The End Is Nigh – A Tense Day Beckons
May 19th, 2017 by 'holic
It seems like the League started yesterday, when an under-prepared team were edged out in a seven goal exchange with Liverpool. How pivotal it looks as though that result was now. Despite the nineteen match unbeaten run that followed it we find ourselves going into the last game of the season relying on an extremely unlikely result at Liverpool (or an even unlikelier one at Watford) to get into the Champions League qualifying round.
All we can do is beat Everton, which is no mean feat at the moment, and keep everything crossed that the news from elsewhere is unexpected. It wouldn’t be the first time after all. A second Lasagnagate is what’s required. Chefs of Liverpool and Manchester, do not let us down!
If you have listened to this week’s A Bergkamp Wonderland Podcast (it’s below) you will have heard a plea for us to go with the back three again, resorting to a flat back four only if required, as in the last half a dozen matches. It’s a formation we have looked more confident in and will raise the spirits ahead of our bid to at least lift the FA Cup at Wembley next week.
Laurent Koscielny is an unlikely starter this weekend so the boss has to decide whether to bring in Gabriel or keep Nacho Monreal in the back three. It’s important we are comfortable defensively as there is a little sub-plot to the match with Everton’s Lukaku, as well as our own Alexis, looking to overtake Harry Kane on the final day to win the golden boot.
Aaron Ramsey has apparently recovered from the thigh strain that forced him off against Sunderland on Tuesday, but there must be a temptation to rest him to ensure he starts at Wembley. Francis Coquelin played very well at Stoke and could partner Granit Xhaka again.
It is unlikely that the starting attacking trio will change with Mesut Ozil coming back to form and both Olivier Giroud and Alexis bagging a brace in the last week. They will need to be at their best to crack a Ronald Koeman defence, as we discovered when the former Dutch international was at Southampton.
The ‘holic pound
It is likely to be a nerve-wracking afternoon. Although Everton cannot improve on their seventh place, and qualification for the Europa League, I fully expect them to put up a disciplined and gritty defence. They will want to give Lukaku and Barkley, both expected to leave in the summer, a good send-off. We are not the only club risking losing our best players in the transfer window.
All of that leads me to the opinion that we could nick a very tight affair 2-1 late on. A market best of 17/2 has attracted my infamous quid.
By the final whistle I suspect our fate will have been decided elsewhere. If things go against us and our unbroken twenty years of Champions League football is suspended I hope those in the stadium will remember we have a big match to come next weekend.
Many present will not have Wembley tickets and will want to show appreciation to some who they may not see at Arsenal again. What a shame we don’t know who will and won’t be here next season for exactly that reason. It could be an emotional and atmospheric afternoon for all manner of reasons.
The Arsenal Foundation’s Night To Inspire
Talking of emotional it was great to see the interaction between the Arsenal players and staff with the supporters who attended last night’s event at the stadium. Those present raised an incredible record total of £464,841, so well done all who were in attendance. What a great event it appeared to be on my Twitter timeline.
That’s enough for a packed piece. Wherever you will be watching on Sunday I hope it is enjoyable and we get an unexpected ending to the season. I know a couple of young lads on their annual visit to the Grove will be absolutely thrilled if it happens. So will their Grandad Dave!
Have a great one, ‘holics.
190 Responses to “The End Is Nigh – A Tense Day Beckons”
nerve-wracking ?
a tense day?
Bless you…
That is what the back of couches for hiding behind are for, SSY
Yossi Benayoun ’em
joy joy joy
Cheers, Holic.
I hope you and the boys see a very good game and results elsewhere make it even better for all of us.
Have a great day with the Grandkids, Holic. I like the sound of the Holic pound at 2-1 for the good guys.
Yossi Benayoun’d ’em
welcome to retirement community
phone’s ringing Silly
what?
PHONE IS RINGING!!
what?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bz82T89jlK0
Is no one going to address the elephant in the room?!
http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/39981841
😀
Cus, at least we will only go out of Europe once, again, next season! ?
Room in the elephant
Alisher? Who knows…better then this Missouri wayo.
Criminals all of them anyway.
1.3 billion bottles of beer on the wall…
I don’t think it will be a nerve- wracking afternoon. Both Citeh and Liverpool will have their games well under control within a short period. We will beat Everton as we usually do at home .
Not sure that Wenger knows his best team which is worrying with the Finsl coming up.
I will pay tribute to Alexis and Hector’s last games in the red and white at our stadium and hope we can build up momentum for Wembley.
