Ivan Laughs Last? Plus El Chapmanico
Nov 28th, 2017 by 'holic
A busy day at the Arsenal, it seems, as Raul Sanllehi arrived to take up the interesting position as director of football relations. It isn’t lost on anybody that he has been the director of football at Barcelona where he has worked for fourteen years.
The appointment follows that of Dortmund’s Sven Mislintat as chief scout last week, and the summer hiring of Huss Fahmy to deal with contracts. These two are coming in as Steve Rowley and Dick Law are travelling in the opposite direction. It would appear that Ivan Gazidis, who appeared to lose the battle last summer, is winning the war.
The Arsenal do appear to be getting their house in order for whatever the future holds. It will be interesting to see how Arsene Wenger deals with the new appointees. The fact that Sanllehi does not take up his role officially until February hints at one final transfer window for the manager to call the shots. Or does it? (to be continued…)
Huddersfield Town Preview
With one eye on the Wednesday night visit of the Terriers for the first ‘Herbert Chapman derby’ in the top flight for 45 years, the other has been on the lookout for team news. The good news is that Mesut Ozil trained today and could be available. That would be handy as Alex Iwobi has been suffering from a dead leg at Burnley and may not make it. If both cannot start we will discover if Jack Wilshere is third in the pecking order for the playmaking role.
Arsene Wenger was adamant at his pre-match press conference that he would not take the Saturday visit of Manchester United into account when selecting the team for Wednesday. That suggests an unchanged ten plus whoever is fittest to start as creator in chief.
Huddersfield have been resolute so far this season, and stretched runaway leaders Manchester City on occasion at the weekend. They are, as I write, in the top twelve but they have lost their last three away games in the Premier League. This after drawing 0-0 at Burnley, and we know how creditable a performance that was in the salty capital of Lancashire.
The ‘holic pound
Arsenal are looking to extend a record of thirteen unbeaten at home, including winning the last eleven. With a strong side out we should triumph over the ninety minutes if we show the visitors some respect and make them work hard in the opening hour or so, before closing the game out ruthlessly. Hoping for consecutive earners I have taken a skinny looking 13/2 on 3-0 to the Arsenal.
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71 Responses to “Ivan Laughs Last? Plus El Chapmanico”
continued from last post… Hahahahahahhahahahah
Spuds!!!!
😀 😀 😀
UP The Arse!
Great preview Guvnor!
Get in Leicester too!
Should be able to go four points clear of that lot down the road.
Optimistic about tomorrow. I’m trying to remember when 8 last saw us play Huddersfield at Home. I think it was in the Cup but it was a long time ago in the League. But we won.
I shall be there to watch our 2-0 win tomorrow.
Re the politics I penned this in the last drinks to Ned re his comments
Ned
I can’t quite believe the coherence seeming to emanate from the club at the moment. The summer window was chaotic. Maybe they were waiting to make these appointments or maybe the mess allowed Gazidis to get his way. Who knows with our club?
Wenger has said today we are keeping Alexis and Ozil until the summer yet a friend who knows several agents tells me they have been circulating potentially interested clubs re Ozil and Sanchez . Is there a civil war going on or is Wenger trying to tease a higher price out of potential buyers?
All part of the mystery of life at Ashburton Towers.
13/2 is skinny Guvnor. However,
hope it comes in.
I’d give bigger odds on Ivan ever
actually doing anything useful but
I hope Raul and Sven come in too.
Finally, I hope some shiny new
players come in too.
3-0, Holic? Had you consumed a wee yin before nailing that one down? Come on, be honest.
Here’s hoping you’re spot on.
Dad is improving, albeit deep in dementia, so I have negotiated some time away with my siblings and will be there tomorrow night (with a mate) and Saturday (when no 1 son is again having an away day from Uni).
Let’s all laugh at Tottenham!
Come on you Gunners!
Nice one, Holic !
Good luck with the pound.
It seems we sparked a Tottenham collapse. ?
Fine preview Guvna with no hint of the effect of copious amber nectar until you betrayed its impact (as spotted by BtM) when you plumped for 3-0. I can’t see it myself. Huddersfield have looked well organised and fleet of foot and perfectly capable of barring our way and striking fast. I’ll settle for another classic 1-0 to the Arsenal.
COYG
glad you get a break, c100. so sorry for the reason of needing one.
laughing at tottenham will help, too. so let’s!
changing the subject for a minute. I tried to book a party venue last year but things went wrong (first time in years). I don,t want to leave it to late this year so I want to book early. Can anyone please give me an estimation on……….when St Totteringhams day is likely to be this season
Raul Sanllehi … as director of football relations? He’s in charge of keeping the wags out of scandals?
