To call the past few days disappointing would be putting it lightly. A surprise defeat to Norwich at the weekend and then a lacklustre performance at home to Schalkle has angered many fans and they are demanding answers. To call this a crisis however, is ridiculous.
What do Arsenal fans expect from a team that has gone seven years without any silverware and once again is ‘rebuilding.’ With Wenger’s contract up at the end of next season, we should questioning his managerial ability but more his desire. If Arsenal continue to go without any trophies, would he actually want to stay?
The Gunners are desperate to see Jack Wilshere in an Arsenal shirt again, but we must be careful not too put too much pressure upon his young shoulders. The team have lacked creativity in recent week and have mustered only a handful of chances. Despite adding to his squad in the summer, we are already looking forward to January and what could be.
The Arsenal AGM took place this week and no doubt Arsene, Ivan Gazidis and Stan Kroenke came under fire about the club and it’s direction. As expected, anger was shown about the club’s apparent lack of spending. Gazidis defended the club’s policy, saying that Arsenal led the way in ending ‘pointless’ spending. He commended Wenger on his transfer dealings and was confident that Arsenal could compete with Europe’s elite and end their trophy drought. Gazidis believes that spending every penny is not the answer.
An uncomfortable moment arose when those in attendance were asked if they opposed the re-election of Gazidis. Apparently 10-12 hands went up, uh oh. As expected, Wenger tried to reassure those in attendance that things would work out for the club and that their goals remain clear. He commented on the quality of the squad and spoke of his faith in their ability. However, this same speech is given each year at the AGM. I am not surprised that it may be starting to fall on deaf ears.
So another year gone and we are still hearing the same story. The squad is good enough to compete and Arsenal will not be spending big. Let’s see what January brings.
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are keen to add to their defensive options and have identified Molde defender Vegard Forren as a possible candidate.
Forren plays for United legend Ole Gunnar SolskJaer at Molde and could head to Old Trafford for a fee in the region of £4 million.
Solskjaer told The Sun:
“He could play for United but I don’t need to tell him that.”
“Vegard is a very good footballer but he has to be focused on delivering and securing his place in the Norway team.”
The centre back helped Molde to the Norwegian Championship last season and since his arrival in 2007 has played almost 150 games in the Tippeligaen.
In 2011 Forren rejected the chance to join Belgium side Club Brugge and despite insisting he dreams of playing in one of the big European Leagues; he remains happy with Molde.
Forren has played four times for the national side since making his debut against Thailand in January 2012.
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Arsène Wenger has indicated that Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Wojciech Szczęsny have a chance of being in tomorrow’s Arsenal squad for the North London derby.
Walcott and Szczęsny will have tests to assess their fitness, while the club is monitoring Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Walcott withdrew from England’s friendly with Sweden this Wednesday after injuring himself during Arsenal’s draw last weekend with Fulham.
Szczęsny last played when Arsenal thrashed Southampton 6-1 in the Capital One Cup, before finding himself sidelined due to an ankle injury, while Oxlade-Chamberlain has been out with a hip injury.
However, the manager confirms the three all could be in tomorrow’s squad.
“They all have a chance to be in the squad. Walcott came off against Fulham and will have a test, so will Szczęsny,” Wenger told the club’s official website.
However, he has revealed that Arsenal are still considering when the right opportunity would be to bring full-back Bacary Sagna back to action. Sagna has been out since breaking his leg last season.
“It is just for general fatigue. Sagna has played three games quickly, but before that he didn’t play for six months,” he added.
He has also confirmed that Jack Wilshere should also be back tomorrow following his suspension, and how glad he was that Wilshere returned from international duty unscathed.
“I believe he didn’t need games. He was overloaded with games so on that front I was happy that he got a little breather,” Wenger admitted.
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“It is not a complete breather because 20 hours travelling is of course not what we want. It’s the advantage and the disadvantage of being called up in a squad. At least he didn’t get injured and hopefully will recover before Saturday.”
Arsenal are 11 points off Manchester United’s current points tally in the Premier League table, but three points against their fierce local rivals tomorrow would give the Gunners and an under-fire Wenger a much-needed boost.
Robin van Persie adjusts his sniper scope, carefully lining up his laser sight left foot with the back of the net. Rooney scuttles sideways, luring Tevez away from the defensive barricade being assembled by Joe Hart. Meanwhile Samir Nasri is climbing into the back pocket of Edin Dzeko, seemingly eager to avoid the spoils of a war he cares little about.
The result is somewhat inevitable. The wall crumbles in the wake of the Frenchman’s cowardice and his nonchalant flick of the leg not only fails to block the incoming shot, but also inadvertently sends the ball beyond the flailing reach of England’s number one. The gutless actions of one man have decided the outcome of perhaps the most important Premier League fixture this season.
