Match Reaction vs Borussia Dortmund (home).

[McNamara That Ghost...]

We have qualified. :bow:

Sanogo. :bow:

He arrived and then went.

Alexis a bit good.

[Marc Overmars]

We're back!

[mr_brighterside]

we are definitely going to win every game for the rest of the season




and then solve the middle east peace issues. in wenger we trust.

[Letters]

Papering over the cracks :bow:

[Letters]

We beat Dortmund
Kept a clean sheet
And Sanogo scored.


*waits for Jeremy Beadle to jump out at him*

[Marc Overmars]

Maybe with a bit of luck we'll get Porto or someone from the Leverkusen/Monaco group.

But of course we are getting Bayern or Real Madrid though.

[Globalgunner]

Maybe with a bit of luck we'll get Porto or someone from the Leverkusen/Monaco group.

But of course we are getting Bayern or Real Madrid though.

We`ll murder `em
Sa1goal:bow:

[Master Splinter]

Really good performance for most of the game. Dortmund may not have been at full strength, but they weren't when they beat us 2-0 either. And we actually had far more crucial players out with Welbeck, Walcott, Ozil, Wheelchair, Debuchy, Szczesny all dead on top of Ospina, Diaby and Bif not available.

Gibbs, Chambers, Arteta, Cazorla, Oxlade and Sanchez all had good games. Martinez looked comfortable and Sanogo was a nuisance to them when the ball reached him. Ramsey was more disciplined tonight and as a result we didn't get constantly caught out.

Despite the poor results in recent weeks, Oxlade and Sanchez have maintained their form and have to be playing every game if they're fit.

It's nearly a CRISIS in the middle with all the midfielders dropping.

Hopefully we take the confidence of this performance into the weekend game and having Koscielny back and possibly the option of Walcott and Giroud should help too.

Wenfer in.

[Niall_Quinn]

Only saw them closing out the game, but the fact they managed it is something. Seems they were doing the basics properly which has been a huge problem in recent weeks. It looked like the players might have been given some instructions beforehand, which is a positive development.

[Blink 1nce Quince 2wice]

Nothing game.
Wenger out.
I'm off to my room to wank.

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Got his annual win that saves his arse.

Rinse and repeat.

[Chippy]

Nothing game.
Wenger out.
I'm off to my room to wank.
Agreed! (Except for the wank comment)

[Blink 1nce Quince 2wice]

:lol:

[Munchies]

Alexis :bow:

[Xhaka Can’t]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzURH-yOtKs

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

I will

[Letters]

Agreed! (Except for the wank comment)

You're not going to wank or you're just not going to do so in Blink's room? :unsure:

[Injury Time]

Wanting to impress their new boss :bow:

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

The Man Utd game was the straw that broke the camels back for me, and despite our win you could tell there was a subdued atmosphere at the Emirates tonight. However I just don't hold with wanting the team to lose in order for Wenger to get the push. And tonight was very welcome and very needed, it's worth buying a ticket just to watch Alexis play.

[Munchies]

Arteta out injured again :doh:

Flamini :ilt:

[A Gunner]

Thanks fuck, Sanogo finally score! I've read the game thread, someone on there is right, Sanogo just take ages and look clumsky to get the ball out of his feet, but I feel too he has the strength and power to be pretty good, so hope with the goal he improves from there. And I think the goal, all he could do was to poke, instead of thinking how to get it in, and it was playing on his mind that he hasn't score yet, so I hope this help him just score goals, instead of thinking how to score goals.

[Ralpheroo72]

http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/29328/9581097/champions-league-alexis-sanchez-key-to-arsenals-success-this-season-says-graeme-souness

Agreed, without Alexis, we would be dead and buried.

Boys played well, actually looked like we had a game plan.

[LDG]

Didn't watch it.

But, yay.

[selassie]

Fair play to the boys, thought they played well last night, really professional performance and we looked solid all over the pitch.

More of this please!

[Letters]

Didn't watch it.

But, yay.
Wasn't going to but it was on Sky1 and we were 1-0 up when I got in so I thought I would.
Pretty decent performance for once although the fact Dortmund had already qualified probably played a part.
Hopefully we can use it as a platform to build on though.

[LDG]

Wasn't going to but it was on Sky1 and we were 1-0 up when I got in so I thought I would.
Pretty decent performance for once although the fact Dortmund had already qualified probably played a part.
Hopefully we can use it as a platform to build on though.

