Newcastle 0 – Arsenal 1
I am just happy we pulled this one out as this was just another frustrating game to watch (anyone else really hate Tiote?)… absolute rubbish in the first half. Hard fought: yes. Showing signs of weakness: yes. Fantastic to see Giroud flick one in: absolutely. This match was going to be difficult through and through with a visit to SJP but you never got the feeling that Arsenal wanted more than a tie. Newcastle have being playing well with a number of quality wins in the year already and they really seemed to put forth more effort in this one. I can afford to be disappointed though as this Arsenal team is different than in years past (proven by our run among the top and endless hope of silverware). Now on to the bits and pieces of this match…
First half: frustrating to watch, boring, a bit sloppy in the passing and lack of creative runs. Am I setting a high standard? You bet. This team has played extremely well at times and going out I expect that each week. All things aside though, we did lack some of our seriously creative cogs as Rambo AND Ozil were out of this one (a bit worried when I saw the lineup with no Ozil especially). Did we create the best chances in this half? Absolutely.
However, I got so tired of watching our lads get pushed off the ball I decided to pull some stats.
Jack Wilshere: 5′ 7″
Santi Cazorla: 5′ 5″
Theo Walcott: 5′ 9″
Tomas Rosicky: 5′ 10″
Mathieu Flamini: 5′ 10″
Now, I am not saying you have to be big to be good but you have to have presence on the ball and enough strength to keep others from flat out muscling you off the damn thing we you are in the middle of an attack. Aside from our back line, our big “bruiser” out there is Olivier (also known as our striker). Flamini has been a great workhorse this year and plays a man twice his size. But watching our creative cogs in this game get pushed off the ball by bigger Newcastle lads was frustrating. Jack is a fine player but I have never understood the extreme hype with him. If he isn’t a straight CAM then I am not sure a man his size will always be able to hold up on the ball when we need him to (anyone else getting tired of seeing him shoved off the ball while he is on his knees holding his hands up?). Maybe I lack the English bias with him or something but I could care less where our boys come from so long as they can flat out play and dominate the game from their position. Now, that which I proclaim of Jack could be said of Santi but it is obvious that man plays the CAM role and his dipping and darting creativity is much welcomed (and better than Jack’s play). Thus, when paired together I always get a bit nervous that our attack will break down when facing a more stout opposing midfield…
Second half: not much difference in the second half. We created the best chances and you just had the feeling that if either team was going to score it was going to come via a set piece or some other dipshit move on Scheseznsys’ part (Yes, I know I spelled his name wrong. When you make boneheaded moves like he does then he doesn’t deserve his name spelled correctly). Sure enough, thank the good Lord we won a decent set piece with Giroud doing what he does best by flicking (glancing really) one into the net. Fantastic placement by Theo and even better movement by the OG. Really happy to see him get back into scoring (so is my fantasy starting lineup). After our goal you just knew things would immediately turn conservative as if Arsene were managing that lesser team (or maybe he is just genius as usual and I have no fucking idea what I am talking about-probably true). Which brings me to my next frustration…
Prevent defense: In american football, when the team leading in the fourth doesn’t have the ball, and time is running out, coaches tend to put in prevent defense. For those of you that don’t follow, prevent defense is supposed to prevent the big play (again, supposedly) but generally allows the team with the ball to keep getting first down after first down (which is what most often happens, at least when I watch). This is extremely frustrating in college football where the clock stops after each first down. Now, I am sure there is the possibility that law of averages says this is good but damn if it doesn’t make for a nerve racking ending that usual ends with my team losing because they employed that fucking mentality.
So, when that goal slid in and Gibbs/Walcott came off and Arteta/Jenks came on (also as evidenced by our extremely deep line and 5 wide) I just knew this was our “prevent” defense. Fucking nail bitting. The more frustrating part? There were probably 2 or 3 counter attacks that would have suited Theo perfectly had he still been on. Instead, we had to go through chance after chance of Newcastle almost equalizing (I know that they didn’t but that doesn’t mean it was necessarily the right choice). Against a better team, and our most recent history these past few years, and we all know that some nitwit slides a goal in to equalize. Thankfully, that didn’t happen here and we grabbed our 3 to stay atop the league. I’m not dogging shoring up our D but playing a line that deep when teams that are good throw everything at you is just asking for a mistake to happen. It happens all the time in football and in this case I think we stole one from Newcastle (but hey, all the good teams do in the end right?).
