Injured Party

After Walcott, Vela and Denilson came back, it was only fair that at least one more player be ruled out for a few months. It's not looking good at left-back, unless Armand Traore steps up his game. And as if Eliaquim Mangala's pretty vicious challenge on Gibbs wasn't damaging enough, Arshavin had to somehow injure one of our key defenders who is about eight times his size. Aside from that, he defended admirably for Liege, making a vital goalline clearance.

Wenger's got a lot of thinking to do before the Chelsea game. Whatever happens, he's likely to spring a surprise with his lineup, with things looking pretty bleak at the back. Senderos probably isn't an option if Gallas is out - he tends to not really understand what's going on in these fixtures - which leaves the reliable fans' favourite Silvestre to fit seamlessly into the defence as he always does, holding the offside trap and reacting quickly to through balls. Just to clarify, I'm pretty sure that Silvestre will single handedly throw this game for us.

Left-back is a trickier problem - do we keep faith with Traore after a dodgy performance against Sunderland, or move the more experienced but significantly slower Silvestre out from the middle? If so, that might require moving Song to centre back, where he tends to play very well when required, but we will need some midfield steel against Essien and Mikel.

With Diaby injured and Ramsey evidently not the player to complement Fabregas and Denilson, I should think that Wenger will keep Song in midfield. If Gallas isn't back in time, which unfortunately looks very likely, this is the lineup I expect he'll put out:

Almunia
Sagna
Traore
Vermaelen
Silvestre
Song
Denilson
Fabregas
Rosicky
Arshavin
Eduardo

I hope Rosicky starts because he's been excellent since he returned. Nasri or Walcott could well be in the forward three, but Walcott might be more useful as an impact sub when Chelsea inevitably turn sluggish in the second half. Arshavin's form has been patchy of late but he has a habit of saving his best for the big games, but Eduardo will be more difficult to predict. He's been shaky so far, but should be more confident after a successful international break.

Here's hoping 'short-ankled' Denilson can hit another screamer on Sunday...

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Hands Clean

I expected Henry to eventually release a statement about Wednesday's match - after all, he wrote a letter to the Arsenal fans when he left - but never expected him to come out in support of calls for a replay. Most fans of this club knew and admired his character, and he has shown that he is still the same man. The handball was clearly "instinctive" as he says and, although I'm still unhappy about the way he celebrated the goal, the cheat tag is unfair.

FIFA were always going to say no to a replay, which leaves the FFF with the opportunity to save its national team's reputation. The world (minus Roy 'Ray of Sunshine' Keane) is clamouring for a replay - even several of their own politicians and celebrities agree - so hopefully the French will surrender to the pressure. (buh dum...)

Wenger's called for the use of video replays, which have been given another boost by this whole mess. I disagree. I still believe extra linesmen (one behind each goal line) are the answer; they would be very unlikely to miss handballs or penalty shouts seeing as that would essentially be their job. The most important thing to bear in mind when considering video replays is how they could feasibly be used throughout football. Yes, they would make the top leagues in the top countries a lot fairer, as well as international matches, but what about the less lucrative leagues below? How could Woking possibly challenge an injury time penalty shout against Bromley in the Conference South when their stadium barely has the facilities to let fans sit down? It's simply not practical, and although they're still not completely precise (hell, even the odd video replay doesn't help), extra linesmen would still prevent situations like this, and so I hope they're a success in the Europa League this season.

As for that club I sometimes talk about, Wenger says that Fabianski, Traore and Vela are all off the injured list and Denilson and Walcott should be in the squad for tomorrow, so we should be able to scrape together a starting XI by the time the nice men from the Ledley King care home come back for Robin. Maybe, just maybe, Sunderland won't be the disaster we were expecting.

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French Inquisition

The French Football Federation should offer Ireland a replay, plain and simple. The French team and public could feel no pride in reaching the finals next summer if they had won a place by so blatantly flouting the rules.

