Match Reaction vs Man City (away).

[McNamara That Ghost...]

What a performance.

Well done boys. Nothing else to say right now.

Except: Santi. :bow:

[GP]

Enjoyed that. Great performance from the lot of them.

[AFC Leveller]

The best display by us in years, a total performance from us and a really big shift from everybody.

[Maestro]

Neville, Vinny, Tyler :haha:

Brilliant Victory

Carzola worked his nuts off

[Letters]

:blink:

I...what the hell just happened?!

[McNamara That Ghost...]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B7pnvD3IcAA_3j5.jpg

[GP]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B7poOUtCMAA34Jc.jpg

[Niall_Quinn]

Little bit speechless.

That's what we have been looking for for years. Hard to know what to say when it finally happens.

[AFC Leveller]

fair play to Nacho, i thought he was our weak link but today he produced something else ad was solid as.

fuck off city sky daily mail

[Power n Glory]

Santi Cazorla!!!

[Boss]

Yessss

Santi, Bellerin and Coquelin all were brilliant.

[Xhaka Can’t]

Wish I'd seen this. Will watch our slot on MOTD tonight. Hopefully this will help provide a real sense of belief for us to build upon.

[A Gunner]

Wow, only 35% poccession

[Letters]

Wish I'd seen this. Will watch our slot on MOTD tonight. Hopefully this will help provide a real sense of belief for us to build upon.

Me too, didn't bother as I was so sure of a defeat.
Best result in years, this.

[AFC Leveller]

Had that been mourinho's chelsea neville would have wanked himself to death.

[fakeyank]

That was as good a performance as I have seen us play against the big boys! Fantastic!! :scarf:

[AFC Leveller]

2-2 now, dean just got another brown envelope down the tunnel.

[adzzzbatch]

GET THE FUCK IN!!!!!

[GP]

Cazorla > Silva

Not even close.

[Alpha]

I knew we would win today and I am not surprised at all . I'm just waiting for Ozil panoramic view to celebrate as he said Arsenal winning at City was an impossible task . How people are always proven wrong . Up the Arse ..

[fakeyank]

And how freaking awesome is Coquelin?!!? Santi was obviously on another planet but Coquelin is really stepping up. Time to take note of him! :bow:

[AFC Leveller]

Cazorla > Silva

Not even close.

Best playmaker since Ozil.

[AFC Leveller]

And how freaking awesome is Coquelin?!!? Santi was obviously on another planet but Coquelin is really stepping up. Time to take note of him! :bow:

tough tackler, composed on the ball and very organised for one so young.

[Master Splinter]

Apart from that one that went across goal, City barely had any chances. We kept them at arm's length, cleared their crosses, won the second balls for once and blocked everything. It helped that Navas is shit too.

It's good to see WUMger sticking with form players for once and getting the balance right. Cazorla, Coquelin and Koscielny were outstanding. Most pleasingly, Bellerin showed great maturity today and maybe people will finally admit that Monreal is having a good season and has been one of our most reliable players.

We got the result with Sanchez and Ox being sloppy too, so it shows how well the whole team played.

Arsenal :bow:.

Cazorla :bow:.

Coquelin :bow:.


Mike Dean doing his job mostly right was also a tremendous bonus.

[Marc Overmars]

Ospina was barely troubled and the defence comfortably dealt with all their tippy tappy stuff. Cazorla was sublime, he has found his mojo again and seems to be thriving operating from a more central role. Oxlade wasn't very good and Ramsey took it upon himself to go up front, but that was nipped in the bud quickly after Rosicky was brought on.

Apart from the early part of the first half when we reverted to type and lost our shape, it was a brilliant performance. It was odd watching us appear so composed and City being the ones huffing and puffing to no avail, normally it's the other way around because that's how we've so often lost these games in the past.

Fantastic stuff, keep it up!

[selassie]

Superb. Tactically flawless. We defended so well, broke with purpose and just played a very smart game. That win was massive. So many superb performers, Santi was world class today totally ran the show, Coquelin was oustanding too, mopped up everything in front of the back 4, defence was superb too. So happy for the team.

[Ernesto]

Fantastic win, Fantastic performance to boot. Santi, absi brilliant, well done.

I'm just not sure we have this monkey off our back of not being able to win big games, though. For me, that still means going to Old Trafford or Stamford Bridge and winning- something we haven't done in donkey's years.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Henry bringing some sanity to proceedings.

Sanity. :bow:

Great performance today.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Fantastic win, Fantastic performance to boot. Santi, absi brilliant, well done.

I'm just not sure we have this monkey off our back of not being able to win big games, though. For me, that still means going to Old Trafford or Stamford Bridge and winning- something we haven't done in donkey's years.

Old Trafford is the one. Stamford Bridge we've won twice relatively recently.

[Injury Time]

Just :faint:

[fakeyank]

Sign Coq up on a new contract if he continues this performance. And also Koscielny! He single handedly brings so much stability to the back 4!

[GP]

What's the deal with Navas?

He's not very good.

[The Emirates Gallactico]

Yes!! Why couldn't we have played like that for the past three years in the same type of games!!!


Fucking overjoyed. We needed the points after everyone else had won yesterday and we got them. Now push on and get third place!

[Master Splinter]

Wish I'd seen this. Will watch our slot on MOTD tonight. Hopefully this will help provide a real sense of belief for us to build upon.

City well below par. They were missing Yaya Toure, Nasri and Sinclair. They were unlucky to not have Bony either. Poor little City. But they were plucky. And Kompany was heroic as he gave away a pelanty, barged mindlessly into players and somehow avoided being sent off. If only they had more playa and resources.

Arsenal?

Oh yeah, they got lucky. We'll see next time how they'll cope with Aguero running at the very slow Mertesacker and how no-name Coquelin will cope with the flawless Silva and how will they break down Vinny who is a king amongst men. Mourinho is our lord.

[Marc Overmars]

What's the deal with Navas?

He's not very good.

He's quick, he's fast, he's got pace.

[The Emirates Gallactico]

Sign Coq up on a new contract if he continues this performance. And also Koscielny! He single handedly brings so much stability to the back 4!

Coq was amazing today no doubt but let's not go overboard and think we still don't need to buy a world class DM.


At the very least Coq demonstrated he's a capable deputy and should start over Arteta and Flamini any day.

[AFC Leveller]

Carragher must be gutted, he has been chatting shit all week about us not being able to handle Silva.

You scouse cunt.

[alexander]

In the words of the the great Andy Townsend "better".

Listened on the radio, for once I wasnt crapping it the whole bloody game, sounds like we just played well and with belief.

Well done to them.

[Master Splinter]

He's quick, he's fast, he's got pace.

As a great man once said, he's what they used to describe Theo as. If he wasn't Spanish and a Citeh player, he'd be put in the same bracket as Lennon and Townsend. He was better in Spain, but for City, he's completely one-dimensional.

[fakeyank]

Coq was amazing today no doubt but let's not go overboard and think we still don't need to buy a world class DM.


At the very least Coq demonstrated he's a capable deputy and should start over Arteta and Flamini any day.

It's hard not to get overboard as the last 3-4 games of Coquelin has been as good as I have seen this year in the PL. Yes, we need to sign a DM but I see no reason why Coq cannot be the main man in that position.

[Marc Overmars]

Coq was amazing today no doubt but let's not go overboard and think we still don't need to buy a world class DM.


At the very least Coq demonstrated he's a capable deputy and should start over Arteta and Flamini any day.

WUMger has fluked it with Coq's performances.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

We only need to have someone show discipline, being some fabled world class defensive midfielder would be better of course but there aren't many of those.

[Niall_Quinn]

Wenger on now.

[Niall_Quinn]

Fucking commentator - asking Wenger if we need a DM after that performance.

[Niall_Quinn]

Neville :haha:

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Pace. :haha:

Power. :haha:

[Master Splinter]

Since he arrived in the Premier League at the start of the 2012-13 season, Olivier Giroud has scored 11 headed goals, two more than anyone else.


Giroud for England!

[selassie]

Coq was amazing today no doubt but let's not go overboard and think we still don't need to buy a world class DM.


At the very least Coq demonstrated he's a capable deputy and should start over Arteta and Flamini any day.

Yeah Coq is starting to make a real claim for a regular spot in the starting XI, today he was immense, he was very good last week against Stoke too. It's still early days but his emergence is very similar to Flams in his first spell here.

We still need a new DM but Coq should be kept on as squad material, especially if he keeps on performing like this.

Edited to add: These are Coq's stats today...

Francis Coquelin vs MCFC: 100% tackle success, 88% aerial duels, 6 interceptions, 11 clearances, 87% passing

[Munchies]

Wenger in his post match intv on Sky seemed to suggest that we'll be sticking with Coquelin for the time being

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Kompany fantastic defender. :lol:

No Neville, he will make the same mistakes.

