The Flying Dutchman, at the brink of summit

Can he do it now or now? This is what everyone's put their money on, at the end of this year. Which has been a historic half of season for Arsenal. Robin Van Persie aka The Flying Dutchman, is on the brink of history, He is just 2 goals away from equaling Alan Shearer's record of 36 goals in a calendar season. He already equaled Thierry Henry's record of 34 goals, when he score the opener against Villa, with a smooth penalty kick. With 2 games to play till the end of the season, home games against Wolves and QPR. There is no reason to think, he can't break the record.
  Its been a tremendous season for the dutch maestro. He has lead the team as a captain, as a leader, as a talisman both on the pitch and off the pitch. His goals in this season, has helped arsenal to reach a respectable position on the premier league table, after a worst possible start. They have also qualified for the round of 16 in the champion's league. The Team spirit on the pitch as well as in the dressing room is phenomenal. The team has been together when they have lost and together when they have won. He is a man of few words, but his leadership is very much evident on the pitch, motivating and pushing the young players to do well.

Here is a compilation of top 5 performances in his 34 goals achievement

1. Vs Everton 11/12/11

2. Vs Sunderland 26/10/11

      Both goals were top notch, with RVP getting the fastest goal, and a late thunderous free kick at the top corner. 5 star performance

3. Vs Chelsea 29/10/11 

   Hatrick hero: scored 3 great goals, to help arsenal get past chelsea in a frantic game, which ended 5-3 to Arsenal


4. Vs Barcelona 

          The 2nd half resurgence of Arsenal shows Van persie scoring an amazing goal from tight angle to level the score with barcelona. Arsenal winning the game finally with a superb shot from Arshavin in the closing minutes of the game.

5. Vs Stoke City

    Robin Van Persie came off the bench to score 2 goals and get arsenal the much needed victory.

Manchester City vs Arsenal: Player Ratings

It was a pulsating game at the Etihad stadium, but Arsenal finally losing out on the game 1-0 to Manchester city courtesy of a lone 2nd half goal by David Silva.
It was an entertaining contest between the two teams, with 1st half being rather timid display by both teams. City had more chances in the 1st half. Ken Aguero came close to giving City the breakthrough twice in the first half, but Szczesny showed some great reflexes to stop him from scoring. Arsenal had some half chances in first half through Aaron Ramsey.
Second half was more entertaining with end to end stuff. Great attacking moves from both teams. City scored from a powerful shot from Balotelli with scooped out of Szczesny's hand and the rebound was put in by Silva for the goal. Man city could have score atleast 2 more goals, with woodwork playing a spoilsport for a powerful shot by Zabaleta and Aguero's shot was just wide. Arsenal themselves had some close opportunities with Van Persie's header was judged offside from a beautiful cross by walcott. Also a nice lob shot from Van Persie was judged offside. Joe Hart played a crucial role in the dying minutes, as he was bombarded with powerful kicks by Vermaelen. Arsenal had a close penalty shout when the ball hit Micah Richards' arm right in front of Phil Dowd's eyes. In any other day, it would have been a penalty.
Finally it ended with a scoreline of 1-0 to City. Arsene Wenger will be pretty much disappointed with the result.  While Mancini will be relieved to avoid consecutive defeats in the premier league.

Szczesny : 7 
Overall Solid performance. Some may argue he could have done better with balotelli's shot. But pulled out some great saves in the first half. 


Djourou: 6
Had a quite game, dint have much to do. But was effective moving forward. He picked up some strain in the 2nd half was replaced by young Ignasi Miquel 


Mertesacker: 6
Mixed game for the big german, was woeful at times, but did pull out some good aerial tackles.


Koscielny : 7.5
He was fantastic throughout the match. solid defending in first half. Was shifted to left back early in the 2nd half to accommodate Vermaelen in the centre.


Vermaelen: 7 
Solid performance as usual by the defender. Strong in the air. Showed some attacking skills, nearly equalized for Arsenal

Song: 6
Working tirelessly in the midfield. Moved to centre back in the later stages of the game. Couldn't block Balotelli's shot. 


Arteta: 6
Not a great game by his standards. Was stranded deep in the midfield, while song took the attack to the opposition. Did show some good passing.


