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Definitely Maybe.

Jun 18th, 2020 by

The pre-match ritual for this game was unlike any that I have previously experienced. No fine Italian food and wine, not even the Ruby Murray much beloved by CM100. I had planned a nice pre-match piece of pork belly accompanied by the Wine Society’s California Old Vine Zinfandel 2018 and while I did partake of these delights the whole experience was dominated by the force of nature. Not Covid-19, but an extended Wagnerian thunder and lightning storm that struck while the pooch and I were walking in the fields below our village. Initially, we sheltered in a copse at the edge of the field, standing a strategic distance from the tree trunks given the risk of emulating the fine Scottish inside forward John White who sadly played for a second-rate outfit before he was fried taking shelter under a tree on a golf course in the 60’s.

After fifteen minutes, with the rain intensifying and us slowly getting as wet under the canopy as if we were out in the open with ongoing thunder and lightning, we legged it the mile or so home getting soaked to the skin. After a reviving hot shower, I attempted to warm up for our game by watching the Villa v Blades match only to discover that the TV was dead. Changing the fuse and a consultation with Google established that the lightning had zapped the power board. Not the best pre-match build up I’ve ever had.

Mikel surprised me by going for youthful enthusiasm and new blood rather than experience:

Leno; Bellerin, Mustafi, Mari, Tierney; Guendouzi, Xhaka, Willock; Aubameyang, Nketiah, Saka.

Subs: Martinez, Luiz, Kolasinac, AMN, Ceballos, Nelson, Pepe, Martinelli, Lacazette.

In his pre-match interview Mikel said this was a very emotional game for him and that he had picked what in his opinion was the best team to win this game. Sokratis apparently has a thigh strain. Torreira was deemed unfit earlier this week. The pre-match talking point was no sign of Özil in a 20-man squad! Mikel said he was going to address that after the game.

Apparently, Arsenal flew in just an hour or two before kick-off to avoid the infective risk of a visit to Mancunia. It was pissing down there too of course. A leveller? Time would tell.

We lined up with Eddie in the middle, PEA on the left and Saka on the right. Willock seemed to be our deepest midfielder. Early on, Eddie ran onto a ball over the top but was called off-side. This was followed by a free kick on the edge of our box from a clumsy Mari challenge that Leno touched over. After just four minutes Xhaka tripped over Guendouzi and knackered his right ankle forcing an early substitution by Ceballos. I could hear TTG cheering.

Both teams began using a high press and playing out from the back which I have to say we did far better than I’ve seen us do previously. After 12 minutes Saka put a nice ball into the box which was flicked wide by Eddie from 6 yards. We looked quite silky in possession and after 17 minutes had shared possession 50:50 with Shitteh.

A flick from Jesus allowed Walker to run into our 6-yard box and play a dangerous cut back that fortunately fell to Mustafi and Mari rather than to a teammate. After 20 minutes, Mari went down clutching his left ankle, limped off and was replaced by Luiz. Saka looked lively on our right but was caught offside on too many occasions. Our press yielded a chance from the edge of the box for PEA who sent it well over. At the other end, good tracking back by Ceballos allowed him to intercept an incisive through ball from de Bruyne to Mahrez.

We were competing well in midfield and giving as good as we were getting in the first half hour. As their lack of stamina kicked in, both teams now started dropping off when they lost possession. Eddie appeared to be causing Shitteh problems. Running towards the Shitteh box, he was wrestled to the ground by Garcia but Taylor strangely saw nothing illegal. Even Gary Neville saw that foul. A shot from the left of our box by Sterling was palmed away by Leno who then made another good stop from Silva’s turn and shot in our box which was then cleared by Ceballos. Shitteh seemed to be finding a groove and we were reduced to counterattacks as Shitteh possession rose to 59% as they began to dominate the midfield. Leno made a superb save with his right foot from Mahrez running onto a de Bruyne ball into our 6-yard box. Another superb ball into the box by de Bruyne saw Sterling dink it over Leno and the bar from the same position. Could we survive to half time with our goal intact?

At the other end, a curling Saka free kick was almost met by Mustafi on the stretch in the Shitteh 6-yard box. Just as it looked as if we would survive to half time with our goal intact, a sloppy mistake by David Luiz in added time gifted Shitteh a goal. He was standing at the edge of our box and let a speculative de Bruyne punt bounce off his thigh into the path of Sterling. He fired it high past Leno into the far netting. The goalie had no chance of saving that.

HT Oilers 1 Arsenal 0

In summary, we matched them for 30-35 minutes but were under the cosh for the last 10 minutes of the first half and but for Leno’s three excellent saves would have been behind before David Luiz gifted Sterling his goal.

Neither club made any half-time changes. The second half began as the first ended with Shitteh calling the shots. A long ball from Ederson found Mahrez running into our box but his first touch was a pass to Leno. Mahrez then ran into the box past Luiz who put a hand on his shoulder and the Shitteh player threw himself to the ground. Taylor had no hesitation in blowing for a penalty and waved a red card at Luiz. There was no reprieve from VAR. Uphill from here. De Bruyne sent Leno the wrong way and killed the game on 50 minutes.

Oilers 2 Arsenal 0

Saka moved to left back and Tierney stepped inside to centre back with Ceballos. Sterling then slid into Mustafi with studs up. VAR reviewed it while Mustafi writhed in agony – no card. Fortunately, Mustsafi was able to continue but it was surely now damage limitation. As we came towards the hour mark Jesus hit a long-range effort straight at Leno. Leno then made an excellent interception from a low Mahrez cross across the 6-yard box as several Shitteh forwards rushed in.  At 64 minutes David Silva and Mahrez were replaced by Foden and Bernardo Silva.

Ceballos, Guendouzi and Willock kept working in midfield and Nketiah was lively up front but PEA was utterly anonymous throughout the second half. Nketiah, Willock and Guendouzi were replaced on 67 minutes by AMN, Nelson and Lacazette, adopting a 4-4-1 formation.

A chip from the left from Silva was touched by Sterling in our box for de Bruyne to run onto but the shot was well saved by Leno. It was a relief to see de Bruyne replaced by Rodri as he had put in an impressive performance. Shitteh were moving the ball well, pulling our defenders around and when we broke out their high defensive line repeatedly regained possession as we approached the halfway line.

