Guest Tales – Snowy – You Should Have Been There
Jun 21st, 2015 by 'holic
My output in the months of June and July down the years hasn’t been great. For a blogger who doesn’t enjoy the speculative nature of what would constitute news at this time of year I have decided the answer is the odd comment piece and a bit of history. Already one of ours, Snowy (good man!), has contributed two posts in the wake of another long season. Please find another fine piece from the same author who is digging me out of a deep hole as far as content is concerned this month. Thanks Snowy, it’s much appreciated.
Football, it has been noted, is a funny old game. So now that we have scores of TV cameras at every match, pre- and post-match interviews, the fan-generated clips on YouTube, plus all manner of footage from the team coach to the dressing room to the Tunnelcam, you may quite reasonably imagine that we can see absolutely every second of everything going on during every funny old game, should we choose to.
Certainly there’s a great deal of the rather dreadfully termed ‘content’ that global media companies use to persuade the audience they’re actually there. But it’s far from the whole story. Outside the formal coverage, the awkward ‘fan-terviews’ and the beery sing-songs captured on mobile phones, there’s a whole host of things to see every matchday that are completely ignored by the TV ‘eye’. Yet they are every bit a part of the matchday experience as their slick, HD-ready cousins.
Touchline ‘wildebeest’
It may not always be caught on camera, but the area around the pitch on matchday is generally teeming with professional snappers and their hefty bags of mysterious gadgetry, alongside Stewards, presenters, ballboys, ballgirls and flag wavers. Mainly trying to get out of each other’s way.
At the larger grounds this herd assumes the majestic Attenborough-documentary proportions of a perfectly-choreographed Serengeti. But at other places it’s more of a third rate wildlife park with a couple of bored antelope that’s quite rightly about to be closed down. I know the wildebeest all have ‘proper’ jobs in the matchday circus, but for the crowd their only real role is to stop the occasional rocket seemingly destined for Row Z with their face. Generally to a cheerful ‘wahay’ from the crowd on the very rare occasions when one does.
Bored goalies
If there’s not an amusing montage somewhere on YouTube of the stuff keepers get up to when they’re bored and they think no-one’s watching, then there ought to be. The bouncing side to side along their line. The arm slapping. The star jumps. The running on the spot when it’s especially cold. In fact, most games will also yield a moment or two of more obvious comedic potential, be it bumping into a post, fumbling with a water bottle, or trapping their hand in the net while stowing their towel.
Over the years I’ve come to better appreciate the matchday contribution of the bored goalie, because in a particularly dull 90 minutes it’s sometimes the only real entertainment we get.
The half time warm up
While those of you who are plugged into the TV coverage are forced to suffer the half time platitudes of tedious, barely housetrained pundits, those of us at the game are either in the bar, in the bogs, or sat in the seat we paid for but have been defiantly ignoring by standing up for the previous 45 minutes.
I’ve long since given up trying to join a half time queue when hundreds of others are trying to do the same. So if I’m not chatting to whoever’s sat next to me I’ll watch whoever’s been on the bench warming up. Mostly it’s what you’d expect – moderately interesting drills and skills from the young and the recuperated. However at least once in every season you get a chance to see something exquisitely rare and beautiful.
For me last term it was Alexis at Villa, tucked away in his own quiet corner of the pitch performing such beguiling flicks and tricks it was impossible to look away. I have no idea how long I was watching in real time, as it was almost like space-time itself was being messed with. So at its best the half time warm up is an unforgettably mesmerising window into the world of a football genius at their craft. And even when it’s just a kick about between Shad and the recently lame, it still trumps any half time Zorb race or fan penalty shoot out. Every. Single. Time.
First timers
Of all the generally under-noticed sights this will always be my favourite. On every matchday someone, somewhere, is attending their very first game. Every match-going supporter has been there once, and we almost always look back on it with incredible fondness.