Walcott: 5
Poor game for the Englishman. Was kept totally silent in the first half by some exquisite marking by zabaleta. Showed some good skills in the 2nd half but wasn't effective.


Ramsey: 6.5
Good game for the welshman. Some good passing movies. Almost came close to scoring in the first half .


Gervinho: 7
Was lively in the entire match. Had some decent chances in the match. Teamed up nicely with Van persie to lead the Arsenal attack. 


Van Persie: 6.5
The flying dutchman couldn't rescue Arsenal from defeat this time around. Had some good shots on goal blocked by Hart. Lost the ball couple of times in the box. Not his best performance. 


Substitutions: 
Ignasi Miquel: 6
Decent game for the youngster. Replaced Djourou in the 2nd half. Was nervous, but pulled his game together. Got some intelligent tackles on Villa. Handled the pressure well 


Andrei Arshavin: 5.5
Came in for Walcott in the 2nd half. The Russian seemed to be a bit lost on the pitch. Had a wonderful chance to pass in a simple cross to RVP in the box, but missed out on it. Had a shot on goal in the later stages of the game. Clock might be ticking for the little russian. 


Maroune Chamakh: N/A
Dint have enough time on the pitch to influence the game. Came in for Mertesacker during the last 10 minutes of the game. 

Manchester City vs Arsenal : Preview

Few months ago when Arsenal started their 2011-12 season campaign, they had tough games back to back against Liverpool and Manchester united. One game which will remain like a scar in arsenal history is the game against United at old trafford, where we succumbed to a 8-2 drubbing, which was quoted as a Manchester united team vs Arsenal school team. Today 18Th December 2011, we travel to other side of Manchester to the Etihad stadium for a game against the league leaders Manchester city. The difference is now we have got a mature and confident squad contrary to what we had in early august-september. The team strength and confidence is just growing every game. The Club just celebrated 125 years of existence last weekend, and the unity and love in the team is just very much evident on the pitch and dressing room. 

    Though we are 9 points adrift the leaders, the confidence and belief that we can come with a win can be seen on the faces of all the players. The table tennis tournaments, the captaincy of Robin Van Persie, mutual admiration for team mates have lifted the team spirit.Robin van persie is in the form of his life scoring 33 goals in this calendar years, just 4 goals away from Allan Shearer who currently holds the record with 37 goals and 1 goal away from the Arsenal legend Thierry Henry with 34 goals. There is no reason why RVP can't overtake Shearer in the goals tally. The Resurgence of Alex Song in the central midfield had surprised everyone. Strong in defense, never shy to attack when given the opportunity. He has matured very well in the central midfield after the gap left by Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri. He has partnered well with Mikel Arteta to give us a competitive edge. His presence will be crucial in today's game. He will have to play that protective role in front of our shaky defense. Man city has shown some really strong attacking skills from the likes of Sergio Aguero, Balotelli, David Silva, Edin Dzeko, and off course the former Arsenal man Samir Nasri. It will be interesting to see how he tackles all the boos by the away fans. The list is endless, Man city have a strong attacking unit. On the other hand, Arsenal defence this season has been good on and off. The return of Thomas Vermaelen, gave a big boost to the defence. With both Santos and Sagna out with injuries, he will again take over the left back position, with Mertesacker and Koscielny in the centre, and Djourou at Right back. Mertesacker has been shaky but Koscielny has been solid. So has been the young polish Goalkeeper Szczesny. 

    Attacking options are plenty. Arteta and Ramsey would be important in the midfield to make those through balls to strikers. Walcott has been in good form this season at the right wing. Arsenal will look to his services for the long runs in the wings as well as crosses in the box. He will have to overcome the defensive lines of Zabaleta. Gervinho too has had a good season. has created more assists than Samir nasri for Man city. But his finishing has been poor. It will be an interesting test against the well established defense of Lescott and Kompany. Former Arsenal man Clichy will miss the game because of suspension. Man City on the other hand have taken a jolt to their rampaging start to the season. They got knocked out of Champion's league even after defeating Bayern Munich in their final match. That was followed by a loss at stamford bridge to Chelsea, to end their unbeaten run in the League. Roberto Mancini will look to his Strikers to end their dismal run in last week. While Arsenal will look to inflict more wounds to Mancini's men. Mikel Arteta has said,

 If we can defeat manchester city, no one will doubt our capabilities to win the league 

And yes it will be an eye opener for the other teams, that Arsenal is back in the title race.

