Posted by Gringo Maclure in Arsenal, Man United | 10 November 2008
Ever wondered if you could be the next John Motson? Match commentating may not be as easy as it sounds, but you're bound to better these jokers...
I missed the Arsenal game on Saturday as I had to be at work. So when I clocked off I tried to pick up the highlights online and saw the goals over at eplmatches.com - first and second-half highlights pulled from ESPN. The action was great, the commentary was poor. I don't know who ESPN have on for their English-speaking half-time punditry team, but the main presenter A (who seemed fairly on the ball) and the co-commentator B (a guy called "Mace" who sounded like Alan Shearer - anyone know who it was?) managed to botch up the first half highlights spectacularly. These are the highlights (or should that be lowlights) of their first half summary. Worth a chuckle. Could you do better?
(When Almunia inexplicably picks up Silvestre's backpass early on)
B: A complete and utter brainwave.
A: Brainwave? Aberration, perhaps? Brainwave is generally a good thing.
B: Is it? Thanks for picking me up on that…
(Rooney misses a sitter)
A: Did it take a bobble? You can’t talk about bobbles, can you, in the Emirates…
(Nasri's first goal)
A: Wicked deflection. All deflections are wicked aren’t they?
B: Well, yeah, if they take them away from the keeper…
(Er, what about deflections that help the defending team? Are those wicked? What about deflections in the middle of the park miles away from goal that have no importance whatsoever?)
(Almunia saves from Park's shot)
A: Good save from Almunia. We were talking about Goalkeeper’s needing to push it away to safely.
B: Good strong hand on that. Well, it could have gone back into play…
A:…well, it did.
(Walcott misses a volley)
A: He did everything right. Kept his head down...
B: He didn’t do everything right because he didn’t get the right connection. He didn't get it on target, did he?
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Posted by Young'un in Arsenal, Man United | 8 November 2008
After throwing away a 4-2 lead at home to bottom-of-the-table Spurs, and losing at relegation favourites Stoke City, you could be forgiven for doubting Arsenal's ability to win the league. What a difference a week makes.
The Champions were in town, and boy, the game was an absoloute spectacle. End-to-end, flowing football with dozens and dozens of chances. It's not as if it was all Arsenal. Manchester United could have won the game on another day, but today they were denied by a solid defensively display, and some poor finishing in front of goal. But what makes it all so frustrating is how we can produce such a terrific performance and result (without our main three strikers, remember) against the Premier League and Champions League winners, but can't get a result against teams like Stoke, Hull and Fulham; who you know Chelsea and United would brush aside.
Wenger obviously had words with the players. Everyone gave 110% today. In the interview after the game, you could literally see buckets of sweat dropping off the faces of Fabregas and Gallas. We want that sort of commitment every game. Treat every game like a Cup Final as they say. Because today we proved that we really can, on our day, beat ANY team in the world.
The kids will obviously get a run out against Wigan in midweek but the first team are back in action next Saturday, at home to in-form Aston Villa. At The Emirates, we should beat most if not all teams in the Premier League. But Villa must not be taken lightly. We did that against Hull and look what happened. We need an intense, commited performance because this win should give the team belief. We must take advantage of this and go on a strong run, picking up win after win after win. The potential is there.
