Arsenal vs Chelsea 1-2

Even though it's hard for me to admit/accept it, we got outplayed and out coached today. Not that Chelsea were that much better than us, i actually think we have the capabilities to win this game, they just played better as a team, and Wenger came out with the wrong starting 11 which he has only himself to blame for.

Ramsey and Gervinho should have not started for us. After the decent game he had last week, today Ramsey was horrible. Made so many mistakes in his passes, his crosses were bad, he looked sloppy like he has been for most of the end of last year and the beginning of this season. Gervinho scored a goal; DID pass the ball at least 2 times to an open teammate, and had one good run to help the defense in the 26th min. Other than that he was invincible. Continued with his clueless dribbling today as he always does; gave away the ball in the 64th min which gave Chelsea a great chance for a counter and we got lucky they didn't score a third. I still firmly believe he is not good enough to play against the good teams, not until he learns to play quicker and combine better with his teammates.

Which leads me to my next point. After the good performance Giroud, Walcott, Arshavin, and Chamberlain had against Coventry, at least two of them should have started. I would have liked for Theo to get a start and hopefully build on his good performance on Tuesday. Giroud up front would have also helped because he could bother Chelsea's defense with his size. The only change Wenger made, was Koscielny for Mertesacker and you could argue that it backfired a little bit in the sense that Koscielny didn't have a good day. I understand the rationale behind it because Mertesacker is a bit slower, but he would have given us some extra height for the set pieces.

Talking about set pieces, both goals we conceded today were from free kicks. For the first one, our
marking was terrible. I spoke about that in my last post and today again, we didn't mark man to man
in our box. Even if Torres had not scored, we had no one even close to Luiz on that cross. If the last
two Premier League games don't convince Bould and Wenger that we have to start marking man to man on set pieces, i don't know what will. Our defending today especially in the second half was all over the place but that can sum up our performance as a whole as well. Too many times we looked a bit unorganized; not pressing as a team; offensively people were not on the same page.

Jenkinson had another good game, i can't recall to many attack going through his side. He was also constantly going forward and had some good crosses in the box. Gibbs was a bit more vulnerable today but also had a decent game. Koscielny as i mentioned has had better days, he didn't look very comfortable out there. Vermaelen was ok, didn't make any mistakes but wasn't as influential as he normally is.

Cazorla had his worse game of the season. Nothing was working for him today, he missed a lot of passes, wasn't as sharp with his decision making as he normally is. A few times during the game i saw him getting frustrated and giving up on chasing people. He also, dived a bit for a penalty and even though there was contact, he definitely over reacted. I already mentioned that Ramsey and Gervinho were useless. Diaby didn't play long enough to be judged. Chamberlain had some good moments, he had a great assist for our goal; had some good runs on the right. But he also made a lot of mistakes with his passes, gave away the ball plenty of times. The one bright spot today was Arteta. That guy continues to do most of our dirty work, joins the attack when he gets a chance, covers a lot of ground and shows enormous desire for 90 minutes. Podolski is the same way as far as effort and desire. He didn't have any chances in the first half, 2nd half he played better, forced Chech into a
great save and had some good runs on the left. I have no clue why Wenger took him off instead of taking Gervinho out. You know that if Podolski gets a chance, there is a great chance he will score. You also know that he will be pushing hard for 90 minutes.

Theo and Giroud didn't do much after they came on. But to be honest, after we conceded the second goal we never found our fluency until the end of the game. Giroud had a good chance at the end but it didn't go in for him. Again. So today, i really think Wenger messed up the starting line up but i also give credit to Chelsea. They were very organized when they were defending, and they made better decisions with the ball than we did. We looked a bit edgy and nervious, and when we finally settled down and looked like we can win the game, we let in another goal and that's all she wrote. Hopefully, today's loss will help Wenger realize that he has to rotate the team and make sure he keeps the right players on the field, not subbing Podolski in the 65th minute and leaving Gervinho in for all 90. Time to move on and get ready for the Champions League. C'mon You Gunners!!!