There’s a big summer coming up . I wonder who leaked the Usmanov story and why- and why now?
Ummm… Usmanov would have “leaked” it.
I don’t want him to take over anyway, he’s a Wenger In man. He can sod off on that basis alone.
Nice preview H.
My last game was the midweek thriller against Sunderland. Im disposed with number 1 son elsewhere this weekend. I fully expect us to win but like everyone else, I fully expect Citeh and Poo to win comfortably. Assuming that’s the scenario played out then if the ground is half full for the lap of appreciation then I will be amazed. Especially with free sausage and chips on offer in the Tollie.
I must say that the uncertainty around will he won’t he manager I think has been far from helpful for the majority. The alleged bid from Usmanov will add to the uncertainty. Probably why everything seems to be so up in the air at the moment. Whatever the decisions are, I would suggest that the situation needs sorting ASAP
For those going I will raise a glass from West London to toast you all.
Enjoy boys and girls.
TTG
The Club would be mad to let either of those 2 leave.
What sort of message would that send to any potential transfer targets.
To come and join a club busy selling it’s best talent.
Those days are supposed to be behind us.
Playing in the Europa league didn’t stop Ibra or Pogba from joining Utd.
We need to strengthen the squad not weaken it.
I still think we have the makings of a good squad,we just need to add some premium quality to raise the technical level.
We won’t be doing that if we are selling off the crown jewels.
Weller on Jools Holland tonight. Just for you CBA. I know you’re a fan.
?
“I still think we have the makings of a good squad,we just need to add some premium quality to raise the technical level.”
Technical is the key word.
Believe me.
…and premium also
I remember when we all expected the neighbours to win easily on the last day of last season…
Players may say they want to win trophies, but it’s funny how often money is the deciding factor. Unfortunately competing on that level isn’t Wenger’s forte either.
I see China as more of a threat to our future, with second level players we might have been able to afford moving to the money clubs as more and more top players take the Chinese bait. I mean, who, in a line of work with a limited earning span, won’t be tempted by offers several times higher than they can make in Europe?
Winning trophies or taking home half a million a week? No contest. And if it IS a contest then the whole wage system in football is a farce subsidised in large (VERY large) part by club supporters.
And after hearing how much Trev and others have to fork out in support of Arsenal I feel very lucky indeed to be able to watch every Arsenal game, live, home and away, in the Prem, FAC, CL etc in crystal clear 55″ TV vision for the cost of my Sky Sport subscription (roughly £10 per month add-on to Sky) which I’d pay anyway for all the other sports I watch.
Yes I know it’s nothing like being there, but neither do I have to bankrupt myself to support the club I love. And it’s really not a bad substitute.
If only my present country of residence didn’t threaten my oblivion with fucking earthquakes without warning. I tell ya, I tense up every time the dog shakes on the lounge beside me, or the house creaks with temperature changes through the day (and night) cos that kind of vibration is exactly how a quake begins. 🙁
…the end is nigh indeed…
Oops. I was forgetting CL and FAC are in fact included in Sky Sport, and Prem football costs an extra £5 per month. Making roughly £15 per mont for all sports; football, cricket, golf, tennis, rugby league and union, horse racing (including international), America’s Cup, Gridiron, etc etc etc.
None of this will be much interest to you I’m sure, but there has to be some advantages to being stuck the wrong side of the world! 🙂
If Kroenke sees Arsenal just as a tradeable asset there is no way he would sell it for what Usmanov offered as the Uzbek’s bid offers no premium over the value of the club. So such a bid coming to light now could be no more than Usmanov stirring the pot.
If you are looking for a fingernail chewing finish to the season for fans, look no further than Ligue 2 in France. Three points separated the top six clubs going into last night’s final round of games. Any one of them could have ended up champions if the results went their way. In the event they all won, so the standings stayed the same. I fear that part of history might repeat itself in the Premiership tomorrow.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/39973807
Should be an easy win against Everton, I can one hope with them having nothing to play for. It will be interesting to see how the owner issue pans out in the next few weeks.
Should be an easy win against Everton, I can one hope with them having nothing to play for. It will be interesting to see how the owner issue pans out in the next few weeks, hopefully we’ll see Usmanov taking over.
At times like this, I always have to visit the bar!
#KronekeoutUsminovin
There I said it!
Now that’s a protest worth joining!!
🙂
Not sure ‘easy win’ and ‘Everton’ go together in the same sentence, YDA.