[Globalgunner]

Great performance by the lads. Wenger needs to show some bottle and keep Ozil on the bench for the time being. Santi must not be repositioned just to accommodate him. Love Ozil but he needs to step up.

[Niall_Quinn]

Nice bloke Pelligrini moaning it wasn't a pen. And he need more playa.

[The Emirates Gallactico]

It's hard not to get overboard as the last 3-4 games of Coquelin has been as good as I have seen this year in the PL. Yes, we need to sign a DM but I see no reason why Coq cannot be the main man in that position.

Because it's way too early and premature to even hint at him being the solution.

For a start let's not forget there was a reason he was at Freiburg on loan last year (where he didn't exactly light up any trees) and Charlton this year before getting recalled.

And apart from Man City today most of the teams he's started against haven't been that great or that challenging. I also think he's way too short for the role as well ........ we haven't had a DM since Gilberto who could comfortably head the ball away which means that long balls always have to be dealt with by the CB's. This results in us always struggling with aerial attacks as either the BFG or Kos have to go and attack the ball leaving gaps for the opposition to exploit. His passing isn't fantastic either.

Yes congratulations to Coq for his excellent recent performances and he deserves to start for the time being but ultimately he doesn't have the right pedigree or quality to be starting week in week out for a team with aspirations to challenge for the league. We did the same thing Almunia; he had a few good games and everyone thought he was the solution and then we ended up wasting 3 seasons with him as number one before everyone finally realised he wasn't good enough. Top top quality please.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Nice Man Pellegrini. :lol:

He has long since left the building.

[Niall_Quinn]

Accuses Monreal of diving then says he doesn't want to talk about the penalty. :doh:

[Alpha]

It's hard not to get overboard as the last 3-4 games of Coquelin has been as good as I have seen this year in the PL. Yes, we need to sign a DM but I see no reason why Coq cannot be the main man in that position.

Happy to see people finally recognising Coquelin talent . Since he came he has never had a floppy game with us . Even when we got mugged 8-2 at Old Trafford he was one of the best players on the pitch .
We should however still sign an experienced DM to allow the new signing baby Beilik to grow and to slowly get rid of Flamini and Arteta who seem to be at the end of their roads .

[Niall_Quinn]

(where he didn't exactly light up any trees)

It's pull up any trees, when you light them up it's arson.

[Marc Overmars]

Great performance by the lads. Wenger needs to show some bottle and keep Ozil on the bench for the time being. Santi must not be repositioned just to accommodate him. Love Ozil but he needs to step up.

Yeah I don't think Ozil has even touched the level Cazorla has been playing at recently for us.

Hopefully Wenget doesn't tinker too much. He's barely given Theo a sniff so maybe he will stick with the current formula and Ozil will have to bide his time.

[Niall_Quinn]

So the Alexis effect has struck Santi and now we have two players covering every blade of grass. Ox getting there too.

[Blink 1nce Quince 2wice]

Up the Goonies! Awesome stuff. Bottle that shizzle.

[Niall_Quinn]

Sky has gone from rubbing themselves up and down against the gypos to wondering if they are finished and don't have the ambition.

[Alpha]

Accuses Monreal of diving then says he doesn't want to talk about the penalty. :doh:

Frustration of a bad loser . Sadly his personal opinion will not change anything . A big mountain for him to climb but I'am not happy it's Chelsea at the top of that mountain .

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Neville. :haha:

I am not saying it's the end of this team but it's now or never.

:haha:

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Souness is embarrassing himself, again.

[Master Splinter]

BBC live text today is a diary of condescension, patronisation, ignorance, disappointment and bitterness. Mostly from the cretinous Chelsea fanturd that is Pat Nevin.




".....whether a player is wearing long sleeves or short is often a give away as to who is really up for it. Seven of the City players have got short sleeves on… and none of the Arsenal players."





"Arsene Wenger can be once again seen as a tactical genius - his team has hardly touched the ball but a couple of times in the last 10 minutes they have broken well."





"His arm was out for me, but boy did Nacho Monreal go down easily."





"That is either the best defending I have ever seen in my life or just pure luck from Laurent Koscielny - I am going with the latter."





"I thought Santi Cazorla was going to come off - but well done Arsene Wenger!"





"I'm quite the imbecile."

[Master Splinter]

Wenget thinks Coquelin is 24.

Wenger the bumbling buffoon.

#senilecunt #8million

[Alpha]

[QUOTE=selassie;440983]Yeah Coq is starting to make a real claim for a regular spot in the starting XI, today he was immense, he was very good last week against Stoke too. It's still early days but his emergence is very similar to Flams in his first spell here.

We still need a new DM but Coq should be kept on as squad material, especially if he keeps on performing like this.

Edited to add: These are Coq's stats today...

Selassie , my friend , would you bench Coquelin with such performance and buy another DM ? What does Francis have to do to convince you he can be the man ?
If you sign a new DM , he will need time at least 2 years to get used the the EPL . By that time , Coquelin would has been a top DM . Why not sign a DM to help the Coqu out but keep him on the pitch for his progress . The Coq is not a big name but he is doing more that the so called big names .
Can you see that ?

[Heisenberg]

A surprise, but hardly an unwelcome one :scarf:

[Shaqiri Is Boss]

Kompany fantastic defender. :lol:

No Neville, he will make the same mistakes.

How many mistakes does Kompany have to make before pundits realise he makes a fuck load of mistakes?

http://giant.gfycat.com/LawfulAnxiousCentipede.gif

[Marc Overmars]

Vinnie Kompany, everyones best mate.

[Master Splinter]

Joe Hart throws one in every other week and remains world class.

The answer is never.

Because they are utter fuckwits.

[McNamara That Ghost...]

A lot.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NAZJ0xOP_s

[GP]

I get weird looks at work when I suggest that Koscielny is better than Kompany.

[fakeyank]

I get weird looks at work when I suggest that Koscielny is better than Kompany.

Why do you work there?

[Shaqiri Is Boss]

I get weird looks at work when I suggest that Koscielny is better than Kompany.

Do you work at the Etihad?

[selassie]

[QUOTE=selassie;440983]Yeah Coq is starting to make a real claim for a regular spot in the starting XI, today he was immense, he was very good last week against Stoke too. It's still early days but his emergence is very similar to Flams in his first spell here.

We still need a new DM but Coq should be kept on as squad material, especially if he keeps on performing like this.

Edited to add: These are Coq's stats today...

Selassie , my friend , would you bench Coquelin with such performance and buy another DM ? What does Francis have to do to convince you he can be the man ?
If you sign a new DM , he will need time at least 2 years to get used the the EPL . By that time , Coquelin would has been a top DM . Why not sign a DM to help the Coqu out but keep him on the pitch for his progress . The Coq is not a big name but he is doing more that the so called big names .
Can you see that ?

Alpha, on current form Coquelin gets in the team, in fact the first XI pretty much picks itself. The kind of DM we should be looking at is someone like Schneiderlin, he's not really a DM in the purest sense but I feel he would fit well into our team and is PL ready, I also think he would seamlessly make the step up to CL.

If Coquelin continues to produce great performances then that's great for him and the team. We shouldn't be waiting to see if Coquelin can sustain this performance we should be in the market for the best available player in this position, competition is what we need, it creates a higher level of performance. Look at Santi as an example, he knows he has his work cut out with Ozil & Ramsey now back, but look at his current performance level, he along with Sanchez is the first name on the teamsheet. Ozil has his work cut out getting back in the team.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

Fair play to AW he got it right today, I hope he enjoyed it cos I certainly did


Nothing more to say

[fakeyank]

http://pbs.twimg.com/media/BxhMqvhIIAEdqit.jpg

Sagna's heat map :haha:

[Alpha]

[QUOTE=Alpha;441006]

Alpha, on current form Coquelin gets in the team, in fact the first XI pretty much picks itself. The kind of DM we should be looking at is someone like Schneiderlin, he's not really a DM in the purest sense but I feel he would fit well into our team and is PL ready, I also think he would seamlessly make the step up to CL.

If Coquelin continues to produce great performances then that's great for him and the team. We shouldn't be waiting to see if Coquelin can sustain this performance




we should be in the market for the best available player in this position, competition is what we need, it creates a higher level of performance. Look at Santi as an















example, he knows he has his work cut out with Ozil & Ramsey now back, but look at his current performance level, he along with Sanchez is the first name on the
teamsheet. Ozil has his work cut out getting back in the team.

