By Alan Duffy

Arsenal 7 (Seven)-1 Blackburn Rovers Premier League 4th February 2012

After a sustained period of dismal performances and almost no points, Arsenal needed to rediscover their mojo on Saturday if they were to stay in the hunt for a top-four finish.

On Saturday morning, I saw the list of potential managers for the England National Team now that it finds itself without a coach. The Euro 2012 is not too far away now, and the eyes of the world are on England, waiting to see who will take the helm amidst the international controversy. I couldn't help but wonder that Arsene's name was on the list, so I had to do a bit of digging to determine the probability of his being selected for the coveted job.

Wow! What a finish. What a feeling. Arsene, as usual, summed it up with an insightful nugget,

...the pleasure is even more intense when you win in the final minute of the game where you have given everything.

There is something about scoring the winner so, so late in the game.

Man City to bid for Ronaldo, Luke Rodgers exits MLS, an update on Fabrice Muamba, Villa captain Petrov diagnosed with a serious illness, and much more lead today's top stories. Links for all stories below will open in a new window.

Aston Villa captain Stiliyan Petrov diagnosed with Acute Leukaemia (AVFC.

Arsenal v Tottenham v Newcastle: The Race for Third Place - originally posted on Soccerlens.com

It seems the competition for third place in the Premier League is now going to be decided on the final day of the season. Here I take a look at each team's final fixture and their chances of finishing ahead of their rivals.

Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny has refused to get carried away with suggestions that the club won't qualify for the Champions League next season, pointing to the forthcoming return of midfielder Jack Wilshere and right-back Bacary Sagna as a major boost.

The Gunners trail fourth-place Chelsea by five points and third-place Tottenham Hotspur by another five, leaving Arsene Wenger's side with much work to do in the four months ahead.

The President of Rwanda wants his buddy Arsene to step down? Robin van Persie is furious with Arsene...Or is he? And, does Real Madrid really want Arsene?

It's been quite an interesting week for the Arsenal so far. If you haven't been following the news as much as I have, allow me to illuminate you.

This January's Arsenal transfer news was relatively quiet at the Emirates Stadium, with Thierry Henry returning to the club on loan from New York Red Bulls and German teenager Thomas Eisfeld arriving from Borussia Dortmund for a modest fee.

However, activity has not always been this sedate at Arsenal, with Arsene Wenger making some surprising and at times, blockbuster signings in January.

This January's Arsenal transfer news was relatively quiet at the Emirates Stadium, with Thierry Henry returning to the club on loan from New York Red Bulls and German teenager Thomas Eisfeld arriving from Borussia Dortmund for a modest fee.

However, activity has not always been this sedate at Arsenal, with Arsene Wenger making some surprising and at times, blockbuster signings in January.

It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. Naturally, I'm describing Arsenal's 2011-2012 season. I'm a nice guy, and I don't want to hold Arsene wholly accountable for the team's woes, particularly due to the simple fact that, well, that's what everybody else already does.

Former Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Petit has launched his second scathing attack on the club's current group of players, pointing out that the likes of Theo Walcott, Andrey Arshavin, and Tomas Rosicky are simply not good enough to be Gunners anymore.

In a recent interview, Petit had criticized Arsenal for going from an entertaining playing style to one that was highly predictable following the departures of Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri last summer.

Arsenal face a near impossible task in their bid to advance in the 2012 UEFA Champions League following their humiliation at the hands of Italian giants AC Milan last night. Outclassed in every department against experienced European opposition, an agitated Arsene Wenger condemned and lamented his side's performance - conceding that Arsenal failed to acquit themselves during any stage of the tie and were adequately punished by their superior opposition.

People tended to mock me in previous seasons for complaining about poor refereeing, but I moaned because I felt the decisions had a decisive impact.
It's one of the reasons the 'seven seasons without a trophy' line doesn't bother me. Go back to the 2008 season: with some better decisions we could easily have won the League and the Champions League.

