After the four trophyless seasons and what were thought to be poor dealings in the transfer market, nobody expected Arsenal to keep their place in the top 4 let alone mount a serious title challenge. However, Arsene Wenger have once again built an excellent team with small resources at his disposal and as a result, the Gunners had a remarkable start of the season that saw them emerge as serious title contenders by Premier League betting odds. The defeat to Sunderland was the first setback after quite a while and it came in the worst possible time, before the big derby with Chelsea. The Gunners are now eight points adrift of Chelsea, with a game in hand, and they simply have to beat the Blues in order to stay in the title race. Can they do it?

This game comes at a bad time for the Gunners since the boss has several important players out with injuries and he faces a couple of big dilemmas. With both Van Persie and Bendtner sidelined, Wenger has just two options for the centre forward place. He can either use Eduardo, who struggled to make an impact against Sunderland or go with Walcott, who hasn’t played in this position for four years. It will be a gamble either way but I wouldn’t be surprised to see Walcott get the nod. Arshavin will start on left flank, with Nasri or Rosicky vying for the third place in attack. Armand Traore is the logical choice for the left-back position since both Clichy and Gibbs are sidelined.

The question is how to beat Chelsea? Wenger’s 4-3-3, which is close to 4-5-1, will give Arsenal an extra man in midfield, although that could be neutralized with Anelka dropping behind Drogba in order to help his midfielders. Ancelotti’s diamond formation is the weakest when being attacked from the wings and this is why Gael Clichy will be sorely missed. Armand Traore has played just a couple of games this season and he cannot be expected to step up the plate in such an important game but if he helps Arshavin up front as much as Clichy would do if he was fit, then Chelsea will have real problems on the right side of defence. Sagna can also cause the Blues real problems on the opposite side and doubling players on the wing looks like the only way to penetrate Chelsea’s defence. Arsenal have very strong midfield but definitely not as strong as Chelsea.

Since we cannot expect Arsenal to keep a clean sheet in this match, attacking Chelsea looks like the right way to go since the Blues are not really used to defending for their lives. The Gunners need to play to their strengths on Sunday and these are obviously talent, pace and flair. I am pretty sure Arsenal can win this game. Stranger things are happening in football today.

Well I am glad we have Song and glad he is available for the visit of The Blues, well, we all know them as The Chavs, but it made the title look ok What do you mean, it didn’t????

Over the last few games while Alex Song (now tied down until 2015) was just one yellow card from a one match ban, I just dreaded that he would get booked against Sunderland and miss this weekend’s fixture.

The man has discipline, many ‘bigger’ players who play for other clubs would not have been able to do what he has done. Maybe the tackles he makes just inside our own half are done on purpose and thats why he gets booked!

Maybe he reads the game better than some think, maybe he sees the opposition are gaining an advantage and so he just acts all clumsy and gives away a free kick. That’s how it looks sometimes

Regardless, it usually results in any attack being over, threat gone and we are off again. But when the time came to be careful, he was just that.

Personally, I just think he is under rated, not by me I hasten to add

Alex Song is just 22 years old, there are kids where I live older than him, but still they behave like 10 year olds… Alex, I am glad you are settled in your life and settled at Arsenal, one day real soon everyone else will see that too.

Ok, he is no Michael Essien yet but after Cesc and Vermaelen, he would always be the next name on my team sheet

Cilla Black has arrived at Stamford Bridge with a new version of Surprise Surprise, yep Fat Frank has suddenly reappeared, fit for the game against us on Sunday! No surprise really, I don’t doubt for one minute all their top players will have suddenly recovered just in time.. I don’t care, let’s beat them with their full squad, that way they have no excuses come 6pm Sunday!

Kerrea Gilbert has been put up for sale according to the Daily Mirror, hope the lad gets himself a good side to play for and gets to actually play regular football, he is only 22 years old and has a bright future ahead of him.

Our reserves took a beating last night at home, well they lost 2-1 to Aston Villa and can you believe Fran Merida got sent off. Maybe he did that on purpose just to remind Arson he is about and wants his contract sorted out. Now he has a game or two out, he will have plenty of time!

Good old Theo Walcott has opened his choppers again, this time though is posistive, he says he is over his injury, his knee feels great and he is sharp. He’s also making it known he wants to play in the central role up top rather than on the wing.

I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see him start there against Chelsea either. That for me is the best place for him; stop him running down the blind alleys on the right! At least through the middle he has only got to run, look up, shoot, GOAL

With all our injuries, the last thing we need is another player who needs surgery. Well, one more will be going under the knife, Armand Traore. Before you start panicking, it won’t be until the end of the season and the surgery is to remove his tattoo’s!!

Good, no offence to any of you out there who have them, but I hate them, they look ugly and I just wish Cesc Fabregas would follow Traore to the treatment room. Oh, and David Beckham, I love him, but I am sure he is to blame for the ‘Tattoo Trend’!

Not a lot else going on, the Chavs won, The Mancs lost and Rafa could get the boot if Everton beat Liverpool at the weekend – now there’s a thought to make you smile!

There it is – What took us so long?

Ok, not us, but what has taken Arson so bloomin long to get thinking the way we have all been for yonks now?

‘My players cannot think about World Cup’

Arsène Wenger has insisted that for his players this season is about achieving success with Arsenal, not earning a place at the World Cup.

During a press conference at Arsenal’s Training Ground on Monday, one journalist suggested that the current campaign is a crucial one for Theo Walcott because, at its conclusion, England manager Fabio Capello will choose his squad for South Africa.

The reporter did not reach the end of his question.

“I must stop you there,” interrupted Wenger. “The big season is with Arsenal, not at the World Cup.

“We do not pay players to go to the World Cup – we pay the players to do well for Arsenal.

“The first pride of a man is to do well for the guy who pays you in life, not to go to the World Cup.”

Hoo-bloody-rah, at last, get the balloons blown up and hang the bunting out!

Club comes first, club pays players wages, club makes you successful, club teaches you how to grow with the game.

Maybe the injury to van Persie has been the final knock to the nail in our managers wooden head that will from now on STOP players going off on international duties when they are not fully fit, and even more important, stop them playing in meaningless friendlies for their country!

Well done Arson, I am with you all the way!

And yes, I did copy and paste the interview from afc.com, and I ain’t bovvered

And here is another copy and paste….

It begins :-

Dear Barcelona

Fabregas – I am happier than ever here

Cesc Fabregas says he is happier than ever at Arsenal.

Despite consistent rebuttals from the player himself, the Spaniard is still linked with a return to Barcelona and his name has even been dragged into the upcoming Presidential elections at the Nou Camp.

But, speaking ahead of Tuesday’s game with Standard Liege, the midfielder gave all that little credence and once again painted a rosy picture at Emirates Stadium.

“It does not affect me at all because it’s been going for years,” he said. “To be honest I just don’t think about it, I don’t want to and I don’t think I should because I’m at a great club and in a great team.

“I’m very happy where I am and there is very long season in front of us. The last thing I want to do is get disconnected from what I have to do which is to play football for my team and for the Club that pays me. I’m really looking forward to a great season with Arsenal.”

The skipper was then asked if he would like to stay for the rest of his career.

“Why not?” he replied. “I have never thought about it. I’m only 22. You never know what your career will bring but why not? I’m in my seventh season now and I’m really happy, better than ever.”

Fabregas also believes that his desire to win trophies can be satisfied too. Barca’s relative success compared to Arsenal is sometimes cited as a reason for moving.

“We can achieve that here,” said Fabregas in response to the question. “I have played some Finals, fought for Premier League titles.

“It’s true that at the end of the season we have sometimes had some feeling that we haven’t done it but I’m really happy with the way this club focuses on winning things and I’m sure we are more than capable of doing it this season.”

Get the hint Barca – well do you ??

On to tonight, we need just one point to secure a place in the knock out stages and we at our home against a team who threw away a 2-0 lead to let us win 3-2, so in theory; if we approach with the right attitude we will win.

Mind you I thought that before the Sunderland game!!

Anyway, tonight is very different to Saturday, we are at home and we are not up against a manager like Steve Bruce – say what you want about him but his is doing his club proud, making ‘his home’ his teams fortress, just like Arson has done with us so credit to him!

I say we should rest the French boys, rest Arshavin and bring in those who think they are good enough! That’s their words, not my view!!

How many times do we read an interview from one of those on the fringes of the team, how many times do they choose to tell the whole world they should be in our first team?

