Giroud – Page 5 – Bergkampesque

Arteta and Santi are Back, Ramsey roars on: Match Review

November 3, 2013TotalArsenal

Match Review: Questions have been answered

Liverpool came to the Emirates on Saturday looking to capitalize on Arsenal’s midweek slip up against Chelsea. Arsenal would have to respond to that midweek loss well because the winner of this game would go top of the league.

Wenger played a strong lineup, but had to field a relatively weak bench due to injuries to Jack and Serge, among others out for the longer term.

Arsenal started the game strong and looked in the mood to really make this a horrible day for Liverpool. The ref was pretty fair from the beginning and did not fall for the SAS diving, so credit to him.

Every week Liverpool’s formation makes less sense and weakens them down the flanks even further. This week Liverpool played a very central heavy formation perhaps hoping to break up our midfield passing, but all they succeeded in doing was giving us too much space on the wings.

This would first become evident in the 19^th minute. Arteta played Sagna through down the right hand side. He outran the out of position Cissokho and swung a cross into the middle. It was behind Giroud, but Santi had made a run behind him and headed the ball after a bounce. The ball hit the post, but Santi followed up and sliced it calmly into the net. Our little number 19 scored his first goal of the season against Liverpool just as he did last season.

Arsenal remained dominant for the rest of the first half. Arteta was fantastic at breaking up play in the absence of Flamini. Giroud got a few chances throughout the game, but he just could not put the game to bed.

After half time Liverpool were forced to change formation to have any hope of winning.

Their chance to do so would just about die in the 60^th minute. Ozil gave Ramsey a nice little chip to the top of the box. Aaron calmly trapped the ball and let it bounce a few times. And as any player full of confidence would do, just let rip on the half volley. The ball dipped and swerved and made its way in just under the crossbar. The goal itself was incredible, but sadly will probably be overshadowed by Begovic’s goal.

The confidence this team has, is embodied in Ramsey. We are prepared to take chances offensively now because we now have no fear of our defense not being good enough when we lose possession. This has led to some incredible passing and play this season and it’ll only get better as the season goes on.

After this goal no one really looked like scoring. We put on Monreal to shore up our defense on the left, but soon after Gibbs went off with a slight knock and Vermaelen came on at left back. Jenkinson came on at the end to maintain our clean sheet and it worked. Liverpool came close a few times at the end, but we were ready and organized at the back and kept our 2-0 lead.

At the final whistle Arsenal went five points clear at the top of the league and showed the rest of the league that we mean business. Many had questioned if we could play our game and win against big teams and questioned if we can do it every week, and this win showed that we can. This month will be big and if we get wins against Liverpool, Dortmund, United, etc, we will really show everyone that we are starting a new era where Arsenal will return to dominance. I maintain that City is our biggest competition in the league, after seeing them run rampant in a 7-0 win against Norwich earlier in the day. Our games against them will probably be the biggest of the season.

Overall, the team was fantastic today with standout performances from Szczesny, Arteta, Cazorla, and Koscielny. Giroud probably could’ve had a few goals, but overall the score line is a pretty good representation of the game.

For now I’ll leave you with some questions:

What did you think of the game?
What kind of message did this game send to the rest of the league?
Who do you think our toughest competition is for the league title?
Who was your man of the match?

Thanks for reading! 😀

Written by: Dylan.

Time to show Suarez what he missed out on: Liverpool pre-view

November 1, 2013November 1, 2013TotalArsenal

Arsenal vs Liverpool Pre-Match

Intro:

Both teams have had a great start to the season but also have been handed a kind fixture list until now. Time for Arsenal to show the competition why we belong at the top of the table. A resurgent Liverpool? I don’t think so: time to shut them down at the Emirates on Saturday.

Let’s get in to it shall we:

Missing in Action:

Arsenal: Podolski (Hamstring) – back in training, Ox (Knee), Diaby (Knee), Sanogo (back), and Walcott (abdominal). Not too sure what’s going on with Flamini (groin). There have not been any noises coming from the medical department, is he unavailable? Are we just supposed to presume that he is? Or was he sent to a different medical centre to Diaby…one that actually heals injuries quickly?

Liverpool: Coutinho returns to the squad, left back Enrique Iglesias is in doubt for this one because of a knee injury.

Predicted Line-up:

Szczesny, BFG, Giroud, and Ozil should return to the starting line-up. Arteta returns following a one-match suspension and should line-up next to Ramsey if Flamini is injured. I’m not too sure if Santi is ready to go again. If he is then he should play out on the left, if not I’d give Wilsher/Rosicky a go. Gnabry should start on the right and could cause problems if Enrique doesn’t get up for this fixture.

Previous Encounters:

Arsenal v Liverpool 2-2

A ripper from Walcott saw Arsenal come from 2 goals down to share the spoils against Liverpool. It was a rather dull encounter but after Henderson scored on the 60′ mark we shot to life and scored two goals in 3′. Both of their goals were a complete joke and as lucky as they come!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbCvTSj8p_U

Allah Theo, Allah!!!

Liverpool v Arsenal 0-2

Two new signings bring two goals away at Anfield. Santi and Podolski started their Arsenal careers with a bang. Deserved the win after we controlled the midfield all game.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIXYU8-EITU

EPL Form Guide: Arsenal: : WWDWW Liverpool: WDWWL

We slipped up midweek against Chelsea but our EPL form has been solid, yet unspectacular. Time to kick in to gear again and stop a premiership contender in their tracks.

Although they lost points to Newcastle they’re on a good run of form. Suarez was blistering against West Brom in their last fixture, netting a hat trick. A win will see them jump above Arsenal on the table.

This week I’ve dipped into the Arsenal Archive and pulled out this video clip. It’s the famous 4-2 victory against Liverpool during our ‘invincibles’ season. in the week preceding this game we had been beaten in the FA Cup semifinal by Manchester United and the Champions League quarterfinal by Chelsea. A patched-up Arsenal twice went behind to Sami Hyypia and Michael Owen goals, but stormed back, inspired by Thierry Henry, as he scored a hat trick to seal the win and preserve the unblemished record. Brilliant clip!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=er5vVCVbVsw

One to Watch:

Recent transfer target ‘El Pistolero’ Luis Suarez. His suspension has been served and boy has he hit the ground running! In no time at all he’s netted 6 times this season after just 4 games. I know I’m being greedy when I say this…but Jesus I’d love to see him in our team! Suarez really would slot in nicely up top with Giroud wouldn’t he? ‘El Pistolero’ means ‘the gunner’…he was a perfect fit. Oh well what could have been huh, let’s just hope he’s firing blanks this weekend.

