Arsenal welcome the Cottagers to the Home of Football who will also be playing their second London Derby of the season today – they will play four in their first five matches, with Spuddies and Chavs to come.
Silva’s men have started brightly with a well earned draw against last season’s runners-up, a draw away to Wolves and a narrow 3-2 home win v Brentford.
They play with both discipline and freedom and Silva clearly is a good manager. They will come to us with confidence and a nothing to lose attitude, and Arsenal are in for a battle. Anyone who has already banked the three points for this game should think again. This will be a good tactical battle and Arteta and Silva will relish it.
Mikel’s first task is to get rid of any complacency; this is a potential banana skin. Silva has a nice combo of attackers with Mitrovic a classical CF in the mould of Shearer, and the beautifully named De Cordova-Reid a more mobile, dribbler type of player. It will be good to see how Mitrovic l, three PL goals already, and Jesus, the King of goals/assists, will play in attack today.
In midfield there is also a good skill set with the likes of Palhinha, Reed, Carney and Pereira. I don’t think they will come to park the bus but will want to play passing football. Yes they will concede most likely, but they know they can score goals too. So I am expecting an open, proper modern football game tonight. Those who prefer ‘real men’ football may want to watch some old tapes instead 😅
This is of course also the battle of the goalkeepers, and Bernd should get a great welcome by the fans. Oh boy will he be up for this, and I am worried about him playing a worldy against us today.
Lineup….
Are we going to see any changes is the big question? No new injuries and they all had a week’s rest, so my money is on the same starting eleven.
We may see subs being made earlier, so the subs-police may be a bit happier today. We have another PL game midweek, so we should see more players being used this week. Maybe Arteta has a ‘squad-three-matches’ plan and will rest a few ‘first team’ players, today. White, Zinchenko, Martinelli and the Ode could for example be rested to start on Wednesday v Villa, with then Saliba, Xhaka, ESR and Eddie getting a rest. Let’s see how Mikel will approach this and the other two games in the coming weeks.
The Guardian’s predicted lineups:
Of course it is also OGAAT as the only thing Mikel can influence directly today is the game v the Cottagers.
My first ever Arsenal home game was v Fulham at Highbury. I had to watch it in the away section – the only way to get a ticket. They scored early on and were delighted for a couple of minutes… Then they realised they had poked a wasp nest; I could sense the fear. The game ended 4-1 with goals by TH, PV and Lauren. I will never forget the speed and athleticism of the Gunners that day, something you will notice so much more when you are live at a game.
Anyway, enjoy the game. CoyrrGs!
By TotalArsenal
Bergkampesque 
A nice walk down memory lane Total, thanks.
Fulham can be physical, Silva will want his players to ‘leave a foot in’ so we’ll need a strong referee, unfortunately it’s that Aussie guy in the middle and he’s stitched us up before, I don’t trust him.
That said, Fulham concede a few so as long as our great defence stay focused and keeps a clean sheet we should prevail – we will prevail…
Pablo Vieira debut today, I am certain of it…
8 September
FC Zurich vs Arsenal
5.45pm (BST)
15 September
Arsenal vs PSV Eindhoven
8pm (BST)
6 October
Arsenal vs Bodo/Glimt
8pm (BST)
13 October
Bodo Glimt vs Arsenal
5.45pm (BST)
27 October
PSV Eindhoven vs Arsenal
5.45pm (BST)
3 November
Arsenal vs FC Zurich
8pm (GMT)
Vieira to start, Kev. A big call my friend. 🙂
Going by the seasons results so far, Fulham deserve a lot of respect.
We need to be up for them.
From the bench Total 😉
You nutshelled it, J 😁 🤪
Aha Kev, that makes sense.
PV is at it again. Oil City 0 – 2 The Eagles!
OK no Partey and Zinchenko, not even on the bench. Rest the same.
Aaron
White, Sal, Big Gab, Tiern
Elneny, Granit
Saka, the Ode, Marti
JG9
Unless I missheard itv, sounds like Elneny for partey and Tiierney for our left back from which I can’t spell)
Indeed Retsub.
Just 3 games in and we have Partey Injury. Didn’t many of us call this. Elneny comes in not having played a single minute in the last 3 league games. This is a problem and against a red hot Fulham.
MC are hitting back hard. Hattrick by Haaland.
Who says he is injured, Madhu?
TA, Arsenal website quotes
The Ukrainian suffered a slight sprain to his left knee in training on Friday and has been left out as a precaution, while Partey suffered a tight right thigh in the same session, and both players are continuing to be assessed.
I know some people might not appreciate this, but i had to laugh at the last bit. Robbie savage was just saying how good City were he suggested we should give them the title now.
Chelsea didn’t get a mention.
Liverpool, despite today not consistent enough.
Arsenal , will fall away. Grrrrrr
But then he made it worthwhile. And Spurs? Well they never win anything!
Apart from Elneny (and maybe White), this is our strongest line-up, so let’s hope for a clear margin victory and a clean sheet.
Fulham defending like a Silva team always seems to defend at the Emirates, he’s got a pretty good record at our place, the bastard.
Ødegaard has been imperious. We’re just not able to get off a good shot in the box so far.