Well, tonight I think they should have their moment… Get a good mix and match and by 10pm we will be in the next round – then bring on the Carling Cup Kids for the final match

I would go with this team if I was picking it:-

Fabianski/Almunia
Eboue Senderos Vermaelen Gibbs
Ramsey Song Rosicky
Walcott Eduardo Vela

Come on you Gooners, lets score ten !!!!!

After 2 weeks wait our team failed us, what went wrong?  I don’t really know, a slight attitude problem I would guess. We need more desire to win.  We need to believe..

If we still need to find a scapegoat  we cannot for a change point the finger at our favourite villains Diaby, Eboue or Bendtner.
If we were the darling buds of  the media we could blame it on our massive injury list.. But only Liverpool have top players out.. Instead we are just bottlers in their eyes.

I think the finger of blame should go to, well at least to some extent to Mr Wenger OBE, it wasn’t fair on Eduardo to be leading a line with Nasri and Rosicky as his strike partners. Now I love all three of these players but to expect them to lead the line was asking too much.
All three are still trying to recover their pre injury form.

Also with Dudu he is not a traditional no 9 type striker and to have him up top on his own is never his natural position, as I said when he was starting to comeback from his leg break, don’t expect too much from him, he wasn’t a world beater before the injury, but we made him up to be the greatest player on earth because we all wanted him to make a full recovery, but perhaps he became better than he really was in our eyes. Or could the media reaction to his definate penalty against Celtic affected him? He was shaping up okay until then..  I would have liked to have seen AA start even if he was a bit tired, just to take some of the scoring burden away from Dudu’s shoulders.

The other disappointment for me was Aaron Ramsey, we all saw the highlights of him playing for Wales against Scotland last week, he ran the game, but we never see him do the same for Arsenal, wouldn’t it be easier to fit into Arsenal’s sleek system rather than the longer ball way of Wales?  Is it that the Premiership is of a far higher level than the international scene or is he overwhelmed by playing next to such quality players?.. Who knows..

One thing is for sure we cannot keep losing games like this.. This is a squad of players that come around every four or five years and we have to make the most of it before they start an exodus one by one, leaving us to rebuild again like we had to when Hleb and Flamini left a few years ago.

But in fairness we were in such control in the first 30 minutes we should have put a chance or two away, the best one going to Eduardo but the ball was too far underneath him and he could not get a clean strike on the bit. But as usual we allowed the opposition to gain confidence and Sunderland were a half decent side in the second half.
Have we heard that before?

Almunia.. 6.. Never had much to do in reality, perhaps he could have come for the corner that lead to the goal, but I doubt if he would have got to it as it was curling away.

Sagna.. 7.. Was our main attacking threat from the flanks, I just wish he would cut inside now and again and do a give and go, his crossing is too predictable.

Gallas 7.5 Our best defender yesterday and he also has the winning mentality, it’s a pity some of our attackers don’t have the same desire.

Vermaelen 6.. A pretty average performance from him for a change, at fault for the goal. He lost a header to Darren Bent then failed to recover when the ball came back in the box.

Traore. 6.5 .. Without knowing it I think he may of put in a transfer request yesterday (Saturday) he isn’t as good as either Clichy or Gibbs so he is probably third in the pecking order unless either of the other two go. He wasn’t terrible (better than Silvestre) but he made some terrible cross field passes in front of our penalty area.

Song.. 7.5.. Played pretty well, The ref didn’t like his style of defending unless the boot was on the other foot and a Sunderland player did the same thing.  Done well not to be booked..

Fabregas.. 7.. Tried to play the captains role but frustratingly started to settle for long-range shots at goal…

Nasri.. 6.5 Tidy, but never really got into the game. He should have been fresh as a daisy after a rest, and with a few matches behind him, looked a little lethargic.

Rosicky.. 6.5.. Same as Nasri.. Never really got into the game as well as he can.

Ramsey. 6.. Forgot he was playing in some parts of the game, it was obvious he was going to be the one coming off first.

Eduardo.. 6. As I said earlier, I don’t think the role suits him leading the line as the sole striker.

Subs..

Arshavin 6.5.. Never really looked too interested after he got dumped on his arse a couple of times, surely it isn’t too cold for him..

Walcott.. 6.5.. Looked lively, but just went through the motions, did a very good ball across the six yard box that no one latched on to.

Vela. 6.. Didn’t really look any different from Eduardo, left footed and a bit lightweight. Sky never managed to show a replay of the penalty shout mmmm.

So all in all a bit of a piss off, I just  hope normal service will be resumed next week.

Iowa 80 Trucking Museum, located at the Walcott interchange along Interstate 80, offers a large display of antique trucks and is free. Phil Roberts photo.

Rod Denze of Davenport checks out a 1930 Studebaker tow truck. Phil Roberts photo.

Dave Meier, curator of the Iowa 80 Trucking Museum. Phil Roberts photo.

It’s free, making it one of the greatest tourism bargains in eastern Iowa and western Illinois. The Iowa 80 Trucking Museum (iowa80truckingmuseum.com) sits just a few miles west of Davenport at the Walcott interchange, mile marker 284, along Interstate 80. And it’s a fine place for motorists on fall folliage-viewing excursions to learn a thing or two about trucking history while taking a break from the road.

The non-profit facility, located just north of Iowa 80 Truckstop, the world’s largest truck stop, was a dream of the truck stop’s founder, the late Bill Moon.

It features a huge display of antique trucks and trucking memorabilia. Many of the trucks displayed — from 30 to 35 at a time, depending on their size — are one-of-a-kind vehicles. Most are from Mr. Moon’s collection and were acquired before his death in 1992. Other trucks at the museum were donated or are on loan.

“I love it,” Rod Denze of Davenport says while making his first visit there.

That’s how most visitors react, according to Mr. Moon’s son-in-law, Dave Meier, museum curator.

“They like that somebody’s actually sharing this with them,” he says. “A lot of people have collections, and they hide them. We bring it all out in the open, and we don’t charge anything to look at it, either.”

The museum entrance, off of County Road Y-40, is marked by a sign. A short road leads to a paved parking lot right outside the door of a new 5,000-square-foot visitor center.

Inside are restrooms; a gift store; several antique trucks, including a 1934 GMC tractor and trailer; a display of antique gas pumps; and the REO Theatre, which features short films on trucking history.

“We always have a movie going, and we offer those for sale in the gift shop, too,” Mr. Meier says.

During a recent stroll through the museum, he spoke of the GMC.

“Today, none of us would even consider taking that truck to Davenport,” he says.

But Mr. Meier says the truck’s former owners drove it daily to Chicago from Mt. Pleasant with a load of livestock on it. “Terrible brakes. No power. No creature comforts. They did it every day. And here we are — none of us like to even drive a car if the air conditioner is broken.”

The visitor center also boasts a new exhibit on vintage electric trucks. The centerpiece is a 1911 Walker electric that was a commercial milk delivery truck.

Four rows of additional antique trucks and other displays are found in an adjoining 14,400-square-foot exhibit hall.

“I love the older cars, and this is equally as interesting” says Mr. Denze, studying an old tow truck. “It makes me smile.”

Mr. Meier says he often accompanied Mr. Moon on truck-buying trips and to truck auctions. “It wasn’t just a hobby,” he says of Mr. Moon’s interest in antique trucks. “He really loved it. It was a passion.”

Sometimes the pair came back with an antique truck to restore, and sometimes they came back empty handed.

Says Mr. Meier: “As with any collector, I think part of the thrill is the chase. And it’s a lot of fun.”

When Mr. Moon died, he owned 60 to 65 trucks. Others have been added since then. Mr. Meier says the trucks on display and those in storage are rotated once or twice per year.

He says every old truck has a story to tell and those stories are documented on large signs displayed with each truck.

“This truck has had a hard working life,” says Mr. Meier, pointing to the large, steel frame rails on a rare Velie, which was manufactured in Moline. Thick beads of weld mark several places where cracks in the frame have been repaired over the years.

If you go:

Admission: Free but a donation is appreciated.

Hours: Open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays. Closed Mondays and Tuesdays.

Location: 505 Sterling Drive, Walcott, Iowa 52773. Phone (563) 468-5500. The museum is just north of Iowa 80 Truckstop at the 284 interchange of Interstate 80.

Iowa 80 Truckstop…..

Iowa 80 Truckstop is billed as the world’s largest truck stop.

Located along Interstate 80 at the Walcott interchange, mile marker 284, Iowa 80’s Web site, iowa80truckstop.com, calls the place “a mecca for professional truckers, travelers and RVers.”