Whatever happens tomorrow and next weekend, hats off to another top season by the keeper of this inestimable establishment. You keep us all sane through trying times, ‘Holic. Well, most of all of us.
For once football moves in the right direction. Fantastic news.
http://m.bbc.com/sport/football/39978823
This is an interesting read, especially when you scroll down and discover exactly how successful Stanley and his sports franchises actually are??
I’m with King GT. The sooner he goes the better for me.
http://m.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/39981954
NBN.
Speak for yourself mate!
Sane? Not likely!
Not your fault mind H. You can’t keep someone sane when they were bonkers to start with. ???
Thanks for the preview GH.
Fingers crossed I suppose although
I can’t pretend to be optimistic.
Usmanov’s best point is that he’s
not Kroenke, but that’s about it
really.
That’s right Steve!
Even if they do not want to sell him all 69% at least sell him the controlling share (around 35%)??
I’m sure he could do much better with it than Silent Stanley has! 🙁
I’m with Ned @ 30. For me this season cannot end quickly enough but thanks Holic for keeping us as sane as might be unreasonably expected.
I’m resigned to 5th, hopeful for the cup, AW to leave gracefully and a new owner – probably not the Russian but almost anyone but the incumbent.
Arse 3 – Toffees 0.
UTA.
http://tinyurl.com/ky6msa8
Sources close to Kroenke have said that the money he would have made isn’t an issue as he wants to see the club grow and wants to oversee future success.
——————–
Hahhahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah!
Arsenal Ladies on the BBC red button for those who care
Thanks, Holic
for the final league match preview of the season.
Another one done ! Well almost – have a great day tomorrow with the Grandholics.
Sad to say I will also be glad when the season’s over. Division amongst the fans, well, some who purport to be fans, constant speculation over which players will still be here next season, likewise the manager and now over the owner too.
Well, it hasn’t been difficult for the off-field matters to eclipse on-field events in a season which has produced some truly awful performances.
Faced with a bid from Usmanov, Kroenke has apparently spoken up – I guess there’s a first time for everything – to say that he is here for the long term, wants to win the Premier League and make Arsenal a force in Europe.
Anyone would think season ticket renewals are just round the corner !
What ? No, surely not …..
Interesting article in the LA Times about the construction delays on Kroenke’s palatial new stadium due to two months of constant rain in the land of constant sunshine.
http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-inglewood-stadium-delay-20170518-story.html
But what is most interesting to me at the moment is Kroenke’s taste in the appearance of the stadium. As the drawings indicate, the stadium is almost an exact replica of the thousands of freeway overpasses that dot the landscape in Kroenke’s adopted home city.
have to admit , cynic
not saying i’m proud of it
but i just don’t
watched camogie not long ago
and despite battered knuckles shins and ankles
unreconstructed back of my mind me
was saying nope
not the same
.
apologies to those further along
in your journey from apedom
But Arseblogger linked to the LA Times article today due to the implications for Kroenke’s access to ready cash at the moment as Usmanov and perhaps other mega-rich people make bids for Arsenal.
@37
🙂
Yes, leaving immediately would be a
big help for future success if that was
really what Silent wanted.
Thanks for another fine preview, Guvna.
I think this game will be hard-fought and your 2-1 prediction may well be on the money. Everton will be determined to show that they are not rolling over to spite their city rivals in a highly professional manner to which over several years our own lovely neighbours never aspired.
The die is cast. It will be a miracle if we finish in the top 4. Miracles do happen and indeed Lasagne-gate and Newcastle were two but they don’t happen with the frequency that leaves me with the smallest smidgeon of hope.
We will be fifth. What I hope is that we can retain our best players, shed the hangers-on, support the manager (whoever that may be) and have a highly effective summer in the market the like of which we have rarely ever seen. And that Stan and Alisher either bury the hatchet in the interests of the club’s future or both sell up to a knight in shining armour with ambition for this fine old institution.
Talking of which, may I echo Ned@30 and thank the Guvna for his tireless and successful efforts to maintain a positive refuge for thinking Arsenal fans and hope that despite this difficult season on and off the pitch, he can find the inner strength to carry on his exemplary work.
Holic, I hope to buy you a drap o’ the cratur tomorrow after the game.