We can be lethal going forward and, as in the most part we proved today, we can be solid at the back, too. And finally, I'd like to express my view of this terrific game through some player ratings for both sides:
Arsenal:
Manuel Almunia - Developing into a very good goalkeeper. A rush of blood to the head saw him pick up Silvestre's dodgy backpass and concede an indirect freekick, but other than that he was good before picking up a knock (6)
Bacary Sagna - Kept Park quiet while bombing forward and helping the attack. He has bundles of energy and, in my opinion at least, he is simply the best right back in world football (7.5)
William Gallas - A real captain's contribution. Made some crucial interceptions and was strong in the tackle. Rooney and Berbatov struggled to find space; because the Arsenal skipper was so solid. Great performance (8)
Mikael Silvestre - Despite an early lapse in concentration, Mik obviously was out to prove a point and produced his best performance in an Arsenal shirt so far. Helped Gallas keep the United forwards at bay (7)
Gael Clichy - He never has a bad game, but this was one of his best. Had Ronaldo in his back pocket all match, but, like Sagna, was still able to get forward and swing crosses in. Even had the cheek to flick the ball over Ronaldo while under pressure. Top player (8)
Theo Walcott - For a young lad carrying a knock, it was a decent performance. Evra is a world class fullback, so Theo had his work cut out, but still managed to help the team. His run took drew two defenders with him, opening up space for Nasri to score his second. He's rapidly becoming a key part of this side (6.5)
Cesc Fabregas - Still yet to hit top gear, but Cesc put in a typical performance. Pulled all the strings in midfield and was always willing to get back and help defensively (7)
Abou Diaby - Started off behind the striker. He didn't see an awful lot of the ball in the first 15 minutes or so, but gradually got into the game. His quick feet and long legs gave us another option, before he was used as a holding midfielder in the second half to try and protect the lead (7)
Denilson - He was one of the better players on Wednesday night, and I thought he was terrific today. Spread the ball like butter and always seemed to be there to stop the waves of United attacks. Maybe he is fit for the DM role? (7.5)
Samir Nasri - We all knew he was special after his debut goal. And we were right. Two brilliantly taken goals combined with his superb workrate, trickery and pace produced a magical performance, and the Frenchman looks to be one of the steals of the season (9)
Nicklas Bendtner - I'm still not convinced by the big man. I think he lacks commitment and often makes the wrong decisions but he had a sound game today. Ferdinand struggled to keep up with his variety of play but there was rarely any end product (6.5)
SUBS:
Alex Song - Got suck in and made some crucial tackles (6)
Lukasz Fabianski - Claimed the ball well. Looks like a promising, commanding goalkeeper. No chance with the goal (6.5)
Kolo Toure - Brought on to help protect the lead. Did that but wasn't on long enough to make a big impact (5)
Manchester United:
Edwin Van Der Sar - Didn't look confident. Flapped at set pieces but couldn't do anything about either of the goals (5)
Gary Neville - His deflection took the ball away from VDS for the first goal and couldn't cope with Nasri's pace and trickery. Lacking match practice. Will surely be dropped for the impressive Rafael (4)
Rio Ferdinand - Nothing pretty, he just got rid of any threat that came his way. Looked a bit slower than usual as Bendtner was able to do him for pace more often than not but a decent performance (6)
Nemanja Vidic - Lucky not to concede a penalty but other than that he was very solid. Some hard but fair tackles proved just what a quality defender he is (7)
Patrice Evra - I'm a big fan of Evra and he was very good again today. Looked a threat offensively and dealt with Walcott with little fuss (7)
Cristiano Ronaldo - Diabolical freekicks. He belonged to Clichy for most of the game and struggle to make an impact. Missed a golden chance at the start of the second half (5)
Anderson - A bright spark for United. He worked his socks off. Made some clever passes and kept the dangerous Fabregas on a tight leash. A top talent (7.5)
Michael Carrick - Helped Anderson nullify Fabregas and almost did the perfect job. Over the last 6 months or so he's begun to repay that huge price tag. Solid performance (7.5)
Park Ji-Sung - No chance against Sagna. Produced very little all game, Nani would have been more effective in my opinion (5)
Wayne Rooney - After he blazed a good chance over early on he didn't get in the game whatsoever. The worst I've seen Rooney play for a long time (4)
Dimitar Berbatov - Showed some neat touches and was denied an early goal by the offside flag. Didn't do a lot wrong, he was just unlucky to come up against the impressive Gallas and Silvestre (5.5)
SUBS:
Rafael da Silva - Fergie said this boy was one to watch. Too right. A superb goal capped a great substitute performance. Should be a regular for United. Neville is too old and slow to cope with players like Nasri. Did more in 25 mins than Neville and Ronaldo combined (7.5)
Ryan Giggs - I can't say I remember him doing anything productive (5)
Carlos Tevez - Like Berbatov, he produced a few fancy flicks but couldn't make much of an impact (5.5)
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Posted by Gringo Maclure in Alex Ferguson, Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, Chelsea, Filipe Scolari, Liverpool, Man United, Premiership, Rafa Benitez | 6 November 2008
This weekend Arsenal face Manchester United. The general consensus is that if Arsenal want to maintain a title challenge they cannot afford to lose in a game of this magnitude. This is, after all, what folks like to call a “six-pointer”. And with Liverpool scoring unlikely victories against both Manchester United and Chelsea earlier this season, the national press, starting with Alan Hansen, are beginning to tout them as real title contenders.