But what has happened to Samir Nasri? Did Roberto Mancini foresee such a decline? Only a fortnight ago he outlined his desire to see much improvement from his influential midfielder.
“In my opinion we are talking about a top, top player here. And if he wants, he can change every game. But I think he can do better. He has played some good games for us but he can do better because he has everything.” (Guardian)
The Italian does not believe Nasri has suffered or diminished since his turbulent move from Arsenal, but I would beg to disagree. Under Arsene Wenger he was the iconic figure of an exciting attacking line-up, nowadays he is merely a generic member of a squad largely tainted by greed.
He may have a Premier League winners medal tucked away at home but he was hardly an indispensible cog in their title race machine. During last summer’s European Championships, despite some positive displays, he was draped in controversy after an expletive-laden rant directed at his own nation’s press.
Nasri was not alone in his abrasive nature – Philippe Mexes bullied his way past a young volunteer just too avoid reporters – but it was Nasri’s actions that made the headlines. It wasn’t even an isolated incident, with a fierce remark reportedly aimed at journalists after he picked up the Man of the Match award against Ukraine.
The 25 year-old attempted to justify his behaviour as a stand against what he considers “unfair media criticism”. However, president of the French Football Federation, Noël Le Graët, described him as “intolerable” while head coach Laurent Blanc labelled his comments “embarrassing and regrettable”, before adding, “I already told Samir what I had to say, obviously the message did not get through.” (Guardian)
The reaction of his superiors highlights their perception of an egotistical individual, concerned primarily with his own fortunes. Since his ascent to stardom upon arriving on English soil, Nasri has found his head stuck in the clouds and Mancini’s assessment that he only had “two-and-a-half” players in his wall, only serves to depict a man that is a shadow of his former self.
During his spell at Arsenal, he flourished alongside the equal-minded and equally paid Cesc Fabregas and Robin van Persie. He was the jewel in a crown beginning to rediscover its shine and displayed the physical and mental strength that reignited comparisons with the legendary Zinedine Zidane.
However, at Manchester City he is permanently trapped in the shadow of fellow playmaker David Silva. While the Spaniard is adept to playing out wide under Mancini, Nasri has struggled and repeatedly finds himself bullied by full-backs. His stark refusal to help out with the defensive duties prompted Gary Neville to unleash this painfully accurate verdict:
“This is a player you’ll see when the ‘oles’ are coming out, but when the going gets tough I’m not sure he fancies it that much.” (Manchester Evening News)
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As Robin van Persie wheeled away in celebration, Pablo Zabaleta crumbled on to the post, distraught at the fact his efforts would go unrewarded. Nasri on the other hand shrugged and wandered back up the pitch, ignoring the volley of abuse coming from Tevez. Mario Balotelli is often an easy target for those die-hard enforcers of the ‘British Bulldog’ spirit but despite another uninspiring performance, he may thrive now the critical glare is fixated on another target.
There is no denying Samir Nasri is an incredibly talented footballer, which makes his current predicament all the more infuriating. In many ways, he has undergone a role reversal with Tevez, becoming disillusioned with life in Manchester, which is particulary evident from his rapidly degrading athletic physique.
However, if a golf-loving arrogant striker can worm his back from exile then so can a sulky Frenchman. He just has to rediscover his motivation, even if that involves Mancini luring him onto the pitch with a bigger paycheck attached to a piece of string.
On Day 16 of our Football Advent Calendar we’re trying to bring some cheer to Bolton Wanderers fans, who have suffered a pretty torrid time of late, but giving away a signed Bolton shirt from the 2011/12 season.
Unfortunately the 2011/12 Premier League season was not one to remember for Bolton fans, as the Trotters finished 18th and thus Owen Coyle’s men were relegated from the top flight.
Now under the stewardship of former Crystal Palace manager Dougie Freedman, Bolton find themselves in the bottom half of the Championship and hence could do with some Christmas cheer!
Fancy winning a signed Bolton shirt?
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To be in with a chance of winning click below to FOLLOW FootballFanCast.com on Google +
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The winner will be announced tomorrow, when we will also be unveiling our prize for Day 17. Don’t forget to come back to FootballFanCast.com then!
Everton boss David Moyes has claimed that he will wait until the final day of the January transfer window to make any signings.
The Toffees have been able to hold on to their key players this month and are set to add at least one more player to their ranks on Thursday, just before the deadline closes.
Moyes has a history of making late window deals and has had success with the likes of Nikica Jelavic and Steven Pienaar on deadline days.
The long serving Goodison Park boss is hopeful that with one or two additions his squad can break into the top four this season ahead of the likes of Arsenal and bitter rivals Liverpool.