Manchester City vs Arsenal 1-1

I got up this morning a bit early so i can see the Liverpool vs Manchester United game. Boy, did i regret that. There is nothing more that i hate, than seeing a United team that is playing shitty being helped by the refs and handed a victory. It's absolutely disgusting. 

Luckily for me and my nerves, Mike Dean (who is also a douche bag and has ruined plenty of games)  had a decent performance at our game. He could have given a few more yellow cards but after the pathetic refereeing at Anfield maybe it was better he let the game go a bit.

I feel that i am pretty honest when i give my opinion about our players and their performances each game. So i did admit that last week Gervinho played much better against Southampton than he did the previous few games. But today he was back to his usual idiotic/selfish style and i have no clue why he stayed on the field until the 89min! He, single handedly, prevented us from winning today. The ball he got from Ramsey in the 15th minute was so good that 100% of most players will at least have a shot at goal and 60% to 70% of decent forwards/wingers will score. He couldn't even control the ball to have a shot. And that's not why i am mad at him, i am sure even the greatest players have had moments where they lose control of the ball. What pisses me off is that he made so many runs and had the ball so many times, and 90% of the time all he wanted to do is dribble and try to get by people. So many fucking times! Look up and pass the ball! Look up and shoot at goal! Do whatever the fuck you want, just don't do the same stupid dribbling every single time. And when you lose the ball, which he did plenty of times, get back and defend! At times he just chills in midfield without getting back and helping people to press on the ball. At least twice, him and Ramsey ran into each other. And to top it off, after a decent move to open some space for himself, he couldn't even hit the target in the 89th min! I realize that he has speed and that makes him really dangerious when he gets space, but his brain is the size of a peanut. He either has to learn to share the ball or he should be benched and replaced with someone who is more of a team player.

Overall i thought we played a very solid game. The first half we were definitely the better team and with a bit more luck and better execution we should have been ahead instead of City. The midfield players were exceptional the first 45 min. We had a lot of possession, we were controlling the game with quick passes and good build up game. Then we conceded a silly goal. Mannone could have definitely done better but i also feel the zone marking we did on corners today left us a bit vulnerable. When you don't cover man to man, you have 5,6 guys getting a head start to run and jump which is tough to defend. Maybe a mixture between zone marking and having at least 2 or 3 of our players covering their best ball headers would be a better idea. The goal stunned us a bit and in the second half we didn't start very well. The link between the midfield and the defense was breaking down and City had a few counters where they could have done much better and maybe score again. Towards the end of the second half though, we started controlling things again and got a deserved equalizer.

Koscielny came in for Vermaelen and had a great game. Besides scoring, he was very sharp throughout the whole game and looked just like he did most of last season. It will be interesting to see if Wenger will try to give him more playing time, especially after Mertesacker had another solid game. The full backs were good again, Jenkinson had a very good game both offensively and defensively. Gibbs was less active on the wing than the last few games but that was partially due to Gervinho dribbling forever on the left and not passing the ball to anyone. Mannone had the blunder for their goal but other than that he made some great saves.

Diaby had a phenomenal first half, it seemed that he was everywhere. His technique is so good for a big guy that sometimes he gets carried away and gives away the ball at bad situations. On Tuesday against Montpellier, he slipped while dribbling in our own penalty area and we got super lucky not to get scored on. Same thing happened today in the 53rd min, when he lost the ball because of too much dribbling and City had a great chance to score a second goal. He got a bit tired in the second half and disappeared a bit but if he stays healthy he can be very dominant in midfield. Cazorla just like Diaby was awesome in the first half and then was on and off in the second. Regardless, his work rate and passes were priceless, and he was very unlucky not to score after a great shot in the 81st min. Arteta was also great today, did the majority of the dirty work in the back. Ramsey had a good game. Gave a phenomenal pass to Gervinho in the 15th min, and was involved in  most of our attacks during the game. Defensively he has to do much better, a lot of times he strolls back when we lose the ball instead of quickly getting back and pressing.  

