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Happy New Year…

Posted by :devday On : January 1, 2013
8

Category: Arsenal, Premier League, Team News

Happy New Year to all the Gooners out there… It’s been a mixed year for all of us, the highs and lows of being an Arsenal fan… but have we been entertained…? Hell yeah…! Let the footballing Gods be good to us, let Arsene do his magic and let’s get behind the team.

We face a mixed bag Southampton today who on their day can do anything, but can be equally bad… for us, it doesn’t matter how they play, it matters what we can do… Theo and Oxlade are very much looking forward to this game and when asked about the game, young Theo was literally giddy with excitement…

“It will be a very tough occasion against Southampton, but it is one I am really looking forward to. I am probably going to wrap myself in bubble wrap for the next few days! It will be a very special moment for me and Alex [Oxlade-Chamberlain], and also for some of the fans to see us come back to the club.”

It will be an interesting one tonight, as Theo has seized his opportunity as the main striker, through the middle, which is preventing the on-form Giroud from re-gaining his spot. With us in good form at the moment, you don’t want to change what’s working, which means I think we’ll see the French striker on the bench.

The injury news is Fabianski (ankle), Diaby (match fitness), Santos (match fitness), Mertesacker (doubt – sickness)… and therefore, the predicted line up is:

Szcznesy

Sagna – Koscielny – Vermaelen – Gibbs

Arteta – Wilshere

Oxlade – Cazorla – Podolski

Walcott

I don’t think it’ll be another 7-3 but I do think this game has goals in it… The team is starting to gel, and having a relatively consistent back four / five (give or take) does help us a lot.

There is of course, the worry that Theo hasn’t signed his contract yet and he is now available to sign on a Bosman for a club outside the UK. BUT, let’s not worry about that until tomorrow…. we have a very important game today and that’s all that matters right now!

Come on you Gooners!!

devday

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  • German

    Looking forward to the game – think it’s got a lot of goals in it… which probably means it will be a 1-0er…. Hope Walcott starts up front again…

  • limet

    Beautiful football without spending more money in the transfer market
    than he is bringing in. The owner is happy as long as the balance sheets
    look good. For Kroenke, the trophy is the value of the asset. Arsène
    desperately wants to win, of that I have no doubt. But he wants to do it
    on his terms. And he is prepared to see Arsenal become also-rans to
    prove his point. The goalposts have changed over the years. Originally,
    the stadium move was to ensure Arsenal could continue to compete for the
    title. And the manager kept telling us the squad was good enough to do
    it – the best group he had ever worked with. Now, targets have changed.
    Third place is an incredible achievement because of the petro-dollars.
    However, ask yourself this. Manchester United are not backed by oil
    money. Arsenal used to compete with the Old Trafford club. Why are they
    no longer competing with Manchester United? The answer is simple. Sir
    Alex Ferguson will not settle for second or third best and claim it as a
    triumph. When something is not working he will make changes. Players
    are on very good wages, but there is authority and leadership. And no
    room for complacency.

  • Arsefan101

    Happy New Year? Complacent Arsenal fail again. Not good enough.

  • dhanya

    honestly, any player with ambitions of winning trophies would be a fool to join Arsenal. Of course, if they fancy a hippy style love in with Guru Wenger and the colny creche, then sign your career away and enter the love machine – It’s enough to make you sick. Fuck me, we can’t offer them trophies, or tangible success, so we’re now marketing our love-ability as the next addition to our “virtual trophy” cabinet? – pathetic.

  • limet

    or 70 mins we were piss poor.What has happened to Cazorla another poor
    game has he hit it the wall already.Once again there was no tempo in our
    play in the first half and as usual it was one pass too many.Walcott
    was back to his usual non existent self.With the exception of Newcastle
    he has been poor in three of the last 4 games.With the replay coming
    between the City and Chelsea games i can see a much weaker team than
    started today.And to me Swansea will start favorites.We need to sign a
    striker Giroud may be ok coming on as sub but starting games he is not
    good enough.Reminds me of Bendtner sadly

  • sevin

    Im not going to let this Wenger socialist thing go. It has
    absolutely destroyed our chances of retention and recruitment of top
    players. If you look at the facts over the last few seasons, we have
    actually spent a lot of money on players in transfer fees. However,
    because of the wage policy we are limited to the type of player we can
    attract. I now actually believe we would be prepared to spend big money
    on transer fees, however, our salary budget will not allow us to
    attract top talent. So unless a top top player is prepared to accept
    80k a week max to play for a team that is on its way down instead of
    120+ k per week at a team on the up, we really have little chance of
    getting them. Its also why we couldnt offer Nasri, RVP et al competitive
    terms to stay. Its why its taking so long to resolve the Theo
    situation. All of this because ARSENE WENGER DECIDED IN HIS INFINITE
    WISDOM TO OPERATE A SOCIALIST WAGE POLICY AT OUR CLUB. Think about this
    for a moment. We have lost Nasri & RVP for example because he
    thinks that players like Djorrou, Arshavin, Squillaci, Bendtner,
    Denilson etc should be close to parity with the clubs best players. That
    just a small list – there are many more – Park, Chamakh, Santos, Eboue,
    Almunia, Flappy etc etc that we are now stuck with or were stuck with
    for an age. We have lost top players because of this. We have not been
    able to attract top players because of this. It is an utter utter
    scandal and disgrace. I used to say I want Wenger to go but also
    refused to be hard on him. Not any more since his socialist confession.
    I am absolutely staggered by this admission. Wenger Out, Pep in. NOW

  • limet

    We’re now 10 days into the January transfer window and there hasn’t been the
    slightest whiff of Arsenal movement. Yesterday, the manager played Alex
    Oxlade-Chamberlain, Francis Coquelin and Carl Jenkinson in an U21 game with West Brom. Andre Santos scored the Arsenal goal
    after a pass from … Abou Diaby. So, more than anything else it looks as if he’s
    concentrating on getting the players he has fit and ready for what’s going to be
    a hectic schedule over the next few weeks.

    But, with all due respect to those players, they’re not exactly the additions
    to the squad people were hoping for this month. I really hope Diaby stays fit,
    but then I hoped that at the start of the summer and he was gone for over 3
    months. Does the return of a reserve left back, who has struggled this season,
    and a bit of match fitness for some players the manager rarely trusts when
    everyone is fit anyway constitute strengthening the squad? Gervinho, for all his
    faults, is gone to the African Cup of Nations while Chamakh and Djourou will
    spend the rest of the season on loan. Are we stronger?

    It is now Thursday. Man City come to town on Sunday. Is there time between
    now and then to complete a signing? Of course there is, but it seems unlikely at
    this point. If there was a real determination and plan to invest in the squad
    this month you have to think we’d have done as much of that business as early in
    the month as possible. As it stands, the only conclusion I can come to is that
    there is no determination to do that, there is no plan as such, and that if we
    do bring players it would be something of a surprise now

  • aron

    All over and all over for the clown Wenger. He deserves the disrespect he gets due to his arrogance and inability to do the basics of his job. 7.5 million for being a washed up loser. Pathetic. The club is a laughing stock being run by money grabbing fools who let an egoistic loser still be in a job after years of total failure. Wenger you total arrogant loser, get the F out of MY club