Lack Of Spirit Provokes Boos Problem
Feb 28th, 2009 by 'holic
If someone had said at the start of the season that the side would go on a fifteen match unbeaten run from December to the end of February, and be roundly booed off the park at the end of that fifteenth game, you would have suggested that they be sectioned.
Yet the astonishing thing is that the jeering is entirely understandable, if in my opinion a tad harsh. Once again a ‘must-win’ game has been drawn. It was the ninth stalemate in that fifteen match run and the fourth consecutive 0-0 in the Premiership.
The thing is that we are not playing badly, but in the League we are not playing well, if that makes sense. Midweek cup contests appear to bring out a desire, a commitment, and a degree of imagination that appears to be lacking in these mundane 0-0 League performances. It is the apparent shortfall in the effort department that is the root of the vocal dissatisfaction at the Grove.
It would be easy to overlook the absence of Walcott, Fabregas, Adebayor, and Eduardo, but injuries to key players do not represent a valid excuse for a lack of effort by those who are playing. I was as excited as anybody by the performances of the Carling Cup squad, but there is a second string between them and the first team who are quite simply struggling to consistently reach the standards required of a top-four club.
Perhaps of greater concern is the fact that Fulham did not shut up shop in the way that West Ham and Sunderland had done before them. Indeed had they taken one of the fistful of decent chances they created they would have been celebrating a double over their London neighbours. Our best two chances relied on the head of van Persie, but the Dutchman’s napper is not as potent a weapon as his chocolate leg.
Positives? Well, I suppose you would suggest that Arshavin has got a first ninety minutes under his belt is one. A sixth consecutive clean sheet is possibly a second. And then, frankly, I’m struggling.
We have a platform from which we can build a decent conclusion to the season, but it needs to start on Tuesday. Yes, the game at the Hawthorns is yet another ‘must-win’. Even more importantly, it is now a ‘must show we give a monkeys’ game for those lucky enough to find themselves wearing the Arsenal badge.
64 Responses to “Lack Of Spirit Provokes Boos Problem”
i would suggest our hopes of qualifying for the champs league ended today. we are now far too reliant on teams ahead of us dropping points, whilst also not being good enough to close the gap ourselves.
we did not play badly today and it was not a bad game either. fulham gave almost as good as they got which lead to a decent amount of chances for both sides, although we edged it i would say on the quality of the chances.
there was no bus parking this week, we did have creativity, we did look better, but we couldn’t find the finishing touch.
when you see united steamroller fulham with complete distain and then see us today, there is quite a massive gap between the two sides.
is it only me or they (the players!) were careless to chase fulham’s ball posession towards the end of the game?
AW believes in them(!!!) and there was no decent sub in the bench so all of them knew they would still feature midweek without any extra effort
….talk about the injuries, but never mention the players who left (gilberto, flamini!!!!, hleb,
on the booing scenario, 4 0-0 draws in a row, 3 of which coming at home against teams we should be beating means the booing is totally understandable and justified. cant blame the fans in attendance at all on this.
mix my drinks please guvnor. 6 shots of brandy and vodka please and do hurry.
whisper it quietly but RVP is not good enough to lead the line.
his quality strikes against lpool and chelski do not fool me. The amount of chances he misses early on in games is causing us major problems.
Bottom line we had 18 efforts on goal nine on target. Our strikers are not good enough. we should have won one nil this week and last – we would be 5 pts behind lpool and 2 behind villa, but we have one ‘natural finisher’ in the WHOLE squad. eduardo.
Villa will drop alot of points, they have Man City A Fulham A, Boro A, Liverpool A, Man Utd A, Bolton A and tough home games against Tottenham and Everton. However I cant see us making up 8 points with the rate we are going at. Its over. Wenger should drop the CL like O’Neil did and focus on the league and the more winnable FA Cup
We need Adebayor, Fabregas, Walcott and Eduardo back
This team only cares to play Champions League matches. It is almost as if the grind of the EPL holds no incentive for them, and they want to merely play against Continental opposition all the time.
mjl
you are right about RVP
Everybody except the coach saw this coming. With the development in all the teams especially Aston villa, and liverpool, with chelsea and Manu already there, the Arsenal team is not up to the top. They are gradually beginging to fine where they belong. We started the season without established strikers and that is why there are no gaols that they are not conceeding either. Faith the in young stars is okay but there must be a balance. Imagine Manu with the chances Arsenal had in the CL match with Roma. They would have scored three or four. No outstanding striker. This situation now must be a lesson for the coach, prparations for next season must start now. There must be one or two new outstanding strikers, a combative midfielder who can dominate the midfield otherwise….. UEFA campaign will not be fun. I can imagine how Arsenal can be fourth now with no goals coming.
