- Chelsea – Customary 3 points banked
- Napoli – ? Winning start in the Champions League
Welcome one and all to the GHF two-in-one September Special – today’s double header will cover the Chelsea match report and Napoli preview due to the fortunately ineffable constraints innate to this particular space-time continuum. I hope you will enjoy this one-time special offering as I am sure the football calendar will soon be rearranged to better fit the needs of supporters and player health and safety as promised by FIFA, UEFA and the Tooth Fairy. Once Santa Claus is onboard (and drops his quite ridiculous demand for a second Christmas every June) we should be ready to rock. Enough of that for now and on to a report of the jolly good jingling we gave Chelsea yesterday ho ho ho.
Part One: The Arsenal vs Chelsea
Our South London neighbours rolled up this Sunday, all freshly painted and newly minted with the fruits of their possibly nefarious doings (I couldn’t possibly say) in the transfer market and Alonso, the next one along in their managerial meat market. Fortunately, as I am sure you know by now, they stuck firmly to recent tradition despite the new old faces and handed over the three points despite our generous gift of a goal start. The Arsenal had lined up pretty much as expected, Konsa making his debut in place of the injured Mosquera was the only change. What happened next? As the late David Coleman used to say so mellifluously. I liked Coleman apropos of nothing whatsoever.
To give what must be a fairly quick run through as we’ve miles to go – the game kicked off, the referee gave Chelsea a generous free-kick after Konsa won the ball, it was floated in, we lost a header at the back post, got it half-away and it dropped nicely for a fairly open Rogers to slot home from the edge of the area. Mikel was less than happy about the goal after the game (or at the time I imagine) but like the rest of us he was very happy with our response.
For the next 25 minutes we went at Chelsea hard, it was a full-on, furiously-paced London derby performance, chances came and went, Martinez took a Gabriel boot to the face (accidently it must be said, but Dennis forgive me I may have smiled), tackles were snapped into, and the central truth of the game emerged. As I know you can handle this truth I will share it freely – we are the better side. We equalized, Calafiori quickest in a goalmouth scramble, VAR correctly chalked it off for a Konsa offside, we persisted and played, it must be said, some really great attacking stuff. In time the equaliser arrived, Kai Havertz once again showing Chelsea the error of their selling ways. I believe I know a song about it. Kai had picked up the ball on the right-hand side of the box, cut across the box and reversed his shot into the bottom right corner. Was Martinez slow and lumbering as is his wont these days? Sure, but it was a very well-placed shot through the centre back’s legs and credit to Kai for me. We took a breather for a couple of minutes after the equalizer, let Chelsea get back into our half and even have a shot or two, but dominance was soon resumed and a lead at half-time would not have been unfair on the run of play, though journalistic integrity forces me to mention Neto did hit the post right on the stroke of half-time though Raya had it covered I thought. A lead wasn’t be to be but shortly after the break we did go ahead and with a goal that was easier on the eye than Le Havre in a 19th century morning mist.
Chelsea had started the second half quite passively and after watching us pass the ball around pleasantly for a while they seemed to be lulled into a false sense of security as Tzolis picked up the ball on the left touchline played a sharp pass into the area, Kai pulled his foot away at the last second to discombobulate Fofana and Odegaard ran onto the nicely weighted ball and smashed it home – very similar to our goal in Community Shield in fact though Ode didn’t bother with the dummy (that was you Fofana) this time. We saw out the game well after that, could have scored again, and I was never particularly concerned about Chelsea equalizing though Raya had to be quick to palm an Estevao shot over the bar late on. Subs were made, the crowd gave Rogers some helpful advice on which club he should have joined, Welbz came on to what sounded like a generous hand, and some huffing and puffing was done and so were Chelsea.
Quick Thoughts
We were very, very good for the first half-hour, having rewatched the game this morning I hadn’t appreciated at the time quite how good. If any team wants to get something at our place this season it will have to be earned the very hard way.
And, of course, what we have, we hold hasn’t changed either. Absolutely no discernible sign of any loss in desire to my eyes.
Our bench is just a thing of wonder.
