Next Stop Southampton – Don’t Mesut Up!
Dec 25th, 2015 by 'holic
A strange week. The stunning performance against Manchester City, the loss of Don Howe, and now the beauty of Christmas. Whatever you are doing today, and I am aware that some do not celebrate our festival and many will be at work, paid or otherwise, I hope you are having a good day. If you are alone know that this idiot blogger thought of you fleetingly. It’s a time to think of others, alive or not, who mean or meant something.
It’s also time for those of us of a red and white persuasion to consider a Boxing Day fixture at Southampton. Thanks to BT Sport it is now a late kick-off on a day when there is no public transport, not that I could have gone but I know a fair few away regulars who have had to try and offload tickets for the fixture. Television doesn’t care about people who spend bigger fortunes, in relative terms to income, on watching their team in the flesh.
That gives Leicester an opportunity to recreate the five point lead at the top of the table if they can extend their excellent run with a victory at Anfield against a Liverpool side struggling to adjust to life under Klopp. Should they fail we will be playing to head the Premier League into 2016.
One hopes we have fully recovered from the exertions of Monday night when those who played gave everything, and then some. St Mary’s has proved a tricky trip for us in the past and we will have to replicate Monday’s determination to get the result that will keep us firmly in the Premiership hunt. There was little new as far as the team news went in Arsene’s pre-match presser on Wednesday. We should have the same squad available and given what they have achieved in the last three matches we should again be unchanged unless anybody has been identified as being in the dreaded red zone.
The tactics that did for City should be good enough for the Saints if the effort expended is similar to Monday night. Defend in two banks of four to deny the hosts space, then give the ball to Mesut. It’s a blueprint that worked when we had Dennis Bergkamp in the team. Ozil doesn’t give us the goals that Dennis did, yet, and we haven’t a Pires, Henry, or Vieira around him, but this squad is becoming a formidable unit albeit prone to the odd frustrating day. Who would have thought a month or two back that we could beat Manchester City without Francis Coquelin, Santi Cazorla, and Alexis?
The Saints are in something of a rough patch. In December so far they have taken a solitary point, off Aston Villa, and lost to Crystal Palace and the little club from the other end of Seven Sisters Road. They also shipped six goals at home to Klopperpool in the League Cup. As a result they have slipped to mid-table, but there lurks a lot of much stronger sides these days.
Southampton could welcome Maarten Stekelenburg back in goal and any side that has Graziano Pelle up front warrants respect. The key could be the midfield battleground where Victor Wanyama will presumably be given the task of negating the in-form Ozil. Another interesting match up will be Joel Campbell against Ryan Bertrand. Both pose a threat going forward and will need to be disciplined in their defensive duties.
The ‘holic pound
Can I make it two in a row? We haven’t won at St Mary’s since 2003, although that run consists of only four fixtures, three of which were draws. I have to believe that this Arsenal team will go into the game in the mood to keep Manchester City and the chasing pack at bay. The bookies currently favour a 1-1 draw at the moment, which seems sensible in many respects, but I am drawn like a moth to the flame to a 1-3 Gunners triumph at a very tidy 18/1. That would make for a nice post-Christmas present!
As usual, if you are heading to the match, huge respect to you. I will be watching a stream on my ancient Macbook in the Black Country, waxing lyrical about the Arsenal to the grand’holics. And it is them I need to return to now, as a day of imbibing and digesting unfolds.
Have a great one ‘holics. My best wishes are with you, whatever you are doing today.
136 Responses to “Next Stop Southampton – Don’t Mesut Up!”
Xmas Day Drink!
Happy Christmas Holic from far away Australia. Hopefully gonna be a glory season. Everything crossed !
Cheers for that Mate. Aint predicting a score, but like you got a definite feeling for a win.
Come on you Arsenal!
Have a great Xmas Day everyone!
http://i.imgur.com/WhnXfha.jpg
http://imgur.com/gallery/bnocZ
Cheers!
Up The Arse!
😀
Cheers Holic !
Heh @ Klopperpool !
Jurgen-a regret starting that off. ?
Happy Christmas Holic and cheers
What Holic said, don’t Mesut up a great chance to win the league this year.
A very happy Christmas everyone.