I dont think wenger can take to much of the blame today , because he tried to change things by leaveing bendther on the bench and playing vela , yeah we did not play that bad but only a few real goal chances , and i dont remember any real shots on goal , i think eduardo is the player we miss the most at the moment , he is the one who can unlock the defence , and i dont no why the guy is having a go at RVP he is not a lone striker he just been asked to play there , we cant expect him to score in every game , but i still think we have a chance of getting the forth spot , villa have some hard games to come , and we will beat west brom HAVE FAITH
Must admit I am very disappointed with today. I can not believe that I have watched such a gutless performance. To see a side like Fulham effectively keep the ball for about 2 minutes of injury time and for us not to put one tackle in was frustrating in the extreme. Where are our leaders? Where is the passion and fight? I accept we may have bad games and poor results but thatfor me was just not good enough.
I have not heard the interviews yet trying to explain that today. Not too sure I really want to.
Yet again a distinct lack of width and creativity. We did force a few saves but we should be rolling sides like that over. We need some results now.
I always note the lines about the “holic pound” re the goal scorer. At this rate my next pond is going on April……….
I am a season ticket holder and was also very frustrated today – However today was better than the last few 0-0s as at least their keeper had to make some good saves. We could have snuck this one with a bit of luck whereas we looked utterly hopeless in the other draws.
The booing can in theory be justified (as we all pay a lot to watch) but does not help, in my opinion, and it is better not to, I think. But where I completely draw the line is the vile abuse flowing from some so-called fans mouths. I was sat there with my 11 year-old as the final whistle blew and some “fan” near me started shouting “You French c*nt” at Wenger. Where do I start? Racism, foul language and total ignorance – whatever this team’s shortcomings that so-called fan has enjoyed more success (and attractive football) in the last decade under the alleged “French C-word” than any generation of Arsenal fans since the 1930s. I despair sometimes and if it were not for the pretty strong likelihood that “fan” would have kicked my head in (he was so angry he looked like he would explode) I would have remonstrated … and no there wasn’t a steward anywhere near 🙁
mjl, your comment runs completely counter to reality. Robin has either scored or created every goal that he has been on the pitch for this YEAR. If he’s ‘not good enough’, then you might as well scrap the whole squad.
I couldn’t help but feel the Champions League slipping away in those last minutes of the game. It was agonzing.
Thanks ‘holic!
thank fuk people are starting to see the real problem of this arsenal side , robin 1 foot big time charlie van percie and his useless strike partner ade badplayer . the amount of 1 on 1s van percie has missed week after week is unbelievable. if he had took a quarter of them we would still be talkin of an outside chance of winning the league. whens the last time he scored from a free kick . answers on a postcard . dont get me started on his bum chum ade badplayer
Personally, I think that booing your own team is ridiculous under any circumstances and NEVER justified. I have to say, as a season ticket holder, I’m depressed by our lack of goals recently and I can understand fully, the frustration felt by our fans who pay a lot of money to watch their team play, only to see a distinct lack of any killer instinct in front of goal. Recently though, the negativity in my section of the ground has been really grating on me. I must admit, perhaps my experiences of Greek football fan culture have skewed my expectations, but really, who honestly believes that booing your own team is likely to lead to better performances?
Booing is only going to exacerbate our players’ lack of confidence, lets be real here. In the worst of times, it’s important that the fans in attendance lift and carry the team, instead, I literally get people in front of me turning around, looking at me like I’m some loon, when I do the dutiful thing and clap, cheer and scream for my team.
If we as Arsenal fans aren’t able to look at ourselves as part of the problem and part of the possible solution to the problem of our home form then why do we expect to find solutions anywhere else? If we cheered half as much as we moaned we might be half way towards getting somewhere..
That’s my 2p, take it as you will.
For the first time ever today I was seriously considering using the ticket exchange for my season ticket because I’d lost all desire to go to the games — not because of the team, but because of a section of the crowd whose negativity borders on destructive and disgusting.
Every wayward pass, in fact even the slightest mistake got huge groans. Every player makes the odd mistake, even Pele, Maradona and the other geniuses gave the ball away and missed chances. To criticise every single error is killing the confidence of the young players.
