Give me one more chance and you’ll be satisfied

“Only two ways out of here, football and rock n’ roll; tonight we can have both.” – Bono

I am told that the game at the weekend was the best showcase of football in the premiership this season. I am told that it was great for the neutral. I am told that it was spectacular.

I am told this by the very group of people who’s opinion I trust the least. I have to fight back the temptation to get sucked in, agree and spout the very same nonsense right here.

I would never bullshit you... and I apologise for that – I can only tell it how I see it, and I was actually there to see it.

In my last post I stated that:

“the mancs have a good squad and will want to win”

They did have a good squad but they didn’t want to win... The game was very open and Howard Webb was showing the usual northern bias throughout the game... although the bias was selective in terms of what was given and to whom. For instance – Ronaldo could easily get free kicks in a scoring position for just chucking himself at the ground – although Ronaldo’s free kicks
were piss poor as was his finishing in a scoring position. Webb also held off the cards for Man-u and let them get away with a lot in the tackle – although this didn’t matter as Man-u didn’t go hard in the tackle (particularly at the start of the game) as is their norm when they want to win. Rooney showed his class in everything but the finishing – which again was comical. Berbatov played himself offside in the only scoring opportunity that he found in the game – thus negating the goal (although, true to form, he is an offside goal hanger anyway). In fact Berbatov and Rooney got in each other’s space quite frequently as neither of them wanted to be the one to have to pull the trigger... or not – as the case may be. FYI – Rooney and Berbatov ‘to score’ were heavily backed.

Our goals were of a good quality and it was nice of Berbatov to get the assist with his ‘strikers clearance’, or whatever, and Neville fail to block the first and to buckle under the challenge of Nasri for the second.

Webb also didn’t give a foul for a challenge on Diaby – from where I was sat, it looked like he was clean through so it would have had to have been a straight red... I will assume that this was the case as it didn’t make the highlights on MOTD (FYI – red card was heavily backed). The crowd gave Webb a hard time for these clearly bad decisions... but – to be honest none of the decisions he gave made much difference... so I didn’t join in – they were all for show, a scam.

Rooney got a chorus of:

“You’re just a fat granny shagger”

Which was mildly amusing... but I didn’t join in with that as, the way he was playing – he was doing us a favour by being on the pitch.

All in all - I felt that the match had an air of inevitability to it from the moment it kicked off...

I have been to Arsenal/Man U matches before and there has been something in the air, the teams will run themselves into the ground to get the 3 points and the crowd will respond with an urgency to match... this time – it all seemed a bit civilised. Maybe I’m just cynical and jaded from the Tottenham game and I’m reading it wrong - I hope so.

In my mind Man-U didn’t want to win for reasons stated in the previous post (from the ‘Dan Roebuck’ Guardian article):

“Arsenal have been the bookmakers' saviours this season. Failures to justify odds-on prices against Fulham, Hull City, Sunderland, Tottenham, Stoke and Fenerbahce have scuppered many accumulators and hefty single wagers. The layers will be hoping Arsène Wenger's side can do them another favour tomorrow against Manchester United, only this time they want them to beat their visitors rather than slip up.”

What I can’t decide on is whether the key Arsenal players were in on this too – as I said, it was all a bit civilised and we just sat back for most of the second half soaking up the attack without even attempting to punish them on the break – which is our norm... a lot of things don’t add up – this game was too perfect for the EPL brand, we know that the Arsenal Man-U games get a high viewing figures (last season it was reported at 1,000,000,000 viewers) so it all i.e. every facet of the game seemed a little too convenient for anyone with an interest in it other than football...

So it seems once again Arsenal with a little help from Man U “have been the bookmakers' saviours this season.” – So one thing for sure is the bookies must be well chuffed; they could not have picked a more perfect result – right down to the goal scorers!

Let’s see if it continues...

BTW - I hope you all took my advice and sold the shit out of the Mancs – it was clear that they were never going to win that game... although I also had a sneaky fiver on 2-2 ‘correct score’ at some stupid odds – I really thought it would come in when they flagged up 6 minutes extra time... I remain ambivalent.

Also – Arsenal to win the title has dropped from 20-1 to 13-1... although (if you placed it) I wouldn’t lay it off until we beat Aston Villa this coming Saturday as I reckon it might drop another 3 points or so.

ASI Topic: BBC WTF?
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Post 1 DogFace wrote:

What a bunch of arseholes... why do I pay my licence fee?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/7714854.stm

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Post 2 ChristHeart (Netherlands) wrote:

Wow, I knew exactly what this discussion post was gna be about from just 8 characters.
Has it really become that bad?