Iowa 80 offers the usual products and services travelers want: fuel, restrooms, snacks, a service center and a restaurant. But there’s lot more, too, including a food court with half a dozen fast-food restaurants, a Truckomat truck wash, a CAT scale, a Verizon Wireless kiosk and a 50,000-item store who highlights are gifts and chrome items.

There’s more. Iowa 80 Truckstop has a library and the services of a barber, dentist and chiropractor.

But the best part are the hours. Like the signs on the doors say, “We never close.”

Copyright 2009 by Phil Roberts, Creative Enterprises. These stories were printed in October in the The Dispatch, Moline, Ill., and The Rock Island (Ill.) Argus.

The art of a natural striker is immensely undervalued these days isn’t it? “Yeah he is okay, but he does nothing else apart from score”. How would we have love to have that player at the Stadium of Light. We did. He went off just after the 71st minute. Shortly after we went 1-0 down.

Frazier Campbell didn’t know what he did with Bent’s header from Reid’s corner. Unluckily for us, Darren Bent did and he reacted quickest to sneak his shot in. As instinctive a goal as you can get. I don’t think you can teach that.

Sometimes the ‘fox in the box’ is just too quick.

When we snatched a draw from the jaws of victory at West Ham, some Gooners wondered whether Wenger reacted too late in making his substitutions. I don’t think the same could be said here. Walcott was due to make his entrance even before that goal went in, but how many times do you see a substitution just before a corner?

Somehow we were 1-0 down from Sunderland’s only shot on target. And then Walcott and Vela make their sub appearances. Rosicky and Eduardo went off. Wait a minute Eduardo? Yes, he didn’t have a stellar game but neither did Bent.

The effect of Eduardo’s departure was profound. Between the 72nd minute and the end of the game, 12 passes (crosses in some instances) from either flanks went into the centre of the box. None of them found the intended target.

Who was the intended target? Vela? Played on the wing largely. Walcott? Ditto. Fabregas? Even he was crossing them in at times.

At present Vela and Walcott simply don’t know what it means to lead the line and based on what I saw, I don’t think they were instructed to play there either.

What puzzled me was that Nasri who I thought had a relatively quiet game was still on the pitch. Surely he could have made way instead of Eduardo? I am certain if that was the case maybe we would have at least equalized and perhaps even sneaked a win.

Did we need some many central-esque midfielders to begin with? Starting with either Vela or Walcott from the first minute would have given us that extra dimension to our attack that we only saw late in the game. Without them, we looked laboured,  the play focused too much on the centre and it felt almost if we were waiting for Sunderland to make a mistake. The Black Cats knew they were rarely get beaten if the ball went behind their defence.

Sunderland on the either hand, were well-organized. They defended deep and manipulated the space on either flanks, particularly the space between Vermaelen and Traore. If Malbranque was as clinical as his other technical attributes would suggest, we could have been punished severely. Even Sagna was exposed at times and Song had to plug the gaps.

The 13 match unbeaten run came to an end but it had to at some point. This defeat won’t be a “massive setback” as Wenger stated. In the immediate future, this result will only prove to be a sort of ‘collateral damage’ in our season. Like United losing to Burnley, like Chelsea losing to Wigan and Villa. Now and then a jolt like this is needed. I’m looking for a positive response.

My head! My head!

My good friend’s wedding is tomorrow so this will be a very early match preview of our trip to Sunderland. As it has been known for the past few days, RVP and Gibbs both will miss the game after yet another injury return for an Arsenal player from an international break. However the good news is that Walcott, Denilson, Vela and Wilshere have all recovered from their respective injuries and will join the squad for Saturday’s game.

Last season, we only managed a draw at the English’s Stadium of Light when Fabregas popped up from nowhere to score with a header from a corner. It was a very rare occasion and I’m willing to put my bet that it will never happen again but it was a very good moment for him. That we played poorly and only got the equaliser in the final minute of the match showed that this match won’t be a walk in the park for the Gunners.

There is no point in hiding the fact that we will miss RVP. In a game as tight as this, where Steve Bruce will probably instruct his team to stick close to Arsenal players and try to deny us space to play our normal game,  the Dutchman can always conjure up some moment of magic. That being the case, there’s no point fretting about it. Walcott’s return augurs well for the attacking option as he had just increased the forward players to a great number of 2 (yes, you read it right). Apart from him, Eduardo is currently the only fit forward within the ranks of Arsenal. I think he will not start this game but his pace could be very useful late in the game.

As I mentioned yesterday, both Gallas and Sagna have completed very long and arduous matches and might not be at 100% for this game but I’m quite sure Gallas will start while Eboue could come in for Sagna. With that, I suspect the lineup will be something like this.

Almunia

Eboue—Gallas—Vermaelen—Silvestre

Fabregas—Song—Nasri

Rosicky—Eduardo—Arshavin

Now, one may try to argue otherwise but that is quite an impressive lineup of players on its own, even without the currently injured ones. Slight caution on the inclusion of Silvestre but since Kieran Richardson is still substituting at left back, his replacement Andy Reid is not known for his speed, so unless there is a lapse of concentration, the aging Frenchman will do just fine.

Another note of concern will should also be handed out to Song to be aware of the positions that Steed Malbranque takes up as the latter can be quite industrious as well as quite good with long shots. If need be, Denilson could also be on from the off just to put some more strength in the midfield but having just returned from a long layoff, he will be better suited to come on if we need to defend or protect a lead.

Sunderland have been quite strong at home this season but with Jones suspended for this game, Bent will be hard pressed to muster anything on his own. Another of Sunderland’s success story this season, Lee Catermole is also out injured, so it will be one less midfield terrier for Fabregas to deal with.

It’s up to us to put some pressure on Chelsea to close the gap to just 2 points ahead of the London derby next week. Here’s to hoping that will happen. Enjoy it wherever you’re watching.

­Way back in March I wrote a post that tried to predict England’s World Cup squad for next summer’s tournament in South Africa. In it around 50 or so players were analysed; everyone from certainties like Wayne Rooney to certainly nots like Curtis Davies. With the friendly against Brazil fresh in the mind and only one more international break before the end of the season, there isn’t much time for players to impress if they haven’t already. As before let’s work our way through who’s on the plane through to who won’t be going at all. .

Key men (if England are to reach their usual quarter final):

First name in the squad is the captain John Terry simply as he’s captain. I personally think he gets found against the very best strikers but there’s no chance of him not going. He’s swiftly followed by Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard. Rio Ferdinand goes as long as he’s fit, though it’s a concern if he doesn’t make it simply as playing style wise he’s harder to replace than Terry – England don’t have a lot of ball playing centre backs but do have a lot of one paced ones.

Gareth Barry is defensive midfielder of choice though may be usurped by a fit again Owen Hargreaves. They’ll both be on the plane however. Ashley Cole and Glen Johnson are the first choice full backs and are far ahead of their immediate competition. 

Thinking...

On the plane (extra leg room provided):

David Beckham has sorted another loan spell at AC Milan and I’m positive he’ll be going to his 4^th World Cup. He’s very much a bench player these days but still offers great set piece ability as well as experience. Emile Heskey has not been in great form and is no longer in Aston Villa’s starting XI but that said he will still be on the plane. He won’t score but he makes Rooney et al play better so for that reason is picked.

David James is first choice keeper, and despite his age should be able to handle that number of games in a month. Theo Walcott has had a succession of injuries but has done enough in the games he’s played to go as a wide man who can play up front. His pace is a big asset, plus he strikes me as someone who does what he’s told hence Capello likes him.

Matthew Upson and Jermaine Defoe should go as first back-up centre back and striker respectively. Neither are going to win you a World Cup final but they’re the best reserves in their position. Defoe just needs to watch his petulance slightly as there’s no point having a player who is going to miss games after needless red cards..

Looking for their passport (they are going out of Europe after all):

Joe Cole should be a little worried, just as he hasn’t found a way into the Chelsea team after injury, but at the same time he offers dribbling ability and creativity that not many can match. I was quite down on James Milner in my last prediction but did say he had a shot of making it. He seems to be impressing Capello right now and can play in a few positions. I do wonder whether he ultimately misses out due to the competition on the right side, though he has been playing down the left for England so you never know.

Aaron Lennon will be there or thereabouts, possibly in a straight battle with Milner for a spot. Rob Green looks like he’s firmly established as England’s number two while Wes Brown’s versatility of being a right back and centre back should mean he finds his way into the squad. 

Still thinking...

On the fringes (which bits are chopped?):

Wayne Bridge is doing his best to play his way out of the squad. You could argue about whether you really need to take a reserve left back, especially when the likes of Gareth Barry could play there if needed. Barring injury, the first choice defence are going to play every game so specialist reserve left back may be an area to gamble on not taking.

