Life’s too short to stay sober

I don't think I have ever anticipated a football game this much in my life.

I went to bed last night after catching up with several blogs and the last picture I looked at before I shut my eyes, was this:

And I woke up, from a dream, a really fuzzy one, but I remembered the details - Eboue scored a double and we beat Barca at the Nou Camp 2-1.

LOL.

It's quite hilarious how my subconscious mind retained Mr Eboue and then projected it on what I desire - a win.

Be wary of what you imprint on your brain before you sleep - it might appear in your dreams. (hahaha)

Okay so team news i.e. injury news ahead of the Barca game aren't favourable at all. Song has gone down. I'm not sure if the boss already decided that he would be the one playing in central defence with Vermaelen, but at least for now, it's pretty up in the air. All that remains is Silvestre or big Sol to fill in. Personally, I think Sol will start. I think he's got it in him to do it, and he cuts a more assured figure than the other option. The brother keeps telling me that Silvestre is more of a left back than a centre back but he prefers to play CB. Whutttt. Still, not really a great judge of things considering that in the last game, he did play at LB but Wolves didn't have anything in their locker to test him at all. Anyway, the point is, we have all sorts of trouble in the centre of our defence.

In midfield it's almost certain that it'll be Diaby and Denilson mopping up the back while Nasri drives the team forward. He only signed for us last season so this is his second season and he's been thrust into action as a replacement for our capitan, Cesc Fabregas. Large shoes to fill no doubt, but he has done well in recent games and has it in him to do a decent job. I think Walcott should start as well, and give Barca a little bit more to worry about. Bendtner's name will definitely be on the team sheet, so what remains is the left side of our attack.

Rosicky, a good candidate for that spot, is 50:50. I don't think that is unexpected at all, considering he played 90 minutes at the weekend. Since returning from injury, Wenger has given him time to slot back in, limiting intitial appearances to half an hour per game or less, used ultra sparingly. It has worked out so far, because he's been fit for the longest time possible. It's just ironic that when he was called upon to play the whole game he comes out 50% crocked. Oh moi Rosicky, I hope you make it. Regardless, I hope the boss doesn't play Eboue on the left of midfield again. A predominant right footed player will suffer greatly on the left. Walcott on the other hand, could do a decent job there (he scored against Barca with his left foot). He'll always be a danger when he cuts in a shoots, and if he cuts in from the left, he'll get to shoot with his stronger right foot, assuming we aren't depending on him for crosses. His final ball is wuzz anyway, so just shoot.

Then we have Almunia. I really don't know what to expect.

All I know is that the entire team will have to snuff out all their individual errors and create something special.

I hope the game lives up to it's billing. The worst thing that could happen is the game being over (i.e. like barca 3-0 up in 6 mins) before we have a chance to fight.

9 hours to kick off.

Labels: Barcelona, Champion's League, clown in goal, Emmanuel Eboue, Theo Walcott, Tomas Rosicky

A Little Drunken Madness @ 3:07 PM

I got up at 1 p.m. thanks to the brother.

Thanks to MIO actually. Can't have too many complaints over the FREE Champion's League coverage, but that meant that it was only available for viewing in my room. The TV in the living room has been stripped bear of all cool cable TV gadgets because shouting outside in the living room will disturb the mother. Shouting in my room on the other hand, has less damaging effects. Also, with MIO currently only broadcasting the CL, it is not viable to get another box now. I will get another for the brother, otherwise, I can forgo all privacy, and if our games clash we will clash too.

But last night was rather enjoyable. I meant the game, save for Bayern conceding a stupid freekick which resulted in the United goal in like, the first minute, from the second pass of the game which was a LONG BALL, something in which the brother is super against because apparently, that's all Liverpool know how to do. It's all part of the game really, if Man Yoo don't hit long balls at all, then you are eligible to condemn Pool. Say, like if you're an Arsenal fan, then you can condemn long balls all you want. We do hit them, but at a rate of close to zero per game, considering that Almunia's distribution is also just as shitty as his handling.

As that game progressed, Edwin Van Der Sar got more and more impressive with his saves, and made me think of our keeper. I think VDS would be quite depressed to know that he reminded me of Manuel Almunia, but for all the good reasons for him, and the bad for us. We really need a good quality keeper that can keep us in games. Almunia has the ability no doubt, but his mental seems to be failing him quite a bit. We all know he can do a good job, but his flapping is getting worse and I really can't think of reasons for that. Is that John Terry screwing his wife?

United's first goal, was a gift from Zorro, a.k.a. Demichellis. He committed the foul, and then slipped when marking Rooney. Jeez. Can you get any luckier than that? But Man Yoo, not being themselves, decided to fuck it all up. I mean, I've never seen them play worse after gaining a lead. Normally, you know, they build on it and keep going and destroy the opposition? Did it to Arsenal, couldn't do it to Bayern. HMM. Mr Brother said after Rooney scored that MU were going to win 4-0, because MU's experience will show. But yeah, the curse of the sister struck again. I think I posted before, about the Everton-MU game over CNY period where it was an early kick off and we were all out on one of our big family dinners. He had no choice but to watch Football Channel on my phone and they lost 3-1. (and he blamed me hahahaha) Had MU lost by the same scoreline, it would have been quite the jinx. A loss, nevertheless. My phone and my TV sent a signal to Frank Ribery and woke him up in the second half. Alert, alert, red devil fan invading gooner territory. Exterminate, exterminate.

I would gloat, but I learned not to, because Arsenal play Barcelona tonight. Home form in Europe suggests that, finally, FOR ONCE, statistics are on our side. We've only lost 1 out of 27 home games in Europe. Don't need to remind you where that 1 loss came from. It's a pretty impressive record, but records are always there to be broken, so hopefully, good things happen and we'll have a chance to maintain that streak in the semis, i.e. by beating Barcelona over 2 legs.

Injury news now are all about Fabregas' fitness. Darn Birmingham City's shitty Craig Gardner asshole decided that he wanted Fab's legs but couldn't get it so he tried to take them off. Then that darn Howard Webb, representative of England at the WC, didn't even bother taking out a yellow from his butt pocket. Srsly. They should stop with the promo materials. He's a shit ref, and with no vested interest at the WC, I hope he fucks up his career in South Africa and just go back to being a policeman.

Other than that, we're good to go. No really. Gallas will make it back and restore the fantastic CB partnership with Vermaelen, who decided that it was necessary to say that he quit Ajax to play against Barcelona. Heh. From Dutch football, to the premier league, and doing an excellent job so far. Yet another crown jewel unearthed by Le Prof. Chamakh scored last night with an excellent header and if he does come, I think he'll do very well over here, no matter how much I want Edin Dzeko. I signed him in FM and he is awesome. But yeah, we have Bendtner, who is the same type so Wenger will never sign him or it'll 'kill Bendtner'. Then when Dzeko becomes a big hit in another team, Wenger will say that he was considering a move for him but it wasn't viable. So, we should just stick to NB52 (nahbeh 52) and hope for the best, especially tonight. He will be jey no doubt, and his bust up with Adebayor wasn't the only bust up with another striker he thinks he's better than. In the very special Scandinavian rivalry, he and Ibrahimovic had a 'war of words' in the media when Denmark took on the Swedes. I always feel that the stars like to align on matters like this ergo make this all happen. Neither players have spoken about each other but I don't think they like each other very much. Nicky was on the winning team that time, 1-0.

