Arsenal v Tottenham - Saturday December 22, 12.45pm - NLD

[True Gooner]

The whole game was played at an off tempo...it was very slow and laid back, especially in the second half...for some reason I wasnt really pumped up for todays game...I mean, I was estatic for our goals and the penalty save obviously but some how I just felt like it was just another game...

The atmosphere didnt help either...

 

[lagos]

This is my 3rd game of the season(Man City and Bolton at home were the other two) and every time it was 0-0 at half time and generally poor peformances. I hope we play better in my next game there!

I have an interesting stat Everytime I have been to Highbury or the Emirates we have won. Evrry time I watch a game with my Significant other we haven't won we either draw or lose. Normally she is banished but Of course I forgot that stat the day we played Sevilla and guess what?

 

[ricky1985]

1)For some reason our football always looks slicker and quicker on tele.
But when Bendtner rose 10 foot in the air no more than 30 foot in front of me, it was absolutel ecstacy. Unbelievable 30 seconds that followed. Sticking it to them loudmouth yids.

1)Thats exactly what I felt. Its quite hard to assess how well the team is playing, but on the TV its much more clear. But you have no commentators brain washing you so you have to have independant thought.
2) The Bendtner goal was quality. Sp**s fans couldnt beleive it, lol.

I was not sitting opposite of them on the other side. They went absolutley mental when Berbatov scored though.

This is my 3rd game of the season(Man City and Bolton at home were the other two) and every time it was 0-0 at half time and generally poor peformances. I hope we play better in my next game there!

Wierd exact same games as I have been to this season. We might have the same source LOL.
...And in those games the performance hasnt been great.

Would love to have been there for the Slavia game or a performance like that.

Sp**s fans were giving it large the whole game I was behind the goal about 15 foot from them. When Berbatov scored they made an amazing amount of noise.
it was a gutter to see their faces when they got their penalty but it was pure gold when Almunia then preceeded to save it. God it was good.

Captain wrote;

It usually is quicker and slicker then today to be fair.

Thought the atmosphere was pretty flat myself, but that's usually the way with these early kick-offs.

I have been a bit unfortunate because I seem to pick the poor performances the last couple of years.
I went to Boro, Villa, Everton, Blackburn in the cup (Worst game ever) last year. It werent good.

Cant remember the last time I wathced us spank someone.
I wanna go and see us free-flowing.

 

[number_0]

My take of the game.......

we were really below average, Sp**s were far better, only reason we won is because their defene is worse then ours
alumunia, apart from the penaly save, had an average game, he couldnt do anything for their goal though, it was a downright bullet. My man of the match is clichey, i bet he has lennons shirt hanged somewhere along with SWP, ronaldo, j.cole and ashely cole shirts.
ade scoring against Sp**s is the same as arsenal always betting Sp**s.
the real bogey man against Sp**s though is fabregas: 7 asists and 1 goal in 4 games is hilirious, especially about all the spuds talk about keeping him quiet in fat thuds pocket or something.

the moment we conceeded a penalty i thought about the spuds comment about 'the best penalty taker' and i said to my dad he is gonna miss, Sp**s always bottle it against us and surely he missed! then bendtner came on i told my dad this is one of the world future stars and i think he will score this corner, yup i said first touch aswell, and nikky went on to my word and a thumping header it was.

all fans think the ref favoured us but they forgot that the ref didnt give tainoi or whatever a second yellow for a foul and clichey and and we also seemed to have a good penalty shout no one mentioned when someone kicked rosicky in the foot inside the box, when he was through....

and it ****ing annoys that gallas is the only player in the priemeleague that gets booked for protesting while rooney and gerrard have full license to abuse the ref, and even though gallas is captain.
3 card already, hes gonna miss an important much soon because of this ****.

this goes in the wall with all other times Sp**s bottled it against us :wink:

 

[HollandGooner]

Another classic post from the Sp**s forum...

Went to the game today, thought we put up a real fight and deserved the win. Lennon was f****g class, roasted clichy time and again. Berbatov showed real heart and grit, got stuck in and stayed on his feet, especially in the last 15 mins. Keane was an immense presence, dictated the flow of the game, unlucky not to get the goal his performance deserved. Malbranque another immense performer.

On this evidence, we can match them and should be level with them in the prem before long (well def beat them in the carling cup, wed never get beaten by their reserves).

That speaks for himself what a great football intellengy

 

[Illusion]

Another classic post from the Sp**s forum...

Went to the game today, thought we put up a real fight and deserved the win. Lennon was f****g class, roasted clichy time and again. Berbatov showed real heart and grit, got stuck in and stayed on his feet, especially in the last 15 mins. Keane was an immense presence, dictated the flow of the game, unlucky not to get the goal his performance deserved. Malbranque another immense performer.

On this evidence, we can match them and should be level with them in the prem before long (well def beat them in the carling cup, wed never get beaten by their reserves).

That speaks for himself what a great football intellengy

Sorry but there is no way that isn't sarcastic!

 

[YuenBiaoFan]

'roasted clichy time and time again'?

oh

my

god

:shock:

 

[ibby]

'roasted clichy time and time again'?

oh

my

god

:shock:

Bar his pace I am struggling to figure out what Lennon's strengths actually are.

 

[Invincible]

'roasted clichy time and time again'?

oh

my

god

:shock:

I'm sure the yiddo is being sarcastic.

 

[USArsenal]

i dont really think they were being sarcastic.. thats the scary part

 

[IBL]

COYR'S!

Please stop that

Not that I mind stopping writing that. But why is a problem?