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Post 3 The12thMan (Ramapo) wrote:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1083992/Sky-pundits-I-trust-people-walk-dog-Keane-rages.html?ITO=1490

at least keane respects wenger

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Post 4 TheTurbanator (Malaysia) wrote:
Good one.

"They're brainwashing people. People say it's good for the game. It's not good for the game, interviewing people about Arsene Wenger after what that man's done for English football. It's amazing.

Will Arsene Wenger be remembered in 100 years' time for what he has done for football? Bet your life he will. Will these people on the television be remembered for what they've achieved? None
whatsoever. "

Best quote ever.

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Post 5 DogFace wrote:

This from the 'Chief sports writer' of the current bun... try and resist punching your computer screen as they are expensive to replace:

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/article1903113.ece

Big respect to Keane - it's a brave stance to take.

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Post 6 DogFace wrote:

Man, re-read that and fucking hell - Keane... fucking respect man!!!

"I wouldn't listen to these people in the pub, and yet they're on television constantly"

That is brilliant!

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Post 7 ChristHeart (Netherlands) wrote:

Wtf - this is weird. Has Keane grown up?

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Post 8 DogFace wrote:

Man he's my new hero... Managment must have opened his eyes to all the shite that's infested the game...

...he was never one to mince his words.

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Post 9 ChristHeart (Netherlands) wrote:

"equally flawed in his failure to condemn the dismissal of the chronically irresponsible Robin van Persie. "

"sit-in-the-hole contradictions like Gilberto"

"And what of Gilberto?

"The man who put the oil in the midfield mechanism that eased the Gunners to their unbeaten season in 2004 is still cranking it out at Panathinaikos. "

Hangon... first Gilberto is not such a brilliant signing, and then he praises him?
This is quite obviously just a hate rant against Arsene Wenger. Chief sports writer. This article can tell you more about Mr Steven Howard than Arsene Wenger.

It's funny reading the Sun article right after that stuff that Keane says, because it is basically just a case study of Keane's point.

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Post 10 TheTurbanator (Malaysia) wrote:

That Sun article, is it written by a 6 year old? Stupid stupid facts really. You can see it is biased towards Man Utd.

But Keane,man. Everything he say is so true. Respected him as a footballer, double respect as a manager.

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Post 11 JabbarBoy wrote:

'If Wenger’s quote at the top of this piece needs a little explaining, the young Spaniard’s does not.

The corollary is simple enough: In the Premier League, we are wearing a big girl’s blouse'

stupid fag....... how the hell can a guy like this become sport editor or whatever the shit he is???

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Post 12 JamesDeGoona (St Joseph's College) wrote:

yer i like Keane now he is Sunderland manager. He seems to stick up for Wenger quite a bit

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Post 13 KashmirGirl (London) wrote:

"You're sitting there with people like Richard Keys and they're trying to sell something that's not there. I tell people any time they watch a game to switch the commentators off, don't listen to
experts, gather your own opinion."

I like this bit. Very interesting.

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Post 14 MohammedArsenal (The Indian High School) wrote:

Wow....all of a sudden i'm like: ''Go Roy!''

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Post 15 KashmirGirl (London) wrote:

Haha me too!

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Post 16 ColonelDecker wrote:

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/sunsport_columnists/article1911725.ece

After reading the link on saturday to Mr Howard I was wondering how he was feeling this morning and he has turned on United now.

Clearly he cannot bring himself to praise us so it is 'obviously' Uniteds fault that we won.

I particularly love the glaring contradiction, in saturdays column

''Back in April 1997 — just six months after Wenger arrived at Highbury — Alex Ferguson enthusiastially took the new Arsenal manager to task for the first time, saying: “He has only been here five
minutes and yet seems to have a comment to make every week. He should shut up. ''

“I think he has a problem with Manchester United.”

''Never more so than tomorrow. ''

Yet today he feels:

It was a day when Arsenal desperately needed to come up against a footballing team rather than one sent out either to stop or kick them. Or both.

Oh sorry, so saturday Man Utd are our worst nightmare, yet on monday morning they were just what we needed?

No wonder he's the chief sportswriter of the sun, because that basically equates to the chief accountant of Lehmann Brothers.

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Post 17 DogFace wrote:

LOL - it just goes to show that these cock-ends have no opinion whatsoever.

It's all smoke and mirrors these days man... parasites the lot of them.

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Post 18 PieFace (London) wrote:

I am now a fully paid-up member of the Roy Keane fan club - what a brilliant attack on the media, particularly naming Richard Keys (a brainless front man, if ever there was one - spot on Roy, just what the FUCK qualifies that gibbon to pass judgment on a Premier League manager or player, having never actually been involved in the game at grass roots level?)