Martin Odegaard is back. Our captain was excellent again this week, however if I had to I think I would give Kai the man of the match plaudits this time. Tzolis was much better than last week, Raya his usual assured self. Everyone was fine, though some understandably tired or still have a little rust to shake off.
People can have their own opinions of course but I do not believe Chelsea are title contenders despite their European free schedule. To be fair they are not a bad collection of players but I thought as Konsa said after the game we should have had three or four.
As the game ended the Chelsea contingent were pleasingly sad-faced but if it is any consolation I can say I think they are better than the Spuds. London, however, is red.
Enough of the glorious past, on now to the next game for our merry crew and it is another test to start a rum run of four away games, Sunderland and Brighton in the league sandwich Ipswich in the Carabao, but first up it is Champions League time! Our first opponents will be the home of my favourite childhood ice cream, Neapolitan* and also Napoli football club.
Part Two: Napoli vs The Arsenal
Yes, the opening salvoes of our Champions League campaign will be fired in the sun-scorched Italian south this Wednesday with a tricky trip to Napoli, last season’s runner-up in that much painted old madam Serie A (eh? Ed). Our record against Napoli in Europe is played four, won three, lost one, bland enough on the surface though that sole defeat was in fact enough on the night for us to scrape through a Champions League Group of Death with Borussia Dortmund, Marseille and Napoli by the barest of margins on goal difference as we saw out an old-fashioned nailbiter with 10 men. The man sent off that night? Our very own captain leading by example, Mikel Arteta! It was only in 2013 and, as I am slightly over 20 years old, I remember it well, actually a ridiculous second yellow just after Higuain (have we signed him yet?) put Napoli ahead. We went to Napoli again in 2019 for the second leg of a Europa League quarter-final, nicked a 1-0 to The Arsenal and a 3-0 aggregate win under Unai Emery. Not a one remains of either side from that night as far as I can see. I certainly hope several of tonight’s team will still be with us seven years from now, but as I haven’t the time or space etc etc I will get on with trying to predict just who will play tonight. I ‘ve always thought the first game in the CL to be very important in setting the tone, as we did so well in Bilbao last year, and more pertinently I think Mikel may have a similar opinion – for that Bilbao game the Boss picked a team showing just one change from the league game the weekend prior. Will he do that again? I am guessing he will go in the same general direction this time – strong team, couple of changes, slightly defensive, and chosen to dig out a result.
Raya
Konsa Mosquera Gabriel Hincapie
Zubimendi Ode Merino
Saka Havertz Tzolis
The Opposition
The Neapolitans, managed this season by Massimiliano Allegri, possibly best known to us for his successful years at Juve, will come into the game (with an extra day’s rest) fresh from throwing away a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 against Inter Milan this weekend. It was another disappointment for the Partenopei** to endure after getting rolled over 2-1 at home by Como the week before. Let’s hope disappointment comes in threes.
They have many players known to us of old. Kevin de Bruyne, Scott McTominay, Billy Gilmour, Benoit Badashile, and Rasmus Hojlund. McTominay, a local hero by all accounts ever since Napoli won the Scudetto in the 24/25 season, is out for minor heart surgery, Hojlund has started well this season with a couple of well-taken goals, but de Bruyne sticking it to us one last time would be my biggest worry I suppose. Napoli have generally started 4-3-3 this season but Allegri is an old Champions League hand and may have a trick or two in store. Regardless of who or how they play we know it will be an intimidating atmosphere and we will need to stand up and be counted to get a result – fortunately that is one thing we do very well indeed!
The Score
I will bring this long read to a quick and merciful end by predicting a 1-0 to The Arsenal. I think we have enough in defence for a clean sheet and an attack well capable of nicking a goal – time for a set-piece goal perhaps…..
Enjoy the game one and all wherever you may be, and let’s look forward to the PL champions continuing their imperious start to the 26/27 season. COYGs!
*sadly, I have to report it isn’t in fact the home of Neapolitan ice-cream, which was first reported in Prussia and then adapted into its current three flavours for the American market according to my investigations. No one knows for certain but it seems our ancestors simply made up the name in the 19th century – shocking stuff but they were fast and loose with The Truth in them days kids!