And the people abusing certain players and hurling abuse at Wenger, I honestly wish they’d just feck the hell off if they’re so miserable. We’re all frustrated and disappointed this season, but I don’t buy into this crap that because people pay they can say what they want.
But that logic your boss can abuse you and call you names when you make a mistake – he or she is paying your wages aren’t they? There has to be levels of intelligence and some respect for our players, they’re trying really hard, it’s rubbish to say they’re lazy or lethargic.
Thankfully among the booing cretins there were supporters who clapped the team to show their support. I’ve been going to the Arsenal for decades and I’ve never been so disgusted with the current crop of supporters that think it’s ok to abuse and degrade the team and the manager. Please, just feck off the Manchester if all you can cope with are endless wins and trophies every season.
Thanks for dropping by, Clarky, and sharing that with us. There are some unbelievable attitudes on display both at the ground, and on the various forums and blogs.
We are all disappointed to a degree at what is happening this season, but there is so much over-reaction around. During the game I can understand it to a certain extent, but not enough people are taking a step back and tempering the criticism with anything constructive.
Hopefully your lad will be shamed into not repeating the sort of behaviour he has witnessed today. That is beyond belief. What an ignorant pillock that fella was.
Unfortunately, Goonerholic, some of the people posting on this board are also ignorant beyond belief – witness the utter brainless (and partially racist) rubbish spouted by the poster immediately before your reply. Football and fans are not what they used to be
I see you have removed the offending post – good man
“camden gooner
I dont think wenger can take to much of the blame today…”
oh yeah he should be blamed for the whole season, right?
i hope (and believe) that we will still come up 4th, but i am worried that would mean contnuation of all that has been for the last four years…….we talk about strengthening the team all season long and pre-season AW does nothing!
btw, is AW the only possible manager that we can have success with?
Clarky, it’s gone.
All, please be aware you are entitled to a view, and I will never delete posts just because you disagree with me.
Be warned though that racist drivel has no place in a public forum and will not be tolerated. I don’t recall Patrick Vieira suffering the same nonsense I have seen in some places recently.
I’m baffled, I’ve noticed a lot of negativity, bordering on resentment, but certainly no racism on here and I’d hesitate to call it brainless rubbish as well. Clearly everyone’s wound up and people are quick to play the blame game. I think the important thing is to remind ourselves why we go to games rather than watching them in our front room and that is so we can cheer our team on with everything we have, otherwise, we might as well stay at home for all the good we’re doing our team..
Can I say something positive here? I honestly believe that if we had our first choice team fit and uninjured – and played Arshavin the very creative in ‘the hole’ behind Adebayor or Van Persie (depending on the opposition) – we could match ANYONE including Man U. Our principal weakness is in central midfield IMHO as we need a better partner for Fabregas than the willing but limited Denilson, the painfully slow Song, and the variable Diaby – sort that out and we have a top top team and the fans would be cheering again, I am certain. Well I would be 🙂
Almunia
Sagna Gallas Toure/Djourou Clichy
Walcott Fabregas Denilson/Diaby Nasri
Arshavin
Adebayor/Van Persie
Plain and simply the side is not good enough, i saw it, the whole world saw it at the start of the season and yet it was not addressed!
Today perfectly demonstrated those problems when a journeyman pro in Danny Murphy and a guy playing in the championship last year, dominated the central midfield. Denilson may be a good player in the future, but right now he is just a young guy 2 years away from being in that spot. Song is useless, and diaby resembles vieira in only one way, and that is the way he looks!
The squad looks disjointed, uncohesive and anything but committed to a single cause. Half that side is not good enough, the rest look disinterested in going the extra mile for the club and fans. Too much money at too young an age for players who have never achieved anything in their careers. It seems they think they simply have to turn up against the likes of fulham to win. You get the impression they think that 4th place will simply land on their laps because of their talent, well talent means nothing if you are not prepared to lay down effort, hard work and desire to go along with it. Aston villa have shown those qualities all season long, hence why they are in the positon they are. I only wish we could show half the comitment they have.
The problems where there at the start of the year, CD, DM, those problems were not addressed and the result is this. 5th place, 4 0-0 draws on the spin against teams we would have been spanking last year, almost as many draws as wins, and the poorest performances since wenger took over at the club.