I WOULD SO TOTALLY TAKE THAT SCORE TO THE NOU CAMP.

I think stopping the away goal is key, and I really don't mind if Arsenal put on a great defensive shift, i.e. being responsible at the back. We always have the ability to score, but not the ability to defend. Between 2 teams who rely so much of attacking play, perhaps the key lies in their defensive performance. Don't know what to expect tonight, in terms of tactics, but it should be a cracker of a game, regardless. And of course I exclude any possibility of Barca scoring and us not winning. (only then it'll be a cracker.)

Winning ugly when we absolutely need to, is another mark of Champions. Tonight, I don't care about the pretty football. All I want is a win and a clean sheet.

Do it, lads.

P.S. credit to Singtel for the free coverage. Nothing like winning Singaporeans over with FREE good quality stuff. A marketing genius. The queues outside ST shops will never subside and everyone I know will be catching next season's action. Offering lower prices means higher sales and more satisfied customers, while they have a chance to market their other channels, no matter how crappy they are. I'm just here for the football. The concept of Season Pass however, is a very good one.

Labels: bump Singtel, Champion's League, Man Utd, Nicklas Bendtner

A Little Drunken Madness @ 1:28 PM

WHAT THE FUCKKKKKKKK.

The above is in response to the Champion's League quarter final and semi final draw.

Q1 Lyon vs Bordeaux
Q2 Bayern vs Man Utd
Q3 Arsenal vs Barcelona
Q4 Inter vs CSKA Moscow

winner of Q1 plays winner of Q2 and Q3 play Q4 in the semi finals, i.e. we're at the tougher part of the draw.

The draw is made. The fixtures are laid. Game on.

I blame Messi really. He had to come out to talk about Arsenal. And then Thierry Henry. Thierry had to say that he would totally have an emo break if he had to play Arsenal.

For me, it has been a long time coming. Somehow, we all knew that we'll face Thierry someday and with his contract at Camp Nou expiring in the summer, this was probably the last chance for the footballing Gods to arrange this match up. Also, probably the ONLY chance for an all French quarter final. Didn't they know that Arsenal is French too? It could have been all French is some other way.

On the plus side, Arsenal vs Barcelona will be the biggest highlight of the draw. Two teams that zip the ball so well on their day, against each other, competing who can zip the ball better and put it in the back of the net. Both play possession football so it'll be interesting how the posession statistic is balanced.

Cue more Cesc to Barca stories but I'm sure he'll be licking his lips with regard to this draw.

Alrighty. Not a welcomed distraction from the league. West Ham tomorrow. We need business as usual amidst all the hype that will be building leading up to Barcelona.

Labels: Barcelona, Champion's League

A Little Drunken Madness @ 7:20 PM

When you're feeling BLUE, it helps to go for a run to release some endorphins. You'll feel exponentially better after you get your heart rate up. That's exactly what I did a while ago and my spirits are high again.

Of course, if you're feeling BLUE because you're a BLUE, I got no remedy for you.

*cue incessant laughter

...and the gloating should stop here.

Chelsea got knocked out of the Champion's League by Mourinho's Inter Milan. Oh how thou art moan and whine, you know, the same bunch who accused Arsenal fans of moaning and whining when we had players with broken legs. Now they're doing the M&W themselves. Pot calling the kettle black much? Not much sympathy there. Read the reports, they deserved to lose by the way they played. If you bothered yourself with what a blues supporter has to say, then you can go read their post Inter Milan musings. Gotta be a funny read where you can quote here, there and everywhere, examples of M&W.

So why the gloating has to stop is 1) Chelsea just cut out at least 2 midweek games from their fixtures. Pulling their concentration on the league perhaps is some consolation for their M&W fans.

2) Inter Milan, who have been quite impressive over the 2 legs, will be in the hat for the quarter final draw. Probably one of the teams to avoid, yet if there is a conspiracy theory out there, then I'll bet they'll draw an English side again, meaning Arsenal or United.

Barcelona play Stuttgart tonight while Bordeaux play Olympiacos. They'll be fighting for the last 2 places. Barcelona have a higher chance of qualifying at home really, while Bordeaux take their one away goal and the one-goal lead home. What were the odds of 2 French teams being in the hat?

So the 6 so far are:
1) Arsenal
2) Bayern Munich
3) Man Yoo
4) Lyon
5) Inter
6) CSKA Moscow

CSKA is pretty interesting. Everyone would remember the 0-0 draw we had with them which was like 20 chances and no goals thanks to players (TR7) missing from 2-3 yards in front of goal and all that. I hope it's a one time thing. It's nearing spring now so I don't think a trip to Russia would be more daunting then travelling there in winter during the group stages. Other than that, I think we'll take it as it comes.

Last season, out of the 8 teams in the draw, 4 were English. This season, only 2 English teams have made it. We have this consistency in Europe and it's no mean feat and down to Arsene Wenger. Hopefully, we'll be able to take it all the way to Madrid this season.

April couldn't come sooner man.

Liverpool beat Portsmouth emphatically and yet another conspiracy theory ensures that Gerrard does not face discipline action despite elbowing someone and then bringing him down. He'll be facing United and I'm sure the whole team will be galvanised for their upcoming clash with Man Yoo. It could well be a major title tilt.

Last season, when L'pool were right up there with United, we were the ones who were fighting for 4th and the ones to play both teams in the season run-in. This time, it's Liverpool's turn to have a say in this title fight. For once, I hope they do well.

Labels: Champion's League, Chelsea, Liverpool

A Little Drunken Madness @ 2:54 PM

A fantastic win, and I can't help but give a few moments to ponder Emmanuel Adebayor.

He's missing out on ALL the juicy action. His move to City has made him the best paid footballer in the premier league thanks to Ronaldo departing for Spain.

Was it all worth it?

His arch enemy Nicklas Bendtner bagged a hattrick that saw Arsenal through to the quarter finals of the Champion's League, with the team still in the hunt for the title. It makes my stomach twist and turn quite a bit more with excitement at those two prospects.

Yet what is Adebayor doing?

Whining about how he was forced out of Arsenal. If he really were and he didn't leave for the money after blaming us fans, then what a move by Arsene Wenger. Can't help but wonder as well, how Kolo Toure would fit into this side.

As it stands, Wenger whose moves are all so spot on, has gotten rid of the two weakest links in the Arsenal side and it proved to work so damn well.

In the Bendtner-Adebayor dispute he will never come out in defence of either player but Adebayor made it sound like everything was in favour of the big Dane, victimising himself yet again. Nothing's set in stone yet but what a time Arsenal is having and I wonder how much he regrets his move away.

Luck is on Adebayor's side though - Liverpool have been nothing short of nonsensical this term, paving the way for the top 4 wannabees to waltz into the last Champion's League qualification spot. As it is, Liverpool may not even make the Europa league if they don't get 5th spot either.

I don't care about City being in the CL at all. They seem to only play for the big games but they lack a whole lot more to be able to handle more than one competition, especially one like Europe. Next season, the home-grown regulations in the league kick in and I think they're going to have a lot of trouble with that one. Nevertheless, as long as Sp*rs don't get it I'm happy. I'm rooting for City and Villa and Sp*rs for 5th. You'd notice that when they're remotely in the European second tier their domestic season goes haywire. They were battling relegation at the start of last season weren't they? Yet another team who cannot have more than 1 competition to compete in.