Probable Line ups:
Manchester City :  Hart, Richards, Kompany, Lescott, Zabaleta, Milner, Toure, Barry, Silva, Aguero, Balotelli 


Arsenal : Szczesny, Djourou, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Vermaelen, Song, Ramsey, Arteta, Walcott, Van Persie, Gervinho 


Predictions: Manchester City 2-3 Arsenal 
A hard fought win for Arsenal with goals from either sides.

Arsenal reveal 125th anniversary away kit !!!

Arsenal have unveiled the new away kit for the 2011-12 season.

The celebratory badge design features 15 laurel leaves to the left side of the Club's crest to reflect the detail on the reverse of the sixpence pieces paid by 15 men to establish the Club in Woolwich in 1886. The 15 oak leaves to the right of the crest pay tribute to the founders who would meet in the local Royal Oak pub. Underneath the crest is one of the Club's first recorded mottos - 'Forward' - with the anniversary dates of 1886 and 2011 either side.

The front of the new away shirt is divided into two halves, one navy blue and one turquoise blue, inspired by the away kits worn by Arsenal teams from the past. The diagonal line represents the gnomon (the pointer) which casts the shadow on a sundial - to commemorate the original Dial Square sundial on the site of the Arsenal munitions factory in Woolwich, where the Club was founded in 1886.

The back of the shirt is entirely navy blue, with one sleeve navy and the other turquoise blue. A stripe runs down each sleeve, broken into three parts to further represent the Dial Square sundial.

The away shorts are navy blue, as are the socks, which have the year of Arsenal's foundation - 1886 - printed in white on the back of each calf.

On the back of the shirt below the neck reads ‘Arsenal', while inside the front, on the back of the crest, is a graphic that reads ‘Victoria Concordia Crescit', (‘Victory Through Harmony'), Arsenal's Latin motto, which was previously featured on earlier versions of their club crest between 1949 and 2002.

To know more, and the details on how to order. Visit the following link

http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/arsenal-reveal-125th-anniversary-away-kit

Where are the Transfers?

End of last season, there were big words coming from the Arsenal directors, and manager Arsene Wenger, that there going to very active in the transfer market. But it all seems like ending up in rumors.
   First there was Ricardo Alvarez, a young midfielder from Velez Sarsfield, seemed like the first signing of the season, but the news just died down. It seems he had some problems with his work permit. But then t was revealed that he has an italian passport. This lanky, tall midfielder is a strong tactician with good dribbling abilities and a decent strike rate. The asking price for this lad is a bit high though about 12 million euros. He might probably end up in the bench and be used as an impact substitute. So questions are to asked, whether its actually worth to pay so much for a first team substitute. Reports suggest that talks are still on to secure a contract with the gunners.
 
The tale of defenders
Arsenal' performances last season highlighted the weakness of their defense. With Vermaelen sidelined almost the entire season with injury, Koscielny and Djourou took over the mantle of defense, but they were good only in patches, same was with Squillaci. As the statistics showed, they lost many of the matches because of a poor defense. There was huge cry by the fans and reporters to strengthen our defense. Then surfaced the reports of Christopher Samba from Blackburn and Gary Cahill from Bolton as the front runners to resurrect the Arsenal defense.
Christopher Samba transfer was almost so good to be true, with the player agent confirming receiving and offer from Arsenal, but it seems to have hit a roadblock, with blackburn saying offer wasn't concrete. And the recent comments by Blackburn manager Steve Kean, seems they wont settle for a lesser amount. He said

   We don’t have to sell him(samba). He (samba)signed a five-year contract in the last window. He’s one of the players we would like keep.

Stories like this seriously make a dent on our goal to strengthen the defense. The Story has been similar with the transfer of Gary Cahill. The Bolton boss Owen Coyle has also made it clear that it will take a massive offer to prise Gary Cahill away from the Reebok, and Wenger is not exactly famous for paying over the odds, no matter how much he needs someone in the Arsenal team. Coyle said

 “There’s been a lot of interest – and you don’t have to be a genius to work out some of the top clubs in this country have been interested – but nothing concrete yet.