Happy Christmas, you lovely lot. Thank you for making this place what it is.
Nice one Holic
Already been spoiled senseless at Feelgood Towers but doesn’t prevent me looking for the gift of another 3 points tomorrow.
Happy Christmas, Holics.
Happy Xmas to ‘Holic and other contributors to this wonderful forum!
Here’s hoping for a victory tomorrow, and that we finish 2015 top of the pile!
Cheers H – many good imbibings with your family. Festive greetings to all fellow ‘holics.
Here’s to 3 points tomorrow.
Heh @ Klopperpool – a big Klapp of hands for that one 😉
Thank you ‘Holic for this bar…. Best one around!
😀
Holic,
You make the place what it is. We are merely the trimmings to your turkey crown.
cba looks after the pigs in blankets
zico is the cranberry sauce – sharp but strangely irresistible
Esso is the brussells sprouts – hard, but a softy if you know him boil for long enough
bath – he does the drinks – well and truly
Cheers ! ?
Know = let
Will I ever master this keyboard thingummywhatsit
Merry Christmas Holic and all holics. An Elf has told me we will win 2-0
And top the league- Theo and Giroud and Petr Cech won’t have a quick fag in the showers?
Matron !
What Trev said @15.
Happy Christmas, ‘Holic and ‘holics all.
Merry Christmas everyone.
I hope you have a wonderful day wherever you are and whatever the day means to you. May you all be blessed.
Stop Ozil and you stop Arsenal. This could be Koeman’s tactics.The german could be stifled by 2 or even 3 Saints.Its up to the other gunners to find a way to win.
MG@21: they could make Ozil play in the sweater in the picture above. He’d just run and hide. He looks embarrassed enough as it is.
And why isn’t there a speech bubble next to Ollie G saying “No sweater, however ugly, can stop me from being irresistibly gorgeous.”
Hic!
Merry Xmas to you and the clan, Holic
See you very soon!
Merry Christmas and happy holidays to all in the house. A time for festivities and happiness and hope that is what it gives us all. Of course Arsenal will play a big part in making that happen and i agree, if we get 7 out of 9 points in the next 3 fixtures, i am a happy camper.
Saints will believe they can get something off this game. Arsenal will allow them to play their game and after a few wretched games, this just might be the game they may express themselves. Well in terms of us, the monday game seemed to have taken the legs off a few and that is always a worry considering we hardly have anyone worth off the bench( due respect).
1-1 looks likely but then if our own santa is again in the mood to assist, we just may win this by a canter. Come on Arsenal.
Merry Drinkmas!!!
Is this really our 4th game in succession without an injury? Er, I wish now I hadn’t mentioned that. 🙁
But 1-3 looks good, with a Theo hat trick while the defence are triple-ganging Özilla.
And a Happy Prem-winning New Year to all.
Oskar
Merry X H,
Good effort,to post under the huge pressure of being sidetracked by Turkey/Ham/Stuffing/Roast Spuds/Trifle and Xmas Pud.!
You are to be commended.
As for the Arse,first 20 minutes are vital,
As you rightly point out,after the exertions against City,and only 4 days recovery,we are bound to be a bit heavy legged,so the Saints will know that is their best chance to take advantage of the 2 days extra rest they had after their defeat by our NL neighbors last Saturday.
But i am confident if we can contain their early barrage,we will gradually exert control and find the goals to come away with the 3pts.
The plus side for us,is they cannot score goals at the moment,and we aren’t conceding many,so don’t let them score early and get their tails up.
We do have a phenomenal record in Boxing Day fixtures,having lost only once since the inception of the EPL.
Another stat worth noting is that 5 of our last 6 Title wins,have come after we were in 2nd place at Christmas,so the omens are looking good.
If Ned and the Monks are back from Vespers,perhaps they could consult the archives,and let us know the last time we reached Christmas conceding less than a goal a game,and whether it led to a sustained Post Xmas challenge.
Hope all Holics had a great day,and that your Wallets and Bank Account are as empty as mine.!!
Then again you probably haven’t all got 5 Gr/Children,with Christmas lists as long as your arm,that have preferred gifts listed as Option A,B and C. !
Xmas all the way to the May….Off we go!