All things aside, I complain but that is because I am not sure what to make of this “run” at the top. Remember, my memory only goes so far back as to enjoy the constant run of top 4 finishes. I am still getting used to this idea that as a supporter of Arsenal the top spot is actually where we belong. Damn if it doesn’t feel great.
Theo Walcott of Arsenal FC (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
See, the ball is HUGE compared to Theo…
West Ham 1 – Arsenal 3
For fuck’s sake talk about a tale of two halves (or have nots). All day I had been looking forward to today’s match. Here in the States, I had to be back at work as if it was another day while all you proper blokes got to enjoy your Boxing Day off. Now that didn’t stop me from running around the office with my scarf displayed proudly across my neck declaring it Boxing Day and trying to get every other poor bloke at the office to be excited but this was a going to be a good day. I had homemade chili at the house, several cold beers to choose from and don’t even get me started about this trifle the wife had made (oh yes, there is Irish cream in it!). After enjoying my bowl of chili (and that which was left in my wife’s bowl), pounding my Rogue American Ale, Jackson went down easy enough, the Wifey went out shopping and I sat down to my wonderfully recorded Boxing Day glory. My friends, it was going to be a good day…
That was, until I took in the first half of the match. What the fuck is going on with our lads? No movement, sloppy passing again and no quality on finishing. West Ham charged at our lines and while we looked threatening enough at times we were seriously missing that edge we had been leading with throughout much of the season. Scarily enough, I went into half thinking a tie at West Ham wouldn’t be all that bad…
And then the second half started and after yet another missed goal opportunity West Ham countered to put one in. Really? Seriously? Are we deciding that we enjoy collapses now? Next comes the text from my wife that there are no Christmas deals but she found an end table to “explain” (worst words a husband can read/hear). Shortly thereafter, Rambo goes off injured, my baby boy starts some sleep cries and my wife pulls out a partially mirrored end table (WTF?!). Shit, this really isn’t going well…
But then the trifle eating begins… followed by a Theo goal (who just happens to be my wife’s favorite player) and next thing you know we are back in the game and Arsenal look completely rejuvenated as Thor’s Hammer returns to the mix for the hobbled Rambo (really hope the knock isn’t much). A switch is flipped and all of a sudden it is starting to look like the very early season glory of Poldi/Giroud/Santi is back in action (hey, we’re getting the band back together!). Ozil creates more magic, Theo uses his head and Thor’s Hammer (otherwise known as Poldi’s left leg) slams one into the back of the net. Game over. The mighty hammers are done and Arsenal take three to the bank.
It really is hard to quantify the up and down emotion of that game. Just a completely shit first half followed by a glorious second half. Absolutely ridiculous game. And yet, this is exactly why I LOVE soccer. The instant change in the game. The second gear. The swing of emotion followed by my silent screams as my wife shushes me from above so I don’t wake our now sleeping baby (who sleeps below canvassed art of past Arsenal glories and photos of Emirates herself).
Am I completely happy with our performance? No. Outside of the two goals, Theo was a bit selfish and drove at the goal a few times when he should have just laid it off. Giroud couldn’t buy a damn goal again (not sure what exactly is going on there). Ozil still isn’t quite at the level he played at with Los Blancos. BUT we nabbed three points when we absolutely needed them and shook off our “losing” streak. Well done lads. Not only can I sleep soundly tonight I can spend all Friday telling everyone about how glorious my Boxing Day ended up being for this stateside Gooner.
Until next time…
Love me some DVR.
I get it now. I finally understand the value of DVR. Truth is, before a little one, I could watch what I wanted when it was actually on. That’s right. I would sit through a commercial or catch Sons of Anarchy when it was actually aired (same goes for The League). But something happened once Jackson was born; I lost “my” time and time became very, very precious. Which meant that “my” time is early morning or late at night; which works well for catching EPL games when they air live.
We have a unique problem as ‘Merican supports of English clubs. Our ability to catch games is limited by: 1. Whether the single network here in the States will cover the match. 2. The actual time of the game (those early, early games are rough without DVR) 3. Sportscenter (now that the EPL is covered the scrolling scores can pretty much kill the anticipated outcome of a replay; which, mind you, is a lot of the excitement in soccer as we anticipate the buildup or extreme emotional explosion of a goal).
