On A Left Wing And A Prayer As Munich Awaits

As Arsenal prepares for the crucial second leg clash against Bayern Munich in the Champions League, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Following that disappointing loss to Aston Villa on Sunday the pressure is on for the Gunners to revive their season. Key to their success will be the performance of players selected on the left side of the Arsenal team. Alex Zinchenko and Gabriel Martinelli may have crucial roles to play in Arsenal’s tactical setup.

The recent setback against Aston Villa has raised questions about Arsenal’s title aspirations and ability to get it over the line during the business end of the season in the Premier League. With Manchester City taking advantage Mikel Arteta’s side must quickly regroup to avoid a repeat of last season’s tail off. The Champions League now presents an opportunity for redemption, or at minimum a boost to a now dented optimism from the fans but it won’t come easy against a Bayern Munich side with home advantage.

Alex Zinchenko and Gabriel Martinelli find themselves under the spotlight as Arsenal seeks some sort of response. Zinchenko’s confidence has taken a hit amidst criticism from fans for his general performances but strongly emphasised on the flaws of the defensive aspects of his game. Meanwhile, Martinelli, who seems to still be trying to find his rhythm after returning from injury, holds the key to unlocking Bayern’s defence with his pace and skill.

In the first leg against Bayern Munich, Arsenal’s strategy revolved around exploiting the right flank with Saka’s dynamic runs. However, this left Martinelli isolated on the left hand side, limiting his impact on the game. With Bayern likely to focus their attention on neutralizing Saka, it’s imperative for Arsenal to involve Martinelli more effectively to stretch their opponents’ defence.

To maximize Martinelli’s influence in the second leg, Arteta may need to adjust his tactics. Like I mentioned, last week during the first leg I could see from the stands the play was always directed to the right and would often see Martinelli isolated, trudging up and down the line, arms in the air asking for the ball but never receiving it. Admittedly Saka was getting so much change out of Alfonso Davies you could forgive Arteta for persevering with that game plan. It may work in our favour if Bayern’s take away from that game is to focus on Saka in the return leg. Underestimate Martinelli at your peril, the young Brazilian in full flight exploiting any inch of space on the left hand side will hurt Bayern. If their tactic is to double up on Saka then it will free up space on the opposite flank.

I know we have a number of options to play left back but I just feel Arteta will still favour the positives provided by Zinchenko’s presence in midfield. Kiwior has likely played himself out of contention due to his troubles in the first leg whilst Tomiyasu still seems to be getting eased back into team and probably isn’t ready to start and complete a whole match.

After the first leg we are far more aware of the dangers posed by Bayern’s wingers. Understandably Gnabry and Coman will not play but Sane Is very much available. I feel Arteta and his backroom staff will have addressed those dangers in the team planning and preparation and if Zinchenko starts he will be well supported and/or more focused on the threat. With his confidence a bit fragile he may well benefit more from the away atmosphere as he focuses on his game and isn’t distracted by groans from the stands he would hear if at the Emirates, we can safely say the away fans out in Munich will be 100% supporting every player and acting as the twelfth man.

I just feel the right side of our team picks itself, we know what it is capable of, Bayern know what it is capable of and so we must ensure we utilise our left. It will take each and every player performing out of their skin but a result in Germany is not impossible. Yes Bayern by their standards will feel their season overall has been a disappointment and now have every egg in the Champion’s League basket and will go all out. Mikel Arteta can use that to his advantage, play on their psychological doubts that they could blow it all if they lose and capitalise. Up front I feel whoever is picked as the no.9 will know what they need to do. We had the missed chances that cost us in the end at Villa but lightening wont strike twice. We will score in Munich; they have ERIC DIER AT THE HEART OF THEIR DEFENCE after all. Time to expose the level of player he is. Come on Arsenal!

Enjoy your day people

This post also features on Gunners Town site which I write for.

Declan Rice: He’s here and he’s Beautiful!