“It would take a lot of money. It is up to those clubs to put something firm to the chairman."

With both clubs playing hardball with Arsenal, the onus shifts to wenger, whether he'l go all out and spend for these top class defenders. At the end of the day both deals are hanging because of the price tag. It was a similar story last summer, when arsenal almost were sure of getting the services of Mark Schwarzer from fulham, but they couldn't agree to a contract at the penultimate moment of transfer season.
With Arsenal sulking and pondering over the thought of buying these two defenders, teams like Tottenham are sitting quietly like a vulture to hijack the arsenal move at the right moment.
Another news is the departure of left back Gael Clichy, which seems almost certain. Roma have offered £7m - £2m more than Liverpool and, according to The Sun, are prepared to pay the 25-year-old full-back £30m over five years. But France international Clichy would prefer a move to Anfield. Kenny Daglish, the liverpool manager seems to be desperate to bring Clichy to Anfield.


The never dying Fabregas story 
Every year, its the same story in the transfer market. Barcelona who never shy to make attempts to lure Cesc Fabregas to Spain, are not ashamed this season either. But this season, they have been a little subdued in their attempts to sign fabregas. Some reports suggest Barcelona are ready to give an exchange offer with Thiago plus surplus cash for securing Fabregas transfer. But as always the mystery remains.
After the whole Nasri saga, it seems like Arsenal board have reached a consensus with Samir Nasri, on his contract agreement and wages.
The midfielders who were linked to join Arsenal were the veteran Scott Parker from West Ham, Joey Barton from Newcastle (don't know why?), Adel Taarabt from QPR, again these are just rumors.

 The Strike Force
One Striker who has been consistently linked with Arsenal is Lille striker Gervinho. The Ivory Coast forward seems to have agreed personal terms this week and is ready to sign permanently for Arsenal on a four-year contract. The Times had reported Lille want £14m for the player, and Arsenal have agreed to pay £10.6m. Hopefully they can reach a consensus by the end of this week.
Another young English striker Peter Odemwingie has also been linked to Arsenal, after his father reported in the media that hes interested in joining the club. But contradictory reports have arose from the Birmingham Mail. West Brom technical director Dan Ashworth said

“Our aim is to retain our core players and try to strengthen our squad around them. I want to make it clear that Peter Odemwingie is not for sale and remains a key member of our squad.”

Eden hazard is another player linked to Arsenal. While Niklas Bendtner almost seems certain to leave arsenal. 

The Success tales

Among all the rumors, 19 year old defender Carl Jenkinson signed with Arsenal in an undisclosed fee from Charlton Athletic. Though his signing din't make us Arsenal fans scream with joy, but something is better than nothing. 

With the coming 2 weeks, there will be more clarity about who gets to wear the Arsenal shirt. Come on Wenger, get those transfers done. 

   

If Arsenal Players were Indians!!

I was just wondering, if Arsenal players were indians, what would their name sound like

Arshavin- Ashwin
Emmanuel Eboue - Eknath Ekbote
Van Persie - Ram Chaurasi
Samir Nasri - Sameer Narsimha
Aaron Ramsey - Arun Ramsay
Jack Wilshere - Jackie Vichaare
Thomas Vermaelen - Thamiran Vellaisivam
Bacary Sagna - Bansilal Sanjana
Cesc Fabregas - Chetan Farhangis
Abou Diaby - Abdul Dabri
Maroune Chamakh - Marthand Chandekar
Manuel Almunia - Manilal Allahbadi
Denilson - Dhyaneshwar
Keiron Gibbs - Kiran Giddh


And Finally Arsene Wenger - Arpan Bangar

Well ive just written this article in pure humour, its not insult or hurt anyone. People are free to add more :)
Enjoy..

Pool disappointment, Wenger whinings and Spuds smashing !!

Well im Blogging after a long time, Well what time to start writing again. We have a big game coming up on wednesday against the old enemy Tottenham hotspurs. 

