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Name: Arvind
Gender: Male
Interests: Computers , The subconscious mind,network security , sports specially football
Occupation: Network Security Consultant
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Member Since:
6/10/2006
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| Been a while since I posted something here...been far far too busy.....Well...the internationals came and upset our balance again...we managed to beat Watford 3-0 ..I didnt catch the game .. just the goals...but from what I gauged we dominated the Hornets throughout and scored a few good goals...th e trip to Moscow was up next....I hate these trips to Russia...they are always dangerous ...the temperature drops into negative...everyone's jet lagged and dead by the time they get back home...and CSKA are a decent team...any team that has Brazilians in it cant be bad now .. can they?... So to cut a long story short we couldnt recover from a 24th Minute free kick scored by Carvalho...Hoyte apparently hit the bar and Titi had a perfectly good goal disallowed by the ref...hell the video wasnt clear and I've seen almost all the angles available...so how did the ref see it?? ... Titi says in his post match interview that the ref thought he controlled the ball with his right hand ...pushed it onto his left and scored...total rubbish if you ask me...but anyway we lost....so can the kids take this on the chin and go to a hostile "Madejski stadium" ... the memories of Petr Cech breaking his skull will be fresh in the minds of all of AFC and Jens Lehmann will not want to lose this game...after coming out in defence of his fellow colleague..Jens will look at this game as revenge...and I only hope he doesnt do something stupid to Hunt...the player...who "accidentally" rammed his knee into Petr Cech's skull....that said..our backline looks okay...and if Clichy's fit it will give us a greater threat on the left side...in the absence of Eboue...Alex Hleb needs a break I feel...he's been playing too much...and it scares me to see how much Cesc is playing these days...
Gallas has been magnificent for us...and I believe will make Toure improve the more he plays along side him...I only hope Sendy takes the fact that he's not first choice any more well when he comes back and improves all the time...Freddie is not going to start so that almost certainly means Walcott gets another start in place of Rosicky or Hleb...Ade will probably start upfront with Titi who I predict will score a brace today...he always plays well when he is angry n the decision midweek will have left him angry...
Reading will work hard and will not give up but the Gunners will have just a bit too much for them this time around...Steve Sidwell will start against his old club and he'll want to put on a good performance...
BTW here's the whole text of the AGM..AW makes great sense...as usual
http://www.arsenalnewsreview.co.uk/index.php/news/384/42.html
Reading 1-- Arsenal 3
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| I read an absolutely stunning article the other day on arsenal-mania.com about a guy's hatred for ManU and I found myself quite caught up in it...
http://arsenal-mania.com/articles/2992759/More-than-just-a-game---a-tale-of-passionate-hatred.html
I found myself cheering the guy on...my own blood pressure rising each time I thought of that SOB Gary Neville kicking the crap out of JAR and calling it passion for the game...honestly he's probably the only footballer ...that I truly truly wish something bad would happen...ofcourse in footballing terminology...where someone kicks the crap out of him...and calls it passion for the game...call me a sadistic freak if u want but thats the way it is...
I then watched the game...watched us play a very even first half...watched Gilberto miss a penalty he shouldn't have been taking...proof of this is that I had the TV on "Mute" when I watched the spotkick....watched Cesc n Mozart link up beautifully in central midfield...then expected us to fall away a bit in the second...but we fought and we fought and we scrapped and gave as good as we got....and Arsene made his substitutions well this time....and Baptista came on at just the right time to scare United's weakish midfield even more...and then I ...
Watched the little genius Cesc disposess Mr.Show Pony ...get abit lucky with his first through ball as it kindly bounced back...and then watched him hold his composure through one of the most brilliant 20 metre runs I've seen where the ManU players just didnt seem to be there and thread a great ball through for the much maligned hardworking Ade who poked the ballhome with the outside of the boot...in the 85th minute....I couldnt quite take it all in.....I was so caught up with emotion...I realised at that moment that there was nothing in the world that I wanted more than us to beat ManU at Old Trafford......all I wanted was revenge ...revenge for JAR...revenge for that ludicrous dive...revenge for all those physical encounters where we came off second best to ManU...all I wanted was for us to somehow somehow see out those last 8 minutes or so....
I watched Ole Gunnar Solksjaer nimbly dance into the dee...dummy a defender....Toure I think and unleash a venomous left footed drive across the face of goal......5 seconds later I thoguht it had gone in...and I thought we had lost the lead...only to find myself staring in utter joyous disbelief at my TV screen that King Jens had pulled off an absolute stu7nner of a save...I've rewatched the clip almost 20 times...and I cant say any keeper wouldn't have been proud to make a save of that quality in such a high pressure game...
The last few minutes were agonising...and Im sure my heart beat was a 120 a minute...but when the whistle went...and I realised that we'd done it....the feeling of ecstasy was arguably one of the greatest emotions I have ever ever experienced in my 24 years of life....I wanted to go out there and hug Ade...hug Cesc and thank the team for doing it for all of us fickle demanding fans...I listened to an amazingly mature Cesc...he's only 19... and
a candid Ade speak their hearts out...and I woke up the next morning and realised that we had indeed won...and it wasnt a dream....
