wenger asking him to stay in what the player described as a very emotional conversation.

On his future, Fabregas is quoted as saying:

I’m a Barca fan, I’m a socio, as is my grandfather, my uncle, my cousin. I have felt the colours from a young age, I’m Catalan. However, I’m the captain of Arsenal, I’m a ‘Gunner’, and I have become a player there and matured as a person.

[Wenger] is a second father for me, the most important person in my life after my father. He has behaved really well with me and taken me in like a son. I am part of his family.

He doesn’t want me to leave. And in my last conversation with him in London, it was one of the most difficult moments I have experienced. I ended up very upset.

I want to continue fighting for every title, especially the Champions League, because I am a winner.

From thegunninghawk.com

Fabregas: I am a 'Gunner'

2010-07-29T22:31:00.000-07:00
Cesc Fabregas has moved to quash fears of him forcing a possible move to Spanish club Barcelona by issuing the strongest, yet diplomatic, statement yet.

The World Cup winner is the subject of transfer bid by the Catalan club, who have had a €30 million bid turned down by Arsenal.

Manager Arsène Wenger has also stated several times that the club were not interested in negotiating for Fabregas, saying that the midfielder is a part of the club's long-term success.

Fabregas himself has conceded that he is of course a Catalan born and bred, but he's proud of his role in Arsenal and takes his responsibilities very strongly.

Speaking to DIR Emotions magazine, the 23-year-old said: "I'm a Barca fan, I'm a socio, as is my grandfather, my uncle, my cousin... I have felt the colours from a young age, I'm Catalan.

"However, I'm the captain of Arsenal, I'm a 'Gunner', and I have become a player there and matured as a person."

Fabregas also paid tribute to Wenger, saying that the bond between the both of them was very close, and admitted that the two had a very emotional conversation when discussing his long-term future at the club.

He added: "Arsène is a second father for me, the most important person in my life after my father. He has behaved really well with me and taken me in like a son. I am part of his family.

"He doesn't want me to leave. And in my last conversation with him in London, it was one of the most difficult moments I have experienced. I ended up very upset."

From arsenal-mania.com

Scott - No move for Szczesny

2010-07-29T22:30:00.000-07:00
"Bees rule out return bid for Arsenal goalkeeper "
Brentford manager Andy Scott has ruled out making a move for young Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny.

The 20-year-old Poland international impressed while on loan at Griffin Park last season, making 28 appearances between the sticks for the Bees.

However, despite attending Brentford skipper Kevin O'Connor's recent testimonial game against Fulham, Scott told skysports.com that the Pole will not be returning to the club this season.

"Wojciech came along to watch the Fulham game as it was Kevin O'Connor's testimonial and they got on well while he was here last season," he said.

"Wojciech is more than welcome to come down whenever he can, but I think that his ambitions lie at Arsenal now and I can fully understand that considering how well he progressed here last season.

"We were very fortunate to have him on board last season and we were glad that we could contribute to his career progression, but he was simply there to watch the game."

From skysports.com

Tasci agent fuels Gunners talk

2010-07-29T03:55:00.000-07:00
"Germany defender could make Emirates move"
Serdar Tasci's agent has hinted the Stuttgart defender could still make a move to Arsenal.

The Gunners have held discussions with the Bundesliga giants but are yet to make an offer for the Germany international, who has also reportedly attracted interest from Tottenham and Juventus.

However, Tasci's agent Uli Ferber has indicated an Arsenal move could still be on the cards by stressing the 23-year-old's admiration for the Emirates club.

Ferber said in The Sun: "Serdar admires English football and has huge respect for Arsenal."

Tasci is currently contracted with Stuttgart until June 2014, with a buy-out clause in the region of £18.5million understood to be included in his deal.

From skysports.com

Arsenal rumours July 29th – Mertsacker, Tasci, Veloso, Frey and Schwarzer

2010-07-29T03:54:00.000-07:00
Arsene Wenger was interviewed after the friendly match with Neusiedl and during the session he was directly asked if he was trying to sign Per Mertsacker, and although he didn’t give a straight yes, he did emphasise that Arsenal still needed another centre-back.

He said: “There are people we consider and are analysing and we look at the financial possibilities,”.