This week’s one to watch has to be Ozil. Truly great players stand up in the big fixtures and I have no doubt Ozil will do just that. 2 goals and 3 assists make Ozil a very dangerous player for Liverpool to match up against. It’s also interesting to note that he’s currently got a 88% shooting accuracy and we’ve all seen just how long he needs to pick his target.

Key-Match up:

Giroud vs the Liverpool CB’s

Our midweek game showed just how important Ollie is to our side. He’s stepped up a gear this season and his self-belief is coming along in leaps and bounds. 7 goals 4 assists and an average of 5.1 aerial duels won per game makes Giroud a handful wherever the ball is. Who he’ll line up against is anyone’s guess. Skrtel, Sakho, Agger or Toure, or all four as has happened on one occasion this year. Whoever it is will have to keep close watch on Giroud.

Pre-Match Finger:

This week’s finger goes to Foy for sending off Mikel Arteta’s. Fair enough a decision was needed in real time, but why not throw out the ridiculous one match suspension? Sort it out rules committee! How can a bunch of grown men on a football site be left scratching their heads after the game when asked what Arteta’s outcome would be?! Because the rules are a joke at times. That decision changed the game. Thankfully for us we still came out on top! Video replays people…we need them!!!!

‘Ask the opposition’ returns again this week.

It is designed to get some friendly banter from our opposition fans and get their insight for the match ahead. This week the answers were kindly provided by Paul Tomkins from tomkinstimes.com (@paul_tomkins). Let’s see what he’s written for us this week:

1. What do you think is the secret behind your success this season?

Credit has to go to Rodgers and the transfer committee, for the work they did, and to John Henry and co. for keeping Suarez, when I thought he’d played his last game for us. Who knows, another one pound fifty and we might have buckled?!

We’ve not had the toughest first nine games, with just United a big test so far, and they look uninspired this season. But Sturridge, and now Suarez as well, have been absolutely sensational. With Mignolet making the saves that Reina had stopped making, we have racked up points due to the keeper and the strikers. What’s in between hasn’t been as good as last season, with some of the possession game sacrificed, but the tactics are getting the best out of the front two, and they are clinical at the moment.

The next 10 games are very difficult on paper. So after game 19 – the halfway point – we should have a better idea. I don’t see us as challengers for the title but we are capable of the top four if the front two stay fit. Lose both of those to injury and there’s not a lot in the reserve. Our first XI is the strongest it’s been since 2009, and the average age is good, so we should have a brighter future. The fact that we’ve done well without Suarez in over half the games, and with Coutinho out, suggests we are getting better.

2. Suarez…is all forgiven?

I think so, although he was just doing to us what he did to Ajax to move to us in the first place. Some footballers are like that, and you accept it. He is not the loyal kind, but he is someone who works his nuts off in every match. I think he loves LFC, just like he loved Ajax, but he is also fiercely ambitious. My view is that we just enjoy him while we have him and then reinvest the fee wisely when he inevitably leaves. Hopefully he’ll move overseas, when that times comes, and for a lot more money than was on offer in the summer. And hopefully he won’t bite anyone in the meantime.

3. Are you happy with how your transfer window went?

I think so. Mignolet is doing extremely well, and Sahko looks a beast. Aspas had a great preseason and then looked hopeless when the season started, but it’s too early to write him off – although he’s the one disappointment so far. Cissokho looks like a sensible loan, and Luis Alberto has that Barcelona pedigree. Tiago Ilori has a very bright future, and Victor Moses is another astute loan, although after a bright start he’s looked a bit lost in his last couple of starts. Still, he’s clearly a good player.

And of course, there’s Kolo Toure. He’s really surprised me. I really rated him at Arsenal but assumed he was a fat-arsed has-been – but he’s not, and he’s impossible not to love. A great character, and still a very good footballer.

4. What position/ player is your weakest link?

We’ve had problems at left-back, and hopefully Cissokho will prove a solution. Enrique is a mix of brilliance and awfulness, and while he’s quite endearing, he can be too frustrating, so that’s the main area.

And some fans are moaning about Lucas again, but I remain a fan. He missed a lot of football, and it can take a long while to get back to the old levels. He reads the game so well, but once he’s beaten he’s beaten as he doesn’t have the recovery pace.

5. What position is Arsenal’s weak link?

It’s hard to say for sure, as I don’t see you play as often as I see Liverpool. I’m not overly impressed with Szczęsny, although he may be playing better now, and is still quite young for a keeper.

I don’t think you have the strongest centre-backs around, although I used to be a big Vermaelen fan – not sure what happened with him? But again, I may be wrong, as I only see the occasional game or highlights on TV, and Mertesacker and Koscielny may be much better than I realise. I do actually quite like Koscielny but he’s one of those who seems to make a few high-profile mistakes.

6. Which Arsenal player would you love to have in your team and why?

Probably Ozil, although we aren’t short of attacking quality. He’s not what we need, but then I thought he wasn’t what you needed either. Turns out that he’s so good he improved Arsenal all the same, even though you seem to have a few similar types. You’re a bit like us – better going forward than defending.

7. Ozil or Suarez?

I’d say Suarez, but then I would, wouldn’t I? As an individual he’s phenomenal, and now that the team seems better suited to his style he is looking obscenely good. But of course, he’ll probably want out in the summer. They’re both great players, and that’s not me being diplomatic.

8. What is your match prediction?

No idea! I’d expect a lot of good attacking play from both sides. The higher-scoring games have tended to happen at Anfield in more recent years – 6-3, 4-2, 4-4, but it could be one of those evenings!

Prediction:

I’ll admit it; I’m a touch worried about this fixture. Sturridge and Suarez have been on fire and have the speed to really trouble the BFG. Both teams love to attack so this one could turn into a good old fashioned shootout. We have to press them all over the pitch so they don’t have too much time on the ball! If we can do that and not get hit on the counter I think we’ll win this one 2-1.

