1-0, Premier League, Emirates, 30/10 -10
Song 88
Frustrating, frustrating and a bit more frustrating, but in the end Song came to the rescue! But it wasn't like we played bad, it was West Ham that played extremely well, basically always in position and barely giving us time to breathe.
There really isn't much else to mention, we had all the possession, they had a couple of chances on the break, but we were the ones who deserved to win, considering the number of goal-scoring chances and possession.
The first half was the most even one, in the second half we were a lot faster and creating more and more chances, one of Nasri's freekicks hit the bar, and Walcott got past the entire defense, only to see his shot bounce off the post into the hands of Robert Green.
But in the end our patience paid off and a lot of credit for the goal should go to Clichy, who came in from the left to provide with an amazing pass for Song to head home!
After that all we had to do was see the game out, which we did and another three valuable points have been earned.
Injury Update;
-for once I have no real news on this department,
I'll be going for a trip to Malaysia and Thailand tomorrow, so won't be able to write about the next couple of games, think that the next game I will be able to write about is the one against Wolves in about two weeks time.
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Newcastle vs. Arsenal
4-0, Premier League, St James' Park, 27/10 -10
Krul 45 (og),
Walcott 53, 88,
Bendtner 82
Really tough game, but thanks to a Newcastle own goal at the end of the first half gave us the upper hand ahead of the second half, which sealed the game in a way, as Newcastle found themselves exposed at the back when pushing forward.
Poor Gibbs picked up another injury after a couple of minutes, and it is likely to keep him out for a few weeks.
The game was very even for long periods of the game, we had a lot of possession, but Newcastle created as many chances as us, it provided with an interesting game that went pretty much backwards and forwards all the time, with plenty of chances for both sides.
And that really sums up the first half, with us having quite some luck to go into halftime as 1-0 leaders.
In the second half we were the better team and everything Newcastle threw at us, either Szczesny or the defense dealt with, and it really must be mentioned that the young Polish 'keeper was outstanding in this game, and sure looks like something for the future.
It didn't take too long for us to take the lead, when Krul kicked the ball across the field, the ball was then nodded back across the field, and there Theo picked up the ball, just ran away from everyone and finished the move off with a cheeky finish!
The game was sealed with eight minutes left, Fabregas (who entered the game in the second half) gave the ball to Bendtner out on the left, he moved to a more central position before unleashing a fierce shot that went straight for the top corner! Surely one of his best goals yet.
And to finish the evening off in fine style Walcott got his brace, when Cesc Fabregas spotted the young Englishman on the move he provided with another breath-taking assist, and Theo did not let us down with the finish!
Injury Update;
-Gibbs looks to be out for a few weeks as a result of the knee injury he picked up in the game
-Both van Persie and Ramsey will return to full training next week, though some fitness training is still necessary
-Almunia is still one or two weeks away, though it is not sure whether he will take the no 1 spot at once when he returns, as Fabianski has done extremely well in his absence, and Szczesny is looking promising.
Krul 45 (og),
Walcott 53, 88,
Bendtner 82
Really tough game, but thanks to a Newcastle own goal at the end of the first half gave us the upper hand ahead of the second half, which sealed the game in a way, as Newcastle found themselves exposed at the back when pushing forward.
Poor Gibbs picked up another injury after a couple of minutes, and it is likely to keep him out for a few weeks.
The game was very even for long periods of the game, we had a lot of possession, but Newcastle created as many chances as us, it provided with an interesting game that went pretty much backwards and forwards all the time, with plenty of chances for both sides.
And that really sums up the first half, with us having quite some luck to go into halftime as 1-0 leaders.
In the second half we were the better team and everything Newcastle threw at us, either Szczesny or the defense dealt with, and it really must be mentioned that the young Polish 'keeper was outstanding in this game, and sure looks like something for the future.
It didn't take too long for us to take the lead, when Krul kicked the ball across the field, the ball was then nodded back across the field, and there Theo picked up the ball, just ran away from everyone and finished the move off with a cheeky finish!
The game was sealed with eight minutes left, Fabregas (who entered the game in the second half) gave the ball to Bendtner out on the left, he moved to a more central position before unleashing a fierce shot that went straight for the top corner! Surely one of his best goals yet.