“We are still on the search for centre-halves. We have three and we need at least four.”

I know its a case of stating-the-bleeding-obvious, but surely the “financial possibilities” are not a problem? Arsenal have a nett spend so far this summer of just 4m euros, and the wage bill has been significantly lowered by the departures of Gallas, Campbell, Senderos, Silvestre and Eduardo. If the £40m “war-chest” was anyewhere near the truth, then Wenger has more than enough financial clout to sign anyone!

Okay so Wenger didn’t deny that he was after Mertsacker, which is a positive sign, and it has been reported in the Sun this morning that Arsenal have also held talks with Stuttgart over the German international defender Serdar Tasci. He is a younger alternative to Mertsacker with probably more room for improvement, but the Sun says Arsenal have offered £10m but I doubt very much that he will come that cheaply.

His agent, Uli Ferber has played up the move: “Serdar admires English football and has huge respect for Arsenal.” he said. But with Tasci’s contract with the Bundesliga side running for another four years I reckon £20m will be closer to the asking price….

For no reason at all, the Portugese paper Abola has reported that Miguel Veloso has been negotiating to join the Italian side Genoa, but Arsenal are considering a last minute 13m euro bid to try and hijack the move. Veloso has been linked with Arsenal since the Year Dot so it’s no surprise that another link has appeared this summer. But I imagine it is just a ruse by Sporting to try and get his price up. Another report in Abola this morning says that Inter Milan are also making a bid….

This morning’s ITA Sport in Italy are saying that Arsenal are keeping talks with Fiorentina open regarding Sebastian Frey, just in case they can’t reach an agreement with Cagliari over Federico Marchetti. Although the Fiori have said that Artur Boruc has been bought to give some competition to Frey, I don’t believe that either of them would be happy with sitting on the bench next season. Frey MUST be leaving, but whether he comes to Arsenal is a different matter…..

The Daily Mirror also thinks that the Marchetti story is just a smokescreen, and their star football reporter John Cross says that Fulham’s Mark Schwarzer still remains Arsenal’s number one target. I personally am getting bored with these Schwarzer stories. If Mark Hughes takes over at the Cottage, do you really think he will let Schwarzer go? I doubt it very much….

From justarsenal.com

Wenger reveals more about the team v Liverpool, transfers and injuries

2010-07-29T03:53:00.000-07:00
Arsène Wenger is opening up a little in his interviews, and giving us a little more insight into how matters are going to pan out in the opening match of the season.

One big hint comes in a statement directly from him that he will buy one or two centre halves – and it seems one of them is probably Werder Bremen’s Per Mertesacker.

He’s also been dropping hints about the line up for the game against Liverpool Reds (as the owners lovingly called them on buying the club)

Cesc Fábregas and Robin Van Persie start training on 5 August, he has confirmed, and that might be too late to play in the game against the Insolvency (as they sometimes get called here), but it is a great exaggeration to take this to mean “Cesc Fábregas and Robin van Persie likely to miss opener at Liverpool” as one newspaper headline screams this morning.

What the manager actually said was, “They might be short for the first game but I don’t know. That will depend on the fitness work that they have done during the holiday.”

There’s also a lovely quote from Wenger on the subject of a Spanish team hovering on the edge of administration (see recent articles). About their frantic antics this summer, which can now be seen as nothing other than an attempt (a successful attempt until recently) to hide the club’s financial disasters from the press, Mr Wenger said, “It is only noise. In our job, we have to deal with what we can master. What we cannot influence is not to worry about. We have learned about that and I believe that in a big club you have to live with those kind of noises without being disturbed.”

I think that statement should be on banner headlines. “It’s only noise”.

As to the squad as a whole, over the last few weeks I have tried to draw together who we have in place and looked at as a whole it looks rather impressive to me. Here’s the summary of the three articles recently published.

Forwards: Arshavin, van Persie*, Bendtner*, Chamakh, Walcott, Vela. (Six)

The kiddies: Murphy, Sunu, Watt, and throw in Wellington Silva in January. (+ Four)

——————-

Midfielders: Diaby, Wilshere, Fabregas*, Rosicky, Nasri, Denilson, Ramsey*, Song, Eboue (Nine)

The kiddies: Frimpong, Lansbury, Emmanuel Thomas, Barazite, Henderson (+ Five)

——————-

Defence: Sagna, Vermaelen, Gibbs, Clichy, Koscielny, Djourou, Traore (Seven )

The kiddies: Nordveit, Eastmond (+ Two)

Total 33 for the outfield positions.