In the midst of anticipation and media speculation, Arsenal fans can now breathe a sigh of relief as the club’s new £100m signing, Declan Rice has finally arrived. The doubts created by the press about the deal’s completion were merely fleeting obstacles on the path to what was always destined to happen – a significant statement signing for Arsenal. Drawing parallels with Liverpool’s record signing of Virgil van Dijk, Rice’s arrival promises to have a transformative impact on the team’s fortunes. As what seems likely this summer, we will bid farewell to our previous record statement signing Nicholas Pepe, who struggled to live up to his price tag, this time it feels different. Rice brings an aura of promise, with a strong English spirit and exceptional leadership qualities, which will make him an indispensable addition to the Arsenal midfield.

Declan Rice’s leadership qualities are not newfound attributes but have long been evident from an early age during his time at West Ham. His presence as a natural leader will prove invaluable for Arsenal, especially after the departure of Granit Xhaka, who was also admired for his leadership on the pitch. This is by no means a dig at Granit Xhaka to suggest that in addition to providing leadership to the team there is an upgrade in dynamism and ability provided by Rice. Declan Rice’s ability to inspire and rally his teammates will elevate the team’s performance and boost their morale during crucial moments in matches much like he did for West ham on their Europa Conference League run. It is hoped his addition could be the difference between winning and drawing last season at West Ham and at Anfield.

Rice’s decision to join Arsenal speaks volumes about the club’s stature and allure. Our Performances last season in addition to qualifying for the Champions league made people sit up and take notice. We became desirable again to elite players, something we haven’t been for a number of years .The young midfielder has expressed his happiness at signing for a club of Arsenal’s magnitude, seemingly inspired by the legacy of the club’s past legends that have graced the Emirates Stadium (and more importantly Highbury) and brought home numerous trophies. Rice’s belief in the club’s potential to return to its former glory bodes well for Arsenal’s future.

Despite becoming the most expensive English player in history, Declan Rice does not carry any hint of arrogance or a prima donna attitude. His professionalism and grounded nature ensure that he will integrate seamlessly into the Arsenal squad. Rice’s dedication to working hard and mucking in with his teammates will foster a strong team ethos that will undoubtedly have a positive impact on and off the pitch. He has connections with many of our players’ already through England duty and in these early stages already you can see he is integrated into the squad seamlessly.

Arsenal fans endured a period of frustration during the signing process, with the media deliberately adding to the uncertainty with their speculatively released titbits to give the impression of issues. However, the delayed announcement I believe was a calculated move by the club, timed just before the impending tour of the USA and the release of the new away shirt for that extra early bump in sales. Not a fan of the shirt I may add but it is what it is; new signings guarantee more sales, especially statement signings. The excitement among fans is palpable, and the wait for Rice’s official unveiling had only amplified the thrill of his arrival, I’m still soaking up all the material on social media and not bored at all.

With Rice on board, Arsenal’s (or should I say Mikel Arteta’s with the backing of the owners) journey to reclaiming their status as one of the top clubs in England and lifting the higher end silverware seems more promising than ever before. We could cement our place as a club that challenges for the top trophies on a regular basis once again. The fans’ trusting of the process may finally be rewarded, and now, the beautiful moment of witnessing Declan Rice in Arsenal colours has arrived. The build continues but we are moving in right direction.

Amidst this entire amazing buzz over Declan Rice let’s spare a thought for Jurrien Timber and Kai Havertz who have merely been relegated to supporting acts and/or backup singers at the Arsenal show. This may seem a weird analogy I know but Declan Rice is the Beyonce to the Michelle and Kelly of Timber and Havertz in terms of signing buzz. Havertz did at least have some time to be the main story, Timber who I am very excited about got 24hrs before his limelight was whisked away.

That’s not to say Arsenal fans aren’t excited by his acquisition. He is an exciting defender that is not just an additional number but an addition of quality to our defensive ranks which was honed at the superb institution that is Ajax. Jurrien Timber has that winning mentality and of course World Cup and Euro experience for the Netherlands.