Those who have not yet been to their first game may well ask how you can tell, since it’s not like first timers are given L-plates at the turnstiles. But they do wear a sign of sorts, and if you look carefully you can’t really miss it. There’s always someone somewhere trying to hide the butterflies we mostly all feel before the match, but being given away by that unmistakable wideness of their eyes.
Here and there you spot them as the stands fill. Someone looking around at everyone and no-one, taking it all in. An earnest explanation being given to an attentive child. A wise old hand pointing patiently to some feature in the ground or something important in the programme. And sometimes, just sometimes, you’re lucky enough to catch someone’s eye as they sing for the first time as a fully-fledged member of the matchday choir, belting out their contribution to that glorious rumble you hear in your chest, and which at its best will leave a smile so wide it feels like it’s joining up again at the back of your head.
Beneath the perfectly groomed and sometimes characterless veneer of the modern game, there remains a colourful seam of real matchday life that’s still completely unretouched. It’s the last part of football that’s so far been left alone by those who’ve sanitised, homogenised and monetised every other aspect of the game, and every part of me is glad of that – for me it’s the very soul of the game.
So these are a few of my favourite matchday things (aside from Arsenal victories) what are yours?
Editors note – Feel free to share them with us. It will be a long summer! However, those who offer me sponsored content every day, there is a reason you don’t get a response. Cheers.
74 Responses to “Guest Tales – Snowy – You Should Have Been There”
The first-timers fascinate me too. Every do often I meet one at Arsenal , usually they are below the age of ten and you know they are going to go through one of the most formative experiences in his or her life. The awe and wonder if football can still dazzle and delight. Many come from abroad but whatever it is a wonderful moment.
I spent most of my first game at Highbury wondering if it was a dream. At some clubs nightmare would be more appropriate.
Nice work again Snowy
I will wear an L-plate the first time I go…no doubt.
happy Father’s Day to all the fathers out there. and a drink to holicdad!
To me, this is so far the best site that talks of arsenal.
Great read, Snowy. 🙂
Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers and especially all the ones with pre-teen daughters because I know you are out there. 🙂
Wonderful read, Snowy. There is truly nothing like being at a game. TV spends a lot of time manufacturing excitement but there is no substitute for the real thing.
It’s not an Arsenal thing but when I watch local football the half time stuff usually consists of subs showing exactly why they’re not in the team, by blasting shots well wide of an empty net, while the groundsman moans at them if they dare to step into the six yard box, as they might churn up the goal mouth.
Proper football that, none of this ball juggling shit.
Hehe 😉
Nice one, Snowy.
Very nice Snowy.
I miss Constable Morgan chucking his baton about.
Well played Snowy.
My most vivid memory of my first game at Highbury was wondering why I couldn’t hear the commentator.
Morning,
Just in case anyone was wondering “what’s happening with this Petr Cech thingy?” The one person who you would probably not give two effs about (JT- ow’s ya wife?), has been quoted today as saying the following:
“There’s talk of Arsenal signing Petr Cech and, if they do get him, he will strengthen them for sure. He will save them 12 or 15 points a season,”
“Petr was an unbelievable professional last year. When you get left out of the team it can be hard to accept but, when he came in [to the side], he was exceptional.
“He deserves a lot of credit for that. We understand he wants to play first-team football but nobody wants to see him leave the club.
“He’s going to be sorely missed and will improve any side he goes to.”
Make of it what you will, that’s of course if you wish!
😉
another cracker post
ye’ve some proper big guns in yer arsenal , ‘holic
cheers both of ye
Nice one, snowy.
That’s Constable Alex Morgan to you, tabs.
Ah, the old marching band. Now that would be good to see again.
I suppose the marching band petered out as hooliganism increased and the police were needed on more urgent business. Must have got tricky trying to break up fights with all those instruments to carry.
Nice one Snowy!
When I was little I used to go to see Orient quite a lot. The catering was not good- you all know the drill.
So, at half-time me and my mates used to get the only two things we considered safe to buy from the alarmingly rickety refreshment shack- a hot chocolate and a mars bar. The hot choc was a scoop of cheap choco-powder covered by water so hot it tried to evaporate out of the Styrofoam cup (which became unbearably hot to hold in seconds).