What is your prediction?

Suarez or Ozil who would you prefer?

What position is our weakest link at the moment?

What tactic would you employ to beat Liverpool?

Written by: Oz Gunner

Szczesny – BFG – Flamini – Ozil – Giroud: spine of a champion in waiting?

November 1, 2013November 1, 2013TotalArsenal

I love our spine: it is full of character, experience, ‘position experts’, and it oozes quality throughout. One Pole, two Germans, and two Frenchies; and we have some fine Spanish, German and English talents to add to it and support it.

Arsenal might be building a team around a British core in the mid to long term, but for the foreseeable future the core has not a single Brit in it. Jack and Rambo might well play themselves into the core sooner or later, and especially the Welshman has made a very impressive start to the season, but for now the spine is non-British.

You could argue that the wider spine should be taken into account, as we play with two CBs and two deeper laying midfielders who all play centrally. But for the sake of this discussion I would rather look at our narrow spine of Szczesny, Mertesacker, Flamini, Ozil and Giroud.

There are three questions that come to my mind when looking at our spine:

Can we improve further on it?
How will we cope with injuries?
Is it the spine of an imminent champion?

I welcome your views on this today, and this post is just a means for discussion/sharing of views.

In order to give the debate some added substance, I will quickly give you my views on the above questions.

Can we improve further on the spine?

Yes we can to some extent. We could get a more experienced and established goal keeper as Wojciech is not yet the finished article; and maybe there is a CB out there who has the BFG’s ability to organise the defence and read the game as well as he does, but is faster and more agile than the German giant. But despite his lack of speed and ‘turn-ability’, I love the guy and it would be hard to find somebody who would be a like for like improvement in all the aspects he brings to our team.

Other than that, I reckon Flamini and Ozil are totally cut for our spine, and the same goes for Giroud who plays the ‘modern’ holding striker role sublimely for us this season.

How will we cope with injuries?

That is the big question, isn’t it?

For Szczesny we have two options and I rather would have an experienced PL goal keeper as our nr.2, although we still have to see Viviano in action and he might well be the bee’s knees.

For Mertesacker we have Sagna, who has been very good in the CB role when played there recently. But Sagna is also our nr.1 RB and is played constantly by Arsene and in the French national team. However, if the BFG is injured I reckon Sagna is a more than decent replacement.

For Flamini we have Arteta. It is not a like for like replacement as Flamini is better at the physical part of midfield defending, but Arteta is experienced and can play well in the deepest midfield position. In an ideal world, though, we would strengthen in this area as soon as possible. Our main transfer priority this winter?

For Ozil we have Jack, Rosicky, Santi and Rambo. Enough said.

For Giroud we have Bendtner and Sanogo and maybe Akpom. The Dane did not take his opportunity on Tuesday and it looks like closed curtains for him now. Sanogo could become a revelation but we just have not seen him play yet, and Akpom is one for the future.

Of course, we also have Theo and Pod who could play centrally but neither of them are capable of playing the specialist holding striker role anywhere near as well as the Big Ferocious Frenchman. I reckon a long term injury to him is our biggest potential weakness in the spine; if there’s one thing we have learned from our defeat against the Chavs, it’s this…

Is it the spine of an imminent champion?

Thanking The Guardian for this great picture!

It all depends on fitness and being able to play together as much as possible, especially during the big games. It is also important that Szczesny turns into a more consistent ‘safe pair of hands’ this season. So with a bit of luck, we could well have the spine of a champion in waiting this season.

But what do you think, fine fellow Gooners? And who would be your one purchase to further strengthen the spine?

Written by: TotalArsenal.

Arteta leads, Szczesny stands up, and Ozil, Rambo and OG pure class

October 26, 2013October 26, 2013TotalArsenal

But above all, another great TEAM performance!

The captain answered his critics once more... — The captain answered his critics once more…

Well, Well, ToTL with 22 points and a fine goal difference of 11 after just nine games! The boys did us proud today. Chris Foy tried his best to ruin it for us, but even he could not stop us.

I thought before the game this would either be very easy or we would have to dig deep; and as we all know, it became the latter. Just as against Norwich, Flamini had to leave the game very early, but this time it seemed a groin injury rather than a reoccurrence of his concussion. And just as last week, we lacked a bit of shape and rhythm once he had gone, although Arteta impressed with not just his positioning but also his willingness to put his body on the line.

The pitch was very slow and the Eagles defended resolutely, but we also played at too low a tempo and often not close enough to each other. And when we did play a bit closer together, our triangles did often not work out, due to inaccurate passing and under-par first touches. However, the boys managed to get into the box a few times and got close to scoring with chances for the (still very rusty) Cazorla, Rambo and Giroud.

To be fair on Palace, they played well in the first half and created a few good chances themselves, as once again we allowed them to play football in the space in front of our ‘D’ and were opened up a bit too easily. Part of their strategy was to get easy free-kicks in put-the-ball-into-the-box areas, and Foy easily obliged to support this ploy. But we also were a bit naïve in giving away such free kicks too willingly, making it easy for the 13^th man to have his influence on this game. Luckily, we defended most of these free-kicks (and corners) resolutely, which was a welcome sight.

0-0 was a fair score to go into the break with, and it was clear we had to up the tempo of our passing and make better runs into the danger area, if we were to get the three points from this game.

We did not have to wait long for a break. Gnabry, who plays with such an incredible maturity and composure for his age (born in 1995, the same year Dennis arrived at Highbury!), found himself in the box with the ball – after good, patient and incisive triangle-combination football by Arsenal – and he cut the ball back superbly, denying the onrushing Guedioura any opportunity to control his adrenaline surge before it was too late. As a result, the Algerian fouled the young German in the box and this time Foy could not get away with denying us a penalty (we could have had one in the first half).

Up steps our captain, and you kind of feel if he misses this one we will not win today. But his penalties are as sharp and immaculate as his haircut and bionic stare, and he makes it 1-0 to the good guys with an unstoppable effort.