4th place is gone now, barring something amazing taking place. A year travelling to the backwaters of europe, at best, is on the horizon. This experiment of wenger’s has ‘failed’!! He has the summer to rectify his mistakes, if not, then i feel it is the end for him, and believe me, it truly breaks my heart to say that.
simmav, I had to delete it, but trust me it was here. Thankfully it’s a rare occurence.
was really excited by team selection today for first time since eduardo’s return match. No heart or fight in them today. Hope to God Arsenal don’t want to match RVP’S ambition and he pisses off cos we might yet get a good price for him. He’s the most easy to read striker in football. He scores brilliant goals and shows amazing touches but all too rarely for my liking. 2 wingers and no big centre forward to aim for for too long. I like Bentner, he seems to care about the jersey and ok his confidence has suffered like most of the midfield and forward line but I like to see players showing for the ball and making an effort like he does. RVP can’t make things happen, he has to receive the ball just right and be in space to have a shot , he can’t beat a defender – at least I think this is the case cos I can’t remember seeing it recently! He usually receives the ball, realises he’s marked and passes it backwards or sideways. So he retains possession – I want a striker who will try to beat a defender with a turn or with speed or who will at least get free kicks trying. Defenders don’t even have to foul Arsenal strikers – surely that says something! Wenger’s a coward when it comes to subs he should’ve taken RVP off first for Bentner when nothing was happening. Give RVP a rest mid week and start the same team plus Bentner.
By the way, it’s been 4 years already and I believe Wenger has said it’ll another 2 years before our domination kicks in – presumably he’s been reassured by Man U, Chelsea, Liverpool, Villa Everton and Man C that they’re gonna stand by and let this happen.
I think it is a bit of Wenger’s fault. Today I think the injuries finally caught up to the whole team. The last 15 minutes of the game we were tired. Us! The Arsenal! We were tired, normally it’s the other way around. I think Wenger’s confidence in the young players to hold it together until we get healthy is misplaced. Don’t get me wrong I thought that Diaby, Vela, Bendtner, and Denilson could get us some wins too, but I was wrong. Nasri looks done, he has been carrying the load in the midfield the entire season (even when Fabregas was healthy) and he just gets over-powered. Denilson makes too many attempts to steal the ball instead of just forcing the ball handler to make a mistake. Instead he darts after the ball, misses it, and then the Midfield opens up for the other team. Clichy and Sagna are overworked, it’s okay to use Gibbs and Eboue back there Wenger, they’re good too. Poor Arshavin looked like he needed oxygen at the end of the game, a gutsy performance by him. Vela’s confidence is low, you can see it when he touches the ball in the box, he has no idea what to do with the thing. Van Persie is in a scoring slump, normally someone else would pick up where RvP left off but Bendtner squanders chances and Adebayor couldn’t be bothered.
Right now this side is just not good enough. We will have to accept what we get. These guys won’t make anybody forget about Adams, Bergkamp, Pires, or Henry.
Mark my words and mark them well. We will be 2nd this season. This is pure mathematics if we win our next 4 games. It is obvious that MANU are taking the title home. I believe that this Arsenal team is lacking one thing and that is motive. You could feel that the players are demotivated by something that is killing the eager to win. We have to find this problem. What the hell is going on behind closed doors. Next week should mark the return of Eduardo and Adebayor. That should be enough to spark the team. Theo will follow but i really think that Eboue gives balance to the team. Had we played the same team that played roma, we would have won. Why did we change? We could have put Arshavin and Vela in in the second half.
‘Holic – thanks for a balanced blog after today’s disappointment. It said on the radio that it was 14 years since we last failed to score in four consecutive league games. Let’s hope that we can put a stop to any more of these statistics on Tuesday at the Baggies.
let’s celebrate the inaugural of the participation of the Uefa Cup.
AW will be waving his hands wildy on his Uefa debut and pleased to see many new faces.