Kev I agree about the bastard part.
Really proud of the team. Great concentration and we are giving almost nothing away. Half chances will become full changes, and Tierney will improve now. Fulham will start cracking.
Don’t trust that ref, though. Be careful boys.
as long as we keep our heads and don’t do anything silly, I think something will give
Everyv goal can’t be perfect
Haha Retsub, good one.
First nerve-wracking moments of the season.
And yep, Silva’s done his homework well and has drilled his boys accordingly, and since Kieran’s looks as though he’s not ready yet for PL football … here we are.
The only way to restore a functioning left-side would be to give Bukayo (who’s in a good day) the Zinchenko part, preferably in a 3-4-1-2, something like (so as not to disarm the right-side):
Ramsdale
White-Saliba-Gabriel
Tomiyasu-Odegaard-Xhaka-Saka
SmithRowe
Jesus-Nketiah
Some good moves anyway, but we’ll need a load of opportunities to finally get Bernd to surrender, I’m afraid
COYG
That was for your previous, older comment. 🙂
Good analysis, LeG.
CoyrrGs ⚽ ⚽ ⚽ ⚽
J, agreed the Ode has been awesome, class
Gabriel made a terrible mistake (potentially bidding farewell to the World Cup), but Elneny, White and Saka not playing any good either.
I think Martin meant that deflection 😂
Knew it Ode has been playing really well. But the real goal scorer was the no4 arse
Yeah he is shit that Ben White 🤪
Neeskens Kebano. What a great name.
I think Saka is a great player, but he seems to be impersonating Pepe today
Mitrovic is a handful alright.
Saka was key for our equaliser, Retsub
What a team
I agree with Retsub.
Saka is really poor tonight.
He blew some major chances and made wrong decisions all over.
He indeed provided the assist to Odegaard, but that was an obvious short pass to Martin, so only half credit is due there.
Similarly, Elneny is a half man advantage as always when Arsenal engages in possession. Mo is a great guy and I love him, but he really worth his place only against teams like Chelsea and Manchester United. Now he adds really limited value, albeit not making many errors.
Not over yet, though
You are just always down on Saka. I wonder why..
Gabriel made amends in the 87th minutes.
It’s a joy to see the sheer determination on his face!
Maybe he convinced Tite after all.
Defensive substitution in effect immediately.
It was Sakas run that created the opportunity, not just the pass..
Proud of the boys, everyone.
“The Archangel’s Redemption” how’s that for a title??
With the guts the teeth and whatever you feel like adding to that list … exactly what you need to stitch together a squad, once and for good, and keep complacency out of the way
Stu must be on fire, can’t wait for his review
Just wish Emil had been brought on
COYG!!
Really glad for Big Gab. He really wanted that winner.
I will watch this game again and just focus on Ødegaard. Masterful.
A masterclass, J.
Phew that was a match and half. Me and my son cursed so much when Gabriel gave an easy goal. My Mrs who was sleeping came out all worried what happened 🤣. God these kind of games will give us a heart attack. By the way last season we didnt win at when we went down or may won just against wolves. This was a test of character and we done well.
Saka is becoming a slight worry and looked pepesque sometime. I think he will be become better he. He is a slow starter.
Ramsdale saved us the points today no doubt. Couple of great saves. Mitrovic is a moster and he uses the defender as leverage to get his headers.
Two great goal of the month efforts. T A I am a huge fan of Saka, he just seems a little off at the moment. Love to see Emile get some time and Ode was fabulous.
One thing they must learn is to close games out. When we took the lead we seem to invite pressure on ourselves. If we had done similar at City I think we would have regretted it.
Glad you enjoyed the win, Madhu. The boys did us proud.
Plenty to learn still, Retsub. We must stay humble.
Saka was immense. He was up against a really promising, hard as nails full back and was double covered. Yes he could have done better with his chances but this goes for attackers today.
What was unbelievable is that he played in about four different positions. Twenty years old and Mikel can play him everywhere and he delivers.
Great point T. I actually thought Saka was good, except for that insane pass to Gabriel in our box.
His balance is amazing, and you can feel the goals and assists will come soon.
Saliba with the assist. Tequila!
J, I think that the players are being taught to make that switch cross such as Saka made. You see it at Citeh and Pool constantly. It really was Big Gab’s mistake imo. Luckily, he was able to make amends.
I have no agenda against Saka, TA.
He wasn’t bad by any means. He just had a quiet day.
It might be a bit harsh, but it was the 4th time this season.
And unlike those games where Arsenal attacked mostly on the left, he had his fair share of involvement this evening.
Nothing alarming though, he just need some rest.
Tonight he made no defensive contribution whatsoever (Martinelli made 4 tackles, Ode made 3 tackles and a clearances, Eddie made a tackle and a clearance, hell even Jesus made an interception), and botched the biggest chance of the game. (OK, it wasn’t a conscious defense-splitting pass, only a gift from the opponent, but still he was 1-on-1 with the keeper.)