The game can now truly begin, as Palace will need to come out of their defensive setting to get anything out of it. We press and play with a lot more swagger and it seems only a matter of time before we will score the all important second goal. But Foy was still part of the ploy and he grabbed his opportunity with both hands when Arteta and our former Moroccan Gunner collided about a Boeing 747 away from our goal. The gel-man tried to compensate a characteristically bad first touch (his feet have never been his strength) from what was a very promising through-ball with barging into Arteta: they both went to the floor and Foy sends our captain to the showers. It is easy to be resolute if you know what you are doing…. 😕

Arsenal now had to defend and Arsene made excellent substitutions with bringing on our best all-round midfielder Wilshere and safe pair of hands Nacho for the tired Cazorla and, the tactically sacrificed, Gnabry.

We have discussed the need to keep a clean sheet more regularly if we want to beat the Chavs (and others) to the title this season, and today we really needed it to clinch all three points. Up steps our Pole in goal; first denying a beautifully executed shot by Joel Ward with a full stretch, ever so slight fingertips-touch onto the crossbar; followed by a strong, one handed match winning save from Jedinak venomous volley from just outside the box. Szczesny remains a work in progress but today’s performance, for which he was given the MoTM award, will help him tremendously – and he needed it.

The team looked tired but ALL worked hard to fight for the three points. I loved the way Ozil picked up balls in and around our own box and kept it to win time and space, and what a fine, strong balance he has. Jack was able to keep the ball under pressure and move forward with it, not allowing the Eagles to sustain their attacks. Nacho did great work on the left wing, both defensively and in attack, and almost scored a Theo-esque goal late on.

I looked at Giroud and Rambo and they seemed exhausted; the game against Dortmund and the 10-men second half efforts against Palace clearly taking their toll. But they never gave up and dug very deep into their reserves, and this is what we should remember when either of them has a less effective game: these boys really care about Arsenal – the absolute opposite of mercenaries!

And it came as no surprise that the final word of this exhilarating game was for our finest work horses. Giroud collects the ball in midfield with his back to the opponent’s goal – who is currently better in the PL at doing this?…. – and passes to Rambo, who is still able to accelerate past a few Palace players into the box, and somehow finds the composure to produce a measured ball onto the head of the onrushing Frenchman, who places the ball just above Speroni’s left shoulder, leaving him no chance to save it: 2-0 to the mighty Gunners and game over.

A hard fought win, three points, ToTL, and more evidence that this team has real backbone: Ooh to! Ooh to be! Ooh to be A Gooner! – Ooh to! Ooh to be! Ooh to be A Goooner!

http://www.fcsongs.com/Arsenal_FC_-_Ooh_To_Be_A_Gooner.html

Bring on the Oilers! 🙂

Written by: TotalArsenal.

OOHzils and AAHrons return to THOF: Wengerball is back!

October 20, 2013TotalArsenal

I have watched some dire Arsenal games in recent years. Norwich and Wigan away, and Blackburn (FA Cup) at home were all pretty poor live-games last season for example, but yesterday I finally saw Arsenal play fantastic football again. The atmosphere in the stadium was good, and in the North Bank it was even better. The banter between North Bank and the East Bank supporters was great – singing to each other for prolonged periods which became louder and louder every time.

On such a mild day as it was, and with the sun coming through just as the game started, the fans singing and with a collective sense of this season possibly being different than previous ones, it felt extra good to be a Gooner yesterday.

As predicted, Arsene started with FlamTeta in the double-DM pivot and no typical wingers. I had Ramsey and Cazorla starting, but it made sense to rest Ramsey and give Jack an opportunity to show everyone once again what a great prospect he is. And boy did he deliver.

Effectively, we played 4-5-1 again. A similar line-up attracted a lot of unfair criticism against WBA, but this time round there appears to be no complaints. And with our wide midfielders contributing with goals, assists and penultimate assists, Wenger will feel justified for sticking with his midfielders for another game.

Norwich were well organised and defended diligently at the start of the game. Arsenal took their time to find the openings as the so familiar ‘Sturm und Drang’ football seems to be a thing of the past. This Arsenal are calculated in their efforts: we try to preserve energy and like to sit back – we even do not mind to relinquish possession of the ball if it will mean the opponent comes forward and out of their defensive positions.

To some extent we play like Red Nose’s MU during periods of the game. We love space and we relish winning back the ball in our own half, as to start our counter-attacks with speed, precision-passing, and cool finishing. Today we scored a couple of goals from getting the ball in our own half and I expect this to become a regular occurrence this season.

This sitting back and absorbing pressure does come at a price, though. At times during games – and yesterday this was the case on each side of the break – we sit too deep and hand over control too much to the opponent. Norwich had their best spell between the 35^th minute and when they scored their goal; and we were a tat lucky with scoring our second one before they scored theirs.

Partly, this was due to the early departure of the Flame: the team initially struggled with regaining its shape and dealing effectively with Norwich’s very effective and physical central midfielders. I thought Wenger and Bould would coach our midfielders during the break on how to regain control, but they continued to struggle during the first twenty minutes or so of the second half.

Norwich lacked the creative and finishing skills to properly hurt us, and with Arsenal brimming with both confidence and super quality talent, it was pretty clear we would come out as winners eventually.

Our first goal, watched from the North Bank so from afar, was pinball football. When an improvised goal through the middle comes off like that, the team deserves all the plaudits it’s getting. We just could not believe what we saw: what a cheeky, brilliant goal. And we all sang: ‘same old Arsenal, taking the piss’. It was wonderful to listen to the collective OOHS and AAHS when the replay was shown on the stadium screens just after the goal was scored. Wengerball is well and truly back!

The delirium from THAT goal did subside though, and even turned into some howls of derision towards the end of the first half, despite OG almost scoring a second after another blitz-attack: the North Bank are a critical lot! But Arsenal sat back too much and allowed Norwich too much space and time on the ball during this period. Szczesny saved us during this phase with a first class stop: not just keeping the ball out of the net, but also pushing it away safely under pressure.

The start of the second half was also for Norwich, but another brilliant break from the back led to the second goal: the one that won us the game as Norwich just did not have more than one goal in them at best. Cazorla found, the brilliant throughout the game, OG in the right-wing position: he looks up and sees Ozil making a run into the box and produces a beautifully weighted cross into the box which finds the head of the German. Ozil cannot believe he scored with his head from a cross from our CF – something Ronaldo would never have done for him – but it is two nil to the Good Guys and we all sing ‘we are walking in an Ozil wonderland’, soon followed by the Beatles inspired Giroud tunes – and rightly so. The Frenchman’s ability to ‘serve’ the team is second to none, and just for that I love the guy.

