Derby Triumph To Be Followed By Rare Old Trafford Victory?
Dec 4th, 2018 by 'holic
I have quite the act to follow this evening. GSD’s outstanding record of derby day was a thoroughly enjoyable read. I don’t mind admitting I would far sooner carry on with recollections of a memorable Sunday which lifted the spirits again after a dark couple of days. Many thanks to all for the socialising and The Arsenal for well and truly turning up on the big day.
Unfortunately we have no time to breathe before locking horns with an old adversary, or two you might say. Jose Mourinho and Manchester United. Alexis Sanchez is ‘injured’ and missing the reunion but will Henrikh Mkhitaryan be given the opportunity to shine against his old club?
It would appear be a good time to play an inconsistent United. They lie eight points and three places below us following their come-from-behind draw against Southampton on Saturday. However despite extending our unbeaten run to nineteen matches on Sunday Mourinho was not lying when he observed,
“We will have a very difficult match. They are a good team who have had a good run of results, but in spite of our selection issues they know it won’t be easy either.”
He understands United had an extra night’s sleep after the Saints match than the visitors and knows how difficult it may be for the Gunners to repeat the level of performance that comfortably did for the Middlesex Nomads.
We are forced into at least two changes by the injury to Skhodran Mustafi and the suspension of Granit Xhaka. With only two match-fit central defenders it seems certain that we will revert to a flat back four in front of Bernd Leno. Hector Bellerin, Socrates Papastathopoulos, Rob Holding (you know, he’s better than Cannavaro!), and Sead Kolasinac.
Matteo Guendouzi appears to be ahead of Mohamed Elneny in the pecking order and can expect to partner the seemingly regular man of the match award winner, Lucas Torreira, ahead of them. The place vacated by Mustafi should allow Alexandre Lacazette to return to lead the attack.
If there are just the two changes that means Mkhitaryan and Alex Iwobi will be contesting the right-flank and central creative roles, and Pierre-Emerick-Aubameyang reverting to his dual role of left-sided striker with free license to join his friend Lacazette when we are attacking down the right. Having said that Aaron Ramsey’s performance on Sunday will have given Unai Emery food for thought.
The ‘holic pound
I’m going to sound a bit like a broken record. So close was I to making good money on Sunday that I am once again, third match running in fact, on a 2-3 Gunners triumph. I like the look of the 25/1 against that. We look capable of raising our game against the top sides as we showed against Liverpool and Tottenham, and almost Chelsea. United have their own problem with Defensive injuries and big name players not performing consistently.
We have shown a vulnerability to the ball lumped up to Fellaini but hopefully in Sokratis we have a tough central defender who will not allow him unhindered access to the ball.
What a remarkable performance it would be to take a maximum of the Nomads and Mourinho in the same week. Just do it, Gunners.
132 Responses to “Derby Triumph To Be Followed By Rare Old Trafford Victory?”
Cheers H.
I like the sound of 3-2. It would be great for Unai to get off to a winning start in away fixtures against Manure, which have given us so little for a long time.
Although another 4-2 would be also be lovely!
Welcome back Guvna! I never like this game and we have a poor record there. Let us hope we have enough in the tank for what will be a very physical game .
Sunday was such a tonic for the club and I believe a point would be a good result. I see Mourinho packing the midfield and he us with Martial’s pace. If we play two at the back Kolasinac is not anything like as effective as a full back , in fact neither is Bellerin. I think we can get a point and will do so in a 1-1 draw.
Ball lumped up to Mourinho H?
Chance would be a fine thing to kick him in the ‘nads
So desperate for us to get a league win up there – its been far too long.