If I'm not wrong, the winner of the Europa League gets a straight ticket into the CL next season. Imagine if Liverpool achieved that feat - they're still in the reckoning for it. That would probably mean the top 3 getting the CL spots while the battle for fourth will be rendered lost.

The above would be clearer in the coming weeks but we need Liverpool and Sp*rs to up their game (until we travel to WHL) with them still to play Chelsea and United. Those games could be pivotal. Can Sp*rs actually help us indirectly?

So. After going through to the next round, the potential oppositions spring to mind. There won't be any easy match-up and I'm not sure if it's our turn for an all English quarter final. We did play United last season in the Semis. What an incredible season this will turn out to be if we draw Chelsea or United and WIN. People will stop bleating about how we don't deserve the league having not beaten them. So if we do, do we deserve the CL crown then?

Plenty to speculate till the draw. With the knockout stages being played over such a long period in order to maximise TV revenue, there's still a pretty long wait for the lottery to take place. What's more interesting is that Chelsea might not even go through. Inter Milan is no Porto. If the fixtures are considered kind, then us being one of the first teams to get qualification for the quarters out of the way is fantastic. Attention can now shift to the league and like Wenger said, Hull will yet be another big game for Arsenal. They have their work cut out now - win the remaining 9 games.

Labels: Champion's League, Emmanuel Adebayor

A Little Drunken Madness @ 3:20 PM

My internet is shittin slow. Man.

Anyway. I caught the game last night, at least the first half. It was torture to watch because I was dead sleepy by the time the kick off came, and then the lads didn't make it any easier.

I know it was a young team being put out there but with the way they started, the expectations simply mounted and I was just looking for a great show where the youngsters beat the Greeks but it was all not meant to be.

The lads did a good job at emulating their senior players in the style in which they jink the ball around and their movement was fantastic.

The bad part is, like the senior team, without a proper target man leading the line in a 4-3-3, it's the same old story all over again. A lot of possession, but no goals to show for it.

We all love that smooth attacking football the team plays but last night just reminded me of why we simply can't win a game dirty and other teams can. We keep possession really well but when it doesn't translate into goals due to the final balls being shit or the opposing team crowding the attack out, there are genuine problems over there.

Possession doesn't win things. Goals do. This is precisely how we can lose to teams who have one shot on target and one goal. They take their chances. We don't always do and it's been costing us.

I know I'm being too overly negative over last night since it was rather meaningless but yeah, it just brought out all the frustrations that have bottled up over the seasons.

The positive side of things were that the lads never gave up and kept fighting. They were punished by a goal that was pretty soft and basically how people play when they're up against us. They play 11 men behind the damn ball and we struggle to create chances and when someone squanders possession in dangerous areas the opponent counter attacks and gets the goal with their first shot on target.

Yep. The story of Arsenal.

So the Champion's league moves on to the last 16 and the draw will be taking place next Friday. Obviously, thanks to Singtel, I won't be able to watch the draw. Unless of course, I just remembered, I'll be in Bangkok next week where Singtel is out of bounds from. That makes me happy.

The teams we would possible face are a mix of the peeps we want to avoid and those others that look a little more manageable. This time though, since we've topped the group, we wouldn't get to whine if we got someone more challenging. Last season's draw was pretty dangerous but we managed. It's all down to luck, this one.

Anyway yeah. The possible teams are Bayern Munich, Ac Milan, Inter Milan, CSKA Moscow, Lyon, Porto and Stuttgart. Every team presents a challenge. Bayern seems to be on the rise now while the two Milans are best avoided. A trip to Moscow may not be at our best interests considering our past records in that freezing wasteland. Karim Benzema is no longer at Lyon and Porto we've already played many times. Stuttgart would be pretty interesting.

And I can't help but notice Liverpool missing out on all the action. They might go on and win the first ever Europa League you know.

Hah.

No football till Sunday. I have survived the entire day with 2 hours of sleep. I'm going to burn out very soon.

Labels: Champion's League, Liverpool

A Little Drunken Madness @ 10:05 PM

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

What a hilarious match. Like whuuuutttt.

You know, I wanted to by half goal Arsenal, meaning Arsenal wins the game by 2 goals. Thank freakin heavens I didn't have the time to do it. 5 minutes into the game and we're already 2 goals down -_-

What rubbish. First, it was a back heel by Eduardo where the ball was most probably for Cesc but it reached a Liege player first who made no mistake to put it in the back of our net. Then Gallas tripped another Liege player in the box not so soon after and they converted from the spot.

If memory serves me right, Mannone has not kept a clean sheet in his senior Arsenal career. And he had to stand in-goal for a penalty in both games as well. Like hahaha. Not his fault at all. I think the young lad needs better luck.

So 2-0 down in the first 5 minutes. Diabolical. Absolutely diabolical.

After that you expect a reaction and some urgency but it never came. The passing was wayward and they weren't finding their man. At all. Then from nothing, Diaby suddenly woke up and with some good skill he delivered a perfect pass for Bendtner to sprint onto and to finish from a tight angle.

2-1 at half time, and that brought us right back in the game. That was the crucial goal. Many a time we go behind early on but still go into the break goalless. This time there was a response just before half time and it was timely. Goals at the right time changes the mentality of the team.

After the break, it was back to being sloppy. The dudes maintained their cool and patience and tried to find a way through to no avail. And then we finally got some luck with the equaliser, which is highly controversial by any standards. Hilarious to say the least. I was literally laughing my ass off. 3 players were offside and that was what looks like a handball by Song.

Cant say this isn't deserved with the pressure Arsenal put on them. They too just sat back and invited us into their own half. Besides, their award of the penalty was pretty soft as well. I think the Eduardo factor probably played a part too. On another day the ref could just dismiss it, especially if it happened to us.

Anyway, with the equaliser you always knew Arsenal would be going all the way and getting the winning goal. And they did, through Eduardo's knee. That redeems him of his error earlier on but it certainly did not make the job easier for us. I'm glad he's back and around and I hope this whole diving shit will be history sooner than later.

All through the game when it was 2-0, I was thinking about the ex-gunners and their thoughts, you know, the ones who aren't involved in European football at all. Man City hasn't bothered to contest Adebayor's charge for violent conduct and good ol Emmanuel, in his pension home would be sitting in front of his TV watching the Arsenal, laughing at the scoreline.

Except that in the second half Arsenal hit 3 goals despite it being however unlikely and unbelievable.

Hilarious is the word. I don't think we'll ever get another comeback as easy as this one, especially when the players weren't doing as well as they should be.

All in all, it's 3 points and a win for a change. Glad the next game will be back at home. It is so much nicer at home.

Unexpected beginning, with a more unexpected result.

This is a fluke win.

Note to self: Bendtner is much better in the central role

Labels: Champion's League, Eduardo Da Silva, Vito Mannone, what kind of fuckery is this

A Little Drunken Madness @ 4:39 AM

I have reverted to normal human sleeping times and staying awake throughout the entire match was no mean feat. I mean, I let myself fall asleep at half time and woke up at the 60th minute or so.

It was status quo then, after Gallas scored yet another important goal in a second successive qualifier, the first goal that we need. I figured now for Arsenal, getting the first goal is crucial.