Merry Christmas, Holic. Thank you for all that you share, and for keeping this place running. Here’s to all the joy it brings to you, and to all of us in the drinks.
Let’s see a second consecutive Holic pound, and an enjoyable lunchtime watch with leftover duck and dear friends.
And a Merry Christmas to all Holics, each and every one of you.
Big hugs, you nutters. 🙂
Merry Christmas, Holic and Holics! 3-1 to to us sounds about right to me.
merry Xmas to you Holic from a beautiful hot and sunny Auckland!
Thanks for another fine year’s blogging
long may it continue……
UTA!
d’you spill my pint ?
Clive @27: 2007/08. Second at Christmas and third at the end of the season.
The monks are returning to their devotions.
good o
they’ve been a fav of mine
this long and manys a year
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=-5iI0__9S1c
was this their only christmas do
ya feckin brutalist?
.
jeez
bought their records
not when they came out
but maybe 3 dozen years ago
though
long enough ago
for
a misty eyed gaze
into the middle distance
don’t ye know ?
complication
also a classic
where would ye get a supremely influential band
with constipation in the words
the lads done brilliant !
trev
no pigs reared round these parts
(slight chuckle)
nope
only cattle
but
a few were or are or used to feckin be
but
what a trick apparently is with pigs
kept in big pens
a big tyre
cos they snuffle and shuffle constantly
and thusly
drag and deposit
their muck to the welcoming arms of the outer edge
and this very intelligent animal
can reduce the stress and work
felt by the farmer
who sells them to be murdered
as a delicious accompaniment
to eggs stolen off chicken mother’s
and it’s blood transmogrified into lovely pudding
.
i love christmas
A belated Merry Christmas Holic and Holics. I hope that you and yours are having an excellent yuletide.
Fine preview, boss.
We need to approach this exactly like we approached the Shitteh game. Keep it tight, stifle their offence and hit them with rapid and incisive breaks.
I would love a 3-1 victory but any kind of win will do me find as long as we don’t acquire any more crocks.
COYGs
(BMBD)
(Dalmore 15yo at the moment Trev)
So Vanballs to follow Moaninho?!
Get in Orcs!
😀
Blanc de blancs here. Bubblicious.
Poor Manure, 2-0 down after 30 minutes and looks like curtains for Van Gaal.
Best wishes to you ‘holic for anything but a black day in the black country. 1-3 it shall be then. Almost no doubt. 🙂
Enjoyed seeing those goals go against the Chavs. Even without the specialist in failure egging them on.
cba out-sty-nding effort @38. Yummy stuff. 🙂
Merry Christmas one and all.
Anyone recommend a stream??
Porco – here you go
http://www.livefootballol.com/streaming/english-premier-league/26-12-2015-southampton-arsenal.html
http://livetv.sx/en/eventinfo/353563_southampton_arsenal/
Really nervous about this one, Saints at home are usually pretty tough team to beat.
Merry Xmas Everyone hope everyone is having a great time!
Merry christmas holics.
Just back from some R&R in Mexico.
Saw the city match at what was Basically a wooden shack of a tequila bar by the beach. Quite the crowd of folks watching though. Great fun and an impressive performance by the gunners.
Love me some mexico and get there at least once a year. Beautiful country, lovely people and some tasty eats. wifi can be hit or miss tho.
At any rate, great to be home and Great to be back in the bar. Hoping for a strong merformance by Arsenal. Banish the hoo doo of Souton.
And go top!
Arsenal unchanged. Saints sans Pelle and Tadic.
COME ON YOU GUNNERS!!!!
COME ON!!!!
COME ON!
C’mon boys three points
Heh! Bath,
Snowball here – Warnincks, of course ! ????⛄️
Get up Giroud stop moaning!
Seem to be on a dial-up line to the bar here – very, very slow.?
Fuck.
Hope we wake up now….
They do have knack for scoring stunners against us dont they? 🙁
Ffs
Come on Arsenal wake up…
We look very poor so far.
Not taking them seriously.
We should be beating this lot….they got lucky with that shot.
COME ONNNNNN!!
Very bad first half not guts we look like we’ve eaten too much turkey yesterday!
What are they doing!
Half time bollocking is required me thinks!