But, how much do the games between the big 4 affect the outcome of the Premiership? Is a “six-pointer” really a six-pointer? Is it possible for Arsenal to do relatively badly against Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool but still retain a title challenge – or is the opposite the case – beating off your closest rivals is the essential first step to domination in the domestic league? This question has long puzzled me and I haven’t read too much by way of explanation for it.
So, I thought I’d turn Statto, and donning my slightly worn-out A-level Maths-with-Stats hat, I set about trying to work it out…
The Big 4 League
To do this, I looked at all the results between the big 4 stretching back to the 2002/03 season. This was just before the Abramovich effect lifted Chelsea into England’s elite and the big 4 was, to all intents and purposes, christened. In the season before this, the 2001/02 season Chelsea finished mid-table and you could make a case for Leeds being part of the Premier League’s elite (strange days indeed!). From the 2002/03 season until today the final Premiership League table has always included Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United in its top five. In only two exceptions was the top 4 breached by a team which was not a part of the big 4, in fact, by Newcastle (who finished third in 02/03) and Everton (who narrowly finished fourth ahead of their local rivals in 04/05).
Quite simply for each season from 2002/03 until 07/08 I pulled out the games between the big 4 and compiled a new league based on their results against each other in the Premier League. We can call it the Big 4 League. Like a Champions League group stage table, the big 4 play each other home and away in a total of 12 fixtures per season. If one of the big 4 were to win all their games home and away against the other members of the big 4 they would bag 18 points and top the Big 4 league. Make sense?
After this, I took the Big 4 League I made for each season and had a look to see how it compared with the final Premier League standings for each season. If results between the big 4 were significant, so the theory goes, the order Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United appear in the Big 4 league should closely resemble the final standings in the Premier League for that season. If not, there shouldn’t be a clear correlation.
When the big 4 play each other
In exactly 50% of cases (12/24), Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United finish in the Big 4 League in exactly the same order as they do in the Premiership. Interestingly, in 5 of the last 6 seasons, the Premiership winner is the same as the Big 4 League winner. For example, in their Untouchables season of 03/04 Arsenal managed home and away wins against both Liverpool and Chelsea, tallying 14 points in total against their closest rivals. Not surprisingly, they won. Chelsea topped that in 05/06, taking 15 points off other members of the big 4, winning the league in the process. Past form suggests, therefore, that if Liverpool continue their promising start and stay on top of Chelsea, Arsenal and Manchester United over the course of the season they should have a very strong chance of taking the title.
In almost all cases (23/24) teams finished in the same positions in both the Big 4 League and the Premiership, or were removed by only one place. The sole exception came in the 06/07 season. Somehow, and this seems to be an anomaly and a frustrating one at that for fans of the Gunners, Arsene Wenger’s men managed to win the Big 4 League with 11 points beating Manchester United home and away in the process but finished fourth in the Premiership. The lesson from that situation must surely be that once you’ve done the hard work of clocking points over your closest rivals you need to make sure you pick up the wins on the road against weaker teams – a factor lacking in Arsenal’s form from that season.