We would carefully transport our precious cargo back to our seats where we would open the mars bar and dip it into the hot chocolate, allowing a few seconds for the alchemy to work and then stuffing our cold, pink faces with the hot melty-gooey caramel-nougat sludge. It often made up for the 45 minutes of awful football that typically preceded it.
When I look back on those matchdays the half-time ritual was just as important as anything else. Cheers for the nudge down memory lane Snowy- those were happy times.
At half time at Highbury we were, despite the growing hooligan problem, encouraged to throw coins.
Four of the ground staff would do a lap of the pitch carrying with them an open collection blanket, held at each corner, for people in the crowd to toss coins into for charity. Just imagine preparing to throw coins inside The Emirates today !
Only this season have the catering staff been allowed to leave tops on bottles of water for you to take to your seat. This because it was previously felt that you might throw the full bottle at opposing fans. It seemed to make no difference that those fans are about 150 yards away on the other side of the stadium and that you would be in Olympic training if you were capable of throwing anything that far.
But back to the blanket. On it’s way round, the blanket would pass a wooden scoreboard made up of lettered sections that corresponded to lettered matches printed in the programme (sorry, “your match day magazine”). At half time a man would post wooden score tiles into each section thus revealing the half time scores at all the other games. No such thing as jumbo screens then. Nowadays, there are so few games ever happening at once that the whole thing would have been a bit redundant.
Charity blankets and wooden score boards – all considered whilst chomping through a bag of the always fondly remembered “PEANUTS !!!”
*it is possible I have confused the charity blanket with my childhood days at Underhill, Barnet FC. It was a long time ago.
I believe it was at Arsenal but it’s all football anyway.*
Should have prefaced @15 with “Back in the days of Constable Alex Morgan and the marching police band”.
In case anybody cares, I’m hearing reports that Cech is undergoing a medical and Sky Sports reckon terms between club and player has now been agreed.
A fee between the clubs is still said to be unconfirmed.
Remember the “PEANUTS, GET YER ROOOOASTEEED PEANUTS” bloke, also the scoreboard, Trev. No memory of the blanket though.
In the early 80’s there was the “Make Money with Arsenal” chicks.
Always a HT highlight for my pubescent self.
There were many times on the North Bank where Constable Morgan’s handling was more assured than the goalkeeper, especially in the days of Jim Furnell!
There was something altogether more exciting and satisfying about the trip to Arsenal when I was a lad even though the football could be excruciating. I put up with a lot more discomfort and inconvenience then. My wife was amused on my return from Wembley after our glorious victory that my first remarks were to complain that I paid £90 to stand throughout the match. Football needs a certain earthiness to be enjoyed to the full but not too much for old gits like me.
I too remember the comely Make a Money with Arsenal wenches but had promised Mrs TTG that I would not look at other women. But I did treat myself to the odd packet of peanuts. I also remember being bought a Rum and Blackcurrant in the old bar at the back of the North Bank after a match and thinking it tasted like nectar.
Nostalgia isn’t what it used to be!
Mail claiming Cech deal is done.
Nothing on official sites (yet) though.
H2 H
It’s the Mail!
Apparently they are claiming tomorrow is Tuesday too
Scumbags
Heh TTG.
Agreed. You’ll see I refused to post a link to that waste of space rag.
Oi, ttg !
That wasn’t Janet from the Isle of Thanet with the Rum and Ribena was it ?
Clever Trevor. 😉
Whatever about the mail, I note Bob Wilson has just tweeted “excited about signing of @PetrCech by Arsenal. A truly great goalkeeper joining a truly great club”.
A pretty solid endorsement I’d say.
Great stuff again Snowy.
Just saw that Joe.
Looks like it’s done then.
Nice article Snowy. No matter how good the TV coverage has become over the years ( commentary / punditry excluded), a stadium match day experience always wins hands down.