Editorial correction to #40 above: “dot the landscape” should have been “mar the landscape”
Echoing bathgooner and others above, thank you ‘holic for another great season of Goonerholic. I always enjoy reading your ramblings. ??
oops
‘their’ not ‘your’
?
mind you
always been of the opinion
some people i like online
are zoo apes behind glass
legs crossed
bifocals on
crossword done
flinging dung only when the turnstiles clatter
.
not here though
neither ape nor part time dung flinger here
all clean shaven and flinging
both early and often
.
so
as the mighty ned said
cheers ‘holic
thanks for all the dung
?
moooooooooooooooooooooo
http://www.espn.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/19151732/why-st-louis-win-lawsuit-stan-kroenke
The media statements include a Kroenke assertion in April 2010 that “I’m going to attempt do everything that I can to keep the Rams in St. Louis.” Demoff, speaking for Kroenke and the Rams, went even further, publicly promising that “our goal is to build a winner in St. Louis not only in 2012, but in 2022, 2032 and beyond.”
——
Looks like the “consultation fees” just went up for next season.
He’s what sophisticated gentlemen from the states call..”A lyin’ sack ‘o sh*t”.
😀
how many o’s are necessary to make a moo amusing?
oooooooooooooooooooooo
get
yoooooooooooooooooooooo
GSD@33: I was thinking of cba, but then even he hasn’t as far as I know jumped out of a perfectly good plane. 🙂
&@31: Seconded. The only negative thing to be said about Steinhaus is that she lives with Howard Webb.
bt8b@42. Don’t get your hopes up on that front. Kroenke’s new home for the Rams is fully financed and you can bet your bottom dollar that it will be the construction firms, not the developers who will be paying for the rain delays.
King Ink strolls into town
He sniffs around
sniff sniff…
Bibiana? what’s fantastic about it? didn’t get the joke.
I’m a gay goalkeeper and I want the job.
NOW!
ah now ned ,now
come on
now ,ned
now
come on
no need for that
now
Some interesting numbers from the number-savvy Swiss Ramble suggesting Usmanov bid is a 33% premium over the quoted share price.
https://twitter.com/SwissRamble/status/865917357037936640/photo/1
But it still values the club at $2 billion which is what the club was reckoned to be worth by independent valuations that suggested the quoted share price undervalued the club considerably, probably because there isn’t really a market in the shares given there is only one buyer, Usamov, and no seller (until Kroenke changes his mind).
see 54
now
ned , now
no need
so there isn’t
Now, you see, cba, I was right. You are far too sensible to jump out of a plane while it is moving,
through the air,
at a great height
and at some speed.
see 56
if today wasn’t brew day ned
grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
oh yes
and no mistake
young fella me lad !
.
yeah
THAT’S YOU TOLD !
.
been on the tunes
and the buckets
and the demijohns
coincidentally
bitta nick just roared
anyhoo
where now
.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkWXguI4gHs
i dunno
there ye go
.
???????
one for steve T
*shudders*
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CAzwewVjZ0
.
Joey Ramone would never have cavorted like that
.
DIRTY BOY !
*’re-shudders*
mods, eh ?
complete pound o’ mince
nope
can’t imagine a mincey Joey
phew !
thank the lord god above
steve’s fingers
numbed by years of lambretta riding
and crease in the shirt and trouser getting
has prevented him from typing shit into youtube
http://vocaroo.com/i/s0E15KmpBjk8
typical
fuck all to say
more mods , eh ?
what can a body do ?
i don’t know
ladies and gentlemen
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlCiDEXuxxA
I made the pilgrimage yesterday to Rockaway Beach for the princely sum of $2.75 and that fecker, cba was nowhere to be seen…..
I’ll be in the Blind Pig tomorrow Paddy, if you want to join me, just a hop skip and a jump from Shannon…. 😎
number seventy two i love you
?????????
????????
wanna snort
haven’t cut it yet
standing at 78%
come on ya skirt wearin fucker
@76 – just make a donation to the Feelgood Foundation 😉
surrounded by you fuckers
near every day
me use of the word pal
has gone through the roof
as have yer lead stealing countrymen
the weegie bastas
.
i could explain
but i won’t
my heads wet
pal
the MIGHTY zico ?