A collective relieve across the stadium can then be sensed: the party can now truly begin, it seems. But Norwich get a reward for their fine team play and get a goal back. The BFG could have done better clearing the ball but Howson’s first touch is very good, and he hits the ball with venom and precision past Gibbs’ leg, leaving Szczesny, who sees the ball going past the Englishman’s legs late, with absolutely no chance this time.

The introduction of Rosicky for Santi gave the team a much needed renewed purpose and drive, and with Arteta improving significantly the longer the game went on as well, the Ramsey-show could truly begin. Our third goal was another superb one. Ramsey’s touch, control and spatial awareness in the tightest of area were unbelievable; and to see all of this right in front of me was pure ecstasy. We all went mad in the stands and tears of joy rolled down my cheeks. The boy whose leg was snapped in two, who was booed by his own fans and wished all sorts of diseases on the blogs, had scored a Bergkampesque goal of the highest order. Chapeau, chapeau!

It was not over yet, as the team remained hungry for more goals, and the likes of Ozil, Rosicky, Wilshere and Ramsey kept driving forward and combining at will and with great invention and penetration. Ruddy, the Norwich goal keeper, kept doing really well during this period, but he could do absolutely nothing when Ramsey found Ozil with the daftest of touches, as the king of assists was for the second time in one game royally presented with a fine goal scoring opportunity himself. Rosicky had spread the ball from left to right, finding Ramsey at the left post with precision, and catching out the Norwich defence in the process. Beautiful football by beautiful people.

After that there were individual songs for Rosicky, Ramsey, Ozil and Giroud, but the most poignant song was kept till the end: ‘WE are top of the league, WE are top of the league, WE are top of the league, We are top of the league!’

And so we are and long may it continue! 😛

Written by: TotalArsenal.

Who turned Arsenal into EPL title contenders?

October 8, 2013October 8, 2013TotalArsenal

Well, it is not just Ozil!

Over the last month or so, ever since we made Mesut Ozil our record signing for the club, not a day goes by without some sort of news or article regarding how Ozil has transformed the fortunes of a struggling team and how we have been taken from being consistently ‘in crisis’ to ‘oozing class’.

Now don’t get me wrong, I’m loving the attention that having a true world best (and he is the BEST play maker in the world, period!) brings to Arsenal, but it made me think that it should not be taken for granted that a solid backbone of a team existed in which Ozil has seamlessly slotted in. Cast your mind back to right before Ozil’s signing, the loss against Aston Villa. Hell had descended and it seemed to be the end. Apparently Arsene had “dithered” and “dilly dallied” and the result was only one free transfer and a seemingly long barren season up ahead.

The point I’d raise here is that we still had a good squad, a squad that had topped the table based on points collected since Jan 2013 till the end of the last season. Arsene had sorted out our best defensive partnership, he had sorted our Rambo’s position and form, Rosicky was back playing at a good level, and Jack was fitter than he had been in the last few seasons (the last one is still relative, since I personally don’t think Jack is as fit as he can be, but at least he has been able to get a solid preseason behind him). Tactically, Arsene had also more or less figured out a good way to utilize our best players and it was working. We were solid and we were winning.

Going into the summer, the need seemed to be a CF and a DM in priority, followed by perennial need for a GK and CD. The need was also to get rid of the fat of the squad. A number of people pointed out at this point that a couple of good signings would transform our squad from being solid to being contenders. Unfortunately as the summer progressed and the frustrations increased, the narrative changed back to Arsenal having a weak squad, loads of money in the bank and Arsene having no clue. Bring on the Villa loss and we were a club at war with itself.

Mesut Ozil wasn’t what we needed, but he was that someone who Arsene has always talked about, the player who improves a position, and in turn the squad, and no doubt he has. He has the Va Va Voom that we loved to talk about when Thierry used to score goals for us. Add to the Ozil signing the genius signing of Flamini and we have a central midfield core that any team in the world can be fearful about. More than anything, Ozil changed the narrative around the club, gave the fans and players confidence and showed the world that we meant business. But let’s take a look at some of the players he’s joined in… just so we can remind ourselves of our squad!

In defense we have Szczesny, he who was once touted as the most promising GK since the days of Seaman and Lehmann. After going through a bit of a self searching phase, he began to reach his best towards the end of the last season, and has begun this season brilliantly (barring the Villa horror show). Behind him we have Fabianski and Viviano, good solid backups.

Then we have the indomitable pairing of Kos and Per, both phenomenal defenders who compliment each other’s game brilliantly. I would go as far as to say that they’d be up there as the best defensive pairing in the EPL right now, Per with his uncanny reading of the game and ability to organize, and Kos with his pace and tackling. We have TV on the bench, the club captain who is rearing to prove himself again! What has been heartening has been the fact that TV has been quite happy to take his chance when it comes. I had for a while thought that maybe he may want to move on (there was some interest from Barcelona at some point) if he couldn’t have games here, but I’m glad he’s still with the club.

Gibbs, Monreal, Sagna and Jenks; four absolutely terrific players who compete with each other and the result is an improving standard of play. Monreal in particular, I feel is hugely responsible for pushing Gibbs to be better than he had been. Sagna is a rock, I hope he gets a new contract. The only weak link (if I can call it that) is Jenks, who still needs to work on his game in order to be a regular starter, but the boy has great potential.

Centrally we have terrific options, and even before Ozil we had fantastic options. We have versatile midfielders who can play a variety of positions in Arsene’s 4-2-3-1 formation. We have Rambo in the form of his life (the boy really deserves all the praise he’s getting), we have Rosickly, Santi and Ozil, all players who could be playmakers or drift in from wide centrally to make the killer pass or even play off the CF. We have Arteta and Flamini, the passer and the tackler, and we have Jack, who is slowly getting back to his best. If this was not enough, we have Theo and Ox who can give us pace from the wings, and Poldi who will score goals coming in from either flank. Oh yeah, we also have Gnabry!