And to finish the evening off in fine style Walcott got his brace, when Cesc Fabregas spotted the young Englishman on the move he provided with another breath-taking assist, and Theo did not let us down with the finish!
Injury Update;
-Gibbs looks to be out for a few weeks as a result of the knee injury he picked up in the game
-Both van Persie and Ramsey will return to full training next week, though some fitness training is still necessary
-Almunia is still one or two weeks away, though it is not sure whether he will take the no 1 spot at once when he returns, as Fabianski has done extremely well in his absence, and Szczesny is looking promising.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Manchester City vs. Arsenal
3-0, Premier League, City of Manchester Stadium, 24/10 -10
Nasri 20,
Song 65,
Bendtner 88
Great game, for the neutral watcher that is, if it would have stayed at one or two nil any longer I think I would have gotten a heart attack.
It would seem as though the game was an easy win, considering the 3-0 as well as the fact that it was 11 vs. 10 in our favor from the fifth minute, but those three points were most certainly hard fought for! But an amazing win for us that keeps us in the title race and currently on second place (with both United and City at the same amount of points, but our goal difference is slightly better).
After just a minute or so Silva had a great chance to score, but Fabianski pulled out a great save, to keep us in it.
Then Boyata was shown red when he brought down Chamakh just outside the box, preventing the moroccan to be clean through.
The game stayed very even, with both teams creating chances, but we had the cutting edge, after some great work between Arshavin and Nasri, the latter got enough space to get a shot from a tight angle, and it went in!
Before the first half was over we were awarded a penalty when Fabregas was harshly brought down at the edge of the box, though for once he didn't manage to convert it, inevitably raising Man City's spirits, but we held out and came back stronger after the break.
Though it started out even as well, but we were sharper on the day and just about midway through the second half Song fired away an amazingly well taken goal, it went straight for the top corner!
It felt as though City more or less gave up after that and we could play the ball around for pretty much the rest of the game, but City did have some dangerous counters, so we couldn't exactly sit back.
Two minutes from time Bendtner finished off a great move in style, as Nasri balanced the ball on the line, he managed to get past the defender and provide with an amazing through ball to Bendtner, who cooly slotted home his first goal of the season, and we got an excellent win over Manchester City.
Injury Update;
-Diaby was intended to start todays game, but he got injured just before kick off, don't know how bad it is though.
-Fabregas was substituted towards the end of the game, but most probably just due to tiredness.
Just spotted this on Mirror Football;
It seems Cesc Fabregas was not as impressed by his own performance as everyone else. The Arsenal skipper was handed the Man of the Match champagne after the game but was not convinced he deserved it. "How can I be the Man of the Match?" he asked, "I missed a penalty." He's his own harshest critic you know.
And don't we all love him for it?
Anyway, here is a link for the entire interview at skysports;
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_6467581,00.html
Nasri 20,
Song 65,
Bendtner 88
Great game, for the neutral watcher that is, if it would have stayed at one or two nil any longer I think I would have gotten a heart attack.
It would seem as though the game was an easy win, considering the 3-0 as well as the fact that it was 11 vs. 10 in our favor from the fifth minute, but those three points were most certainly hard fought for! But an amazing win for us that keeps us in the title race and currently on second place (with both United and City at the same amount of points, but our goal difference is slightly better).
After just a minute or so Silva had a great chance to score, but Fabianski pulled out a great save, to keep us in it.
Then Boyata was shown red when he brought down Chamakh just outside the box, preventing the moroccan to be clean through.
The game stayed very even, with both teams creating chances, but we had the cutting edge, after some great work between Arshavin and Nasri, the latter got enough space to get a shot from a tight angle, and it went in!
Before the first half was over we were awarded a penalty when Fabregas was harshly brought down at the edge of the box, though for once he didn't manage to convert it, inevitably raising Man City's spirits, but we held out and came back stronger after the break.
Though it started out even as well, but we were sharper on the day and just about midway through the second half Song fired away an amazingly well taken goal, it went straight for the top corner!
It felt as though City more or less gave up after that and we could play the ball around for pretty much the rest of the game, but City did have some dangerous counters, so we couldn't exactly sit back.