What AW said, TTG, is that we’d be keeping Alexis and Ozil until the summer, unless…
With Manure on Saturday I would have thought most of our cup team would be in for Huddersfield, plus Alexis and Ozil (if fit).
St Toot’s Day is rapidly approaching, ezzee. Depends on Kane fitness whether they can delay it till April.
or St Tott’s Day…
I quite like the idea of St Toots day …..but I have to drive in the morning ….
Bath, BtM, their last 3 aways, 9 goals conceded. Law of averages, and all that. ?
El Chapmanico?
What the others said about 3-0 to the Arsenal. Ain’t gonna happen but I wish it would.
2-1 closer to it.
Based on AW’s presser I’m not
expecting many, if any, changes
except Ozil for Iwobi.
Personally, I’d be tempted to rest
Kos for his achilles and Rammy for
his hammy, both are suspect if
overplayed. Play Rob and Jack
instead.
I don’t think AW will though.
Cheers H!
Cheers Esso!
bt8, Herbert Chapman managed Huddersfield to the first two of a trio of consecutive titles in the 1920s before setting us up to repeat the achievement in the 1930s.
Hence el Chapmanico.
Fat Sam’s back… They be proper F*cked Now!
😀
TTG: To help jog your memory. Our previous league game was on January 22, 1972, at Highbury. Geordie Armstrong scored the only goal of the game.
Since then we have met Huddersfield three times in the League Cup and once in the FA Cup; a total of six matches, four won and two drawn, the draws being in two-legged League Cup games.
1971-72 was overall a disastrous season for Huddersfield. It would be their last season in the top flight until this one. They won only six games in the league all season and none after the end of November. That was a 22-match run to relegation without a league win. Our match started a club record run for Huddersfield of seven league games without scoring. In fact, between the Arsenal game and the end of the season (16 games), Huddersfield managed to score only four goals, two of which were own goals.
Our overall record against Huddersfield is W33, D25 L 16
We have lost only two games against them since 1947 and four (of 55 games) since 1927. Our goal in the 1947 defeat, our most recent home league loss, was scored by Bryn Jones (see previous drinks).
Pardew is managing West Brom so if Allardyce is back at Everton, we only need Pulis to fluke his way into another Premier League job and the Cunt Trifecta is back in place.
TTG@previous drinks: My question would be would a director of football come from Barcelona without knowing who the next manager is, or at very least without the brief to recruit him? Perhaps Ivan has one more chess piece to place on the board. The three hires (director of football, chief scout and contracts negotiator) put the fact that AW’s position will be reviewed at the end of this season into a more coherent light.
Perhaps, also, AW gets to keep Ozil and Sanchez to the end of the season in the hope he can go out on a high with some silverware.
That’s a fair question Ned.
My own question in the previous
drinks was couldn’t it mean Ivan
himself is going and the new guy
is to replace him.
Cynic,
The funny thing is that fat sam was
whining on the telly the other that
young British managers don’t get
a chance in the PL – obviously not
with aging neverwozzers like the
3 cunts in the way.
I think we will rest Koscielny tonight because of his persistent Achilles problem. Jack will start with Ozil on the bench. Who comes in for Kos? Probably Mertesacker but maybe Holding.
Subs might be
Ospina
Debuchy
Holding
Coquelin
Ozil
Giroud
Welbeck
but AMN or Elneny might squeak in
Lacazette will be subbed while on a hat-trick . Perhaps tge early subbing was something w3 agreed to when we signed him ! ?
Just heard the very sad news that Santi is to have another operation, there is virtually no chance of seeing him this season if at all.
Going well wrapped up tonight, hope to see one or two changes. Possibly the BFG for Kos and either Danny or Ozil for Iwobi. Jack for Rambo might be a change too far.
We do seem to be clearing out the old guard at Highbury House, perhaps we have got some one to take over as Head Coach next season, Ivan might yet surprise us. I can’t see Arsene enjoying having his role being relegated to just the Coach. In spite of him always stating he respects his contracts, he might accept a seat upstairs at the end of this season. Not sure that it would be a good idea for the future of the Club but one way of moving forward.
Holic you might collect a pound or two on 3-0, seems a good shout.
COYR
Just reading a bit about Griezmann, where he says he won’t sign for us because we mucked him about by saying we would sign him then not doing so.