UTA
hope all’s going well for you, ‘holic, and you had time to temper your mourning with cebration this weekend.
gsd, a belated well done from me on your post. that was a fun read. the various patrons of the bar were well sketched, and we saw the same game. regarding the patrons, i half expected to see owen (from “planes, trains, and automobiles”) make an appearance: https://youtu.be/dbgOACJpZg0?t=23
as for wednesday, i’d like to see, if he’s back, monreal as a third center back, with hector and sead as wingbacks. ramsey, guendozi, and torreira behind laca and auba.
we’re going to be on a down swing of energy to start this one, due to the exertions of sunday (whattaya think of TOTTENHAM???), so keeping it tight and controlled first half is a must. then we can spank them second half. that said, if we come out and get our three in the first ten minutes, i’ll take it (as long as we can hold them to two, max, the rest of the 90).
I’d like to see Jose select himself up front so Sokratis could clean him out.
I’d also like to see ALL of the Utd. players kneeling when we take free kicks – just as a mark of respect.
2-1 with Laca and Auba on the scoresheet.
UTA
‘Just do it, Gunners’. Amen to that.
Great stuff H.
To give old Maureen a shoeing after Sunday would truly be a thing of beauty. There have been several pundits who suggested 6 weeks ago that our unbeaten run was because we hadn’t really played anyone. Well, a result tomorrow night would have a few of them over indulging on humble pie. Hopefully it would signal an end to the career of the massive Cock Womble that is Tim Sherwood as a pundit.
3 nil to the mighty Gunners, with Maureen to break a toe kicking the water bottles.
Dr z, I can’t even blame the spillchucker for that! Amateur. ?
Thanks Guvna. Food for thought on the
team selection but i read Mustafi is fit
so I’m guessing we’ll start with the
3 CBs, keep it tight and take a 1-0 win.
Nice one, Guvnah.”Just do it, Gunners”, indeed.
Only one thing to argue with – You can ALWAYS blame the spillchucker. Amateur!!!
COYG CCMUED
Fine preview H but I like scruz’s team selection and Steve T’s prediction.
Meantime, it being dinner hour here, I am adapting the Torreira song for for my immediate needs.
Mangiare, Oa Oa,
Mangiare …
That is all, but will also add my appreciation for gsd’s match selection if not his pub selection. 😉
My starting team for tonight would
be the same as started against Spuds
except Guendouzi for Xhaka.
I wouldn’t risk Nacho or Ozil as it’ll
be easier to bring them back against
Huddersfield. And although he played
well against Spurs I wouldn’t want to start with
Kola as left back away from home,certainly
not with Auba in front of him.
We haven’t won at OT in the League since 2006 and only once since 2002. A win is long overdue. Emmanuel Adebayor was the last scorer of a winning league goal for us there.
Time, too, for Emery to break his duck against Mourinho. He has lost four of his five games against the less-than-Special one, and drew the other one, all league games in Spain between Sevilla or Valencia and Real Madrid, including a 3-6 defeat at the Mestalla in 2011.
Time for some revenge for Unai
too then Ned 🙂
Smash the Mou !
12 years and counting in the league and we haven’t beaten them, so does not install any confidence in me to suggest we will win, so draw it is for me.
We can, of course, rewrite the script and for that, we would need to believe in our heads that we can. Last season we were impressive till the end when we allowed Fellaini to score off a corner, this season don’t expect anything else in the way they will play. United and that so and so manager of theirs will fancy their chances again basically because, they know our mindset in these games, we just dont seem to believe we can beat them and that is their impetus.
We will miss Xhaka, he dictates the pace of our play, Guendouzi and Ramsey to play in a 4-4-3 formation? Will this mean no Ozil again? We need to have Pierre play wide and include Laca, so the front 3 can be Laca, Pierre and maybe Mhki/iwobi. I still think we should play Mesut.
United will play hoof ball again to lukaku and fellaini, can we ensure we are strong enough to defend? yet another test for our little superstar in the midfield as he will be literally tiptoed by herrera or someone else.
Arsenal needs to win this to make it a fantastic run in but more importantly, change the script of we being unable to beat those jokers at the old toilet. Can we outscore them ala sunday again?
Mustafi fit? That changes things. Bugger!