Totally agree with you , Selassie . We should sign another experienced DM . Even an injury-prone Kedhira will do for me but we shouldn't neglect our own product when they give 100% top performance simply because they are not big names yet .
I like Scheiderlin myself . We have been liked to him in the past along other top DM like the Bender brother , Kramer ..etc..but we are not sure if , once at Arsenal they would be the same player . I remember Arteta at Everton he was so good but since he moved he is just an average squad player .
Coquelin is just like Flamini at his prime . He shouldn't fuck it up as we did last time .
Give him time and confidence and he will grow into a top player . He will have some bad days like any other player as we saw Aguero today . But he fully deserves his chances . I wouldn't complain if he becomes our main DM . He has shown he can play against small teams , dirty teams and big teams . He has 100% of my vote for that position .

[AFC Leveller]

Santi is in great form for us and is playing the best football of his Arsenal career. The way he skips past challenges and gets out of tight situations is just a joy and the most pleasing thing is he is getting goals and assists. I just hope wenger doesnt move him outwide to accomodate Ozil because we look dangerous with him through the middle.

2 clean sheets in a row now, something to build on.

[Munchies]

The daily mail gave Santi a 7/10 rating :lol:

[The Emirates Gallactico]

Watching a cap of the post game coverage. Only 35% possession from us today ............... lowest for us at least in 11 years which is when they started measuring it. :lol::lol:

Hopefully Wenger gets the message. It's the tactics and what you do with the ball that's important.

[Ralpheroo72]

In the face!!!

[Letters]

http://pbs.twimg.com/media/BxhMqvhIIAEdqit.jpg

Sagna's heat map :haha:
:lol:

We need a Sagna version of this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u56kJjrlXuI

[AFC Leveller]

:lol:

We need a Sagna version of this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u56kJjrlXuI

wow that is the funniest shit ive seen from this guy since the Giruuuuuddd one.

[rodders]

Can't complain at that.. Even when Arsene brought on defenders Arsenal were in Man City territory. Has Arsene finally realised that tactics win games.

[Munchies]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7fug_tPPX5E

[Gooner23]

Brilliant performance.

Apart from the mental first 15 mins of the second half we were disciplined throughout. It's the formula we should really stick to for all the big games because we can be devastating when playing quick counter attack footy. None of the tippy tappy bollox!

Santi is just wonderful to watch when playing like that, best player on the pitch by a distance. Even Wenget had a good day at the office, sticking with the form players and getting the subs right (apart from Ramsey staying on a bit longer than needed).

Well done lads, unexpected but thoroughly enjoyable.

[Niall_Quinn]

The daily mail gave Santi a 7/10 rating :lol:

Here's their headline:


Manchester City 0-2 Arsenal: Cazorla and Giroud's sucker punches leave flattened champions trailing Chelsea in title race... but did Monreal dive after Kompany's challenge to win crucial penalty?

Suck it up DM, your boys took a hell of a beating.

[alexander]

Santi is in great form for us and is playing the best football of his Arsenal career. The way he skips past challenges and gets out of tight situations is just a joy and the most pleasing thing is he is getting goals and assists. I just hope wenger doesnt move him outwide to accomodate Ozil because we look dangerous with him through the middle.

2 clean sheets in a row now, something to build on.

Change of keeper? coincidence?

[Munchies]

Here's their headline:



Suck it up DM, your boys took a hell of a beating.

:haha:

Kompany knew what he was doing

Click-baiting twats

[alexander]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7fug_tPPX5E

Great performance from the guy. You dont have to be a massive strong player, he was in the right place at the right time, putting himself about, just what we need.

[Gooner23]

:haha:

Kompany knew what he was doing

Click-baiting twats

I'm not going to click the link but did they really give Santi 7/10?

Also thought the ref was ok today, much better than his usual poor standard (despite Sky's insistence he's normally good). But what's with Arsenal players getting booked for first fouls and oppo players consistently getting away with same thing.

[Gooner23]

Great performance from the guy. You dont have to be a massive strong player, he was in the right place at the right time, putting himself about, just what we need.

Glad he's getting a run of games and taking his opportunity well. Always rated him at youth level so pleased to see him kick on now. What's with that god awful backing music to that video though!

[Master Splinter]

Change of keeper? coincidence?

Ospina probably had less to do today than he did versus Hull and Stoke.

But he's done everything he should do well. No silly lapses when he's bored. Apart from one dodgy kick today.

Szczesny will still prove to be the better keeper in the long run I think. As long he sorts out his woeful kicking.

[Marc Overmars]

Watching a cap of the post game coverage. Only 35% possession from us today ............... lowest for us at least in 11 years which is when they started measuring it. :lol::lol:

Hopefully Wenger gets the message. It's the tactics and what you do with the ball that's important.

Indeed. You've got to approach these games with a bit of intelligence too, you can't just believe that if you play well everything will fall into place. Jury's still out on our big game mentality and effectiveness, but hopefully today is the catalyst.

[Master Splinter]

What's with that god awful backing music to that video though!

Internet Law #27:



Offensively shit, ear-harming, suicide-inducing music must always accompany a football highlights reel.

[GP]

Darude - Sandstorm

[Power n Glory]

Because it's way too early and premature to even hint at him being the solution.

For a start let's not forget there was a reason he was at Freiburg on loan last year (where he didn't exactly light up any trees) and Charlton this year before getting recalled.

And apart from Man City today most of the teams he's started against haven't been that great or that challenging. I also think he's way too short for the role as well ........ we haven't had a DM since Gilberto who could comfortably head the ball away which means that long balls always have to be dealt with by the CB's. This results in us always struggling with aerial attacks as either the BFG or Kos have to go and attack the ball leaving gaps for the opposition to exploit. His passing isn't fantastic either.

Yes congratulations to Coq for his excellent recent performances and he deserves to start for the time being but ultimately he doesn't have the right pedigree or quality to be starting week in week out for a team with aspirations to challenge for the league. We did the same thing Almunia; he had a few good games and everyone thought he was the solution and then we ended up wasting 3 seasons with him as number one before everyone finally realised he wasn't good enough. Top top quality please.

I didn't realise you followed Freiburg. :lol:

I can only comment on what I see and whenever I see him play, he does a good job. I can't understand why he was loaned out last season or why he was sent to Charlton for that matter.

We can only hope we sign a new experienced DM but Wenger just signed some Polish 17 year old. We've had plenty of opportunities to sign an established DM but Wenger just passes up the opportunity. Our only hope now is that he uses the best options we have within the team.

[Alpha]

Indeed. You've got to approach these games with a bit of intelligence too, you can't just believe that if you play well everything will fall into place. Jury's still out on our big game mentality and effectiveness, but hopefully today is the catalyst.
Everything is in our own hands . we can win big games if we want to as we have shown it in the past .We have been our own destroyers by trying to overplay away from home , getting caught up in counter .
But we can also sit back , suck up the pression and catch up in counter-attack . We have all kinds of players to do the job . What we need is determination and discipline . We are the Arsenal and not Hull City or Spurs .

[Niall_Quinn]

According to Henry Winter Wenger managed to do his coat zip up on the first attempt today. That's the sort of day it was.

[Xhaka Can’t]

It was a fucking stonewall penalty

[mr_brighterside]

according to MOTD cazorla was like a wriggling eel :lol:

[Letters]

"Man City were so poor..." - MoTD2

Meh.

:fingers:

[Injury Time]

Watched the ANALysis with sound off, you could see Winter was gutted, I think he bet his house on us losing

[Niall_Quinn]

It was a fucking stonewall penalty

Nah, not when you take into account what a nice guy Kompany is. And the delightfully chummy way he went through Alexis with studs up.

Basically Toure was missing, Dean cheated for Arsenal and we parked the bus and never made it out of our own half in the 90 minutes. The gypos had to field a weakened team of sub £50mill playa and they were really poor and let us win and anyway they scored 6 last time and it could have been ten so let's all laugh at Arsenal.

[Niall_Quinn]

Watched the ANALysis with sound off, you could see Winter was gutted, I think he bet his house on us losing

He always looks like that tbf. He tilts his head back slightly and looks down his nose at whoever he's graced with his opinion as if he has a tough time bearing the smell of mere mortals.

[Niall_Quinn]

LOL - Monreal is the new Pires, probably the biggest diver in the history of the game. The ultra prick Robbie Savage is using the cover of the West Ham game to call Monreal a cheat. He's so pissed off it's hilarious.

[Munchies]

Just heard that :lol:

http://i.imgur.com/5ilvkzd.png

[Munchies]

https://twitter.com/RobbieSavage8/status/233277351935479808


@RobbieSavage8 8 Aug 2012
Cazorla wouldn't get in the Swansea team !! Lol @FourFourTom

:haha: :haha:

[Keith]

Great result, it reminded me of the Barcelona game where we pressed them all over the pitch

[A Gunner]

Change of keeper? coincidence?