OUTCOME
position: 6th, checked
player departure: RvP, Ade, Cesc, Theo, checked
stubborn stay: AW, Eboue, Song, Denilson, Nicklas, checked
trembling about one’s mistake: arshavin, checked
leaving: FANS, bloody checked since last season
i find it laughable that many arsenal fans think that the team should make no errors at all, make every pass perfect, shoot at sight, score plenty of goals and leak none, play beautiful football each time and win trophies every year.
listen to yourselves!!!
this is a sport. a game of football. it will never be perfect each time. yes, we have had better teams in the past but this is now. any arsenal supporter who knows our financial situation and wenger’s policy must understand our situation. to keep on harping about losing 4th spot is just stupidity. what gives us the right to be there anyway? we try our best and if we don’t make it so what????
fans go on and on like it’s the end of arsenal. for fuck sake get a grip, you so called supporters of arsenal! stop this doomsday bullshit. if we don’t get into champions league, so what? (are you forgetting that we are playing in the knockout stage now? and have been competing in it since wenger’s arrival?). so what if some of these players leave? any player who don’t want to play for arsenal for whatever reason shouldn’t be there. so stop moaning about flamini and hleb or the rest of them. if i remember clearly most arsenal fans were moaning about hleb for not shooting even though he was brilliantly playing for us and the same with flamini before he played in the middle. now u wish they are here!!!
typical so called arsenal fans….. moan when we have them, moan when they leave.
we have a fantastic manager (remember the adulations you all so shamelessly poured on him when we won trophies, magic hat and all). it’s the same manager you’re shamelessly throwing vile abuse at. this team is not perfect, yes, but wenger is trying to make it perfect. what are you doing to help?
oh ya i forgot, you boo them every time they misplace a pass or don’t shoot. you are all a bunch of morons!!! stop whingeing and start supporting the players. cheer and encourage them, that’s what you’re there for. not to throw abuse at them. or maybe you should go sit in the visiting fans section and be contend there.
or even start supporting another team !!!!
we are the arsenal! don’t ever forget that! i say this to every arsenal fans attending games…… support our team! they need you now more than ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@ GoonItAll
How could we make the UEFA Cup if we finished 6th? I guess your comments are indicative of your ignorance, maybe next time.
@GoonerVance
How the fuck do u know we will finish 6th? do u know how stupid u look like calling someone else ignorant while coming out with total bullshit. think before u write.
or maybe you have a magic ball that predicts the future…. in that case consider this comment irrelevant.
Vance,
what?!!
teach me
OK guys,
Playground is elsewhere. Let’s keep the chat about Arsenal please, and cut the personal.
fans beginning to turn on each other…
nice.
Arsenal Only:
AW stays, until we become “Arsenal who”?
But seriously, who is to replace AW? And if Cesc, Ade, RvP, and even Theo leaves, who should replace them?
what a weekend.
GIA, take a chill pill.Arsene is going nowhere. Nobody is going anywhere, and tomorrow morning you can get stuck into a heart attack breakfast and the world will be well again.
Disaster is when you see the boys lose at York, or Rotherham, or Wrexham. Trust me on that. A draw with Fulham is no reason to go all suicidal on us 😉
‘Holic – need that chill pill, please. It’s looking increasingly unlikely that we’ll get 4th place, and the implications in terms of lost revenue, plus the ability to retain/attract players is a major concern.
@raji
When we had the chance to sign a creative cm/dmf we were all after arshavin and forgot to look at the lack of the flamini’s and gilbeto’s that were missing in the arsenal side.please sit and watch the likes of pires,ljunberg,reyes,henry and i bet you will shot ur trap cos this current arsenal side lookvery pathetic.I REALL WANT WENGER TO BE UNDER PRESURE OR THREAT.THE BOARD SHOULD PLEASE TAKE AN ACTION.
At the game today and also on Tuesday, what a difference in attitude. Tuesday the players are like tigers- fighting for every ball, today they wait for it to land at their feet. Unfortunately the opposition has nipped in to pinch it. The attitude was totally wrong by many of the players. RVP thinks he has to do it all alone, as nobody else (other than Arsharvin) is prepared to take a shot. This is partly down to the reaction of the crowd to misses in previous games. Nobody wants to be a Bendtner or Eboue, so give the responsibility to someone else. Look how many shots Nasri has had inthe last few games- he is an attacking midfielder. It is too easy to look at the guys missing the shots-look at the guys failing to take an oportunity. How many goals does Lampard get from deflections. Some of these guys just have to believe a bit and try a bit harder. There is nothing profitable from booing your own team. Silence would say as much. I did not boo and I did not applaud.
True G’Holic, no force will stop the world, not even when we lose to York, Rotherham or Wrexham. We’ll still breathe.
But why are you starting this thread? To be the S.O.S hotline? just to write what you feel and then feel nothing about anything?