The next match would be crucial to prove to the team that they could keep up the level against a weak Sheffield United...and we scrapped our way to a 3-0 win..not convincing but the ingredients are there in this team to better the invincibles....if they stay together and keep their heads...and as I write this ManU have scraped a draw at Reading...would have been nice if they'd lost ...but hey I'm not complaining...this has been a great great week.....
A GREAT GREAT WEEK....
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| Well , we drew again ; I havent yet seen the damn game ...I was at work on Saturday and I probably will not see it ... from what I gathered it was more of the same...too much passing too little end product....and we let in another goal early...previously we used to score first and then destroy the opposition with 2,3 or 4 goals...and could come back from 3-1 or 2-1 down and win 3-2 or 5-3 ...I'm not so sure we can do that now....I'm not so sure that we can do it this season...in 2008-09 Arsenal will be the team to beat in Europe...if this team sticks together...mark my words...Arsene is building another "Invincibles" side...its taking time though...
We arent scoring ...period...Eboue is making most of our meaningful runs...and he has a dreadful end delivery...Our strikers arent clicking for some reason...n Titi looks jaded ... stupid internationals ... all at the wrong time...all our players go .. n come back dead...we havent had a week of training together...Baptista n Galls have not worked in a session together...with the team...how will the chemistry come??? .. its not magic...you need to play together to understand each other...
I'm starting to believe we have too many playmakers in Cesc , Hleb n Rosicky .. I know they play center , right nleft .. but both Hleb n Mozart r playmakers for their teams n for their previous clubs...so it is natural they play more central...
Gallas hasnt played for a long time now .. he will take time to get match fit....Baptista will take a while to get used to AFC as well...we need to beat Hamburg...score a couple of damn field goals....n take the confidence to Old Trafford .. else we're dead .... fullstop....if we get a goalless draw away...I'll go mad...I seriously will....
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| I've been a bit quiet on the soccernet boards of late but thats more beacause there's so many different threads going around...with so many different opinions...There's been threads about AFC's future...about our debt...about The Grove...about our squad...about the kids...no veterans...morale...midtable clubs...such a big mix of emotions...and last but not least...last week brought about the end of a tumultous transfer window...and didnt we leave it late...!!!
I've always maintained that our future is secure...always believed that the kids Arsene had got through the ranks and his incredible scouts will make it big one day..the talent is there for all to see..I believe someone did bring this up...but here goes...lets do a player by player comparison ..shall we...with the invincibles squad...
Seaman -->Lehmann(Old keeper)
Lauren-->Eboue(attack minded right back)
Campbell-->Toure(The Rock)
Keown/Adams-->Senderos(Leader in the defence)
Cole-->Clichy(Cole clone)/Traore
Ljungberg-->Hleb(RM cutting inside)
Viera-->Cesc(The midfield engine...with a bit more flair)
Gilberto-->Diaby/Denilson(eventually)
Pires-->Rosicky(LM better central than left...cutting inside..key goal scorer)
Henry-->Walcott(Scary pace....great goalmouth presence...intelligent with words)
Bergkamp-->Henry(Eventually Titi will drop in to the hole after 32/33)
I know I've missed out our two latest teammates but I'm trying to draw a comparison between the two squads..and there's an awful lot similar there...too too early to call them "invincibles" when they've won nothing...but the ingredients are there...its just a matter of pushing them in the right direction...and harnessing the stunning talent we've got...I've not even mentioned RVP here...coz we never did have any striker like RVP...but he will have role to play...no doubt...
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The Transfer window:
Am I happy?? ... YES ... I dont think Arsene could have done much better...people now have nothing to crib about...experience has been obtained ...and what great experience...even if he hadn't bought the Beast...just the signing of William Gallas...arguably Chelsea's best player last season...is big big big... i dont care if it was a straight swap without the 5 million thrown in...(obviously Davd Dein does care :) ) ... Gallas is a brlliant central defender who never bottles...He's French...Titi likes him...thats a senior head to take some of the load off the overworked GIlberto who can worry about playing consistently in midfield without thinking of our LB or the occasional Sendy blunder...Gallas will teach Senderos and Djourou a thing or two about defending and the kids will learn by the time ...the Frenchman decides to hang up his boots...which will not be the case for the next 5 years at least...
The Beast???....I wont comment...because I made the mistake of falling in love with JAR's game when he arrived...which was never the same after THAT game...and the kid never quit emade it big...I want to see where the Beast plays...how he plays...his strengths ...his weaknesses...before I comment...I am not buying the "physical" argument right now....not all physical guys will succeed in the EPL ...I mean...Eric DJemba Djemba wasnt a small guy nor was Veron...etc etc....THE BEAST may make it big...but I want to wait...
Denilson...I'm not talking about someone I dont know...