Up front we have Giroud, who last season I said would be a superstar to anyone who would listen, and he is showing his class. The thing that I love about Giroud is his sheer hunger to succeed and to help and to score goals. He wants to be the greatest at the club and he is working hard to get there. You couldn’t ask for more. His hold up play and his finishing have improved fantastically this season. As back up to Giroud we are perhaps a little short, but we do have Theo and Poldi who could potentially play in that position, as well as Apkom, Sanogo and Bentdner. Ideally if Sanogo had been fit I would have loved to see him start the Capital One Cup matches. Don’t forget it was the same competition in which Giroud found his feet (or head) last season.

But the thing that I love most about the squad (pre and post Ozil) has been the togetherness, the camaraderie and the hunger to succeed. It’s such a pleasure to see Instagram or twitter photos of players celebrating together. Poldi, despite being injured, seems to be the chief cheerleader. The big players such as Per, Flamini and Arteta seem to be stepping up to guide the younger players. Even TV in a recent interview alluded to the fact that a club captain can do much even if he’s not playing.

So going forward I would love for this bunch to succeed, because in a long time I finally see the fruits of a long barren hard period coming to the fore. Win or lose, they will try, of that I’m sure, and as a fan I could not ask for anything more.

Let’s hope we have a terrific November and come Christmas we are still in a position to fight for the title.

Would love to know what you guys think!

Written by: Umair Naeem

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Six Arsenal-transforming changes: Gibbs, Sagna, Rambo, Giroud, Ozil, Flamini

October 3, 2013October 3, 2013TotalArsenal

There is a lot of talk about what Ozil means for this team, and some pundits are starting to pinpoint all our early success to the arrival of our new-Bergkamp. Ozil is a great player and the arrival of him was first of all a statement of intent to the fans, the players and the outside world. MO11 fits in very well and is indeed making a great difference right now. And the psychological impact of his arrival is almost equally as big.

But it would be a mistake to just focus on Ozil for the team’s apparent transformation. There is a tendency in people, especially lazy journalists, to simplify things. Ozil was the big buy and is producing most of the assists, so it’s all down to him….

I reckon there is more to this Arsenal squad that has turned us into a far better team. We have spoken at length about the difference Flamini is making in terms of defending in midfield, and how his extrovert personality adds so much good-old-fashioned leadership to the team. We have eulogised about the fantastic form both Giroud and Ramsey are in and how they have compensated so well for both Cazorla’s and Theo absence/lack of form until now.

But there is also Sagna’s transformation into a more than decent replacement for our big fecking German. Knowing that we have a good alternative for our real leader on the pitch is so important for the balance of the team. For years we have struggled to have two sets of decent CBs who compliment each other and who will last for a whole season. Koz and Vermaelen are very similar in style and type: the Keowns of this Arsenal if you want; whereas, BFG and now Sagna are more like our Adamses of this era. Moving Sagna into the CB spot, if and when required, was a mini-masterstroke by Bould & Wenger.

The other important improvement is the coming of age of the fantastic Kieran Gibbs. I saw the first glimpse of this when we played Bayern away last year. There was something in his performance that made me think this boy is about to announce himself at the top stage of football. Of course, it is still early and we should not get carried away, but Gibbs is quickly growing into an important player for this new Arsenal team. His improving defensive discipline combined with his wing-play and ability to defend very effectively against counter-attacks – from when we have taken a corner or a free kick in the other half – are all vital to the success of this team. He is also looking more solid and stable and far less likely to get injured now.

All other players have stepped up and add tons of value to this team, but I reckon that the above mentioned six players’ improvements/additions to the team are making the real difference right now. And long may it continue. 🙂

Written by: TotalArsenal.

Deserved praise for Ozil and Ramsey, but Giroud is our beacon, our lighthouse

October 2, 2013October 2, 2013TotalArsenal

Sexy football is back, baby! 🙂

Frustratingly, I had to travel back from London last night and was not able to watch the game. The only thing I had was my blackberry on which I could read comments on my own site but not respond (for some reason), as well as regular updates on the BBC website.

I could gather from the comments how well we were playing and that made it even harder to only have written words of the good guys’ performances, whilst others were getting the Full Monty at the ground or on TV.

I was able to watch ‘the highlights’ on ITV later on, and although they did not give our game much time, I could gather what a special night it has been at the Home of Football.

I know the footie statisticians focus a lot on goals and assists, but it is about time we start to measure ‘penultimate assists’ as well. The big question for me is: where does a goal originate from: is it the assist maker and/or the one who starts the attack? Ultimately, a goal is a combination of actions on and off the ball and most goals are scored as a result of efforts by a number of players.

Last night, Ozil was praised to heaven for a very, very fine performance in the first half. His goal was simply Bergkampesque and so was his assist for the second one. It is impossible to over-estimate what this German footballing Genius is adding to our team right now, and that at half the money of Bale muhahahaha! 😀

Ramsey’s assist was also Bergkampesque in terms of vision and accuracy, and this guy – the ultimate professional footballer – deserves all the credit he is getting currently.

But last night was also a great demonstration of the importance of our Big Fecking Frenchman: Ollie Giroud. He produced both penultimate assists and without him and his actions both goals would not have happened: it is as simple as that. I have been stressing for quite a while that Ollie is not just a classical nr.9; he is far more important than that to the team. His hold-up play and ability to play with his back to the goal, combined with his energy and his permanent goal threat, is absolutely pivotal to our system of football.

If Giroud had not scored yesterday, he might not have had much recognition for his contributions. Luckily, he did score which is good for him and us, but what matters even more is that he was at the very basis of both our goals last night.

His control and body strength, combined with good touches and pass, allowed Ramsey to penetrate the Napoli defence and have space and time to both spot Ozil and deliver an accurate pass to our nr.11. This was absolute sublime ‘holding forward’ football and without it Ramsey would not have had the time and space to produce his classy assist, and Ozil would not have been put in a good scoring position.

The second goal was another example of Giroud’s wider importance to the team. He was helping out with our pressing game and not just hanging around the box for ‘an opportunity coming his way’. The pressing let to him receiving the ball; he controlled it well, passed it to king of assists and then burst into the box himself. Ozil found him with sublime precision and our big Frenchman was rewarded for all his efforts with a relatively simple ‘blast-in’. Another fine team goal and another fine penultimate assist by OG.