Back in the days the Metropolitan Police Band with Constable
Alex Morgan with his tenor voice and the marching brass band was as good as it got….waiting for the band leader to drop his twirling baton – which he never did. They marched up & down across the invariably muddy pitch making it even more unplayable when they finished. Meanwhile dashing down to the latrines at HT for a leak trying not to inhale the stench of free flowing urine sloshing around the floor. If still time grab a cup of hot bovril on a cold winters day and Percy Dalton’s monkey nuts ( ooh er missus ).
Then waiting for the other HT scores to come in and manually put up on the boards at each corner ( massive cheers would reverberate around the ground if the swampies were losing ). Yes, Fings Ain’t What a They a Used To Be 🙂
Yes H2H- I can’t see Bob Wilson going public with something like that given his knowledge and standing at the club unless its done. And if it is true I’ll be delighted. I think Cech would be a great signing.
Me too sir, me too.
Me three!
Ooooooooospina!
It seems like it was only yesterday…well, it was.
Now it’s Ceeee#*?ch??
Maybe I’m wrong but I don’t like this, not one bit.
Why now?
Last gasp for champions league, maybe?
OK then. Go for it.
Uply: waiting for the band leader to drop his twirling baton – which he never did.
Say it ain’t so. I’m sure I heard that the drum major used to drop his mace (baton, forsooth!) about once a season. I don’t think I ever saw it myself, mind. Next thing you’ll be telling me it was a plot by my big brother to get me to shut up and concentrate on watching the marching band.
COYG
He did drop it.
Not too often, but it definetly happened. Pretty much a highlight of the early 80’s. 😉
SSY.
A proven world class player joining in us in a position that definetly needs strenghtening.
What’s not to like?
BUT….
He’s not with us yet.
Lose the cycling helmet son.
H2H
A proven world class CHELSEA LEGEND player joining in us in a position that definetly needs NO strenghtening.
I like stealing the young ones but this is a hardcore transfer.
Not like Welnick from the tubes to the dead.
So, the summer transfer ‘check’ list so far –
Tomas Rosicky option taken up – Czech
New goalkeeper signed – Cech
Is it on dot com yet – go and check.
Pangloss…never did see him drop it ( in the 60s & 70s ) but reliable sources here verify otherwise. Being a part of the “swinging 60s” a marching police brass band with a singing tenor was a bit too square for me then. One looks back with a more nostalgic eye nowadays.
Trev…..Chav$ki waiting for the cheque. Personally I hope this rumour doesn’t Petr out 😉
Heh !
Trev,
I deny any involvement with Janet from Thanet.
Sexy Lexy from Bexley was another matter;)
As for the Cech transfer if there is one person who would know the inside track about our goalkeeping situation it is Bob and he is not the irresponsible type. He told me he warned Wenger off Shay Given a few seasons ago because he was too small and if that’s the case he wouldn’t fancy Ospina either. A six foot five inch keeper of Cech’s experience would on the other hand be just the job.
Red and white cycling helmet might do it for me if it comes along with fewer opposition goals.
English women need to up the animal magnetism factor (present company excluded) if they want to compete with Norway.
Oi! Trev@24: That was Nina in the back of my Cortina.
Re the peanuts, I do remember someone shouting out during a home game in the 1970s, ‘Oi, Brady, if you were playing any deeper you’d be selling peanuts on the North Bank’.
Bovril, Uply. Now there’s a proper half-time drink.
I know Ned, it just needed an extra rhyme. 😉
Magnetism found. 🙂
Assuming Ospina is not unhappy at Arsenal and we’ve signed Cech to replace him, I do feel a lot of sympathy for him. I’d much rather lose Woj, who has made far more mistakes both on and off the pitch, than Ospina.
Cech.. not the keeper he once was IMO, but if he IS coming, fair enough. He’s still a Chelsea player to me though.
Ospina or Szczesny an open question for me.
I am seriously underwhelmed by a Chelsea cunt in a stoopid hat.
Ospina talking Fenerbahce, apparently.