.
as ned said
‘holic is a proper goodun
the dungflingincunt
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIZ2rRHn-SQ
i think i have watched this 20 times
she’s no weller rubbin himself like a weirdo
but she’ll do for me
she does however have a point ‘holic
should
god forbid
you retired
?
she’s no weller rubbin himself like a weirdo
A bit of self rubbing would have made it a much better videoPleasant tune.
cynic
the behaviour of that “mod” in his “musical video”
was not acceptable
i suggest young people turn their heads away
when “the modfather” disgustulates
the mighty Imelda
aaaahhhhhh
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoYWalppGEo
as the mighty zico said hello
anyone seen THE MIGHTY TABS ?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9TsAJt72t4
I was remiss not to give my thanks to you Holic for maintaining such an orderly bar in extremely frustrating circumstances. I hope you have fun with the Grand Holics tomorrow. I hope we all have fun for that matter!
now thunder T
he’s a good soldier
always erudite and polite
can’t wear all the hogwash , though
about loving Irish people
i am one and i can’t stand us
drinkmoandrinkmoan
.
*pre-moans*
*moans wholeheartedly*
*post moans*
i am but a few drinks
to
make
the
ton
i have a-level maths too
?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0Ujb6lJ_mM
feel better now
used to be called self-assisting
for all the imagery that conjures
well in cba
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aae_RHRptRg
now you , bt104
always liked you
sláinte
but i missed
england used to own you fellas
any tips to get rid of the clowns
we’ve tried everything
i still talk i mBéarla
ye seen the mods ?
bizarre old men with haircuts
the whole place is odd
i give it 4score and ten years
me old china
after that
nothing but fields
grass ones
‘holic
yer multiple post prevention system
may not be worth a fuck
.
see upwards
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxT8hQ9cHJA
perhaps my expectations should be lower
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPAs2LORKC8
pal
Evening CBA.
Shooby dooby dooby doorwap
Etc.
Moooooooo yerself.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJ9096U897k
one for chris in the aunty podes
i like chris
i do not like his situation
earthquakes o fuckin no
my kids share one desert boot between em
animals !
(the mods . not me kids . they’re all in their 20/30s .and let’s face it i’ve lost -cos – the all pervasive stench of woking has found their nostrils)
obviously i don’t talk to the arseholes
but
if any one of them hears 1 2 3 4 !
they remember whence they came
and the folly of their current musical fiasco abounds
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AO9-HWiYT4
.
Joey’s a bit mincey
AAAAHHHHHH
Absolutely loved this when I was at scholl and still do.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eq31LxmypjM
I was an oddment though, I liked mod, Ska, Gary Numan, Motorhead, T.Rex, and Harry Nilsson with a bit of Chairman of the Board, Jim Reeves and Mario Lanza on the side.
Not to menton Pinky and Perky.
Course if I hadn’t spent so much time listening to music I might have been able to learn to spell school and not refer instead to 1970s flip flops.
Which I hated.
cynic
can’t disagree with any of those (sorta)
only one
secret affair
watery pish
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5v5jviTEOaw
in my top ten of all time
i never ever asked ‘holic if it was ok to play songs here
ignorant
one for you cynic
one for you zico
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adjeb6TE4OY
one for soulman ‘holic
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ND4P-gy1PM
one for me
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_HK6-vE3jHk
May I suggest a …
Gumption to the Arse. Kwickly.
Soul Man. That’s a classic, cba. Thank you. My musical tastes range much wider however.
TTG, thank you. I can’t wait to see the boys later. Pizza for lunch today rather than Guinness. Imagine watching the match sober. ?
“My musical testes range much wider however”?! ☺️
Enjoy the day with the grandkids, ‘Holic. Whichever way the results go, you might need a Guinness or several after.
Here’s hoping money talks. A Watford win today could potentially double their Premiership prize money for final league position to £20 million. No such incentives for Everton or Middlesborough who will end up in the same position win, lose or draw today.
dear god
apologies ?
Little ones in tow H?
Always special. Have a great day.
Morning CBA.
Thank you for those kind words.
?
Now, where’s me parka????
aww jesus steve
as you well know
you are my fuckin favourite mod
bowling shoes and all
ya big fucker
?
still won’t have a weller record in the house
but that’s cos i’m a cantankerous oul goat
.
long may yer scooter vroooom
and yer haircut zoooom
a certain wee bollix in this house
i won’t name and shame the cunt
bought wildwood
couple o nights in the coalshed
soon cleared him of those notions
.
anyhoo
no more from me
.
UP THE ARSENAL
A team that was going to compete with Bayern, Barcelona and Real Madrid is praying Middlesbrough can get them into a qualifier for the Champions League.
Should have stayed at Highbury.
Have fun later, folks.
History not on our side, Cynic. Middlesboro haven’t won in their last 26 visits to Anfield. You have to go back to Oct 1976 and the old First Division for their last win there. Bob Paisley and Jack Charlton were the opposing managers then.