Podolski didn't have a lot of chances except one in the first half, when Gervinho (shockingly) passed the ball to him around the penalty spot but unfortunately it was on his right foot and he hit the stands. The thing i like about him is that he is a very hard worker even when he doesn't get a lot of chances. He always chases people and comes back and helps defensively. I don't think Wenger should have taken him out. Talking about substitutions, The Professor waited way too long to make a change (well known fact about him). I also think he took off the wrong people. Gervinho should have been the first man to go after his clueless display and i would have taken out Ramsey instead of Diaby. To be honest even though Walcott is also clueless on the wing sometimes i would have liked to see him start instead of Gervinho today. He has the same if not better speed and unless Wenger is freezing him out because of his contract issues he should start some games. Not to mentioned he wouldn't have missed the 15th min chance Gervinho did, that's his favorite spot to score goals from.

So at the end, we will take a draw but i feel we deserved more and we are definitely capable of more. I hope Wenger learns his lesson and saves Gervinho for the games against the shitty teams because his decision making is obviously not good enough against the big boys. I would love for us to whoop Chelsea next week. C'mon You Gunners!!!!

Arsenal vs Southampton 6-1

Great win today! I thought we would have a tougher time with Southampton but once we got the break with the first goal, it looked like we can steamroll them, as it happened. Scoring early at home is very important for us because then we can control and open up the game which is when we are at our best.

I was also very happy that Wenger made some changes ahead of the Champions League trip on Tuesday. I wasn't too excited seeing Gervinho starting, but he had his best game of the season thus rewarding Wenger's faith in him. He still had some stupid mistakes but compared to previous games, he was much smarter with the ball and tried to combine more with his teammates instead of just doing his usual goal line run. He did a good job scoring the third goal, those 100% goal scoring chances are sometimes tough to convert and he did a good job of making it 3-0. Coquelin starting was good to see, he needs some games because he is a pretty good player. I hope Wenger will make some more changes for the Montpellier game because Gibbs has been known for getting injured, so has Jenkinson. Santos could play left back and maybe Coquelin slotting at right back so Jenkinson can rest. I would also love to see Koscielny start, he needs some games to get back in rhythm. In reality, i doubt that Wenger will reshuffle the defense except maybe for Koscielny.

The defense had another solid performance. If it wasn't for Szczesny's stupidity they could have probably kept another clean sheet. We had periods of pulling back in our own half but compared to past years our pressing of the ball is so much better! I noticed it even in the 72min when the score was already 5-1 and we could have easily sat back and relaxed but i am guessing Bould is trying to create a culture of proper defending for 90 min and so far he is doing a great job! Mertesacker is getting better and better, i didn't see too many times today when he got bullied, which would happen in other games. So he is finally starting to play more physical and use his size. Vermaelen also had a good game and almost scored just before the 6th goal. Both Jenkinson and Gibbs were good, the latter having a big impact on both own goals.  The only negative was Szczesny's performance. Maybe he was a bit rusty but not only he basically handed Southampton their goal, he also had horrible kicks in the 65th and 69th mins which led to counters for the Saints in each occasion. He better step up his game or Mannone will gladly take his place.

The midfield was great today. Cazorla was involved in everything we tried to do and the reason i like him so much and i think he is even better than Fabregas is that he keeps things so simple. Short passes, great control and he is able to make the right pass/decision 90% of the time. He didn't score today but was involved in almost every attack we had. Arteta was very good as well. Gave a great pass to Gervinho for his 1st goal; and was controlling the midfield together with Cazorla. Oxlade-Chamberlain was invincible for big periods of the first half. He would do something positive and then disappear for 10 mins. He needs to be constantly involved and look for opportunities to attack people. He definitely played better in the second half with a few good shots at goal and some good combinations. Podolski had a good game. It was his great hustle that set up the first goal. He scored a great goal from a free kick and was combining very well with Gibbs on the left flank.

Both Ramsey and Walcott came in and played well. I want to single out Ramsey because i always bash him when he comes in and is very sloppy. Today he had a positive impact on the game and pretty much made Gervinho's second goal with his good run and shot. Giroud didn't have much of an impact but he also didn't have many chances today. To sum it up, we got a great result today against a team who will start winning because they have some quality. I also saw some changes in the starting line up from Wenger which is good to see and a lot of goals which is great for our confidence. I am expecting a good performance in France and then a huge game next Sunday at Manchester City. If we can get a win there, a lot of people will start taking us more seriously. C'mon You Gunners!!!