Bob Wilson on the BBC saying we are ‘two, possibly three’ signings away from challenging for title, without confirming one is Cech, though without denying it either. Cech’s Twitter account saying no deal has been done yet. Chavski fans taking to Twitter to denounce Cech as a traitor for crossing London. So it might be deal on or not. Meh!
A top keeper, Cech, and a definite step up in class from what we have. But a second string chav just doesn’t sit well with me. Pity it couldn’t have been Courtois.
On the other hand, while not wishing the lad ill, if Courtois happens to get injured Cech will look like a genius signing!
Öskar
Curtois is just freak of a nature, and Chavs were superlucky to have both Cech and him in one team for a year.
Was it not for him, Cech would never become available and would be still pretty mucn undisputed no.1 for them.
I am also bit torn about this one, I have seen him make some pretty bad howlers for our national team but he is still top top keeper and one of the few players I did not despise that much from their team.
If we are letting Ospina go in favor of him after just one year, it is a sign of a much more ruthless Arséne…as he said when we signed Mesut ..when player of this calibre is available ..you just have to sign him.
If the deal comes through I really hope that he will rediscover his infectious winning drive and motivation, if only to get one over Moaninho to show him that he still has it.
Met Police Band … http://www.redaction.org.uk/images/galleries/Nostalgia/Full19HalfTimeMetPoliceBand.jpg
I can also remember when Stevie Bould had hair!
Öskar
I am seriously underwhelmed by a Chelsea cunt in a stoopid hat.
I remember when we signed Gallas and there was a lot of “But he’s world class!” chat when it was clear he was over the hill. I fear Cech is also past his best, otherwise they would not have installed Courtois.
Beware of elderly players, especially if the club prepared to get rid of him has only nice things to say. If he’s that fantastic, why isn’t he in YOUR team?
I’d be happier keeping the current lot, especially if Cech is costing £11m and £100k a week.
*grumble*
I think Courtois would only be on my bench if I had Neuer. So I cannot use Cech being less good than Courtois as a useful consideration. Given that there is only one player I rate better on the planet that would seriously limit my keeping options. Who cares if one of the few players better than Cech happens to play at his club? That would be like not buying Alexis from Barca because Messi often kept him out of their team. So what? Is he better than who we have? I think he is.
I also think his ambition to go to a club challenging for the highest honours and to be a big part of that is important. As is the fact that we now fit that bill.
What’s the problem? Just one more guy with a burning desire to stick two fingers up at the translator whilst humming an amusing ditty from atop an open-topped bus!
Who is our first signing? Not sure? Better Check…
I will take Cech over Ospina and Chez anytime any-day. If am Wenger though I will keep Ospina as number two and send Chez on loan and see how the year plays out. For all his craziness, Chez still got something in there.
Jeremy Wilson in the Telegraph says the Cech transfer will be completed and announced end of week/early next week. Translation for all the realists/cynics:
Said transfer to be completed end of summer/not at all. 🙁
Not sure where the 12 to 15 points some say Cech can gain for us next season could possibly come from. I would love to be proved wrong but cannot recall even one goal Ospina could be faulted on the entire time he was our first keeper. Is it just my bad recall, bad original eyesight, bad understanding of the game, or all of the above? 🙁
England Ladies won last night. Well played! They have certainly been well supported in my house. My cousin doesn’t watch much football but we watched a game together last week and I was astonished to see him leap physically off the couch, yelling and fist-pumping the air when Fran Kirby scored our first goal of the tournament. Go Lionesses!
The winning goal last night was a great strike from outside the box. The keeper got a hand to it but could not keep it out. She is a good keeper who played well. But… If Norway had a world-class keeper they could still be in the world cup. That’s the difference for me.
Ospina had a solid second-half of the season. It has been commented that he usually saves the shots you would expect him to save but rarely goes beyond this. There were occasions when he could have saved us points with a great save but could not find that super-level to make a telling difference. I would never expect a keeper to save Hererra’s volley against us but neither would I be surprised if Neuer had somehow got to it and kept his team level.
