Sunderland manager Martin O'Neill has backed tomorrow's opponents Arsenal to silence their critics, making it clear that the Gunners have sufficient talent to prevail at the Stadium of Light.

Arsene Wenger's men are three points adrift of fourth-place Chelsea and have relied heavily on the incredible form of skipper Robin van Persie, who scored a brilliant hat-trick in last weekend's 7-1 rout of Blackburn.

That 7-1 win was needed, that's for sure. On the back of three losses and a draw, Arsenal had to get a win now or our hopes for Champions league football would be too far away to catch. This positivity of the result was also compounded by the draws of the other big clubs. All [...]

In recent transfer windows and recent seasons we constantly hear Wenger and the Board remind us that we are building a team for the future, a club for the 21st century, one that does things differently promotes from within and doesn't need to pay huge transfer fees to compete.

Some fans have countered this reasoning (fairly) that without a present the future means nothing, and that the future has as little guarantee as signing a £50million striker or a £35million striker depending on which team you prefer laughing at the most.

Chelsea published their accounts yesterday and revealed that Chelsea had to pay £28m on "changes in the first team management structure" by sacking Carlo Ancelotti and hiring Andre Villas-Boas as his replacement which is just insane.
In addition to this, Football Finance Analyst Andy Green has calculated that Chelsea and Roman Abramovich have paid out around £64m in the last four years on managerial changes alone!

::: FistedAway welcomes a guest post from Elliott,
editor of the rather lovely Futfanatico :::

The path from the cusp of destruction to redemption has been a long one for Liverpool FC fans. Bad apple Americans owners. The departure of Rafael Benitez. The exodus of star players like Xabi Alonso.

If there is one thing I've noticed about the Liverpool fan forums, it's that our level of performance and league position in relation to them is directly correlated to how much they bitch and moan about Spurs and how many posts riddled with bile spewing hatred of us there are.
As you can imagine, this is currently a high proportion.

I haven't given up on Arsenal making the top four because I can't.
Despite Arsenal appearing to want to make it as difficult as possible to get there, something inside me makes it hard for me to believe we won't make it. And that something inside me is certainly not wind.
Perhaps its the season when we needed a Lasagna to make it happen gives me belief.

Newcastle United are up to fifth in the Premier League after they beat Blackburn Rovers 2-0, while Arsenal's poor run of form continues as they were held 0-0 at Bolton.

Newcastle took a 12th-minute lead when Blackburn's Scott Dann deflected a 25-yard shot from Ryan Taylor past stranded Rovers goalkeeper Paul Robinson.

It wasn't exactly Premiership action over the weekend but it was still a FA Cup Party out there, nonetheless! Arsenal, of course, deserve a round of applause for springing back from two goals down to make it 3-2 against Aston Villa yesterday.

The more you say it, the more depressing it sounds: Liverpool were WELL-BEATEN by a team in the relegation zone, with the poorest defence, and worst home record in the league. The defeat will almost certainly condemn Kenny Dalglish's side to another season without Champions League football, and may even contribute to the King's own eventual demise.

There are no excuses, yesterday we were outplayed and outfought by a newly promoted side, as Swansea beat us 3-2 to seriously dent our hopes of making the top four.

The penalty decision was questionable, yes, but as has been the problem recently, we were not up for this game at all.

Liverpool are said to be monitoring Tottenham's interest in Marseille striker Loic Remy with a view to pipping the North London side in the race to sign the French international.
The 25 year old striker has previously been linked with a move to the Merseyside club in the summer but no bid was forthcoming but the eight match ban handed down to Uruguayan Luis Suarez and the average form shown by Andy Carroll has led the Anfield side to re-ignite their interest in the Stade Velodrome forward.

Liverpool will reportedly look to lure Koln attacker Lukas Podolski to Anfield as the Merseyside club looks to beef up their attacking options following the FA ban handed to top scorer Luis Suarez.
Director of Football Damien Comolli has earmarked a move for the Polish born German international after seeing Suarez handed an eight match ban and was already scouting the 26 year old as Liverpool have been struggling for goals and have been far to dependent on the Uruguayan international.

