http://www.onlinegooner.com/exclusive/index.php?id=510
usual thread starter… phew! only thing I will say on this is that the email sent within an hour of the final whistle, suggesting the writer didn’t hang around too long before his keyboard took the full force.
Last night’s shambles (23/1)
i Agree fabianski was crap, he looked dodgy everytime a cross went in. I so badly want theo to become a arsenal legend, but he was again a massive let down last night, i still feel numb from last night. i can take getting beat by spurs , but not for them to go to wembley, and not to lose 5-1. gutted
I'm afraid Walcott gets worse every game he plays. he needs to be loaned out quickly. I also do not understand this insistence on playing Diaby on the wing. Gilberto and Denilson is way too negative a midfield pairing (coupled with the fact that Gilberto is useless). Just play Diaby and Denilson in the centre - why won't Wenger do that?
If he had to play Gilberto it should have been at centre back
If he had to play Gilberto it should have been at centre back
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proudtosaythatname
- Posts: 678
- Joined: Wed Jan 03, 2007 2:12 pm
Agree with most of the article but don't be too hard on Wenger. I'm sure he's just as upset with the humiliation but thanks to him and the great teams he built on a relative shoestring while giving us lots of silverware and the best stadium in the country. Arsene had to prioritise - had we been out of the Premiership running and the Champions League we'd have seen a different team and different display last night. It's one defeat in a Mickey Mouse competition; just a pity it was the spuds and by such a margin. The glass is still half full. So when your workmates and neighbours taunt you - and they are doing - just 
and think about the Invincibles, Paris finals - maybe Moscow, Real Madrid 0 Arsenal 1, DB10, Robert Pires, It's only Ray Parlour, AC Milan on 20th Feb... 
and think about the Invincibles, Paris finals - maybe Moscow, Real Madrid 0 Arsenal 1, DB10, Robert Pires, It's only Ray Parlour, AC Milan on 20th Feb... -
Cus Geezer
- Posts: 1869
- Joined: Sun Feb 18, 2007 6:09 pm
I think the harsh assessment of Wenger discredits the whole article.
I put it to the forum if people would like Wenger to keep the same policy regarding the Spurs game - it was a resounding yes.
Had it come off like last year I suppose the author would be saying Wenger is the greatest manager of all time.
Do you expect us to win all four trophies in a season. It's never happened and is probably never going to happen.
If Wenger played a strong side in the latter stages of this tournament and a long term injury to Cesc or Adebayor occured threatening our league or European campaign I bet the author would be blaming Wenger for that.
Armchair pundits never win anything - that I know for sure.
I put it to the forum if people would like Wenger to keep the same policy regarding the Spurs game - it was a resounding yes.
Had it come off like last year I suppose the author would be saying Wenger is the greatest manager of all time.
Do you expect us to win all four trophies in a season. It's never happened and is probably never going to happen.
If Wenger played a strong side in the latter stages of this tournament and a long term injury to Cesc or Adebayor occured threatening our league or European campaign I bet the author would be blaming Wenger for that.
Armchair pundits never win anything - that I know for sure.
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chriscatchpole
- Posts: 65
- Joined: Wed Jan 23, 2008 10:22 pm
my email last night
Please allow me to respond RE: my email.
firstly I stand by every word. Arsene has produced the finest football in the league for a decade, and on a shoe-string budget.
That is not the case any longer, there is a war chest and he is not using it and this is detrimental to the club. My complaints about him are two fold. the first is simply the tactical blunder in not recognising until it was way to late that Justin Hoyte was horribly exposed last night and simply couldnt cope. We had the capacity to put more experience in there with gilberto - who had a dreadful game in the middle of the park.
BUT having only two centre-halves who are up to standard is simply unforgivable. Phillipe Senderos and Johann Djourou are not good enough (yet?) to do the job. It is inevitable that (ignoring for one minute the ACN) one or the other of our first choice would be missing at some point during the season through suspension and/or injury. We must have another european class central defender - we have enough strikers.
I believe that Wenger is one of the best managers in the game today - a hiding by the spuds does not change that. But even the great man can make mistakes and he made a howler last night and is continuing to make one in refusing to stoop to the level of the January transfer window having said that he doesn't need to buy.
We have a stadium that is the envy of the world and are the second or third richest club in the world. we can afford a new defender. what we cannot afford is for wenger to ignore what is painfully obvious simply out of ego.
it is a fact that injuries occur and no manager is responsible for that. I dont believe that our first team is entirely dependent on one or even two players.