Would be nice.

I won't hold my breath though.

I don't want loads of trophies, I just want them to put in a hard-working performance each game, with a manager who sends them out with clear instructions. Sounds like we did that last night.....but one match isn't good enough. We need to be doing it consistently, especially with the talent we have.

Fingers crossed. Would be nice to watch a match again.....just really can't be bothered at the moment.

[Letters]

The thing about football is there are such fine lines.
By all accounts we played well on Saturday and were all over them and but for some poor finishing we'd have won easily. A freak goal goes against us, we panic and get caught on the break. I'm not defending any of that but was there so much difference between our first half performance on Saturday and yesterday, aside from putting the ball in the net (from an arguably offside position)? Didn't see it on Saturday, so I genuinely don't know, but I heard we played well.

I don't hold out much hope either but I do think there are the makings of a good side at Arsenal, and that's just on the injury table :(

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Would be nice.

I won't hold my breath though.

I don't want loads of trophies, I just want them to put in a hard-working performance each game, with a manager who sends them out with clear instructions. Sounds like we did that last night.....but one match isn't good enough. We need to be doing it consistently, especially with the talent we have.

Fingers crossed. Would be nice to watch a match again.....just really can't be bothered at the moment.

:blink:

[LDG]

:blink:

I'll rephrase.

I'd love loads of trophies, but that's not the issue for me right now. It isn't the be all and end all. I just want to identify with the club again, and see them (manager included) perform to the standard commensurate with their ability, and pay grade.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

Winning Silverware is something i consider very important, but i agree that we should not expect it. What i expect though is the planning and preparedness and the investment in playing personnel in order to make it possible.
To be fair even going into this season, i wouldn't have been disappointed if we had won nothing as long as we made a concerted challenge to Chelsea in the title race, and had made a bigger in road into the Champions League.
We are currently 15 points behind Chelsea, and we are barring a miracle completley beholden to the luck of the draw in the last 16...not acceptable

[rodders]

A welcome win but as somebody has said just papers over the cracks. Another great goal from Alexis Sanchez but overall I did not think we were that good,and picked up two more injuries . What has Wenger got against Podolski?

[Özim]

Got his annual win that saves his arse.

Rinse and repeat.

Pretty much, Dortmund won't have been too worried about this with a home game coming up against one of the whipping boys they'll win this group comfortably.

This win doesn't hide the fact we haven't been much cop this season, well it doesn't except for Mr Wenger, he'll now think we're world beaters and 2% away from domination again.

[Özim]

Venga hopes for luck in the draw, if you come 2nd in your group you'll more often than not play a top team, trick is to win the group and then get an easier team, you make your own luck.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/30223396

Also he's very proud.

[Letters]

Venga hopes for luck in the draw, if you come 2nd in your group you'll more often than not play a top team, trick is to win the group and then get an easier team, you make your own luck.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/30223396

Also he's very proud.

Literally nothing wrong with what he's said. He also said "It's not enough, we want more", but you obviously ignore that.
You'd be the first to moan if we didn't qualify, there's no disgrace in finishing 2nd to Dortmund. Even had we not collapsed vs Anderlecht we'd have been unlikely to top the group.

[Özim]

Literally nothing wrong with what he's said. He also said "It's not enough, we want more", but you obviously ignore that.
You'd be the first to moan if we didn't qualify, there's no disgrace in finishing 2nd to Dortmund. Even had we not collapsed vs Anderlecht we'd have been unlikely to top the group.

Like I said, you come 1st in your group you earn the right to an easier draw, you come 2nd and it's tough luck you'll probably play someone very good, little luck involved.

Dortmund are having a terrible time in the Bundesligue currently lying 16th and have had a whole host of injuries, coming 2nd to them isn't very good all things considered.

[Letters]

Dortmund are having a terrible time in the Bundesligue currently lying 16th.
So? In the CL they've won every game, apart from the other night.
We slipped up vs Anderlecht and that isn't good enough. Even if we hadn't though with Dortmund's goal difference we'd have been unlikely to win the group anyway.

[Özim]

So? In the CL they've won every game, apart from the other night.
We slipped up vs Anderlecht and that isn't good enough. Even if we hadn't though with Dortmund's goal difference we'd have been unlikely to win the group anyway.