Although his goals and direct assists are very important, his other contributions are just as important to the team. I reckon OG is the sort of striker we will see a lot more of in the future, although they might be hard to find. I reckon Chelsea and to a lesser extent Man City, who have Negredo and Dzeko, are crying out for a holding striker of Giroud’s pedigree, and the same goes for many other teams in the PL and Europe who want to play 4-2-1-3 or 4-5-1.

It might also explain why Dortmund did not allow Lewandowski to leave them this summer, as he is probably the finest holding forward around. The Pole is as pivotal to Dortmund as Giroud is to us, and I predict that not only the former but also the latter will become big transfer targets this summer. Not that we will let him go, no way Jose! 🙂

All ingredients for another feast of Wengerball football this season are here. Ozil and Ramsey, but also Flamini and Mertesacker, and many others deserve all the praise they are getting, and so does our mobile rock up-front, our beacon, our lighthouse, our linchpin, our giant of a holding forward.

Written by: TotalArsenal.

Gerry produced a fine morning comment that should be read by a wider audience, so I have added it to today’s post:

So, the first 15 minutes. None of that cagey stuff I talked about pre-game. Instead, some of the finest, crispest, passing for such a long time I think we were beginning to think that that side of our game had gone? The grab an early goal and defend in numbers was fantastically left behind in this half.

Sagna – the times he slipped the pass along the line where there was barely room was amazing. He was on very good form, and didn’t he enjoy it?

Ramsey – whether playing tight one-twos or playing down the wing, switching play, tackling .. It was all the same. Probably one of his best displays without scoring. Brilliant!

Flamini – how did we ever manage to do so well without him? Right man in the right job, and invariably in the right place. Of all the missing pieces in our team, he has to be one of the best? Drove the play forward at pace when he wasn’t ‘Johnny on the spot’ defending.

Ozil – what can you add that has not been already said? Truth be told, he himself added a whole lot more with this display? His goal alone should be on Walcott’s I-pad on a continuous loop – the timing of his run was immaculate. When Ramsey reached the byline Ozil had only just left his marker about 10 yards inside their half, but running into space. Ramsey is so hot-wired at the moment that he saw the space … the SPACE(note Theo!) and not the fully marked Giro in the box. He then played the perfect ball accordingly. Ozil reached the point where their trajectories would meet and played the simplest of first time shots with his instep into the bottom left hand corner.
That was just the finish it deserved. Others added to it along the way.

Rosicky – I am so disappointed that he has hardly got a mention in a report I read elsewhere, other than to say he ‘tired in the 2nd half’. I am not sure that this display would have been possible without him in the side. True, he did not lay on the perfect assist, or score a sumptuous goal. But what he did, and always does, is drive the play forwards. He passed the ball quickly, whether on the left or right, up front or on the edge of our box. This on his first game back from injury, and the first alongside Ozil. He may get overlooked a star of this game, but don’t think for one minute he did not play his part.

Giroud – I predicted his intelligence would help him connect well with Ozil, and it did in this game. It was Ozil this time that got to the goal line and somehow got the ball through a narrow gap between defenders and keeper for a simple tap in. However, when players are moving around him, his nod downs and quick flicks really do show off his skills to the full. I said early this season that he is like a lighthouse, a beacon from where the team know where they are .. and here it with this illuminating display?

I sought of skipped past Arteta’s contribution as I concentrated on the moves going forwards. He was his usual solid self. I did not see him going forward much in the first half, but Flamini was allowed to because he was there.

Again, not a lot to say about Szcz, Per, or Kos, as they had little to do, but what they did was solid enough.

Gibbs was not used so much in attack, as the right flank was getting most joy. It did not stop him making himself available though, which meant when he was having his one-two’s down the line it opened space for the others in the middle. However, his defending was questioned more than once. There was one occasion in the first half where he was not close enough to Insigne and allowed him a shot on goal, but shot wide. This was something happened, according to the audio, in the 2nd half too. And on each occasion it was down to Gibbs making the ‘right’(imo) decision to not allow the right back a free run in behind, but it is a fine line when trying to cover two players at the same time. If he tracks their wide player coming in, somebody should either take over so he can mark the overlap, or somebody else go wide? Gibbs is quick, but even he cannot be in two places at once? For the most part of the first half Flamini was there, with Rosicky tracking back. In the 2nd half when Wilshere came on for Rosicky it seemed to make the problem worse? Either the two are not communicating well enough, or Wilshere is a tad slow in reading the options?

And that folks is the nearest I can come to the report on performance. The match was decided by AW’s tactics to go all out from the off, so he gets top credit. But the players did all that was asked and then some.

This is why we are more likely to attract top players, whether next January or in the summer, as the video of this game gets spread around. Not only are we a top club, we have the players to match.

Written by: Gerry.

Swansea Review: Rambo still on fire, Özil quiet, but Gnabry promising

September 28, 2013TotalArsenal

After a tough penalty win against West Brom midweek in the Capital One Cup, Arsenal faced a trip to Wales today to take on Swansea City.

The game today saw Arsenal have a very slow start. Swansea dominated the early game, swinging in crosses and taking long shots. However, with our tall defenders and determination, we managed to keep the Swans out.

Arsenal had an unchanged line up from last week’s Premier League game against StokeCity. I found it interesting that Gnabry kept his place, despite playing 120 minutes and a penalty shootout midweek.

The first half was very open and it was very much a back and forth affair. The one major scare of the first half came when Szczesny came way out of his box, on the goal line, only for Michu to keep the ball in and for the Swans to swing the ball into the box. However, I believe offside was called and no resulting goal would have counted.

The rest of the first half was a rather boring, albeit, open game. However, in the last minute of stoppage time in the first half, Serge Gnabry had a fantastic penetrating run from just beyond half field to the edge of the 18 yard box, laid it off to Giroud, who dragged it wide. It was not the best finish, but an excellent demonstration of Gnabry’s potential. Gnabry seems like the type of player who can play either wing or in a CAM type position, and I’m very interested to see how he develops.

Overall, the first half was tense, but at the same time, there was not much to talk about. Both sides went about their business and played their trademarked beautiful styles of football, with each side frustrating the other.