I thought about that too, and I don't think it's a coincidence.

[Niall_Quinn]

Here's Neil Ashton's post match contribution.


At some point in the near future we will have to ask whether honesty is the preserve of the English game or whether we are done with beating the integrity drum.

The 24th minute at the Etihad, when Nacho Monreal brushed against Vincent Kompany to prompt a slow-motion collapse inside the penalty area, seems a good place to start.

Arsenal’s left back looked like a sky diver, using the friction of Kompany’s body to launch himself into the night air and executing a safe landing with some cushioned rolls. It was tempting to applaud the audacity.

This is what you get for making a journo rip up his pre-written match report, "Aguero humbles Sanchez, Kompany bosses it, Arsenil destroyed by city boys whose cocks I'l like to gobble" All wasted and now he'll have to sober up and do his job for once. Or not, it appears.

[fakeyank]

http://theshortfuse.sbnation.com/2015/1/17/7641427/francis-coquelin-arsenal-transfer-rumours-contract

Dont know how true this is, but the worrying part (if true) is that Coq's contract runs out this summer. We need to get this sorted ASAP or we are going to have another Flamini situation on our hands!

[Maestro]

The morning after, oh the joy after pinching myself a couple of times. Where are those prick mates of mine, who are quick to call me whenever we lose a game

:tumbleweed:

:d

[Sydney86]

Santi Carzola

[AFC Leveller]

Here's Neil Ashton's post match contribution.



This is what you get for making a journo rip up his pre-written match report, "Aguero humbles Sanchez, Kompany bosses it, Arsenil destroyed by city boys whose cocks I'l like to gobble" All wasted and now he'll have to sober up and do his job for once. Or not, it appears.

What a *unt.

Monteal wasnt even looking at Kompany and was through on goal, and Kompany tried to obstruct him and got what he deserved.

Neil Ashton, you fucking fraud.

[Xhaka Can’t]

Nah, not when you take into account what a nice guy Kompany is. And the delightfully chummy way he went through Alexis with studs up.

Basically Toure was missing, Dean cheated for Arsenal and we parked the bus and never made it out of our own half in the 90 minutes. The gypos had to field a weakened team of sub £50mill playa and they were really poor and let us win and anyway they scored 6 last time and it could have been ten so let's all laugh at Arsenal.

I forgot to factor that in to my analysis of what I saw.

[Coney]

The morning after, oh the joy after pinching myself a couple of times. Where are those prick mates of mine, who are quick to call me whenever we lose a game

:tumbleweed:

:d

We need a 'Like' button on this forum! :good:

[AFC Leveller]

This game should be the blueprint for us on how to play against the big sides (esp away). We didnt think this team and manager had it in them to produce something like that and it surprised a few, including City who seemed to have no answer to it.

If we play like that at OT, SB and even WHL then there is no reason why we cant beat the big sides this.

[Marc Overmars]

I think we've tried playing like that a number of times now against the better teams however the execution has generally been horrific. Us having less of the ball in these games is not a new concept, this was about discipline and for once we kept our shape and didn't hand out open invitations. Wenget even reacted quickly when Ramsey went AWOL by getting Rosicky on to cover.

[Niall_Quinn]

I forgot to factor that in to my analysis of what I saw.

No worries, we have a media that will do it for you and probably do it a lot better tbf.

[Niall_Quinn]

I think we've tried playing like that a number of times now against the better teams however the execution has generally been horrific. Us having less of the ball in these games is not a new concept, this was about discipline and for once we kept our shape and didn't hand out open invitations. Wenget even reacted quickly when Ramsey went AWOL by getting Rosicky on to cover.

Surely Ramsey going southpaw must have been on instructions? Could he really have just ignored the plan and done his own thing? I think it was part of the plan, hold them in the first half and attack them in the second. Because since when has our defence been able to keep things tight for a whole 90 mins? Apart from yesterday, that is. Then Wenger saw we were getting murdered and he reverted, but I wonder what he would have done if we didn't have that goal lead?

Watching the game back (multiple times :dance: ) it's clear Navas is a really shite playa. He had the beating of Monreal several times but the guy can't cross to save his mother. Monreal could have sat down and let him tee up every cross and he'd still have fucked it. Kos is so important to us, his pace essentially covers two positions. Monreal played well but there are games to come where he's bound to be up against more creative wide men who have pace and that will be a bigger test. Bellerin also played well but he had to rescue himself several times using his blistering pace. His positioning needs work, he often showed his opponent the wrong side and had to recover.

The discipline of Coquelin was the key to the performance. He had an outstanding game, doing all the shitty things that players don't want to do. His stats were top notch and his distribution was bang on.

[LDG]

I thought we were very good yesterday. First time I've felt proud of the team for some considerable time!

I'll hold back slightly on lavishing praise by the bucketload, as I still think City are nowhere near as good as the media and blind fans think. We've always had the opportunity to do them, and have hardly ever looked like we're getting panned by them. They're just as ill-disciplined as we usually are, and I don't rate half their team. They never should have won the league last year.

Not taking anything away from the boys though. Thoroughly well played.

[Letters]

A friend of mine (Arsenal fan) opined that there is a case that the pel was obstruction and therefore it should have been an indirect free kick.
Hmm. He's got a point, to be fair.
It's one of those ones you see given and you see not, it was definitely a foul though.

[Niall_Quinn]

A friend of mine (Arsenal fan) opined that there is a case that the pel was obstruction and therefore it should have been an indirect free kick.
Hmm. He's got a point, to be fair.
It's one of those ones you see given and you see not, it was definitely a foul though.

Ball has to be within 3 feet of the foul for it be obstruction, hard one for the ref to judge and pretty amazing Dean gave us anything at all. That was another remarkable event.

The bitter wankers trying to make out Monreal dived though, tossers.

[Marc Overmars]

The signing of Dean is a Wenget masterstroke tbh.

[Niall_Quinn]

The signing of Dean is a Wenget masterstroke tbh.

Outbid Neil Ashton by £1

[LDG]

Monreal went down easily, but then so does every other player in that position. It's not exclusive to him.

It would be given as a foul anywhere else on the pitch, so why not in the pelanty area?

Kompany was stupid enough to stick his leg out there, and that's down to the fact that he's a bit stupid, not that Monreal is a "cheat".

Definite penalty if you're going on consistency of refereeing decisions.

[Marc Overmars]

Just realised Man Utd away is the penultimate game of the season. :sick:

[AFC Leveller]

Just realised Man Utd away is the penultimate game of the season. :sick:

Could be a top 4 place decider.

[The Emirates Gallactico]

Pissed off with this new narrative that's being pushed by the cunts at the BBC and the Daily Mail that Nacho dived. Tbf to Sky don't think they even suggested that there was anything wrong with the penalty when they covered the game.

It was a foul, clear as day. Kompany cynically obstructed Nacho from getting to the end of the ball ....... had he not, Nacho would have got in behind the Man City defence and would have been in a great position to square it for a tap in. Foul outside the box so it's a foul in the box and the penalty award was the correct decision.

Just surprised that cunt Mike Dean gave it to us given his history.


I didn't realise you followed Freiburg. :lol:

I can only comment on what I see and whenever I see him play, he does a good job. I can't understand why he was loaned out last season or why he was sent to Charlton for that matter.

We can only hope we sign a new experienced DM but Wenger just signed some Polish 17 year old. We've had plenty of opportunities to sign an established DM but Wenger just passes up the opportunity. Our only hope now is that he uses the best options we have within the team.

No I don't follow Freiburg but I read enough reports on his time there and looked at his stats to discern that he wasn't amazing there. Just ordinary by the looks of it. Couldn't even nail down a starting position as he only made 16 appearances despite being there the entire season. Then there's the fact that after he returned no one seemed eager to take him, either buy him outright or even take him on loan and the best he could manage was a one month loan to fucking Charlton in November ............. he just fell off the radar .... which in itself speaks volumes.

Yes, occasionally you do get a player who manages to slip the net and suddenly becomes world class out of nowhere .......... Diego Costa is perhaps the best current example of that, perpetually loaned out before hitting his current level ........ but those incidents are very rare. In this current age of every top club having a global scouting network and keeping tabs on the top young players in the world it just doesn't happen. Coquelin has been seen and analysed by numerous elite coaches and managers, and up until now hasn't impressed sufficiently.

And I'm sure he'll sign a new contract. It's a completely different situation to Flamini; Flamini had been bossing the entire league and was the best DM in the league at a club that looked odds on to win the league at the time (:() .......... his stock was much higher than Coq's right now. Unless Coq goes to a lower league club so he's guaranteed starts he'll be here next year. Don't think any club more attractive than us will go in for him.