* = may not be available for the first game. To summarise the injuries

Denilson has not played so far, and probably won’t in the Ems Cup but will play in the final warm up in Poland.

Diaby – same as Denilson

Bendtner - it is clear now that he played for Denmark in S Africa with his injury and made it worse. Another player being mucked about by international rubbish. No knowing how long he will be out.

Ramsey – the effects of Shawcross are still there and he will not be seen until the late autumn.

Rosicky - no real injury, just a niggle.

So can we do an early prediction of the team for Liverpool Insolvency away? We could try…

Goalkeeper?

Sagna, Vermaelen, Koscielny, Clichy

Song

Diaby/Denilson, Nasri

Arshavin, Chamakh, Walcott/Vela

OK, no exciting changes there, except without Cesc, Nasri can play centre, and he has been on fire feeding in behind the front man. In effect this formation gives us Walcott or Vela dropping back a little and allowing Nasri to move forward. This looks a rather good line up to me.

As for the keeper, I have no more idea than anyone else whether it will be Almunia, one of the others or a new guy.

And that is not to suggest that I think this is the team for the season – far from it. Against Blackpool the following week I would hope to see Wilshire and Emmanuel Thomas get a part of the action.

Just as a final point, here, once again, is the “25″ – the players over 21 on qualification day who have to be registered with the EPL as our players. As you will see, we now have six places available and only one of them would need to be “home grown”. So we could buy five new players none of whom is “home grown” and still be fine. (Incidentally we have debated the “25″ rule til we are blue in our collective faces. Before shouting at me and telling me I have got the rule wrong, do have a look at the in depth analysis we’ve been doing on this through the summer – details in the links below. There’s a million different versions of what the rule means, but I think we have got this right based on the official statement from the EPL).

1 Almunia

2 Fabianski

3 Mannone (Home Grown Player No 1)

4 Sagna

5 Eboue

6 Vermaelen

7 Djourou (Home Grown Player No 2)

8 Clichy (Home Grown Player No 3)

9 Song (Home Grown Player No 4)

10 Denilson (Home Grown Player No 5)

11 Diaby

12 Fabregas (Home Grown Player No 6)

13 Rosicky

14 Arshavin

15 Nasri

16 van Persie

17 Bendtner (Home Grown Player No 7)

18 Chamakh

19. Koscielny

By Tony Attwood
From blog.emiratesstadium.info

Defender turns down Arsenal move

2010-07-29T03:52:00.001-07:00
Defender Sol Campbell has turned down the chance to extend his contract at Arsenal and chosen instead to move to Newcastle United.

Manager Arsène Wenger offered the former England international a one-year extension to the deal that expired at the end of June, but told him that there was no guarantee of first team football.

Newly-promoted Newcastle however, offered Campbell a two-year contract with the prospect of being able to play more regularly.

Given our recent history with injuries, which sees no signs of abating, Campbell should have been more confident that he would have gotten more than a game or two.

It is the second time Campbell has left Arsenal, the first time in 2006, and has made 211 appearances for the club, scoring 12 goals.

Arsenal Mania wishes Sol all the best in his future career, except when it's against Arsenal.

From arsenal-mania.com

Cagliari drop Marchetti after transfer request

2010-07-29T03:50:00.000-07:00
It is now looking more and more likely that the Italian keeper Frederico Marchetti will be coming to Arsenal as it has been revealed that the 27 year-old has put in a de facto transfer request. Cagliari dropped Marchetti from the side that faced Bastia in a “friendly” last night, but the game was marred by continual protests from the Cagliari fans about the club letting Marchetti go. In the end the “friendly” had to be abandoned after brawls between both sets of players!

A statement regarding Marchetti was posted on the official Cagliari website yesterday which said. “He expressed his desire to leave through the media,”

“The club will do everything to make him happy, so if Marchetti does leave Cagliari, then our first choice will be Michael Agazzi.