Thierry Henry is, and always will be, a club legend. Last night, he had a split second to choose how to react to the goal, and he made the wrong decision. He clearly regretted this as he immediately spoke to and consoled Richard Dunne after the final whistle, but he knows full well that post-match niceties count for nothing when he should have owned up to the handball straight away. He always played with integrity and honesty during his time at Arsenal, but his conduct after the goal last night was a real disappointment. If he's the player we all remember, he'll do something to clear his name.

I suppose the pressure of playing for such an underachieving team, with a clueless poodle for a manager and a simply bizarre lineup behind him, may have got to him. He seemed to resign himself to the euphoria sweeping the stadium, and his celebration has rightly been met with fury by Irish and neutral fans. The relief amongst his teammates was palpable, and perhaps he was torn between his sportsmanship and his loyalty to his country; if nothing else, I can at least understand his frustration at effectively being given the job of taking over from Gignac's special needs carer for an evening.

No one seems to have noticed Gallas' behaviour in all of this. For a player known for having about as much professionalism as Domenech has tactical awareness, it may have come as no surprise to many that he had no qualms about rushing off to celebrate despite clearly seeing the handball, but I was beginning to think after his performances over the last year that he had matured. No doubt if Ireland had scored the decisive goal in the same manner, Gallas would have screamed uncontrollably in the officials' faces, refusing to leave the pitch even after the wincing, spit-speckled referee had peeled the Frenchman's strands of phlegm from his person and brandished the red card.

A replay is unlikely, but the FFF would be foolish not to offer one. They would probably win anyway, considering the enormous pressure on Ireland to produce another performance, and would be acclaimed for the finest show of sportsmanship in the history of football. If they don't take the risk, the French national team will forever be known as cheats.

Which would be pretty crap for us. Can't wait to see Gallas and Sagna running out at the Stadium of Light on Saturday...

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Several Injuries, No Deaths

"England Under 21s v Portugal... no, [the Fates had] done the 'no left backs' thing before, and we'd ended up reaching the Champions League final."

                                         - This website. Monday, 16 November 2009

Here's hoping we prove them wrong again. I'm sure we're due yet another injury tonight; Sagna and Gallas will be playing in a heated encounter against the Irish, while Arshavin will take part in a vital away game against Slovenia, who have an away goal and are only one down from the first leg. As for the pointless games, Fabregas will probably play 90 minutes against Austria after a rest against Argentina, and Eboue will be hacked to pieces by the Germans. Take your pick, it's going to happen again. The current first-team injury list:

Lucasz Fabianski
Johan Djourou
Gael Clichy
Kieran Gibbs
Armand Traore
Denilson
Abou Diaby
Theo Walcott
Nicklas Bendtner
Jack Wilshere
Carlos Vela
Robin van Persie

If we're lucky, Armand Traore and/or Abou Diaby will be okay for Sunderland - if not, this is what our starting XI could look like, on the off chance that the players in action tonight are available:

Almunia
Sagna
Gallas
Vermaelen
Silvestre
Song
Fabregas
Ramsey
Rosicky
Arshavin
Eduardo

On paper, still a pretty strong team - a result on Saturday might silence the critics who say we lack squad depth, at least until the Chelsea match. Anyway, we have some positives to take out of the weekend: Sagna and Gallas looked pretty sharp against Ireland, Vermaelen scored yet again for Belgium, and Eduardo should be buoyed after netting two for Croatia. Ramsey destroyed the Scots without getting kicked to a bloody pulp by some toothless Glaswegian lout or hit by some obscene missile from the Cardiff faithful directed at Swansea's Ashley Williams which, if the media hype was to be believed after the Welsh derby the previous weekend, could have ranged from coins, bottles and phones to ninja stars, sledgehammers and grand pianos. Seeing as Ramsey is likely to be a more regular starter in the coming months, particularly during the ACN, this is surprisingly good news.