In the second half Arsenal came out much stronger. They seemed more determined and ready to win. Speaking of Gnabry, he would get Arsenal’s first goal of the day. Arsenal broke down the field and some smart passing got the ball to Rambo just outside the box. Aaron then slipped Gnabry through on the right of him, without looking. Gnabry took a calm collected touch, and then blasted a cool finish past Vorm in to the lower right corner of the net, in the 58^th minute. Seeing Gnabry score his first senior goal for Arsenal was exciting and he really was a standout player today. His movement and passing was excellent and he’s starting to demand a place in the squad, maybe even a consistent place in the starting 11.

Not long after, in the 62^nd minute, Arsenal would score again. The man of the match, Aaron Ramsey, would score his 8^th goal in 8 games. Arsenal broke down the field again with some absolutely incredible passing, including a heel flick out to the sideline by Ramsey. In the end, Giroud reversed the ball to Rambo, who took a touch and slammed the ball into the roof of the net. I was really impressed with Rambo today, not just because of his goal, but also his physical strength, tempered with some smart tackles in defense.

After this goal, Arsenal seemed to settle down and become a little complacent. We tried to possess the ball and pass it around and it worked, until the 82^nd minute when Arsenal’s complacency cost them. Ben Davies of Swansea made a run down the field, played the ball to Bony, and Bony put it back over the top of our defense for Davies to poke into the net. Mertesacker tried to get a tackle in, but he couldn’t reach it and Davies poked the ball past Szczesny. I blame our players for switching off, they really should’ve had more focus, but they were excellent the rest of the game so I will forgive them.

The rest of the game was a tense affair, with cards flying and tough tackles being put in by both sides. Jenkinson, Monreal, and Arteta came in to shore up our defense, and it worked. Arsenal was strong enough, physically and mentally, to hold on to the lead. Another winning goal for Rambo and another away win for the Arsenal. 8 away wins in a row, tied for the club record. This team really is something special.

An excellent 2-1 away win to the Arsenal and we are top of the league once more! Let’s hope we can keep this winning streak up and keep our number one spot. This team looks willing to do anything to win every game in every competition and that’s what any fan of any club loves to see. The team seems to be together and willing to fight for the badge and fight for each other.

For now I’ll leave you with some questions:

What did you think of today’s game?
Does Gnabry demand a spot? If yes, in the starting 11 or on the bench?
Do you think Gnabry could play as a CAM?
How do you think Rambo did today?
Will we break our away win record?

Thanks for reading! 😀

Written by: Dylan.

Ramsey in the hole, FlamTeta double DM, Sagna for BFG? Pre-match report

September 28, 2013September 28, 2013TotalArsenal

I don’t know about you but I like Swansea. They are easy on the eye, love to play smooth passing football, and as a club, they are run with a good vision and effective succession planning. I thought they would suffer after losing Rodgers to Pool, but targeting and successfully recruiting Laudrup was a mini-master-stroke by the club’s board, and you can bet on it that Laudrup’s eventual replacement will be another excellent manager. Getting this right is probably the most important aspect of club management, and you only have to look at the likes of QPR, Sunderland and Aston Villa to know what I mean.

Today’s game is another fine challenge for the boys. We played the Jacks eight times in the PL and it never ended in a draw, so it probably will do this time hahaha 🙂

Swansea's Liberty Stadium — Swansea’s Liberty Stadium

Swansea are likely to miss their captain, and Arsenal summer pursuit, Ashley Williams and the excellent Hernandez is also out, but as they also rested many first teamers in Birmingham – where as holders they went out of the league cup without much fight (1-3) – the Jacks will relish Arsenal coming to town.

Arsenal will have to give their all, remain defensively solid, which means winning the battle in midfield and play very disciplined in front of the defence, and as always, take our chances when they arrive. We did this better than our opponents in recent games and that’s why we won time and again.

Arsenal have quickly become an efficient team: even when not playing our so acquainted fluid football, we still manage to win games by remaining relatively solid defensively – although one clean sheet in the PL indicates need for further improvements at the back – and deadly upfront, with both Giroud and Ramsey in the early-season PL top-scorers list:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/top-scorers

Every season we seem to have an area where for a long period of time we have multiple injuries: centre backs, full backs; and this season it looks like our mid-wing positions are suffering with injury after injury. We will miss Theo’s speed and thrust: he offers an extra dimension which makes it harder to defend against us with total control. Both Ryo and Gnabry had long games and look not yet ready to perform on the big stage from the start. I expect them to be on the bench though, and at least one of them will come on as a sub.

Luckily, there is good noise coming from Arsenal regarding Podolski, Santi and Rosicky returning in the next few weeks, and let’s hope Theo comes back within a month as well. As a result of our lack of ‘wingers’, I reckon Arsene will play all his established midfielders from the start today. It makes us nicely compact and effectively allows us to play 4-5-1, one of my favourite line-ups for Arsenal. We will need to be compact in midfield because that is Swansea’s strongest area: control the midfield and we’ll control the game.

I have no doubt the Swans will approach this game as a ‘let’s go out there and enjoy ourselves’ one, and we need to be focussed from the start. This is the sort of game in which we need to set the tone from the start and be on top of them for large parts of the game. Many of our first teamers had a well-deserved rest and so we should be able to win this game, but only with hard work and focus will we do so. Luckily we have Flamini and Arteta to make sure we’ll do just that.

Predicted Line-Up:

I am expecting Arsene to give the BFG a rest, after playing so heroically against West Brom for us. It looks like our French maestro is not so keen anymore on the Koz – TV partnership, although it is still early days. Therefore, I am going for Sagna replacing the German in this one. I admit, it is a bit of a gamble but it looks to me Arsene believes Sagna is better than Vermaelen and Koz at replacing the BFG’s ability to organise our defence.

In midfield I expect a lot of rotation during the match, but I reckon we’ll see Arteta and Flamini playing in the double DM positions. In the ‘3’ in front of the DMs, I am expecting Jack, Ramsey and Ozil to start: all can play in the hole and on the ‘wing’ in our formation, but I reckon Ramsey will get a chance in the hole today – just a gut-feeling though.

I don’t like doing predictions, as I am a bit superstitious about jinxing it that way, but please feel free to give us yours, as well as what you believe the starting line-up will be. I am asking for the boys to give their all and then somehow our quality should make the difference.

OGAAT fellow Gooners: one game at a time! Focus, hunger and decisiveness at the crucial moments: Bring on the Jacks!

UP THE ARSE!

Written by: TotalArsenal.