At 75 minutes Tierney received a yellow for a late challenge on Silva 40 yards out. Rodri blocked one of our players running out of the wall to block a pass to Silva who waited on the right of our box. Fortunately, Leno saved the shot as the block wasn’t penalised. The commentators hoped that VAR would have intervened had a goal been scored! Rodri then got his deserved yellow for a foul on Ceballos. Fernandinho came on for Jesus.

A long Arsenal punt upfield led to Ederson wiping out Garcia on the edge of the Shitteh box after 80 minutes. Players from both sides looked shaken by the state of Garcia but Ederson seemed to find it amusing. Gundogan and Aguero seemed to have been slipped onto the pitch while Garcia was being resuscitated. It took 8 minutes for him to be stretchered off and Shitteh had no more substitutes.

10 v 10. Game on? Could we pull one back in the 11 added minutes? No. We seemed to get on the front foot for the first time in ages but as a result Shitteh moved the ball nicely through our defence and Sterling fed an unmarked Aguero running in from our right. His shot hit the post but the rebound fell to Foden who cracked it into the net past Leno.

Oilers – 3 Arsenal- 0

Our use of the ball in their half just didn’t compare though we did try to make something happen. I remember Shitteh’s expensively assembled side under Mancini coming to our place and embarrassingly playing for a 0-0 draw but steady investment of another few hundred million pounds of oil revenue has opened up a major gap in quality between these teams. At 95 minutes Silva cracked a shot wide from inside our box when he looked odds on to score then Aguero hit the side netting as he ran unmarked into our box from our left.

In reply, Lacazette worked hard to regain the ball in midfield and was then found by Saka on the left but his ball into the box for Nelson was cut out. Then a Nelson cut back from the right found PEA on the edge of the 6-yard box. Surely? A consolation? He scuffed his shot which was turned away for a corner that was wasted. A shot on target, perhaps? Apparently not!  Another nice Arsenal movement involving Nelson and Lacazette ended in a poor pass by PEA as we tried to build another attack on the edge of their box.

Mr Taylor then blew his whistle to put us out of our misery.

FT Oilers – 3 Arsenal – 0

I think 3-0 was a fair reflection of the gap between these teams. We started well with Eddie making good runs behind the Shitteh defence but we wouldn’t have got anything out of this match even without Luiz’s critical contributions. I don’t think the enforced substitutions early on made a substantial difference to the outcome. Overall, we had only 33% possession. Shitteh had 20 goal attempts vs 3 from Arsenal, with 5 v 0 on target. Frankly this Arsenal team doesn’t look good enough to make top four this season. Mikel almost certainly knew the size of his task before this match.

There were a few positives. Leno was outstanding and MotM for me. Without his contribution, we would have been dead and buried by half time. Tierney looked as good as we’d hoped when he was playing at left back. He was pulled around a bit late on playing at centre back but can’t be heavily criticised for that. Eddie was busy up front, looked our biggest threat in the first half but faded later as our possession dropped off. Saka looked effective both at wide right and when he slotted into his recently habitual position of left back. Lacazette and Nelson both looked lively late on and tried to turn the tide.

PEA was anonymous throughout and Luiz’s contributions were disastrous. That should clarify the contractual issues as presumably does the absence of Özil (which was for tactical reasons according to Mikel). Our allegedly constrained financial resources have to be invested into our young players and to building a team that is greater than its parts.

We have too many CBs already. There is absolutely no point investing in keeping error-prone Luiz as an option though Mikel says today hasn’t changed his view. Credit to David Luiz that he came out for a post-match interview and said that tonight’s result was entirely his fault. He added that he wants to stay. I don’t.

PEA has scored many fine goals for us over recent years but he is 31 the day after this game and is not part of our future. I suspect at least part of him wants to leave Arsenal to win medals and if we get a half-decent offer, we should take it and invest in Saka, Eddie and Martinez. Finally, we simply have to find two players that are nowhere to be seen in this squad: a player who will dominate the midfield and a new playmaker/Number 10 who will create the opportunities for our forwards that we have failed to create all season.

Rome wasn’t built in a day. Onwards.

Posted in Match Report | 35 Drinks »

Manchester City vs Arsenal

Jun 15th, 2020 by

It’s back!

The mighty Arsenal, the rip-roaring Gunners, the one proper team in London are back!

BUT …… that opening exclamation is about the only predictable thing there is to say about an actual football match being played again in the English Premier League.

Well, there is one other predictable thing – the game is away from home, on a Wednesday night, in Manchester, making it nigh on impossible for away supporters to get home. Except it won’t. Because there aren’t any.

In case anyone is reading this in the archives years from now, this is the year 2020 in the time of the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic. Many people believe that football shouldn’t be happening again yet at all, given the tragic death rate that has hit the country. Well it is Jim, but not as we know it (ask someone old, kids – they’ll know 😏).

On a serious note, I hope this finds everyone reading this fit and well, and may I offer the sincere sympathies of everyone connected with this still new site, to anyone who is still unwell or has suffered personal loss.

So why no fans? Because this virus spreads faster than Jose Mourinho ruins young players, and large gatherings of people are banned. It seems that despite originally stipulating that the season’s remaining games would be played at neutral grounds, behind closed doors, to nullify home/away advantage and prevent travelling hoards from reinfecting the country, or home hoards from gathering in pubs close to the grounds, this fixture will now be played behind closed doors at the Emptihad Stadium in Manchester. Given the anticipated strange atmosphere, this appears to be a huge advantage to City, as they will be used to playing in front of those particular empty stands every other week.

The politics of why this is happening are well enough known – basically, money – but the reality of a game on TV with no fans, will be interesting for viewers and players alike. Will there be real intensity on the pitch ? There will probably be a fair bit off it, as TV directors and sound men with canned crowd effects and photos of massed stands, developed in cooperation with EA Sports FIFA 20 (ask someone young, oldies – they’ll know 😏), try to convince us that something approaching normal is happening out on the grass. They might even be able to drown out the insufferable co-commentators who have become the bane of the latter day TV match.

For The Arsenal, the Restart “pre-season” has been fairly mixed. On Saturday 6th June, the first friendly resulted in a 6-1 win against Charlton Athletic, behind closed doors at The Emirates, with goals from Alexandre Lacazette, Pierre-Emmerich Aubameyang, Eddie Nketiah (3) and Joe Willock.