Sometimes in big games when your keeper saves something he has no right to save the whole team gets a boost as they realise how lucky they are not be losing and it can spark a response at the other end. All players get a boost when they see their team-mates playing well. Watching them you can see how much the chavs’ backline is improved by the fact that they know their keeper is fantastic if it comes to it.
I want that aura of safety around our goal that we haven’t had, I reckon, since Seaman. (Mad Jens being a top keeper but too crazy for me to feel that ‘safe’ about things.) I think there is a better chance of that happening with Cech than any other option.
I would keep Woj and get Cech to mentor him. I would be as accommodating as possible to Ospina in terms of allowing him to move away or stay with us as he wants. I really feel for the guy if he is squeezed out. Nothing but good stuff from him from the moment he came through the door. Top man.
But we need to make the improvements necessary if we want to win the league. And we do. And for that to happen I keep coming back to the fact that I think we need a better keeper.
Well argued, GSD. Bob Wilson on Arseblog News is saying Cech has at least six years left of playing at his top level. Between the two of you maybe you’ll eventually convince me. Another indicator is how much this seems to be upsetting the Chavski fans, which judging by the articles on the web seems to be quite a lot. I still say though that any improvement we might see with Cech in the team would be incremental and not the 12 to 15 points a season that has been quoted. But maybe combined with fewer injuries and sustained excellent play from the rest of the squad it could mean something special.
Arsene Wenger went up to Mourinho and said:
‘Waiter, Cech please!’
😆
8ball: goals Ospina should have done better on?
Leicester at home.
QPR away.
Swansea at home.
Tottenham away (their first goal).
Also conceded a very soft goal v Soton in the league cup.
That’s just off the top of my head. Ospina is not a bad keeper by any means, but certainly not top class either.
Bt8
Ospina was at fault for Gomis’ goal for Swansea, very at fault for McAuley’s goal for West Brom and in the last minute of that game he muffed a straightforward shot onto the bar. I think he should have saved Herrera’s goal for Man U. To be really picky I thought he could have saved Henderson’s penalty for Liverpool. He went the right way and it was a lousy penalty.He had a very iffy game against Monaco at home as well
GSD sums it up very well. Cech is still one of the top five goalies in the world. Ches won’t ever be near that level nor will Ospina be but Ches might improve with maturity.
Much the same was being said about Jennings when he came to us( they kept Barry Daines God bless them!) . He was a similar age to Cech and did a great job for us.
Cheers 8ball. I agree that it is over-simplistic to say a keeper could add 15 points. It doesn’t work like that. But he might gain us some points with a few top-class saves as well as contributing to a defence that gains us more points than last year. So, overall, I think he could have an impact both with his personal performances and on the team as a whole. Possibly the sum of these effects might be 15 points. Maybe 5. But if it is as little as one extra point it is worth doing, although I hope it proves to be many more. We have a great squad- this summer is about adding points wherever we can to challenge for honours next year . I think Cech would add points.
Cech will be a massive signing. After jens we have never replaced a great goal keeper with another one and if it is cech, then cech mate jose.
Any team that wins the league has had great keepers. When we won our league titles as well we had great goal keepers. Cech will save atleast 10 points for us which very well maybe the difference to winning or losing the league title. Chelsea may have still won the league last season but courtouis ensured they did. If de gea were not to have been there for united, i am certain they would not have finished top 4. So the value of a great gk cannot be underestimated and cech definitely is better than both woj and ospina.
I think the reason to let go of ospina maybe because of woj and the home grown talent rule or else it may have been the other way around.
DM next hopefully and if it is schneiderlin, then even better.
So if Abramovich jettisons his backup keeper, does that make him a “bounced Cech” ? or, more generically, a “bounced Czech”?
I would think that training/competing with a keeper of Chec’s stature is exactly what any developing, young goalkeeper needs. In this sense it is money well spent.