Our trajectory is still heading upwards, the fans are excited, the players are excited, everyone associated with the club are excited to see how far we can go. Still a month until the season starts but I really am counting down the days for it all to get started.

Enjoy your day people

This post also features on Gunners Town site which I write for.

The curious case of obtaining tickets for Arsenal games

The curious case of obtaining tickets for Arsenal games has become a very hot topic amongst arsenal these past few months. The war on touts has been fully waged as the noise reverberating from the fan base grows ever more loudly as the opportunity to witness live the closest chance for Arsenal to reclaim a league title in years has arisen. What was always seen as a level playing field when it came to purchasing tickets has now become a virtual lottery.

It has now reached the point where you can log into the website up to an hour before tickets go on sale; sit in the waiting room only for when the sale time is reached you are updated with an estimated time of 40 minutes before you can enter the ticket office. The best I’ve experienced is being estimated to be let in 12 minutes from the start of sale and in every one of those times I’ve been updated before that time that the tickets have sold out, often within 5 minutes of sale starting! Shout out to @SheWore for sharing his experiences of this kamikaze experience on twitter, helped me to realise I didn’t become rubbish at purchasing tickets overnight but that a lot of fans shared the same experience.

It’s crazy but at the same time this is new territory to tread for Arsenal fans, certainly of the Emirates era. I mean many people in recent seasons have been able to purchase category A games easily enough if they plan up front properly. They got more often than they failed but the beauty was that fans knew they had a chance. The last few home game tickets that went on sale just proved to be a pointless exercise for many fans. You entered that waiting room with a defeatist mentality and you knew deep down it wasn’t going to work out.

So what has changed? Well it’s quite simple really…we’re good now. It’s been a tough past decade often failing to reach the standards and expectations we had set going back to those invincible days. Yes we have had some great moments lifting cups, welcoming European giants in the Champion’s League and such like but a sustained challenge for the title or even Champions league football year on year was no longer a given.

The good times build excitement; the fans want to be there, they want to experience and be a part of the success and with that comes the rise in demand for tickets. To still be fighting for something at the business end of the season just generates demand and unfortunately there’s a capacity that gets reached. Arsenal Football Club now has a global appeal far greater than the 60k fans it can squeeze into the stadium. I saw a recent article from Arseblog that quoted that roughly 2/3 of the Emirates capacity is held by season ticket holders whilst there are around 30k silver members on the books and then a crazy number of red/junior gunners that are as high in 200k in number.

You don’t even need Key Stage 1 maths to work out that when there is a game everyone wants to see it becomes a very congested group to be a part of. I know the touts and their bots very much the focal point of the frustrations felt by the fans but with or without them the stadium just can’t host all those members. There will be casualties regardless.

When you think of it, I remember all the years back I would go to Highbury to watch games, I wasn’t a season ticket holder back then but I would attend plenty games in the early stages of the season. Once it got to business end of season the ease in which I could buy tickets soon evaporated. I would often miss the chance to visit Highbury during the run in to a season as the demand grew. Those days it was all about phoning the hotline (never kind on my phone bill) and being on hold for what seemed like an eternity, sometimes I got lucky but at business end of season less so.

It’s interesting when I’ve seen some complaints on twitter from people who say they haven’t been able to purchase a ticket all season as silver members. Either they aren’t trying on the date and time the tickets actually went on sale or their actual statement of all season is more realistically translated to “the two or three times I tried to buy tickets”. Earlier in the season tickets were readily available to purchase, it has definitely become harder the further we progressed into the season but not bad enough to not get to a ticket to a game across the whole season.

Have things really changed from then to now? In a way no, it’s just been a while since we had been in a good old title challenge that wed forgotten how it could be like (if you wasn’t a season ticket holder that is).

I feel fortunate enough to be a season ticket holder and have most definitely enjoyed the journey the club has had this season. My frustrations in the ticket purchasing experience has only been felt as I have been trying to help my Sister and Brother In Law who are both silver members and still on the gold waiting list to get tickets. They aren’t tech savvy enough and I have always been the one to purchase for them, probably the only people that make me feel young and still in touch lol, until ChatGPT takes over everything I still have a purpose.