The numbers simply don't lie: Seven years without a trophy. The worst Arsenal team in ten years. Arsenal appears to be in a state of crisis, but there are yet more questions than answers concerning any resolution. Arsenal fans are demanding to know whether Arsene had access to the fat reserve account, whether he should be the target of blame and villified or else forgiven.

In the wake of Arsenal's stunning come-from-behind victory over Tottenham, the Gunners' ability to secure a much-needed spot in the top four is still quite a valid concern. Arsenal fans are once again compelled to rejoice in a win that may or may not ultimately end up making the significant difference we would all sincerely like to believe it made.

Morning all, a quick Saturday round-up for you.

Aside from the team news, which we'll touch on later or in tomorrow's blog (or Monday's blog), the first thing Arsene was asked at the press conference yesterday was whether or not a deal had been done for Lukasz Podolski.

Naturally, Arsene gave it the old, "When we sign a player we will tell you" stuff, said that a deal hadn't been done, cautioned people that even though a deal can be very close it doesn't take much to turn very close into very far away, and generally gave nothing away.

Arsenal left it late to beat Newcastle 2-1 at the Emirates yesterday and come within a point of rivals Tottenham. Tottenham have seen their amazing form take a nose dive to leave them barely hanging on in third place.

With the match deep into extra time, It seemed like the game would end in a draw, however, Thomas Vermaelen's 94 minute goal ensured that Wenger side picked up all the points on offer.

The Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has plenty reasons to be a happy man at the moment. Besides the fact that the team is on a fantastic run at the moment and has managed some impressive games and some incredible comebacks, the Gunners seem to be on the way to getting fully fit as well. Left-back [...]

You can't win the league and the Champions League every year. Five out of the last six of those isn't bad, with a few other smaller trophies thrown in and the possibility of another Copa del Rey still to come this season. However, second in the league and a semi-final exit to an inferior team is being widely regarded as a failure, maybe even a disaster, for Barcelona this season.

I am reposting this classic Piers Morgan carol after it has been revealed that the lovely man has been given a lifetime achievement award by She Wore, it is obviously to the tune of the 'twelve days of christmas', obviously repeat the lines as in the original version: On the first day of Christmas Piers Morgan gave to me, a call for Arsene's sacking, On the second day of Christmas Piers

Good morning, apologies for the slight lateness of this blog but I'm having some spinning colouredy-wheel issues with my computer this morning. And it turns out punching it does nothing. Who knew?

Anyway, a quick round-up of the news for you, starting, of course, with the return of Thierry Henry.

A solid, professional job in the end. Charlton, as the third division table shows, are a tidy enough team, but in the end class told. Clint Dempsey scored a hat-trick, Damien Duff whopped in another, and Fulham are in the hat for the 4th round.

We scored early, Murphy's through ball finding Dempsey, who lifted the ball home expertly.

A solid, professional job in the end. Charlton, as the third division table shows, are a tidy enough team, but in the end class told. Clint Dempsey scored a hat-trick, Damien Duff whopped in another, and Fulham are in the hat for the 4th round.

We scored early, Murphy's through ball finding Dempsey, who lifted the ball home expertly.

The Fulham v Arsenal press conference what was said and what was reported. (Guess what, they are not the same thing).

By: Anne

The basic media line on Arsene's post-Fulham comments regarding referee Lee Probert is best summed up by the Guardian's David Hytner, when he opened his article on the post-match press conference [.

Twitter (Follow me on @_Wrighty7) and the interweb is buzzing like a bumble bee today that Chelsea man Salomon Kalou could be on the move to Arsenal.
Now I believe this is the sort of deal that will be like Marmite to Gooners. Some will like it, and some will hate it.
I happen to think that Kalou would be a very good signing for the club.

Will Thierry Henry start up front with RVP at Swansea on Sunday? Probably not I reckon, AW has stayed coy over his plans but if he didn't start him in the 1-0 win over Leeds in the FA Cup then he's hardly likely to in a Premier League game with three vital points at stake is he? But Henry did make a dramatic goal-scoring cameo in that game.