Of the other alternatives Capello has picked during his tenure, Leighton Baines and Steven Warnock don’t strike me as being quite good enough. If Joleon Lescott goes he provides left back cover too but he is quite shaky defensively so I don’t think he does. There is dearth of centre backs though. What price Kieran Gibbs continuing his rapid progress and staking a claim? Of all those players, he’ll be the only one playing Champions League football but a lot depends on whether he can keep Gael Clichy out of the Arsenal side once the Frenchman returns from injury. He appears to have just injured himself too.

I reckon Michael Carrick probably only goes if Barry or Hargreaves are injured and even then he’s shown countless times for Man Utd that he’s not a big game player. Gabriel Agbonlahor offers pace and will find himself with Peter Crouch, Carlton Cole and Darren Bent in the queue for the 4^th striker spot.

Capello has only ever picked seven strikers so it would be a surprise to see him take five of them, not least when Walcott can play up front. Of the four I would say that the Sunderland man had his chance against Brazil and didn’t take it. I think Agbonlahor doesn’t give enough variety when compare to the others – with a 4^th striker you want someone who offers something unique.

In that regard I’d say it will be a close run thing between Crouch and Cole.The former has a good international record (against crap teams at least) and is very tall (though not that good in the air) while the latter is a more complete striker who has pace, power and can play the target man role too. It’s a tough choice to be honest and I think Cole may need to break his international duck in the next round of fixtures if he’s to pip Crouch.

Ashley Young may find himself as number 24 on the list of players though personally I would find a space for him. It does seem like Capello isn’t quite sure of him yet. There aren’t too many options down the left but it does seem like either him or Milner would go but not both.

Still not quite sure...

Too late to make it? (need good form and injuries to others):

Stewart Downing has upgraded clubs but has six months to shine at Aston Villa following serious injury. The same probably goes for Phil Jagielka at Everton. Tom Huddlestone got his first call up against Brazil and while he’s decent player, he’s not yet international standard. Jimmy Bullard? Unlikely but you never know. I see him being a good pundit though. Scott Parker has a very outside chance of being one of the back-up central midfielders; he’s certainly no worse than Carrick in my opinion.

Ben Foster? Joe Hart? Chris Kirkland? Take your pick for the third goalkeeping spot. I doubt it will be the latter though.Of other players we mentioned last time Jack Wilshere isn’t yet getting regular games at Arsenal while Jonathan Woodgate is permanently injured. Dean Ashton has essentially retired.

However Gary Cahill has played well enough at Bolton to come on to the radar as 4^th centre back and has a chance of going if Capello takes eight defenders. Everton’s Jack Rodwell could be a dark horse but I think it is one tournament too soon for him. The same goes for some of the West Ham youngsters like Mark Noble and Jack Collison.

Now thinking "Why are they so useless?"

 .

Providing ITV analysis (or BBC if they’re good):

I had Shaun Wright-Phillips as going six months ago but now I think he misses out as you have Lennon, Walcott and Beckham providing all you need down the right (dribbling/goals/crossing). SWP can do all three but not as well and his poor performance against Brazil has sealed a seat next to Papa Wrighty on the studio sofa.

Jermaine Jenas is another who isn’t particularly defensive or attacking. World Cup squad players need be specialists once you get beyond the first team, there’s no room for these jack of all trades types who provide little. Michael Owen has yet to be picked by Capello and barring injuries to four of the seven strikers we mentioned will not be going to South Africa.

Micah Richards needs to get back in the Man City team before he can think about England – it’s all gone a bit pear shaped for him hasn’t it? He hasn’t been picked in a year; Capello just doesn’t like his terrible positional play. Scott Carson had a shot at being third choice keeper but he won’t be going and neither will Paul Robinson, who you could roll the ball to very slowly from 30 yards and he’d still find a way to let it in.

Sadly, Ledley King can barely handle three games in a month, let alone seven. He would 100% go if he could. David Bentley, Kevin Davies, Anton Ferdinand, Gary Neville – no, no, no and no.

The closest Owen has ever and will ever get to being in Capello's plans.

 .

Possible squad:

James, Green, Foster.

Terry, Ferdinand, A. Cole, Johnson, Upson, Brown, Lescott. 

Gerrard, Lampard, Barry, Hargreaves, Milner, Beckham, Lennon, J. Cole.

Rooney, Heskey, Defoe, C. Cole, Walcott.

.

The three keepers speak for themselves as do the first four defenders. Versatility is the name of the game so to complement Upson you have two centre backs in Brown and Lescott that can cover the two full back slots.

In midfield you have the three main men plus a fit again Hargreaves. Beckham goes for his experience while Lennon and Joe Cole provide the skill and trickery on either wing from the bench.Milner offers the most versatility of the remaining midfield options so gets the eighth spot.

Up front Rooney is a given, as is Heskey due to their partnership. Defoe is the main back up and I think Carlton Cole will play his way into the squad, pipping Peter Crouch whose record of scoring against bad teams is of no use when you only have good teams in the World Cup. Theo Walcott rounds off the squad as a foward player who can play right wing or as striker.

At most risk is Lescott I’d say and possibly Milner too. You may want more cover in central midfield and down the left so perhaps Carrick and Bridge or Gibbs (who could also play left wing) end up going instead.

T.

Uno de los que sin duda es de los mejores jóvenes del fútbol mundial es Theo Walcott, del Arsenal, que cuenta con 20 años pero que lleva jugando en el primer equipo del Arsenal desde los 16. Walcott debutó con la selección inglesa a los 17 años.

Es un futbolista muy prometedor. Pese a que aún no ha explotado, su tutor Arsene Wenger ya es un claro punto a favor, ya que Wenger es experto en ir haciendo jóvenes. No tengo dudas de que dentro de uno o dos años Theo Walcott sea uno de los mejores jugadores del mundo.

Entre sus virtudes destaca su grandísima rapidez, su buen movimiento de balón, su colocación y su regate.

Aunque esta temporada solo ha jugado dos partidos ya que lleva mes y medio lesionado tras un partido contra el Birmingham, seguro que cuando se recupere el Arsenal podrá aguantar el ritmo del Chelsea en la batalla por el campeonato.

Como una de las mejores pruebas de su gran calidad es el video, aquí dejo este donde coopera para que Adebayor empate en un partido contra el Liverpool… Walcott hace una de las jugadas más bonitas que haya visto.

A continuación tenéis un ¿quién es quién? presentándoos a algunos de los jóvenes futbolistas que darán que hablar en un futuro próximo:

Diego PEROTTI (21, Argentina, Sevilla): Tras su debut en la pasada temporada, el mediapunta sevillista se ha consolidado como uno de los valores en alza de la Liga española y numerosos equipos de primer nivel se han interesado por sus servicios.

Theo WALCOTT (20, Inglaterra, Arsenal): Desde hace 2 temporadas este extremo diestro se ha convertido en un habitual en las convocatorias de Wenger. Le falta explotar en la selección inglesa.

BOJAN Krkic (19, España, Barcelona): El futuro delantero centro del Barça ya ha completado numerosas actuaciones destacadas con el primer equipo, con importantes goles. Todo ello con la constante competencia de grandes delanteros como Ibrahimovic, Messi, Henry o el hoy interista Eto’o.

Simon KJAER (20, Dinamarca, Palermo): Este central, titular indiscutible con la selección de su país, acaba de completar una soprendente temporada en una liga tan exigente defensivamente hablando como es la italiana. Numerosos equipos, especialmente el Manchester United, pretenden su fichaje.

GAI ASSULIN (18, Israel, Barcelona): El todavía jugador del Barcelona B ya ha sorprendido con su rendimiento en los amistosos disputados con el primer equipo. Su rapidez y polivalencia le convierte en futbolista muy interesante de cara al futuro.

Mario BALOTELLI (19, Italia, Inter): De raíces ghanesas, este delantero ha destacado por su corpulencia y fuerza. Su principal defecto ha sido su temperamento, que le está dando problemas con su actual entrenador, José Mourinho.

Eden HAZARD (18, Bélgica, Lille): Con sólo 18 años, este joven extremo ya es internacional absoluto con su país y suena con fuerza para numerosos clubs importantes.

Alan DZAGOEV (19, Rusia, CSKA Moscú): El nombre de este mediapunta saltó a la fama internacional cuando sonó fuertemente como fichaje del Real Madrid este verano. Es el jugador de campo más joven que ha debutado con la selección rusa.