Or maybe you like to comfort the panicky-us, but let’s see how we or you keep reading and writing and following blogs on our beloved club after they go into the abyss.
not that i will change my avatar or wallpaper of AW or Henry and Bergkamp, but after years of seeing the glory and the excitment, you cant bear to see the start of the unbearable.
after years of seeing the glory and the excitment, you cant bear to see the start of the unbearable.
Must be hard to be a young Arsenal fan, but trust me, the unbearable was years before Wenger, and we bore it 😉
Must be hard to be a young Arsenal fan, but trust me, the unbearable was years before Wenger, and we bore it
well said. your right.
the future starts with the young. ironically, thats the issue we’re dealing with.
I watched the unbearable years, but I only paid a £1.00 for the previlage and the players that Iwatched did not earn £80,000 for not trying very hard. The least I expect is 100% effort. Today by 70 mins Diaby was dead on his feet, why was Ramsay not brought on for the final 20. Wenger must take some responsibility.
@raji
Whoa there child. GoonItAll predicted we would finish 6th I just pointed out you don’t qualify for Uefa cup if you finish 6th, a fact he didn’t understand when predicting Wenger will be coaching a Uefa side next year.
p.s. get laid u seem tense
May i remind you all that Wenger once stated that he would make Arsenal in to the biggest club in the world,yet more spin from the spin doctor.
@ Unbitten 49
this team is not like the past team, but this team can be as good if given time. everyone knows wenger has made mistakes with his buys and we dont need reminding of that (the english fox in the box being the expensive one) but he has made plenty of good buys and most of them were not famous names but turned out to be great players, i’m sure you know their names so no need reminding you. some others that wenger bought chose to leave for various personal reasons which i dont think can be forseen by wenger. past few years he has had to work with tremendous financial constraint and yet we have finished in the top four. that itself is a miracle from wenger. how many other managers can do that? the board knows where they stand financially and that’s why wenger is so important to the club. give him time and he will deliver.
i find it strange that producing a team of players containing quality players fabregas, eduardo, arshavin, rosicky, theo, sagna, van persie, gallas, etc plus talented youngsters coming through is seen as a failure on wenger’s part. are you serious? stop blaming wenger all the time. yes, the results are not what we expect of this team at the moment but we all know they are capable of getting it. most arsenal fans were raving about this same team witnessing their display against roma and i clearly remember games against manu and chelski where they were awesome. i don’t believe its a question of quality. they simply havent been consistent enough and thats why we are where we are now.
lets cut the crap… we all know this team (with the injured players back) are good enough to challenge for trophies with maybe an addition to the defensive midfield area. they were nearly there last february playing beautiful football until eduardo got injured (add flamini and sagna in later stages) and suddenly everything went tits up. the only position wenger hasn’t perfectly replaced is flamini’s. i think most fans will agree with that. but we have to work with what we have now and do the job. my gripe is with the fans who boo our players constantly. it is really beginning to iritate me.
i agree with PS7…. like i said in my previous post, the players are hesitant to receive the ball, contend with making an easy pass, not willing to shoot… because they are being scrutinized intensely by the fans. they are trying to be perfect because thats what the fans expect…. perfection! anything else gets a big booooooo!!!!
i was at the sunderland and roma games and everytime a decent move broke down all you heard were boo’s or curses…how about a clap and getting on with it…the players are more worried about the the reaction of the crowd than they are of the opponents. i dont think west brom boo their players as much as we do
We need to voice our dissatisfaction about lack of effort without booing. Lack of effort is unacceptable, a poor touch is not and will only be made worse by the crowd’s reaction. However we have some patently inadequate players in the squad and the sooner we realise this the better it will be going forwards.
Great blogging guys, clarky and raji.
Gooners like you guys reaffirm my love of the club and classy fans we have always had.
As we can see, there is a new ghastly breed around.
Shameless.
Hmmmmmm.
Still can’t quite get my head around what I saw today.
Team selection was good but application was patchy.
They did try (sort of) but the capitulation in the last 10 minutes was astonishing.
The booing was unjustified but seemed half-hearted, and no more than I’ve heard over the years – maybe the acoustics where I was sitting weren’t that good?
Credit to Fulham. They came, they played and probably should have conquered and that’s what’s really worrying. No disrespect but 1 point out of 6 against them is pitiful.
Think I’ll sleep on it before unleashing the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad to dispatch AW.
Oh and credit where it’s due, his initial dive aside, Eboue. Looked. Quite. Good.
