Six Reasons Why Arsenal Can Dominate English Football Next Season by FD
Recent years have been frustrating for followers of Arsenal. The trophy drought has been bad enough, but we've also had to endure the regular exodus of our best players and the apparent reluctance of the powers-that-be to compete with the other top clubs on an equal footing.
Are we trying to buy the wrong Man U striker!? by DG
If you buy any paper today you will be inundated with rumours, reports and speculation that Arsenal are set to launch a sensational bid for Wayne Rooney. If these reports are to be believed (and when did a tabloid paper ever get a transfer rumour wrong.
Well what a crazy week for English football! It seems that all THREE of Arsenal's top rivals for the League are changing their managers this summer. We all know about Ferguson, and today it is on Sky Sports that Man City are in talks with Manuel Pelligrini to take over at the Etihad next season.
Then of course we all know that Jose Mourinho is going to Chelsea and so all three of them are going to be going through a period of upheaval as the new managers settle in.
The Arsenal winger/striker Theo Walcott has reached his target of 20 goals this season, despite lapsing in and out of form all season, and he capped it off with the winner against QPR after just 20 seconds this weekend.
Arsene Wenger was asked why he thought Theo has suddenly improved this year and the Gunners manager says that it is simply because he has learned to shoot the ball on target!
In the second half of the season, many Arsenal fans were clamouring for Lukas Podolski to be given more time on the pitch, then when he was finally reinstated to the starting XI, the calls started for him to be given the chance to replace Giroud as the out-and-out centre-forward.
Now the fans have finally got what they want but, but after two matches as the main striker, suddenly Podolski is making Giroud seem like he is a natural goalscorer!
What do Arsenal need this Summer to be title contenders by CJ
Arsenal are 18 points behind Man Utd and 5 points behind Man City, however both teams have a game in hand on us so the question is realistically how far, in footballing terms, we are behind Man Utd and Man City.
Last week's game against Man Utd showed us that this current group of players under this current manager have the desire and the quality to compete with very best but don't have the required mentality that's needed to win a major championship.
Robin is in our dressing room at the moment. Because our food is better in our dressing room than in their dressing room! People who play together for five, six years [get on with each other]. ...... Look, at the end of the day we decided to sell him. We are rivals. You want us to make a guard of honour and to respect the champions, then you have to accept as well that respect exists after the game.
The sale of Robin van Persie to Manchester United that Arsenal were cornered into last summer has been a shadow over the club all season. On Sunday, they gave Man United a guard of honor before their match as Van Persie's new club has already sealed the Premier League title — an achievement aided by Van Persie's league-leading 25 goals — while Arsenal sit fourth in the table.
I wish I had a penny for every time there was a comment on JustArsenal saying that "Arsene Wenger sold Man United the title" as I would be a very rich man right now! There is no doubt that Robin Van Persie has scored very many crucial goals for the newly-elected Champions, but Wenger thinks that United would have won the title even if Van Persie hadn't gone to Old Trafford.
There's a cruel irony that Robin Van Persie's first game as a Premiership Champion should come against his former employers of 8 years.
His former Arsenal team-mates having to give him a guard of honour is hard enough, the fact our former captain may now score the goals to cost us a top 4 finish would be rubbing it in our faces.
There are a lot of Arsenal fans that will be hoping that Man United (and Robin Van Persie) will not be playing their best as they have already won the Premiership title, and hopefully will be suffering from a hangover after all that celebrating, but Arsene Wenger is not counting on them doing us any favours.
Maddy's note: Long time reader Krishna gives us his views on how the Arsenal can possibly beat the Champions (vomits). These are needless to say, his views. Seems to me there are about a billion conflicting views out there. Sigh
So have United benefited directly from Referees this year and to what extent.
By Andrew Crawshaw
I have analysed all of the available Referee Decisions reviews of the United games from the start of the season up to the Everton game on 10th February, 21 games in total. I am commenting on them in sequence [.
"As announced earlier this year I had a meeting with the Boss and Mr. Gazidis after the season. This was a meeting about the club's future strategy and their policy. Out of my huge respect for Mr. Wenger, the players and the fans I don't want to go into any details, but unfortunately in this meeting it has again become clear to me that we in many aspects disagree on the way Arsenal FC should move forward.
The past three days have been quite football-y, as the rest of the non-football-following crowd on Twitter no doubt noticed. Yes, we're talking about Twitter again, and it's unforgivable especially when there's so much football to talk about. But it's just so all-pervasive.
Arsenal should use The Ox, Podolski and Walcott as strikers. Leave Podolski as CF because Ox and Walcott are much better suited on the wings, they can use their speed more effectively. Let's not forget, Ox is ambi-dexterous, so if he wants to cut in and have a shot, he can.
The Arsenal winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is well aware of the importance of this weekends game against Manchester United, not only because it will put the Gunners in the driving seat for the Champions League places, but also because it will give Arsene Wenger's squad a great boost of confidence to launch a challenge for the Premiership title next season.
You couldn't ask for a better gift than winning the title on your debut season, and quite fittingly, the protagonist of Man United's 20th Premiership title was Robin van Persie. His stupendous hat-trick against Aston Villa sealed the deal for the Red Devils last night, and really, you find yourself muttering : "Who else was it going to be?
The young Dortmund star Mario Gotze has been the subject of many Arsenal transfer rumours lately, and it has been mentioned that Arsene Wenger was willing to break his transfer record to bring the talented midfielder to the Emirates, but now the player himself seems to have ruled out any possible move to Arsenal either now or in the future.