Kos sent off and misses the Cup Final
Two footer apparently but I’m not watching it so no idea.
Plenty of empty seats in the bar.
Such a wise decision by Sky to show Man City, there’s so much riding on that game and it was always going to be tough for them.
You cunts, Sky.
Europa here we come…!
Hope Alexis isn’t injured too badly.. he looks to be limping.
Loving Holding!
He should be in the first team.
Sun shining brightly at Twickenham as the rugby 7’s draw to a close.
Sat here enjoying a beer in the sunshine.
I wonder what Stanley is doing? Do you actually think he is that bothered???
Hope it is not a hammy for Alexis.
Kos will be a big loss for the cup final. I think he took his eyes off the ball and Valencia milked it to get Kos sent off. Lucky fucking Chelsea.
http://tinyurl.com/mdzwrye
😀
Ozil looks so tired. Need fresh legs.
David Dein has turned up in jeans, a grey jacket and round necked red pullover, with shirt underneath. He looks a proper fucking tramp. Even I dress better than that and I don’t have tens of millions of quid in the bank.
Scruffy bastard.
Is it too late for a Calum Chambers hat-trick?
Great goal. Ramsey makes up for all the times he gave the ball away.
We played really well today and looked way better than Everton even with a man down. I don’t know why we had a bad few weeks before this run of wins; cost us big time.
It will still be a great end to the season if we beat Chelsea in the cup finals.
Ozil played superbly in the build up to the equally good Ramsey goal. Despite being down to 10 men so early on and the horrific injury to Gabriel (who himself was having a fantastic game), the team rallied on well to win the game. So apparently 75 is the highest points tally to not get into the top four. Such an Arsenal thing to do!!
Kos will be a huge miss in the cup final. The subsequent injury to Gabriel might mean a back three of Mustafi, Holding and Nacho. Nacho not playing wingback really robs us of attacking flair on that flank. Big Mert played well after coming on today but I don’t think he will start the cup final. Just hope that Alexis is alright for the cup final. He did look distraught while coming off today. Even before the cup final begins,the odds are stacked against us. Just the kind of thing for Arsenal to thrive!!
P.S. – The usually good Michael Oliver didn’t have a great game today. Ashley Williams and Schneiderlin should both have had second yellows but he preferred to be lenient with them. It would have been great had his leniency been consistent and extended to Koscielny as well.
Lacazette confirmed verbal agreement with Atletico Madrid
Only saw the last 30 minutes but saw both Schneiderlin incidents and the second was worst than the first. Good Ramsey goal, and good last four games. Instead of the 67 points I predicted we would get after week 34 we ended up with 75 so at least we played all the way to the finish line. Now it is time to ring the changes and freshen up the stale air.
“I’ve turned down every club in the world to stay here.”
I’ll wager every penny I have, have ever had, and ever will have, that he hasn’t
James has gone the full Jack Duckworth in his On The Whistle video. Open shirt, singlet and gold chain? He makes David Dein look positively suave.
On my way home after the match. All went sadly very much as predicted but given the fact we were down to ten men early on we held on well. Kid deserved to be sent off and must have had a massive brain fart to go in like that.Gabriel had a brilliant game it I saw the agony he was in and he won’t play for some time.
Lots of positives today. The defence functioned well by and large and I hope Wenger plays Cech at Wembley. Holding was very good again and Bellerin ran his arse off. Welbeck worked hard and Ozil had a very effective game as did Sanchez. The set up for Ramsey’s goal was brilliant.
We’ve finished like we usually do but the squad still needs a lot of work especially in midfield. It’s a pity to miss out on the CL and I hope it doesn’t affect too much who we can sign.
Lastly lots of vitriol for Kroenke. I hope he was mortally offended and pissed off permanently.
Wenger out yet?
If two clubs get together before a game and agree to concoct an event during the game, that’s match fixing. It is irrelevant whether any bets were placed on it happening, it is an abuse of the game.
FA investigation into Sunderland and Chelsea please.
Worst performance I have seen Oliver give today. He was very inconsistent and let off players on yellow cards like Williams , Jagielka and Schneiderlin. But his time keeping was good.
The team finished very tired today, Ozil, Bellerin and Welbeck were cream crackered at the end. Kos looked fresh on the bench.
Apparently Chambers cannot play next week in the Cup Final for us. I presume he is Cup- tied . BFG did well given it was his first match back today although Lukaku was disappointing .
Watched our game on a stream and Pooh on the telly at the same time. Knew Citeh would win so just ignored that game.