Lastly, Stan Kroenke's right-hand man Paul Andrews has hit out at media outlets who have been using the deeply offensive nickname "Silent Stan", insisting that he is "passionate" and "hard-working". What exactly that has to do with commentators rightly pointing out that Kroenke has kept quiet about his intentions, I have absolutely no idea, but he really went off on one.

"Any moniker placed on him, such as 'Silent Stan', is very unfair and really should not be used in any form in the media because he is a brilliant man."

Okay Mr Andrews, but again, what are his plans surrounding Arsenal Football Club?

"He has to be a brilliant man to be what he is in the world today."

I'm sure he's lovely, but we really would quite like to know what's going to happen to our club?

"(He is a) regular guy, a tremendous leader and visionary, a guy that, if he was sitting in here today, would be very eloquent, and very respectful of you and the rest of the media."

I can only imagine that he was choking back the tears as he continued: "He is passionate about sport. He wants to win, he is driven to win."

Thanks for clearing that up.
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Just Wreck My Ankle

After all the fans' moaning about the Interlull, it was fairly inevitable. The Fates saw us refreshing the BBC and Sky Sports Arsenal pages, saw us trawling YouTube for old highlights, saw bloggers like myself wearily slumped over our keyboards, racking our brains for something the slightest bit relevant. They decided to act.

The Arsenal fans were too sure of themselves, too happy. Something big had to happen... something disastrous.

Ireland v France... too high profile. Spain v Argentina... hardly even a contact sport. England Under 21s v Portugal... no, they'd done the 'no left backs' thing before, and we'd ended up reaching the Champions League final. It had to be devastating, it had to be completely unexpected, and it had to make sense.

Italy v Holland... perfect.

No one would be watching - Ireland v France was far more important, and much closer to home. Besides, watching Italy is about as enjoyable as clawing your own eyes out, even if they are playing a team as entertaining as the Netherlands. Arsenal's talismanic forward and second top scorer was up against one of the most robust and physical defences in the world. It had to be done.

Van Persie latched onto a through ball. Chiellini had been slightly outpaced, but Robin was within reach. The Fates intervened - one blew the ball into the perfect position for impact, one knelt on all fours in front of van Persie, and one gave Chiellini a forceful shove. Robin's ankle ricocheted off Chiellini's foot, contorting in the air as he fell, and the apocalyptic, sensationalist headlines began:

"Van Persie Out for Months"
"Van Persie's Season Over"
"Wenger: We Can't Do It"
"Fabregas: I'm Leaving"
"Chiellini Employs Bodyguards After Hate Mail"
"Van Persie Dead"

This is Eduardo's big chance, and he's going to have to take it if he wants more time in that central position. Particularly if he wants that big transfer to Liverpool that the News of the World have sniffed out...

Walcott's nearly back, and he'd relish the opportunity to return to his natural position; although I'm still unsure if I'd want to see him hobbling around alone in the final third, attempting Henry finishes which end up reaching the Club Level seats. Carlos Vela is another option, but he seems to have blindly followed Giovani dos Santos into the swirling mists that shroud the Land of Lost Wonderkids.

Anyway, it looks like six weeks without Robin, and another four without Bendtner. God only knows what front three we'll be fielding against Chelsea in two weeks time.

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Premonitions, Predictions

The biggest Arsenal-related news today will probably involve the France v Ireland World Cup qualifier.

(Only a week til the end of the Interlull...)

Sagna and Gallas are likely to start, so we can look forward to fielding a makeshift backline at Sunderland once Stephen Hunt and co. have had a pop at them. The squad also features Diaby, undoubtedly the talisman of France's midfield. With the likes of Henry, Anelka and Lassana Diarra, the French team is considerably stronger than Ireland on paper, but I have a feeling that the Irish could pull it off, particularly with the first leg at home.

Aaron Ramsey will be pulling the strings against Scotland, while Cesc will be up against it in Spain's friendly against Argentina. Hopefully del Bosque will give him a breather in the Austria match - there's absolutely no need in starting him, especially as it would be the perfect match to try out the back-ups. If he plays in both games, we'll be the ones who will have to rest him.