Two minutes from time Bendtner finished off a great move in style, as Nasri balanced the ball on the line, he managed to get past the defender and provide with an amazing through ball to Bendtner, who cooly slotted home his first goal of the season, and we got an excellent win over Manchester City.
Injury Update;
-Diaby was intended to start todays game, but he got injured just before kick off, don't know how bad it is though.
-Fabregas was substituted towards the end of the game, but most probably just due to tiredness.
Just spotted this on Mirror Football;
It seems Cesc Fabregas was not as impressed by his own performance as everyone else. The Arsenal skipper was handed the Man of the Match champagne after the game but was not convinced he deserved it. "How can I be the Man of the Match?" he asked, "I missed a penalty." He's his own harshest critic you know.
And don't we all love him for it?
Anyway, here is a link for the entire interview at skysports;
http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11661_6467581,00.html
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Arsenal vs. Shakhtar Donetsk
5-1, Champions League, Emirates, 19/10 -10
Song 19,
Nasri 42,
Fabregas 59 (pen),
Wilshere 66,
Chamakh 69
(Eduardo 82)
Amazing stuff yet again from us in the Champions League, and an emotional return for Eduardo, and he grabbed a goal at the end that was celebrated by the entire Emirates! Just adore the way the Arsenal fans can give him such support, which Eduardo fully deserves.
Fabregas returned for this game, another reason to celebrate as well as the return of our captain was that Walcott came in at the end, and looked quite fresh actually.
The beginning of the first half was really tight, with both teams passing the ball around nicely, though we were invited into the game when the Shakhtar 'keeper dropped the ball when collecting it from a corner, Djourou quickly got it to Song, who scored from close-range!
The second came just before the break, and this time Song provided the goal, his brilliant cross reached Nasri, who got past a defender and fired a great shot at goal.
At the start of the second half Fabianski kept the Ukrainians out when one of their players got a bit too much space in our box, but a brilliant save from Fabianski kept our two-goal cushion.
Fabregas added to the tally 14 minutes into the second half, after Djourou was brought down in the box the captain smashed another penalty home, he sure is getting good at it! He took the opportunity to congratulate his mother, most probably for her birthday or something.
Then the rest of the goals came rather quickly, within ten minutes we were 5-0 up, first Wilshere scored his first Champions League game (he was also voted man of the match by the fans, me included), Chamakh opened up some space for him and after an exchange of passes with Rosicky he delicately chipped the ball over the 'keeper.
Three minutes later Chamakh finished the Arsenal goals with one that I seriously think is one of my favorite goals for a long time, Nasri played the ball in towards Chamakh who, along with everyone else, thought that he was offside, so when he received the ball he took a long look out towards the linesman but when the flag didn't come up, he quickly forced the ball past the 'keeper and scored another goal for us, he really has been a brilliant signing.
Eduardo rounded things up in the 82nd minute, and it really felt great to hear all the fans celebrating for him, though I never like it when we concede.
Injury Update;
-Things are looking on the up, as we now can remove players such as Fabregas, Walcott, Gibbs and Bendtner from the injury list.
-Van Persie still has quite some time on the sidelines to go, while returns for Vermaelen, Sagna, Koscielny and Almunia doesn't seem too far away!
PS. are watching the evening's Champions league matches, and Tottenham are 4-0 down against Inter! And the first half isn't even over yet!
Song 19,
Nasri 42,
Fabregas 59 (pen),
Wilshere 66,
Chamakh 69
(Eduardo 82)
Amazing stuff yet again from us in the Champions League, and an emotional return for Eduardo, and he grabbed a goal at the end that was celebrated by the entire Emirates! Just adore the way the Arsenal fans can give him such support, which Eduardo fully deserves.
Fabregas returned for this game, another reason to celebrate as well as the return of our captain was that Walcott came in at the end, and looked quite fresh actually.
The beginning of the first half was really tight, with both teams passing the ball around nicely, though we were invited into the game when the Shakhtar 'keeper dropped the ball when collecting it from a corner, Djourou quickly got it to Song, who scored from close-range!
The second came just before the break, and this time Song provided the goal, his brilliant cross reached Nasri, who got past a defender and fired a great shot at goal.