[Bumble]

Wow that was impressive. Coq must have played well as didn't see his name mentioned misplacing any passes or fouling or anything.

It does show how important the first goal is, I just wish we can score first against the Chavs as I think we can beat them.

What was impressive is that considering everyone in the top 7 won, we had to get a result for confidence and keep our run going. We have won 5 out of the last 7 which is pretty good going. We don't play United or Chelsea until near the end of the season and already played Southampton twice and we have Liverpool at home still.

Top performance and having Clichy take corners for City really summed it up.

[Niall_Quinn]

LOL - Neil Ashton has really lost it.


Perhaps it is little wonder Cazorla stood out for so many people because it is so rare for him to have this kind of influence on a game.
Cazorla is a good player, but not a great and let’s not pretend otherwise.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2916692/Santi-Cazorla-s-performance-Arsenal-against-Manchester-City-worthy-just-7-5-10.html

Bitter little twat :haha:

[The Emirates Gallactico]

I think we've tried playing like that a number of times now against the better teams however the execution has generally been horrific. Us having less of the ball in these games is not a new concept, this was about discipline and for once we kept our shape and didn't hand out open invitations. Wenget even reacted quickly when Ramsey went AWOL by getting Rosicky on to cover.

Yup agree. Definitely think Wenger set us up to play the same way against Chelsea earlier this season. Difference was that Chelsea weren't as poor as City were yesterday and we were undone by a bit of magic by Hazard and a moment of poor defending for the first goal which is crucial in these games. Chelsea struggled to create much and Mourinho wasn't his usual cocky self. Think he even admitted that we were the hardest team he played against.

If you remember there was a great opportunity for us to equalise very quickly after when Sanchez played Jack through but a very poor touch from him killed the goal ...... had we equalised things could have been different. Fucking Jack missing sitters in big games :( ......... still haven't forgiven him for the one against United.


LOL - Neil Ashton has really lost it.



Bitter little twat :haha:

Wow.

Talk about nicking a living. :lol:

[AFC Leveller]

LOL - Neil Ashton has really lost it.



Bitter little twat :haha:

Bent prick, hes bitter cos he's losing his voice too.

[adzzzbatch]

None of the cunts in the media are giving Arsenal any credit for the superb performance yesterday, not one of the fuckers! Infact they are basically saying that we cheated our way to the win! Oh and that shitty were understrength.

Fucking cunts.

[Niall_Quinn]

And here's the latest DM headline as they get down to the business of the Monday post match analysis.


Mike Dean awarded Arsenal controversial penalty against Manchester City... but was the referee looking elsewhere when Vincent Kompany fouled Nacho Monreal?

LOOOOL have you ever seen anything like it? Can you imagine if that had been Utd beating the gypos on their patch? Every player would have had a gushing write up by now, van Gaal would be the new Fergie.

The definition of bitter sweet. Bitter for them, sweet for us.

[Marc Overmars]

Screw the media. I stopped reading and watching what they had to say a long time ago.

[Xhaka Can’t]

Screw the media. I stopped reading and watching what they had to say a long time ago.
This.

[Niall_Quinn]

Screw the media. I stopped reading and watching what they had to say a long time ago.

You're missing out on the fun. Watching biased journos have temper tantrums in print is the icing on the cake.

[Letters]

Oh and that shitty were understrength.
:lol:

To be fair they only had £38m Aguero up front and could only bring £26m Jovetic off the bench.

What chance does that give them? :sulk:

[Master Splinter]

He was the real man of the match, busting his balls as he worked the line across one of the best - and certainly most expensive - defences in the Barclays Premier League.


While taking on the hordes of internet adversaries attempting to usurp his position as the ultimate Internet Champion, the blood has rushed to his head and the furiously frothing foam spilling from his mouth has encompassed the keyboard, leading to such basic factual errors.

Citeh's defence was actually cheaper than ours. They've only spent big on Mangala and Kolarov. Maybe Ashton should focus his attention on identifying why such an imperious group of defenders is conceding so many goals. He might come to the conclusion that they need to spend more money on more playa in that area. And that Cazorla sux.

[Syn]

Giroud was outstanding, possibly his best game for us after Tottenham at home in the league last year. His touch was brilliant and he was winning more than his fair share of battles. If Ashton wanted to just make a point about that, it could've made a great article. But without adding the Cazorla comment (and there was no doubt at all that Cazorla was man of the match. Completely bossed the midfield), he wouldn't get the attention or hits. Nature of sports journalism these days - they're selling to the loudest idiots.

[Edinburgh Gooner]

http://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/football/420873/Best-Premier-League-vines video 3 of santi is quality

[Munchies]

Coquelin's contract runs out at the end of the season

[Marc Overmars]

Giroud was outstanding, possibly his best game for us after Tottenham at home in the league last year. His touch was brilliant and he was winning more than his fair share of battles.

He kept plucking the ball out of the air Bergkamp style. :wacko:

[fakeyank]

Coquelin's contract runs out at the end of the season

Flamini Mk II

[Syn]

Which time?

1. the one where Flamini left in 2008 because we made a mistake not to offer him a good enough contract early?
2. the one where Flamini returned last season, pointed and shouted a bit and landed a 3 year contract on fan hype that the club is now regretting?

Coquelin's played a handful of games and could easily become the poor performer that didn't impress at Charlton or in the Bundesliga last season. I wouldn't offer him a contract right now, I'd wait until the end of the season. I doubt a better club than Arsenal will offer him a contract, and whether he stays or leaves, we should get Schneiderlin anyway.

[Power n Glory]

We won't buy an experienced DM. The most likely outcome is we'll lose Coquelin and test that Polish 17 year old in his place.

[Power n Glory]

As for Coquelin's loan spell at Freiburg, from what I read on Bleacher Report a while back, he was being used as a utility player. Left back, right back and central midfield. Make of that what you will.

[fakeyank]

Which time?

1. the one where Flamini left in 2008 because we made a mistake not to offer him a good enough contract early?
2. the one where Flamini returned last season, pointed and shouted a bit and landed a 3 year contract on fan hype that the club is now regretting?

Coquelin's played a handful of games and could easily become the poor performer that didn't impress at Charlton or in the Bundesliga last season. I wouldn't offer him a contract right now, I'd wait until the end of the season. I doubt a better club than Arsenal will offer him a contract, and whether he stays or leaves, we should get Schneiderlin anyway.

1.

I would rather we offer a contract to a player who is playing well than hope that we will sign someone world class and go through their 'adaptation period'. Not asking us to offer the world to him, but clearly we can offer him a contract extension just as a backup. We have Diaby's salary going off the book soon... and hopefully Arteta or Flamini as well!

[Power n Glory]

We all know how things will go down in the summer. How many years have we been stalling on signing a top DM now because we refuse to part with the cash? Very risky to let someone with potential go in hope that we do business in the summer. We'll get to the negotiation table and then get scared off by the price. That's when we go into another season where we've left ourselves short in a key area. The fact that Coquelin can also cover the fullback positions should add more weight to his value in the squad.

[Marc Overmars]

Ideally Arteta and Flamini will be moved on, then Coq can stay to compete with a new CM.

However I expect Coq to leave, he obviously wasn't in Wenget's plans and an emergency recall because of the injury pile up doesn't change that. Not even sure how good he is but hopefully he continues to a do a job then we'll see what happens in the summer. If he keeps churning out these performances then I'm sure he'll have a lot of interest and fancy leaving for a more established role anyway.

Either way, we still need an upgrade in this area.

[Niall_Quinn]

All depends on what the board and manager wants. If it's more of the 4th place trophy and the odd cup run the players like Coquelin and Giroud can do that. If we want to win titles and seriously compete for the CL then second tier players (which is what they are) won't do it. I think we know what the fans want, but that won't matter.

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

People not wanting to give Coquelin a contract but back Arteta :lol:

Luckily they're clueless.

As for Wenger, tactics spot on yesterday.

Great to finally get an away win against a top 4 side.

[AFC Leveller]

All depends on what the board and manager wants. If it's more of the 4th place trophy and the odd cup run the players like Coquelin and Giroud can do that. If we want to win titles and seriously compete for the CL then second tier players (which is what they are) won't do it. I think we know what the fans want, but that won't matter.

I think Giroud is growing in stature and although he isnt world class, id keep him and would go as far as saying he can be good enough as a starter. His hold up play and duals with the best CBs in the league show he is a real handful. He has scored against Man ure, liverpool, city and everton and against spuds many times as well so he can be relied on in the big games.