**for the more historically curious amongst us, it seems Neapolitans are known as Partenopei after the name of original city built on the site by Greek settlers nearly three millenium ago. That city was known as Parthenope, in honour of a shapely Siren who took the waters locally I believe, and then when Naples was constructed nearby a few hundred years later it was known as Neopolis (Napoli these days) or New City. The new city is now about 2,500 years old.
Matt
Wot a cracker – a double report and history lesson to boot with a bit of cookery thrown in !
I will concentrate on the important win over Chelsea . I was a bit pessimistic about this game as kick off approached and two minutes in felt my worries were justified !
Our response was brilliant and we turned out worth winners in what I thought was a very good game indeed .
It was hard to find a bad performance in our team and particularly good to see Martin
playing so effectively in a role that was part no10 , part right 8 and part false 9 . The goal was a good example of the latter . I loved the Konsa tackle and the late Raya save and Kai Havertz played superbly upfront . Viktor was a bit of a downgrade when he came on but he may have been rusty
As for Napoli we will win 2-0 with a rotated side featuring Hincapie , Zubimendi, Eze and Viktor who will play much better this time as he did in Milan last year
Cheers Matt. – a double on the bar, or in the bar, or you know.
I will comment only on the Chavs for now. Nothing to take issue with on your take at all.
I do think Tzolis deserves a bit more praise for his performance thsn the mainstream meedja are giving him. One reason for the improvement over his Villa display is, of course, that he didn’t have Johnny The Madman McGinn kicking g his backside and Matty The C#%^ Cash shoving him in the back every time he went bear the ball. An excellent, direct, effective performance I thought.
Odegaard at his best is imperious and a fit Kai Havertz is a wonderful thing. Especially one who clearly hates Chelsea as much as he does. I wondered what we needed him for when we first signed him. I shouldn’t have. He’s brilliant.
bear the ball ? try – near
I’m actually liking (not licking) your ice cream preview so much I felt compelled to comment now. The ice cream history really is the icing on the cake – or something 🙃
I’m on duty for the match report for this one and following your example I was tempted to see if my predictive text could do something useful for once and predict the entire report.
Better wait til Wednesday though …..
Many congratulations Matt on an absolute tour de force in doing the double. A unique achievement? I can’t even remember the Guvna doing that.
I enjoyed yesterday’s game so much. It had it all. Great football, a great winner, terrific performances and a good bit of derby niggle. The crowd were immense, as loud as I can remember. I can’t decide if Odegaard’s goal or Konsa’s tackle got the louder roar but both were huge!
I can’t let this opportunity go without plugging the new Gooner. This edition celebrates winning the league. There are some great and poignant articles in there, including several remembering loved ones who have passed and to whom the win would have meant so much. TTG and I both have pieces in there.
Breaking news
Despite suggestions back in February that he was going Edu was actually sacked today by Forest . He has certainly had no input at Forest for some time but he must look with some envy and not a little pride at Arsenal because he oversaw the purchase of some of our best players and brought in Martinelli who realised a very large profit . Apparently the role he was expected to fill wasn’t what he expected- with Marinakis in charge this is not totally surprising
Great Solcampbelling, cheers Matt!
Enjoyed the historical notes in particular.
Also, agree with what Trev said @ 2.
Double helpings! What’s not to like? Fabulous two-up, OM (Matron!).
Apropos of nothing whatsoever, there used to be a Partenopei in Broadstairs. Perhaps there still is.
As for Neapolitan ice cream, my two cents on its origin story is that it was derived from spumoni after gelato was brought to the United States during the great wave of largely southern Italian immigration in the last three decades of the 19th century. The moulded and sliced dessert of all these ‘immigrants from Naples’ (whether they came from the city or not) was adapted to the more solid American ice cream, used the easy-to-get flavours of strawberry, chocolate and vanilla instead of cherry, pistachio and vanilla, and acquired a new name, a Neapolitan, before travelling back across the Atlantic.