Cygan---> I'm not sorry to see him go...but to be fair the guy always did a job never cribbed and tried his best...he wasnt good enough for AFC which is a different thing alltogether....but he performed as best as he could...whenever he was asked to....he might well be a star at Villareal ... and I wish him all the best :)
JAR---> He will be a rage in Real Madrid...and La Liga...all the best...hope you realise urt prodigious talent there...
Cole--->Uhhhh...well....goodbye.....
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Finally I'd like to round this mixed bag post of mine...with a tribute to the one and only Arsene Wenger who always does what is needed to be done....at the right time...and mostly with the right men for the job...he very rarely disappoints....and he left it late this time around...but he knew that 50+ games a season...would be too much for Titi , Gilberto , Freddie and Toure to handle by their own...so he brought in Gallas who will do Campbell's job and nurture Senderos n Cesc(our future captains)...two birds with one stone as usual....The Professor always buys...multifunctional players ...Rosicky,Hleb,Cesc,Gallas,Baptista,Reyes ...more than 1 position....
Thought Myles Palmer said it very well this time..."If you go to your churches or mosques this week say a little thankyou prayer that God has given you Arsene Wenger"...wasnt far off the mark ..I thought....AW has his tactical faults and he's not the best substitution maker in the game :) but his abilities to build a squad...bring science into an otherwise physical sport...is something not many coaches can...or rather....WILL(they wont do it even if they could)...do...Thanks AW...and hail the Red and WHite.....so now lets win our next 36 games and the CL ... :) I dont ask 4 much ... :) :)
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| Well , I predicted a 3-1 to the Arsenal and I was horribly wrong , and after looking at our display it was hard to understand why we lost. I mean we had posession of the ball most of the time City had everyone back defending and they did a good job but if you tell me AFC dont have the players to break defences down then I wont agree.I've been reading flames all over the web about how Wenger needs to buy more...lets think here...
Where did we play badly??... In the box ... so the quickest solution to that is to change your style of play .. start bombing in crosses from left and right .. which probably means we've got to sell Hleb , Rosicky and Freddie since all of them cut in ... oh wait you dont want that .. do you??? so the other option is we go and buy more players ... where ... who... up front?? .. no we've got a glut of strikers anyway up front ... and anyway if we buy more strikers it'll lead to someone being benched and more unrest in the team .. as if we already didnt have enough...
I thought Jens and the defence was decent .. Hoyte looked raw more than anything .. its just the step up to a makeshift left back for Sunderland to one at AFC has been a bit hard to take...which is understandable .. Eboue's passing was woeful..... for all his great runs his final ball is horrible .. hope he learns with time...Djourou was excellent and Toure back to his solid best after those two dodgy opening games....I thought the midfield was decent .. Gilberto was excellent in front of the back four and Cesc looked bright upfront .. Hleb had an on-off day.. Rosicky was practically invisible ..whether that was a result of his injury or not .. I dont know .. but everything he did yesterday was laboured .. in his defence it was his first game for us ...
RVP looked sharp and hit the post .. was that our only effort on goal?? apart from all those Henry misses ... Titi was dreadful yesterday ... he was "physically present and mentally absent" .. in my opinion ... if he is at 60% why are we experimenting with him throughout?? .. give him 60 minutes or bring him on as a sub for a couple of games ... or just rest him ... he's too valuable to us .. and to have him burnout and have a substandard season is catastrophic ... Walcott looked bright though I think ManCity changed tactically when he came on and the 4-3-3 which we played with didnt look too bad ... Titi on the left , RVP on the right .. Ade as the centre forward...lets c what Wenger does...
We should have had a couple of penalties...but I'm not whining..our overall play should have had us winning 3-1 or 4-1..without the penalties...
The problems dont need a PHD to figure out... we have overplayed no doubt and do need to shoot more but I'm still holding out thinking .. give em a few games .. let the sharpness return and we'll be okay ... why didnt Rosicky shoot ?? .. why the cutback when he just had to blast it on goal .. thats how Gilberto got our goal against Villa ...
I'm still not for any panic buys ... why do you buy when all you have done wrong is not shoot? ... you'll buy when your strikers are ineffective .. this is more about tactics .... another striker will also play the same way after a while ... its all in the mind ... and the team being young it takes time to bounce back from a drought .. its happened to the best of strikers and hence is no reason to panic ... but maybe AW needs to learn a new tactical side ... tactics have never been his strong point of switching the system when you need to .. he did it last time in the CL ... back to the drawing board Arsene .. just a couple of nuts and bolts changed and we'll be fine ... we just need a CB or/and a DM though for cover .. I'm still scared of what will happen if Toure gets injured .. scary...if Cesc gets injured Hleb or Rosicky will move in and JAR ( if he stays) will play out left .. but if Toure gets injured ... before Sendy returns we're in trouble....buy a CB Arsene .. just 1 CB ... someone who's two times better than Cygan atleast...
We will be back ... if ManU had had a slow start we'd be saying .. the league is a marathon .. they'll come back .. so why the negativity .. so much of it when it comes to us??? ... there are problems .. I'm not blind .. but tehy are not unsolveable .. they can be addressed ..Come on Gunners!!!!
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