It is well documented that Moyes has to work on a tough budget at Everton and the relationship between him and the chairman in key to enable the funds are spent wisely and only if necessary.
“We’ve tended to be Christmas Eve shoppers, so hold on to your hat,” Moyes told the Daily Post.
“Myself and the chairman have said there was a little bit of money we could do some business with.
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“That hasn’t changed so it makes it harder to get the level of player you might be looking for.”
It was always going to be an eventful game wasn’t it?
Not only was Millwall’s game against Bolton their first ever visit to the Reebok Stadium, it saw Marvin Sordell play his first game against the Lions since his claims of racism at the Den.
Since that game it was found that the claims were unjustified, it came out that a 13 year old was banned by calling Sordell a fish and saying he looked like the Disney character “Nemo”.
The club in my view did not stand up for the 13 year old, and express how ridiculous it was that he was being punished for what was described as “verbal abuse”, which happens on any given football ground in England. So this was a chance for the ‘Wall fans to support him in a way. This was done with inflatable Nemo’s and chants of “Marvin Sordell, you look like a fish” and “Nemo Nemo” but Bolton fans saying this was racist once again, the world has gone mad!
Back to matters on the pitch as the Lions picked up a valuable point with a 1-1 draw at the Reebok.
The game started with the hosts on the front foot but the first chance came after Zat Knight gave away a penalty, and this was calmly put away by Andy Keogh, chipping it into the middle of the goal, who needs Pirlo?
Bolton piled on the pressure after that and after going close through Kevin Davies and David N’Gog, they were handed a lifeline after Danny Shittu gave away a needless penalty which was put away by Keith Andrews, 1-1 at half time.
The 2nd half had few clear cut chances, as it seemed both teams were happy with a point. The closest Millwall came to a goal was through Dany N’Guessan, if he goes to head it, he gets a touch, but instead he slides in and misses it.
Bolton nearly stole the three points at the end as a Kevin Davies header looked to be nestling in the net, but this was somehow headed clear by “The Goose” N’Guessan. So the points were shared as the Lions stay 7th.
I’m happy with this result, if you would’ve said at the start of the season we would take four points off of Bolton I’d be over the moon; they were one of the pre-season favourites for the league of course.
But this game did highlight what we really need, a striker. N’Guessan tries his best but is most likely not Championship level, but Jackett must see something that many don’t. Even the bench showed what Millwall compete against in this division; we had Henderson and John Marquis on the bench. Compare this to the Bolton bench…
Bolton had Arsenal loanee Benik Afobe on the bench and the also a certain £3 million pound Marvin Sordell.
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Yes you did read that right; Marvin Sordell cost £3million.
I fully trust KJ to get the players in needed to keep us up in the higher part of the table, but it does seem now that any striker that he signs was nowhere near his first or second choice….
David Luiz went to find Bees player Jake Reeves to personally apologise for his reckless collision with the 19-year-old during Sunday’s 4-0 win against Brentford.
David Luiz collided with Reeves in the 86th minute and his shoulder caught him in the face causing him to suffer concussion. The Bees player was forced to go off the pitch after the medical team advised him to, but the player wanted to carry on for the remainder of the game. Speaking to The Guardian Uwe Rösler, the Brentford manager, said:
“Jake is fine, he wanted to continue but our medical staff said it was better that he didn’t, They said: ‘Safety first.’ I have not seen the situation clearly enough to make a statement now but the player [Luiz] came into our dressing-room and he spoke to Jake, which is a fantastic gesture. He apologised.”
Was Reeves concussed? “Yes, definitely.”
When Rafael Benitez was asked about the challenges from Luiz and Cahill he said he had “no complaints” and they were both “normal tackles, especially in a cup competition”.
Chelsea won the game through second half goals from Juan Mata, Oscar, Frank Lampard and John Terry, making it a good day for interim boss Benitez as Abramovich watched in the stands – his first game at Stamford Bridge since January. Benitez spoke highly of his side after the game mentioning their patience and intensity and also said he was pleased about Terry’s first performance after returning from injury. John Terry is facing stiff competition for his place in the team but he said:
“The manager knows me and I want to play, I have been out for months but the other two centre-backs have been doing well. It’s good to have competition.”
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Bee’s manager Rösler only had one complaint and that was regarding the ref blowing the whistle during Luiz’s challenge on Adam Forshaw rather than allowing a few seconds to pass. Rösler believes the side would have been 1-0 up through Marcello Trotta had the whistle not gone.
“On a better day, he could have waited a few seconds and we could have been 1-0 up, which is what you need when you are massive underdogs. When the decision goes against you, you have no chance.”