Fine preview Guvna. Impressed as ever that you’ve got your head around the next match. I’m still reeling from Sunday’s magnificent display. Hopefully Unai has the players’ feet on the ground and focused on the task in hand tonight.
As Gordon Strachan (for obvious reasons, one of my favourite wee fellas, now of course well behind Wee Torry) once said, “The longer a run goes on, the closer it gets to its end!” It’s time to end this run of ‘no league wins’ at the Old Toilet. There’s never been a better time to do it and we may never get the opportunity to (figuratively speaking) kill two reptiles with one stone.
A win tonight would be a quite magnificent statement of this team’s potential after the fine victory on Sunday. It’ll take a monumental effort after Sunday but ….
As the Guvna says, “Just do it, Gunners!”
Go win, Arsenal.
What a day on Saturday, one of the best Derby’s I have seen in my 60 years as a travelling Gooner, the first was at WHL in the 59/60 season when there was no segregation and no trouble .
I think our chances at OT will largely depend on whether we can field a back 5 as on Saturday and only need to replace Granit with Matteo or possibly with Rambo. I don’t fancy Kola as a LB and prefer Iwobi to Mhki .
No doubt Maureen will have the dreaded Fellaini ready to annoy us from the bench so I hope the 3 CDs stand tall as they did on Saturday.
Hoping for a narrow win but not at all confident, 2-2 ?
COYR
Mustafi fit?
A punchline in search of a joke, if ever there was one.
Welcome back, “holic. Most interesting aspect of your match preview was no mention of Ozil, and just a nod to the “injured” Sanchez. How these two have gone from first names on a team sheet to where they are today is something to behold.
nice article by barney ronay on the arsene-unai transition (https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2018/dec/05/arsene-wenger-unai-emery-arsenal) including this gem:
“Aubameyang…was a striking contrast with…Harry Kane in his current mode, which involves spending a lot of time walking backwards, reaching out with his hands for someone to grapple and spin off, like a man in search of the bathroom light switch late at night.”
?
Would Leno be up to this?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/av/football/46453844
They wouldn’t have to arrest me on suspicion of throwing a pie at Crystal Palace players because they would know I had done it. Fox in the Box is what I am.
https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11741/11572415/brighton-fan-arrested-on-suspicion-of-pie-throw-at-crystal-palace-players
It sounds like the Brighton fan didn’t even come close to hitting the target. Probably wanted to feed the squirrels next to the stand.
Re: scruz @21.
Good article that inspires a new acronym, AKBIAMSW.
Arsene knew best in a most surreptitious way. 😉
who the fu*k is Diogo Dalot?
Guendouzi for Xhaka, Ramsey
for Mhiki are the only 2 changes
to the starting XI.
leno, bellerin, mustafi, socratis, holding, kola, torreira, guendouzi, ramsey, iwobi, and auba. it’ll be interesting how the front five line up, i’d imagine a 2-3 with the wingbacks up, but i’d like to see laca in for iwobi if we’re not firing on all cylinders and run as a 2-1-2…with the wingbacks up.
no monreal on our bench, no pogba or lukaku in their starting 11. interesting.
COYG!
Cheers H!
COME ON YOU ARSENAL!
Old toilet flushing time coming on.
COME ON!!!!!!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JRJ5vz7paE
Interesting to see tge first half team that Unai changes to devastating effect at half-time. He is clearly viewing Ramsey as a very useful option and should Aaron hit a purple patch ( and he was excellent on Sunday ) there might yet be no Ramsey Brexit. But maybe I’m over- fanciful ?
Thanks Scruz for the Ronan article. I don’t often buy the Grauniad but he writes beautifully and makes a lot of contrarian points. Has Wenger left the sort of legacy George left him or has Emery made a silk purse out of a sow’s ear? The truth probably lies in the middle somewhere. Wenger did beat the Totts in a stirring game last November- he also fashioned a fine performance at OT in a game decided by Fellaini getting his head on a long punt right at the end .