In case anyome was wondering the ‘Boro really did give it a real go in the first half and should have been awarded a nailed on penalty…
As for us….Played very well against the team who have probably cost us our CL spot c/o their 2-1 comeback win at Goodison a few months ago. Said a the time we should have shut up shop, taken a point and got the hell outta dodge. Still what do I know ?
Also the anti-Kroenke chants came across loud and clear on the stream. Hope MOTD make mention of them.
Awaiting moderation ? What have I said now ???
Well, unlucky us and unlucky on
the holc pound GH.
Truly, i think the CL place was lost in
the first game of the season! A late
equaliser there and…….
Still, we were not going to win the
CL anyway and all that remains is sending the
Dear Gianni letter – shove your ropey league
league up your arse, we don’t play
on Thursdays.
In defeat malice.
Especially at 5AM in Japan 🙂
All very quiet in here this evening.
Everything ended up as the vast majority had predicted. Despite all the waffle there have been times this season have been incredibly poor. That coupled with all of the indecision have left us looking a tad rudderless.
I’ve not seen any football today and I really can’t face watching MOTD.
Time now to try and patch up the walking wounded and getting a competitive side out for next week. How we actually do that I’m really not that sure.
When there is only a point in it, there are multiple occasions you can look back on as the critical points dropped. For me, it was the Watford home game in January. Two soft goals conceded in the first 13 minutes and we didn’t get started until two thirds of the way through the first half. Gradually, we got going and I thought that once we got one goal back, we’d get three. But we only got one. And when Lucas’s potential equaliser crashed off the crossbar the season’s challenge seemed to go with it. And so it did, with just four points taken from the next five league games.
Losing Kos for the FA Cup final is a huge loss. Just a glum day all round.
Ned
I agree with you, the Watford performance was appalling and seemed to underline the problems at the club. We were pretty good at home for most of the season but had some awful away performances. Lots of changes need to be made. Wenger should be frustrated at finishing fifth, not try to represent it as progress because we have more points than last year.
I just have a feeling they hope that time will be a healer and that the fans will be more forgiving . While there is ( rightly) great affection for Wenger I feel,that most fans believe it is time for a change.
All 4 teams above us scored more goals than we did and conceded less. Says it all for me.
Predictably some are having a go at Oliver, but he just about got every decision right for mine. A quibble maybe about the Williams tackle deserving a second yellow, but hardly worth sending off. And little doubt about Kos getting red for the late slide in, even if only one foot made contact. I thought he’d got over such silliness this season.
Nice to win so comfortably, but Everton couldn’t defend for toffee. Hilarious tap in misses by Danny notwithstanding. How he starts ahead of OG remains a mystery.
Roll on next weekend and the ultimate humiliation of the season. After which the board will no doubt confirm their support for the incumbent manager for another eternity.
To see how far we have sunk in NL check the difference in GD with the neighbours … theirs nearly double ours. Embarrassing doesn’t come close to how I feel about that.
it is happening again
it is happening again
I’m with Chris on this one – cant see anything but a resounding Chelsea victory.
I was at Auckland airport a month or so ago and was wearing a “Redcurrant” final season at Highbury AFC shirt (something I rarely do).
A guy sitting in a waiting area said “Excuse me sir – I’ve been in China for a month and was wondering what the result was against Munich?”
He had the hideous smirk of a Spud supporter on his face.
For the first time in my life I had no retort.
Does AW know how far the humiliation travels ?
Next stop after NZ is the Antarctic – wouldn’t surprise me to learn that a spud supporting scientist has been taunting his gooner coleagues down there too.
So pleased this season is almost over.
I’ll be in England next week – too late for the cup final. Dont think I’ll pack an AFC shirt this time.
Just seen an English paper predicting “10 days of sun” as if that makes it the summer to end all summers.
Reminded me of the famous Times quote “Fog in Channel – Continent Isolated”
Lets hope temps dont rise above 70F – thems the kind of temperatures Jonny Foreigner enjoys!
On the plus side it may incline Alexis to stay.
Didn’t know about the Boro penalty / red card incident until I saw it on MOTD. Martin Atkinson, you are a class A twat.
To be fair though, I don’t think we can deny that Liverpool were more worthy of 4th place than we were. They beat us home and away, scored more, conceded less, and probably would have finished comfortably third if Mane had not gone to AFCON.