Do I expect us to win everything we enter? no.
Do I expect to get humiliated by the spuds? certainly not.
had we played competently but lost I would have said (as I did when we went out against wigan) well the kids did well, better luck next time.
The invincibles was a long time and almost a complete team ago. Resting on past glories is a dangerous occupation.
finally (and I think i've covered most of the comments directed at me) if we had pulled it off, it would have been due to different tactics and fresh personnel, so yes i would be lionising AW. As it is we lost very heavily.
Chin up, Newcastle next (twice)
firstly I stand by every word. Arsene has produced the finest football in the league for a decade, and on a shoe-string budget.
That is not the case any longer, there is a war chest and he is not using it and this is detrimental to the club. My complaints about him are two fold. the first is simply the tactical blunder in not recognising until it was way to late that Justin Hoyte was horribly exposed last night and simply couldnt cope. We had the capacity to put more experience in there with gilberto - who had a dreadful game in the middle of the park.
BUT having only two centre-halves who are up to standard is simply unforgivable. Phillipe Senderos and Johann Djourou are not good enough (yet?) to do the job. It is inevitable that (ignoring for one minute the ACN) one or the other of our first choice would be missing at some point during the season through suspension and/or injury. We must have another european class central defender - we have enough strikers.
I believe that Wenger is one of the best managers in the game today - a hiding by the spuds does not change that. But even the great man can make mistakes and he made a howler last night and is continuing to make one in refusing to stoop to the level of the January transfer window having said that he doesn't need to buy.
We have a stadium that is the envy of the world and are the second or third richest club in the world. we can afford a new defender. what we cannot afford is for wenger to ignore what is painfully obvious simply out of ego.
it is a fact that injuries occur and no manager is responsible for that. I dont believe that our first team is entirely dependent on one or even two players.
Do I expect us to win everything we enter? no.
Do I expect to get humiliated by the spuds? certainly not.
had we played competently but lost I would have said (as I did when we went out against wigan) well the kids did well, better luck next time.
The invincibles was a long time and almost a complete team ago. Resting on past glories is a dangerous occupation.
finally (and I think i've covered most of the comments directed at me) if we had pulled it off, it would have been due to different tactics and fresh personnel, so yes i would be lionising AW. As it is we lost very heavily.
Chin up, Newcastle next (twice)
So being top of the table (joint anyway), unbelievably better off then most clubs and a semi final is detrimental? Yes Big Phil and the other one are probably not ready to spend a whole season at cb but is Pique? Alex? Ben Haim? O'Shea? Hypia? Hobbs? None of them are at the same standard as the first choice but like Big Phil and the other guy, they can come in and do what is required, actually I have more faith in them doing that then most of those I mentioned
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Cus Geezer
- Posts: 1869
- Joined: Sun Feb 18, 2007 6:09 pm
Re: my email last night
Would you like Wenger to find this out about Hoyte against Milan or where Premiership points are at stake?chriscatchpole wrote:
My complaints about him are two fold. the first is simply the tactical blunder in not recognising until it was way to late that Justin Hoyte was horribly exposed last night and simply couldnt cope.
In fact this little cup run has given us a great insight as to whether Hoyte, Walcott or Fabianski could cut the mustard at the highest level.
I dunno what era you got into the Arsenal or whether time has effected your memory of the early 90s but when Bould or Adams were injured/serving time we had to make do with the likes of Linighan and Colin Pates and Senderos and Djourou are no worse than those.BUT having only two centre-halves who are up to standard is simply unforgivable. Phillipe Senderos and Johann Djourou are not good enough (yet?) to do the job. It is inevitable that (ignoring for one minute the ACN) one or the other of our first choice would be missing at some point during the season through suspension and/or injury. We must have another european class central defender - we have enough strikers.
Do you think that back in 1989 we could have played Alan Miller, Craig McKernon, Steve Morrow, David O'Leary and Gus Caesar across the back and reached the semi where the 1st team lost to Oldham?
Again as I said the Carling Cup is the ideal ground to test out and experiment with what you've got.I believe that Wenger is one of the best managers in the game today - a hiding by the spuds does not change that. But even the great man can make mistakes and he made a howler last night and is continuing to make one in refusing to stoop to the level of the January transfer window having said that he doesn't need to buy.
We have a stadium that is the envy of the world and are the second or third richest club in the world. we can afford a new defender. what we cannot afford is for wenger to ignore what is painfully obvious simply out of ego.
Why don't you do something more constructive with your PC, like win the quadruple on championship manager and really show Wenger how it's done!