Henri Lansbury has been called up as a replacement for the England Under 21s as a replacement after Michael Johnson and Jack Rodwell dropped out, but he's unlikely to play against Portugal. Gibbsy wil have the opporunity to give Capello something to think about; no doubt after a couple weeks of him filling in for Clichy, Stephen Warnock will be out of the picture. England should win this one comfortably.

There's not much else to talk about, other than Joan Laporta taking the opportunity to hit on Cesc now that he's back in the country for a few days. On the Dot Com, Mikael Silvestre seems pretty busy with TV Online interviews and Fantasy Battle predictions. I can only imagine that the opportunity to get closer to the likes of Silvestre during international breaks will be making Manuel Almunia desperate to change Capello's mind before the turn of the year.

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Boy in Waiting

With little else to talk about during the Interlull, the focus appears to be on the Carling Cup game at Man City... to be played on December 2nd.

Wenger has reiterated his faith in the Carling Cup team, confirming that he's planning to field the kids despite Mark Hughes saying he's going to put out a full strength Citeh team. A worrying thought, although on current form I'd be more concerned about him putting out Michael Johnson than Gareth 'accomplished passer of the ball, especially in the defensive third' Barry.

Wilshere is bouncing off the walls with anticipation - so excited that he thinks "now we are in the last eight it is realistic for us to win the trophy... we can beat Manchester City and if we do then the competition will be wide open... we can go all the way." I'm sure the likes of Eastmond and Watt are delighted with that added pressure, but I can see this game being Wilshere's breakthrough on the big stage.

I agree that we have a genuine chance of causing a massive Cupset, but away games are a daunting prospect for the kids, as their defeat at Burnley last season proved - at the same stage of the competition. If Wenger can take advantage of Citeh's defensive shortcomings (ie. distress Kolo Toure by moving our forwards goalside of him in any situation, thereby forcing him to bundle into them and needlessly gift us a freekick; anything other than route one football should overwhelm Joleon Lescott), we should be able to bag a couple goals.

The real issue will be how Gilbert handles Bellamy, and whether Senderos and Silvestre will have the pace to handle any of City's front three, most notably Wright-Phillips. As long as our away fans don't rush through their lunches, we may have better luck handling the other one this time...

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You Make It Easy

In the summer of 2006, Ronald Zubar was heavily linked with a move to Arsenal.

On November 7 2009, Ronald Zubar showed us why he did not get a move to Arsenal.

With 20 minutes on the clock, a Sagna Special from the right scraped the lower reaches of the mesosphere and came crashing down on the opposite side of the penalty area. Eduardo reacted first, sprinting to make contact on his left foot, but Zubar stumbled backwards into him and the ball bounced off his head in a similarly high arc. Zubar performed a kind of disoriented twirl in the manner of a tranquilised dancing bear, before realising the ball was headed for the corner flag. Seeing Eduardo sprinting towards it, Zubar lurched after him; making up the lost ground with a lolling stumble, he proceeded to throw himself into the Brazilian, several feet behind the ball.

Fabregas whipped the resulting free kick in, Craddock headed it out, and everyone took their places for a corner. Even after the corner had been taken, Zubar stayed in his, watching with silent intrigue as Eduardo cavorted around him. Realising the direction of the ball, Eduardo jerked forward to get around Zubar; the latter stared blankly at the former, then ponderously raised his head to see what all the fuss was about. Feeling something hit his leg, he looked down. Hearing sudden loud noise, he turned and saw the ball in the net.

As most seemingly ideal players who have been persistently linked with us often do, he eventually proved just why we didn't sign him. At the time, he was a young defensive midfielder at Marseilles tipped to reach the top level. With a strong build, capable of being an aerial threat and aggressive in the challenge, he appeared to be the midfield enforcer we required after Vieira left. As it was, Wenger kept his faith in his original plans for defensive midfield, and although the eventual beneficiary turned out to be a money-grabbing ingrate, the signings he has made have generally complimented our flowing style of football while quietly and efficiently breaking up opposition attacks.