There was one Gary Caldwell, who showed us how much of a cunt he is. He went in on Cesc and claimed no foul but we got the free kick and we've got him to thank for that opportunity to put the ball in his net. Thereafter, he decided to do us one better and put the ball in the same place for us by expertly turning in Gael Clichy's cross.

This is the part where I say thank you very much.

And then pray and hope that all their cunty players who decided to keep Cesc at bay by going in hard on him did not hurt him. It's like he's receiving the Ronaldo treatment minus the part where he doesn't dive.

So we got the result we wanted. The passing and the movement of the team is fan-freakin-tastic and stray passes were a rarity. That is one part of the Arsenal game the boys have improved on greatly. That much said, in the past 2 games, we've been blessed with the chances to get the first goal and allow the rest to be history. There'll come a time where we might get off to a slower start and allow the opposition to get at us so that's probably the next test we might face. Too often a time last season we concede first just to have to put up a fight. That's going to be a good indication of the team's character development and that's one to look forward to.

There were league games going on at the same time and I found Sunderland really funny. Darren Bent scored once more after his sole goal in the league opener secured 3 points. I suppose he might have thought his against Chelsea might have the same effect. Who knew Chelsea would hit 3 back after the break to beat them comfortably. Wigan with their new manager enjoyed a solid opening game at Villa Park, just to lose to Wolves in the next game.

This just shows how much the first game is not a good indicator of the season to come. We have won 6-1. Like Fab says, it's just one down, 37 to go. I get the feeling the squad is more focused than ever and this could be our year. We couldn't have known that the weak links of the team were Adebayor and Toure, you know, Adefuckyour, who claims Cesc will walk out Arsenal's door if we don't qualify for the Champion's league. I suppose he must have been rooting for Celtic.

I still don't understand how a player can choose to fight for a team to achieve Champion's League status over a team who is fighting for the Champion's League trophy. His IQ is probably in the region of -10 or he doesn't have a brain. I guess we can safely assume that he thinks with his motor mouth.

If we manage to lift the trophy in May, I might send him a postcard on Cesc's behalf with 'HAHA' X 8924779342984 on it. Isn't it more prestigious to be a part of Arsenal's history?

He indeed does think with his ass. We do not need to hear anything else he has to say about Arsenal because he's not one of us and has no business speaking about us.

Oh yes, we beat Celtic 2-0 at Celtic park. We're halfway there. Fuck off Adebayor.

Labels: A tag for cunts, Celtic, Cesc Fabregas, Champion's League, Chelsea, Emmanuel Adebayor

A Little Drunken Madness @ 4:42 AM

The better team won.

Thank heavens it's Barcelona.

The Man U shits can sulk all they want. What a heavenly result.

Labels: Barcelona, Champion's League, Man Utd

A Little Drunken Madness @ 4:43 AM

It's about an hour till the kick off to the Champion's League Final in Rome which we're not taking part in because we sucked over 2 legs of the semi finals.

But I'm going to watch it anyway because there's Barcelona to root for. Please win so that the fella who lives next door does not own any further bragging rights. He is one of the biggest cunts on the planet.

Aside from that, I hope Titi plays and is the one who hammers the nails in the United coffin. He joined Barca for the sole reason of lifting the Champion's League in his career and he thoroughly deserves to have that accolade under his belt. Me being be will just sit and mope in one corner because he's right. He wouldn't have reached thus far had he stayed in North London.

It could have been Arsenal playing Barca but it wasn't meant to be. Don't want to bring up how much we do not deserve to be there anyway. If we were though, what a day out it would be for titi.

ANYWAY. IT WAS ALL NOT MEANT TO BE. SADLY.

So whatever. Just no United win please. They're a bunch of cunts.

And Barca better not come up with a "I want Cesc Fabregas and Robin Van Persie" shit or I'll send rotten pizza to Catalonia.

P.S. I've added my current avatar to my sidebar. All in the name of swine flu.

Labels: Barcelona, Champion's League

A Little Drunken Madness @ 1:32 AM

Is there any blame?

I don't think I'm in any position to point fingers.

Looking at the starting line-up, it was what the fans wanted, with Diaby absent and Djourou instead of Silvestre. There was no doubt about Gibbs in left back.

Except that the formation was a 4-2-3-1. Sometimes I wonder why Arsene Wenger is hell bent on putting Adebayor up against arguably, one of the best centre back partnership in the world. They're good, but when Gallas was around with Toure, it could rival that too. The point is that Adebayor vs either 1 of them is a handful already. Adebayor handling 2 of them at the same time is probably creates the least chances. And then he forced Robin out left with Fab in the centre, who interchanged with Nasri.

Arsenal started out well, but that lasted all of everything before the 7th minute.

The mentality was that they had to score 2 more to win so they went on a full scale attack from the beginning and if the lack of experience failed to remind them that they have to defend. All United needed was an away goal to seal their passage through. They already had the lead they brought from Old Trafford so counter attacking was what they should employ. And they did it to perfection.

The first goal was key. And Gibbs has been doing well till perhaps a while ago but there is no blame here.

Playing an odd 4-2-3-1 formation means it's not so straight forward who has to cover the full backs. In a 4-4-2 it is understood that the left and right flankers cover the full backs on their side. In a 4-2-3-1 the 3 up there tend to concentrate more on attack, leaving the full backs utterly exposed. Obviously SAF knew that to send on Park instead of Tevez to cause trouble and it worked. Took all of only 8 minutes.

The only thing I enjoyed was Robin going over to Gibbs to tell him it's ok. So you'll expect the more senior players to rise to the occasion.

And then Almunia fails to keep out Ronaldo's free kick.

There is yet again, no blame here. The quality of the shot was impeccable. And no one did their homework. After that goal Almunia improved to keep out the rest of the freekicks but it was a knack too late.

And this is precisely why Arse fans do not want any 'Almunia for England' talk. That kind of added pressure to try and entice Fabio Capello instead of concentrating on the game is not welcomed. Almunia may not have set out to do it, but mistakes like these drags him into the spotlight, and and rather bad one at that.

Still nothing compared to David James' error at the weekend but no Almunia for England please.

And there is also no blame for the third goal because this is a cup game and Arsenal threw so many bodies forward, all United needed to do was nick possession and send it towards our goal instead.

Then just before the last 15 minutes of the game, Darren Fletcher brought down Fabregas from behind, which the entire world proclaims to be a bad decision. I don't really care. Like it matters. I have no sympathy for a team who's worrying which player they won't have for the final.

I have only anger for the team who allowed it to happen yet can anyone pin point who to blame? It was a collective team effort and a comprehensive defeat, like SAF planned every minute of that game. Not to perfection though, because he wouldn't have wanted that red card.

Biggest game of their Arsenal careers? Makes me want to cry thinking about it. The fans did their part until some couldn't bear to watch when it was 3-0. The players want the fans' support and watch till the last minute but srsly, do they deserve it?

60,000 in the stadium with their flags and voices, placing their happiness and trust in the hands of the 11 people on the pitch and they get screwed over in the 8th minute.

I tried to be positive and it lasted all of 3 minutes before Ronaldo's freekick went in.

sidenote: David Beckham couldn't be a bigger cunt. He made use of Arsenal to maintain his fitness and now comes back to jeer. He should have flown back to Manchester instead. Does SAF take in strays? Or will he take the opportunity to throw a boot again?