Liverpool vs Arsenal 0-2

 Big win for us today!! Very needed win as well, because now everyone can shut the fuck up about who will score goals for us and so on. The team will also be able to get ready for Southampton with less pressure on them compared to after a draw or a loss today. I thought we were the better team throughout the game. We had good possession spells and we controlled the game for big parts of it. Created some good chances and more importantly we finally took advantage of them!

Defensively the third consecutive clean sheet is great but today we had bad defensive mistakes that could have been punished. Mertesacker for one, got beat by that fucking diver Suarez as early as the 6th minute and his lack of pace was badly exposed. Thank god later in the game Vermaelen started to guard Suarez and was able to better keep up with him. We also had a bunch of bad defensive passes that all led to dangerous counters. For big parts of the game we were pressing pretty good and we kept Liverpool under control but there were spells in the second half between the 50th and 60th min and then towards the end of the game where we stopped pressing and allowed them to create chances. Sometimes the front people would press but no one else would follow and big gaps would open up in the middle of the field. To be honest, Liverpool had a tough time pressing constantly as well and that allowed us to create some chances. The reason i am bringing this up even though we didn't concede a goal is because pressing is so crucial if you want to limit the other team's chances. A great example is the Southampton vs Man U game today. I was ready to celebrate the 2nd consecutive away loss of these shitheads and then Southampton just invited them in their own half and let them pass the ball around until they lost 2-3. RVP scoring a hat trick didn't improve my mood either...

I like that Jenkinson keeps things simple but sometimes when he is under pressure and has to pass the ball, he panics a bit and that leads to mistakes. He needs to get used to passing the ball under stress without allowing it to affect him. Mannone was solid today, even though he had a tough time with some high balls during the game. He did have some good saves as well though, especially the shot from Shelvey towards the end. I thought Diaby had a great game, he was one of our best players out there, especially in the first half and the beginning of the second. He got tired towards the end but the way he played today makes me wish he can just stay healthy. He reminds me of Viera with his size and has a good touch on the ball. The other guy who was vital today was Cazorla. As i predicted in the last few posts he is becoming a key figure in our team with his vision and passes. He can also shoot the ball well and we saw a confirmation of that today. His only negative is the lack of effort sometimes. I see him giving up on pressing people when he is tired. Oxlade-Chamberlain on the other hand was disappointing. He is too individual and continually tries to out run and out smart people instead of passing to his team mates when they are in a better position than him. He has alot of energy and desire but he has to channel it the right way.

But the most disappointing guy today was hands down Olivier Giroud. Unless i am missing something, this guy couldn't do anything right today. He looked slow as fuck, had many heavy first touches and a tough time controlling the ball. And most importantly: had 3 very, very, very good chances to score a goal and couldn't even hit the target. Fuck man, it's like watching Bendtner all over again except Bendtner would score once in a blue moon and he cost us way less than this guy. Let's hope i am wrong but right now, i don't see too much to be excited about him. Not just that but Wenger didn't even sub him. I guess he was pleased with his performance...I thought towards the end of the game he should have put Wallcott on his spot, because Liverpool were starting to push forward and we could have used Theo's pace for counters. Anyway, the one person i am happy Wenger didn't use is Gervinho, i was tired of watching his clueless repetitive runs on the flanks with no end product. 

And let's not forget Podolski. Great goal from him. Typical shot with his left foot, we will see a lot of these types of goals from him: on the left, good through ball, he scores diagonally on the keeper. He gave a great pass for Cazorla's goal too. So, a hint of excitement for our new signings (except Giroud ofcourse). They are finally starting to deliver and in the case of Cazorla and Podolski it was just a matter of time. Giroud will be a question mark for now, hopefully he will improve fast. Let's pray for no injures during the international break and for a decisive win at home vs Southampton, who for big parts of the game today completely outplayed Man U, so we have to be careful with them and get it done!C'mon You Gunners!