British newspapers in the 1880s printed instructions for moulding ‘Neapolitan ices’, suggesting they might have been a new arrival then. However, Europeans were already familiar with a three-tiered pastry called a Gateau Neapolitain, which had a layer of chocolate sponge between two vanilla ones. I’ve seen it on the menu at a grand dinner in Liverpool in 1864, reported by the Liverpool Daily Post, so the idea of moulded and sliced layered food already had an association with Naples.
Marvellous report and preview combined, Matt. Monet, culinary and ancient history and the Arsenal. Where else would you get that all in one?!
As C100 says, it was pretty loud the other day. There was a momentary hiatus when the Bus Stoppers scored, but the crowd, as did the team, bounced back very quickly. I heard reports afterwards of said Chavs fans creating trouble. Plus ça change.
Maybe it’s something about the fans of teams wearing blue, but I confess to being relieved that I can’t go to Napoli this week due to another engagement. Its not a nice place – bar the centro storico and the locals are big troublemakers, likely to be assisted by a complicit carabinieri and local police. Good luck if you’re going. This season they have beaten Genoa – featuring Brooke Norton-Cuffy, once of this parish- away, but lost to both Fabregas’ (ditto BN-C) Como at home and Inter away. De Bruyne seems to be used off the bench in the second half, so we need to be wary of him running at a relatively tired defence and midfield. At the same time, they have Hoijlund up front, a striker who couldn’t have found his *rse with both hands during his unfortunately brief stay at United. Interestingly, Serie A seems to be allowing a bench of up to 13 subs this season. No wonder Arteta is lobbying for more subs in the PL.
Thank you, Matt. Part 1 is a very fine report of a game I did not see in its entirety though I did see the MoTD highlights (which I always view with suspicion as it is regularly edited to appear unlike games I have watched live in the flesh or on TV) and I can confidently assert that your analysis is more incisive and enjoyable than those of Rooney and Young though that is a very, very low bar, which you cleared by a country mile – I should add!
That win over Chavski was a great result and it was a delight to see that Øde and Havertz back to form and fighting fit too and also to see Tzolis look good after the Villa disappointment. That was no surprise really, as he was intimidated by getting repeatedly unsanctioned kickings from Cash and then, moreover, was ridiculously carded by a clearly unobjective and highly objectionable Scouse supporting whistler. I was impressed how well Konsa fitted in central defence like a glove and loved THAT tackle. What a smart signing he is!
Part 2 is a fine preview of a difficult CL opener and educated me on the origins of Neapolitan ice cream – which I never liked and in consequence, am unsurprised to learn that it is yet another American abomination bearing no genealogical relationship to heavenly gelato! I agree with your observation that MA8 will want to get off to a winning start and will play close to his strongest team. I was therefore surprised by your suggested team. I think we may see the XI that started against Chelsea with only a couple of tweaks: same keeper, same back 4, Guimarães for MLS, same front three, with several early subs at 45-60 if we can get our noses in front by half time.
It’s always a pleasure to thump the rouble men and your summary of the game is an excellent reflection of all that I saw and enjoyed in the stadium on Sunday, Matt. I thought that our starting eleven were excellent from end to end. I thoroughly enjoyed Martin, Kai and Miles’ contributions and Dave Raya’s fantastic save at the end, but found it very difficult to nominate a MoTM. Perhaps the young lady on the train, of whom I sought an opinion had the best answer “The MoTM was the entire team”. I thought Rogers had a poor game and Tzolis shone brightly in comparison. On the basis of this one game and their comparative price points, Arsenal got a much better deal for our left sided starter. Also, based on Alonso’s rather limp post-match interview, I think we have a manager more capable of maintaining authority and inspiring excellence than the Fulham bus stop boys have.
I think Mikel will start a very competitive team on Wednesday night to ensure a win. I think that will include Bruno and someone other than Kai up front. I’d go with Merino but fear we may see Victor’s first start (for which I hope he’s practising his ball control).
BtM @12. Accosting young ladies on the train again is it? The magistrate gave you a very stern warning about that last time!
I’m with you BtM – Merino up front if Kai’s rested. Which begs the question of exactly when will Viktor start …?
I’m not as sure as most that our starting XI will be little changed from Sunday. Tbere aren’t too many options in defence at the moment but I think our front six could be Zubimendi, Guimaraes, Merino, Madueke, Gyökeres and Eze. That’s decent isn’t it – and if we have a squad deigned to keep players fit and fresh, when are we going to use them ?