What are the odds Spurs finish the season as London's top team? Derek McGovern's Bets of the Day

Spurs have been touted as serious title contenders, but only by those who go to bed wearing Tottenham pyjamas wrapped in a Tottenham duvet. You get the impression Harry Redknapp's aim this season is to finish in the top four and then leave to pursue the England job he looks nailed-on for.

'Tis the season, for snatching a stocking full of points at White Hart Lane.

Hey, it's that guy

Man. This is kind of big, huh?

Win, lose or draw in Wigan over the weekend, this match with Tottenham was always going to be a pivotal one. Not that matches with Spurs aren't always showcase events, but this season the derby seems to be taking on a bit more weight with both clubs in the pursuit of Champions League football for 2012-13.

Arsenal's 1-0 defeat over Manchester City on Sunday casted doubts on Arsene Wenger's head over the Gunners' chance in battling for the league title with City this season considering the point gap between them are a bit too far at the moment.

However, Wenger confirmed to their fans that his team will continue to give their shot until things finally becomes impossible as although acknowledging that chasing the Eastlands would be difficult, there's always a chance since the season is still long.

Kenny Dalglish confident Liverpool can take next step to secure Champions League football

The Reds boss believes his side can continue to improve and finish in the top four, despite the quality of the teams competing at the top of the Premier League this year

View the full story here: Goal

A news article on 2011-12-18 13:32:00 from: Goal

This news item has been reproduced from today's media.

Kenny Dalglish satisfied that Stewart Downing is proving his worth

The £20m winger returns to Villa Park still waiting for his first Liverpool goal or assist but his manager is not concerned The focus on Andy Carroll irritates Kenny Dalglish immensely but it will not appease the Liverpool manager that questions about value for money at Anfield go further than the £35m signing from Newcastle United.

According to The Sun, Sours boss Harry Redknapp wants to unite Man City's wantaway striker with on-loan City star Emmanuel Adebayor at White Hart Lane.

A source close to the talks is quoted as saying:

"People at Tottenham reckon a deal like this could be bigger than anything since they signed Jurgen Klinsmann.

This just in: Arsenal will make a January move to lure Samir Nasri away from Manchester City with the promise of Champions League football. Got to giggle haven't you?

Fancy another laugh? Take a gander at my view of the game against Olympiakos the other night. Poxy isn't it?

This just in: Arsenal will make a January move to lure Samir Nasri away from Manchester City with the promise of Champions League football. Got to giggle haven't you?

Fancy another laugh? Take a gander at my view of the game against Olympiakos the other night. Poxy isn't it? Almost 2,000 miles and a good few hundred quid and I end up staring at the back of a Bubble plod.

I don't know what the tiredness equivalent of what *boilk* is but I've got that this morning.

Plus a touch of actual *boilk* too but not enough to actually make me *boilk*. Last night at The Tollington we launched the book So Paddy got up an Arsenal anthology, and first and foremost I want to thank all the people who came along, bought a book and had a beer or two.

A miracle. That's exactly what Lyon needed to go through to the knockout stages of the Champions League after disappointing in the five first games and scoring only on two occasions. To qualify, Les Gones not only needed Ajax to lose, but also had seven goals to catch up on the Dutch side.

By Geoff Reid

Group E
Chelsea vs Valencia from Stamford Bridge, London
At some point today, someone is going to go home disappointed with these two teams level on points in joint second place, and one point behind leader Bayer Leverkusen.

Liverpool's 1-0 defeat against Fulham leaves the club five points adrift of fourth place, and it's now looking like an uphill battle for Champions League football next season. Kenny Dalglish's team has put together a great unbeaten run over the last two months, but as we saw again last night, some of Kenny's decisions are mystifying to say the least, and they continue to cost the club valuable points.

After the Man City game last week, I posted an article arguing (in the interests of fairness) that Lucas, Charlie Adam and Dirk Kuyt did their best to persuade the referee to send off Mario Balotelli. It was unsporting behaviour on a grand scale, and the photo evidence I provided backed this up.

Liverpool are planning a surprise move for Chelsea forward Nicolas Anelka as manager Kenny Dalglish attempts to further strengthen his squad in the January transfer window and secure a top four finish.
The France international had a short spell at Anfield back in 2002 under Gerard Houllier but the French manager decided not to take up the option to sign the striker and instead brought El Hadji Diouf to the club.