Take handbrake off please
One would think that with the money going in the game, clubs would be able to secure normal pitch, I mean, why it is possible to have pristine ground like we have on Ems (apart from some secret mumbo jumbo) on every ground. Watched Everton/Newcastle and it was pretty much swamp.
This pitch looks visually okay-ish..but looks just….sluggish, apart from the fact that our players look pretty much hungover, there is not real zip in the passes as the ground slows the ball down sooo much.
Rambo and Flamster not at the races, Nacho doing his best but Kos & Per are having their work cut out.
Let’s hope the Saints run out of steam surely we can’t loose this game even if the goal was the strike of the season.
Come on Arsenal.
We need to win these sort of game if we want to win the tittle this season. No one is really putting a shift apart from the back two and Nacho. Hoping for a much improved second half!
Come on Arsenal!
Come on Bellerin wake up!
Martina’s goal is reminiscent of Rose’s goal against us on his debut in 2010. We need to raise our game. Saints game did not look anything great and we can definitely get the three points if we play our A game. COYG.
Losing to a Danny Rose strike;we can do better. COYRG!
Keystone cops defending here.
WHAT is the problem here men?
That was a lucky escape if this doesn’t wake us up I dont know what will
Ramp it up boys
Playing a sunday team league fully deserved!
Wow. Souton is totally blitzing us.
We look no where close to getting back into this game. Pathetic.
Gutless performance so far!
Game Over
That is proper Christmas hangover there, fuck me
It is turning into a rout. 3-0.
Wow.
Embarassing. Atg said it. Gutless performance.
Another Arsenal side going nowhere. Jaysus.
Arthur
It is not gutless,pull yourself together man. !
The first goal was came out of nothing,and the 2nd was a clear foul on Kos.
Southampton have had 2 days extra rest to prepare for the game.
The boys ran the equivalent of 2 marathons against City,and we have no rotation available due to injury list.
No wonder we are off the pace.
The rest of Europe laugh their heads off at our mad Christmas/New Year schedule.
And we get to do it all over again in less than 48hrs. !!
No wonder players go down like ninepins with muscular injuries.
So give the players a break,they are not machines.
It figures; Soton are not that bad a side that has been in an inexplicable extended bad patch that they were bound to snap out of, and combined with a full moon and John Moss, what could you expect?
I am usually on the positive side of things, but its really hard to find some silver lining there,..also Wanayama is a cunt, should have been sent off already for what he had done so far in this match and fuck everyone who says we should buy that wankstain.
This could be 5-0 before its over.
Hard to understand this size if a let down. Absolute embarrassment.
Weve been utterly outplayed. Every area of the pitch.
Im almost in disbelief.
This is total shambles nothing else to add!
Bottlers
Am sure I won’t be blamed for checking out early, never got out of first gear…chance to go top and we bottle it,for the umpteenth time. Sucks!!
The only positive on this kind of result is the fact that they became quite common this season, every team had a shit game (City lost to Villa remember), but still, these kinds of performances are so frustrating to watch since the team is capable of doing much much better.
Goonersince54
I’m fine man! I just didn’t notice any hunger at the start of the game and well we all saw the rest!
Not sure why we have to have these lapses…
Sure city was a big one. Draining. And we have injuries.
But were not even in this game. Weve been totally played off the park by souton- who are mid table – and who spurs spanked the other day.
No excuse for this. Total Embarassment.
Serial bottlers
We are static no plan B feel for those who traveled!
We had three goals from Southampton, a post and plenty of saves from Czech oh and wait a disallowed goal from a fraction offside!
We can throw all sort of excuses here but this is rampage!
And here we go again!
Total fucking SHAMBLES!
Homer
Saints were not played off the park by our neighbors.
They totally dominated the first 20 mins and could have scored 2 or 3.
The diff was the Spuds got lucky and didn’t concede,and not because of good defending.
I repeat what i said earlier,you try running yourself beyond exhaustion,both physically and mentally,and then be asked to do it all again 4 days later.
It is impossible.
It is one game only,in a very long season.
What was that about positives, again?
Serial bottlers. 4-0 … Fucking ridiculous.
Wanys took ozil totally out of the match. We looked hung over. What the fuck did they do to prepare???