There are many rumours linking Arsenal with some of the best players in Europe, and although we all wish to believe that Arsene Wenger will only splash the cash on top, top, top players (as he always insists) we all know that there are certain reasons why they rarely pick Arsenal if they have choices.
The Man United manager Alex Ferguson has seen his team run away with this season's Premiership title, but he has been assessing the chances of the Red Devils retaining the title next year. It seems that he thinks Jose Mourinho will be returning to Stamford Bridge and could provide the biggest challenge, but he tips Arsenal to improve and threaten to surprise their rivals.
Michael Carrick has been named Manchester United's Players' Player of the Year for the 2012/13 season. After having a brilliant season in the middle of the park, Carrick was expected to win this award. Robin van Persie once again missed out to win the top award but he did at least pick up the Fans' Player of the Year gong as well as Goal of the Season for his strike against Aston Villa.
During Manchester United's 2-0 win against Stoke last weekend, Robin van Persie scored his first goal for Manchester United in over two months. Though it was only penalty and Man United were already beating their relegation threatened opponents at the time, Van Persie was still understandably excited.
A guard of honour, a standing ovation, a rousing speech and tears in the crowd Sir Alex Ferguson's farewell last night had elements of a golden moment that will be forever inscribed in Man United's history. Come on now, you must've felt something even as a neutral (is that a soft "NO", Everton fans?
Manchester United have officially announced (after one false start) that Everton manager David Moyes will replace Sir Alex Ferguson next season on a six-year contract. Which sounds hefty until you realize he can be sacked at any point before then.
The announcement comes hours after it was revealed that Wayne Rooney once again asked Ferguson for a transfer two weeks ago and was informed that he's not for sale.
After all the trophies and the longevity and the fearsome reputation, one of the things Sir Alex Ferguson is best known for is Fergie Time. That extra bit of added time at the end of a match that always seemed to last just long enough for Man United to find a goal when they needed it most. Dismissed as a myth and adopted as a running joke, statisticians have found that there might have been something to Fergie Time after all.
The legend that is Sir Alex Ferguson has announced that he will voluntarily close the curtains on his glittery Man United career at the end of the season. His departure is fitting in these circumstances of course, given the fact that the club fought tooth and nail to prize the title back from their Manchester rivals this season.
Sir Alex Ferguson's final home match at Old Trafford played out in the most Alex Ferguson way possible. Starting with a unified guard of honor from the players and staff of both Man United and Swansea, a smiling Ferguson took his seat on the bench while the home fans all waved their plastic "Champions 2013" flags and Wayne Rooney watched in exile from the executive suite prison cell.
Sir Alex Ferguson has decided to retire as manager of Manchester United at the end of this season after 26 years in charge of the club. Now 71 years old, the most successful manager in English football history has already won the Premier League title this season, his 13th with the club and 38th trophy overall since taking over in 1986, but he will not leave Man United entirely.
Manchester United now have control of title #20 thanks to a brilliant offensive performance from their #20.
Robin van Persie netted a hat trick in the opening 33 minutes of United's Premier League-clinching 3-0 win over Aston Villa. The win moved United sixteen points clear of rivals and defending league champions Manchester City with five matches left in the 2012-13 campaign.
Even after losing to Man City at Old Trafford for the second year in a row, Manchester United still look certain to win their 20th domestic league title with a 12-point lead and just seven matches left to play. But as the Telegraph points out in a brief and strange little article, it could all go wrong,saving us from a boring end to the season that would make us weep over the routine inevitability of life that even infests our sources of entertainment.
The near certainty of Manchester United strolling to yet another Premier League title thanks to their cushy lead over reigning champions Man City took a bit of air out of the latest Manchester derby. But this rivalry is about more than silverware and for one of the few times this season, City played up to potential so they could snag a second win at Old Trafford in as many seasons.
Man United fans must be sick of the sight of Sergio Aguero. His goal i added time won the title for City last season and his brilliant goal tonight was enough to give Roberto Mancini's side back-to-back derby wins at Old Trafford for the first time in 41 years.
United's first defeat since November also ended their 18-match unbeaten run and cut their lead at the top to 12 points.
You have to admire the way that the Glazers and Manchester United have grown the commercial side of the business. With the introduction of Financial Fiar Play in Europe and the Premier League, United have an uncatchable financial gap over their nearest rivals.
The latest commercial deal they Premier League champions-elect have completed is with insurance firm Aon, the club's current shirt sponsors.
Apart from the unacceptable events that occurred during the trophy ceremony at the Trocadéro, there is a bigger problem at hand for the PSG staff. 10 000 to 15 000 fans attended on Monday for the third championship win of PSG's history, and the first in 19 years. The Paris metropolitan area has 12 million people.
Chelsea's 1-0 win against Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday has been overshadowed by David Luiz smiling after getting kicked by Rafael in the final minutes of the match. The Man United defender was sent off for the blatant offense and Luiz was accused of nefarious play acting all because of his grin.
Manchester United veteran defender Rio Ferdinand has resisted offers from the US and China to sign a new one-year contract at Old Trafford.
The Guardiannewspaper reports that Ferdinand received serious offers from the US and China, but decided to stay with United because of his young family as well as extending his career with the Red Devils beyond the eleven years he's been there.
Still with a comfortable 13-point lead in the table, Man United left Upton Park with just a 2-2 draw against West Ham because they are desperate to feel the distant memory of domestic competition. That whimsical mood was shared by West Ham striker Andy Carroll.
Perhaps inspired by Fernando Torres' improved form while wearing a superhero mask, Carroll attempted to prove his worth by flying like a dragon crossed with a unicorn.