Look on the bright side, at least he didn’t mention the 75 point trophy. Instead he said every other club wanted him as manager. He followed up the “I’ll tell you in March or April” lie with “actually my situation ruined the season and atmosphere, I lied to you about that all along too”. If he doesn’t walk out now we can assume he was lying when he said he would have left in 2014 if we’d lost to Hull. But still people talk about all his class and decency. I’m not saying the rest of the club isn’t a disaster and mess too, but a lot of that is down to his empire and structure. No wonder he endorsed Kroenke. It’s clear to me the local board is in disarray and have realised way too late how much power they had delegated to the football manager. Massive crisis and rather extraordinary that Wenger is stirring it up even before the Cup Final, as if he feels he has no way of beating Conte and wants to blame everything on the toxic atmosphere in advance. COYG.
IF@182
Come to Japan – I’ve only met 1
spud here in 20 odd years!
Anyway, they’ve won nothing again
this season so fuck ’em.
The Beeb are reporting Mustafi a
doubt for Wembley.
Mert, Holding & Nacho wouldn’t
fill me with confidence. Maybe
attack would be the best form of
defence in that case.
Sc.
Football managers obviously don’t tell the media everything all the time. They routinely withhold information if they judge it is in the interests of their club to do so. Labelling this as ‘lying’ and complaining about it when it suits you, whilst most of the time as accepting it as a perfectly normal part of football, is inconsistent- at best.
“If he doesn’t walk out now we can assume he was lying when he said he would have left in 2014 if we’d lost to Hull.” Please explain how this follows?
Unfairly digging out Arsene is not helpful in my eyes. And unneccessary when there is so much stuff that he has done wrong that he can be fairly called on. I reckon @184 is a good example of how much our fanbase is hurting right now. And much of that is down to Arsene. There is a lot of negativity towards him and some people have had their fill. Fair enough. It’s clearly a bad situation. We won’t get any clarity until after the Cup final. Hopefully when we know what’s happening we can all start to move on.
Until then, i’m having a cuppa, there’s a drink of choice for Sc on the bar, and for anyone else who wants one.
P.S. As the injuries mount and odds stack further against us is anyone else starting to get a good feeling about next week?
IF @181
What happened there then? Was the prospect of agreeing with Chris so difficult to swallow that you had to make a subtle shift to your moniker? Isn’t that what they call ‘plausible deniability’?
?
GSD – well spotted.
A mistake.
Mine.
ALL MINE.
I have no problem agreeing with Chris when I do.
Usually I dont of course.
He’s likely to be proved correct on Cup Final day I think.
Of course, I hope we are both wrong.
Arsene not the same guy as 20 years ago.
Thats OK though – none of us are.
For the first time in my entire life I am losing interest in Arsenal.
Might be me.
Might be Arsenal.
Chris is entirely innocent in this instance.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
GSD, thanks for the drink, I wouldn’t normally imbibe on a Monday morning but the footy would drive a man to it. I respect your view and I even note Fergie thinks Wenger has been harshly treated. However, I stand over my comments about dishonesty and I think the accusation is fair for the 3 yarns I mentioned. He also gets outraged if the Press report even minor inaccuracies. He’s a very intelligent man but I feel he takes us all for mugs. And do you know what, I hate the excuses he constantly trots out too. And don’t get me going about moving the goalposts in terms of his own performance benchmarks.
GSD, please, please wake up here. He’s been biting his lips about fans all season and now he is utterly putting the boot in and even refusing to join in the lap of “honour”. I really feel for the faithful who travel and spend so much. It’s disgusting actually. Every week he told us the fans are fine and it’s up to the team to get the fans onside. Now this. His latest excuse du jour. But what’s actually quite insulting is we all know FULL WELL that his team collapsed before the fans got really upset. The Watford, West Brom and Bayern games for example. Is he saying the atmosphere was terrible when we were still winning up to Christmas, of course not. The fans were fine as they are every year until the wheels come off, at the same time every year. So in blaming the atmosphere rather than results he is putting the cart before the horse.
Finally, I don’t have a good feeling for next week. We’ve won a good few games, but many of the teams were on their holliers. Look at the middle of that run when we faced a team up for it, ie, Spuds. Chelsea will be up for it. Yes we like Wembley and the big pitch but if the wheels come off even slightly, we’ll revert to type I fear and ship a 4-1 or 5-1 defeat. We also have to accept that the improvement of late was Wenger changing the system too late and we’re down two main men in that system. Hope the further news about Mustafi is premature as the Mert doing 90 mins doesn’t bear thinking about on the wide open spaces of Wembley. COYG.