So what are my suggestions for a solution to the problem? I’m pretty sure those on silver will definitely snap up the opportunity of a gold membership if offered. I am not ashamed to admit that I had been a silver member for years and was quite comfortable being able to purchase tickets for the juicy games that fit around my busy lifestyle. The commitment to attend every single home game isn’t as easy as it seems if you aren’t exactly local (and sometimes even when you are local). I turned down the offer of a season ticket quite a few times as I just wasn’t sure if A. I could attend every game B. I could afford it. Eventually I took the plunge and have never looked back. So my advice would be definitely snap it up if you can and try and make cuts elsewhere to soften any financial hit.

The ticket exchange has become super competitive but I still hear success stories even this late into the season of people getting hold of tickets for the games. You get a lot of fans put their tickets up from the day before a game so just dive in and check periodically, refresh the page and keep trying. I’ve put my seat on ticket exchange and found it sold within 5 minutes. It may be luck of the draw but it’s a lot less risky and less stressful than buying from an unknown person on twitter who turns out to be a scammer. Also be realistic, buy 1 ticket for you alone, trying to source two tickets or more just makes things harder for yourself. Single tickets pop up, to find a pair is a unicorn.

This suggestion may be a bit farfetched but there are a number of competitions held on the arsenal website with tickets as prizes, some are free and require nothing more than answering a pretty easy question on arsenal and entering. Additionally there’s opportunities for tickets in the Arsenal members rewards section, all those points we accumulate over the season then lose because we wait too long and cant redeem the beanie hats and umbrellas because they are already sold out by deadline. Often you can use those points to enter prize draws for tickets, VIP experiences at that. I certainly don’t make this suggestion to be patronising but someone has to win, what have you got to lose when entering a competition for free?

Arsenal rewards give opportunities to buy tickets — Get on those competitions!

At the end of the day the club needs to do something about the touts and bots etc that snap up tickets and post on the black market so that we all have a fair chance when trying, that’s out of our hands but we also have to be realistic that there are a lot of Arsenal fans in the same boat that want to go to the games now more than ever. It’s a frustrating factor but a nice frustration to have if it means we are challenging at the top of the table with regularity season after season. Unlike our neighbours up the road, we are selling out our stadium thanks to the excellent work Mikel Arteta has done with the team and challenging for honours and not because Beyonce is in town to twerk.

Enjoy your day people

This post also features on Gunners Town site which I write for.

The Offices Are Gunner Be Red Just Like North London

There is no better feeling going into work than the feeling going into work knowing you have beaten your rivals convincingly at the weekend. One of the many things Coronavirus robbed us of was the opportunity to strut into that office on a Monday morning feeling eight foot high, feeling like a rock star.

No mercy for any Spurs fans that happen to share the office with you, this is our time, North London is Red and there is no comeback to that fact. Hide; just hide because we are enjoying our week and we don’t give a damn if it hurts your feelings. As has been your catchphrase this season “Cry, cry some more”.

That winning feeling on a Monday into work

If the government was on a drive to get bodies back in offices then they have missed a trick by not tapping into the football market when bragging rights are top of the agenda. I enjoy working from home, I also enjoy seeing faces in the office but I absolutely love seeing my spurs supporting chums after a battering over the weekend. It Pains when the Arsenal are on the receiving end of such a defeat but let’s cross that bridge when it comes, today we feast on human tears.

No need for a match review of sorts, I’m sure we have digested the game live whether in the Emirates or on TV, again on match of the day, again via the highlights on Arsenal.com and then again through whatever medium we can get our hands on. It’s just a time to celebrate, enjoy and soak up those bragging rights after beating the supposed complete Tottenham team.

Don’t be fooled by any reverse psychology presented by the Spurs fans you know in the build up to Saturdays match. They were confident going into this match; they believed they could get one over us at the Emirates. They were arriving as an unbeaten team, thrashed Leicester in their last game and walked away from Stamford Bridge and The London stadium this season with a point each time.