This game will tell us much . I think it will be a very difficult match.
ttg, you’re welcome. i enjoyed reading i today. i agree, somewhere in the middle, but not just at the first team level. the whole apparatus of the arsenal is resplendent with arsene’s touches, and unai is going to be making the best of a good situation.
it will be a difficult match, though if it’s not going to be (hope, hope, hope) we should know pretty quickly. i’d love to see us hit them hard and quickly.
“Just do it, Gunners!” as the Guvna requests.
Go win, Arsenal.
U Reds
Do it Arsenal
Come on you rip roaring!
Get innnnnnnn
Get in, Mustafi!!!!
get in you mustaphic gunner. that was sweet, i do love me a de gea error.
An away goal at Man Utd is such a rarity, can only hope they defend it properly.
laughing while drinking
ha ha ha ha haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
not a fucking foul, ya pratt.
Bollocks!!!
Scruz,
Another dive!
we fell asleep after the save. what was that?
Shitttttt, already equalized.
and it was an offside goal, of course. fuck old trafford.
Bloody VAR, another mistake, Herrera was offside no?
Manure goal was offside.
now holding down with a knee injury. argh!
now holding being stretchered off. of course.
Now Holding is injured! Come on let’s dig in deep!
Holding is out injured and Lichsteiner is going to replace him. His injury is nothing serious I hope.
lichtsteiner on.
Mustafi why slide in like that!
hi, arthur, btw. a bit of whistlepig rye for you…
Should have seen a fucking red for that!!!
bad, bad, bad & bad
that’s trafford for ya
rojo should have been sent off.
ugly game right now. i hope a manc gets two yellows and off.
Evening Scruz, a shot of some bizon vodka for you sir….
Those Mancs are a dirty bunch!
now aaron is down. jaysus.
Romero cleans out Gwen and grins and Lingard chops Torreira, Matic pulls Auba to the ground, a clear pattern there of circular fouling. Lucky fuckers, these mancs.
Jesus we are going to have to play with 10 if we keep on like this….
cheers, arthur! seriously dirty bunch. they even got rojo pulling auba down on film, but no second yellow.
Rashford hits the ball and goes down like a sack of potatoes!
brutal first half. i hope unai can work his magic, and we come out for the second half per usual this season and whack ’em.
Prick dove right outside the box, wtf, did he get breathed on? We should boss this in the 2nd half. COYG.
Awful game that, so far.
Need to wake our ideas up a bit second half.
Rojo subject to retrospective sanction for that lunge?
i don’t think so, bt. he got yellowed.
Manc goal offside by a very clear head
Martial dives to get the free kick and then Herrera is offside!! The number of times Man Uts get plain lucky against us is unbelievable.
Dean and Marriner for two big games – they really pick them out for Arsenal games. Man Utd clearly have entered under instructions by the odius one to rough us up. The most pathetic bit of refereeing was to book Bellerin after petulant appeals from United players. They were pointing out that Bellerin should be booked just because Lingard was booked a minute earlier – of course disregarding the fact that Lingard had accumulated four or five fouls by then. It would not be a surprise to see either side go down to ten men although we would be favorites because of the petulance of united players and the ref getting shaky by the crowd noise and boos.
Big second half coming up. The injury to Holding has used up one substitution from Emery and one hopes Ramsey can run off his knock. These united players will dive, foul and do everything that qualifies as the Dark Arts – this will be another test for this team. COYG
upside down first half
don’t like it
bad smell
If this was an Arsenal player doing what Rojo did he would shown him a red he bottled it!
Come on the Rojo serious second yella then.
We didn’t get going until 20mins into the half then looked comfortable on the ball once we scored . Their equaliser was off-side and then all hell broke loose, nasty tackles going in from both sides and cards handed out like sweets.
Holding’s knee injury did not look good and it looks as though Rambo might well need to be subbed. Cool heads are needed second half, anything could happen.Let’s hope we collect ourselves and put on one of our second half rallies.