And so, as a newer parent, I am joyous over my little DVR machine and its wonderful ability to capture Arsenal (a big thanks has to go to NBC for also picking Arsenal games early on). It is a wonderful feeling know that if you chose to play with the little one while he is happy and awake (which is all the time in our case-fatherhood can be its own blog) that the game is there waiting for me. This weekend I get a double whammy of a game to boot (wait… triple instead?): Arsenal game. Ozil debut. Texas A&M vs. Alabama. Oh goodness this is a great time of year for watching sports.
As a completely unrelated note, I am a die hard Aggie as well (literally born there) so this was going to be a big weekend. It is of grand proportions now that we come back from the Interlull with a side sitting in 4th and a tremendous new addition to watch. It doesn’t get much better than this people. The signing of Ozil for us supporters is big. Not just in terms of $ but message, emotion, future, etc. The list goes on and on at this point. This is my first real big signing to experience with Arsenal too. I “joined” the club during a dry time. What I know is the drought. What is familiar to me is penny pinching, cost saving, butt puckering financial moves with nothing more than a nice shinny new stadium and uniform changes. My love of club is rooted in hope (which is probably why this trophy drought is easier for me to experience because it is all I know of Arsenal).
And so that is why I am so ever excited for the arrival of Ozil. I know the message that it sends. I know the glorious history others experienced and what I get to be is excited. We got quality. We spent some real money. Now, let’s experience it.
Without further rumbling, let’s get on with the pre-match thoughts:
1. Ozil should start. He is hungry. He is fit. Wenger knows his footballing abilities and has followed him long enough to know that his game fits seamlessly within ours. Not only that, Wenger has the added pressure of putting his $47 million man on the pitch and in this case I don’t think that “super sub” is what he is thinking (unless he is hungry… and near a subway or jimmy johns). To me, Ozil is the German Cazorla. His presence is going to be felt throughout the game and it is needed from the get go. Plus, I don’t think the conversation Wenger had with him included “easing” him into the English came; not exactly the “confidence” that Ozil probably anticipates from Wenger.
2. We are still thin up front and Ozil in the staring lineup means Wenger can push Cazorla up top (like he did almost all last fucking season-still not a fan of it now). While I don’t think Cazorla fits up there, I think there is more reason for it now. First off (my defense), Cazorla was our ignition on the pitch, which to me means that he is not our winger but our facilitator-so put him in the middle. NOW, we have two guys that can fill that role: Cazorla AND Ozil. Plus, Ozil’s vision for the game is impecable. I don’t need to get into the stats. The guy plays ridiculous team football (basically Wenger’s wet dream). Thus, I get it given our thinness in the striking game up top. I don’t excuse it (we need another striker up top, yadda yadda yadda) but I think given our squad it makes sense… for now.
3. Let’s have some fun. The team is excited. We should play off that excitement. Which means Ozil should start and goodness gracious can you imagine if the lad scores a goal or puts one through to Giroud/Walcott/et al?
Right… lineups:
The Shez
Sagna Kols BFG Gibbs
Ramsey Ozil Rosicky
Walcott Giroud Cazorla
There is an argument to be made that Gibbs could be swapped for Monreal if we need someone more defensively inclined but man I just love Gibbs’ workhorse attitude and the way he can get forward so I think I stick with him in this one. The Shez (seriously not sure how I want to refer to him but I am tired of looking up the spelling of his last name and no, I’m not going to memorize it) probably should start here until Viviano actually settles in and starts to challenge for staring time. I give Ramsey and Rosicky the nod over everyone else for two reasons: endless effort and rewarding that effort (also they have been playing well as of late). The two of them seem to have stepped up (especially Ramsey early on this year) and in the wake of losing Arteta and Jack’s recent nagging issues I think the starts are well deserved. I also appreciate the cover that they can both offer (let’s be honest, who the F else are we going to start given our depth?!).
Here is where I think things can be a bit crazy when it comes to formation though. I don’t see a natural 4-4-2 playing out. Something more along the line may be a 4-1-3-2 maybe? All I know is that from a practical sense Cazorla drifts back, Giroud sits in the middle and Ozil can act as the fulcrum for all the ticky tacky business that hopefully ends in actual shots on goal (ie. goals).