Spurs fans really believed a result was on the horizon, I remember reading an article last week from a Spurs fan claiming that when we defeated them last season 3-1 they had a poor midfield consisting of Dele Alli and Tanguy Ndombele. This time it was believed things were different; they had their solid midfield base of Bentacur and Hojbjerg to stop us in our blocks. They had their star wing back in Perisic to fly down the flank and create things for their attack. They had their star acquisition from Barcelona Lenglet to snuff out the danger from our attack.

I haven’t even gotten to their ultimate secret weapon: The Shithouse mafia. Romero, Richarlison, Kane and Son. Certainly the term Shithouse is not a new creation and over the years there have been many a player who have embraced and lived up to that tag with pride. Diego Costa definitely comes to mind yet this season it is a term that the Spurs fans have raved about as if they believed this is the key ingredient to a successful team. Litter your team with these types of players and you are supposed to reap the benefits from being a dirty team full of cheating, win at any cost, unlikeable players.

Well they all started the match on Saturday, the fiery hot headed Argentinean Christian Romero, this loose cannon of a defender is a red card waiting to happen, their fans see him put in a dirty sly kick or elbow on a player that it clouds the fact he is more liability than reliable. Heung Min Son, the supposed nicest guy in football who would stop at nothing to get a man sent off to gain an advantage. He went down claiming to be injured after Kurt Zouma rolled a ball his direction last season, need I say more. Then we have Richarlison, a man so universally disliked for all cheating tactics that when he did eventually get seriously injured from a tackle during his Everton days all the commentators and fans alike saw the boy who cried wolf and dismissed his pleas and even when it was proven to be genuine nobody even felt the need for guilt and enjoyed it a bit. As for Harry Kane, he needs no introduction; we all know what he’s about.

Spurs quartet of shithousery came, they saw and they got hooked. With only Harry Kane staying on the pitch for the full 90 minutes, the remaining three were ineffective and made way after 70 minutes. One thing with football, it takes more than cheating to lead you to victory, how about doing something with the ball rather than playing up to your opponent all game? And if Spurs are going to base their defeat on the loss of one player in Kulusevski then they deserved to lose the game.

We can celebrate our boys; they deserved the win on Saturday. Thomas Partey was immense in the middle of the park, Xhaka’s importance continues to grow with each game he plays, and Saka and Martinelli were a constant thorn from the flanks whilst Martin Odegaard controlled the pace of the game from the middle. Defensively we dealt with everything thrown at us, the penalty we conceded could have been avoided during several moments before the initial tackle but we will learn from that. We didn’t let if phase us and the back four as a whole functioned perfectly throughout the game.

Jesus still continues to impress me. We really have signed a street fighter who will challenge for any ball no matter the size of the opponent. I don’t want to open that can of worms that is the talk of Pierre Emerick Aubamyang but what I will say is as quality a striker he was for us one thing that was missing from his game was that fight within to get the ball and make it his. Too often he would get shrugged off the ball or lose an aerial battle and the frown would appear and the head drop whilst with Jesus he is an absolute pest who is up for a physical scrap for the ball.

The will to fight and challenge merely compliments his ability and skill to make him the perfect player to fit into the Arteta system as the main striker. We are so grateful to have him, we are also grateful he avoided a booking in the game meaning he is available for the game next week against Liverpool.

The atmosphere inside the stadium was once again electric and I feel privileged to witness in person the turnaround in mood, vibe and atmosphere compared to the last couple seasons. The fans needed convincing before buying into the Arteta plan but they are now being convinced and the appreciation shown from them is evident. Maybe there’s just something in that Prime juice they sell at the Emirates, whatever it is let’s keep drinking it because we are headed in the right direction and Spurs were merely a pebble in our way.

Enjoy your week and give your Spurs friends (or not) hell.

This post will also feature on Gunners Town site which I write for.

A New Dawn At Arsenal? Palace Awaits

Its finally here, the football season finally kicks off tonight as we face off against Crystal Palace. What seems like an age from when we last kicked off against Everton on the 22^nd May the football is back.