So what, the group isn't exactly full of great teams, so it's not saying much.

We should bearing in mind Dortmund's performances and problems this season, have been able to win this group, we probably won't, we never do these days, but maybe that's a reflection that teams who come 4th aren't really that good. Perhaps if we set our sights higher than 4th that might be different.

[Letters]

Cheer up, we might lose the next game. Then you can have proper stuff to moan about again rather than making stuff up.

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Venga hopes for luck in the draw, if you come 2nd in your group you'll more often than not play a top team, trick is to win the group and then get an easier team, you make your own luck.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/30223396

Also he's very proud.

:lol:

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Oh look it's Letters aka Mr 'I want Wenger out' apparently but I'll stick up for him and not allow any criticism whatsoever.

[Letters]

Oh look it's Letters aka Mr 'I want Wenger out' apparently but I'll stick up for him and not allow any criticism whatsoever.
Yes. Again. You're just lying, or a bit stupid. I'm not sure which.
We clearly need to move on from Wenger but that doesn't mean EVERYTHING he does is wrong or EVERYTHING he says should be criticized.
Some people's obsession with Wenger and jumping on everything he says and criticizing it (even when they agree with it) is bizarre, frankly.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

This is not just about this season, it's about a succession of seasons where we have finished group runners up.

Three times out of the previous four seasons we have finished second in the group and funnily enough we have been drawn against Barcelona and Bayern Mumich

The reason Dortmund smashed Anderlecht and Galatasaray is because they are poor sides, the reason they smashed us is because we played atrociously

Considering we are laughably one of the top seeds, our European form in no way befits this


So for him to talk about hoping our luck improves in the draw is infuriating, because really it should be up to him to make sure we avoid being dependent on the whims of fortune

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

I don't attack him on everything, I thought the whole Jacqui Oatley thing was a massive media overreaction but he says he accepts criticism, but its the same way I accept chocolates at Xmas I don't eat chocolate so invariably I say thank you and pass them onto someone else.

[Letters]

This is not just about this season, it's about a succession of seasons where we have finished group runners up.
Yes, but in other seasons we have been culpable in that - we've been in a position to win the group and rested players, cocked up the final games and slipped to 2nd place.
This season with Dortmund winning every game in the CL till Wednesday (whatever their domestic form, they've been good in the CL so far) we were never really in a position to win it this year.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

Why were we not in a position to win the group?

Was it not because of the shoddy display in Germany

Unless you're telling me of course that there is no possible way we could have got a result there

Dortmund were only as good as we made them look

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Some people's obsession with Wenger and jumping on everything he says and criticizing it (even when they agree with it) is bizarre, frankly.

Yes and some people's obsession with Wenger and defending everything he says/does is bizarre, frankly.

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Why were we not in a position to win the group?

Was it not because of the shoddy display in Germany

Unless you're telling me of course that there is no possible way we could have got a result there

Dortmund were only as good as we made them look

Because wenger the genius decided to isolate Bellerin and let him get gang-raped.

[Letters]

Yes and some people's obsession with Wenger and defending everything he says/does is bizarre, frankly.

It would be if anyone did that.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

And also there is no reason we couldn't have duffed up the other teams like Dortmund did, we beat Galatasaray at home handily (by the same scoreline Dortmund beat them) and against Anderlecht we played atrociously in Belgium and blew a three goal lead at home, so even with the game in Germany we had every chance of finishing top of the group.

Three bad performances in five group stage matches gifted top spot to them

[Letters]

Why were we not in a position to win the group?

Was it not because of the shoddy display in Germany

Unless you're telling me of course that there is no possible way we could have got a result there

Dortmund were only as good as we made them look
I don't think losing away at Dortmund is a disgrace although we did make them look much better than they are.
Anyway, if we'd won the group it would only mean getting a round further before being beaten by one of the big guns :shrug:

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

I don't think losing away at Dortmund is a disgrace although we did make them look much better than they are.


Oh look, defend defend defend.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

I don't think losing away at Dortmund is a disgrace although we did make them look much better than they are.
Anyway, if we'd won the group it would only mean getting a round further before being beaten by one of the big guns :shrug:

The further we get in the competition the more it helps us financially and the higher our coefficient is for next season when Uefa starts looking at seedings differently.