I have no words for this ….
Glad it finished painful to watch!
We wee never in the game to start with and then we were taught a lesson on how to play plain simple football.
If we do want to win the league then we will never do it this way and we will certainly not deserve it by any means of imaginations!
Well played Southampton!
Sweeper,
Excellent perspective. Good man.
Goonersince54
I get you but this was a really good chance to go top and prove a point and as usual we bottled it! We have shown nothing tonight few steps forward and hundred steps backwards!
Rant over is still Xmas and I’m in good spirits!
Have a good one Holics!
Disgrace
Gooner since 54.
I didnt say spurs played them off the park. souton played us off though. Wow.
im just massively disappointed. And seeing the same sort of let downs over and over and over.
Yeah … Arsenal had a tough game recently. But had what, 5 days to recover? Fatigue is a flimsy excuse in my view here.
Pardon my frustration and negativity.
But hey – at least noone was injured.
If ever there was a wake up call this was it.
This season we have been very poor against West Ham, the first two Champions League game, Sheffield Wednesday , Bayern and West Brom and they were quite awful tonight.
We have done wonderfully well to get where we have but winning the league is a huge ask for a squad so unable to flex because of injuries. Citeh managed to win at home after Monday but this was humiliation against a pretty average team who worked incredibly hard. Conceding two goals to an average prick like Shane Long says it all.
The good thing is we can reverse the momentum on Monday we have two big games coming up and we can use Gabriel , Gibbs and Debuchy against Bournemouth. But anyone believing it was all over had better think again.
But heads up, it’s one game and Wenger will remotivate them for Monday
Cheers TTG!!!
“First team to score holds the key.” We’ve heard that before. First goal preceded by offsite (initial ball over the top). After that they sit back and play on counter.
2nd goal – trip on Kos.
3rd goal – dubious corner
4th – game was already over.
If 4-nil could ever be bad day at office, this was it.
1st vs. 3rd on Monday, we MUST capitalize on that.
I’ve seen Kos have excellent games in recent past, today he struggled.
Next game, please…
We turned it around really well after being useless at St. Mary’s last year. Let’s do the same again this time. Tonight we missed Coquelin and Alexis for their guts and effort but please let’s get a sense of perspective
Spanked by a mid-table team, throwing away glorious chance to be on top and another game to play in less than 2 days against another giant killer.
You can be mentally crushed or take this result as a slap in the face and bounce back like a true champion.
Let’s see now, what this Arsenal team is really made of.
Surprised at a long term follower like yourself TTG,
Joining the chorus of boo boys eager to give the team a a verbal barrage.
I don’t know anyone in the bar who thought it was all over bar the shouting,or that we needed a wake up call. ?
We had a bad day,that happens.
That’s the madness of our schedule.
I think so many in the bar are still on a high after the City win,and today got a rude awakening,and have vented their ire.
Anyone can beat anyone in the PL.
That’s what makes it so exciting and frustrating at the same time.
Oh dear! This game reminded me of the Sheffield Weds match. Southampton played it hard for 90mins and we had no answer. We lost our shape, passes went astray, the team cohesion of Monday was nowhere to be seen, yes we did suffer from a couple of dubious ref: decisions but they had a goal incorrectly disallowed for off side and hit the post.
On the night they were the better side and we must pull ourselves together and get back on track on Monday. Trouble is the options for ringing the changes are somewhat limited. Disappointed but not tearing my hair out, yet!
COYRs
Just the sort of game where we miss the calming influence of Santi in midfield. That is where this game was lost. Ozil wasn’t allowed to get into the game at all and the referee did let a lot of the Southampton fouls go. Ramsey tried his heart out but the forwards weren’t allowed any space at all – negating Ramsey’s hardwork any cutting edge.
Koscielny looked really leggy tonight which is indeed strange considering we had 5 days between games. Long really cunted his way to the second goal and then the third was never a corner. No wonder he won man of the match….
We could certainly do with a few fresh legs in under 48 hours and that is where the fixture list really does city a huge favour of an extra day with their already big squad.