The Flame, Jack, Sanogo, Jenks, Monreal, Viviano etc. all make up part of the bench and hopefully by the time any of them hits the pitch we are up 3 nil.
Odds are, everything I just said is bollocks. Ozil sits. Jack starts (re-injures self). Diaby makes the bench (only to re-injure himself getting caught up in his training suit). And we somehow win on a BFG header in stoppage time… Well, as long as we get the 3 points.
Whammy!!!
RM 2 – 0 MILAN (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Oh it’s a good day to be a Gooner. Things started well over the weekend with our one-nil victory over our high spending rivals and concluded with Wenger pulling a fast one on us all with a big, fat signing of some German dude that apparently knows how to play soccer. So big and fat, mind you, that Wenger broke our previous transfer record and put this one up there with the second highest signing in BPL history. To say I am excited about Ozil’s arrival is a bit of an understatement. This is big. BUT, before we get to the divine addition, we have to bathe in the glory that is a victory against our hated rivals.
Things started well enough for our boys and the link up play early on was looking good; we even responded fairly well on the counter. You can’t argue with the lineup that we put out there as a few mix-up changes with Jenks replacing a sick Sagna and Kols sliding back into his spot alongside the BFG. Other than that, this was our healthy regular lineup and so not much else surprising the lineup card.
Things progressed nicely throughout and you could tell we were the more cohesive team; though we gave up a bit more possession than I would have liked. Let’s not kid ourselves here, this is a very good Sp*rs lineup and one has to think that they will be playing a much different game come our second match. They have depth, quality strikers, and a decent keeper to boot. But alas, they lost. We won. All is right with the world.
As to the game, we witnessed a beautiful Santi set piece strike only to be saved by Lloris’ outstretched arms. Theo terrorized on the wing and Santi danced to perfection. In the end, Giroud netted yet another goal and his scoring rate seems to have improved already in this campaign. His run toward goal, anticipating the low cross, and the re-direct was very well played. He is certainly earning his keep here and I am very happy to see him scoring early in games and in the season. Fact remains, he is our (only) striker and we need him to keep playing well. The arrival of Ozil should work in his favor as Giroud stays firmly planted in the starting striker spot (with the likelihood of even more setup service).
The one sure-fire in-game arrival was yet another possible injury to Wilshere (just stop all contact with Diaby!). Flamini came in as replacement after Jack was seen wincing in pain, calling for a sub. Flamini is the type of conservative player Wenger loves so I was glad we were already up; I don’t seem him pressing our team toward goals. All things aside, we did what we needed to grab a much needed win at a fairly important time. We should have played this one to a 2-nil or 3-nil win (Ramsey’s crazy shot over goal or, much more closely, Nacho’s Gervinho impression) but a W is a W is a W.
Now, on to this addition of Ozil. We signed a player, in his prime, from one of the top 2 or 3 teams in the world. Pulling Ozil from Real Madrid is crazy-awesome. He is quality that can play for ANY team (save for Real?). No, from Real’s point of view I believe this was a business move. They wanted Bale, needed to offset the huge cost, and had serious issues with excessive lineup depth that would result in players not being happy about their playing time. Oh, the “whoa is me” problems that Carlos has to face these days…
I don’t really care how it all came together business-wise. We needed a statement signing and I think this type of signing puts other players on notice that Arsenal are in it for much more than a bargain. Granted, we did not add what we needed but the talk of shock coming from Real players over the loss of Ozil is something to behold; they miss him and are surprised that he left. This is great news for Arsenal (and no I don’t believe that bit about Man U not wanting him-sheesh).
No matter how you slice it, this is a big win that should set up well with adding players come the January transfer window (yes, I am that crazy for already thinking that far ahead BUT WE ARE SHORT PLAYERS!!!). Oh, and funny how Arsenal makes a late bid for Ba. WTF ARSENE!?!? Where was that a year ago you duffer!?!?