What Zubar evidently lacked was mobility, a good first touch and the ability to read a game - not to mention composure. While the latter hasn't always been a hallmark of Wenger's transfer policy, the rest illustrate why he wouldn't have fit in. The defensive midfielders who have been successful in Vieira's wake had all of these attributes: Gilberto, Flamini, Denilson and Song. Lassana Diarra would have been similarly ideal.

He later became renowned for his spectacular mistakes, which are now called 'Zubrelances' in France (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwGUKC6CBw4 - 7 of the best minutes of your life). He was dislodged from defensive midfield and shifted to right-back, and eventually faded into the role of a defensive utility player. On this evidence, we should only be looking for midfield bruisers who can fit into our style, and Alex Song looks like the man for the job.

I am a bit concerned about how that game would have turned out had it not been for that first goal, but this certainly came down to the midfield three Wenger put out. Ramsey is not a natural defensive midfielder (at least not now, in any case) and Diaby is not the man to help out an 18-year-old playing in an unfamiliar role. Diaby's injury and Song's subsequent introduction turned the game on its head.

Eduardo played well, finally looking like he's ready to recapture the form of 2007/08. Although the second has to count as an own goal, it looked like a massive boost to his confidence.

Arshavin had another quiet game, but he's developing a habit of putting in an average performance yet still stealing a goal or assist, which is something we've been lacking in a player since Henry. The back five played fairly well, Gallas in particular, while Fabregas continued his brilliant form. The third goal was superb, and featured the best attacking play from Sagna that I can remember.

The goal we conceded late on was pretty irritating, as was the one in midweek. Vermaelen has to take the blame for some poor marking when the corner came in, something he has done already against a Blackburn freekick. We will need more clean sheets if we're going to win this thing, as will my Times fantasy football team because I don't have many options in goal and at left-back beyond Almunia and Clichy...

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The Rest Will Follow

After the events of Saturday, the home crowd could be forgiven for taking a breather on Wednesday night.

It was deathly quiet throughout the stadium.

From the dugout to the director's box, from North Entrance to South Entrance, from the cornerflag in Orange Quadrant to the one in Green Quadrant, not a noise was to be heard from the near-capacity crowd.

With one exception.

Far away from the action, in the uppermost reaches of the Yellow Quadrant top tier, three rows from the back and a couple of seats from the aisle, sat two young women, probably in their early twenties.

Throughout the evening, their tinny, shrieking voices rang around the Emirates; piercing eardrums, distressing small children, creating feedback amongst the SkySports microphones, and pitching the dogs of Islington against each other in an epic battle of noise that would continue long into the night. The following morning, locals would emerge from their houses, bleary-eyed and wincing from the persistent ringing in their heads, and stagger down the street, their balance shot by the damage to their inner ears.

Obsessively attempting to start up the Red Army chant approximately once every fifteen seconds, they shrieked on the one occasion they drew a proper response, clapping as though they each had a serious mental deficiency. Every shout elicited a collective shudder in the rows below, with the odd head turning in condemnation; at least one individual turned around with the expression of someone suffering from a terrible affliction, their faces white, their lip trembling, their eyes pleading for someone, anyone, to say something.

Yes, I was sitting right next to them. My left ear was in genuine agony.

Down on the pitch, the boys put on another brilliant show. Diaby did his best to even things out a bit with an even worse performance than his slapstick comedy show against Spurs, and I was actually annoyed when he scored for us - now Wenger will say he had a great game. It was a pretty good finish but I would have lost my nut had he missed, knowing that even Senderos would have had a decent crack at it. The goal aside, his most significant contribution was finding the ball at his feet as an Alkmaar midfielder leapt nervously out of his way - evidently, word of Diaby's talents hasn't spread to the continent yet - then passing to Arshavin, who did the rest of the work.