At the start of the second half Fabianski kept the Ukrainians out when one of their players got a bit too much space in our box, but a brilliant save from Fabianski kept our two-goal cushion.
Fabregas added to the tally 14 minutes into the second half, after Djourou was brought down in the box the captain smashed another penalty home, he sure is getting good at it! He took the opportunity to congratulate his mother, most probably for her birthday or something.
Then the rest of the goals came rather quickly, within ten minutes we were 5-0 up, first Wilshere scored his first Champions League game (he was also voted man of the match by the fans, me included), Chamakh opened up some space for him and after an exchange of passes with Rosicky he delicately chipped the ball over the 'keeper.
Three minutes later Chamakh finished the Arsenal goals with one that I seriously think is one of my favorite goals for a long time, Nasri played the ball in towards Chamakh who, along with everyone else, thought that he was offside, so when he received the ball he took a long look out towards the linesman but when the flag didn't come up, he quickly forced the ball past the 'keeper and scored another goal for us, he really has been a brilliant signing.
Eduardo rounded things up in the 82nd minute, and it really felt great to hear all the fans celebrating for him, though I never like it when we concede.
Injury Update;
-Things are looking on the up, as we now can remove players such as Fabregas, Walcott, Gibbs and Bendtner from the injury list.
-Van Persie still has quite some time on the sidelines to go, while returns for Vermaelen, Sagna, Koscielny and Almunia doesn't seem too far away!
PS. are watching the evening's Champions league matches, and Tottenham are 4-0 down against Inter! And the first half isn't even over yet!
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Arsenal vs. Birmingham City
2-1, Premier League, Emirates, 16/10 -10
Nasri 41 (pen),
Chamakh 47
Great to be winning again, not so great not to seal the game when we had all the possession and tons of chances.
But I believe that we will put that right next week when we face both Shakhtar Donetsk and Manchester City, and since both Chelsea and Manchester United dropped points we will be at least on third place after this round, which doesn't seem too bad considering the recent results.
Both Walcott, Gibbs and Bendtner were back for this game, though all of them started on the bench, and only the latter was introduced late on in the game, but it feels great to see some of the injured ones return, we'll definitely need them.
Things didn't start too well though, after 33 minutes Birmingham scored, but then we began to pressure them and got closer and closer, eventually Chamakh was brought down in the box and Nasri scored from the penalty spot.
After that it was all Arsenal and early on the second half Chamakh scored the winner, and it must be one of the most beautiful goalscoring moves I have ever seen, first Song flicks the ball over a Birmingham player to get it to Wilshere, who quickly played it to Chamakh, and he somehow managed to get past Carr, round the 'keeper, and score!
A really special goal, and vital as well!
After that, as mentioned, we had all the possession and tons of chances but didn't manage to seal the game, so it was a bit nervy to the end, but we managed to keep it tight and get the three points, though Wilshere was really unlucky when he mistimed a tackle at the end and received a red card for it, he was so great during the entire game, but unfortunately he had to end the game a bit early, though he has vowed to learn from it!
Injury Update;
-Both Sagna and Koscielny picked up injuries ahead of the game, Sagna is expected to be back within ten days, though it is still uncertain when Koscielny will be back.
-Vermaelen's achilles injury is likely to keep him out for ten more days.
-Van Persie will be out for longer than ten more days it seems..
-On a brighter note Fabregas has a chance to return for the Shakhtar clash, but if he doesn't make it for that game, he will most probably return against Manchester City.
-And as mentioned Gibbs, Walcott and Bendtner all returned to this game, so it is looking on the up!
Nasri 41 (pen),
Chamakh 47
Great to be winning again, not so great not to seal the game when we had all the possession and tons of chances.
But I believe that we will put that right next week when we face both Shakhtar Donetsk and Manchester City, and since both Chelsea and Manchester United dropped points we will be at least on third place after this round, which doesn't seem too bad considering the recent results.
Both Walcott, Gibbs and Bendtner were back for this game, though all of them started on the bench, and only the latter was introduced late on in the game, but it feels great to see some of the injured ones return, we'll definitely need them.