On Wednesday 10th June the team was back in action, again behind closed doors at The Emirates, this time losing 2-3 to Brentford. Joe Willock and Alexandre Lacazette were again on the scoresheet for the Gunners, but Brentford twice came from behind and grabbed the winner in the 88th minute.

Had we won, it would have been another encouraging indicator for the upcoming Premier League matches. As we lost, it was obviously purely and simply a fitness exercise and the result was totally unimportant!

This Man City fixture has, in recent times, become one of contrasts. A team owned by the multi-billionaire Sheikhs of Abby Dabbly (cheers BtM!) who give them everything their celebrity manager of the day desires – currently running at a total of around £1,500,000,000 – versus a team owned by an American multi-billionaire who gives his rookie, but hugely promising manager absolutely nothing. Sure, times are difficult and unprecedented and financial hardship will be widespread, but it is worth noting that Arsenal remains the only club to have negotiated, or forced, their players to take a pay cut due to the pandemic.

We mustn’t be ungrateful though. We have benefited in the past from City’s petrodollars, as they sought to relieve us, at show-off prices, of Gael Clichy, Kolo Toure, Bacary Sagna, Samir Nasri and last, but very much least, Emmanuel Adebarndoor, meaning that they paid for quite a lot of our stadium, if not all that much of their own – courtesy, unnecessarily, of a generous local authority.

This particular Celebrity vs Rookie contest is also one of Master vs Apprentice.

Pep Guardiola vs Mikel Arteta. The boss of the current Champions with his galaxy of expensive stars, versus the newly appointed manager rebuilding with youth, a club almost wrecked by the previous incumbent.

I should say that I am extremely happy with our choice. A young manager who clearly loves and respects our club and is ready to build and fight in the circumstances he has chosen. If we can’t buy the best, we at least now have a manager / head coach who is able to connect with and develop the best young talent we can gather. Mikel Arteta does seem to have won the trust of his squad very quickly, as evidenced by the immediate improvements in commitment, work rate and team spirit when he took over. He was also clearly integral to the players accepting that required cut in wages, which was perhaps surprising so soon after taking the reins.

So there, in the absence of the normal current cut and thrust of the season, we have the not very ancient and very modern history of this particular fixture.

The initial period of Project Restart (ugh) is going to be fraught for any club without a very deep squad. After the first two weeks of the restart in the German Bundesliga, the injury rate was 250% of normal. That, for The Arsenal, with our history of injuries and many young players in the squad, is a worry and something that will take careful management, insofar as these situations can be at all second guessed. Four of our long term injured will hopefully have benefited from the long layoff and be as prepared as could be reasonably hoped to go again. They are Hector Bellerin, Rob Holding, Kieran Tierney and Lucas Torreira – in case you’d forgotten them!

As for team selection, anyone’s guess is a good’un. None of the players will have any form as such, after such a long layoff, so it will be interesting to see whether the boss decides to opt for as much experience as possible, or go for a young and adventurous “fresh start”.

Bernd Leno is a cert to start in goal and Bellerin is the obvious choice at right back. Personally, I would like to see Pablo Mari in the middle – he doesn’t have Premier League experience but he did spend three years at Manchester City, and must have a good idea of their personnel and tactics. If he and David Luiz can’t be shoehorned in together, then Sokratis Papastathopoulos (just because I can) should probably start on the right of centre, if he can avoid another Greek tragedy (even though I shouldn’t 😏). If Kieran Tierney is fit again, his inclusion would allow Bakayo Saka to move forward into his preferred more attacking role. I can’t wait to see how creative this terrific prospect can be playing on the wing, considering what he has done from emergency full back.

The rest of it is anybody’s guess. My own preference would be to see Lucas Torreira in a proper defensive midfield role, with someone a bit more mobile than the hereto seemingly indispensable Granit Xhaka. Joe Willock, Dani Ceballos and Matteo Guendouzi are the obvious choices, so it depends whether security or adventure take priority in the manager’s mind.

Ahead of them I would unleash Nicolas Pepe, Mesut Özil and Bakayo Saka to supply Pierre-Emmerich Aubameyang, in the middle, up top where he belongs (there’s a song there somewhere, I’m sure), with a youthful and exuberant Gabriel Martinelli waiting to explode off the bench, along with Reiss Nelson and a probably, in that case, grumpy Alexandre Lacazette. Rob Holding and Emiliano Martinez would provide the defensive cover, given that Calum Chambers is still out with his long term injury.

The Premier League has confirmed that teams can use up to five substitutes, with up to nine named on the bench instead of the usual seven. However, in order to avoid endless delays or time-wasting, there will still only be three occasions plus halftime when a substitution may be made.

In reality, the team could be anything, with so many games coming as thick and fast as Aaron Lennon (feel free to insert the name of your own least favourite speedy, not very good, probably winger, here). You would have to think the boss will want to put his best side out against his former master, but we’ll see.

The City team ? Come on, really – who cares?

As of Saturday 13th June, News Now was reporting that City should have their entire first team squad fit and available for selection, including their long term injured such as Aymeric Laporte and goalkeeper Ederson. It would be the first time this season that Pep Guardiola has been able to field his strongest eleven – how entirely typical that the opportunity should arise against The Arsenal.

I’m not going to pretend to have a clue who Guardiola will choose, especially in these circumstances, but as long as Kyle Walker finishes up losing and very upset, I’ll be happy.

It turns out that there is one more predictable element to this game – namely the referee. That honour goes to Manchester born Anthony Taylor, a firm favourite with all Gooners! For those interested in such details, his assistants will be Gary Beswick and Adam Nunn, and the fourth official will be Martin Atkinson. What could possibly go wrong?!

The VAR will be Stuart Attwell, who is beginning to look puzzlingly like Graham Poll —- insert your own jokes here —- and his assistant will be Stephen Child.

It’s going to be a very strange experience on Wednesday evening, but an interesting one nevertheless. Our reactions to the result are probably, at this stage, unknown even to ourselves. To me, this feels more like a disjointed prelude to next season, than the finale of the current one – but it is an opportunity to get behind The Arsenal again and hopefully have a good laugh at the Spuds!