I just saw EMIR8_SOLDIER write it and thought it was kinda clever.

it's not mate, it what the **** do with their rather gay 'COYS'

 

[invisibleman18]

Brilliant goal from Bendtner. Reminded me of Teddy Sheringham against Greece in the sense that he was still running onto the pitch when he scored.

Can't believe people are still finding a way to blame Almunia for the first goal. With the deflection and at that speed, I can't imagine any keeper in the world saving that. It was in before he, and everyone else saw it. Great save from the penalty. Who was it who said "Almunia will never win a game for us" or "Almunia will never make the difference in a big game" etc? Chelsea and Sp**s in consecutive games now innit?

As for Sp**s, that O'Hara guy looked pretty decent considering it was his first start. David Pleat in the commentary said he was an Arsenal fan, and Alfonso says he was an Arsenal academy player. Interesting.

 

[USArsenal]

yeah, they mentioned it before the game that he was a former Arsenal academy player...

thought he actually played pretty well for his first Prem start...

 

[EMIR8_SOLDIER]

All this ramos has sorted out the Sp**s defence is a big joke.....

The same ramos who came here before with a better team called sevilla and took a 3-0 drubbing

Today we were very sluggish and lacked penetration to support ade in midfield
Yet we still managed to beat Sp**s with our poorest game of the season IMO

Yeh Sp**s played well but not as good as how people are making it out to be or theyll have won, we played crap and still won and got 3 points
Cant always play them off the park, lets look at this on a bigger scale as they only care about beating us out of all 38 games

Weve outclassed so many teams before but still lost, got a draw you know

Our squad are fighters

Put it like this, I know which north london team is gonna have a happy christmas and which ones going to have a miserable one
Lets just say im a very happy guy right now

 

[USArsenal]

i agree with everything except that it was our worst performance.. i think Boro was our worst performance....

 

[EMIR8_SOLDIER]

Oh yeh lol

You see US, I erased that match completely out of my head, tell me it was a dream US, tell meeeeeeee!!

I still think we have a game in hand as In my dream that wasnt Arsenal playing,but some dress up clones

 

[Captain]

'roasted clichy time and time again'?

oh

my

god

:shock:

He did, I did the same to Halle Berry.

 

[Anzac]

thank g*d we got the 3 points other wise it would have been a very sh*tty match.............I keep having to remind myself we just beat Sp**s in our main derby game, and we're top of the table..........I'm that disappointed with our performance........

I'll admit that I'm one of the posters that believed that we should have won this in ease & style, and I make no apologies for that. IMO if we really have pretentions for being one of the Top 4 clubs in the PL & CL, and we are as good as we think we are, then in circumstances like this we should be putting the likes of The Spuds to the sword, and we should be doing it with a touch of swagger. I said much the same thing after the games v LFC & MUFC which IMO we dropped points that we could & perhaps should have won - we don't seem to quite have the belief to take advantage of our form / reputation to stamp our authority & swagger. The Invincible's had this swagger, as does ManU, and IMO it is the final piece that will determine the legacy of this team.

I just can not believe we went into a Home NLD game with one recognised striker in the starting line up, and played a 4-5-1 / 4-4-1-1 at Home to a mid table team with having to use a converted 3rd / 4th choice defensive line up!!!!!!! Every time I see that scenario I feel we struggle to not only put games away, but to also get our usual rythmn into the attack - I've yet to see us tear teams apart or blow them off the pitch like we did at the begining of the season playing 4-4-2.

I don't believe the 4-4-1-1 works at Home because we look to play a higher defensive line, so the player in the hole ends up working from the midfield if they drop deeper, (I'd rather start 2 up front and having the 2nd striker dropping into the hole so the front man doesn't become so isolated). I'd prefer to have a 2nd striker in this role as their natural instinct is to stay higher up the pitch, as well as posing a more direct goal scoring threat.

Another thing I've noticed is that we have poor forward options off the ball. When we played the 4-4-2 Cesc & Flam played behind the wide mids & the FBs pushed level with them to provide square passing options & work the flanks. Hleb / Rosicky would cut inside across the area & lay off for Cesc to move onto the ball, while Flams stayed deeper & patroled around the half way line. With Hleb in the hole we don't get that same movement as our mids tend to be flatter.

Consequently our mids seem to all push forward including the DM, which then leave the space in front of the defensive line that we saw Berbatov exploit. The defensive line were looking to keep their shape & had to due to the forward runs off the ball by Keane, and the fact we play a zonal marking system as opposed to man marking.

Similarly I don't like Ade's runs to the flanks to collect the ball when he's isolated. Yes he's making himself available for the ball carrier to pass to, but he's also making it easier for the defence to isolate him & keep their shape - especially as the midifielders are not in a position to make runs into the area. Ade does not have the dribbling skills to run at the defenders.

I'd love to see us try a 4-4-1-1 with Eduardo in the hole. Ade could make his wide runs & Eduardo could stay more central to make the runs into the box when Ade goes wide.

Sorry for length of post but I'm just very disappointed, frustrated & trying to vent without losing my head & trying to describe why I feel the way I do.

 

[Christofaux]

Tottenham had one of the best games of the season, Arsenal had one of their lesser games of the season.

 

[famous no 10]

Anzac, we can't expect to play our beautiful game every week, in fact, it's games like today where we didn't play that well, and still came away winners, which actually gives us the look of champions.

I don't think we've been playing that well for a few games, and yet still we are top...sooner or later a few teams are going to take a hiding from us.

I agree with the 4-5-1 situation, but maybe it was Wengers intention to play RVP in a 4-4-2, and because RVP picked up a slight knock, thought he'd go with the team that beat Chelski, and ultimately it worked...I equally feel that Wenger may think Eduardo isn't quite ready to figure as a starter in the NLD.