Stoke v Arsenal match thread

[1989]

Gibbs lightweight? Thought he was our man of the match. Pennant is still in his pocket.

[OneBardGooner]

He was Okay today, But I just think he is too lightweight on a regular basis...he goes awol too often and obviously has skills...but doesn't strike me as being the genuine article....maybe it's his youth!?...he's what 22 - 23?...so just like Walcott he needs to step up to the plate this season - otherwise NO!

[Red Member]

is everyone realising how crap a squad this is now or prepared to give it a few more games?

I am sure all those who have bought season tickets must be thinking they have got great value for money being able to see the likes of DIABY, GERVINHO AND GIROUD week in week out

[Gimmeshelter]

Diaby & Gervinho was utter shit today!!

Great defending with captain Verminator. Steve bould has done an important effort.

[Ricay]

Great play by Giroud there!!! Amazing!
Had a man wide open and free in the middle but instead of passing it to him...doesn't even see the pass and thinks he's Pele! Goes for the spectacular! Quality stuff there!
Arsene kicking water bottles again!

Shut up mate ! The geezer had a shot ! & it weren't far off from a spectacular goal. Ramsey in the middle would have missed the goal anyway. How many times have you lot moaned about pass pass & not having a shot. Well, Giroud had a shot, so cut the guy some slack ...goddamit
Giroud did OK today, as did most of the team, apart from Feo & Gervhino. And on the whole Diaby also did well...apart from a couple of errors, but he did OK & I can't stand the bloke.
The team played much better than last week & stood up to the inbreds & won most of the challenges.

[Ricay]

Good result and defensive display in my eyes, cope well with their threat and didn't have many problems.

Battled hard with them and held our own.

Was beginning to think that I was the only person feelingbthat way

Listen we ain't no world beaters but we know that anyway and we have gone, to that shithole with better players than we had today and got turned over so we have to give credit to how strong defensively and how well organised we were. I don't like admitting this but I even thought that by and large diaby did ok ( ) although he did waste possession on occasions. For me Giroud did ok, no better and no worse, but I still have confidence that once he gets a couple of goals we will see a better player and I am willing to give the guy a chance just like we supported the great Dennis Bergkamp and Henry when they first joined us.

It does need to be said though that gervinho is utter utter shit - some argued that we will see a much better player this season as he will be settled but for me even though pigs ears can be turned into silk purses, I still dispute the notion that you can turn a shite brainless player into a good one

For me there is too much talk about the fact that we are goaless after 2 games - we know that the media will focus on it but we should be more aware of the fact that 3 of our 4 attacking players haven't settled into the team and this hasn't been helped by leaving them behind for our pre season tour.

It goes without saying that our season will be determined by the next 5 days - to press ahead with this squad is lunacy so they need to pull out the stops to bring in proven quality

+1

[Glitch33]

What dismays me is everyone saying the defence is looking better and assuming that Steve Bould is responsible.

Bould has been with the club during the recent years of crap defending - last year it shipped more goals than ever.

So why hasn't Wenger looked for help before?

[Red Member]

It goes without saying that our season will be determined by the next 5 days - to press ahead with this squad is lunacy so they need to pull out the stops to bring in proven quality

this is a good one.
It may have escaped your notice but we have already brought in the "proven quality" for this season.
If you honestly think there are going to be any more major signings this week then you are living on another planet.

[StuartL]

Had we got 3 points from the opening match v Sunderland then a point here would have been quite acceptable.

But we didn't, so the draw was not the result required to give us the lift needed.

Forget any hope of finishing above City, Utd or Chelsea, it is 4th that we are concentrating on already.


Unbeaten run continues

I bet when we play Chelsea, or in an interview in the coming weeks Wenker tries to claim some kind of credit for Hazard, and says that we knew of him years ago, tried to sign him bla, bla, bla just like he did with Ronaldo.

[1989]

Great play by Giroud there!!! Amazing!
Had a man wide open and free in the middle but instead of passing it to him...doesn't even see the pass and thinks he's Pele! Goes for the spectacular! Quality stuff there!
Arsene kicking water bottles again!