Sorry not to be able to match the standards set by the ever greatly missed Guvnor, but I will take the liberty of using his typical sign off –

Enjoy the game, Holics! At least there won’t be any problems getting home!

Posted in Match Preview | 147 Drinks »

Not quite his zenith, but inimitable anyway…

Jun 6th, 2020 by

If you are a member of the mighty Goonerverse – and if you are not but still reading this, I must congratulate you on your impeccable taste  – you are invited to choose your own single memory of Andrey Arshavin that best summarizes his time at the Arsenal. Maybe the drop-off-the-shoulder sauntering and impossible angle finish for his first Arsenal goal against Blackburn? The fulsome foursome against Liverpool at Anfield? The inch-perfect cross created out of virtually no space on the left wing, with defenders breathing down his neck, in a muddy Sunderland ground to set Henry up for his final goal for Arsenal? The leisurely perambulations in those days when the quicksilver touches would draw frustrations from his teammates and he would cut a forlorn figure, who would then become tragi-comic as his attempts at defensive tracking back would start disappearing even before they materialize, like a mid-winter ray of sunlight in a foggy St. Petersburg day? The impish smile and the finger-at-the-lips celebration after scoring goals? The torrent of boos raining down as the little Russian came on to substitute Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who was terrorizing the AC Milan defense as we were trying to overturn a 4-0 away deficit by scoring three and pushing for the fourth?  The magnificent winner against Liverpool again at Anfield as we came back from 0-1 down to beat them 1-2?

My favorite is the winning goal against Barcelona in what I think was our best ever performance at the Emirates (February 2011): 2-1 against one of the best ever sides in history of club football with Messi-Xavi-Iniesta-Villa-Pedro-Busquets all at the peak of their abilities and the team capable of playing what Arsène used to call “video game football”. Not just the goal itself which was a fine piece of counter-attacking football that Arshavin finished with a perfectly placed curler on the bottom corner that wrong-footed Victor Valdez – for the second time that evening as you may recall, with Robin scoring a near-post nearly impossible equalizer earlier – but also the celebratory run after the goal. Arshavin with his jersey covering his face, revealing an undershirt that had the image of himself celebrating a goal in his less atypical fashion, finger to his lips. It was a piece of weird and funny performance art – like a sip of a chilled drink immediately after a slice of such delicious football – that made a sly, ironic nod to his poor performances for a few weeks coming into the match.

That inconsistency, especially in the last two years — part of which was spent going back on loan to Zenit before making the return final a year later — of his Arsenal career, have most likely colored our collective memory of Arshavin with more than a tinge of apathy or even frustration. But joining Arsenal from his boyhood club Zenit Saint Petersburg on the winter transfer deadline day, he had started his time in north London with both verve and output, helping us to secure a Champions League spot at the end of 2008-2009 season the likelihood of which had looked to be in trouble especially with Cesc was sidelined for nearly half of the season after we had already started it without super Tomáš Rosický out for the entire season. That Anfield hattrick+ was the highlight, but the overall quality of his performance was enough to earn him the second spot in Arsenal’s Player of the Season award, just behind Robin. Given that he only played a little less than half of the season that was a memorable achievement.

Despite quite a few more sparkling performances for us especially in 2009-2010 and 2010-2011 seasons he never really recaptured the consistency and creativity of those first few months. Some had observed that Russia’s failure to qualify for the 2010 World Cup may have had weighed heavily on him. It didn’t help his cause that the team went through a significant transition as the band of effervescent young Turks who had originally welcomed him dispersed for one reason or another – greener pastures, injuries, indiscipline – and the fanbase started losing patience with the players much more easily as a way of expressing their loss of trust in the club. After those fallow years the arrival of creative talents like Santi Cazorla and Mesut Özil, coupled with the old favorite Rosický’s reemerging influence at the autumn of his career, and three successful cup runs meant that Andrey Arshavin’s little sojourn in the sunshine and warmth (You don’t believe me? Just ask him…) of London unhappily coincided with some of our least memorable years in recent history.  31 goals and 41 assists in altogether 143 appearances for Arsenal is a return many players would have been proud of — a goal or assist in every other match – but the feeling remains that the promise of his potential never was quite fulfilled.

His kerfuffle with Russian fans after the 2010 World Cup qualifying failure and again after the group stage exit at 2012 Euro (where he himself had played well enough to be named the best midfielder of the tournament by UEFA) hints at probably not feeling at ease with his career at that time. Before coming to Arsenal he had enjoyed a decent amount of success with Zenit, winning the Russian league and then UEFA Cup. He had never played for any team other than Zenit – let alone anywhere outside Russia – when he joined Arsenal at a mature age of 27. Maybe he never felt fully settled or connected with the club. And his involvement with us ended disappointingly – especially for a player of his abilities – with only 11 appearances in all of 2012-13 before he left permanently for back home, rejoining Zenit.

On the other hand, while in London he earned a certain amount of media following not only because of his footballing abilities, but also because of his amusing, sometimes absurd, public musings on diverse topics that are related to football only by the virtue of him being a footballer. So by that appearance the inconsistency with his footballing career may haven’t had bothered him that much. It may be wisdom, it may be lack of seriousness, those may be one and the same, or not… As often is the case with talents like his that are more mercurial in nature, maybe this sense of mild disappointment is just a reflection of our own unreasonable expectations. 

16 February 2011, Arshavin – who was no longer a regular starter with Jack, Cesc, Nasri, Theo and Robin all were fit to start and his own form being inconsistent over the last few months – came off the bench at 68 minutes to replace Song as Arsenal, still 1-0 down from David Villa’s first-half goal, after withstanding a few Messi moments but staying resilient and starting to impress themselves on the game thanks largely to a virtuosic performance by a 19 year old Wilshere, went looking for at least an equalizer. Arshavin moved to the left, and had a hand in Robin’s goal as from his pass Clichy lofted the ball into the box looking to find Robin who finished from that impossible angle. Then at the 83rd minute a classic Arsenal counter-attack sprang from the edge of the box:

Bendtner (who just replaced Theo a little earlier) to Jack to Cesc to Nasri. Robin makes a run into the box and all eyes are on him. Nasri hesitates cleverly waiting for more movements, Arshavin makes an unmarked late run into the edge of the box with his hands raised to draw attention to himself, Barca defenders and Valdez instinctively fearing another bit of magic from Robin concentrated more on him, exploiting that uncertainty Nasri makes a perfect pass, Valdez is still covering his right side, onrushing Arshavin places a perfect right foot curling finish to the bottom left corner of Victor Valdez’s goal. With Bendtner joining in Arshavin’s celebratory run, Arshavin lifts his jersey covering his face, with his undershirt showing an image of him celebrating goal as he typically does…

A great game of football culminating in an excellent goal of the kind that typified Arsène’s footballing philosophy, the joy and release of winning a match of that magnitude mixed with the laughs at a clever bit of silliness, all the talented young footballers we had been waiting to become the world-beaters we all felt that they could be were fit and playing together (not to forget super Tom Rosický coming back from injury as well and on the bench) and it felt that Arshavin too after this goal would find his mojo back and we were on the verge of achieving something memorable. Something more memorable than that result itself…something less transient, more graspable, more tangible…

But football is transient. Nothing but transient. It gets so much under our skin because it reflects life in that paradox of achieving the greatness only momentarily while striving for some kind of permanent glory which is but an expression of our hunger for immortality.   

I am quite certain Andrey Arshavin, looking back at his footballing career and the jumble of memories that it must have produced, will always find the pure magic and drama of that February evening something to smile back on.

At least, I hope so…

Posted in Club History, Interlull | 82 Drinks »

Tentative Schedule Put in Place

May 29th, 2020 by

It’s back…

Today we have provisionally agreed to resume the Premier League on Wednesday 17th June.

With that announcement the PL confirmed many Gooners may once again be able to watch The Arsenal play football – on TV at least as all games will be behind closed doors. The provisional of course relates quite rightly to health and safety concerns, of which more anon but first what about our own beloved club.

The Arsenal, leading the way as ever, will open the revised schedule with our delayed fixture away to Manchester City. A full slate of fixtures will then take place starting from the weekend of 20th June. The media friendly Pep vs. Mikel aspect is no doubt just a scheduling coincidence but will certainly be a talking point as the game draws closer and Star Wars quotes abound, let us hope the pupil will indeed prove to be the master.

Overall, the current plan, and keeping firmly in mind that all current plans are really just tomorrow’s fish and chip paper, is to finish the remaining 92 fixtures by 25th July with the FA Cup Final to follow on 1st August. An ambitious plan and one fraught with related points of risk and fixture congestion – perhaps we may even hear the first plaintive cries of the egotistical football manager complaining about the unfairness of the fixture list, and yes I mean you Maureen. Were The Arsenal to reach the FA Cup Final, as is often our wont, that would mean 13 games in 45 days.  Which brings us to the far more important point of the risk. Can this be done safely? In truth no one can guarantee safety at any time especially now and I fully understand and sympathize with those who may see this whole scheme as mad, bad and dangerous. 12 of 2,572 virus tests for club staff being positive to date show the risk to be very real.  However, and this is just a simple personal view of a complicated issue, football is an industry and like many other industries and individuals for that matter it is simply seeking a way to survive. Whether it is a garden centre, hair salon or tattooists, to name three other possibly “non-essential industries off the top of my head and with no disrespect intended, I think it is simply human nature to try and carry on. We find heart in the attempt. People in many countries are now tentatively returning to their workplaces with it is to be hoped the best possible safety protocols in place and I see no reason to exclude sport from those efforts to recover. There is also a fair argument that the return of football will lift the national mood and partly to that end the TV companies have agreed to provide some matches on a free to view basis – simple goodwill or a free fix for returning addicts is a moot point really as I don’t doubt many will just enjoy the game. However, my view is I must admit mainly driven not by concern for owners or even players and supporters but the many, many others who do not earn millions but do depend on football for their livelihood. I hope that somewhere amongst all the discussion the Government has pushed a small point about continued support for the myriad match day workers who will not be returning to work whilst games remain behind closed doors. So far I think clubs have in general behaved well and been supportive to their match day staff, however the longer games are unable to start as of old the more difficult this may be. Do it anyway, now you are getting some revenue remember these are the people who supported you to make lots of money in the past, support them now.

To more hardheaded matters, there are sound financial reasons to restart the PL, and it is certainly better than nothing financially for the PL clubs. The 340 million pound rebate to their TV masters has concentrated thinking at a number of clubs bringing forth the latest proposal to repay the sum over two years. The burden of repayment will fall more largely on the top 6 finishers – around 30 million each as opposed to 11 million each for the other 14 due to the structure of the deal. Let’s hope our moneymen will be fully behind MA in his attempts to get us into the top 6. The Championship will also return, though it is a different story in the lower leagues and I fear for the future of many of the smaller clubs, at least in their current professional form. Many will no doubt say that England has long been an anomaly with 92 professional clubs in a country roughly the size of Stan’s ranch but many people have long and deeply felt ties to their local team and I for one wish them all the best in their fight for survival. Early discussions have been proposed with a view to government support in return for minority shareholdings but whether these proposals are feasible remains to be seen. Perhaps, looking on the bright side (I know, I know) it will be an opportunity to increase shared fan ownership of clubs, a grass roots revolution so to speak as some owners sell-up and move on to pastures new.

A couple of bits of other Arsenal news to finish – firstly two Arsenal players Jordi Osei Tutu and Dino Mavropanos have in fact already returned to action in Bundesliga Two.  Osei-Tutu, usually a right back, played wide right and scored for Bochum this week, his third in five games I believe. Their respective clubs Bochum and Nurnberg will meet this week and the best of luck to them both and I may even watch if I can find somewhere showing the game.

Secondly, Sir Chips, I’ll resist the cashed in pun, has announced his retirement as Chair of the Board. In summary Sir Chips, who seems to have been in isolation for some years now due to his foot-in-mouth proclivities, said…… “It has been an honour to be the chairman of this great football club. Arsenal has always held a special place in my life and that will remain the case in future. The club is in safe hands with Stan and Josh, the board and executive team”….. I will make no comment on that statement or on his occasionally controversial tenure other than to wish him all the best in his retirement.