In that particular transfer window we played silly buggers with Suarez and failed, lost out on Higuain as a result, pissed off Griezmann and signed Yaya Sanogoals.
Top work.
One more chance for Arsene to have a spat with Pardew before retiring.
Any word on the correct pronunciation of Sanllehi? Sounds like a tough one.
That is sad news about Santi.
In his tweet he is still determined
to play again and I wish him all
the best
Like Sagna but
Sagn – ey
I admire Santi’s spirit and desire but he should probably take the shilling and retire.
In addition to the Pardew and Allardyce news, they have apparently decided to employ John Carver and Sammy Lee respectively as assistants.
It’s almost a Royal Flush of cuntitude!
My main memory of games against Huddersfield is from, I think, the first double season (1970-71, kids); with David Coleman introducing MotD, or maybe the Sportsview report with words to the effect that few thins are certain is sport except that Arsenal beat Huddersfield Town every time the teams met. Needless to say, we lost. If memory continues to serve, it was a penalty given against Frank McLintock for a marginal foul outside the box. Plus ça change.
bt8 may wish to look away now.
‘H – thanks for your sympathy in the previous bar. I have just come off the phone to Messrs Amazon following a call in which I set a record for repeated use of the words “unacceptable Customer Services” and “very poor Customer Service processes”. Is 89 available through any other outlets?
…and bt8’s attention is back in the room.
COYG
Just reading above, personally I hope he puts the strongest possible team on the pitch tonight against Huddersfield.
I can’t see any point in second guessing what might or might not happen between now and Saturday. Three points against United will be seriously devalued if we don’t win tonight – and far worse if we don’t beat United either,
Get the biggest possible win tonight and then worry about Saturday. Suppose Kos and Ozil are benched tonight and then get injured in training or fall ill again on Friday.
I’m with Holic tonight. A fully committed performance and a 3-0 win.
Pessimists needn’t reply ….. ?
Cynic,
Pardew and Fat Sam would hardly dare appoint more modern, tactics-savvy assisstants than themselves now, would they ?
They remind me of that old poem about The Walrus and The Cunt.
Or something like that …. ?
Really weird how Tottenham are being lauded for having great players, a great manager, a bright future blah blah blah and the general view of Arsenal is that we’re a bit shit, going backwards, the manager is finished etc (which is my own view too) and yet …. the table.
If anything illustrates the comedy of the so-called power shift, it’s that a failing Spurs are seen as doing great and a so-so Arsenal is seen as a crisis club.
Carragher was spot on the other week.
Chapmanico indeed. Ne’er were there a better example of the truest Spanglish. 🙂
Pangloss, it can be downloaded from iTunes now, if you have an account.
Ozil for Iwobi, so strongest eleven. Got the team right, now for that 3-0. ?
As you say GH, our best men and
true. Iwobi on the bench so there
was a quick recovery.
Per, Osp, Coq, OG, Danny and Jack
rounds it out
Thanks ‘H@40. It’s supposed to be a Christmas present for the nevvy, so download not really appropriate.
COYG
P, how about an iTunes gift card? ?
Come on 3:0 to the good guys please! 🙂
speeeeed
One nil Laca come on!
What a f*kin start people.
Don’t know about the holic pound but the 4-points gap between the Gunners and the piss takers is clear.
Coy mighty Gs
Why do we make things so difficult for ourselves?
FFS such a good start and we are all over the shop!
Terrible defending again. Lucky to be still ahead.
Is Laca injured? OG is coming on…
Bellerin just boot it
I have never seen so many misplaced passes by us! We are rushing it making mistakes with it.
Uuufffff get in OG!
Get in Alexis! Ha ha
Is Holic pound going to survive?
Ozil makes it four sorry Holic
Two great goals within the space of five minutes. Not surprising as Huddersfield are playing Arsenal 3 days after a tough outing against Citeh and look really tired.
Floodgates!
Up The Arse
Missed Alexis’s goal?
Ecky thump! I turn my back for ten minutes and the boys score three.
I thought the Holic pound looked a little conservative. Bad luck guv’nor.
COYG
Giroud! 5-0.
Well I said 3-0 this afternoon – honestly wanted to say 4-0 but didn’t want to top the Guvnor !
Sorry about the pound H but a thumping good win won’t hurt.i
Oh 5 !!!
I’m a bit behind on the Player
Great evening as a five goal victory is becoming rare for us. Especially special for Ozil, two assists and a goal, and Giroud, two goals.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> ?