Also you accept we can't beat the big teams, and Wenger in hoping for a kind draw accepts this....why is this the case?. Is it acceptable for a man on 8million a year to not believe we are capable of taking anyone on, and not only not believe but not do anything to make us competitive with these sides like acceptable preparation and identifying gaps in the squad.

We need a man who takes responsibility, not one who makes himself hostage to fortune

[Letters]

The further we get in the competition the more it helps us financially and the higher our coefficient is for next season when Uefa starts looking at seedings differently.

Also you accept we can't beat the big teams, and Wenger in hoping for a kind draw accepts this....why is this the case?.
It's the case because we're not at the level of those big teams, Wenger also accepts it's not's good enough. I posted the quote above where he said that.
Ultimately it's down to him that we're not competing with the European big boys and it's up to him to sort that out.
I don't think many people think he's able to.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

Accepting its not good enough is not the same as taking responsibility for it, and therefore I'm less inclined to feel anything other than contempt when he hopes for good fortune.
It's a reminder that we make ourselves beholden to it

Plus in August he said this side was good enough to win the title, and that's even before we signed Welbeck, and yet we aren't good enough to beat the European elite?. Either he believes in the quality of his team or he doesn't

[Letters]

Accepting its not good enough is not the same as taking responsibility for it, and therefore I'm less inclined to feel anything other than contempt when he hopes for good fortune.
It's a reminder that we make ourselves beholden to it

Plus in August he said this side was good enough to win the title, and that's even before we signed Welbeck, and yet we aren't good enough to beat the European elite?. Either he believes in the quality of his team or he doesn't
It would be interesting to know what Wenger really thinks of our squad. Of course he always bigs them up in the press but that's just rhetoric, all managers do it to an extent.
I think our squad is pretty good, actually, we're massively under-performing with the talent we have.
Coming back to the draw and his comments, whether we should have won the group or not I don't see why anyone would actively want a difficult draw in any competition. It's not unreasonable to hope we get a good draw.

[Özim]

I think he thinks our squad is a bunch of worldbeaters in hiding, why else would he neglect transfers so much?

He thinks they are a bunch of worldbeaters who are 2% away from domination, everyone else thinks they are miles away from success due to some fundamental weaknesses and poor application.

I was reading about his 2% away from domination comment the other day and even back then he was bigging them up claiming they are so close and will come good, they never did yet he continues to believe.

His parents probably had trouble convincing him Santa, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy weren't real when he was younger, even after they physically dropped the gifts under the tree, garden or pillow whilst he was there watching.

[Letters]

I think he thinks our squad is a bunch of worldbeaters in hiding, why else would he neglect transfers so much?

He thinks they are a bunch of worldbeaters who are 2% away from domination, everyone else thinks they are miles away from success due to some fundamental weaknesses and poor application.
I doubt he thinks that, but IMO our squad is pretty decent. We should certainly be much closer to Chelsea than we are.

[Özim]

I don't, he's been following the same path for years now without much deviation in his plans, if he didn't think they were up to it he would do something about it.

Chelsea have quality as they've spent wisely, more importantly though they have a manager who sets out his team to be organised, disciplined and hard working, in a season and a half he's transformed them.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

If we are just looking at the players we have we are good enough not to be 15 points behind, but if we look at training, tactical awareness, match preparation, fitness regime....yes we are probably where we deserve to be.

[Marc Overmars]

I think his biggest flaw is that he doesn't seem to like competition within the squad, he probably thinks it discourages natural development. It's the only possible reason why I think he's neglected to strengthen certain areas of the squad in recent years. He doesn't want to deal with players chomping at the bit to play because it may cause unrest.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

There are other reasons

- One is loyalty to his players, which unfortunately can only be regarded as a weakness in the modern game and his loyalty has not only been repaid by the players

- Money, he knows he can't sell some of these players and feels compelled to play them when they are earning so much money from the club.

[Özil's Panoramic View]

Yes, but in other seasons we have been culpable in that - we've been in a position to win the group and rested players, cocked up the final games and slipped to 2nd place.
This season with Dortmund winning every game in the CL till Wednesday (whatever their domestic form, they've been good in the CL so far) we were never really in a position to win it this year.

:haha: :haha: :haha:

[Letters]

Excellent post. Well debated

[Xhaka Can’t]

Yes. Again. You're just lying, or a bit stupid. I'm not sure which.

Why can't he be both?