Although the club has already said it intends to go ahead with only the existing board members many admirable candidates for his replacement as Chair have already been suggested. I will add one with another admirable person for the role – Alex Scott, once of this parish as an excellent right back, would be a welcome breath of fresh air. I realize of course that the chances of this happening are about the same as a small furry animal prospering in a very hot place but her appointment would be well-received by the vast majority of Gooners, something I suspect will not be true of the actual expected appointee as our new Chair. Who knows though, not I certainly, the club may surprise us all.

Time to finish and as always I wish all of you all the best in these difficult times. 

Posted in Club News | 76 Drinks »

A Joy Shared is Double Joy!

May 22nd, 2020 by

Frontispiece: Cup final programme and ticket. From www.pinterest.com

Arsenal FC vs. Liverpool FC – 8th May 1971

Arsenal: Bob Wilson; Pat Rice, Bob McNab; Peter Storey, Frank McLintock, Peter Simpson; George Armstrong, George Graham, John Radford, Ray Kennedy, Charlie George. Sub: Eddie Kelly. Coach: Bertie Mee.

Scousers: Clemence; Lawler, Lindsay; Smith, Lloyd, Hughes; Callaghan, Hall, Toshack, Evans, Heighway. Sub: Thompson. Coach: Shankly.

Attendance: 100,000

A warm, sunny day greeted Arsenal and Liverpool to the 1970-71 FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium. Both sides had been in excellent form, Arsenal winning 9 of their last 11 games, Liverpool losing only 2 of their last 15. The Gunners were buoyed by having clinched their first league title since 1953 in a rescheduled final league fixture at the Lane, only 5 days earlier. However, there were rumours of extended nocturnal celebrations in the White Hart pub in Southgate, although Charlie George claims he went home to bed! The Scousers had finished in 5th place, 14 points behind Arsenal but had had a few extra days rest since their final league game. Yet this Arsenal team had shown huge resilience throughout the season, playing away ties in every FA Cup round and recovering from 2-0 down to Stoke in the semi-final.

Figure 1: Bertie Mee (left) and Frank McLintock lead out the Arsenal team at Wembley Stadium, Charlie George demonstrating nonchalance and skill with the ball. Bill Shankly (right) leads out the supporting cast. From www.Arsenal.com

Peter Storey had missed the match at the Lane due to an ankle injury sustained in Arsenal’s penultimate league fixture against Stoke but passed a late test and returned to the starting eleven to replace Eddie Kelly. Frank McLintock, recently voted Player of the Year, captained Arsenal though his record of four defeats in four previous Wembley finals (2 for Leicester, 2 for Arsenal) must have preyed on his mind just as two consecutive Wembley cup final defeats in recent years must have cautioned even the most optimistic fan.

Frank won the toss and elected to change ends. Liverpool started on the front foot and Arsenal found it difficult to get the ball. In the first 30 seconds Heighway, regularly lauded by commentators for being the only Irishman ever to gain a University degree, was brought down at the edge of our box. Brian Moore described this as “an almost violent” challenge by Peter Storey, a player much beloved by the Guvna. Tommy Smith, the famously reticent Scouse captain gesticulated towards Peter Storey and earnestly but unsuccessfully encouraged referee Norman Burtenshaw to give him an early booking. The free kick sailed high and wide. Frank McLintock then immediately fouled Toshack near our right bye-line. That free kick also soared high and wide. Frank then clattered Toshack on our left flank conceding our third foul in the game’s first 70 seconds. This free kick rebounded off George Armstrong and we immediately conceded our fourth free kick in the first 2 minutes when Peter Simpson bumped Evans. Brian Moore observed that “Arsenal were beginning to clatter in a bit!” From this free kick there was brief panic in our box as Hall wriggled through but he was dispossessed. The clearance found Ray Kennedy unmarked. Ray ran unopposed into the opposition half but sent the ball past Clemence’s far post.

The game then settled down to fairly even possession and mutual cut-and-thrust with nice link-up play down our left between George Armstrong, Bob McNab and George Graham and on our right between Pat Rice, Peter Storey, John Radford and Charlie George but neither team created a direct threat on goal. Gradually Arsenal began to dominate possession encouraging Arsenal fans to be more vocal than the celebrated Scouse choristers. Peter Storey provided Arsenal’s first threat, appearing in the 6-yard box on the end of a long ball from Bob McNab but he was beaten to it by Lloyd. Play was scrappy for the next 10 minutes, both sides repeatedly turning the ball over in midfield and achieving no meaningful penetration until Ray Kennedy pounced on a back-pass by Hall. Sadly, he couldn’t find the target. Peter Storey then played a long through ball to Ray Kennedy who found George Graham moving into Liverpool’s box but Clemence and Lawler smothered the opportunity. Meanwhile Arsenal’s defenders were effectively blunting Liverpool’s attack who resorted to high balls into the box without threatening Bob Wilson.

George Graham was strolling elegantly past midfield challenges, rarely misplacing a pass. After 20 minutes he played a through ball for John Radford forcing Clemence to sprint out of his box to block the move. Midway through the first half co-commentator Jimmy Hill described Arsenal as ‘almost cocksure the way they were strolling around in the middle of the field’. Arsenal were definitely the better team and the best chances so far had fallen to Kennedy and Radford.

John Radford then blocked a Clemence kick from hands which upset the Liverpool players a tad and it was deemed an unfair challenge. Seconds later, a George Armstrong cross from the left was headed skywards by Ray Kennedy giving Peter Storey a heading opportunity at the far post. Storey collided with Clemence as he caught the ball which upset Liverpool’s players again. Scousers do outrage well. Seconds later a beautiful cross-field ball from Charlie George found John Radford on the left. Raddy hurdled a lunge from Smith to deliver a far post cross which Lindsay headed behind as Peter Storey again came charging in.

After 30 minutes the game reverted to alternate thrusts from both teams, the biggest Liverpool threat being a deep cross from the left by Heighway which Toshack missed completely. From a George Armstrong corner, a Peter Storey shot from the edge of the box went just over. A few minutes later a Charlie George shot from 40 yards also went just over. Sadly, a surging run from the halfway line into the box by Pat Rice ended disappointingly with a tame ball. The Arsenal defence had confined Liverpool to unthreatening long balls into our box but a speculative shot from 30 yards by Smith forced Bob Wilson into his first save.