Dirk Kuyt claims Liverpool's performances against the Premier League's top sides have given the Reds the belief they can regain Champions League football.
Kenny Dalglish's side drew 1-1 with Manchester City at Anfield on Sunday and was unlucky not to be the ones to end the league leaders' unbeaten start to the season.

Dirk Kuyt: Liverpool's displays against top sides hint at bright future

• Kuyt hopes displays lead to Champions League qualification • 'The way we have played has been fantastic' The Liverpool forward Dirk Kuyt believes their performances against the top sides have improved their chances of regaining Champions League football.

Dirk Kuyt confident of Champions League return for Liverpool

Liverpool forward Dirk Kuyt believes their performances against the top sides have improved their chances of bringing Champions League football back to Anfield.

View the full story here: The Mail

A news article on 2011-11-28 12:14:16 from: The Mail

This news item has been reproduced from today's media.

Mario Gotze will aim to dazzle fans at the Emirates in tonight's Champions League clash, possibly giving Arsenal supporters a taste of the future as rumours suggest that the Dortmund star may be in line for a January transfer.

The 19-year-old midfielder has already impressed a host of top European clubs.

I find these words from our esteemed manager very interesting in the context of the Youth V Experience argument that has raged like a wildfire throughout goonerland over the past 5 years.

Wenger gave us this quote today, speaking to Arsenal Player, when asked about the difference the 5 new players signed in the dying days of the last transfer window had made to the team.

The name Papiss Demba Cisse appeared very briefly in the summer in connection with a possible move to Spurs before the rumour went away as quickly as it had appeared.

Cisse plays for Freiburg in the German Bundesliga and unlike Seydou Doumbia for example, he isn't playing Champions League football and as such, he has largely fallen under the rumour mill radar.

Liverpool midfielder Lucas Leiva is now attracting the interest of Bayern Munich with an €18m bid in the offing, according to TuttoMercato.
The Brazilian international has already been linked with Paris St Germain in recent days and now it seems that the Bundesliga are keen on adding the 24-year-old in January.

The Eden Hazard rumours persist this morning amidst claims that Spurs a preparing a £45m January bid for the Belgian midfielder and his compatriot – Ajax defender Jan Vertonghen.

Since the rumours started, prices for Hazard alone have varied from around £20m to £35m and while all the usual suspects – Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, Man City etc etc have been linked, some of the stories suggest that Spurs are in pole position and that Harry Redknapp is trying to convince the board that Hazard is the man to cement Champions League football for next season.

A draw against Swansea in their last premier league match apparently gave a pretty disappointing feeling for Liverpool players including, Daniel Agger, who is really annoyed with the inconsistency that his team showed this season.

Agger believes that if they don't immediately step up their game, they most likely won't be able to fulfill this season's target in reaching the top four in the league, which means no Champions League football again for them next season.

Liverpool defender Daniel Agger has warned Liverpool must raise their game if they are to avoid yet another season without Champions League football.
Liverpool were held to a goalless draw in Saturday's home meeting with Swansea at the weekend, meaning the club have now won just two of their six Premier League matches at Anfield this season.

Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish is ready to resurrect his interest in Real Madrid's prolific goal scorer Gonzalo Higuain after watching his side once again dominate possession but fail to find the back of the net.
The Reds had plenty of chances against Swansea on Saturday but failed to tale their chances as they ended up drawing their third consecutive game at Anfield in a 0-0 draw with the newly promoted Welsh side.

Daniel Agger: 'Sometimes Liverpool are like headless chickens'

• Defender says team were angry after Swansea draw • 'It is far from good enough – we have to move up a level' The Liverpool defender Daniel Agger says his side must raise their game if they are to avoid yet another season without Champions League football.

• Kop That: Firing Line: Will Kean be feeling the Blues? Under pressure Rovers boss stays top http://t.co/ipw9mAri 23:34:24, 2011-11-03
• Kop That: Fergie's 25 years at United: Alex's teams play with lots more flair than he ever did! Dalglish http://t.co/HsSEfw4S 22:48:14, 2011-11-03
• Kop That: FA may order Capello not to pick Terry http://t.