The new shirts are now released; squad numbers have shuffled about, pre season games completed and of course pundits have written off Arsenal’s chances of a good season; we really are ready for the big kick off. Not quite sure why Arsenal is always the overwhelming popular choice for an opening day fixture on the big screen but here we are. Others can look on jealously as the Arsenal play their part in kick starting the new season.

Given the disappointment in how it all ended last season it is refreshing that the general feel about the club from viewing the interviews and footage of the players and squad, talking to other fans or scouring through various social media platforms is one of positivity and belief in the team and the manager.

If we were to circle back this time last year there was such a negative, acrimonious and toxic cloud that surrounded the club. Fans were arguing with each other over support for the manager, ownership was a hot topic as protests were set up outside the stadium in opposition of the Kroenkes, the team preparation and recruitment was unfinished and left us looking far from our optimum for a season start. Covid added the final nail in the coffin as it disrupted our squad and left us with key players missing in the opening games.

Anyway this season it all feels different. Pre-season on the whole was excellent, the results were all positive admittedly against teams at different stages of their own preparation for the coming season. On the whole the result although nice wasn’t the most important factor from these games. The players got minutes and built on their understanding with each other and enhanced their own physical developments and conditioning. We’ve made some shrewd signings and they have slotted straight into the team pretty much hitting the ground running. Of course its pre season and the football season is a totally different level of battle but it’s important that the new guys have integrated so quickly. It takes the pressure off a bit and hopefully the confidence remains sky high when we kick off at Selhurst Park. Gabriel Jesus and Zinchenko are likely to start tonight whilst Saliba will make his long awaited debut for the first team in the Premier League (those EFL Trophy games he played in were pretty much U23 games). It’s an exciting time and you’d be hard pushed to locate an Arsenal fan that isn’t looking forward to getting the season started and seeing what is in store for us in the months ahead.

Fabio Vieira is still to kick a ball for us and his impact could be a welcome surprise. The transfer window isn’t closed yet as we could well see a couple more additions to the squad whilst many also move on.

So as mentioned we take on Crystal Palace, 3 points are far from guaranteed as we have come to find them a bit of a bogey team over the years, we relied on an injury time equaliser from Lacazette to snatch a draw at home last season whilst the 3-0 defeat in the reverse fixture at Selhurst Park was a damaging blow to our top four hopes. WIlfried Zaha is a constant thorn in our sides and we certainly won’t be receiving any special favours from our former captain Patrick Vieira on the night. With the Arsenal team’s confidence sky high they will go into the fixture looking for 3 points but know it will not be an easy night. Crystal palace will take inspiration from their results against us and give us a tough battle; any points gained will be truly earned.

need to improve on last season’s results v Palace

So let’s look at the Eagle’s preparation for the new season. They had a few mixed results, drawing with Accrington Stanley and beating Millwall before heading off on a tour of Singapore and Australia where they faced off against Liverpool in a 2-0 defeat followed by a 3-1 loss to Manchester united and then a 1-1 draw with Leeds. They closed out their pre season program with a comfortable 4-2 win over Montpellier, Zaha, Guehi and an Edouard brace contributing to a 4-0 lead. Former Gunner Stephy Mavididi scored the two consolation goals for Montpellier. Much like our preseason you can’t read too much into the results however it’s always good to sign off with a win.

Our line up for the game? I believe the team pretty much picks itself and with a few key players namely Tomiyasu and Tierney not yet ready to play we will be expected to start with the same line up used last week against Sevilla. Ben White will deputise at right back whilst William Saliba will have his first audition for a regular starting spot in the team when everybody is back fit.

I’m certainly excited for the season to start, my fantasy football team is picked and I’ve sent the fixture list to the Mrs so there is no confusion when I’m off to a match. Come on Arsenal! Let’s start the season right and beat Palace; it’s all or nothing now!

Enjoy your day people

This post will also feature on Gunners Town site which I write for.

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