Interestingly, Liverpool's league form against other members of the Big 4 is absolutely atrocious. They've repeatedly finished bottom of the Big 4 league and so have unsurprisingly never breached the top 2 by the climax of an EPL season. By bagging 6 points by November, Rafa Benitez's men have already equalled their season-best performances of the past six years against Man U, AFC and Chelsea. Again, good omens for the Anfield faithful that perhaps this is their year.
I’ve copied all the big 4 leagues below so you can draw your own conclusions too.
Conclusion
So, do games between the big 4 constitute “six-pointers”? Clearly, what I’ve discussed here is just one small idea with a very small sample size, but, yes, how the big 4 do against each other seems to reflect significantly in the outcome of the Premier League based on the form of the last six seasons. With this in mind, Arsenal had better begin taking the points off their rivals. A home win against Man United at the Emirates would be a good place to start.
The Big 4 Leagues from the 02/03 season to the 07/08 season
07/08 Pts W L D GD Order the Big 4 finished in the EPL
Manu 13 4 1 1 +6 1
Chels 08 2 2 2 -1 2
Arsnl 06 1 3 2 -1 3
Lpool 04 0 4 2 -4 4
06/07
Arsnl 11 3 2 1 +2 4
Manu 08 2 2 2 +1 1
Chels 07 1 4 1 -1 2
Lpool 06 2 0 4 -2 3
05/06
Chels 15 5 0 1 +10 1
Manu 08 2 2 2 +1 2
Arsnl 04 1 1 4 -5 4
Lpool 04 1 1 4 -6 3
04/05
Chels 14 4 2 0 +5 1
Manu 12 4 0 2 +3 3
Arsnl 05 1 2 3 -3 2
Lpool 03 1 0 5 -5 4
03/04
Arsnl 14 4 2 0 +5 1
Chels 07 2 1 3 -1 2
Manu 06 1 3 2 -1 3
Lpool 06 2 0 4 -3 4
02/03
Manu 14 4 2 0 +8 1
Arsnl 07 1 4 1 -1 2
Chels 06 1 3 2 -2 3
Lpool 05 1 2 3 -5 4
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Posted by Martin in Arsenal, Arsene Wenger, Tottenham | 30 October 2008
Travelling into London today, I could see grey clouds hovering over the Emirates. It seemed to reflect my mood and the mood of many Gooners, following last nights draw against Spurs.
It's not often that I've wished that I left ten minutes before the end of the match. I could have lived in blissful ignorance as to what was occurring in the final minutes of the game, like the many Tottenham fans that had vacated the stadium and missed out on the opportunity to party.
Walking back from the match, I couldn't help but hear many of the questions that were being asked of the Gunners performance.
"What was Almunia doing off his line"
"Clichy is normally so solid and reliable, how did he slip up?"
"What was Wenger doing taking Walcott and Van Persie off?"
"Ade was terrible. Why wasn't he taken off?"
"What does Wenger really see in Denilson and why does he stick with him?"
"Why did we spend all the money on the stadium?"
"How can we expect to win the title, when we can't even beat Spurs? Everyone beats Spurs!"
Despite the game ending in a draw, it definitely felt like we'd lost the match. One seasoned fan, who I think was just mulling over his own view of the game in his mind, suddenly blurted out "Well that's football".
Which sums it up!
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Posted by Young'un in Arsenal | 26 October 2008
The News of the World today claims that Arsenal will make a move for long-term target, Yaya Toure in January. I am a huge admirer of the Barcelona midfielder, and anyone who saw his performances against Manchester United in Europe last year will agree that he is a top quality player. Many pundits, and many Arsenal fans (myself included) pointed out the lack of presence, and a real ball winner in the middle of the park. Yaya can provide just that. I wrote an article a few weeks back about getting Stephen Appiah, but the deal came to nothing. But after recent performances I'm beginning to wonder if another midfielder is really needed.