Did I really just say that?
thankyou holic.
you seem to be almost the only person to have any kind of perspective at all. i get just as frustrated as any fan after these feeble results (especially when real urgency is needed) but the doom and gloom ive been reading is just ridiculous. the first thing i ask people who say that wenger needs to go is- who will replace him? for me there is nobody. young, talented players come to arsenal to work with wenger; any player in the world would be happy to have him as a manager. look at the average age of the team. im not saying this is necessarily good for us now, but if we have the same players in 4 years then we really will have an unstoppable team. call me an optimist but with a couple of signings id say we really could win it all next year (provided we arent as immensely unlucky as we have been recently).
also, i read a bit of arsenal blogging and comments and i also play ps3 online and i have really noticed how so many people online are amazing cunts. is it the lack of face to face confrontation that makes people feel they can be bastards online? or does the internet just attract nasty types?
beer!
oh nobobys drinking. why?
I was ashamed to listen to the gasps every time we turned the ball over. You can tell that it is effecting the players…it’s almost as if we prefer playing away from home nowadays.
But on a playing note – why is it that Clichy and Sagna continually cross it to absolutely nobody? We just look like a broken record at the moment and need some more variety in our play.
The unfolding tradgedy that is Arsenal today lies in the false belief that these players will improve to the extent that they will one day dominate the league.
Thanks Holic, this another good balanced report.
Since the game at Everton we must have had something like 60 goal attempts and not one single goal. These are unbelievable odds, thankfully prob laws are on our side and it can’t last much longer mathematically speaking.
It’s a shame because you feel that the team has what it takes to win games playing a fast fluid football but they just need the final spark with some goals to give them the confidence they lack.
I’d rather not comment about the boos not the Britney Spear generation among our fans. I have to wake up at dawn if not before to watch the games and let’s just say that having to listen to our home crowd is not the best start for a week-end day. It’s been a couple of month now that I listen to music with the feed audio muted for our home league games. Very enjoyable actually.
One thing strikes me game after game this year: Almunia turns out to be a great keeper.
well written again ‘holic. Clarky well said son! you have written what i have been trying to put across all season on here in a few good paragraphs.
Unfortunately at times it feels like writing in vein, as most of these so-called arsenal fans these days can’t see past their own noses, and are not willing to listen either. Most people in the “britney spears generation” (well said Matt) have no memory of what it has taken to get here, and yes this has been a frustrating term but these things happen in football. If you don’t like it go and support someone else.
i should imagine that the drug dealers and corporates that now fill the emirates don’t care too much about football anyway, so booing the side is part of the day out for them. Twats.
Yes a frustrating result, yes 2 points dropped, but you cannot say that the side was awful today, plenty of chances, some great goalkeeping, and unfortunately a similar story. But yes another notch in the unbeaten run, and hopefully a convincing romp at west brom can create the confidence needed to go-on and bury a few teams in the following weeks.
I always try to be positive as the regulars here know, what else can you do?
I will probably be shot down again, but if you are not going to get behind this team, then please go spend your season ticket money somewhere else, and let the genuine spirit that once filled the banks of highbury rise.
Traveling from the USA for these games at the Emirates is something I really enjoy. And I really enjoyed the game yesterday. Good open contest. Two good teams doing their best to win. Great to see Arshavin “in the flesh” for the first time. (Hopefully I’ll see Eduardo next Saturday).
I enjoyed the excitement too in the White Heart when the team selection was announced. High fives all round! Exciting attacking team! How many are we going to win by? Arsene, not Bergkamp, is THE man!
Fast forward to some of the comments above. I thought tin man didn’t have a heart? Turns out he doesn’t have a brain either. Good spirit in the area I was sitting. Singing, clapping and applauding the team’s efforts. Some good stuff. A goal HAS to come. Surely. But of-course it didn’t. I clapped hard as the team left the field. I was disappointed to hear the boos. I’m sure the players were too.
One of the risks of fielding four flair players up front is that we suffer from poor defense in the opposition’s third. All four have the habit of running to close down, but then standing aside. That leaves more than two on Denilson and Song (or Diaby). Happened yesterday and the 2D’s often looked like they were missing.
Could we have won? Easily. Should we have won? Arguably yes. Could we have lost? Definitely. Fulham had some great chances. They were inept in front of goal (thank goodness or the blood from ‘holic readers with slit wrists would have been flowing out of my computer here).