“Cagliari are not looking for a different first choice goalkeeper.”

It has been reported that Arsenal have offered 6 million euros for him, but as Cagliari value him at closer to 9 million there is still some negotiating to do, but if the statement from Cagliari club president Massimo Cellino that Arsenal “are the only ones pushing for his signature” are true, then it is only a matter of time before the deal is complete.

From justarsenal.com

Djourou injured! Wenger needs to move fast for a defender!

2010-07-28T03:40:00.000-07:00
Arsenals third easy win of the pre-season last night was marred by the sight of Johan Djourou limping off in the first half. The French centre-back has only just returned to playing after missing the whole of last season through a knee injury.

With Gallas, Senderos, Silvestre and Campbell all leaving Arsenal this summer, Djourou was thought to be imperative to Arsene Wenger’s plans. If he has suffered a recurrence of his injury it will only serve to highlight the lack of defenders at the club. At the moment Wenger only has the new signing Laurent Koscielny and Thomas Vermaelen as first-choice, and the 20 year-old Havard Noerdtveit as back-up, so a new defender or two is now becoming more and more urgent.

The news this morning that Ivan Gazidis is in Germany to try and do a deal for Per Mertsacker gives the Arsenal fans hope, but Wenger is hardly known for completing his transfers quickly! It would seem that Arsenal are going to need two more defenders at least or risk being decimated by injuries as usual….

From justarsenal.com

Arsenal set to bid £5.5m for Cagliari goalkeeper Federico Marchetti

2010-07-28T03:37:00.000-07:00
According to reports, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is looking at alternative goalkeeper options after losing faith in Manuel Almunia, and his hopes of landing Marchetti have been vastly improved after his club accepted his transfer request.

Asked about Marchetti's future, Cagliari president, Massimo Cellino told the Mirror: "Federico has expressed a desire to leave," he said. "The only club pushing for his signature is Arsenal and we will do everything to make him happy."
Wenger has made no secret of his desire for a new goalkeeper since the transfer window opened and his attentions turned to Marchetti after he had a £2million bid for Fulham's Mark Schwarzer turned down.

Away from looking at possible replacements for Almunia, Wenger has also had to assess his defensive situation following the departures of Sol Campbell. William Gallas, Philippe Senderos and Mikael Silvestre.

The Frenchman is understood to have had two bids Everton's Phil Jagielka rejected and has now turned his attentions to Werder Bremen centre-back Per Mertesacker, who is valued at £10 million.

Mertesacker has enjoyed a great deal of success in his four years at Bremen and was highly praised for his contributions to Germany's World Cup campaign.

From telegraph.co.uk

Campbell pens St James' Park deal

2010-07-28T03:34:00.000-07:00

Former Tottenham, Arsenal and England defender Sol Campbell has penned a one-year contract with Premier League new-boys Newcastle United.

The 35-year-old started his career at White Hart Lane before joining the Gunners for the first time nine years ago.

He eventually left Arsene Wenger's side in 2006 but, after featuring in more than 100 matches for Portsmouth and then enduring an ill-fated spell with Notts County, Campbell returned to the Emirates Stadium in January and played in 14 more games for the club.

Campbell said of his move to Tyneside: "At this stage of my career I couldn't have wished for a better move. To join a club such as Newcastle United, with its proud tradition, heritage and magnificent support, is absolutely tremendous for me.

"I'd like to thank Chris Hughton for putting his faith in me and aim to repay him and the supporters by giving everything I possibly can to help re-establish this great club in the top-tier of English football.

"I just want to play and can't wait to get started. There's a real buzz about the place and that's great. I've played at St James' Park numerous times and always found it a fantastic place to play, there's always a tremendous atmosphere

Manager Chris Hughton added: "I have known Sol since he was a lad at Tottenham and am fully aware of what he has to offer. That is experience, quality, calm assurance and leadership.

"He's a dedicated professional, a terrific addition to the squad, and I look forward to working with him again."

From football.co.uk

Neusiedl V Arsenal Goals & Report,Highlights [0-4] Pre Season

2010-07-28T03:25:00.000-07:00
Marouane Chamakh opened his Arsenal account as Arsène Wenger's side completed their Austrian training camp with a straightforward 4-0 victory at SC Neusiedi on Tuesday night.