COYR
I watch footy on Polish Sports channel commentators said straight red!
Miki on
That was not a good watch. Let’s have one of our now traditional much improved second half performance.
Their goal. Not a foul for fk. Offside, albeit marginally, and that is never going to be given every time so I’m not too upset with the lino. Iwobi should be getting back and blocking the cross. Instead he ambles back and does not slide for it. Holding unlucky but also has to stop that cross.
If we concede rubbish like that life is always gonna be hard.
UTA
It was superb from our away fans at the stadium to chant “Jose Mourinho We Want you to Stay” after we scored our goal.
How on earth is that not a flipping corner?
come on wolves, southampton, and burnley!!
Scruz I was just about to say that!
great minds, arthur 🙂
also COYG!
To say I am not enjoying this game would be an understatement….
Arsenal wake up!
Not Torriera! FFS
We need Laca on!
Why we show them so much respect?? Laca should come on and push them back
We are falling like nine pins, first Torreira ( lucky he stayed on) and then Kola feeling his leg.
Laca getting ready to come on for Iwobi.
Now Mustafi is hobbling. Will we have all eleven on at the end?
I’ve seen this movie before and it doesn’t end well
Get in Laca
Laca!!!!
Should of been another yellow for Rojo!
On the hand great goal!
WTF!!!!!!!!!!
Equal already, what’s happening?
i can’t even.
What is it with these injuries?????
The injuries and changes have thrown us out of our stride.
2-2 ???
At times we really don’t help ourselves.
on the other hand the holic pound is still on.
Speechless!
oooh, miki so close. and auba before.
Fellaini’s going to score the winner isn’t he.
Watching this from behind the sofa
i can’t take it anymore
this is beyond
oooh, auba.
countryman, and from between my fingers.
Slack, careless defending undid two away goals, tragic.
I need more beer on a school night 🙁
come on you gooners!!! one more goal, and hold them!!
much as i hate him as a coach, it’s good to see sir alex in the stands looking so healthy after his medical issues.
We look funerable to crosses ,my nerves are in shreads.
Sunday obviously knackered us mentally as well as physically. We didn’t need United as opposition tonight
Wolves beat Chelski!
Come on the pound
We are looking a bit jaded now.
Need to put our foot on it and compose ourselves.
Nothing silly now please boys.
man u timewasting? whoda thunk it.
Fellani is a proper cunt!
should be a yellow for hairpulling on fellaini.
COME ON YOU BLOODY GUNNERS!
oooh, but for that being offside. beautiful from miki.
Fuck it, 2:2 it is, the run goes on
Thank fuck that’s over.
We move on. Fingers crossed for our injured lads.
Marriner is a proper cunt
Not unhappy with a point to be honest.
At least we didn’t lose but we were done in by the ref/linesman and Manure were clearly lucky.
damn. good point, but god their goals were the result of defensive lapses. still, much better than it would have been at the start of the year.
Well……….
I’ll take the draw, however a BIG fucking however….
Despite their offside we relaxed too much yet again I have seen that too much under Wenger
Unai has done a splendid job so far!
and Mariner has bottled it!
Scrappy sort of game and not a good watch. At least our run continues and I did forecast the correct score (18).
We may need Kos for Saturday.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Lest anyone missed it, Chelsea lost to Wolves. We’re level on points with them, behind on GD.
Thought we should have won that but in the end grateful to have got away with a draw.
They were there for the taking, feel gutted because both the goals were conceded because of our own mistakes (and the ref’s) and not some good piece of football from them. They did not threaten us much even towards the end of the game and we clearly had the better chances even at that stage despite having played a day later than United. Anyway a draw is better than us thumping them because it will keep Moaninho in the job for longer.
This fantastic unbeaten run continues for us, and it means that the next game becomes all the more important. Emery will have to alert the team against complacency in the Huddersfield game after two high intensity games against tougher opposition.