FRAN MÉRIDA (19, España, Arsenal): Este canterano del Barça ha brillado en los equipos juveniles del Arsenal, siguiendo los pasos de su compañero Cesc Fábregas, y es un gran valor de futuro de su club. En los últimos días está sonando con fuerza para el Atlético de Madrid. Es titular en todas las categorías inferiores de la selección.

OK, so if you’ve been following my other social networks, you’ll have heard somewhere, somehow, that Derek Walcott’s in town. (If you’re not sure where “town” is, it’s Nassau, Bahamas, where I am too). He’s got here through the actions of two groups, one of which happens to be the School of English Studies at the College of The Bahamas, where I also am. I used to be in the School of English, but now I’m where I figure I actually belong according to my terminal degrees, in the School of Social Sciences. But the School of English still treats me like I’m with them, and I don’t mind. I pinch-hit some of the courses on that side every now and then and still enjoy myself.

So yesterday I got a phonecall from the Chair to invite me to dinner with Walcott. I’d already been invited to lunch today, which I can’t attend because I have a class to teach (not an English class, or else I could actually slip out, legitimately, but a Sociology class. Long story.) The Chair called yesterday to say that Walcott wanted to go to the Fish Fry, a local waterfront line of restaurants that serve what we call “native food” at very reasonable prices.

I thought about it. I thought about going for quite a while, but didn’t in the end. Maybe I should’ve; the occasion was informal, the company was going to be excellent, and the food was going to be good too. But I didn’t go. Why?

Well, probably because of that Nobel.

The more I think about it, the more I know that had it been almost any other Caribbean writer, I’d've been there. With bells on. But it isn’t; it’s Walcott, and he’s got that Nobel.

More on this later. Off to ponder this revelation. Cheers.

With enough time at my disposal to sip a cup of tea, I surfed the internet and found a few interesting things I didn’t know, say, ten minutes ago.

Here’s some of them:

• Happy 40th birthday Jens Lehmann! The former Arsenal goalkeeper – now at Stuttgart – is still managing to keep us highly entertained.
• If Walcott was an animal what would he be? A Cheetah? Nah, a lion! And Arshavin? A shark perhaps?
• What’s better than a goal lead? Probably this.
• And if you thought Maradona comparisons only happened with Argentinean players, think again.

Hope you enjoyed that.

Five years ago in the heat of summer, Ezra Koenig sat in the basement of his parent’s New Jersey home contemplating among other things, an ’80s vampire flick. Having just finished the cult classic “The Lost Boys,” he was intrigued by the harrowing plot, Kiefer Sutherland’s role as lead vampire and, in particular, the movie’s locale.

Set in the fictional coastal California town of Santa Carla, the movie caught the imagination of Koenig who vowed that one day he would visit Santa Carla and its vampire population. So logically, he formed a band with some friends and called it Vampire Weekend, released a wildly successful self-titled album and finally made the long trek out to the supposedly fictional place.

Sunday’s show was a vision five years in the making.

On Sunday night, Vampire Weekend played a sold-out show at The Catalyst in Santa Cruz, or the real life equivalent of Santa Carla. It was Santa Cruz where the movie for the band’s inspiration was filmed and it was Santa Cruz that Koenig had dreamed about.

If anything it was an awkward “homecoming,” as the quartet was returning to their place of origin without ever having visited in the first place. Still, they made themselves at home.  Drummer Chris Tomson sported a throwback San Jose Sharks t-shirt while Koenig managed to turn on the charm and woo the balconies with a smile that read, “Hey guys, remember us?”

The Catalyst opened the boys with arms wide open. A narrow venue, The Catalyst was more auto garage than concert venue with stereos hung haphazard from the ceilings and multicolor spotlights shining in every direction. And while it took some time to get into the venue due to some shoddy security procedures, which forced many to miss openers Pocahaunted, once inside, the crowd was treated to an intimate setting that Vampire Weekend would thrive in.

The band took the stage shortly after 9 p.m. and in quick succession fired off two songs, “White Sky” and “Holiday” off their up-coming release “Contra”.  While it took the crowd some time to get acclimated to the new songs, they realized that the tracks were much in the same mold of the band’s earlier releases and were obliged to at least bob their heads and clap their hands. But if there were any doubts, they  were erased by the familiar guitar twang of “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa,” which brought about massive cheers for the first recognized track of the night.

And for most of the set, that’s just about how it went, with the band using the show as a platform to exhibit their new album. Among the particularly impressive songs was “Cousins,” an up-tempo teack featuring a Mexican mariachi-like base line and a surf rock guitar scale, paced by Koenig’s fast, yodeling voice. “California English” also provided a unique look into the band’s experimentation, featuring autotuned vocals a la keyboardist’s Rostam Batamnglij’s side project, Discovery.

Yet, despite the newness of it all, the band still managed to placate the crowd, and Koenig kept the interest by employing a call and response in “One” and pumping out “Campus” and “Oxford Comma” before leaving the stage pre-encore. Yet interestingly enough, even with new music fodder, Vampire Weekend managed to play a relatively short set, one of the most common criticisms of the band who, before “Contra,” had simply been working off one album.

The band, returned nonetheless, to play a three song encore, ending with what else, but “Walcott.” “One of our first orders of business [after establishing this band] was this song,” explained Koenig. A song about a vampire escaping the confines of Cape Cod, there was no better way to end Vampire Weekend’s return “home”.

-Ryan

Set List

White Sky

Holiday

Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa

I Stand Corrected

M79

Cousins (download)

California English

One (Blake’s Got a New Face)

A-Punk

Run

Campus

Oxford Comma

–Encore–

Mansard Roof

Horchata

Walcott (download)

The time will come
when, with elation,
you will greet yourself arriving
at your own door, in your own mirror,
and each will smile at the other’s welcome,

and say, sit here. Eat.
You will love again the stranger who was your self.
Give wine. Give bread. Give back your heart
to itself, to the stranger who has loved you

all your life, whom you ignored
for another, who knows you by heart.
Take down the love letters from the bookshelf,

the photographs, the desperate notes,
peel your own image from the mirror.
Sit. Feast on your life.

Llegará el día
que, entusiasmado,
te saludarás cuando llegues
a tu puerta, a tu espejo,
y cada uno le sonreirá a la bienvenida del otro,

y le dirá Siéntate aquí; come.
Querrás de nuevo al etraño que era tu cuerpo;
Dale vino, dale pan. Regrésalale tu corazón
a tu corazón, al extraño que te ha querido

toda tu vida, que ignoraste
por otro, que te conoce de memoria.
Saca del librero las cartas de amor,

las fotografías, las notas desesperadas,
despega tu imagen del espejo.
Siéntate. Festeja tu vida.

It seems strange that an encounter with a mind through poetry can both deflate the spirit but then lead it to a subliminal acceptance or at least a kind self-awareness, however bitter and mysterious. From over a month ago in my reading of Walcott:

Rain will keep hammering the grass blades into the ground.

I admire this violence;
love is iron. I admire

the brutal exchange between breaker and rock.
They have an understanding.

I may even understand the contract
between galloping lion and stunned doe;
there is some yes to terror in her eyes.

What I will never understand
is the beast who writes this
and claims the centre of life.

“Force”

Los comienzos siempre son difíciles

El largo camino de Anomalocaris comienza en 1886, cuando los primeros ejemplares fueron encontrados en un yacimiento de trilobites Ogygopsis próximo al archifamoso Burgess Shale (Canadá). En 1892, J. F. Whiteaves decribió el primer ejemplar de Anomalocaris canadiensis en el Canadian Record of Science como el cuerpo sin cabeza de un artrópodo con aspecto de camarón.

Cuando en 1909, Charles Doolittle Walcott descubrió el yacimiento de Burgess Shale, nada volvería a ser lo mismo, ni para la Paleontología ni para nuestro Anomalocaris. Walcott encontró un buen número de ejemplares del fósil descrito por Whiteaves, que representaba la parte posterior de un crustáceo, siendo las espinas ventrales los apéndices.

Aspecto del primer Anomalocaris descrito (el primo de Rodolfo langostino)

La posición taxonómica de Anomalocaris en aquel momento era esta:

Clase Crustacea

Subclase Branchipoda

Orden Notostracea

(Los Notostraca actuales comprenden un pequeño grupo de 12 especies pertenecientes a dos géneros, agrupados en la familia Triopsidae).

En la historia de Anomalocaris intervienen tres especies extra, mas tarde entenderemos el porqué. La primera de ellas es Sydneia. Walcott describe un apéndice que encontró aislado como una estructura alimenticia de esta especie de artrópodo, ya que consideraba que era el único animal con el tamaño suficiente para portar un apéndice tan grande, lo que lo convertía en el depredador mas feroz de los mares cámbricos.