Mustard.

And then I read the Steven Howard piece, which is your typical Sun journo shite - pick up on the prevailing mood and blow it up out of all proportion. Get the fans all riled up. Add in a bunch of irrelevant historical nonsense (trawling back to a quote from 1997, 11 years ago? Really, Steve?). And criticising players because of their nationality? Forgive me ifI am very much mistaken, but that is racism, is it not?

That really is quite some crisis going on at Arsenal ain't it Steve - losing THREE games this season (by a whopping single goal margin in each), a miserable FIFTH in the table out of twenty, a massive SIX points behind the leaders (that's an enormous TWO wins off the pace! Criminal!!) How on earth can any of the players, fans, or right-thinking members of he football-watching public NOT think that Arsenal Football Club is a pathetic joke, with a clown at its helm steering the club inexorably downwards???

Red-top journalists. Like sharks, they catch a scent of blood, and ... I swear to God, these fuckers actually derive some sort of perverse pleasure out of hounding people out of football. It isn't the game that they love, it is the kill. If they were legally allowed to dispay the severed heads of the honest hard-working football managers they have driven out of their clubs thanks to some hysterical whipped-up media frenzy following a poor run of form, they would do it. "You see that Sam Allardyce? Got him fucking SACKED, I did - a really vitriolic piece abolut how he was too fat to manage Newcastle, got his head above the fireplace, I have." And Wenger, surely, has the biggest antlers of all - King of the Forest, no less. What these vermin wouldn't do to claim his scalp. However, it was woefully misjudged and I think Keane's statement has caught the mood and exposed gutter journalism for what it really is. You know nothing about the game, you children. We know only ever print what you think your public want to read so people will buy your scandal sheets. Don't pretend you actually hae anything intelligent to bring to the debate about football. Fuck yourselves, pigs, seriously - fuck yourseves.

Right, I'm off to buy a new laptop and some ointment for my right fist.

The wall-to-wall is calling, it lingers, then you forget

The Grauniad (as my dad always used to call it when I were a lad as it was his regular rag of choice) posted this interesting story today:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2008/nov/07/premierleague-arsenal

Now this story is interesting in many ways – firstly Wenger comes out and accuses the refs of targeting Arsenal unfairly and then this rare nugget slips out which states: “Bookies savour Arsenal failure”. So we have:

1) The referees are targeting Arsenal in key matches.
2) Bookies make a killing out of Arsenal under-performing in key matches.

Hmmm… shit – man, this is a toughie, I have 2 right and I need to put it together with another 2 – so, if I put 2 and 2 together it makes... hmm – I think I need some help from the Numberjacks (my daughters’ second favourite program on CBeebies):

“Brain gain, brain gain
Get together use our brains,
Time to get your brains all linking,
Up together,
Joined up thinking”

By crikey I think I understand now!

The article then goes on to point out that the mug money is on United... and the bookies will hope and prey to their bookie gods of back-handers and brown paper bungs tied up with string that Arsenal can ‘do them another favour’ and cause an upset. Whether this is true or not; I don’t know – but, given the early odds - I suspect it is. The smart money will land late – it always does.

Hmmm… I wonder who the ref is?

Oh my giddy fucking aunt it’s only Howard fucking Webb!!!

This game is going to be bent as they come... but I still think it’s risky as the mancs have a good squad and will want to win – I would sell manure on the A/H... alternatively get on the high side on the yellows and a sneaky fiver on a red.

Wait until the morning papers though and try to work out where they want your cash to go – then oppose it. It’s been a Manu/Arsenal media circus the last few days with various articles pushing this as a ‘must win’ match... Arsenal have been undersold in the media – and the pictures tell it all i.e. looks of despair on Arsenal players faces Vs pictures of a happy, smiling Ronaldo/Rooney and articles stating that Rooney is going to ‘put us to the sword’... we have been undersold but not written off (as Liverpool were in the Chelsea match) – so maybe a draw then?

Back to that article:

“The layers will be hoping Arsène Wenger's side can do them another favour tomorrow against Manchester United, only this time they want them to beat their visitors rather than slip up.”

It has to be said, and I have said it before, that despite the decisions made by the ref; we are giving some of these games away (i.e. the ones in favour of the bookies) and ‘slipping up’ far too easily. In seasons past we would have battled against the odds to get the result – of course, it didn’t come to anything as the pitch would be tilted and the run of bad decisions simply increased to match and cancel out the extra effort. This season is different – and I suspect that we may be treading a murky path... and, if I am correct – then what will that do for our title aspirations?

Currently we are 20-1... so, worth a couple of quid... you can always lay it off if the odds shorten before the end of the season (I suspect that they will).