As half-time loomed, the best chance of the match fell to George Armstrong in the 6-yard box when he met a John Radford cross from the right but his header was blocked by a reflex save by Clemence. Liverpool were then awarded a centrally located free kick 20 yards out after Peter Simpson dispossessed Evans with a sliding challenge. Callaghan squared it left to Lindsay whose low left foot shot forced Bob Wilson into a full length save at his left-hand post to turn it wide. Wilson then followed the ball out to block Lawler’s cross back in. The whistle went for half time as the resultant corner was taken.

Half Time: Arsenal 0-0 Liverpool

First half possession had been fairly even but Arsenal had used the ball far better and created more goal threat. After the stormy first couple of minutes the Arsenal defence had forced Liverpool to rely on punts towards Toshack whom Frank McLintock and Peter Simpson had marshalled effectively. George Graham and Charlie George had looked very assured in midfield. However, our only attempt on target was George Armstrong’s late header and we had Bob Wilson to thank for an excellent late save to preserve status quo.

“Good Old Arsenal” rang around the stadium before Arsenal kicked off the second half. The game then everted to end to end probing with little end product. From a long ball down the left by Bob McNab, John Radford neatly chipped Lawler inside the Liverpool penalty area. Raddy then clipped the ball to Ray Kennedy, unmarked in the six-yard box, but his left-foot shot hit Clemence and went wide. From the corner a looping header by John Radford was grasped at his post by Clemence as Ray Kennedy challenged. Arsenal dominated the next ten minutes with silky midfield play and probing balls but only Charlie George’s marginally wide drive from 25 yards threatened a goal. At the other end the Arsenal defence looked extremely comfortable. Liverpool’s principal tactic remained easily mopped up high balls towards Toshack. A few minutes later another Charlie George shot from the edge of the box went just wide.

After 63 minutes Eddie Kelly replaced Peter Storey who had been limping after an early second half knock. An exciting run from John Radford down the left ended in a neat turn and right foot shot inside the box straight at Clemence. A lovely chip into the box by Pat Rice was then cleared to George Armstrong whose shot from the edge of the box lacked power and direction. Liverpool were struggling to match Arsenal’s threat. Another break down the left by John Radford came to naught as his attempted cross was blocked by Hughes at the edge of the box. John Radford’s pace persistently troubled Liverpool’s defence.

Liverpool then substituted Thompson for Evans and with his first touch he beat Pat Rice and put in a cross to the far post for Toshack whose knock down was cleared by Peter Simpson’s spectacular overhead kick. Liverpool were invigorated by Thompson’s arrival and began to assert themselves but it was the Arsenal who came closest as the last 15 minutes loomed. A low cross by John Radford from the right, was met at the near post by Ray Kennedy whose shot from 6 yards skipped just wide. Seconds later, Pat Rice ran onto a John Radford through ball but was sent tumbling in the box by Hughes.

With under 15 minutes to go, a long throw from John Radford on the right was met at the near post by George Graham who flicked the ball goalward but Clemence touched it away and a panicking Smith turned it behind. From the corner George Graham met the ball 6 yards out and firmly headed it towards the far post but it was cleared off the line by Lindsay.

A rare Liverpool breakaway through Heighway was comfortably managed by Bob McNab and Bob Wilson. Another high ball into the box from Heighway on the right was knocked off Toshack’s head and gathered comfortably by Bob Wilson at the far post. A few minutes later Bob Wilson easily gathered another Thompson high cross to the far post. Liverpool were being more assertive but remained somewhat predictable.

With under ten minutes left a beautiful curling ball from Pat Rice found an unmarked Ray Kennedy in the middle of the Liverpool box – but he was offside. Another long throw from the right by John Radford caused a melee at the near post as the ball bounced across goal but ended with a free kick for a George Armstrong push. Then a cross from the right by George Armstrong was headed down by Ray Kennedy at the edge of the box to George Graham who shot straight at Clemence. At the other end Hall beat two Arsenal players to get sight of goal but his shot from the edge of the box soared well over. Liverpool then reverted to the high ball towards Toshack whose knockdown was cleared by Eddie Kelly. With 4 minutes left, John Radford picked up a loose ball outside the Liverpool box and slipped it to Ray Kennedy, clear in the box, but his left foot shot sailed past the far post. As full-time loomed, Liverpool roused themselves to throw several deep crosses into the Arsenal box, all cut out easily by Bob Wilson. 

Full Time Arsenal 0-0 Liverpool

Arsenal had dominated the second half even more than they had dominated the first, creating but spurning several more chances. Their efforts on this hot sunny day had seemed to take a toll in the last ten minutes. Don Howe vigorously encouraged exhausted players sprawled on the touchline to one last effort. Could they find a second wind and rise to the challenge?

Liverpool won the toss and chose to change ends to face the way they would have done in the first half had Frank McLintock not chosen to change ends at kick-off. As Arsenal settled into extra time, “Good Old Arsenal” rang around the stadium but with less than two minutes played a speculative Peter Simpson punt from halfway was headed out to Thompson who fed Heighway on the left. He drew Pat Rice then struck a left foot shot from a wide angle that skimmed between Bob Wilson and his near post. Disaster! Bob wouldn’t be happy to watch that again. Could tired Arsenal legs respond?

Arsenal 0-1 Liverpool

Liverpool tails were up. Bob Wilson had to look lively to save a shot from Hall in the box from a Toshack knock-down from a corner. The Liverpool dirge rang out for the first time as George Armstrong was felled by Smith at the angle of their box. The free kick was blocked and Heighway sprinted away into our half only to produce a tragic ‘dying swan’ dive when tackled by Bob McNab. The Liverpool trainer came on and treated Heighway for cramp. Arsenal players were suddenly unable to hold onto the ball when they regained possession,. A Thompson dribble ended with Bob McNab blocking his shot. Frank McLintock’s diving header cleared a Hall cross. Then Frank had to make a game saving penalty area challenge on Hughes running onto a Smith through ball. We were under siege and Liverpool looked the better side for the first time since the first two minutes of the match. Nonetheless, Arsenal heads didn’t drop. This was a team that had recovered from 2-0 down to Stoke in the semi-final.