C100@13: 🙂
Mike McDonald on the Chelsea and Napoli games: https://gunnerstown.com/arsenal/2026/09/07/a-win-for-discouragement-positives-needs-hopes-ars-2-1-che/
His thoughts on team selection for Wednesday: “Absolutely no excuse whatsoever to not rotate when you’ve got players like Bruno and Eze not even getting on the field.”
Thanks all for the kinds words! It is much easier to write when we beat the Chavs!
@6 😃
@15 thanks for the link Ned
The team for the Napoli game is a tricky guess, last year MA only made one change
but then this year we have a stronger available squad and any team we name is going to
be good so I went with the players I thought would do a solid defensive job in
Napoli but also thought we should keep some players back for Sunderland away
at the weekend; not an easy place to go as we found out last season.
Considering horses for courses and / or managing loads, I kept back Ben White, Cala, Rice, Bruno and Vik for Sunday.
I just think the game in Napoli will suit Zubi and Merino more plus Kai up front.
I could easily be miles out though!
Aye, C100 @13, thon loon’s a richt randy divil!
Firstly Ned my parents lived in Broadstairs for many years and frequented Partenopei Although I had completely forgotten that until I saw your comments! As far as I know it is still in Albion Street . Nice place Broadstairs
We have three nominations for the Ballon D’Or . Saliba , Gabriel and Rice . Raya is one of the six people in contention for the goalkeeping award
I think Alessia Russo is nominated for the ladies award . Not sure we will see individual awards coming our way but we may well earn places in the Team of the Season . All signs of a growing influence at Europe’s top table
Arteta is up for Coach of the Year and we are up for Club of the Year . Mariona is also up for the ladies’ Ballon D’Or
TTG@18: Good to know that the present hasn’t swept away everything of the past.
I would imagine Luis Enrique or Luis de la Fuente would be the favourites for Coach of the Year, and Bodo/Glimt might be dark horses for Men’s Club of the Year. Raya could have a shot at the Goalkeeping award in what is not a vintage year. He is up against Morocco’s Bounou, Courtois, Jan Garcia, Dortmund’s Kobel, Emi Martinez, Eduard Mendy, PSG’s Safonof and Unai Simon.
Enriquez and Guardiola should be fighting it out for Manager Who’s Had Most Money Splurged On Them, and PSG and Man City can battle over the Club That Exerts Most Political Influence award, known respectively as the Silver Spoon and the Crock de Merde.
Matt, Many thanks for that delightful dash of double duty reporting and previewing. The Guvna himself, as someone stated above, would have been proud of that output.
Cheers bt8 🥃 🥃
Trev@21: 🙂
CER@10: From what I read about the air traffic control chaos in the UK, you chose a good week to be unavailable for an awayday. Presumably, a lot of the Travelling Faithful will be stranded.
Thanks Matt
So much for ice cream – did Naples actually invent the pizza? I like both.
As for the football, 2-0 to the Arse.
UTA.
I think we all felt we should have had a penalty against Villa. The KMI panel agree.
@26 Thanks for the KMI report
It was very obvious at the time to me.
No need for the three paragraph excuse and explanation
as to why it wasn’t given – Gillet a screw-up and so’s the
VAR guy and they’ll be stood down for a month would be
fine.
NG@25: the same late 19th century Southern Italian immigrants to the United States who brought spumoni with them also brought their ‘tomato pies’, which were reinvented as the Great American Slice. To this day, a complete pizza is still called a pie on this side of the Atlantic.
OM@27: Spot on. Gillett screw-up with VAR mate having his back.
Lovely quote online “ The Aussie scouser ref and Stevie Wonder on VAR were the only ones who didn’t think it was a penalty!”.
We have received a very grateful note of thanks from Willow for our Predictathon contributions. Attached below
Hi Peter,
I hope you’re well and you’ve had a good week so far!
I wanted to get in-touch to say a huge thank you for the kind support that GHF have shown Willow once again this year with the Predictathon competition. To date, we have received a whopping £867 from this season’s competition which we’re hugely thankful for.