And I now know why everyone misses Highbury. The Emirates is magnificent, but the games she has hosted so far haven't lived up to it's billing.

And I don't want to read in the news about revenge or whatever shit because the team will be playing Man Utd again on 16 May at Old Trafford. It doesn't work that way. It's a load of crap so if anyone even mentions that I'll get really pissed.

Labels: Almunia, Champion's League, Man Utd, one of my many theories

A Little Drunken Madness @ 4:37 AM

After all the nutella, I most obviously had a chocolate dream. Or a really rubbish one. Like I was caught dead wearing a pair of crocs. That is OMFG bad. Crocs shouldn't even be allowed as a footwear for adults. Children I can understand. Anyone above 15 wearing crocs shouldn't exist.

I know why I am emotionless with respects to last night's game. The score should have been 4-0 but it is 1-0 so it is in fact, a very good thing considering the circumstances. I just can't be happy since it is still a loss, and their goal was a result of poor defending and nothing of whatever attacking quality Ferguson speaks of.

Who is by they way, starting his mind games shit or it is just natural for him. I think his comments were funny though, with respects to the game at the weekend. United have to beat Boro to keep their lead over Liverpool. We play Portsmouth, and frankly, if we manage to rest our key players and throw the game, it might not matter. So Fergie says:

"Arsenal's big advantage is that they can play Pat Rice at right-back and Arsene himself at centre-forward on Saturday"

And it's kinda funny. The good thing is that Wenger isn't fat or anything like Benitez and is rather fit. He definitely would not say the same for benitez. How many times have you came across Wenger with the ball in training? Many many. Centre forward? No problemo. He might even be better than Adebayor, that useless piece of shit. He comes out to say he wants trophies, wants to end Arsenal's drought, wants to end his own drought and whatever nonsense his big mouth can spout. At the end of the day, when you put in that kind of shitty performance with no desire and commitment, all these things you've said before comes back to bite you in the ass. SO. I wonder what he's going to say now. Had a late night with Beyonce? She knocked his balls out?

Dudu came on yesterday at the 83rd minute or so and I think it is quite evident that when you play Eduardo you need a 4-4-2 simply because the centre backs tend to look at least a head taller. But when you have a lazy Adebayor instead, I'll have dudu any day.

I really miss the damn 4-4-2 formation. I really hate 4-5-1. It only work when Adebayor decides he wants to play. And then Cesc in the advanced attacking role is just wrong. He is not the fastest and the most powerful. He is a passer of the ball with fantastic vision to see the runs of his team mates before anyone does. That kind of quality we should use from deep to kick start the attack.

Diaby should never be in the team.

Now we all miss Robin. And Gallas. Gibbs has been doing so well we don't miss Clichy. Last night though, I did miss a little bit of Eboue. Do you know how well loved he is in the team? Because he is the funny man. Anyway. He links up better with Theo than Sagna does because he does possess that little bit more of attacking instinct. Even if he doesn't dive, he is capable of drawing fouls and is skillful on the ball. On the other hand, Sagna is more defensively sound and you would want that if you're marking the likes of Rooney.

Gallas getting injured like that probably cost us the most. The defence was having the time of their lives until somewhere out there, a higher being decided that Arsene Wenger can never have an almost full squad at his disposal to pick off his opponents. THAT REALLY SUCKS.

Now we await the return of Robin and hopefully, we can play a 4-4-2 in the return leg. Robin and stupid Adebayor up front, Nasri and Walcott flanking, Song and Fabregas in midfield. Even if Robin doesn't come back, play Eduardo please. And since Dudu links up soo well with Bendtner, I'd bench stinkin Adebayor and ship him off in the summer. Him and all this AC Milan talk makes me want to slap him. Drawing media attention to yourself is one thing. Doing what you say is a whole completely different story and people get pissed when you're shit. Asswipe.

I hate it when our attack is toothless and our defence is rubbish. Admitedly they defended better in the second half, but the attack still remained toothless. It should be quite evident what is missing - a good midfield. Midfield is where defence converts to attack and when you don't have your best player there it creates all sorts of problems e.g. zero goals at Old Trafford.

Now we need to win the game at Emirates by at least 2 goals regardless of whether United scores. They'll be employing Chelsea's favourite tactics (besides defending) of sitting in their own half and counter attacking when they get the ball and frankly, United are most capable of taking their chances that way.

If anyone wants to compare semi final 1 to semi final 2, there isn't much actually. I thought that they were both equally boring besides me having emotional connections to one of the teams. That's about it. Arsenal never rose to play their game and we didn't see what we were all expecting. That makes disappointment turn to anger because we believe in these players and even though they're young and lacking in experience, as long as they have the desire and commitment no one can fault them.

Did they?

Not enough. Not freakin enough.

The emotions are all surfacing and they're that of anger. Throw nutella at Adebayor. Skin Diaby. If we had 11 performing players and 2 are shit, the result is shit. Football requires all 11 to be at the top of their game. I hate Diaby and I don't see a point of him. Had he partnered Song in front of the defence, he would have been losing the ball in more crucial areas i.e. in our own half and that could have been more trouble.

Shithead.

Labels: Abou Diaby, Cesc Fabregas, Champion's League, Emmanuel Adebayor

A Little Drunken Madness @ 3:16 PM

I have attacked the tub of nutella in the fridge. It may well be a tub of butter but just something greasy and unhealthy in large amounts.

I'm pretty emotionless right now because I don't know what to feel.

Before the game there was so much hype and whatever and all the hopes and dreams that the people who can make a difference on the pitch will do so.

Sometimes, I hate it when the whole team talks too much about a lot of shit.

Diaby spoke.
Adebayor spoke.

And those two were the idiots who should be shot. Adebayor in particular, for even saying that he will score at Old Trafford. What a performance to prove it without the damn goal.

Diaby was just being Diaby. Gives me a headache thinking about it.

Bendtner came on and did well but not enough. I would have preferred him coming on for Diaby with Theo shifting to the left.

Overall, the first goal was a result of diabolical defending once again and United fans would have loved it because it was an assist from Silvestre. He did okay though, for the rest of the game.

Almunia kept our bid to reach the final alive and I can't express how grateful I am to him.

Alright, back to my nutella. Too stoned to really do anything besides knowing we need to win 2-0 at the Emirates to go through without the horror of penalties.

And that is without United scoring. That means we'll all die of cardiac arrest watching the game, especially if the team holds out till the final minutes. Just one goal could just take away everything.

Yes nutella is calling me.

Labels: Almunia, Champion's League, Man Utd

A Little Drunken Madness @ 4:48 AM

I can only assume that meeting Chelsea in the final of the FA Cup wasn't motivation enough for Man Utd to win it.

I can't really decide who was the better side in this game since they both had flashes of dominance yet it didn't result in goals. If United thought keeping it 0-0 till the end or on level terms and going down to penalties would get them through, they should figure out that they only can do it against Sp*rs and of course, Chelsea, whom they nicked the Champion's League trophy from.

The repercussions from United's loss means that they have narrowed down their possible trophy collection to 2 - the League title and the European crown.

Their league hopes could hinge on the result they get against us in May, where I hope 4th spot should be all but secured when Villa drew with West Ham. We still have to try and win every game still and Liverpool's next. 7 points all but separate us.