Firstly I would mention about the last game at emirates against liverpool. Was a big disappointment. The same old story unable to defend in the dying minutes, when we look like winning the game. Though Eboue has come under lot of criticism for his late tackle on Lucas which resulted in a penalty and the equaliser, Lucas had his part in making a dive. Well can't blame him though, nowadays everyone does it. 

Whats more saddening is the amount of criticism, wenger has got in the recent past. He has changed so much i nthe past 4-5 years. Everyone has criticised wenger for his touchline arguments with kenny daglish and to an extent of being made fun of. A person of his stature being insulted to such a level is really disappointing to watch. But AW has also changed a lot. Earlier during games, he never used to let his emotions burst out like this. These days, whenever we are losing, he becomes restless at touchline, gets involved in altercations with the refrees as well as the rival managers. Henry Winter has come up with a realistic article on the Telegraph. u can read the Article here. He said Arsene Wenger should stop shielding his players for the losses, make them responsible for their actions in the game. He should stop making excuses for the losses. Like blaming the refrees, the pitch, or the ever crowded fixtures. These things apply for every damn team, not only for Arsenal. Time n again, there has been reports published in every newspaper criticizing wenger. Wenger's whinings have become a topic for laughter among other teams.

The Great is not who succeeds in everything, he is who accepts failures gracefully.

I respect Arsene Wenger more than anything, but he must learn to accept team's incapability and losses. On the other hand, No one can lead a club with full of youngsters, nurture them, & play the best football in premier league. He doesnt spend much on players, but spends wisely, infact FIFA themselves have urged other clubs to follow Arsenal football club. Despite all this Arsenal have been constant title contenders alongside Chelshits and Manyoos. And not the money splashing Citte or Pool. No one else has the vision of Arsene Wenger, he is a legend in his own terms.
Coming to Wednesday's big game against the Spuds. This north london derby brings out all the emotions in each team. And if u play well in the derby ure a hero. Last year Spurs staged an astonishing comeback from 2-0 down to win 3-2 at emirates, possibly the worst day for all the gooners. This time around Gunners must be looking to avenge that defeat in White hart lane.
Theo Walcott has said he "owns the fans a victory" for that loss at emirates and said that it would be more intense than ever. Sagna is fit and will return for the clash along with Denilson and Almunia. Wenger has almost the full strength squad, but wont risk Vermaelen, until hes fully ready. But the problem is in the mind, and players should be inculcated with a more positive attitude. Someone should step up and win the game for Arsenal, Nasri and Walcott would be crucial. A win at white hart lane might not fetch us the league, but would give some consolation at the end of the season as well as boost the confidence of the players and fans.
Go Gunners!!

Guess Whos back !!! Mad Jens !!!

Guess whos back, shadys back, back again... Guess whos back, Guess whos back.. .
Thats the eminem number ive been humming all day.. And why not. Our season has gone again in the drain in the last 15 days. With Arsenal being knocked out of 3 major competitions, silverware is again in doubt. After the horrendous defeat to birmingham city in carling cup final, they were knocked out by barcelona convincingly in nou camp, and Man united at old trafford in Champions league and FA cup respectively.
As the season folds up, its all gloom for arsenal fans. As the team is plagued with injuries, its even hard to field a decent playing eleven.

Goalkeeping crisis is even greater. All the goalkeepers are injured leaving only Manuel Almunia as a lone goal keeper. Finally there is something to cheer for Arsenal fans, as Wenger has looked to the services of  Jens Lehmann. The former Germany goalkeeper, 41, left Arsenal in 2008 but is in talks over a short-term deal to help the club through an injury crisis. 

The former Borussia Dortmund stopper believes he can claim a second Premier League crown after being a part of the "Invincibles" team when they won the 2003/04 campaign. He said in a german newpaper " Im looking forward to being in a backup role to support almunia." " We can still win the title" 

Mad Jens, as hes called by Arsenal fans, could provide arsenal the leadership and confidence they are lacking at the moment. But we don't know how fit he is after retiring from football. So it cold be a good or bad move. 

But on a brighter side, how worse could it get. 

So Hail O mighty, Mad Jens Lehmann... !! 

We'l love to have u back..