[Alpha]

[QUOTE=She Wore A Yellow Ribbon;441167]People not wanting to give Coquelin a contract but back Arteta :lol:

Luckily they're clueless.

As for Wenger, tactics spot on yesterday.


It is really ironic for many people who call Wenger clueless manager while they are themselves clueless fans . Coquelin is a treasure in our own hands and costs nothing . People should give him full support and wish he signed his contract as soon as possible . A marquee player doesn't always guarantee good performance . Ozil came with drums and trumpets and made all of us very excited . What is happening now ?

[The Emirates Gallactico]

1.

I would rather we offer a contract to a player who is playing well than hope that we will sign someone world class and go through their 'adaptation period'. Not asking us to offer the world to him, but clearly we can offer him a contract extension just as a backup. We have Diaby's salary going off the book soon... and hopefully Arteta or Flamini as well!

I don't think the two things are mutually exclusive, especially if Wenger decides to be ruthless for a change and get rid of Arteta and Flamini this summer.

Also, usually if you buy real quality the "adaptation period" isn't really a thing. Look at Alexis ........ barely even needed a couple of games to get used to the league. Especially as well in the DM position, which is usually a physical role and so the player would be more capable of adjusting to the physicality and intensity of the PL (see Matic) ............. though it's perhaps a good argument for Schniderlin as he's already PL ready.



Ideally Arteta and Flamini will be moved on, then Coq can stay to compete with a new CM.

However I expect Coq to leave, he obviously wasn't in Wenget's plans and an emergency recall because of the injury pile up doesn't change that. Not even sure how good he is but hopefully he continues to a do a job then we'll see what happens in the summer. If he keeps churning out these performances then I'm sure he'll have a lot of interest and fancy leaving for a more established role anyway.

Either way, we still need an upgrade in this area.

My thoughts exactly, keep Coq to challenge whatever world class DCM we bring in.

[fakeyank]

All depends on what the board and manager wants. If it's more of the 4th place trophy and the odd cup run the players like Coquelin and Giroud can do that. If we want to win titles and seriously compete for the CL then second tier players (which is what they are) won't do it. I think we know what the fans want, but that won't matter.

I disagree. I think our current squad + a solid CB (Reid) + Good tactics is good enough to challenge strongly for the title. The part of good tactics is in bold because even average teams can do miracles with proper organization. An example was yesterday and also our CL run where our defense was immense. Giroud and Coquelin flanked with super talents like Ox, Santi, Sanchez, Koscielny are as good as any out there to win the title.. we just need to get our organization right!

[Niall_Quinn]

Gents, heloooooo! Nobody is saying we shouldn't renew Coquelin's contract, or at least I'm not. Can we not have more than one viable option, what with our injury record an all? There's also the fact Coquelin has done well an all of 3 games so let's not get too hysterical just yet. Arteta's at the end of the road, Flamini is pretty much there himself and neither are suited to the role anyway, so it's sort of essential we sign somebody I would think. Why all the insults, are you all related to Coquelin or something? You want to hand him the starting role with zero competition? How do you think that will work out?

Another DM needed with yesterday proving it more than ever.

[Master Splinter]

There's only one or two who seem to not be able to communicate without hurling aggressive, obnoxious and moronic remarks in every post.

Everyone else gets involved in the little bitch fights from time to time, but they're usually harmless and not offensive to anyone except perhaps Wenger.

[Niall_Quinn]

Here are the OTT images that pissed Carragher off so much. There are two of them.

First one:

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/01/18/24D202BE00000578-2915770-image-a-28_1421611295405.jpg

Second:

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/01/19/24D265E400000578-0-Alexis_Sanchez_above_took_a_selfie_with_Mesut_Ozil _top_left_Math-a-6_1421700043464.jpg

Both posted to Instagram.

The lads are out of control, next thing you know they'll be celebrating an FA Cup final win.

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Luckily they're clueless.

Coquelin is a treasure in our own hands and costs nothing.

Spot on.

Unfortunately when a player tackles and passes forwards some of our fans don't like it.

Players must always pass sideways.

[Xhaka Can’t]

Lol wtf.

[Blink 1nce Quince 2wice]

Which time?

1. the one where Flamini left in 2008 because we made a mistake not to offer him a good enough contract early?
2. the one where Flamini returned last season, pointed and shouted a bit and landed a 3 year contract on fan hype that the club is now regretting?

Coquelin's played a handful of games and could easily become the poor performer that didn't impress at Charlton or in the Bundesliga last season. I wouldn't offer him a contract right now, I'd wait until the end of the season. I doubt a better club than Arsenal will offer him a contract, and whether he stays or leaves, we should get Schneiderlin anyway.

I can't see the benefit of playing poker or worse even, not offering Coq a contract. Make him a reasonable offer and if he doesn't sign it, see if it can be improved later. The cost to us is negligible. Then in the summer, part company with Flamini and bring in another DCM. There's certainly room for for 2/3 in this squad.

I get that Wenger see's this lot in training all the time, but I never really understood why Coquelin went on loan so readily to begin with. The qualities he has shown, he has had for the duration of his career..... and I honestly believe that. In that position it can be difficult to shine at a lower level too because much of what you do is about prevention and stopping bad things happening rather than making good things happen.

[Munchies]

FFS!

I thought Flamini was leaving at the end of this season

[Syn]

I can't see the benefit of playing poker or worse even, not offering Coq a contract. Make him a reasonable offer and if he doesn't sign it, see if it can be improved later. The cost to us is negligible. Then in the summer, part company with Flamini and bring in another DCM. There's certainly room for for 2/3 in this squad.

How do we part company with Flamini? Who's going to take him off our hands? The point is that we've seen this sort of thing before - we're impressed by a couple of quick performances and then a long-term contract seems a bad idea. Rewarding players too quickly and then ending up with a squad full of 'decent but not great' players that run down their contracts is a big problem at the club. We have to be pretty sure Coquelin is a player that could play a part in a title-winning squad, because Flamini and Arteta don't seem to be. Those two are here until their contracts run out.

Coquelin is doing everything you want a player in his situation to do at the moment - he was handed an opportunity and he's taking it, just like Bellerin at RB. If he carries on like this for the rest of the season he will have proved himself a bit more at this level. We'll see but I don't imagine other top clubs are lining up to take him this summer so I don't think this warrants a panic move.

[Blink 1nce Quince 2wice]

His contract is supposedly up...... Flamini as well as Coq.

Offering him a contract which stipulates terms that benefit us as well as they do him in the final year of his contract having seen said player playing well is not rewarding a player too quickly. Considering the time frame, now is the time to act.

I don't imagine Barca or Real scrambling to sign him either but he could still leave to go to a mediocre/reasonable/good but not world beating side for much better terms. We'd lose a good player for what? A contract reasonable enough for even average-good teams to afford?

[Syn]

His contract is supposedly up...... Flamini as well as Coq.

Offering him a contract which stipulates terms that benefit us as well as they do him in the final year of his contract having seen said player playing well is not rewarding a player too quickly. Considering the time frame, now is the time to act.

I don't imagine Barca or Real scrambling to sign him either but he could still leave to go to a mediocre/reasonable/good but not world beating side for much better terms. We'd lose a good player for what? A contract reasonable enough for even average-good teams to afford?

Flamini signed a 3 year contract on joining last season.

I don't want to lose a good player. I just want to make sure this is a good player. And here, good means very good because we have plenty of good players and they don't win titles. At the moment, it is looking that he is a good player. He is pretty much doing everything we want from someone in that role. But given that he wasn't able to get a loan to a premier league club earlier this season, it's safe to say these handful of performances are all we have to go on. So I'd like to see a bit more - whether he can keep consistently performing at this level. And if he does do this for a couple more months, I doubt he's going to get a better offer (both in terms of money and quality of club) than us. If you do, fine. That's all there is to it.

[The Emirates Gallactico]

According to most outlets Flamini signed a two year contract last year and so should be reaching the end of it this summer. Can't see Wenger renewing it either.

http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2892/transfer-zone/2013/08/29/4221503/flamini-signs-two-year-arsenal-deal

Though I agree with everything else you've said about Coq. There's absolutely no need to rush here and offer him an inflated contract atm. Not that I know much about his character but you have to factor the potential of the the "Adebayor effect" and him exerting a lot more effort then he normally would because he wants a new deal. Best to keep him on his toes tbh.

Wait till close to the end of the season and then offer him a new and improved deal provided his performances don't tail off dramatically. No one better is going to come in for him with guaranteed first team football and unless he wants to take it safe and be first choice at a mid table club like Stoke or Newcastle, he's going to sign.