Apéndice de Sydneia

La segunda es Peytoia, que Walcott describe como una medusa, a partir de fósiles en los que se observa una estructura circular con una abertura central, donde se sitúan 32 lóbulos, basándose únicamente en su simetría radial e interpretando los lóbulos como brazos orales.

Peytoia, el fósil de una fruta tropical

Y la última es Laggania, descrita como una holoturia en base a un único ejemplar, que además estaba en un lamentable estado de conservación.

Descubriendo… la verdad

Todo permaneció tranquilo hasta el final de los años sesenta del siglo pasado. Por aquel entonces, el paleontólogo experto en trilobites, Harry Whittington, realiza dos campañas en Burgess Shale para recolectar nuevo material. A partir de estas visitas y con el material recolectado por Walcott, comenzará junto con Simon Conway Morris y Derek Briggs la tarea de revisar y redescribir la fauna cámbrica de Burgess Shale.

En 1979, le adjudican a Briggs la revisión de Anomalocaris, que, como hemos dicho, se suponía que era la parte posterior de un crustáceo con caparazón bivalvo. La reconstrucción de Briggs comenzaba el cambio: concluyó que Anomalocaris no era un animal completo, sino un apéndice con espinas en sus márgenes ventrales y que, los apéndices alimenticios de Sydneia en realidad eran una variación de la misma estructura y ambos pertenecían al mismo organismo (En 1981, Bruton determinó que el escudo cefálico de Sydneia no tiene el espacie suficiente para alojar unos apéndices de ese tamaño). Aunque Briggs cometió el error de describir ambas estructuras como pertenecientes al mismo artrópodo, siendo la primera de ellas una pata marchadora y la segunda un apéndice alimenticio, sentaba las bases para la descripción correcta de Anomalocaris.

En los años siguientes siguen trabajando con nuevo material y revisando el recogido por Walcott. Aplicando un microtaladro para buscar mas allá de la superficie, comienzan a encontrarse que en la mayoría de los casos existe una asociación entre Anomalocaris, Peytoia y Laggania. Las piezas del puzzle ya estaban listas para ser unidas.

Whittington y Briggs publican en 1985 la resolución del enigma en la Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, bajo el título “The largest Cambrian animal, Anomalocaris, Burgess Shale, British Columbia”¹.

Reconstrucción de Anomalocaris

Anomalocaris es un animal de cuerpo alargado con una región cefálica bien diferenciada. En ella se sitúan un par de apéndices que portan espinas en su cara interior, que fueron malinterpretadas como el cuerpo de la primera descripción de Anomalocaris por Whiteaves y Walcott y que se corresponden con los apéndices de la especie A. canadienses. Los supuestos apéndices cefálicos de Sydneia son en realidad los apéndices de A. nathorsti. Tambien en la cabeza, en posición ventral, se encuentra la boca, que es una estructura con forma circular, rodeada de placas que portan dientes en su cara interior. Exactamente, esta es la descripción de Peytoia, que no es ni una medusa ni una rodaja de piña, sino la boca de Anomalocaris.

El cuerpo se divide en una serie de lóbulos superpuestos, que alcanzan su mayor tamaño en el 5º segmento, para ir decreciendo en dirección posterior. Whittington y Briggs interpretan que el animal nadaba con movimientos ondulatorios de los lóbulos (recientemente se ha realizado la simulación del proceso²). Puedes ver a un Anomalocaris en su salsa en estos videos. El primero es el inicio del documental “Darwin´s dilemma” y el segundo pertenece a la serie “Caminando entre monstruos” (en éste el Anomalocaris aparece en el minuto 1:00 del video)

En este último video el Anomalocaris entra a hombros por la puerta grande, ya que nada mas aparecer se merienda a un desvalido Trilobites, demostrando así su fama de gran depredador del Cámbrico. Pero parece que esta imagen podría ser incorrecta y que si intentara comerse a un Trilobites acabaría con dentadura postiza. Mariel T. Schottenfeld presentó este mismo año en la 44th Annual Meeting of The Geological Society of America, la teoría de que Anomalocaris no era capaz de atacar a Trilobites, ya que las distintas piezas de su mandíbula no estaban mineralizadas y que, además, no se encuentran evidencias adicionales como señales de abrasión en las piezas bucales,  la presencia de restos de Trilobites tras ser atacados o formando parte del contenido del aparato digestivo de Anomalocaris. Apoyando esta nueva teoría está el paleontólogo James W. Hagadorn, que presentó sus resultados en la International Conference on the Cambrian Explosion en verano de este año. Esta teoría rebatiría la idea generalizada hasta hoy, que encontramos en un artículo de 1999 de Cristopher Nedin³, donde sostiene que Anomalocaris era capaz de depredar sobre trilobites con cutículas mineralizadas, lo que además, constituiría una presión selectiva para el desarrollo de la mineralización y la respuesta de enrollamiento en Trilobites.

Actualmente han sido descritas cinco especies de Anomalocaris, que se agrupan en la familia Anomalocarididae, perteneciente al phylum Lobopodia.

Phylum Lobopodia

†Clase Dinocaridia

Orden Radiodonta

Familia Anomalocarididae

Gén. Amplectobelua

Cucumericrus

Laggania

Hurdia

Parapeytoia?

Schinderhannes

Anomalocaris

A. brigsi

A. canadiensis

A. nathorsti

A. pennsylvanica

A. saron

REFERENCIAS:

1: Whittington, H.B & Briggs, D. E. G. 1985. The largest Cambrian animal, Anomalocaris, Burgess Shale, British Columbia. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Biological Sciences, 309 (1141): 569-609.

2: Usami, Y. 2006. Theoretical study on the body form and swimming pattern of Anomalocaris based on hydrodynamic simulation. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 238 (1): 11-17.

3: Nedin, C. 1999. Anomalocaris predation on nonmineralized and mineralized trilobites. Geology, 27 (11): 987-990.

Manchester United si Tottenham Hotspur au fost puse fata in fata in sferturile de finala ale Cupei Ligii, ruda saraca a F.A. Cup. Pe Old Trafford, la fine de noiembrie, va avea loc o reeditare a finalei din februarie de pe Wembley, cand trupa incropita a lui Sir Alex Ferguson s-a impus la penaltyuri, 4-1, dupa 120 de minute fara goluri.

E totodata si un sfert intre ultimele doua castigatoare ale trofeului, Spurs triumfand cu 2-1 in fata lui Chelsea, in 2008. In functie de ranile de lins in lot si de jonglarea cu calendarul competitional, cu jocuri acasa cu Besiktas si la Wolfsburg in miezurile de saptamana dinintea si de dupa disputa cu Spurs, Ferguson va incropi din nou o echipa cu cativa titulari si restul aspiranti.

Ce politica va adopta in schimb Wenger, nu e greu de anticipat. A mers mereu pe mana tinerilor, a multor rezerve, in editiile de Cupa Ligii in care a ajuns o singura data in finala, in 2007, contra lui Chelsea, si asta tocmai pentru ca francezul a ramas consecvent titularizarii junilor ce dadusera satisfactie si goluri in primele faze ale competitiei, chiar daca o semifinala i-ar fi sugerat sa schimbe placa.

Arsenal n-a mai cucerit Cupa Ligii din 1993, 2-1 cu Wednesday, pe vremea cand se numea Rumbelows Cup, asa incat traditia nu e de partea sa.  Poate doar ambitia inzecita de a razbuna esecul titularilor, la inceput de sezon, pe City of Manchester Stadium. Caci “Tunarii” trebuie sa descinda in fieful petrodolarilor lui City. Doua nord-londoneze, jucandu-si accederea in semifinala la Manchester. Cu “manjii”, Wenger va avea un meci greu in fata unui Hughes dornic sa se remarce in ochii patronilor din preajma Golfului. Ce n-ar da acestia ca trofeul sa ajunga la Manchester, mai ales in conditiile in care City nu l-a mai castigat din ‘76. S-ar concluziona ca darul seicilor a fost nepretuit.

In rest, Chelsea, invingatoare in 2005 si 2007 contra lui Liverpool respectiv Arsenal, are prima sansa in fata unei Blackburn pe care tocmai a zdrobit-o in campionat, 5-0, iar Villa ar putea profita la Fratton Park de degringolada codasei Portsmouth, croindu-si astfel drum intr-o competitie ce-ar putea aduce consolarea lui O’Neill, dupa derapajul din Europa League. Cu tot deranjul acelei alte competitii K.O. in program, se pare ca trupa din Birmingham a inghitit in sec eliminarea si si-a reconsiderat abordarea. La Villa Park e foame de trofee si O’Neill ar putea lua in serios oferta rudei sarace. O Carling Cup, tot mai buna decat nimic. O bere Carling, de dorit pe seceta. 