Shut up mate ! The geezer had a shot ! & it weren't far off from a spectacular goal. Ramsey in the middle would have missed the goal anyway. How many times have you lot moaned about pass pass & not having a shot. Well, Giroud had a shot, so cut the guy some slack ...goddamit
Giroud did OK today, as did most of the team, apart from Feo & Gervhino. And on the whole Diaby also did well...apart from a couple of errors, but he did OK & I can't stand the bloke.
The team played much better than last week & stood up to the inbreds & won most of the challenges.

That's Babs for you matey, all he ever does is slag off everything Arsenal from the manager down to the fucking tea lady.

[mcdowell42]

Great play by Giroud there!!! Amazing!
Had a man wide open and free in the middle but instead of passing it to him...doesn't even see the pass and thinks he's Pele! Goes for the spectacular! Quality stuff there!
Arsene kicking water bottles again!

Shut up mate ! The geezer had a shot ! & it weren't far off from a spectacular goal. Ramsey in the middle would have missed the goal anyway. How many times have you lot moaned about pass pass & not having a shot. Well, Giroud had a shot, so cut the guy some slack ...goddamit
Giroud did OK today, as did most of the team, apart from Feo & Gervhino. And on the whole Diaby also did well...apart from a couple of errors, but he did OK & I can't stand the bloke.
The team played much better than last week & stood up to the inbreds & won most of the challenges.

That's Babs for you matey, all he ever does is slag off everything Arsenal from the manager down to the fucking tea lady.

Yeah and he waits til the result is not going our way b4 he spouts his bullshit and if it is going our way he doesnt appear.

[OneBardGooner]

is everyone realising how crap a squad this is now or prepared to give it a few more games?

I am sure all those who have bought season tickets must be thinking they have got great value for money being able to see the likes of DIABY, GERVINHO AND GIROUD week in week out

You really make me laugh - Last season you had your tongue up Wenger's arse and would ***** off to any pics of him...now you are slating him and Arsenal...you need to make up your mind - if you have one. But of course you are more interested in making comments in the hope they might annoy others in some purile attempt to get some kind of hostile reaction...don't you realise you have been sussed and anything you say is now simply something to laugh at, honestly nobody gives a shyte about anything you say...so I would suggest you go have another pint at the next CL home game and try and figure out how to grow yourself a pair of balls.

[augie]

Arteta certainly wasn't a happy man in the post match interview either - amongst other things he said that the two games so far "were just not good enough" and maybe I am splitting hairs somewhat but i believe that there is a difference between saying that "we need to improve" as opposed to what he did say which comes across as a lot harsher. You do have to wonder how the older more experienced players feel about what is going on in our club these days - planks like diaby are wenger men but arteta, mertesacker, podolski and cazorla joined our club thinking that we were gonna be challenging for trophies and then they witness a mass exodus of first team players These guys don't have forever to wait and hope that things improve so I would think that frustration and impatience would be commonplace within the squad If the club continues to be run in the same manner that we have witnessed in recent years then either these "newer" players will all fcuk off or they will be the one's that bring the downfall of wenger

[Babatunde]

For the benefit of the slow: I'm not judging Giroud on the basis of two games.
I'm judging him based on years of watching him in French football (including watching comical performances at Tours)
He's crap. It's not hard, it really is that simple.
He might score a couple against Reading and West Ham but then afaik, Chamakh started off well against Wolves and Blackpool

Giroud is rubbish but let's revisit this convo in May 2012, when I'm sure, like Chamakh, he will "need a year of adaptation"

Funny how players like Hazard and Kagawa don't need a whole year to look quality eh?

[augie]

For the benefit of the slow: I'm not judging Giroud on the basis of two games.
I'm judging him based on years of watching him in French football (including watching comical performances at Tours)
He's crap. It's not hard, it really is that simple.
He might score a couple against Reading and West Ham but then afaik, Chamakh started off well against Wolves and Blackpool

Giroud is rubbish but let's revisit this convo in May 2012, when I'm sure, like Chamakh, he will "need a year of adaptation"

Funny how players like Hazard and Kagawa don't need a whole year to look quality eh?

Think you will find that hazard and kagawa have joined two stronger clubs than our players have - those guys will be given time to bed in whereas some c**ts expect our new signings to carry the team on their backs already