Wojciech Szczesny arrived in the Arsenal first-team for the away trip to Manchester United in 2010 as the goalkeeper Arsene Wenger’s side had needed. It was of no great concern that here was a player whose only real consistent experience in competitive play came via a loan spell at League One Brentford, nor did it matter that the game was indeed away at Old Trafford; there weren’t any fears that the occasion of Szczesny’s league debut could mentally cripple him for the coming months. Here was finally a goalkeeper who exuded confidence and made the back four a far more stable unit.
For a short time, Arsenal’s goalkeeping woes were allayed. Szczesny looked set to become the team’s No 1 for the next decade at least, provided, of course, the club could negotiate an extension to the player’s contract. It was ability mixed with an unwavering determination to prove that he was indeed one of the best of his age group. Szczesny had launched out of the starting gates and was sprinting well before he had learned to walk.
The blame, however, doesn’t totally lie with the player. It should never have taken up until this point for Arsene Wenger to take action to ensure the player remained grounded. When the competition for places is as close to non-existent as you’re going to get at Arsenal, players become complacent and youngsters never learn from their mistakes.
It was never a problem in the past for Wenger; he was fortunate to inherit David Seaman and surprisingly got it right with the signing of Jens Lehmann. But unlike Szczesny, both of those players were veterans with a wealth of experience at club and international level. They knew when complacency would see them out of the team, they understood how important their position was to the team, and, confidence aside, they had the maturity to know how to come back stronger from poor spells of form.
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It’s about management teaching the youngster to harness his ability and confidence and not jeopardise games by taking on a cavalier approach. The writing has been on the wall for a long time that a slump in form like this would happen, and it’s only fortunate that Wenger can turn to Fabianski for the remaining games of the season.
Wojciech Szczesny isn’t totally a lost cause either; quite the opposite. Here is a goalkeeper who has grown into the player he is – including a full international with Poland – due to the parts of his career spent with Arsenal. He has often shown fierce loyalty to the club and the kind of exuberance you’d expect to find in a young player.
There are a number of excellent examples in Europe to prove that young goalkeepers can indeed be relied upon heavily as a team’s first-choice, and they haven’t kept their place because they’ve lacked confidence. As a club with plenty of ambition, Arsenal will encourage Szczesny to stand barrel-chested and look fear in the eye: there’s absolutely nothing wrong with displaying the cool head that’s needed to be a success at this level.
But many young goalkeepers across Europe either have a good level of competition behind them or a manager who knows how to keep them grounded. Far be it from me to take anything away from the way Wenger manages young players, but the manager’s loyalty has often blinded him in the past. More than anything, Szczesny needed a nudge, through any number of means, to make sure he remained focused throughout the course of the campaign. It was even more vital at Arsenal due to the genuine lack of reliability in the goalkeeping position.
One of the most pointless marks of praise for a goalkeeper is that he is a good shot-stopper, as you’d expect that from any professional goalkeeper. But in the case of Szczesny, he does have the talent to be mentioned in the same bracket as Marc-Andre ter Stegen, Bernd Leno and Thibaut Courtois; the results of which will only come to the fore based on the environment that surrounds him at Arsenal.
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Paolo Di Canio says he was determined to be a success at Sunderland after receiving the backing of the owner Ellis Short.
Chairman and club owner Ellis Short was under intense pressure during the few days following Di Canio’s appointment which caused a storm amid criticism of his previously-stated political views.
Despite the pressure on him Short remained firmly behind his new manager and Di Canio remains very thankful that he wasn’t dismissed before he had a chance to start his work at the club.
He told the Sunderland Echo: “For three days after I signed the contract, what happened? I don’t have to go through it all again, but look what happened.
“He [Short] might have thought, ‘Now I’ll sack him straight away’ because he was under pressure. Instead he backed me 100 per cent, 1,000 per cent. He supported me in an incredible way.
“It was a strange moment, a strange situation in time those three days. I thought maybe he would call me at that time and say…
“But instead he rang me and backed me all the way. He said, ‘Proceed because you have complete support from the Board’. From there, I felt even more energy, I was even more focused and even more determined to get the best out of the team, and I believed that no matter what the split with fans, I would look to make them happy as quickly as I could.”
That is something Di Canio certainly has done with victories over Newcastle and Everton which have significantly boosted the club’s chances of avoiding relegation from the Barclays Premier League.
Indeed, if they were to win at Aston Villa on Monday evening, the Wearsiders would be eight points clear of 18th-placed Wigan with three matches remaining, although Latics have a game in hand.
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Defeat would see Villa join the Black Cats and Newcastle on 37 points, five clear of Wigan, but Di Canio’s men would then return to the Stadium of Light for successive home fixtures against Stoke and Southampton and the chance to secure their top-flight status.