Won’t make it to the Hawthornes. See you in the White Heart then the cheap seats, Garrett?
Last line should read “See you in the White Heart then the cheap seats with the common folks next Saturday for Burnley, Garrett?”
Good to see some of the best commentators arriving in the early hours.
Drinking to forget, were we? 😉
I have read a lot of these posts now and find it strange all the comments about so called “Britney Spears” fans. I am more than old enough to remember the dull old days and am also extremely appreciative of what we have been privileged to view in recent years. I greatly appreciate the fact that we sit each week in the best club ground in the country. But none of that should stop fans having an opinion.
Where I sit, for most of the game the support was very good. Constant singing and encouraging. This slowly turned into frustration as the clock ticked away. The frustartion us real and direcetd at a team that we have watched throw numerous points away.
Holic, you wrote a great piece on here a few editions back about how we were about to enter a run of fixtures that were all very winnable. That would start a proper run and elevate us up the league. Let’s all be honest. That should have happened. If we continue to drop points at home to the likes of West Ham, Sunderland and Fulham then quite frankly we do not deserve to play Champions League football next season.
But let’s not start criticizing fans for showing some passion. Let’s try and understand the frustrations that are felt by us all. To say that players suddenly become scared to play because they do not get the support they think they deserve is wrong. Players out there earn fortunes doing something that most of us would have given our right arm to have just a taste of. Watching players on 60K a week plus who for some reason can not pass a ball 10 yards is not down to a few shouts in the crowd.
The attitude for me was summed up in injury time. Fulham had the ball for a good 2 minutes and we refused to even put a tackle in. That is just not acceptable to me. I want leaders who is going to step up to the plate and make a difference. I do not want to see players just going through the motions. That is why fans boo. Shear frustration.
Where I sit, at the final whistle there was a loud chorus of boos. No doubt the same in most areas. That was swiftly followed in unison with an even louder chorus of “we love you Arsenal, we do”. As this rung out loudly all I could see was the vast majority of the team move as fast as they had done all game to get down the tunnel. Perhaps that is one of the problems…………….
Off to West Brom on Tuesday night. I just hope we have a bit more spirit up there.
Where do you start? Yes the team looks disjointed compared with Fulham, where every player knows his task , and within reason, sticks to the script. While we are continually playing people out of position we can never achieve that sort of cohesion. Our passing has become laboured and predictable, and I long for the type of swift, incisive counter-attacking that was the hallmark of the Henry years. A top four placing is now beyond us, and Everton, without a recognized striker until Jo came on yesterday, are playing with such conviction, that I can see us slipping below them into 6th position. The worst of yesterday`s game was the thought that the substitutes would be Bendtner and Eboue who were bound to change the game…not! The question for me is whether AW needs to totally re-jig the playing system, or can we really rely on Walcott Fabregas Rosicky et al to put things right.
I am reminded of our 7-0 drubbing of Sparta Prague early last season, thinking of all those Sparta Prague fans who not only travelled all the way to North London to see their team play and then lose miserably, but didn’t stop singing and chanting for the whole game. 7-0 is about as bad a result as any team is ever likely to suffer and yet the Sparta Prague fans were singing for the whole match, never despondent or downhearted and were jumping up and down at the final whistle as if they’d won the game.
Those are REAL fans, I hesitate to call the people in my area of the stadium fans, they are nothing more than spectators and infinitely more predisposed to booing and jeering that clapping and chanting during matches.
I keep hearing Arsenal fans moaning that no team is scared of us these days, we don’t strike fear into the opposition, I had a 20 stone guy sitting 3 places down from me the other day yelling that Van Persie’s reactions are too slow, I mean is he serious?
I don’t know if I’m allowed to post links here, so delete this post if not, but I just felt I should post a video of a snippet of fans during a FRIENDLY I watched in Thessaloniki last year;
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v333/simon2SG/?action=view¤t=MOV00103.flv
This was a friendly match, it didn’t matter one iota, this was tame in comparison to competitive matches, derbies and rival matches, you just don’t want to know. Just ignore the flares for a second, as I know that would never be permitted at the Emirates, just note the passion, everyone singing, the drums, the positivity – there are other ways to intimidate the opposition and that’s incongruous with away fans even being heard far less being able to tell us as they do during a whole bunch of matches, that our support is shit..
We have no control over the team and the way they play, but shouldn’t we at least do justice to our venue – have fans to be proud of, a stadium brimming with atmosphere?