Time to upgrade his statue to silver
If you're a Arsenal fan today, you'll be buzzing. Nothing beats coming from behind and winning
by scoring in the final minute of the game. Especially when it's an away game and we weren't firing
on all cylinders. Especially when the winning goal was scored by one of the club's greatest ever
player.
Me and the machines
First of 2 trips to Wearside, starting with the league match tonight and the FA Cup the
following week. Beginning of a very important 7 days for Arsenal Football Club according to Arsene
Wenger. 3 matches that will decide our season. An European cup tie against AC Milan sandwiched in
between 2 meetings with Martin O'Neill's Sunderland.
Last time we see all 3 on the pitch at the same time?
Haven't written in a while, therefore this will be more of a short summation on things that have
happened in the past week. No place better to start than with the players.
Emmanuel Frimpong will be out for the rest of the season with a cruciate ligament injury.
Don't just sit there Robin. Get a fourth
That's our first rout of the season. The first of which we won and not the other way around. You
can count the Chelsea game as one but then it was not as one sided as this was. Blackburn tormented
us the last time we met and this was sweet revenge being exacted.
Henry to start?
Horrible is the word to describe our last meeting against Blackburn Rovers. Steve Kean's side
only had two shots on goal and still managed to beat us 4-3. That was a dark day in our season but
nothing compared to the run of form we are in now. The draw at Bolton was the first league point we
picked up this season and we're now facing an uphill battle to find our way back into Champions
League spots.
Fine margins
February and all we've collected from 2012 is a solitary point in the league. Unfortunately for
a club the size of Arsenal and the ambitions that we harbour, that is not good enough. 7th is where
we are right now in terms of the league standings and hopes of staying with the top pack and
clinching that vital Champions League position is not mathematically out of grab.
Time for a rest?
Midweek Premier League match. Haven't had that in a while. Tonight, Arsenal travel to Bolton
looking to capitalise on the yesterday's results. I say results when it's actually only a single
result. That of Chelsea's draw away to Swansea. Effectively, they've gained a point over us, both
by the result and the fact that we lost ours when we went to Liberty Stadium.
The tackle that started the comeback
The team needed a lift after results of recent weeks. A 1-0 win is great but coming back from 2
goals down to win it, is surely going to give the team the boost that we so desperately need. A
game of two halves is the old cliche but certainly applies in this scenario.
Likely starters
There's a trip to Bolton looming in midweek, where we'll continue our climb up the league table
in search of that Champions League spot. But first there's the matter of the FA Cup to deal with. A
small matter or a big matter? Depends on the individuals. Arsene Wenger loves a bit of this
competition but not over qualification to Europe's premier competition.
The long substitution
It's finally confirmed, the news that we did not want to hear. That Jack Wilshere has had a
setback and would not be available in the date that we initially had hoped he would be back for. AC
Milan's games were touted as his return period but that will now have to be extended.
The end is nigh
Does everyone realise that there's only 5 days left in the transfer window? Technically the
weekend doesn't count but no reason why deals can't be finalised then and the registration done by
Monday or Tuesday. It's all gone quiet on the Arsenal front. Newspapers has even gone bored of
recycling the same stuffs over and over again.
Not the debut we hoped for
A 2-1 defeat at home to Manchester United with each side coming on top in one half is not the
worst of results. However, the manner in which we lost the game, left a bitter taste in the mouth.
After what happened in the reverse fixture early in August, many Arsenal fans (including me) wanted
to exact revenge but also conscious of the fact that we want to avoid another thrashing.
Old head's experience to lead is crucial to the cause
The papers are going crazy with this fixture and all the focus is on Arsenal and how the mighty
have fallen. How this is no longer the plum tie of the Premier League season (somehow, I think the
numbers tells a different story), why there's no pizza or pastries being thrown at each other and
why there's no more fights between the two sets of players.
The only one with the ball will be the one missing
Ahead of this Sunday's game against Manchester United, the latest injury news update does not
help to reassure any nerves. We are already going through a bad run of 2 consecutive league losses
at the moment ahead of the imminent arrival of the team that gave us a beating in August.
Greek challenger to Sir Chesney?
When the team has just lost our last 2 consecutive league fixtures, the last thing we want to
hear is that our club is being gazumped elsewhere away from the pitch. Liverpool has secured a
brand new £150million kit deal with American firm Warrior Sports. A deal that place them only
second behind Barcelona in today's shirt deals around the world.
