Fridays always have the potential to bring better news on the injury front, what with Wenger's
press conference, and there was certainly plenty of good news today.
From a list that that seemed earlier on this week to be mushrooming out of control, things now
look a bit more normal, don't they?
My good friend's wedding is tomorrow so this will be a very early match preview of our trip to
Sunderland. As it has been known for the past few days, RVP and Gibbs both will miss the game after
yet another injury return for an Arsenal player from an international break.
The final international break of the year is over. How good does that sound?
Real football returns tomorrow, and unlike many Premiership weekends, it is Saturday that looks
the tastier of the days. Liverpool and City play each other at lunchtime, United face Everton in
the evening, Chelsea are involved and we have a very tricky trip to Sunderland to negotiate.
Well, it looks like there is still some sort of fairy dust left in this world. After completing
his treatment in Serbia using the latest craze, placenta treatment, Robin was all smiles after
exiting the clinic. Dr. Kovacevic will have her hands full now that there is a whole host of other
players who would have made her clinic a very pack one.
One thing about not blogging for a week is you can sit back and watch the hysterical reactions
going on in the world of football without feeling like you have to dive in and add your voice. It
has been one of those weeks.
First we had the curse of the international break rear its ugly head again, in the form of
injuries to Van Persie and Gibbs.
I was just about to compare our current left back conundrum to the one of the 2005 -2006 season.
You know the season where like 9 different players played in that position. And just as I was about
to research the names the news came up about Gibbs. Incidentally if you are feeling a little
curious, feel free to post the names below of those elite band of players.
Isn't it typical, you wait all year for a horse story and then two come along at once. Like the
number 7 going up the Ormeau Road in Belfast, or whatever your local bus is that decides it's too
afraid to drive up a road on it's own so it'll wait for it's mate.
I'm still really sick, be prepapred for a hell of a lot more nonsense ahead.
There's another new name added to the injury list after the conclusion of the England U-21 game
last night when Kieran Gibbs limped out of the game after just 20 odd minutes. I do not know for
sure the extend of his injury but if it really is a broken metatarsal, it would mean April or May
as his return date, which will also effectively mean an early end to what was supposed to be a
promising season for me.
Gibbs becomes the 12th player on Arsenal's ever lengthening injury list – he had been the
club's first-choice left-back due to a stress fracture of the back suffered by Gaël Clichy.
Gibbs was forced out after only 21 minutes of the game against Lithunia, with initial reports
suggesting he may have broken a metatarsal.
Gibbs limped off with an ankle injury after a 12st minute tackle forced him out of the U21 Euro
match against Lithuania. He is to undergo an X ray as a precautionary measure and more information
on the extent of his injury will be available later this week.
With Gael Clichy out for a month with a back injury, the left back position was a lock for
Gibbs.
So what's going on? Well hey guess what this evening Kieran Gibbs has picked up the now
mandatory injury playing in the England U21 qualifier away to Lithuania. We await further news, but
who thought, when we lined up for the season with three left-footed left-backs, that where
left-backs were concerned, we were a touch over-subscribed?
Desperate times call for desperate measures it seems; van Persie is going to have placenta
rubbed on his ankle by a Serbian witch doctor in a bid to recover from injury just that little bit
quicker if you didn't already know, he is out for 6 weeks with a bollocksed ligament. Maybe its the
baby particles in the placenta that invade his ankle and make everything hunky-dory again.
By 1970's GoonerJust when we thought it couldn't get any worse it has. First it was Bendtner out
with a groin problem then van Persie with his ankle and now it's Gibbs that's got injured while on
international duty. Add to these Denilson, Clichy, Diaby, Vela, Wilshere,Djourou, Fabiansky and
Walcott and you can make another very useful first 11! Click to continue reading...
That's when Robin van Persie says he will be back, and just in case it's my chimney he selects
then there will be a great big cushion in the grate to make sure he gets a soft landing!
I will miss our Robin, big time! For so many season's he has had a niggle here or there, but
finally this year it seemed as if the boy wonder was going to send us all a bit crazy.
Hello all. For a friday post, usually, there'd be a match preview of some sort. There are some
good international matches over the next few days.
The Irish take on the French in what I see as even a contest as it is in Rugby. Then there are
the equally intriguing Bosnia vs Portugal, Algeria vs Egypt, New Zealand vs Bahrain etc etc.
Here's my squad for the weekend Given, Verm, Heiti, Gibbs, Fab4, MPet, DDunn, BFAR, Drogs, Bellamy,
Campbell and here's Jeremy's team for those interested... Given, Verm, Heiti, Gibbs, Emerton, BFAR,
DDunn, Collison, RvP, Bellamy, Drogs Looking ahead to next week (OK, two weeks from now since
there's another International break coming up next weekend) - Rovers, Fulham, Everton, and Hull are
all Click to continue reading...
Arsene Wenger has come out and said he has faith in Keiran Gibbs' ability to play a crucial part in
Arsenal's push for Premier League and Champions League glory. The young Englishman is set to play a
prominent role in the first team over the coming weeks as regular left-back Gael Clichy is facing a
spell [. Click to continue reading...