What I am less sure about is how long will it take before either of Szczesny or Martinez start outperforming him (assuming Ospina is “redistributed” this summer).
Lars / ttg :
Thanks for your suggestions of goals Ospina might have saved. I went on Youtube and had a look at them for myself, and you can see below for my comments. With the exception of the West Brom goal I would say it is unfair to call Ospina as definitely at fault for any of these goals but in some cases he might have done better with greater height or reach. How much better Cech could have done on any of these is of course a matter of conjecture but these goals are certainly open to debate. The only other thing I might add is that after looking at a goal a few dozen times on the internet it is certainly a lot easier to criticize the keeper than it was when watching the goal scored when it happened.
Leicester (Kramaric) at home. Beaten near post (not able to reach the ball after diving). By no means a definite “should have saved” goal, but Ospina could possibly could have used better positioning or greater height/longer arms to get a hand to it.
QPR (Austin penalty) away. Ospina dives to his right. Austin scores high to the middle of the goal. Don’t see how Ospina can be at fault for guessing wrong on a penalty.
Swansea at home. Ospina dives to his left and pushes the ball back out but Gomis’ header crosses the line by about a foot. Hard to say but Ospina possibly could have done better with longer arms or better anticipation.
Tottenham away (their first goal). Ospina makes a spectacular save of a close-range bullet header and pushes the ball into the path of Kane who scores at the far post. Possibly with longer arms he could have gotten more on his deflection and pushed the ball away from danger but this is a stretch in my opinion.
West Brom at home (McAuley’s goal). Ospina is out-jumped for a high corner. With any combination of greater height, longer arms, and better positioning it is fair to say he could have done better on this one.
Herrera’s goal for Man U. Ospina is beaten at the near post but I’m not sure he can be faulted when he has the entire goal to cover. Longer arms or greater anticipation could of course helped him but the shot was exactly where Herrera wanted it.
I woulda given my first hand impressions of what Ospina had been doing a few seconds before each goal was scored, rather more in tone Snowy’s post, but not having been at the game, had to settle for second best impressions, of the computer aided variety. 🙂
8ball, QPR away. Ospina didn’t even play in the home game. Rather weak shot from outside the area at Loftus Road, he jumps up instead of to the side.
The Tottenham goal: yes, quick reaction save but actually a rather poor punch so far from a spectacular save. The devil is in the details: he doesn’t control the rebound at all, it just goes somewhere pretty much randomly into a dangerous area. Has nothing to do with longer arms, it’s how you control rebounds. This is something Woj and Cech generally do very well.
Leicester at home goes under his hand, because he was a bit slow to react.
Swansea at home he should not have gone with both hands. He should have gone with only his right arm, that would have given him the few extra inches he needed. It is also a rather poor jump, he gets very little distance on it.
Should he be *expected* to prevent all of these goals? No, mistakes happen every now and then and there is no keeper in the world who never concedes soft goals or does daft things but for me Ospina makes too many of them.
Is Cech good enough to help us win the league? Well, for one we haven’t actually signed him yet 🙂 But I think he may well be, 33 is no age for a keeper and I also think (or, if I am to be totally honest, perhaps hope more than think) that it could be the last kick up the backside Woj needs to live up to his potential.
Sky Sports have announced that a 10.9 Mill fee has been agreed between Chelsea and Arsenal for Petr Cech!
It’s a done deal lads. Now time for a couple more ‘world-class’ additions and we’re off!
Bt8
I note your comments and you make dome very good points. However Charlie Austin’s goal was not a penalty. I was referring to the shot at Loftus Road which was from open play. I was at the game and commented on how well Austin took it which led to a debate about his suitability as a potential recruit. But there was general agreement that Ospina should have done better. The penalty was on Boxing Day and it would have been Szczesny in goal then
Laughably shit
https://scontent-lhr3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfa1/v/t1.0-9/10421172_10153192429662713_2091093174509217925_n.jpg?oh=9daf9fb06cb2b15d3ca564cb0a09feeb&oe=56298D7A
Evening all >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>