Things didn't start too well though, after 33 minutes Birmingham scored, but then we began to pressure them and got closer and closer, eventually Chamakh was brought down in the box and Nasri scored from the penalty spot.
After that it was all Arsenal and early on the second half Chamakh scored the winner, and it must be one of the most beautiful goalscoring moves I have ever seen, first Song flicks the ball over a Birmingham player to get it to Wilshere, who quickly played it to Chamakh, and he somehow managed to get past Carr, round the 'keeper, and score!
A really special goal, and vital as well!
After that, as mentioned, we had all the possession and tons of chances but didn't manage to seal the game, so it was a bit nervy to the end, but we managed to keep it tight and get the three points, though Wilshere was really unlucky when he mistimed a tackle at the end and received a red card for it, he was so great during the entire game, but unfortunately he had to end the game a bit early, though he has vowed to learn from it!
Injury Update;
-Both Sagna and Koscielny picked up injuries ahead of the game, Sagna is expected to be back within ten days, though it is still uncertain when Koscielny will be back.
-Vermaelen's achilles injury is likely to keep him out for ten more days.
-Van Persie will be out for longer than ten more days it seems..
-On a brighter note Fabregas has a chance to return for the Shakhtar clash, but if he doesn't make it for that game, he will most probably return against Manchester City.
-And as mentioned Gibbs, Walcott and Bendtner all returned to this game, so it is looking on the up!
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Chelsea vs. Arsenal
0-2, Premier League, Stamford Bridge, 3/10 -10
Ahead of the game I felt rather sure that we wouldn't get any points from this game, due to the thousands of injuries that seems to mounting up around us like mountains, so that way I was going to make sure I didn't expect anything.
Rather naive in the end, I have tried it a couple of times and it rarely works, and today was no exception, I was foolishly led to believe that we could at least get a point when I saw how great we played, created chances and kept some possession.
Though it turned up to be just as usual, us creating and playing nice, and them grabbing the goals.. My personal opinion is that it is down to luck, we don't have any luck at all in the final third, and everyone knows that to score goals, especially against these top teams, you'll need luck.
Fabianski played the game of his life and was not to blame for the two goals, he kept us in the game for 88 minutes or something like that, so cheers to him.
Not really much else to say, now it is a international break, and after that I actually hope to see some of our stars back, as it is almost two weeks until our next game.
We now have a seven point gap to pick up, after just seven games... Looks like we'll be the ones to catch up for another season.
Injury Update:
-Cesc almost made it to this game, so I'm counting on him to be back for the next game against Birmingham in two weeks.
-Both Robin and Theo was reported to be out until mid-october, and that has definitely passed when we play Birmingham in our next game, so with some luck they'll both be back!
-the Verminator on the other hand could be out for even longer, no one's sure how long he'll be yet though.
-Gibbs picked up an injury against Partizan, and will probably be out for two to three weeks.
Ahead of the game I felt rather sure that we wouldn't get any points from this game, due to the thousands of injuries that seems to mounting up around us like mountains, so that way I was going to make sure I didn't expect anything.
Rather naive in the end, I have tried it a couple of times and it rarely works, and today was no exception, I was foolishly led to believe that we could at least get a point when I saw how great we played, created chances and kept some possession.
Though it turned up to be just as usual, us creating and playing nice, and them grabbing the goals.. My personal opinion is that it is down to luck, we don't have any luck at all in the final third, and everyone knows that to score goals, especially against these top teams, you'll need luck.
Fabianski played the game of his life and was not to blame for the two goals, he kept us in the game for 88 minutes or something like that, so cheers to him.
Not really much else to say, now it is a international break, and after that I actually hope to see some of our stars back, as it is almost two weeks until our next game.
We now have a seven point gap to pick up, after just seven games... Looks like we'll be the ones to catch up for another season.
Injury Update:
-Cesc almost made it to this game, so I'm counting on him to be back for the next game against Birmingham in two weeks.
-Both Robin and Theo was reported to be out until mid-october, and that has definitely passed when we play Birmingham in our next game, so with some luck they'll both be back!
-the Verminator on the other hand could be out for even longer, no one's sure how long he'll be yet though.
-Gibbs picked up an injury against Partizan, and will probably be out for two to three weeks.
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