Our other signing, Viviano, is perfect (IMHO). He adds the competition the Shez needs but doesn’t kill his confidence with a swift kick to the bench. It’s a perfect situation: we get a solid, experienced keeper for the year with an option to buy. If we need to keep him, boom we purchase. If we don’t, thanks for the depth and we wish you well. Truth is, I hope he does well here and he stays so that we have someone ready for the loss of Fabianski (who will have to leave soon I imagine). Kudos for the cheap pickup. Too bad it also didn’t come with another CB, DMF and Striker…
On a separate note, and quite sad, we have lost Podolski for three (3), count them THREE, months. This is a big blow to our lineup as he could really link up well with Ozil given their national team experiences. I am hoping that Poldi’s time on the table is spent encouraging and plugging Ozil with all that is great about The Arsenal experience. And no, Podolski coming back in three months is not like a January signing Wenger so don’t even start with that bullshit. Calling it here first.
We have a little bit of a spell now with the first international break hitting us. Hard to argue with 2 wins from our first 3 games but the fact remains we should be sitting here with three (3) solid victories. Here is hoping all our boys come back healthy and ready to pull down some more points!
The Preview…
Well lads, it’s that time of year. Here at AmericanArse we like to put out a preview to the match prior to each league game and discuss the finer points of lineups, etc. Then, we roll with some post game action after the whistle and hopefully another mid-week trounce before we get back to the weekly preview.
It all starts… now.
This weekend sees us playing hosts to Aston Villa before a quick turnaround and facing off with Fenerbahce (AWAY) four days later. Not going to lie, this is exactly the scenario that I was hoping we would avoid this season. Instead, we get to start off with a thin lineup and quick turnaround matches to boot. No bueno.
Abou, not sure I’ll play in a Nike Arsenal kit again, Diaby is out. TV5 is a no go still with his back injury. Nacho Nacho Man is still on the table as well. Even our sure-haired Mikel Arteta is in doubt for the match… Oh, and word on the street is Bacary has a leg knock too. (What? Pay for Williams? naw… no thanks. We don’t have the money.)
SO, what does that leave us with? Well, here is my starting lineup…
Szczesny (yes, it really is spelled that way)
Jenks-Mert-Kols-Gibbs (please no one go down)
Ramsey-Cazorla-Rosicky (yep, I’m starting that conversation again this year)
Walcott-Giroud-Poldi
Good lord, when I write that out I realize just how thin we truly are… Our backline needs HELP asap BUT Jenkinson knows how to put up clean sheets (remember, 2 to start last season) and the BFG/Kols combo will be fine. Not to mention that Gibbs really is the future going forward (no pun intended), Nacho just provides great competition and cover.
Now, the midfield has me more worried. With Arteta a possible out we lose his DMF presence. I think Ramsey can track back and I love his tireless efforts; he’s also shown some good pre-season form. Rosicky just knows what to do in these situations and I start him over Jack only because I want a full season from Jack healthy; not a rush back and re-injure situation… again… Cazorla, IMHO, should be slotted in the MF with us actually having a healthy and strong line up top. In many ways, one could argue that the game will shape into a 4-2-1-2-1 type formation (is that even possible???) with Ramsey/Rosicky needing to provide cover while Cazorla does his thing and Theo/Poldi slashing in from the sides while OG acts like a G out in front of goal.
Our attack could actually be pretty solid this year (yes, even without the signings). Sonago looks legit so long as, you know, he is A-Go. Poldi looked healthy and fit (finally?). AOC doesn’t have the weight he once did on his shoulders and Theo looks primed for a big breakout. So long as Hey Hey Giroud continues his good link up play and shores up his scoring percentages we fans may be in for a bit of a pleasant surprise from our attackers.
Truth is, we are thin BUT we have a solid core combined with stability in our manager AND familiarity across our lines. If anything, that should buy us an extra win or two. However, we have to come out of the gate fast if we want to challenge for the title and hope that we stay healthy enough to nab silverware. We need to score early, hold firm, and move on to the next match without injury (every team’s goal, right?).
As for our opponents, they are a tough match to start with. Benteke is a beast to cover and obviously knows how to put the ball in the back of the net. Hopefully he starts his sophomore slump with a big fat loss and zero goals. Arsenal’s game is fairly simple, but beautiful when it works: press and control while providing quick cover on counters.
We need to send a message and make it loud and clear that signings or no signings this is a team looking to improve on last season’s excellent finish.
Get ready Gooners, the season is about to begin…
As an aside, you all should sign up for the Arsenal Digital Membership (full post-game replays!)…
AmericanArse 