[Syn]

According to most outlets Flamini signed a two year contract last year and so should be reaching the end of it this summer. Can't see Wenger renewing it either.

http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2892/transfer-zone/2013/08/29/4221503/flamini-signs-two-year-arsenal-deal

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/transfers/transfer-news-mathieu-flamini-resigns-for-arsenal-on-threeyear-deal-8789537.html

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2013/aug/29/arsenal-matthieu-flamini-lukas-podolski

http://news.arseblog.com/2013/08/signing-flamini-rejoins-on-3-year-deal/

And Sky Sports: http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11670/8895461/transfer-news-mathieu-flamini-rejoins-arsenal-following-ac-milan-departure


"We're very pleased Mathieu has agreed to rejoin us," Wenger told the club website. "He is a player of real quality, with a fantastic work rate and great mentality.

"He is a bit older, but he is still only 29. The best years are in front of him now - the next three years. Physically, he is perfect. He was tested, prepared and he is physically in fantastic shape."

[fakeyank]

According to most outlets Flamini signed a two year contract last year and so should be reaching the end of it this summer. Can't see Wenger renewing it either.

http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2892/transfer-zone/2013/08/29/4221503/flamini-signs-two-year-arsenal-deal

Though I agree with everything else you've said about Coq. There's absolutely no need to rush here and offer him an inflated contract atm. Not that I know much about his character but you have to factor the potential of the the "Adebayor effect" and him exerting a lot more effort then he normally would because he wants a new deal. Best to keep him on his toes tbh.

Wait till close to the end of the season and then offer him a new and improved deal provided his performances don't tail off dramatically. No one better is going to come in for him with guaranteed first team football and unless he wants to take it safe and be first choice at a mid table club like Stoke or Newcastle, he's going to sign.

I guess how we are different in our views on Coq is the urgency. I think we should offer him a deal right now. Of course it should not be unreasonable but something in the range of 50-70K based on appearances and performance is perfectly fine. I agree on the fact that him signing a contract should not stop us from bringing in a world class DM in that position. Arteta and Flamini are finished in my eyes and it's better to have two fantastic players in that same position rather than one.

[AFC Leveller]

http://pbs.twimg.com/media/B7vIjxECUAAg6CN.jpg

I guess this shows that possession is meaningless.

[Power n Glory]

I can't see the benefit of playing poker or worse even, not offering Coq a contract. Make him a reasonable offer and if he doesn't sign it, see if it can be improved later. The cost to us is negligible. Then in the summer, part company with Flamini and bring in another DCM. There's certainly room for for 2/3 in this squad.

I get that Wenger see's this lot in training all the time, but I never really understood why Coquelin went on loan so readily to begin with. The qualities he has shown, he has had for the duration of his career..... and I honestly believe that. In that position it can be difficult to shine at a lower level too because much of what you do is about prevention and stopping bad things happening rather than making good things happen.

I agree. I never understood why we loaned him out. It was a waste because I remember him having very good games for us before being loaned out but he never got a consistent run in the team.

[Power n Glory]

According to most outlets Flamini signed a two year contract last year and so should be reaching the end of it this summer. Can't see Wenger renewing it either.

http://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/2892/transfer-zone/2013/08/29/4221503/flamini-signs-two-year-arsenal-deal

Though I agree with everything else you've said about Coq. There's absolutely no need to rush here and offer him an inflated contract atm. Not that I know much about his character but you have to factor the potential of the the "Adebayor effect" and him exerting a lot more effort then he normally would because he wants a new deal. Best to keep him on his toes tbh.

Wait till close to the end of the season and then offer him a new and improved deal provided his performances don't tail off dramatically. No one better is going to come in for him with guaranteed first team football and unless he wants to take it safe and be first choice at a mid table club like Stoke or Newcastle, he's going to sign.

Flawed logic on the contract situation. There is an urgency because the ball isn't in our court. After the Man City performance, he's caught a few headlines and eyes are on him. He may not get an offer from a top club but I doubt that's his main concern right now. My guess is he wants playing time and if a mid level team can offer him first team football, I think he'd take it. If he plays well at a smaller club he will get another shot at a big club.

[Özim]

Didn't see this game, but at last a victory over one of the top sides, it's been a long time coming. This might help us kick on and give us confidence for the rest of the season, shame the title is gone really but it should help us in our quest for top 4.

[The Emirates Gallactico]

Well looks like I dun goofed up. This is what you get for trusting goal.com. :(

I mean what kind of idiot would post goal.com articles on here? :ninja:


I guess how we are different in our views on Coq is the urgency. I think we should offer him a deal right now. Of course it should not be unreasonable but something in the range of 50-70K based on appearances and performance is perfectly fine. I agree on the fact that him signing a contract should not stop us from bringing in a world class DM in that position. Arteta and Flamini are finished in my eyes and it's better to have two fantastic players in that same position rather than one.

I'd still hesitate to offer him 50 k based on a few good performances. If he turns out to be crap we'd struggle to get rid of him.

It's happened way too many times to us already with players like Bendtner, Almunia, Denilson, who had a few good games and got rewarded with lucrative contracts only for the club to then struggle to get rid of them later on. Hopefully we've learned from that.

Unless a City, Chelsea, Utd or another top club decide to come in, he's not going to get 50k anywhere else.



http://pbs.twimg.com/media/B7vIjxECUAAg6CN.jpg

I guess this shows that possession is meaningless.

Yeah I saw that table last night on MNF. And the one draw was the one against Liverpool where we stupidly conceeded that last minute equaliser.

Surely Wenger's got to learn from this. :(


Flawed logic on the contract situation. There is an urgency because the ball isn't in our court. After the Man City performance, he's caught a few headlines and eyes are on him. He may not get an offer from a top club but I doubt that's his main concern right now. My guess is he wants playing time and if a mid level team can offer him first team football, I think he'd take it. If he plays well at a smaller club he will get another shot at a big club.

Perhaps. But I'd like to think that Coquelin's at an age where provided he's given some assurances and hints (e.g. Flamini and Arteta being sold), he'd show the ambition to stay and duke it out for a starting role at an elite club rather than waste years establishing himself at mid table teams.

[Power n Glory]

It doesn't have to take years. Look at Bony and Ba. If you can demonstrate your talent with a smaller club for lesser pay, you're more likely to get that move to a massive club.

I think your overplaying the importance of money on this one. With young unestablished players that are underused and underrated, they're more concerned with getting their shot on the pitch. Most of them anyway.

[Master Splinter]

I agree. I never understood why we loaned him out. It was a waste because I remember him having very good games for us before being loaned out but he never got a consistent run in the team.

He looked good in both full-back positions and the very few games he actually played in midfield.

We've seen it before, where a player plays well whenever he's called upon but is unceremoniously dropped or sold. Wenger has favourites and he also favours seniority or the higher earners seemingly. Unless it's Podolski. Bellerin looked to be going that way had Debuchy remained fit. Gnabry, before his injury, completely disappeared last season as soon as players returned from injury. If Ozil, Wilshere and Welbeck instantly return to the starting XI in upcoming big games, we'll know that nothing has changed and performance doesn't actually factor into Wenger's thoughts.

[Power n Glory]

It happens all the time. Campbell is going through it now. Some players get all the time in the world and countless chances regardless of how they perform and some just don’t get a chance. Wenger had seen Coquelin in training and still sent him out on loan. He’s got a problem with the players that openly say they want to play. It has to be an ego thing.

[The Emirates Gallactico]

Man City Tunnel Cam of the match.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGQvANUpfTg


lol Santi :lol::lol:

[Alpha]

Ideally Arteta and Flamini will be moved on, then Coq can stay to compete with a new CM.

However I expect Coq to leave, he obviously wasn't in Wenget's plans and an emergency recall because of the injury pile up doesn't change that. Not even sure how good he is but hopefully he continues to a do a job then we'll see what happens in the summer. If he keeps churning out these performances then I'm sure he'll have a lot of interest and fancy leaving for a more established role anyway.

Either way, we still need an upgrade in this area.

To say Coquelin will leave and is not in Wenger's plan might be an exaggeration . Wenger has never come publicly to tell people which player is in his plan and which one is not . Coquelin is a young player and Arsene might have sensed he was not ready yet and a couple of loans could help his development .It is only when a player does not take advantage of that kind of situation that Wenger can consider shipping him out .But Coquelin grabbed his chances with both hands that's why we are praising him .
Same situation goes with Ospina . If he takes his chances very well as he seems to do right now , we might not see a certain SCNznxbj as number one anymore .

[Marc Overmars]

I'd say it's more speculation than exaggeration. This whole situation has come about through luck, so obviously it's hard to say for sure what the plans were for him. Seeing as he was loaned out last year and this year, with it being his final year, it's easy to see why one would think there were no plans for him.