This donation will help to make a big difference to the lives of seriously ill young adults across the UK. To put it into perspective, £867 could fund:
A Special Treat box for 18 of our beneficiaries who are receiving treatment at home or are spending long periods of time in hospital.
A luxury hotel break for 2 families going through the toughest of times
A ticket for a top London attraction such as a theatre show or the London eye for 10 seriously ill young adults.
We’re so grateful to all the kind GHF members for their kindness and support of Willow. Thank you so much.
Kind Regards,
Harry Folgate
Senior Fund Raiser
Willow
Holics ,
£867 is a brilliant total but it would be lovely to raise it to £1000 if we could . If you’re able to could you dig deep and give an extra donation if you can to see if we can get to £1000.
Huge thanks to Ned for his brilliant work in this connection and I’m sure our great inspiration Mr.Faber would be delighted that we are doing so much to support those less fortunate and doing it with an Arsenal flavour ! Very many thanks to you all
TTG
Thanks Matt for an excellent double-header. It’s inspiring in more ways than one, and I plan on imitating your pioneering approach going forward.
Speaking of Parthenope, I will recommend Paolo Sorrentino’s “Parthenope” released in 2024. It’s a passionate, loving, outraged, critical homage to Napoli from the perspective of a young woman growing up in the city and then returning back.
Tzolis has formed a very good understanding with the rest of his teammates. I love the way he plays, elegant without being flashy or overly eye-catching, subtle, precise and very efficient. Tzolis doesn’t quite yet have the wider set of skills and variations in his game like Rosický (who was more of a playmaker capable of playing in the wings) but the precision and compactness reminds me a little bit of him. He was crucial to our incisive attack against Chelsea, and complemented the established stalwarts very well.
I agree with those who suggest that against Napoli we should rotate heavily. What is the point of having a squad this deep and accomplished if we don’t benefit from resting players! However, I suspect Mikel’s preference for minimizing changes in the starting eleven especially so early in the season will see us start a relatively unchanged group of players, and then the “finishers” coming in early in the second half. Timber has traveled with the team, but hopefully won’t need to play today.
My preferred starting eleven:
Raya
White-Konsa-Gabriel-Calafiori
Ødegaard-Zubimendi-Guimarães
Saka-Gyökeres-Eze
Merino, Kai & Rice to come in early in the second half.
Ideally Hincapié would start giving Ricky a rest, but likely Ricky’s relative familiarity with the stadium and more importantly the feverish atmosphere would be helpful.
Allegri is one cunning operator, and KDB never fails to impress against us, and I suspect this would be a tough away day. I would still go for a 2-0 victory for the away side. I just like the idea of us not conceding a goal.
Come on Arsenal!
Team news
Thanks Matt for a brilliant double header.
Tonight’s match will be a good toughner to start the league phase but we go into as the Champions of England with a strong team with an equally strong bench awaiting the call.
2-1 to the good guys.
COYRRR
Bukayo has the left boot on his right foot and the right boot on the other.
Missed a few good chances tonight.
Still hopeful we can get the 1-0 as we have looked
secure at the back.
Guimaraes and Tzolis on for Eze and Merino
Get in Ode! Nice work with Tzolis and great finish.
Had to score there on the break
Declan at right back and Zubi on in midfield.
Good chance de Bruyne but he crossed instead.
Mostly defending calmly though
Excellent win, job done well
Not the XI I was expecting but at least I got the score right 😃
Good team performance and some players rested too.
On to the Mackems we go.
Never in doubt….
Good performance and very satisfying result, clean sheet and three points in a very challenging away game. Had Bukayo not been wearing someone else’s boots we might well have scored four.
That’s a big win in every sense but the score! Arsenal dominated possession and territory throughout and created and spurned several good chances before the captain showed his finishing class to top off a match in which he ran the show. He’s found his Duracell batteries again.
Well predicted, Matt,
My friends we follow an awesome team. Played four, won four, and we could easily have won by four tonight. 1-0 to the Arsenal it was. Kudos to all those Arsenal fans in Naples. Get home safe.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>