The Football Thread

[shekdown]

Cappello has managed England as well as Charlie Sheen has managed his drug problems. After Wilshere holding role, now this.

[lazycod3r]

wtf Wenger Denilson and Diaby starting .... we are doomed

[Anshul]

yet another season without a trophy...

[supersim]

boy arsenal know how to self destruct

[shekdown]

I suppose Djourou must be out for 10 years now. Screw you Arsene. You should have made the blatantly obvious signings before. Now we're stuck with Squillaci in defence. As for todays result, I called it a week back. Not surprised. Its like any other game at Old Trafford played by us in the last 4 years. Play better, get raped on a counter or set-piece, lose the game in stunning fashion.

[Somebody]

I suppose Djourou must be out for 10 years now. Screw you Arsene. You should have made the blatantly obvious signings before. Now we're stuck with Squillaci in defence. As for todays result, I called it a week back. Not surprised. Its like any other game at Old Trafford played by us in the last 4 years. Play better, get raped on a counter or set-piece, lose the game in stunning fashion.

 

if it's a shoulder dislocation it shouldn't take too long to heal right ? and moreover, there's only one PL game next week and then the international break.

[Joy]

Great win. Valenica u little beauty. , great to see him back and looked so sharp.

 

The two V's , Vidic and Van Der Sar. , whatever u say is less about them , one is the best defender this season and other is the best goalkeeper this season.

 

I was really worried looking at the line up , De silva twins playing in midfield , I thought SAF has gone mad. , but wow at the first goal.

 

 

Very bad unfortunate injury to Djourou , looked pretty bad , hope its not too serious , Scholes , don't know what he was dooing , so easily could have been sent off due to two ugly rash tackles.

 

 

Arsenal out of another silverware this season , Arsene Wenger has to accept it , no matter how much he says this team will be great etc. and will win loads of trophies in future , its not acceptable , if South Africa are officially called the chokers in cricket , nothing personal but I would say Arsenal are chokers in Football. They should have won the Champions League against Barca in the final in 06 though.

[Parker]

y do i hav 2 witness 2 defeats in one day ... although arsenals' defeat seemed minuscule b4 wat india did earlier ...

yeh diaby ko laat maar ke nikalo team se ...

[kaka_messi]

i really feel bad for wenger thn for gunners,whn they show his face i feel like crying.that guy really deserve some luck and def some trophies and i just hope,wish and pray that they win epl this season.

being a barca supporter i will always support them but when they show wenger face on tv i feel so bad that some time i feel that gunners should have won the 2nd leg of uefa champ league.

about the match manU really played well and gunners had more shots on target but just couldn't score,if the injury is shoulder dislocation it will take around 3-4 weeks atleast.

Edited March 12, 2011 by kaka_messi

[SchneideR]

y do i hav 2 witness 2 defeats in one day ... although arsenals' defeat seemed minuscule b4 wat india did earlier ...

yeh diaby ko laat maar ke nikalo team se ...

 

Diaby is the bundle of energy for Arsenal... You have to get rid of Denilson (like asap)!

 

Throw out Rosicky as well... Wenger is as stingy as our desi baniyas... Got Chamakh for free and made some kiddy signings and thinks he will conquer the world...

Edited March 12, 2011 by SchneideR

[Joy]

BTW Almunia was superb tonight , if only he can show consistency which Van Der Sar , Cech , etc show through out the season.

 

He is a excellent keeper who makes howlers time to time.

[SchneideR]

BTW Almunia was superb tonight , if only he can show consistency which Van Der Sar , Cech , etc show through out the season.

 

He is a excellent keeper who makes howlers time to time.

 

Whenever people say that he goes ahead and implodes... Its better to get a consistent keeper who can get the job done...

[SchneideR]

And by the way, VALENCIA We missed you...

[hope]

now arsene wenger is in tremendous pressure.the spark in arsenals football has dimmed a bit.get that denilson and rosicky out next season.now even nasri doesnt look the player he was earlier this season.why arsene doesnt start with chamakh and rvp both.

 

its now easier for other teams now.camp in their own half so arsenal cant pass through them and hit on the counter or get a lucky goal or a referee decision going their way and at the end arsenal losing.

 

i also agree wengers face is unlookable now.he had so much confidence in his team that he built and its not paying off now.must have been very disappointing for him.if he doesnt win something this season,then get ready for huge money signings next season.