So, it's all over, Arsene. In a season in which we have celebrated 125 years of glorious tradition and history it has come to this. With the news that the imperious gladiators of global football have grasped an unassailable nine point lead ahead of our once proud team, surely it is time for Arsenal to fold.

I wish I could furnish you today with news of multiple transfers, but alas I live in the real world. There is very little out there to report.
Looking through this list on Football 365, you realise that we're not alone. There is very little movement happening anywhere in the prem, even at Man City.

Right then,

Swansea away today and a chance to keep pace/claw back some points on those above us in the table. The importance of the game can't be understated. The FA Cup game against Leeds provided us a fantastic moment and a talking point/feel-good factor that lasted all week, but at the same time seemed a bit surreal.

Morning all, the dust has begun to settle a bit after Sunday's game against Swansea. We now have a week to take stock, regroup and prepare ourselves for the game against United on Sunday.

A lot has been said about the litany of injuries we've suffered, meaning players are being played out of position which affects our normal game and so on.

We're a bit in the doldrums here at Arsenal Arsenal. At the moment we're still numb from the defeat on Sunday and finding it hard to be upbeat and forward thinking. Our twin posts today are in celebration of the return of Thierry Henry. Hopefully our bloggers will come out from behind the sofa and remember the positives of this season so far, but don't let that stop you commenting on where we go from here.

Cause for concern? We got it. Right here in River City. And it's a much bigger problem than a pool table, I fear.

A couple of disclaimers before we get started, because discourse has gotten so terrible that you have to explain yourself because people love to project their own issues with the team onto them.

Cause for concern? We got it. Right here in River City. And it's a much bigger problem than a pool table, I fear.

A couple of disclaimers before we get started, because discourse has gotten so terrible that you have to explain yourself because people love to project their own issues with the team onto them.

On Sunday, January 22, 2012, Manchester United will take the pitch against Arsenal at the Emirates. Cognizant of the simple fact that Manchester United handed Arsenal an 8-2 loss that is counted amongst the very worst in a period of 100 years, no one is giving much reason to believe that the Gunners have a chance against the Red Devils.

Morning all,

let's start with early team news ahead of Sunday's game against United and there's nothing good regarding Mikel Arteta. The Spaniard will miss the game, Arsene says he has 'no chance' of playing and the earliest we'll be seeing him is against Aston Villa in the FA Cup.

Clearly that's a big blow.

On the back of two games where Arsenal have lost after taking the lead, and with hardly any positive news on the injury front, a game against Manchester United is the last thing many would want. But that's the game on the fixture list and the Gunners will just have to do as best as they can with diminished resources and wavering confidence.

The Oxlade/Arshavin substitution IMO was based on logic and not emotion/sentiment/psychology; it was based on ideal conditions and not real world conditions. IMO Arsene is very theoretical/logical in his decision making. Oxlade was one of Arsenal best players on the day but it was his debut. Wing play is extremely hard work at the top [.

It probably says something about the relentless coverage of the modern game when a substitution can generate days of headlines and fall out. In this respect, we see how the modern media works. They can forge subplots and spin offs to furnish another day's worth of sales and clicks – such as the unbelievable scenes as the captain visibly shakes his head!

Later this morning Arsene will meet the press for his pre-Aston Villa press conference. And beyond the normal information we get from one of these gatherings, I have to say I'm really curious as to how it will go down.

It'll be the first time he's faced the media since Sunday's defeat to United and that reaction to his decision to take off Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

szólj hozzá: a3-2av

Today was a must win for Arsenal. Not just to reverse the perception of a club descending into a familiar and vicious cycle of self inflicted wounds and low self esteem. But to resurrect the career of a manager under fire.

A defeat would have tipped the scales between the two camps, the AKB and the ASG (Arsene Should Go) resting at a precarious 50-50 irrevocably in favour of the latter.