The team were simply brilliant on Tuesday night in Turkey. Some tremendous football on show, and the 5 man midfield Wenger opten for worked a treat. I have also said in the past how important Abou Diaby is, and my point was proved when the Frenchman turned in a man of the match performance against Fenerbahce. The surprising thing though was that he was very advanced; most of the time he was used 'in the hole'; as a supporting striker for Adebayor. I still feel that he can impress next to Fabregas in a simple 4-4-2 formation as well, though. But despite thoroughly impressing in midweek, Diaby was left on the bench this afternoon, with Alex Song moving into the middle to partner Cesc. And he may struggle to get back in the team. Song has recieved a lot of criticism in the past, but judging by today's performance, he could be the answer. He worked hard for the team, won tackles with ease and looked comfortable brining the ball forward to start attacks. Despite his size, he was very strong and was able to hold players off the ball. With Ramsey scoring on Tuesday as well, Denilson improving game-by-game and Bischoff gaining fitness, we do have options in midfield, and while I really like Yaya, I'm not sure if we'd be better off saving £8 million.
And finally, a thank you to all the readers. Your comments are much appreciated, so please keep them coming
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Posted by Young'un in Arsenal | 16 October 2008
This weekend sees The Gunners entertain Everton at The Emirates. It's been a mixed start for Arsenal, with highs such as thumping wins over Blackburn, Porto and Sheffield United, and lows that make you cringe, such as a draw at Sunderland, the 1-0 loss at Fulham and of course, the simply dreadful 2-1 defeat at home to Hull. But Everton are in a worse position. They have been knocked out of both the League and UEFA Cups, and are hovering in the bottom half of the table, where a team of their quality simply does not belong. Everton have a solid keeper in Tim Howard, and on paper, the centre-half partnership of Lescott and Jagielka would rival most teams in the Premier League, but it hasn't quite clicked this season. Tim Cahill provides lots of vital goals while I feel playmaker Mikel Arteta has enough quality to play at the top level. They have a clinical finisher in Yakubu, and the likes of Yobo, Baines, Osman, Pienaar, Saha and new record signing Marouane Fellaini are all also very good players. They're overdue a good result so they could produce a shock on Saturday afternoon.
But for me, it could be the start of something beautiful for Arsenal this season. However, new injuries have come to light, and the injury list now looks like this: Rosicky, Eduardo, Sagna, Gallas and Bendtner are all out, Fabregas, Djourou and van Persie face fitness tests, while Bischoff and Silvestre are both fit, but severely lack match practice. But Arsene Wenger is boosted by the return of midfield powerhouse, Abou Diaby. The Frenchman hasn't played this season, but his presence has been missed, and he could be a huge player this season if he takes his chance in his stride. But of course, the position isn't just going to be given to him. Denilson has made a steady start to the season while young Aaron Ramsey has impressed for Wales this week; a thunderbolt from 30 yards being his high point. He could well get a look in this weekend. Alex Song has also been solid whenever he has filled in at the defensive midfield position. But I think Diaby will be given a chance on Saturday, because he's a different player to the other midfielders we have. "He's the closest to Patrick Vieira I've seen," said Le Boss himself when he signed Diaby in 2006. And, altough Mathieu Flamini's energy made up for it last season, Arsenal have been lacking that physical battler since the legendary number four left in 2005. Hopefully, Abou can provide that, and continue for the rest of the season, and he could well be that final piece in the puzzle. A win is desperately needed, in order to catch up with Chelsea and Liverpool, even at this early stage. Anything less would put our title hopes into question, despite this weekend's game being just the eighth this season. Wenger expects Djourou, Fabregas and van Persie to shrug off their niggles so I'd expect to see a team like this:
Almunia
Toure, Djourou, Song, Clichy
Walcott, Fabregas, Diaby, Nasri
van Persie, Adebayor
On paper, that midfield quartet could well be Arsenal's strongest; with Fabregas providing equisite passes and long shots, Nasri providing the tricks, and plenty of goals cutting in from the left, Walcott scaring the full backs with his pace and crossing, and Diaby with his ability to knock players off the ball, and start attacks for the team.