I was at that game and seem to remember the international class of Sol Campbell being at fault for their last minute winner no less. The 1st game at the JJB was as inept as Middlesborough and Spurs in the 1st leg were this season.had we played competently but lost I would have said (as I did when we went out against wigan) well the kids did well, better luck next time.
Right and let's say nothing of the present glories of being kept off the top by only goal differencce and losing only three games all season, the exact same amount as we did at htis stage in 2003/4.[/quote]The invincibles was a long time and almost a complete team ago. Resting on past glories is a dangerous occupation.
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chriscatchpole
- Posts: 65
- Joined: Wed Jan 23, 2008 10:22 pm
rebuttal No 2.
First up I have to admit to an error. In my email I criticised Nick Bentner. having heard the full details (via the press admittedly) and Ade's apology, I fully retract my incorrect statement.
The rest of the article was opinion.
to answer your questions
I am glad this was found out in the carling cup, I absolutely agree with you. My point was that having founbd this out within 3 minutes of the start AW persisted with playing him there, even as 2, 3 + more goals went in.
Had this obvious problem been dealt with, we would not have been on the receiving end of a hiding. A defeat probably, but not a humiliation.
In answer to your second point, I started supporting the club in the mid-nineties. I was at university when George Graham got stitched up for simply doing what every other manager in the league was doing (and some still do, allegedly) That the reserves we had back then were equally crap doesnt make my assertion that RIGHT NOW we need one quality centre half and it seems to be some kind of source of pride to AW that we dont buy in the window. I fully support the adage if it ain't broke dont fix it... well right now it is broke and needs fixing - this is what I meant by not using the war chest would be detrimental to the club.
I totally agree with you that the CC is exactly the right place to blood the kids and give them experience, but I dont quite understand your argument that: by stating that while the game was collapsing around his ears AW should have made an obvious change it invalidates any argument I might make. Do you not believe that AW can make a mistake???
my other point that you commented on was simply to state that whatever the past has been we need to look to the present and the future and make the right decisions on playing staff. If we rest on our laurels (and AW has brought so much success because he doesnt and is a born winner) we would end up like Liverpool and the spuds (not to mention Forest and Leeds)
Like you I desperately want to win the league but dont feel confident that we will with the current playing staff. I would be overjoyed to 'metaphoroically' eat my words if in May the title is ours.
Dont get me wrong. I am exceptionally proud of what the club has achieved in the last 10 years under Le Boss and am not for one second belittling the acheivements of the club in it's league position this term - particularly that everyone was saying we'd struggle to qualify for champ's league or even UEFA spot with out TH14.
I just feel that without this one signing we will struggle to win the league, and surely we all want to.
The rest of the article was opinion.
to answer your questions
I am glad this was found out in the carling cup, I absolutely agree with you. My point was that having founbd this out within 3 minutes of the start AW persisted with playing him there, even as 2, 3 + more goals went in.
Had this obvious problem been dealt with, we would not have been on the receiving end of a hiding. A defeat probably, but not a humiliation.
In answer to your second point, I started supporting the club in the mid-nineties. I was at university when George Graham got stitched up for simply doing what every other manager in the league was doing (and some still do, allegedly) That the reserves we had back then were equally crap doesnt make my assertion that RIGHT NOW we need one quality centre half and it seems to be some kind of source of pride to AW that we dont buy in the window. I fully support the adage if it ain't broke dont fix it... well right now it is broke and needs fixing - this is what I meant by not using the war chest would be detrimental to the club.
I totally agree with you that the CC is exactly the right place to blood the kids and give them experience, but I dont quite understand your argument that: by stating that while the game was collapsing around his ears AW should have made an obvious change it invalidates any argument I might make. Do you not believe that AW can make a mistake???
my other point that you commented on was simply to state that whatever the past has been we need to look to the present and the future and make the right decisions on playing staff. If we rest on our laurels (and AW has brought so much success because he doesnt and is a born winner) we would end up like Liverpool and the spuds (not to mention Forest and Leeds)
Like you I desperately want to win the league but dont feel confident that we will with the current playing staff. I would be overjoyed to 'metaphoroically' eat my words if in May the title is ours.
Dont get me wrong. I am exceptionally proud of what the club has achieved in the last 10 years under Le Boss and am not for one second belittling the acheivements of the club in it's league position this term - particularly that everyone was saying we'd struggle to qualify for champ's league or even UEFA spot with out TH14.
I just feel that without this one signing we will struggle to win the league, and surely we all want to.