Then there's that Champion's League semi final.

It is scary thinking of it, but you just hope against all hope that in one and a half week's time, we can get rid of Silvestre entirely with the return of Djourou.

So it'll be an all blue Wembley final. I hate the colour blue. Nothing personal, just don't like that primary colour and every other colour derived from it. I love red. But I hate Liverpool red which is too much on the bright side. It's like chili red.

I like our white stripe. And then I think I'm a little late watching the special program on football rivalries between Arsenal and Sp*rs and Herbert Chapman who was from Sp*rs and how he added that white stripe to our jersey when he was at helm, apparently injection some of Sp*rs' apparent 'purity' into us. I thought that was funny really. Sp*rs and purity?

They all go for the same girl Danielle Lloyd. First up, Teddy Sheringham, then Jermaine Defoe and now Jamie O'Hara. They sure like passing the baton. And this girl is like the sluttiest tramp you can find out there who has a preference for footballers. She likes to be enroled permanently in the WAGs club. And then three dumbasses from across the street fall prey.

Perfect.

Any club with a bloody bird in their emblem is just no good. Like Charles Itandje and his monkeying around at a memorial service.

Did I mention I hate birds too? Nasty flying thinggys with abundance of shit and no toilet.

There are bigger games coming up. We already knew going into this week that at the end of it, we'll know exactly how our season will shape up. It's rather like if we have anything left to play for. Thankfully to the higher being up there, we are still in one competition. There was a potential to be in none. And if we had to choose which trophy we want to still be playing for, eyes closed, hands down, it's the Champion's League.

And hopefully, against all hope, we'll stay till the final and beat whoever comes our way.

Labels: Champion's League, Chelsea, FA Cup, Liverpool, Man Utd, Sp*rs

A Little Drunken Madness @ 1:46 AM

I remember the brother dissing me because Arsenal is not in the title race. And then he said that he won't give a shit if Arsenal beat Man Utd from now till the end of the season.

I'm sure he'll want to take that back right this moment.

Remaining fixtures are:
18 Sat Chelsea (FA Cup)
21 Tue Liverpool (A)
26 Sun Boro (H)
29 Wed United (A) (CL)

02 Sat Portsmouth (A)
05 Tue United (H) (CL)
10 Sun Chelsea (H)
16 Sat United (A)
24 Sun Stoke (H)

Cough. That's playing Man Utd 3 more times before the season ends. There are a hell lot of big games coming up.

So the headlines following Arsenal's 3-0 win over Villarreal at the grove are that of Arsenal cruising. I didn't think that was the case, besides the point where them yellow submarines didn't really give us a run for our money. No scares of any sort, which is so characteristic of Arsenal when you watch them and not go into cardiac arrest.

A very pleasing change, but we had to wait an hour for 2 goals which pointed more to safety. And it was well worth the wait. Villarreal were showing signs of getting back in the game, which was the best they managed. Showing signs. Nothing concrete resulted and Adebayor came up with another important goal. It was kind like Drogba when he scored for Chelsea who were 2-0 down at that time. We need someone who can score this kind of goal which gets the team going when they start to lose their footing somewhat.

That said, I kinda skipped Theo's goal. They're coming from out of the blue aren't they? In the last 2 games he broke his goal drought. Against Wigan it was crucial and it honestly came from nowhere after Arshavin was on the ground but what a splendid finish. Tonight's finish was spectacular so to speak, and it did look like out from nowhere. Who'd expect Captain Fab to back heel the ball so neatly into his path en route to the goal.

I conclude that Cesc Fabregas does not have blindspots. Either that or he has eyes behind his back. That would make him a total freak so yes, Cesc does not have blindspots. Wow.

The penalty was earned by Theo, who really had a fantastic game. He's coming of age isn't he? I read a recent interview about his growth physically and he upped a shirt size with all the work in the gym. Melanie Slade would be pleased and so would we all. He has the strength to hold off defenders and is still quick on the turn. The penalty is quite debatable since the defender was adjudged to get the ball but in truth, it went in that direction because Theo was attempting a turn so he could pass it. He wasn't going in for the penalty. Gotta love the dude. There isn't a bit of dirtiness in his play, unlike a few players we have. They're hilarious by the way. We all know the level of dirtiness of Robin. If he could stick one in without the ref looking he would. Haha.

Dirty but not dangerous.

The dancing is funneh. The dancing from the players is funneh. The dancing by the manager? That's the funniest. It's like they all practiced together during training but Arsene got it all wrong. They should make a gif out of it. It's so fantastically funny.

Back to United, they look like they're starting to get their footing back. They got their clean sheet in Porto with their 2 rock solid central defenders back. It's going to be a tight clash for us two but still fantastic nonetheless.

I didn't realise that we both played the teams which were with us in the group stages. United did what we couldn't and beat Porto at home while we did what United couldn't by beating Villarreal. It's like it all is fated.

So now, depending on Chelsea, the final could be all English once again. At least 50% of it will be. Either that or Barcelona's there to welcome either us or United in Rome.

I am not counting any chickens.

And there isn't as much adrenaline as compared to last night. Boohoo.

Labels: Cesc Fabregas, Champion's League, Man Utd, Theo Walcott, villarreal

A Little Drunken Madness @ 5:34 AM

Watching football releases adrenaline. Adrenaline keeps a person from sleeping, even when it's human sleeping time.

Not that I was watching any of Arsenal in action. They play tonight in what I think should be heart stopping. I'll get to that later.

So, Chelsea 4 Liverpool 4. Chelsea progress 7-5 on aggregate. That is amazingly a lot goals more than Barcelona's 5-1. Whatever it is, they're going to be the teams battling out for their side to feature in the final.

8 goals.

Liverpool got 2 early ones which brought them back to perhaps getting through. By half time it was still 2-0 but I don't know what happened and they let Chelsea peg 2 goals back and Chelsea didn't look the side which beat them in the first leg. But they manage the goals somehow. Liverpool did put up a fight. At some point in the contest, they needed 2 goals, then they managed to score and made it back to 1 goal. Then Chelsea will score and then it goes back to where it was. I thought that was quite retarded. If you wanted to put up a fight, follow through till the end where you get a result. They went in half-heartedly and while being in reach of qualification with the deficit reduced to 1 goal. Then the deficit increased.

Retarded, but a match with goals where it leaves you second guessing who'll go thought is quite thrilling. Doesn't matter to me who goes through. I was just thinking of Chelsea having one extra day to recover before they meet us at Wembley so if Liverpool got a 3-1 and forced the game into extra time that'll be awesome. But it wasn't all meant to be. And I thought Liverpool would have won but miss qualification anyway.

bahaha. So whatever. At least the FA Cup isn't all Chelsea is playing for?

Now onto our Villarreal game. I think they're going to attack from the first minute with nothing to lose. That frightens me. And I'm sure Pires will start this time. He is capable of causing us all sorts of problems. And with our defence in the state that it is in, it is highly worrying. But we all have to be positive. Maybe they can attack us at the grove but we have a lot of quality on the counter attack. If we get the first goal then they will have to attack a lot more and we should work to kill them off on the break.

Once again, the match is so dependent on that first goal. Chelsea went into their tie with a 3-1 lead but they were made to work to get through. We have a 1 away goal advantage and that means something, but truly, it really depends on tonight.