[shekdown]

A few posts I made over 2 years back about Denilson and was jumped at by a bandwagon here. Feel completely vindicated.

 

1st Jan 2009

 

View Postsaberwing, on Jan 1 2009, 01:01 AM, said:

Denilson and Cesc have been sharing the defensive responsibilities this season. You're right about him playing a deeper role. You're completely wrong about Denilson though. For one, he almost never has flashes of brilliance, he performs regularly at a good level, sometimes has the odd stinker of a game, but never does anything out of the ordinary. And that is what I like about him, he has a good head on his shoulders. Look at someone like Diaby, who can pull off the most amazing dribbles, get through 3 defenders, have you jumping out of your seat, only to play a ridiculously sloppy pass straight to an opponent. You are also conveniently ignoring the fact that he is only 20 years of age. Tell me 5 other players who play in the CM position and are as old or younger than him. The only one I can name off the top of my head is Sergio Busquets at Barca, maybe John Bostock at Crystal Palace (has he transfered somewhere, I dunno) though I'm sure if I thought hard enough I'll be able to name 2 or 3 more. One look at the stats will again prove you wrong, Denilson has been winning more tackles than Cesc/Song.

 

Are you honestly suggesting that Denilson has been better than Diaby!!!? Atleast Diaby can dribble past 3 players. Denilson takes the ball, runs 3 steps forward, stops, passes back or sidewards. Hardly ever has he pulled off a good pass and having a good head on the shoulders simply does qualify a person to start. His age being 20 doesnt justify anything. He is simply not good enough at the moment. I dont have to conveniently leave out that hes young. Stating facts is one thing, but stating them is not going to make a difference, its something totally else. Diaby is sloppy and lazy, hes been gash as well, but I rate him far higher than Denilson. Denilson looked a promising prospect 2 years back. Everyone was expecting him to develop into a monster. Right now, hes your average 20 year old player. Any 20 year old would play just like that. As for the comparison with other players of similar age or age around that, I think there are quite a bit who warrant a call. You have stated Busquets yourself. You also have players like Noble, Michael Johnson, our very own Song, Esteban Granero, Steven Defour. The list goes on. The age is marginally different. May 3-4 years at the most. Arsenal at this point of time need to win silverware. Relying on players like Denilson wont bring you half. Hes not good enough and hasnt done anything to warrant a starting position in the club.

 

Purely relying on statistics gives a very wrong opinion. Denilson, if im not wrong, is one of the top 5 passes completed players in the EPL as well. But look at the passes he has made. Sidewards, backwards and even there he has given it away. I can recall just 2 passes of his going forward, that were actually good. Song has shown himself to be a strong player. With a good run of games, he can establish himself ahead of a player like Denilson. He is a better passer and a better breaker of attack.

View PostGrimmjow, on Jan 1 2009, 01:06 AM, said:

Lol if our strikers are as static as Adebayor and RvP, even Deco would have a difficult time attacking. It's players like Walcott who make the runs, and he's injured now. Also Denilson has been playing behind Fabregas, when he clearly should be creating chances not defending them. He is not a DMF, and he shouldnt be played there.

The reason why Denilson passes the ball sideways is because 1. hes probably been told by AW to keep it simple, 2. because he'd rather not give the opposition the ball uselessly when he knows it isnt going to reach the strikers because they never make runs.

Denilson is becoming better after every game he plays, and has the best stamina in our team in the long run.

 

Our strikers are pathetic, but it again doesnt change the fact Denilson isnt good enough. Hes not a DMF, but even when hes played at his preferred positon, hes been devoid of any creativity and passion. Hes just not good enough and it really ends there.

----------------------------------------------------------------------

 

1st Jan 2009

 

He's probably working the hardest right now in our team so dont know where the talk of passion came in. As i said again, hes actually doing better by not playing it to Adebayor whos always offside or RvP who gets himself into disappointing positions. Even when played on the side, most of his passes are to Sagna, which is what he should be doing because he does not have the ability to be a winger.

 

BTW at Song being a better passer. Have you ever seen this guy play?? He's probably the worst passer after Diaby. His passes are sometimes not even CLOSE to the intended targets, they end up with the opposition. Breaker of attack yes - hes more of a defender compared to Den.