Samir: Let it go Fab, they can't help it if they're that bad
Ok. I'll admit if you think that's lame but that pretty much sums up the match doesn't it.
Andrey Arshavin had a blast as Arsenal met (thrash) Alkmaar in the Champions League encounter last
night. Qualification is not mathematically secured yet but it would take a miraculous set of
results for Arsenal not to go through.
Apologies all, I've been moving house today and cannot get near to doing a full preview of
tonight's game, which starts in a matter of minutes. Suffice to say that a win is actually quite
important given Chelsea's qualification last night (we play Chelsea after matchday 5, and they can
concentrate entirely on that one), and I think we'll get it, 2-0.
A win tonight at Ashburton Grove will see Arsenal qualify for the from the first group stage of
Champions League for the 10th consecutive seasons. Not even the great Barcelonas or Real Madrids or
AC Milans can lay claim to such an impeccable consistency. Tonight sees the return fixture with AZ
Alkmaar who pegged us back at the final minute of the game with an equalizer.
BAM!G - Guzan, Howard, PerkinsD - Bocanegra, Marshall*/Califf/Gibbs, Castillo, Cherundolo, Conrad,
Goodson, Pearce, SpectorM - Bradley, Beckerman*/Cronin, Cameron*/McCarty, Dempsey,
Donovan*/Beasley/Bedoya, Feilhaber, Torres, WhiteF - Altidore, Casey, Cunningham,
Findley*/CooperThe players marked with an asterisk may or may not be available, depending on MLS
leg two results this week. Click to continue reading...
Well it will have to if the big city of London has had the rainfall we have had here in
Berkshire!!
The Daily Telegraph, well the Belfast version reports Cesc has signed a pre-contract agreement
with Barca! Worried for a second, but then I saw the word ‘Adeybayor' in the same sentence you
know him, the one who feels he has the right to an opinion about us!
Maddy's Note: Our man Felipe is back, bringing you a great take on thhe
Carling Cup encounter which he was THERE for. Who would expect a team of kids to beat a very
experienced and solid Liverpool? One one would say Arsenal were favourites, but I just have to
confess I didn't think that way until the kick-off yesterday. Click to continue reading...
Doesn't a head butt on Ljungberg count for anything? It's bad enough that Silvestre plays for
the Arsenal given the fact that he's a <insert vile swear word insinuating oddities about his
sexuality here> but to give him the captain's armband? That simply is stretching it.
Monsieur Wenger, you know I have been a vociferous fan and that I've never EVER spoken ill of
you.
Another great win in the Milk Cup for the Arsenal thanks to two crackers from Merida and
Bendtner.
Though fatigue set in at the end, it was another feather in the cap for Wenger's second string.
It seems to happen every year, yet every year it still surprises me how much potential there is
bubbling under the surface at the club.
The journey continues for Wenger and Arsenal as they knock Liverpool out in the fourth round
Carling Cup clash at Ashburton Grove. As it often is with the second cup competition in England,
Wenger put his faith in the lesser lights of his squad. Silvestre took the armband with Senderos as
his centerback partner in front of the returning Fabianski.
Tonights Liverpool team to face Arsenal in the Carling Cup at the Emirates Stadium: Liverpool:
Cavalieri, Degen, Insua, Skrtel, Kyrgiakos, Plessis, Spearing, Babel, Kuyt, Voronin, Ngog. Subs:
Reina, Aquilani, Benayoun, Darby, Dossena, Eccleston, Ayala. Arsenal: Fabianski, Gilbert, Senderos,
Silvestre, Gibbs, Eastmond, Bendtner, Nasri, Ramsey, Merida, Eduardo. Click to continue reading...
Arsenal face Liverpool tonight in the Carling Cup, a competition that Wenger has religiously
used to give reserves, youth players and first team squad players a run-out. Â We have had some
success over the years, reaching one final and three semi-finals, so the policy has its merits. Â I
would like Wenger to take the competition a little more seriously and start to use more experienced
players the closer got to the final.
Finally, some football to talk about after a few days of bitching and moaning about West Ham.
Tonight's match against Liverpool sees Arsene take charge of his 750th Arsenal game, and it would
be just plain rude if we celebrate that with anything other than a win.
Tonight we are likely to see more than just kids, so we won't have that to use as much as an
excuse, but if Liverpool think their kids can match our kids then they are in for a nasty
surprise.
Its Carling Cup time! The trophy that no big club wants to win, but if they win it they'll be
happy to gloat about it anyway. Visions of Mourinho celebrating back in 2007 when they beat us in
the final still make me sick.
Rafa's red revolution received a massive boost when they humiliated Utd on Sunday.
1. A 2 Goal cushion is totally enough to kill off the game. We simply must stop letting teams
think they have a chance even when they're two down.
2. We need to buy a goal keeper. Almunia is inadequate, Mannone is too young, Fabianski is
scary and Sczesczny cannot get a jersey because the Nike cannot spell his name.