No goals for Villarreal please.

Alrighty then, since I can't sleep, I should get breakfast.

Labels: Champion's League, Chelsea, Liverpool, one of my many theories, villarreal

A Little Drunken Madness @ 7:29 AM

New banner/layout/whatever you call it. Not exactly a layout change. Updated picture?

It's dudu! I wanted to but Arshavin in too but that'll be a little too much. Eduardo can hold his own. :D

Anyway that's not what I'm here for.

ASTON VILLA 3 EVERTON 3

HAHAHAHA.

What a laugh. This weekend of football has left me in stitches. First Silvestre scores and puts us ahead. Then Jason Koumas lays a perfectly weighted pass for Arshavin to ram home. And father of 2, Alex Song scores. I hope this father of 2 thing won't get old. It funny.

And I read about Villa and Everton who talk up their ability to snatch 4th spot from Arsenal. Considering the way Everton played last week with that 4-0 trashing of Wigan, you'd expect them to have the momentum to take 3 points off Villa and be 7 points behind Arsenal in 5th spot. The did start better, with 2 early goals and 2-goal leads twice in the match which they conveniently threw away. I said Villa is losing much steam and good performances not followed by results can be a problem and it showed early on. They however, found that extra drive to peg Everton back almost immediately and Howard Webb on their side.

The Howard Webb who yellow carded Messi for a dive in a blatent penalty claim and sent Pep Guardiola to the stands. I don't suppose awarding Villa a crucial penalty which would put them on level terms any kind of redemption considering that it wasn't a penalty at all?

And he is England's best, globetrotting and receiving hate mail by the tons.

So I wanted Villa and Everton to draw and I got the result I wanted. They both lose 2 points, and are 8 and 9 points behind Arsenal respectively. That is a good buffer to take into the games with Liverpool, Chelsea and United in the league. Sometimes in football it can be worrying when one team is playing to keep 4th and another is playing for the title. In all logic, the one going for the title is going to have something extra to take the game. It is just the mentality of the situation presented. In any case, thank you Howard Webb for the penalty hahahaha. I think Martin O'Neill will be thanking him too while Moyes, Ferguson's preferred successor, should be red-faced in anger. He was screaming really hard on the sidelines. Expect a fine. Who can blame him anyway.

Since I've been magical as of late in my wishing which led to all the immense gloating and I'm not jinxing the team, I should just lay out my declarations and may it all come to past:

ARSENAL TO WIN THE CHAMPION'S LEAGUE THANK YOU
..AND THE FA CUP TOO

and completely believe in it so that the laws of attraction shall take effect.

ARSENAL CHAMPION'S OF EUROPE~~~~

Labels: Aston Villa, Champion's League, Eduardo, Everton, Howard Webb

A Little Drunken Madness @ 11:13 PM

This game of 2 halves theory is getting old. Like really old. Old in the sense that it's going on and on and on.

But who can give a shit?

The team grinds out results which matter. The final score of a 4-1 win over Wigan really does not reflect the game one bit. That puts us 9 points over Villa who face Everton tomorrow, where these 2 teams are under the illusion that they can steal 4th spot from Arsenal.

I HOPE THEY DRAW.

That's essentially 2 points lost on both sides. The momentum is with Everton though. Villa has been putting in good performances but not getting the result they want. It's not something that's easy to work with and keep going at it.

So, the Wigan-Arsenal game.

The first half was terrible. As the press wanted to put it, 60% of the Arsenal defence is not there. Fabianski in for Almunia, Djourou in for Gallas and Gibbs in for Clichy. Before the game, I went out for a little while to have fun and came back half an hour prior to kick off. And I made a quick check of Arsenal.com and I see confirmation of Gibbs in for Clichy instead of Silvestre. Silvestre will be covering the centre back position behind Johan.

Oh how happy I was. Like super happy. Happy enough to announce of Facebook status. And these things like to come biting you in the butt. *chomp*

Gibbs is young and still learning. He does show the drive and the determination when marking and it was him who did the goal line clearance for Mido's header. From my point of view, the unaward red card for the foul on Valencia was a 50:50. If it was Howard Webb he would be off since that baldy has something against Arsenal I reckon. That was meant to be a joke. Like Alan Wiley explained, Valencia wasn't in complete possession of the ball nor clean on through. On the other side of the argument, it was a sloppy challenge. But I don't think it warranted more than a yellow. And from an Arsenal point of view, there have been incidents where the opposition never got sent off even when there were similar grounds.

Arsenal did try and finish the half strongly but it didn't really carry on to the next half. Mido was causing all sorts of trouble up front till Fabianski collided into him and what a tough man he is. Macho.

Then at the other side, out of nowhere, Arshavin was dispossessed in the box, as far as the tip of his right foot and while on the ground, he knocked the ball into the path of Walcott who made no mistake.

As an Arsenal fan, you always know that once that equaliser comes, it is rare that the opposition gets the luxury of regrouping in order to even get a point out of the game. From then on, it will be all Arsenal, at least 99% of the time. I knew that they would take the game, just didn't expect 4 goals.

The brother is back from Redang hahaha. And he thinks Pool losing midweek to Chelsea would make the title challenge more difficult for United. He is adamant United will still go through to the semis. He loved goal no. 3 by Arshavin the most. Whoever that Wigan defender was, he laid the ball so sweetly into the path of our no. 23 to put it in Kirkland's net. Bahaha. It was like an assist at the wrong end.

What needs to be addressed was the second goal.

You could say that it was all of Michael Brown's undoing. He brought Cesc down off-the-ball and got a yellow, which prevented him for going too much into any challenge, allowing Fab to dribble a little further down the byline with a first time cross that skipped past Adebayor and to the most unlikely of players to put home. Mikael Silvestre. The one I didn't want coming on for Clichy. I was crying from laughing. He really needs to work on the goal celebration but who gives a shit when the ball goes in.

And if anyone wanted to see how Cesc and Arshavin could link up, I suppose they got a little teaser from that goal.

The season's really shaping up nicely.

Besides the injury pile up which doesn't seem to stop. Djourou looks to have a serious injury and it should be Silvestre slotting in there with Gibbs on the left. Perhaps it was a game of 2 halves with the defence settling a little bit more with yet another huge shake-up. This win should give the lads the confidence going into the second leg. There's a little concern over Gibbs but I think he came in at the right time to at least get some more experience against Wigan, albeit just a little bit, but we can be contented that he was up against Valencia who can cause problems but did not result in goals. Mido's goal was from a corner even if Gibbs conceded it because of Valencia. By the time it gets to a corner kick it should be the team's responsibility to clear it.

This is where I say hahahahahaha to Liverpool. Ivanovic 2 Liverpool 0.

The remaining fixtures of all the teams are quite juicy. With the battle for European places and the other one to stay up, the games are more like cup matches and better to watch. They're going at it with more purpose and there is less sitting back.

That on the other hand, cannot be said about Chelsea. 4-0 on 66 minutes and Bolton clawed 3 back. There is no time to nest. If this was a game earlier in the season it would be different. Bolton wouldn't have been able to knock 3 goals in return. How this affects Chelsea I wouldn't know, but it might give 4-0 winners Liverpool some ideas. In any case, they still have that 3-1 lead so Pool will need everything working for them on that day to go through. If Chelsea holds on and meets Barcelona, I would put my money on them going all the way to the finals. Barca have their weaknesses. For them, their best defence is their attack, and it doesn't always work. I believe Chelsea have the ability to stop them.