Theo Walcott and Jay Emmanuel-Thomas gave the visitors a 2-0 cushion in the first period. The Moroccan's moment came five minutes after he had come on as a half-time substitute. He burst through only to be pushed over by Markus Dombi. Chamakh picked himself up to slot home adroitly from the spot.

Shortly afterwards, another substitute, Carlos Vela, produced the coolest of chips to make it 4-0.

Neusiedl may play in the third tier of Austrian football but they had their moments. None greater than the one presented to them seconds later Harvard Nordtveit was adjudged to have handled.

However Juray Skripec could not beat Vito Mannone from 12 yards.

To be frank this was never a contest once Arsenal shook off some early lethargy. That two-goal first-half burst allowed them to move from second gear straight into cruise control.

But with Milan, Celtic and Legia Warsaw on the horizon, the tests will get tougher from now on.

The party had started at Neusiedl's compact Sportszentrum ground in the early afternoon. A couple of schoolboy games took centre stage as the crowd arrived. By the time Arsenal kicked off at 7pm local time the main stand was rammed and the grass bank behind Manuel Almunia's goal was an old-style sea of heads.

Wenger's starting XI was drawn from the squad that had beaten Barnet and Sturm Graz in the opening two games. However the Frenchman did select a trio of his countrymen - Abou Diaby, Gael Clichy and Bacary Sagna - on the bench for the first time. They were joined two newly-introduced Africans, Emmanuel Eboue and Alex Song. All five had been on duty at the World Cup, hence they had started pre-season training and the friendly matches after the main group.

The opening quarter of an hour was pedestrian. Jack Wilshere had a shout for a penalty, Andrey Arshavin curled a shot into the arms of keeper Adolf Kaiser and Emmanuel-Thomas showed fine feet in the area but could not follow it up with a shot to match.

Neusiedl's opening chance would be much more clear-cut. In the 16th minute, Michael Koller swung over a corner from the right and skipper Dombi stooped at the near post to thunder in a header. Nasri booted the ball off the line.

It took Arsenal a further 10 minutes to respond. Arshavin's angled shot bounced off Kaiser's shoulder and eventually fell to Walcott at the far post. He cut inside his marker but saw his shot blocked.

However, couple of minutes later Walcott would open the scoring - and from virtually the same spot. Arsenal worked the ball up the left once more. Emmanuel-Thomas found Nasri, who fed the England winger. He arrowed his effort home.

On the half hour Walcott beat the keeper once again but his lob drifted wide.

By now Arsenal had found their groove. Second later, Gibbs cut the ball back for Emmanuel-Thomas to turn swiftly before cracking home a second.

Five minutes after the restart it was 3-0 when Chamakh made his mark.

By now Arsenal were in the zone. In the 65th minute, Nasri's clever touch sent substitute Vela through and the Mexican lifted the ball over the stranded keeper.

However seconds later Neusiedl had the chance to reduce the arrears when Dominik Silberbauer's header was handled by Nordtveit. Skripec stepped up to try and make a little piece of personal history.

However Mannone dived to his left to make a fine stop.

The game petered out after that. Neusiedl were not going to get a better chance and Arsenal had used up their creativity for the night.

After the game, Wenger's men left for England with their season's preparation well on track.

Goal : 0-1 Walcot 28,0-2 Jay Emmanuel-Thomas 31 , 0-3 Marouane Chamakh 50 , 0-4 Vela
Marouane Chamakh scored his first goal for his new Emirates employers as Arsene Wenger’s side easily overcame weak Austrian opposition.

From arsenal.com

Andres Iniesta: Fabregas told me how close the Arsenal fans are to his heart

2010-07-26T22:22:00.000-07:00
Spain and Barcelona midfielder Andres Iniesta believes Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas will stay with the Gunners for at least one more season.

Speaking about his Spanish team mate, the 26-year old confirmed what other Barcelona players declared before him and that is how Fabregas’ desire is to move back to Spain and play for the Blaugrana. Iniesta, however, explained how the Arsenal captain loves the club and loves the fans, reason why he deserves to win the Premiership title.