[LDG]

He could, of course, go on to be utter shite in a few matches time. At which point everyone will bemoan how we ever let him near the first team.

It really doesn't matter how he got in the side. Let's just hope he gets even better and nails down a place. God knows this team needs it.

We're only a game away from being utter shit again.

[Power n Glory]

I'd say it's more speculation than exaggeration. This whole situation has come about through luck, so obviously it's hard to say for sure what the plans were for him. Seeing as he was loaned out last year and this year, with it being his final year, it's easy to see why one would think there were no plans for him.

Oh behave! Wenger knows best!

[McNamara That Ghost...]

Man City Tunnel Cam of the match.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGQvANUpfTg

lol Santi :lol::lol:

Kompany takes this Captain Marvel thing way too seriously.

[Blink 1nce Quince 2wice]

I don't really get the logic here.....

Offering a player a new contract 18 moths - 2 years BEFORE it expires is pretty standard procedure for a player you wish to keep at the present time......why should this be different for a player who's contract is up this summer with Coq....? Unless of course you don't want to keep him or aren't really bothered if he stays or goes.That is a slightly different argument....

I suspect the issue is that many just don't believe he merits a new contract based on his comeback so far.... they can't see a drawback because they have qualified Coquelin leaving for a club lesser than Arsenal on a deal below what we can offer as an impossibility. But it is NOT an impossibility.....simply put. Coq signing for a team of Spurs' calibre somewhere on a reasonable deal isn't impossible and we shouldn't assume we can leave it to the last second and he is just going to accept whatever contract we offer him set against several others. A Spurs type team may not be us but they are better than most sides he has been turning out for. His mind may well be made up on another club by the point of the summer.

[Power n Glory]

We had posters saying the same sort of thing when Flamini was down to his last few months and when Song was rumoured to be leaving. Unbelievable really. Some never learn.

[Globalgunner]

There really are no if and buts about this argument. Based on what weve seen so far Coquelin>>Flamini>Arteta. We thought Flamini was good early on in his 2nd stint because he has more mobility than Arteta who is nowhere near being a DM. Wenger has previous in playing his favourites, even to the detriment of the team and results. He just doesn't seem to care, mostly because even with all his fukuppery we usually maintain our 4th position.

We need to keep Coquelin who may or may not be playing out of his skin either to earn a new contract or to put himself out there in the shop window.
A smart manager knows how to keep his players motivated. We need to keep Coquelin and augment him with a classy, established DM like either Bender twin or Schneidelin. Ship out Arteta/Flamini and buy a proven CB. Sundays performance should be more of the norm rather than the exception.

Also enough of the trying to squeeze, Wilshire, Ozil, Ramsey, Cazorla into the same team. It does not work, Only 2 of those 4 can play in our system at any single time. If Wenger rotated them in out more often then maybe they would be out with injuries far less. Basically Ozil/Cazorla and Wilshere/Ramsey.

Its bleedin obvious!

[Niall_Quinn]

Day #4 of the media crying about their precious gypos being beaten :haha:

[Niall_Quinn]

What scientists claim:


The approximate field of view of an individual human eye is 95° away from the nose, 75° downward, 60° toward the nose, and 60° upward, allowing humans to have an almost 180-degree forward-facing horizontal field of view. With eyeball rotation of about 90° (head rotation excluded, peripheral vision included), horizontal field of view is as high as 270°.

What the media has discovered:

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/01/20/24D6472500000578-2918691-Replays_show_referee_Mike_Dean_appear_to_be_lookin g_at_where_the-a-3_1421779334808.jpg

Therefore the penalty shouldn't have been given because Dean only has a 30 degree field of view, clearly demonstrated in the doctored image. Which means the gypos won :trophy:

That leaves them 2 points behind the chavs so it's crunch time when the two meet next week.

[AFC Leveller]

There really are no if and buts about this argument. Based on what weve seen so far Coquelin>>Flamini>Arteta. We thought Flamini was good early on in his 2nd stint because he has more mobility than Arteta who is nowhere near being a DM. Wenger has previous in playing his favourites, even to the detriment of the team and results. He just doesn't seem to care, mostly because even with all his fukuppery we usually maintain our 4th position.

We need to keep Coquelin who may or may not be playing out of his skin either to earn a new contract or to put himself out there in the shop window.
A smart manager knows how to keep his players motivated. We need to keep Coquelin and augment him with a classy, established DM like either Bender twin or Schneidelin. Ship out Arteta/Flamini and buy a proven CB. Sundays performance should be more of the norm rather than the exception.

Also enough of the trying to squeeze, Wilshire, Ozil, Ramsey, Cazorla into the same team. It does not work, Only 2 of those 4 can play in our system at any single time. If Wenger rotated them in out more often then maybe they would be out with injuries far less. Basically Ozil/Cazorla and Wilshere/Ramsey.

Its bleedin obvious!

Although i agree with your last paragraph, one of reasons why i think we stock CMs is because the ones we have are injury prone. You say (and its true obv) that we have Jack, Ramsey, Santi and Ozil, but when was the last time we had all 4 fit and available at the same time? Ozil has just come back and Ramsay missed a month, Jack is out until March so only Santi is in form.

Jack had also been a lot better than last season prior to his injury and was ahead of Ramsey in certain games so it is important to have them around as it creates competetion and gives us more options when one of them is injured.

[Coney]

What scientists claim:



What the media has discovered:

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/01/20/24D6472500000578-2918691-Replays_show_referee_Mike_Dean_appear_to_be_lookin g_at_where_the-a-3_1421779334808.jpg

Therefore the penalty shouldn't have been given because Dean only has a 30 degree field of view, clearly demonstrated in the doctored image. Which means the gypos won :trophy:

That leaves them 2 points behind the chavs so it's crunch time when the two meet next week.

In any case, they seem to forget that eyeballs swivel so you don't have to be looking at where your head is pointing. And the c**t is probably cross-eyed anyway which would account for a lot of his decisions.

[Dein-machine]

In any case, they seem to forget that eyeballs swivel so you don't have to be looking at where your head is pointing. And the c**t is probably cross-eyed anyway which would account for a lot of his decisions.


Ozil saw it clearly

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

And the c**t is probably cross-eyed anyway which would account for a lot of his decisions.

:haha:

[AFC Leveller]

Arsene Wenger says that despite the win at Man City being based on a more defensive system, he won’t change his style of play completely.

A deeper-lying Arsenal stifled the champions at the Etihad but the Arsenal manager insists that his side won’t simply park the bus in every game, they’ll look to attack the way his teams always have.

He also admitted that he listened to his players ahead of the trip to Manchester last weekend, and that was a factor in how the Gunners played that day.

“You have to listen to your players,” he said, “and preparing for the game against City, I felt they needed to reassure themselves. And so they lined up more defensively.

I was not surprised by the result. I believe in these guys, but one of the biggest jobs as a manager is the mental challenge, picking them up after a bad result and making them believe they are good enough to achieve everything that you believe they’re capable of.

“One of my major tasks is to make them understand how good they are and how good I think they are. And that’s obviously something that plays on their minds. A

“huge part of the job is making them mentally solid and obviously results last year when we were beaten away from home left mental scars.”

Sounds like the players didnt feel to confident of attacking City from the off (which is true) and wanted to be a bit more cautious.

[The Emirates Gallactico]

Seems like the players are more self aware then Wenger which is a shame.

[Power n Glory]

Sounds like the players didnt feel to confident of attacking City from the off (which is true) and wanted to be a bit more cautious.

Sounds to me like they told Wenger how they wanted to play. Credit to him for not resisting, but it's a damn shame the players had come up with the suggestion to shift tactically instead of it coming from the coaching staff.

Reminds me of a game against Chelsea where we pressed them all over the park. It's what the players were calling but it went out the window once we got the victory.

[Niall_Quinn]

Sounds like the players didnt feel to confident of attacking City from the off (which is true) and wanted to be a bit more cautious.

Getting paid twice the average annual salary every week should be a hint that they are supposed to be good, so I'd hope they can figure this out without too much promoting.

Despite the media wanting it to be true so they can apologise for the gypos, we didn't "park the bus", we shut down their key players but still attacked well.

[AFC Leveller]

Sounds to me like they told Wenger how they wanted to play. Credit to him for not resisting, but it's a damn shame the players had come up with the suggestion to shift tactically instead of it coming from the coaching staff.

Reminds me of a game against Chelsea where we pressed them all over the park. It's what the players were calling but it went out the window once we got the victory.

Yeah that 3-1 where we basically shat all over them and pressed them from the off.

[Niall_Quinn]

Whole match on YouTube :yikes:

Not sure how long for.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcbM7qS8j1FI25FszkOZIVQ