Mai ales ca Villa n-a mai triumfat in competitie de cand aceasta se numea Coca Cola, in ‘94 si ‘96, contra lui Man United si Leeds.

Cupa Ligii ramane un soi de Europa League pentru UEFA Champions League, insa numele ramase in competitie demasca totusi ambitiile de suprematie ale “greilor” cat mai ales prapastia cascata intre cluburile bogate si restul lumii, un Ferguson permitandu-si sa ia trofeul pe Wembley chiar si aliniind de-a lungul tururilor calificatorii jucatori de rezerva. O finala inedita, gen Boro – Bolton 2-1, din 2004, prima cu Carling pe masa, pare iesita acum din calcule si aceleasi vedete par a fi predestinate sa descinda in Templu. Intrebarea e doar daca intre celebritati va figura unul ca Theo Walcott, marcator acolo in finala din 2007.

So we managed to get a victory over Birmingham. Well who would have expected anything less. We didn’t play the passing game that we are accustomed to, but we got the job done. Arshavin’s goal that put it out of reach for them after they were coming on a bit hard gave us the comfort of sitting back in the arm chair for all us overseas viewers. Quite a bit of class though I must admit of Arshavin. He was so casual about the whole thing, and seemed like he knew what everyone was going to do before he slotted it slowly home, even the opposition. Quite a remarkable goal to watch, and sort of anti-climatic in a way as it didn’t turn out to be a three more pass goal, but more like a simple stroke while the keeper was blinded and …. goal , thank you very much.

Three more points, and we’re starting to climb that table again with Chelsea, Liverpool and City all dropping points we are looking at a possible second spot if we take full advantage of our game in hand. And to only think of where we could be if that game at Old Trafford went the way it should have. Like me nan has always said “if pigs could fly, we’d shoot our bacon”… no point dwelling on that.

A draw against AZ during midweek must have been gutting. I’m sure we all hoped we’d be on maximum points so far for the group stages, as it certainly will provide an able rest for some people if we can reach qualification quicker. I didn’t get to watch the game cause the c*nts that broadcast it here change networks faster than sparrows flap their wings. So unless I fork out another 30 odd pounds per month for 18 months even though after 8 more months it will be shown on a different network in which case I have to get that one too after 10 months. Its rediculous. Then the world cup will come, then the premiership will change networks, and FOR GOD SAKE, JUST ALL MERGE INTO ONE WILL YOU !

Walcott is out for a number of weeks now, and thats a real bummer. I was really looking forward to seeing him excel in this new formation. A position that I believe will really be his to own. His pace also give Arsenal the counter-attacking speed that we were once so used to. But not to be just yet. Arshavin though is an able replacement that I am more than enjoying. It is very nice to see Rosicky playing too. We do have an array of talent, and they all can’t play at the same time can they. Bendtner is still young though and hopefully he won’t get ants in his pants as I can’t see him starting ahead of RVP, Rosicky, Walcott, Arshavin. But his chances will come thats for sure. He scores goals for us too.

Diaby seems to be getting better quietly at the moment. A couple decent performances and I’m glad to see it. hes got the power we need in that central role, and with him and Song on either side of Fabregas, it offers good protection to him and the back four. Its something Denilson wasn’t offering us, although Denilson was a sideways pass master, something Diaby isn’t.

We have West Ham coming up and although they will be up for it, I’m expecting three points once again. We have to win these ones, to make anything realistic. The hammers are not in a nice place, and I’m sure they didn’t think they’d be where they are now at the beginning of the season. They have been playing some decent stuff at times, but the ball just isn’t going in the back of the net enough. Carlton Cole has a little bit of form on his side, Stanislas looks alright (for the first time I watched him), and they do have some other young players looking to make impact. Its a local derby, and we should have enough firepower to finish this tie off. I think it will provide a tougher game than against the Brummies though. Hammers haven’t played mid-week either. But we have Arshavin.

It also is an interesting wknd because Man utd and Liverpool clash. If Liverpool still have any belief they need to take points here, and thats plural, cause one just won’t be enough. If that happens, we could possibly be top of the premiership (having taking 3 points from our game in hand). A nice thought. But saying all that, Torres and Gerrard really need to be on the pitch or they might just get slaughtered.

I bought and watched the GOONER REVIEW the other day. It was a good watch, and nice to hear it from that side too. It would really have been a much nicer watch if the premiership permitted them to use footage from the premiership, but they didn’t. How disappointing. Anyhow, its definitely worth it if you’re a big fan. Check it out !

Have a good week, or day, or how ever long it takes for me to be back !

By Joe, www.Bettingexpert.com

Arsenal beat West Ham at Upton Park 2-0 last time they met.

The London derby between West Ham and Arsenal will take place at Upton Park on Sunday afternoon. West Ham does not usually fare well in the local derbies and this might just be up the alley for Arsenal to get their precise three points in the chase of the Premiership title. West Ham are struggling at the bottom of the table and they really need the points to lift themselves up away from the relegation zone.

The East London team are currently 19^th in the Premier League and their home form has been the reason why they are at the bottom. They have yet to win at Upton Park and the Hammers have already incurred two defeats and one draw this season at home. Manager Gianfranco Zola might be up for the chop if he doesn’t get his team winning again. Matthew Upson will be ready for the match against Arsenal as he appeared to be punch last Saturday against Stoke by Robert Huth.

Arsenal is currently fourth in the league and looks to claim a spot in the last 16 in the Champions League. Manager Arsene Wenger does his job quietly and definitely better when not under pressure and this show in their results. The Gunners are looking to close the gap between them, Manchester United and Chelsea. They drew 1-1 in Holland in the midweek against AZ Alkmaar. Arsenal will be without their winger Theo Walcott as he is out for four weeks with a damage knee ligament. Nicklas Bendtner and Eduardo are ruled doubtful traveling to Upton Park while Samir Nasri and goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski are continuing their fitness with the reserves. Wenger will be happy to see Tomas Rosicky and Gael Clichy returning to his starting lineup.

The statistic shows that Arsenal are likely to win at Upton Park as they have done this in the past two seasons. The last time West Ham won against Arsenal at home was back in 2006 and with current situation; West Ham looks likely to salvage a point than taking all three. A close match with lots of drama but the score line will be kept to a minimum of one or two goals, so check out Betsson as they are offering Arsenal to win at 1.53.

Find out and read all about casino and their reviews by visiting BettingExpert.com.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger dismisses suggestions that winger Theo Walcott is injury prone after he sustained knee ligament damage…. From BBC News. Full story

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Two wins from two games so far in the Champions League. Given our excellent form, the third one looks likely tomorrow against Alkmaar. They might be the Champions of Holland but they just lost at the weekend and are 6th in the table. The Dutch League isn’t as strong as it was a decade ago. 

Now most of you know that Walcott won’t be playing tomorrow. Or any games in the next 4 weeks. I’m not too upset about that. He looked impressive in his cameo on Saturday but the only game I really, really wanted him to play in the next month was the Tottenham match. His pace alone could’ve sent Ledley King on his bike to retirement! But that is another topic altogether.

And Rosicky has picked up a knock, the fact that the club website have put “in a few days” in inverted commas suggest that he won’t be back in a few days. In Wenger speak that is a couple of weeks at least, especially if a chest infection means a month out on the sidelines.

Now given that Walcott is out, Rosicky also, I think we should stick in a few fringe players. The most sensible thing would be to rest one out of Cesc, RVP and Arshavin. There are two London derbies in the next two weekends and that is where they should be at. Van Persie recently became a daddy so it would be good to give him time off in his native Netherlands.

This game is where Ramsey should get one of his 15-20 starts Wenger had apparently suggested.  It wouldn’t be in his prefered central role, but more likely to be on the right flank. And last season he didn’t look out of place there.

Many of you will say no, he should play when qualification is sealed completely. You are right, but I’m not sure how motivating it is to start a match where the outcome is meaningless like the match in Porto last year.

Finishing first or second in the CL group has no real benefit. We defeated Roma last year who topped their group that included Chelsea. And the year before Milan were conquered, so it really makes no difference. Even if we lose tomorrow we still have two home games left to remedy this.

The rest of the team picks itself. Which means that Eboue, should and will definitely start. Mannone’s late reaction save should be enough for him to start again. At least Almunia knows how Jens felt when Manuel took his place two years ago.