According to reports, the 23-year old will be leaving Arsenal next season and for Iniesta it would be a shame if he is to leave with nothing to show for.

The Barcelona midfielder added how Fabregas is capable of carrying a team on his own, just like Lionel Messi and how he hopes to see him fulfill his dream of winning in England, with Arsenal, as it would be a fantastic achievement for him as a player and his club.

He said:

Cesc wants to be with us, but he told me how close the Arsenal fans are to his heart.

He is a special player and I hope he wins the title at Arsenal this season. For them to win Cesc will have to stay fit and injury-free but he deserves to finish with a title.

For all the work and effort he has put in at Arsenal it would be a shame if it was all fruitless.

I have seen time after time Lionel Messi win games for Barcelona when the rest of the team have not been on form and Cesc can do that for Arsenal this season.

Cesc is such a special player that he could carry a team to the title on his own and I hope he does it this coming season.

It would be brilliant if Arsenal’s hero could lift the title as captain during his last season. I think that it would be fantastic for everybody.

From thegunninghawk.com

Arsenal rumours 26th July – Vertonghen, Stekelenburg, Lukaku, Wickham and Bakambu

2010-07-26T21:59:00.000-07:00
There is an air of desperation in the media’s Arsenal transfer rumours today, especially when they make the main link Jan Vertonghen. The ex-team-mate of Thomas Vermaelen quite clearly said in his interview that he wouldn’t consider leaving Ajax for another year at least, but the papers have turned it into a come-and-get-me plea.

Okay, I agree that Wenger may well bring him in one day (Ajax are Arsenal’s feeder team after all!), but it certainly won’t be this summer. I will personally guarantee that okay?

While we are working through the Ajax team, we may as well start with their Number One Maarten Stekelenburg, who is the latest goalkeeper to be linked with a move to the Emirates. The 27 year-old Holland international is just one of about a trillion keepers that have been linked with the Gunners this summer, but hasn’t everyone got the hint yet? Wenger has got four keepers and doesn’t want any more thank you! I will only believe there is a possibility of a new arrival when I see Almunia on the plane to Spain with a contract in his pocket…….

The rest of the rumours are “one’s for the future”. The Ipswich youngster Connor Wickham was strongly linked with Arsenal a couple of months ago, and todays stories are saying that Liverpool are now favourites to beat Arsenal and Spurs to his signature. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I thought that the rumours stopped when Wickham signed a new contract with the Tractor Boys, and committed to stay for a few more years?

Here is the quote, I’ve just found it. BBC 4th June – Wickham said: “Ipswich is the only thing on my mind, I’ve got no intentions of moving elsewhere. I’ve got a good head on my shoulders so it’s not going to make me get big-time or anything like that.” It seems Liverpool have other ideas…..

“Arsenal are preparing a £12m bid for Romelu Lukaku” is another big story. The 17 year-old Anderlecht youngster has been wowing the crowds in Belgium, with 17 goals in his first full season, and has been called the ‘new Drogba’ on various occasions, but this is another non-story as far as I’m concerned. Wenger has stated he doesn’t want any more strikers, and with talent like that, Lukaku is not going to be sitting in the reserves or on the bench when he does move on. And I’m sure I’ve seen a picture of him in a Chelsea shirt recently……

Last, but not least, we have Cedric Bakambu, a young Frenchman who has been impressing scouts at the U19 Championships. Apparently Arsenal, Chelsea and Man Utd had people watching him when France drew 1-1 with England the other night. That may well be true, but I reckon every top club in Europe has got scouts in France at this Premier competition for the U19s in Europe. I am sure he is extremely good and Sochaux will be receiving many bids for him in the future, but being watched in this competition hardly constitutes a proper rumour……

Can you all tell I am getting a lttle cynical about all these links now? I know Wenger has said that he still intends to buy another defender, but I am even not that that is going to happen any more!

From justarsenal.com

Gibbs ready for first-team push

2010-07-26T21:56:00.000-07:00

Arsenal youngster Kieran Gibbs is looking forward to competing for a place in the first-team this season.

The 20-year-old left-back missed most of last season with a foot injury, but is widely considered to be one of Arsenal's most impressive young players.

Gibbs insists he is over his injury problems now and ready to play regular football again this season.