 

 

Diaby is lazy. And when hes lazy hes been rubbish, but hes been better than Denilson and has had far fewer games.

View Postsaberwing, on Jan 1 2009, 01:35 AM, said:

Are you honestly suggesting that Diaby has been better than Denilson? Wake up, smell the coffee, Diaby has been worse than useless, instead of creating opportunites, nevermind scoring, he is invariably passing the ball to the opposition. His pass completion rate has to be one of the worst in the league never mind our team.

He has 1 goal and 1 assist all season - considering he is played as a AMF and even behind the striker in our 4-5-1's. Granted he has been out injured for some parts, but he is at the age where he should be starting to produce the goods, and I'm sorry but he's not.

 

Compare that with Denilson, who has 3 goals and 5 assists. Those stats are better than all our midfielders'. Secondly, I hope you realize that Denilson isnt the only one who is a culprit of passing sideways, our team is lacking creativity as a unit. Ade and RvP aren't able to gel as a strike-pair and there are no runner from midfield. And yes, 3-4 years makes a hell of a lot of difference at this age. It wouldnt if you were comparing 25 and 28 year olds, but at 20 a player is still learning. As grimm mentioned, Denilson is only behind Clichy and maybe Sagna in terms of stamina. Look at the distance he covers each game, one of our hardest workers in all parts of the pitch.

 

Ive already said before and Ill say it again. You simply cant go by statistics because they give a wrong opinion. The matches where Denison scored, he was rubbish. Did nothing other than getting the goal and even that, he didnt have to work too hard. He has 5 assists in about 25 games or something. Its a decent record, but, again, doesnt justify him being any good. The team has been lacking creativity, but the onus to create something lies in the center of the midfield, thats what Cesc has been single-handedly trying to do; when Denilson is running around like a headless chicken around him.

 

3-4 years makes a difference, I was merely saying those players at the age of 20 and 21 had been better players. I could go on with a massive list, but I thought Id just state the less obvious ones in the list.

 

As for stamina and ''passion'' of Denilson. Oh yes its great. Since we are picking a team of players with stamina and passion, we might as well pick the arsenal fans to run up and down the pitch of the Emirates and create and score goals for us.

Quote

Of the players you've mentioned:

 

Song - I am shocked you think he is a better passer. He is a breaker-up of play and that is it. He does it decently enough, and is fine as a squad/bench player. He may even mature into a good DMF.

Noble - Sorry, what?

Johnson - Has not proved anything at City. He's been out injured for quite some time. He is promising and the kind of player Wenger would like to sign at his age. I still think Denilson has more potential.

Defour - Looked good because of Fellaini. If you had said Fellaini I might have agreed, but even Fellaini is an out-and-out DMF, hardly creative. Not the same kind of player as Denilson.

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on Denilson.

 

Have you even watched Song play?? Watch him closely. You'll know what Im talking about. Song is a brilliant passer of the ball. He delivers a perfectly weighted pass and precisely to the right person. Hes a slow player, which is why you dont have the chance to see him do it often. He was Charlton's best player when he went there on loan and thats saying something. This is a player who 4 seasons back I deemed as not even fit enough for the Championship. Song is the future player in the DMF for us. Its a real pity he got injured just when it looked like he'll get a solid run in the team.

 

Noble - Sorry what!!?!

Start watching more games mate. Noble is exactly the kind of player we need. Im not saying hes particularly good enough, Im saying hes easily better than Denilson. Noble is your get-in-the-face type of player and goes forward and attacks the ball and strokes it around well. Just exactly what we need Denilson to do, which hes not able to.

 

Johnson - Has not proved anything at City.

Did you watch Manchester City last season or are you just talking through your costly hat? Johnson is going to be the best established Central Midfielder for England in sometime. Quick, defensively good, goes forward and attacks, passes the ball really well, can dribble the ball to a good extent, works really well with team-mates etc. etc. I could go on. This guy is the golden boy for me. Wenger should sign him as soon as possible.

 

Defour - Felliani made him look good? I hope you realise we are talking about a guy who won the Golden Shoe in the Belgian League. Nobody gets that award simply because somebody else made them look good. Then you go on to discuss about Felliani, who I didnt even mention. Defour is a god at passing, just watch him play. I dare-say he will better Deco in the future.