The next game's going to come 4 days later and hopefully there'll be more news on Djourou, preferably good news.

I forgot about the father of 2, Alex Song. Hahaha. The reason why Arsenal can be on the backfoot when the game starts it's because the opposition presses us high up the pitch. And then they tire. So how our late goals come about is when they are tired, we aren't. And that's when their half-hearted challenges don't get in the path of our goals. I don't know why Wenger took of Denilson but he made the right choice. And tactics wise, 4-2-3-1 does not work if Adebayor's not the '1' up there. Bendtner is nowhere near the finished product to hold his own up front. And Cesc is much better with a defensive midfield partner in the middle of a 4-4-2. He is a distributor of the ball and needs to do it from our own half so when he plays to far front he tends not to get into the game.

And we have all seen the effect Adebayor has on the team. He comes on and they spring to life. And we finished the game with him, Robin, Nicky and Arshavin in the front 4. It is terrifying when Adebayor and RVP are on the pitch. Put Arshavin in the mix and it'll be more than nightmares.

That's enough for today!

Labels: Alex Song, Andrei Arshavin, Aston Villa, Cesc Fabregas, Champion's League, Chelsea, Emmanuel Adebayor, Kieran Gibbs, Liverpool, one of my many theories, Wigan

A Little Drunken Madness @ 12:19 AM

And injury news is out.

Gallas won't be expected to play again this season and the game against Villarreal could well be his last in an Arsenal shirt if he's off in the Summer. Clichy has a back problem and Almunia has a recurrent ankle injury.

Team-wise, it doesn't look all that grim. So far, Gibbs has slotted in quite comfortably at left back. He recovers well and has great pace going forward and fancies shooting from range. All in all, it should be exciting to see him fill in at left back. Almunia has Fabianski as his deputy and I am quite glad to have him around. Wenger's praise for him isn't overrated. He might have the odd stranded moments but overall, a fantastic shotstopper with good handling so it'll be interesting to see how he steps up. Sometimes the keeper can be the decider of the game. I believe he has been presented with a great opportunity to step and and he will.

In centre back, Toure is returning to his best and the Toure-Djourou partnership doesn't look too bad, with the latter possessing height which could be crucial at set pieces, both offensive and defensive. Djourou passes the ball well too so that's a plus. I'm not saying we won't win Gallas. Gallas is a match-winner and his experience would be valuable at this point in time with the challenging for honours but I think Djourou can step up as well. The only concern is Johan's tendency to koon in defence. Then you'll see me faint. He's got to keep his concentration at 100% for 90 minutes. Don't forget extra time. >:O Sp*rs.

Wigan tomorrow at home. Doesn't ever look like an easy game but I think we'll cope. They're having problems with Zaki who is acting like he's some huge superstar bigger than the club. Even his agent is on his side, citing the number of interested clubs should Wigan not sign him after his loan period. That kind of cockiness really should have no place in football. The club never owes the player anything.

Aside from that, Wigan are a decent side but they have Titus Bramble and Adebayor should be causing him all sorts of problems.

Adebayor has returned to the media spotlight with his wonder goal and it's non-stop raving about it, apart from The Mirror stating that Villa and whoever have had better goals. Oh whatever. Sometimes it's all about the timing and importance of the goal. I can't see any Villa player pulling off the same stunt. Anyway, all these attention could backfire should it awake the interest of Milan and Barcelona.

The team needs to win the Champion's League, simple as that. Not just to finish the season with something, but simply, to keep their team together. Even an FA Cup win would not have that effect. It has to be that European crown. Imagine Barcelona winning it again and Adebayor should be off. It is probably every player's dream to lift the greatest cup in Europe and we've been in the hunt long enough. We're super-outsiders as the boss calls it, but I would like this team to defy all odds and go on and win it. It is no longer about a fan's pride. Sure, we'll be happy and all, but I want this team to stick together. A youth policy is useless to win things unless they grow and mature together. We should not be a feeder club to Barcelona or anyone. We are the Arsenal.

I think it's funny that Mourinho thinks Arsenal are the dark horses and could nick the trophy.

Aside from all that football, off the pitch, Sagna has became a Daddy. I can't begin to count how many daddies are there at Arsenal. Alex Song, 21, has 2 kids. That was the shocker of all shocking discoveries. I should make a daddy list.

For now, enjoy.

*cradling action in goal celebration when someone becomes a daddy

Labels: Alex Song, Andrei Arshavin, Bakary Sagna, Champion's League, Emmanuel Adebayor, one of my many theories, Wigan, William Gallas

A Little Drunken Madness @ 4:27 PM

Another night of woah. For football.

You see
Liverpool vs Chelsea
and
Barcelona vs Bayern Munich
and wonder which one to watch. I was holding the remote in my hands the whole of the first half.

It's the quarter finals and there was one thing consistent in all 4 matches - a goal within the first 10 minutes.

Incidentally, Senna's goal was the latest at the 9th minute.

It's as though the first 10 minutes are deciding minutes which set the records for the rest of the game. This though, wasn't the same for all 4. (Thank God)

As Arsenal showed, they turned the game around and got that away goal.

For Chelsea, they played in the form of their lives and pegged Liverpool back three times. Impressive to say the least, and they do what they do best with set pieces. Drogba might have been toothless for his first 2 strikes on goal but he made no mistake for Chelsea's third. That effectively puts Liverpool out. Liverpool who thought the world of themselves after they whacked Real Madrid and Manchester United. And their boss, the great Rafa Benitez who can't shut his pie hole has done himself in by talking too much once again, saying that Ferguson would want them to beat Chelsea in order for Liverpool to have more commitments to deal with besides the title race.

Then his team loses 3-1 an Anfield. They need to win 3-0 at Stamford Bridge.

For the second half, there was no doubt about staying on the Pool-Chelsea game. The Barcelona-Bayern one was essentially over. I thought Liverpool and Chelsea would start nesting instead of going for gold. And good thing I was wrong otherwise I would have wasted 45 minutes of my life.

Ivanovic did another header and put Chelsea ahead. I was in stitches. And his post match interview with Cech was funny. You can go count the number of times he said the word 'happy' hahaha. Oh yes, very happy.

I figured out the reason why I could enjoy both matches with no pressure at all. The winners will definitely take each other out in the semis with the winner in the final. If Arsenal goes all the way there then we'll start worrying then. Concern when it's time. Now it's far from decided.

It's so contrasting when it's a different competition from the league. It's fantastic to see teams going for it rather than sitting back, which seems to be a favourite with some of the teams in the league. That takes the thrill out of the game. Another thing to note is that between Chelsea and Liverpool, I really don't think away goals are a huge deal considering how many times they've played each other. The Chelsea players can easily feel comfortable at Anfield having visited numerous times. The one thing Hiddink got right which decided the game was to keep Gerrard at bay which he did with Essien. Cut off Gerrard and you would have cut off Torres in the process, using one fantastic player to keep 2 out.

Sometimes football can be a numbers game.

Labels: Barcelona, Champion's League, Chelsea, Liverpool, one of my many theories

A Little Drunken Madness @ 5:22 AM