He said: "My foot is all fine at the moment and I'm all ready for the new season.

"I feel good. My foot's not causing me any problems and there has not been a lot of reaction to the metalwork I had in there.

"I'm still at that stage when I'm just happy to be running and free to play football again."

While Arsenal are well-covered at left-back, the search still continues for extra centre-backs, and Ajax defender Jan Vertonghen has dropped a major hint that he would relish a move to the Gunners.

The defender is a former team-mate of Thomas Vermaelen, who moved from Ajax to Arsenal last summer, and Vertonghen has revealed he would love to play with the Arsenal man again.

He said: "I lost a friend when he went to Arsenal but for my career it was good. We get on really well. I speak to him sometimes a few times a week.

"He is one of my best friends and I'm very happy he has been such a success at Arsenal. He tells me really good things about Arsenal and living in London.

"I have always said to myself I want one more year at Ajax, hopefully become a champion and then move.

"I am ambitious. I want to play in the Premier League."

From arsenal-mania.com

Manchester United and Arsenal both in the hunt for German international

2010-07-26T21:54:00.000-07:00
While Manchester City are making waves with their summer spending once again, two other Premier League title contenders are looking for cut-priced bargains in their quest to strengthen their respective squads ahead of the new campaign.

Step forward Mesut Ozil, one of the outstanding performers for Germany during the 2010 World Cup. Indeed, the Werder Bremen midfielder might not have even featured in South Africa if Michael Ballack hadn’t got injured during the FA Cup final, although it’s now thought he could be available for around £10 million.

That’s a price tag which would be to the liking of both Arsenal and Manchester United, with the latter in particular need of a creative midfielder that help carve chances for Messrs Rooney, Berbatov, Owen and Hernandez. It could prove to be one of the bargains of the summer, but which team will get their hands on this exciting player?

From footylatest.com

Akinfeev eyes English move

2010-07-25T10:10:00.000-07:00
Russian keeper looking to join Arsenal or Man Utd

Igor Akinfeev has set his sights on a move to either Arsenal or Manchester United as he looks for a new challenge away from Russia.

The 24-year-old goalkeeper, who has already made 40 appearances at international level, attracted admiring glances following his performances for CSKA Moscow in last season's UEFA Champions League.

He has been linked with a switch to Old Trafford for some time, with current United No. 1 Edwin van der Sar drawing towards the end of his career.

Arsenal, meanwhile, have been tipped to bring in a new shot-stopper this summer and Akinfeev has spoken to compatriot Andrey Arshavin about the club.

Akinfeev admits he would be keen to join one of the Premier League giants, having heard glowing reports about Arsenal from Arshavin.

"Arsenal and Manchester United are two of the very best clubs in the world," Akinfeev told the Daily Star Sunday.

"If both of them are going to be looking for keepers this summer - or even the next summer - then of course I am interested.
Honour

"I have spoken with Arshavin about Arsenal and London life. He has only had good things to say about the club and the city.

"He said some very nice things about me going on to be the best goalkeeper in the world - and that he would like me to reach that goal at Arsenal with him.

"Of course there is every chance this will be the last season for Edwin van der Sar.

"To be the No.1 for Manchester United would be a great honour too.

"They are the biggest football club in the world and, to be their No.1 for a length of time, you know you will have success.

"Juventus have also expressed an interest in me - but Arshavin has sold England to me very well."

Akinfeev does not believe CSKA would block a transfer if the opportunity to move on presented itself.

"My contract doesn't expire until 2013 but I have a great relationship with my president," he explained.

"If the right offer, both for me and the club came in, I don't think anybody would stand in my way.

"I have been in Russia for a lot of years now and feel ready for a new challenge."

From skysports.com

Koscielny: I can't wait to play at the Emirates

2010-07-25T10:08:00.001-07:00
New signing Laurent Koscielny is relishing the prospect of playing at the Emirates Stadium, and his next available opportunity will be at the inaugural Emirates Cup.

This year's opposition will see the likes of AC Milan, Celtic and FC Lyon, of whom Koscielny is familiar with, having played against them in the French league during his time with FC Lorient.