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Posted by DavidM in Premiership | 8 October 2008
Barclays, the sponsors of the Barclays Premier League, are running a survey of global fans of the Premiership.
UK-based fans who complete it could win a trip to see a match at the Barclays Asia Trophy in 2009.
For Premiership fans elsewhere in the world, you could win a trip to see a Premiership match of your choice.
The survey takes about 10-15 minutes to complete and covers questions such as your favourite team, why you support them, who is the best Premier League player, and so on.
So now I've done you a favour and let you know about it, please return the complement and don't vote for Ronaldo as the best player in the league. He may have amazing silky skills but he's just so arrogant. Let's all go for Brad Friedel instead, he deserves it.
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Posted by Gringo Maclure in Arsenal, Brazil, Filipe Scolari, Geovanni, Gilberto, Hull City, Man City, Premiership, Robinho | 7 October 2008
There are 21 Brazilians playing in the Premier League with at least one in each of the major clubs. Mirandinha may have been the first to join Newcastle back in the 1980s but after money and foreigners started pouring into the Premier League in the mid-90s a host of the South American single-named wonders started to file in.
5,000 Brazilians play football for money in countries other than Brazil - it's a long-standing and self-fulfilling joke that any respectable team is not really respectable until they sign a Brazilian, irrespective of that player's actual quality. It's the history, the flare for the game, the trickery on the ball that create this impression. But being Brazilian doesn't necessarily ensure success in the British leagues. Several "flops" have featured only briefly in the Premier league - Julio Baptista being one. He once famously complained about the cold nights in Bolton where brutish defenders didn't allow him to play his "beautiful" game. Either that, or he was just missing traditional Brazilian beans.
The Sun recently published a list of the top ten Brazilians who've played in the Premiership. I found this out thanks to a Brazilian website that had picked up on it. Unsuprisingly, Juninho topped the list followed by Gilberto Silva. Robinho didn't make the grade as he's only just arrived. At number 10 featured a certain Geovanni.
This journeyman of Brazilian football has always flirted with greatness but never quite produced for club or country. But now, in the unlikely gold and black stripes of Hull City, he has already secured cult status - the scorer of Hull's first Premiership goal and, thanks to two goal-of-the- season contenders, the main reason Hull were able to raid an unlikely 6 points on their travels to north London. Surely, he's set to advance up the list beyond Alonso Alves at no.7? One things for sure - he's accomplished something already that Robinho can only dream of: scoring the winner in a Manchester derby.
The extra load of Brazilians in the Premiership has created unprecendeted interest back in Brazil as well. The EPL is avidly followed and news of Robinho's move to Manchester City sent shockwaves through the footballing public here. Scolari's presence is also of interest. I recently watched a lengthy TV interview conducted with him in Portuguese in which the Brazilian journalist firing the questions tried to coax Big Phil into commenting on whether he might return to managing the Brazilian national team. Scolari didn't rule it out, but his priority seems to be Chelsea for now.
It seems to me only a matter of time before EPL clubs start doing pre-season tours in the emerging markets of South America. Goodness knows, they would be well recieved if they did.
The influx of Brazilians to the Premier League is also having an unlikely effect on British employment in one or two sectors. Not only are black beans imports on the up but English teachers who speak Brazilian Portugese are suddenly in high demand. This applies to myself (although I live in Brazil) and some friends of mine based in the UK, two of whom are already involved at Chelsea teaching the irregular past tenses to players, their families and the coaching staff. From time to time I get an email with a vocab list to translate. As an Arsenal fan, it's very tempting to send back some potentially confusing and misguided details of football lexis in the hope that it might sabatoge the Blues...
So, raise your "caiprinhas" to the Brazilians in the Premiership, and long may we see them bring the beautiful game to England's shores.
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