This is certainly going to be an acid test of this team now. They would do best to completely forget this result and start afresh. It’s easier said than done though. What was more worrisome today was not the conceding of goals but the lack of chances we created. This midfield with Ramsey and Flamster is more suited to playing on the counter than a possession game. This game if anything should only reinforce the need to do early business in midfield in January. This team also has the tendency for a real mare every now and then and Arsene & the squad will have to iron that out. Really gutted at the defeat but not as negative as some of the others. I believe that we will bounce back stronger… But we really need to start hearing some good news on the injury front.
I can understand the loss, I can understand the tiredness of the players- excuses, I can understand the “bad day at the office”, I can understand the lack of depth, I can even understand persisting with Per as a first choice CB.
What I can’t understand is playing Ozil for full 90 minutes when you are 3:0 down from 69 minute.
Clive @108
I’m disturbed you took my comments like that
I have been concerned since Monday that many people were suggesting we only needed to turn up to win the league and that this game was a formality. My comment about a wake up call echoed earlier comments I had made that there is a huge amount of work to do to clinch the title. We are halfway through and this team have a fragility that worries me. We have had some bad performances this season and until recently it didn’t feel like a title winning season given the injuries and the number of bad performances we had put up.
That doesn’t to me constitute disloyalty . I love the club to bits but I refuse to turn my back on mistakes that we might make or vulnerability we might have.
But we have the best man in charge to turn it around as he did last year and I fully believe he will do this.
Delia was absolutely right to compare this to the Wednesday game which was awful.
But the first Double side lost 5-0 at Stoke and the 1991 team lost 6-2 at home to United. The key is how you bounce back
Not at the races today. They clearly wanted it more than we did, and congrats to them for believing they could do it.
If this had been dancing, they would have been jiving while we were waltzing … slow, slow, thick, thick, slow. Just too pedestrian and frustrating to watch.
I know what Clive means but can’t help thinking I’ve seen it all before. If taking over top spot isn’t incentive enough, what is?
Oskar
TTG
I wasn’t for a minute accusing you of disloyalty to the Club.
I know you are a thoroughbred Gooner,so was somewhat taken aback at your post.
I just thought you might have been a bit more circumspect in your criticism of the team, after what was clearly a hugely draining match against City,both physically and mentally.
I just think the Soton game came too quickly after the City one,and you cannot underestimate the mental fatigue when you have such a short recovery period.
Your brain is sending messages that aren’t getting through,and you are really performing on instinct alone.
I just thought the first goal was so hugely important,as i mentioned in my post pre match.
Sure we made mistakes,and to me were completely gone after the 2nd goal,but the boys kept trying,they didn’t hide and gave it a go.
The key as you say,is how they bounce back.
But given the madness of the scheduling,we have to back up within 48hrs.
So who knows.
There will be some changes i am sure,and this result will be forgotten if we beat Bournemouth and Newcastle,and cement our place in the top 2 going into the 2nd half of the season.
Mr. Puke is haunting me…again.
…and no, this result will not be forgotten if we beat “Mouth & Castle”.
Evening all. Match review will be tomorrow evening. Sorry, but I’m with family tonight and driving home tomorrow.
One of the loveliest people I know had her Mum taken into hospital on Christmas Day with a very serious problem. If you think a football match will provoke rage from me tonight you need to consider what drives you.
I know for most here that message is not required. Thank you, you stars.
Too right Holic
Football means nothing in times like these I sincerely hope she recovers in no time.
Thoughts are with their familiy.
Clive
Spot on I absolutely agree that the Citeh game was enormously draining and we used the same starting eleven so they all had the same level of tiredness and fatigue. Also agree that the first goal,is absolutely crucial. Until they scored I thought we were on top without playing brilliantly or testing their goalie.
I expected us to respond in the second half but the wrongly awarded second goal so early killed us. I would also cite my over sensitive feelings about this opportunity that we have ( and it’s still there as big and bold as it was) . I’d so love Arsene to stuff the jibes of his critics back down their throats and hoped tonight might be a night of continuing progress.
Football , certainly the EPL is changing. Anyone who thinks this is an easy title to win is quite wrong. It’s probably the hardest one ever because every game is a killer. Monday is an important nigh and we must rotate and this includes Ozil.