Koscielny said: "We play against two very big clubs in AC Milan and Celtic, and I can't wait to wear the Arsenal shirt at the Emirates Stadium.

"Lyon were champions for a long time in France and dominated the country's football for a long period.

"For the past two seasons they haven't won the French league title but they still have plenty of very good international players like Lisandro Lopez, Michel Bastos and Jimmy Briand.

"Lyon are the biggest team in France, they have a very good defence with powerful players like Cris and Sissoko.

"They have very strong individual players and as we all know, they did very well in last season's Champions League. Along with Marseille, in my opinion they are the number one team in France.

"They are a very good team to watch and the whole Emirates Cup will be a great experience for all the supporters."

From arsenal-mania.com

Iniesta - Cesc will stay

2010-07-25T10:02:00.000-07:00

Barca ace wishes Arsenal captain well in 'last season' at Emirates
Andres Iniesta appears resigned to the fact that Barcelona will not sign Cesc Fabregas for another 12 months after wishing his Spanish compatriot well at Arsenal for the forthcoming campaign.

Barca's pursuit of the midfielder has provided one of the transfer sagas of the summer but the Gunners have held firm and rebuffed interest.

Pep Guardiola is pessimistic over his side's chances of securing Fabregas and Barca midfielder Iniesta accepts that a move is not going to happen.

He has spoken to Fabregas and hopes the 23-year-old can lead Arsenal to Premier League glory this season.

"Cesc wants to be with us, but he told me how close the Arsenal fans are to his heart," Iniesta told the News of the World.

"He is a special player and I hope he wins the title at Arsenal this season.

"For them to win Cesc will have to stay fit and injury-free but he deserves to finish with a title.

From skysports.com

Defender wants mean streak

2010-07-24T09:26:00.000-07:00
Johan Djourou is warning the rest of the Premier League to expect a much tougher and more aggressive Arsenal side next season.

The Gunners paid the price for a number of defensive lapses in their chase for the title last term but Djourou is confident it will be a different story this time around.
41 goals were scored against Arsenal last season - nine more than champions Chelsea and some 13 extra than Manchester United.
The Swiss international, who is on his way back from a long-term knee injury, is anxious to do his bit to make the Gunners more water-tight after only appearing in one game during the previous campaign.
"It is true that 41 goals is too much when you are playing for the top places," the defender told the club's official website.
"I think sometimes we are missing a bit of aggression.
"It is not that we are not good enough, because the team is good enough.
"We have top players at the back, top players all over the pitch. It is just that we have to be stronger as a unit."
The 23-year-old, though, is ready for the challenges ahead as he looks to battle summer signing Laurent Koscielny alongside Thomas Vermaelen at the heart of the Gunners defence.
"Now it is time to step up and start," Djourou declared.
"I will always say that, but now I am mature enough.
"We will have to see with the injury because when you have it for so long it is difficult to come straight back into things.
"But I played 90 minutes against Strum Graz and it went well.
"I have to get other games under my belt and hopefully I will be ready."

From clubcall.com

Arsenal’s forgotten man #2

2010-07-24T09:23:00.000-07:00
One of Arsene Wenger’s first ever signings for the club was an unknown 18-year-old left-back called David Grondin.

Wenger signed Grondin for £500,000 from French club Saint-Etienne, as part of Wenger’s youth development project. The full-back was dubbed as the best young defender in French football, and he emerged through the ranks in France in much the same way as Anelka did, when at PSG.

Arsene Wenger had the intention of signing Grondin so he could learn from veteran defender Nigel Winterburn, and eventually replace the Englishman.

This never happened. It may have been down to the fact that Grondin just never fulfilled his potential as a youngster, or it could have been because we had future England left-back Ashley Cole rising through the ranks at the same time.

Grondin made one Premier League appearance, two League Cup and one Champions League appearance for the Gunners, before being loaned back to St Etienne in 1999/2000, Cannes in 2000/01 and Arsenal’s feeder club Beveren in 2001/02; he joined Dunfermline Athletic in January 2003.

The Frenchman had spells in France and Belgium before finally signing for Belgian club RAEC Mons.

David Grondin was amongst the many players at Arsenal who just didn’t make it, and seem to disappear from the top-flight of football altogether.

From arsenal-opinion.com