Fabregas' finish at the end of that move was simply brilliant; one of those goals you can watch over and over. He stamped his authority all over the game, and at the moment I can't imagine his form getting any better. Arshavin lost possession a bit too often for my liking but he played some excellent through balls from several positions.

Alkmaar's late consolation was an infuriating goal to concede, with Eboue failing to close the forward down early enough and Almunia caught off-guard. While the latter wasn't the one to blame, he should have been more alert; the team are collectively turning off in the last five minutes of games, which Wenger cannot keep denying. However, Almunia handled Alkmaar's few chances pretty well, and he made an outstanding save from Pelle's powerful close-range effort by pushing the ball onto the bar.

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Towering Over Rivals

What an afternoon.

I spent the match in the unfamiliar surroundings of Club Level, thanks to an acquaintance with a season ticket who couldn't make it. With my only previous knowledge of Hospitality essentially amounting to what I could make out through the steamed-up glass above while I froze my arse off queueing for the turnstiles (usually a dapper cereal-box family sharing an injoke over roast swan and seasoned asparagus tips, about to be interrupted by Charlie George checking that their meals are okay and would they care for another drink), it was enlightening to discover what goes on up there.

Plush, Woolwich carpets hug your feet as you leave the escalator; a long, well-stocked bar crawls the length of the room; its attractive, well-dressed employees smile and beckon you over for your first free drink of the day; numerous FIFA10 demos occupy the young 'uns across the room. It was spacious, luxurious and... perfect. I took a seat in front of the nearest TV screen, sipping my complimentary beer while watching the team news on SkySportsNews, feeling a mixed sense of pride and guilt now that there was no doubt in my mind that we have the finest football stadium in the country.

We were sat directly behind the Northern goal, with the noisy corner on our right. When the first went in, the celebrations were like nothing I had ever seen in the Emirates. When the second went in, it made Barack Obama's election victory look like John Howell taking the seat in the 2008 Henley by-election. Water sprayed down over us - someone on the tier above was jumping up and down, squeezing his water bottle and waving it over the giddy thousands below. We laughed and wiped off the three or four drops we had each accumulated on our foreheads.

Suddenly, a bald, hook-nosed hospitality manager marched out into the block, his beady eyes peering menacingly at the tier above. An outraged businessman was pointing upwards, demanding that the matter be dealt with. Throughout the rows below, men turned their heads in arriviste disgust; wives shrieked and held programmes over their heads. Throughout the block, people pointed in various directions, accusing the first beer-belly in an out-of-date replica shirt they could find.

Whether the hooligan was eventually brought to justice I will never know, but today was a momentous victory over the pretenders next door. Bentley made a tit of himself trying to repeat his jammy goal last year, and the only threat we had to contend with was our opponent's strategy of repeatedly pumping long balls somewhere in the vicinity of Peter Crouch, a tactic well dealt with by our defence, most notably Thomas Vermaelen. Robbie Keane made some busy runs in between his unintelligible tantrums, but Gallas handled him without any trouble. Alex Song was almost impeccable and stifled their midfield throughout.

Although Wilson Palacios shut him out as much as is humanly possible in the first forty minutes (I still regret missing out on him), Fabregas turned in another good performance, with the tables turning immediately from the 43rd minute restart. Palacios was visibly fazed by the opening goal, and while there is no doubt that it was his mistake that led to our goal, Cesc's run was unstoppable and he artfully wrong-footed Gomes.

Van Persie is clearly on the form of his life, making a great run past Ledley King for his opener. He's been clinical lately, and seems to be providing an answer to any criticisms that Arsenal lack a poacher. He's become a true all-round forward, with more flair than any striker in the Premiership this season, but with the strength and vision to fill the role of target man much better than Barndoor ever did.

A 100% home start in all competitions so far, Robbie Keane silenced for at least a few hours, and a few cheeky pints in the hospitality section of the greatest football ground in the UK... not a bad start to the weekend.

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