AZ Alkmaar’s manager is Ronald Koeman. Those who of you remember, will realise that he was manager of PSV, a supposedly mediocre team in 2006. They knocked us out 2-1 on aggregate. Over the two legs we were awful and were outplayed.

And he has never lost a match against Wenger so far. But that’s okay as he also took out Utd and Liverpool of the Champions League when he was Benfica manager. So he isn’t just bad news for Wenger.

However he definitely knows a thing or two about stopping us from playing in our normal manner.  It means we can’t be too dimissive about them though I still think even without Theo, Rosicky, Bendtner, Eduardo, Denilson etc etc, we should get a result in Holland.

A more encourage bit of history, back  in 2006, Arsenal travelled to  AZ Alkmaar’s DS-Stadium and we won 3-0. courtesy of Orbinho. Don’t say I don’t leave you on a positive note

Leave your team selection thoughts and anything else in the comments section.

apprensione per il ginocchio di Theo Walcott

Sabato nel primo tempo siamo stati incontenibili. Eravamo in pieno controllo, avanti di due gol, e sembrava che potessimo farne altri. Ci si chiedeva solo chi avrebbe segnato il terzo.

Ma abbiamo commesso un errore in difesa e il Birmingham ha fatto il 2-1. Nella ripresa non abbiamo avuto la stessa fluidità e nemmeno lo stessa padronanza del gioco o lo stesso ritmo, ma credo che alla fine il 3-1 sia stato il risultato più giusto perché abbiamo creato tantissime occasioni.

Il Birmingham si ricompattava molto rapidamente appena perdeva la palla e noi non siamo stati sufficientemente lucidi. Mi sembra anche che abbiamo cercato un po’ troppo la soluzione individuale, soprattutto nel secondo tempo, ed è per questo che non abbiamo segnato più gol.

Alex Song è stato forte e lineare in fase di contenimento. Non è rigido, è agile. Gli piace spaziare, non avanza in linea retta. Fa un buon uso delle proprie caratteristiche, è un’ottima combinazione di forza e agilità e sono convinto che utilizzi molto intelligentemente la sua tecnica. Gli piacciono i contrasti. I camerunensi sono forti – sono soprannominati i tedeschi d’Africa per via dei loro corpi atletici.

Ci sarebbe da discutere dell’intervento in scivolata di Liam Ridgewell su Theo Walcott, che non mi è per niente piaciuto. E’ stata una scivolata incontrollata. Credo che volesse fare un intervento a effetto, o almeno questa è stata la mia prima impressione dalla panchina. Da fuori è sembrato un contrasto veloce e deciso. Non so: stava cercando la palla? Di certo ha preso in pieno Theo.

Theo si è ritrovato con un livido sul ginocchio a fine partita, era gonfio e non si è potuta fare una valutazione all’istante. E’ dipeso dal legamento mediale del ginocchio che si è girato o dal calcione preso? Il fatto che si sia sentito un po’ instabile correndo non è positivo. Non sappiamo ancora quanto del dolore dipenda dal calcio e quanto dal legamento che si è girato.

Lo sottoporremo a risonanza e se è stata solo una botta potrebbe riuscire a giocare martedì sera ad Alkmaar (per la Champions League, NdT). Se c’è di più, martedì non giocherà. Personalmente dubito che ce la faccia, se non altro martedì. Non è il crociato, per esempio, ma potrebbe aver bisogno di più di una settimana se il legamento si è girato.

Alla fine, la partita di sabato si è conclusa in modo giusto con un bel gol di Andrey Arshavin. E’ questo il calcio che ci piace. Credo che anche il secondo gol sia stato fantastico ed è così che noi giochiamo.

Credo che quando imponiamo il nostro gioco e ci concentriamo su questo diamo l’impressione di poter giocare la palla in ogni modo e di creare gli spazi che vogliamo. E’ una cosa fantastica ma per farlo dobbiamo rimanere concentrati e non perdere la calma.

tratto da ‘il parere ufficiale di Wenger’ nel sito ufficiale dell’Arsenal

Alright so I wasn’t as ‘active’ over the international break as I said I would be, but do you blame me?  When you are from Canada, the international break means NO FOOTBALL whatsoever – not even semi-interesting news regarding the national team, do we even have a national team?

Yes, of course Canada has a national team, but its absolute rubbish and no one wants to hear about it.  So, when the football world breaks for internationals, I break from football.  Of course I still scour the internet for anything even remotely related to Arsenal, but I more or less just remove myself altogether from the world of football.

BUT ITS BACK!  Thank god (not really) for that.

I almost posted the picture of Martin Taylors challenge on Eduardo, but thought better of it.  That is in the past and Eduardo has proved he has moved on.  We do owe them one hell of a beating though.  We tied that infamous game 2-2, despite Theo Walcott getting his first and second ever goals in the Premier League.  Our season turned sour after that match and we never recovered.  If we won that game, we would have been 8 (8!!!!) points clear of 2nd place with two months left in the season.  Anyways, like I said, we owe them a hell of a beating and that shouldn’t really be a problem considering our home form.

As for team news, it looks as if we’ve gotten through the international break relatively unscathed.  Eduardo is still out andDiaby has a slight knock.  The latter I’m not really worried since because Wenger says its minor and it also means Rosicky will definitely start.  We have Almunia AND Fabianski back as well, although I don’t know if they are match fit.  Do goalkeepers even need to BE match-fit?  Anyways, it’ll be interesting to see who Wenger opts to put in net.  My money would be on Mannone, considering his form.  That said, this would be my line-up:

Mannone

Sagna—Gallas—Vermaelen—Clichy

Fabregas—Song—Rosicky

Walcott—RVP—Arshavin

It really is going to start getting difficult for Wenger to pick the line-up every weekend since everyone is pretty much fit.  We have had injury troubles for SOOOO LONG that having everyone available for selection is going to be a headache, especially since everyone seems to be scoring!  Ah well, its a good problem to have as they say.

I think our excellent form will continue on Saturday so I’m going for a 3-1 win.  Arshavin, Walcott, and Rosicky to score.

Enjoy the game!

peace

Don’t worry, I’m not advertising any insurance here. Not sure about the odds but you’d be very unlucky to get hurt by a paper aeroplane that’s for sure. Seriously though, have you ever been hurt by one? If so, is it as bad as David James makes it out to be? This is what he said,

They were big flares, granted, but you could argue that someone throwing a paper aeroplane on the pitch might take someone’s eye out.

Seriouslllllly now David James, what? Just how big is this paper aeroplane? And how fast is this aeroplane going? Anything else we need to consider?

Sorry that was James’ take on the flares being thrown on the pitch in the Ukraine-England match.

Now, the FA are so incensed by this (excuse the unintentional pun) that they are complaining to FIFA. You might say, what is wrong with that?

Not much, except the fans here in England recently, sporadic as cases may be, haven’t been angelic themselves.

Coin throwing, inappropriate player/manager chants (made famous in Manchester) and then there was the famous football factory reenactment at West Ham, which still hasn’t been sorted out properly. How long does it take to catch people you already know of?

And then there is the small matter of the 2018 World Cup. England hardly have any friends in International football as it is. So why antagonise Ukraine and co further? After all, England had already qualified and not many people watched the game anyway? And no one was hurt?

Surely the Fifa don’t need any spicy details from England to assess the situation? It wasn’t as if the England team were upset about it either. James and Rooney almost wanted something more sinister to happen.

Why do I care about it so much anyway you ask? It is because if England don’t win the 2018 bid, Emirates won’t see World Cup football for a bit longer. And wouldn’t that a great shame?

The ‘Cesc to Barca’ campaign has begun slightly earlier than expected. Zzzzzzzzz. Seriously I want to say no more, my views on it are readable here.

Just to add though, considering Cesc’s family circumstances, you’d expect a little restraint in these transfer stories but no. Dignity is very hard to find these days. If you haven’t read already, third-gen.com has a great article on the Arsenal-Cesc-Barca triangle. (Fifa for rectangle?)

Theo played for England the other day, got a dead leg. No big deal says Stuart Pearce. ?Yeah it is alright saying that if you only deal with him once every three months. Kevin Garside has an interesting article on Walcott in the Telegraph.

A quick mention on Notts County and their decision to fire their manager McParland. Another proof of what happens when stupid people are in power. We laugh when stuff like this happens to our top rivals like Chelsea, Liverpool.

But is it the same at Notts County? The oldest league club nearly went bust around 5 years ago. Who suffers from this the most? The Fans.

We cry about missing football for two weeks, imagine life without Arsenal full stop. Sobering thought?