He is merely on a below average spree, compared to his usual self, to the high expectations, and to the high ratings of the teammates after 4 wins in the season.
https://www.90min.com/posts/bournemouth-0-3-arsenal-player-ratings-as-martin-odegaard-brace-sends-gunners-top-of-the-league
You can check the game summary against Palace on WhoScored (I just rather not ass multiple links to a single comment), he had the lowest scores among our starting players.
Again, nothing serious, that a weekend off cannot cure; but unlike Odegaard who – after 2 quiet outings in the first 2 games – made 2 MotM performances, Bukayo still ‘owes’ us the expected turnaround.
Blimey, I don’t know, some people are impossible to please, just been on LG and some guy opined that we struggled today…… That’s right ‘struggled’ ffs…
If we struggled today then we’ll be out of this world when we play well…
Fair enough, PB. We see different things and you know my view on stats and especially player ratings. I know he can play better but I am wary of fans unnecessarily picking on him. His run and pass put the Ode in a position to take a shot which let to the equaliser. He gave his all and I saw many good contributions all over the pitch
Aston Villa next Wednesday will be another hard, physical battle, Gerrard will send his team out to kick us so I hope we’ve not picked up anymore knocks, maybe Thomas and Alex will have recovered in time?
No doubt he gave his all, TA.
But I really hope that this applies to everybody.
Even Lacazette, Pepe and Chambers gave it all.
Anyway, if somebody would have told me in the summer that after the first 4 game of the season Arsenal will be sitting on the top with 12 points, and we will be worrying about lads playing only average, I would have signed that right away.
The team is resilient and together, so let’s push for 15 points out of 5.
I decline any responsability (as well as my beloved pa’s) for the unfortunate similarity between the initials of my name, and those of the so-called arsenal fans’s site and/or twitter accounts, who have been haunting the sorry recesses of arsenal web for quite some time now
This game was a bonheur (pun intended)!
Kev, I guess it’s all to do with comms and also with a need to pick on somebody or something. What did he mean with struggle?
I think he was talking about our midfield in particular, you know, Xhaka, Elneny and probably Odegaard, I was too non-plussed to even attempt a reply, you know seeds landing on stones ground etc or something like that. You just kinda despair…
Je m’excuse Le Gall De France, I should have said Le Grove…. 🤦♂️
Haha that’s why I always put an ‘e’ between the L and G 🤪
Yeah Kev, it was a hard job today, as in it wasn’t easy but struggle we did not.
That’s it, PB. The start is amazing and we can see that many PL teams can take points from any team, so 12/12 is really good.
Having watched MotD and then seen the highlights from the other games my view is Chelsea were lucky, very lucky, Leicester deserved a draw.
Man City again showed us the level we are aiming for, losing 2-0 but coming back to win 4-2, that is mental strength and that’s where we want to be – and we’re getting there.
Although I believe that Palace had a good goal chalked off which would have given Palace a 3-0 lead – different gravy? If City had scored that goal and the crowd celebrated I think the officials would have given it, but the ref just seemed to react to what looked wrong even if it wasn’t and just disallowed it. If that makes sense?
Liverpool showed the benefit of having a shot in the first half and that broke Bournemouth, I wish that the Arsenal players were as proficient at striking a clean shot with the same velocity as the Liverpool players do. Our guys seem to always want to place it and that doesn’t carry as much force and gives the keeper a chance. Liverpool again showed their absolute ruthlessness, not content with 5 or 6 they carried on and got 9 and now their goal difference is the same as Arsenal’s. Arsenal still don’t quite kill teams and that can be costly as goal difference is worth a point in the end. When Arsenal have a team on the rack we’ve gotta destroy them, totally.
Special mention for Eddie thought he made a big difference when he came on almost pulled of a great goal on the right side when he ran down the flank and cut shift the ball behind his back to get past the defender but his left footed shot to the corner did not have enough bend. He also made a superb run that the masterful Ode found with a delicious over the top lob but Eddie took too long to control and disappointingly tried the shot with his right foot when it should have been his left. He showed last year and I can see he has taken another leap in his play so hopefully more goals and assists to follow for him.
Oh also as a huge fan of both Martinelli and Saka it is clear that Marti was more off his game today. He did take the corner that led to Gabi’s goal but in general his corners were very wasteful and he had another very wasteful free kick which he skied. He and Jesus both struggled I felt. Interesting to read elsewhere fans are quick to say Elneny was one of the reasons the team struggled and that the team missed Partey.
I am a fan of Thomas but to me he has not started the season very well but even when he is not at his best he still has loads of quality. II would say Mo did his job well and that is after coming in from the cold with not much game time this season. I remember when some on here had major doubts when we turned Ode’s loan into a permanent deal but I was over the moon. I believe this to be one of Edu’s best dealings as we won him over during his loan spell and got at a pretty decent price; he should be easily worth more than 50 million now. He was my man of the match by a country mile.
Kev, I wonder what the success rate is between hard struck and placed shots. I get your point but shots get blasted over a lot.
I know that Xhaka for example has a great shot but he doesn’t seem to be encouraged to have a pop.
Good to hear from you again, Makaya. All good points. Eddie brought new energy and movement. I think Gab J did very well but got kicked a lot in the game and Nketiah brought extra momentum.
New Post 🙂