My suggestion would be
Cech
Debuchy
Gabriel
Koscielny
Gibbs
Chambers
Ramsey
Walcott
Oxlade Chamberlain
Reine Adelaide
Giroud
“Only Cech, PM4 and LK6 came over at the end of the game to acknowledge our support. The rest couldn’t be bothered, like the 90 minutes they spent on the pitch.” The words of an old friend who travels home and away and has done so for many years.
I’ve not seen very much of the game but the score does not really shock me. For every Bayern there is an Olympiakos. For every Man City there is a Southampton etc. Consistency is our problem and has been for years. It has been mentioned here more times than I care to remember. This is the worst premier league that I can remember and it appears that no one really wants to win it. Physio room shows us as having 6 players out injured. Whilst they are obviously a miss we should have a squad that can cope with that.
Put it to bed and in to Bournemouth.
Best wishes to your friends mum H.
6 changes TTG ?
The Boss is on record as saying 2 or 3 is the maximum he would countenance,as it upsets the balance of the team.
I don’t think Debuchy will play,as he is off in January.
He needs first team action if he is to play for France at the Euros,and he is not getting it with Bellerin in his way.
Agree with change in central defence,and with resting Flamini.
Would he risk resting the only genuine playmaker we have left that is fit.
Whatever happens,it will be an interesting conundrum for AW to juggle with.
On a lighter note,you have to laugh in adversity,otherwise we would go mad.
I got a text from a good mate of mine,long time Chelsea man,
He commiserated about the Saints defeat,said what a topsy turvy season it has been so far,and the killer punchline,as follows,
” Who would have thought Watford would slip up at Chelsea. ”
Bless him.!!
Yikes that was bad, but we get to get back on the saddle on Monday. Win and move on. A lot is at stake but let’s not let one match lead us to believe there is a crisis.
Best wishes to your friend’s mother, ‘Holic. Hope all is as well as it can be in the circumstances. A good reminder that, as the great AC Milan manager, Arrigo Sacchi, said, football is only “the most important of the unimportant things in life”.
As for the game, I thought we looked weary from the get-go, not unsurprisingly. Needed to get the first goal, and didn’t, and then didn’t get the rub of the green for their first three goals.
The difference between Wenger and Ferguson is that Ferguson’s Man untd doesn’t lose this type of games. They win it ugly.
With the distractions going about in United, chelsea and city camp I expected us to be at top in new year but for the third term this season we squandered a chance.
Leicester city would not have lost on this ground today….. I think the title is theirs to loss.
Holic
Best wishes to someone who obviously means a great deal to you.perspective is required at all times. Hope the news improves
Goof luck Holic. Jppe the news improves.
Jppe! Jppe?
A touch of the TTGs, I fear. Should, of course, have read “Hope “.
and “Good ” too.
Sigh. More than a touch.
Best wishes to your friend’s mother, H.
Perspective is everything.
Holic, just to repeat what Bath said.
Have a safe journey back home.
Since that awful summer speculation a couple of years ago when one of our posters asked us to ‘ free Balotelli’ as I recall, we don’t do much transfer speculation on here because that drove us mad.
I think it is highly likely that we will sign this Egyptian fella – El Nenny – (great name ) as the Egyptian press are suggesting he has already passed a medical while another news feed suggests it is taking place in Paris on Tuesday. Assuming this story has more legs than our midfield had at St. Mary’s it looks like we are aiming to bring someone in immediately. Good thinking! The Flamster was terrific on Monday but really struggled last night and as the guy is a box to box player he can ease the pressure on Ramsey although we really need another Coquelin. Have we anyone on loan at Charlton?
Not on your El Nenny- how long before that appears on the back page?
Not long enough, TTG. 🙂
bath@131: 🙂
No need to divert the Guv’nor from more urgent concerns. The bar has already written the match report. Soweto Gooner@105 covers the play-by-play. Clive@83 provides the colour commentary and the post-match analysis @96. Job done.
TTG@130: Someone is having some fun on El Nenny’s Wikipedia page:
Mohamed Naser Elsayed Elneny, is an Egyptian footballer who plays for English side Totingham Hotspurs. The page also has him playing for Arsenal-Lagos from 2016….
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohamed_Elneny
Thank you Ned @133 for pointing people towards writing that which I could not do justice. 😉
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>