 

Fair enough. But the support for Denilson here is overwhelming. He, for me, is the weakest link in our team this season and he is simply not good enough. Doesnt have the required skills.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------

 

27th May, 2009

 

View Postjunior, on May 27 2009, 07:12 PM, said:

Dude , i have watched this team for 6 yrs now... fabregas , flamini , van persie , reyes , clichy , almunia all were a big pain wen they started off. Patience , belief are terms u haven't been acquainted with. Tell me u r in junior college or something like that. This man(wenger) is a believer, a man with foresight. He is a mage in his own right. Wat he keeps , he makes, he mends(fabregas, toure, henry.....); wat is discarded is ruined (Hleb, baptista, Reyes, Viera). Winning is destiny , dats the reason we are not there . Be patient , wait ...and persist. I have learnt a lot about life from wenger. HE is a gentleman among men out there. . Pls dont comment about denilson either, even d neutral and opponents are appreciating him now, u seem a little uninformed

 

Its ridiculous your telling me that Im uninformed about arsenal and I dont know Wenger!

 

Ive watched arsenal since 98, clocks up to 11 years. 5 years more than your 6 years. Im a professional, however I dont see how being a student or professional or an old man who has retired, going to affect anything.

 

You are blind if you cant tell that Adebayor does not have a passion for arsenal FC like the other players. With his constant flirting with the press, lack of passion and desire, hatred towards Bendtner and his intention to make the Dane look a bad player, they all contribute to the Togoleses' pathetic attitude. To cap it all off, he doesnt have the ability to hide anything else either.

 

Fabregas a big pain? I dont think you really watched him then. He was absolutely class whenever he played, back then, and even now.

Clichy a big pain? Again, you obviously havent watched the Frenchman either. He was brilliant, noone ever expected him to displace Cole, but it doesnt change the fact he was brilliant and everyone felt safe in the absence of Ashley Cole.

 

Flamini was always a utility player. Till the last season when he burst on to the scene, and he doesnt have stunning ability. Its just his stamina, desire and passion. He worked superbly with the team and this covered up his absence of a strutting ability. It was good enough to pass off in the position he played.

 

Reyes!!? What the hell!? The man was magic. He had probably one of the best starts at the club, only towards the end of his career at arsenal did his form dip rapidly.

 

And its pathetic that your calling the sale of Hleb, Reyes and Vieira as discarding. None of them were really discarded. All of them wanted to leave the club. Them doing bad after their departure is a completely different issue, but Wenger had not had the intention of selling them.

 

Winning is destiny? What the hell are you on about? Winning is not destiny. Winning is having quality, teamwork and depth in the squad, all this consistent over a year in 4 competitions. Since you think winning is 'destiny', you probably think its Adebayor's 'destiny' to play badly consistently and then magically become a quality player. Yes, you are really putting up a good argument there. Destiny! Why didnt the million pundits out there think of that. Damn, must have missed it, just like I did.

 

Dont talk about Denilson? Why not? I believe I have the right to speak about my team and my players. Believe me, I thought denilson would become a world class players 3-4 years back, when I watched him play for the squads outside the main team. He looked brilliant. But he cant cope with the EPL. His passes forward are 85% crap. He either gives it away or plays a short pass. Doesnt have the ability to judge the weight on the ball. He continuously passes the ball sideways and backwards when there is even 1 player 10 yards ahead of him, which explains his pass % being high. He slows down all the counter attacks by, again, passing it sideways and back.

 

Hes not defensively strong, hes not fast, he cant dribble, he can barely pass, he doesnt have strength, he doesnt have vision, he cant score, he doesnt make runs forward. I could go on. There is not ONE quality that denilson has, that any other central midfielder in our team doesnt have.

 

Particularly like the guy who was suggesting I was uninformed

Edited March 13, 2011 by shekdown

[Keano]

FA Cup semi-finals

 

Manchester City/Reading v Manchester United

Bolton v Stoke

 

 

Omar will be on cloud 9 at the moment. Cant predict a winner between United and city. But Bolton has a good chance of going through to finals

Edited March 13, 2011 by Keano

[Keano]

 

Nani back in training

[Joy]

Awesome. , Nani on left , Valencia on right.

 

No one can stop us now.

[Cash]

Where is anderson?

[Joy]

Injured I guess , I saw him in the FA cup match sitting with more United guys , not sure if he was in substitutes bench.