With ten minutes of extra time gone, George Armstrong rekindled Arsenal belief with a dribble into the Liverpool box from the right forcing a desperate clearance by Lloyd. The corner was cleared for an Arsenal throw on the left. Bob McNab threw the ball to Ray Kennedy in midfield. He played a one-two with Charlie George then passed it forward to John Radford who was standing centrally, about 30 yards out, with his back to goal. Unchallenged, Raddy flicked the ball up then lofted it over his head into the Liverpool box.

The ball fell towards the penalty spot where Eddie Kelly and Hughes jumped for it. It squirmed between Eddie Kelly and Hughes and landed on the ground between their legs. Smith joined the pair and got in their way. Eddie got a toe to the ball first, nudging it towards Clemence’s right-hand post. Now everything seemed to happen in slow motion until Gorgeous George ran in from the left and appeared to flick the ball into the goal past the onrushing Clemence from 6 yards. George continued his run celebrating as if he had scored. To this day, both Eddie and George claim the equaliser.

Figure 2: Running in from the left George Graham (top left) appears to stroke the equaliser past Clemence after Eddie Kelly’s toe poke towards goal. A screenshot from the www.footballia.net match video. A clearer picture may be seen in a Daily Mail article at https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-4429884/Charlie-George-Eddie-Kelly-beating-Manchester-City.html

At the post-match banquet, match commentators Jimmy Hill and Brian Moore revealed that slow-motion replays demonstrated that George hadn’t touched the ball at all. His run towards the ball had simply distracted Clemence who otherwise looked set to smother it. A scrappy equaliser but they all count and who cares who scored? Game on!

Arsenal 1-1 Liverpool

Liverpool kicked off to trenchant cries of “Arsenal, Arsenal, Arsenal” and the Arsenal players were back on the front foot. Eddie Kelly surged through midfield, found George Armstrong unmarked on the right and almost met his high return ball to the far post but had it plucked off his head by Clemence. Spaces began to appear all over the pitch. Thompson raced down their left and squared to Toshack in our box but he was dispossessed by a tireless Charlie George. Liverpool then reverted to punting long balls forward meanwhile Ray Kennedy won the ball in midfield slipped it to John Radford whose drive from 30 yards was again straight at Clemence. Arsenal immediately regained possession and Ray Kennedy again set up John Radford who played a one-two with George Armstrong on the edge of the box but was then tackled by Smith as he ran towards goal. As the first half of extra time came towards a close Arsenal now appeared the fitter team and were again dominating possession. Liverpool were now struggling to retain the ball though Thompson did tee up Toshack who sent it well over.

ET HT Arsenal 1-1 Liverpool

The Arsenal players appeared eager to get on with the game whereas the opposition were slow to resume for kick off. Most now had their socks round their ankles. The first chance fell to Liverpool: a Toshack header from a Lindsay cross that went well wide. Ray Kennedy then shot wide after picking up the ball in midfield and driving at the Liverpool defence – he certainly still had energy! Thompson was Liverpool’s principal ball carrier but their strategy remained high balls towards an increasingly immobile and easily marshalled Toshack. Hall collapsed with cramp.

Arsenal again clearly looked the more purposeful team, linking up well with willing runners. Thompson provided Liverpool’s only threat with a far post cross from the right that skimmed off Toshack’s head. George Graham then sent a long ball into the box towards Ray Kennedy but Smith leapt across to clear. Clemence then had to collect an overhead kick from Peter Simpson after a long throw by John Radford. Arsenal kept regaining possession from Clemence’s goal-kicks and pushed forward into the wide-open spaces left by the Liverpool players. George Armstrong raced down the right but crossed into the side netting with an irritated Radford clear in the box.

With 111 minutes gone, George Graham headed Clemence’s goal-kick to John Radford on the left. Raddy played a one-two-three with Charlie George who was ahead and to his right. Taking the return pass, Charlie then took a stride towards the edge of the box and fired the ball past Clemence’s right hand. He turned and sprinted back a few yards then collapsed to the ground in his iconic celebration. Watch Charlie’s equaliser here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=so_QY7IkYFc

Figure 3: Charlie George watches his shot from the edge of the box fly past a despairing Clemence to win the FA Cup for Arsenal and complete a historic first double for the club. From www.pinterest.co.uk

Arsenal 2-1 Liverpool

Unsurprisingly Liverpool’s response was a high cross towards Toshack that was easily taken by Bob Wilson. Lloyd then had to intercept a John Radford through ball to Charlie George in the box. Toshack finally nodded a high cross down to a team-mate but Lawler blasted over from the edge of our box. Eddie Kelly now made several excellent challenges to snuff out Liverpool’s midfield as they tried to work an equaliser to force a replay three days later at Hillsborough. Arsenal then produced a multiplayer move to run down the clock and John Radford hit a piledriver from the right that was well saved by Clemence. Another hopeful Liverpool punt was headed away by Peter Simpson for a corner which Bob Wilson collected easily just before the referee blew full-time.

Full-time Arsenal 2-1 Liverpool

Arsenal had won their first double! Apart from the first two minutes and a short period after Liverpool’s goal, Arsenal had been clearly the better team, dominating possession and creating but spurning many more goal-scoring opportunities. Every player had played his part with George Graham and John Radford vying for Man of the Match. Arsenal’s superior fitness in extra time was a result of Don Howe’s famous exercise programme which included carrying each other up the terraces on piggy back! Never was hard work better rewarded. There can be little doubt that celebrations again went long into the night.

Figure 5: Frank McLintock borne on the shoulders of his triumphant team mates, finally holds the FA Cup aloft. From www.Arsenal.com

On that sunny Saturday afternoon, it looked as if this was an Arsenal team that might dominate English football for several years. Sadly, that was not to be. Jon Sammels, an underappreciated scorer of key goals, who played no part in the final, was already half-way out the door. Don Howe left later that summer to become manager of West Brom, taking two coaches and the critical components of resilience and belief with him. The purchase of Alan Ball, a second consecutive cup final in 1972 and the club’s failure to achieve sustained dominance are another story.

Further sources:

The ITV Big Match footage of this match with commentary by Brian Moore and Jimmy Hill is available on Footballia (https://footballia.net/matches/arsenal-fc-liverpool-fc).

A very good interview with Eddie Kelly and Charlie George and a very good image of the equalising goal are available here: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-4429884/Charlie-George-Eddie-Kelly-beating-Manchester-City.html

Posted in Club History, Match Report | 83 Drinks »

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