I could be wrong though – I often am... one thing is for sure - my eyes are open and I’m watching my team very, very carefully.

As an aside - was the Guardian ever a good paper and why did my dad stop reading it... I know he always regarded himself as a bit of a socialist. He would even take us on weekend days out to Highgate cemetery to peek in on Karl Marx’s grave, feed squirrels and fly kites in the adjacent park... he used to mumble something about Marx although I nerver took very much notice. Now all I see around London are fly-posters of Marx with the same sort of mumbles on them.

Maybe the Guardian lost it's 'socialist' heart along with it's spelling errors - or maybe my dad's now a just a signed up a capitalist - I can't decide... things change with time - like football.

We'll call it a draw I think... 2-2.

I don't know why I came here tonight

Well I was right about the score... but not about the mechanism for arriving at that score. It's started early this season – or maybe I'm just more tuned to it.

Saturday was amusing in so much as I got ratted on the free beer and was shouting abuse at a certain Mr. Howard Webb from club level. Surprisingly – after a few shocked looks – a few of the corporate boys (also enjoying the hospitality) got us and started shouting stuff too... although it was mostly random crap, but amusing none the less. The chap next to me got up and shouted:

"Adebayor you fucking lazy... err... you're so waseful!"

A 'Big Ron' moment followed by beered-up corporate twat flying over the barrier and into 'Red Section' was thus swerved by a mere whisker.

Talking of Adebayor (and Red Section) – I was glad to hear the boys in Orange Quadrant giving him the benefit of the doubt and cheering him on... strangely this never made it onto Match Of The Day – instead a close up of Adebayor was shown with loud booing from the crowd – the commentator saying something along the lines about the Arsenal fans hating him. This is nonsense – if he did receive boos then they were inaudible from where I was sitting, there were a number of murmurs when he missed a sitter but nothing like the MOTD coverage (unless the boy on the mixing desk selected 1 particular microphone and cranked it up). The only major boos coming from the crowd were for the certain 'Mr. Howard Webb' – who was up to his old tricks once again. I suspect that this was the soundtrack that was played – or the producer flipped the camera at Adebayor when the boos for Webb rang out and the commentator just went along with it. Are we to be targeted yet again or was this just to make 'good television' – it certainly had nothing to do with the reality of the day... maybe this sort of thing goes on for all teams and it's not just us?

Before I get on to Howard Webb – I'm going to continue with MOTD. The coverage shown was, as I said, selective – and the post match analysis consisted of Alan Hansen going on about how good Chelsea and Manchester United are in comparison with the associated they-don't-stand-a-chance-isms relating to Arsenal's chances of winning the league – what about the game Hansen?

...Back to Webb and the game...

It started well and Nasri looked very good indeed – he scored at the point when I was trying to work out what the fuck Eboue was doing playing centre mid with Walcott on the right (and what was going on with Toure coming on as a sub and playing right midfield?). He (Nasri) impressed throughout – Walcott did not look comfortable... Eboue was quite good – he’s a flexible player... I know he sticks the boot in and dives occasionally but on the whole I like him and I think he will silence his critics this season – he’s tricky init... and the boot, when stuck in, is usually a sly retaliation to an earlier indiscretion on an Arsenal team mate. When Bergkamp threw in the sneaky elbow nobody complained... neither did they with an occasional Vierra hack – although Eboue is clearly no Bergkamp or Vierra.

The first goal was scored so early because West Brom, fair play to them, fancied a bit of a game – who’d have thought it; straight up from the championship and trying to out pass the Arsenal!?

Respect.

We were very easy on them for the rest of the half and eased off the pressure considerably. The second half was a different story – West Brom came out thinking they were in with a chance and Howard Webb gave them every opportunity. They got away with foul after foul (nothing malicious) where as we got nothing unless we were breaking forward and tearing them to shreds... Webb’s whistle would come out and we would have to bring the ball back while West Brom dragged their arses back in time to defend. What is all the ‘get on with the game’ initiative all about anyway when the ref can destroy the run of play with a clear bias and the team affected can’t even complain about it? It was panic stations whenever they got close to our goal as everyone could see Webb fingering his whistle – it was horrible to watch as an Arsenal fan as the players daren’t try and take the ball back and were left just waiting for the shot... they came close a couple of times too.

Howard Webb is a fucking joke – he was an embarrassment in Euro 2008 and he is a professional liability to the refereeing fraternity… like most of the other premiership referee’s – it’s part of the job description: “must be incompetent”.

A bit like being a Sun journalist really:

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/article1574444.ece

Paul Jiggins – one question, who the fuckin’ hell are you?

Twat.