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Arsenal 2-Liverpool 1 Post match thoughts

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I'd agree with much that's already been said, N'Gog looked bright again. His confidence obviously got a little boost from last weekend.

Aqualani has a presence about him. He looks like he's got all the raw materials to be a very good player for us. He seems well clued in, looks decent in possession and knows how to pass a ball too. I'm looking forward to seeing more of him.

Voronin really needs to leave soon. He's rubbish.

Babel probably shouldn't be too far behind him.

I never want to see Skrtel and The Greek play together in a meaningful game for us.


Oh and Insua can strike a ball pretty well
 
[quote author=Dee link=topic=36805.msg974035#msg974035 date=1256771492]
[quote author=dossena link=topic=36805.msg974028#msg974028 date=1256771107]
Rafa should've played Kuyt or Yossi instead of Voronin.

There was a lot of room in between their midfield and defence, and that Eastmond kid was pretty much anonymous.

They would've been able to use that space a lot better than Voronin.
[/quote]

So you mean we could've played Kuyt twice? Cool 🙂

The team of Carras may well be a possibility then?
[/quote]
In that position I meant.

I would've thought it was obvious. If not, my bad.
 
[quote author=gkmacca link=topic=36805.msg974032#msg974032 date=1256771268]
[quote author=dossena link=topic=36805.msg974028#msg974028 date=1256771107]
Rafa should've played Kuyt or Yossi instead of Voronin.

There was a lot of room in between their midfield and defence, and that Eastmond kid was pretty much anonymous.

They would've been able to use that space a lot better than Voronin.
[/quote]

Now you tell us.
[/quote]
You're a bit smart.
 
The Plessiosaur was fucking shit.
Spearo was almost as bad.
Babel was disinterested.
Voronin is rubbish

The only players to come out of that with any credit were Degen, Purple and Eggnog, who was all right

Arsenal have some excellent young players and many more of them than we do
 
[quote author=Brendan link=topic=36805.msg974048#msg974048 date=1256772030]
The Plessiosaur was fucking shit.
Spearo was almost as bad.
Babel was disinterested.
Voronin is rubbish

The only players to come out of that with any credit were Degen, Purple and Eggnog, who was all right

Arsenal have some excellent young players and many more of them than we do


[/quote]
Disinterested?

He was rubbish.

I wish people would stop being so forgiving re: Babel..
 
[quote author=SaintGeorge67 link=topic=36805.msg974049#msg974049 date=1256772058]
Agreed (forgot to quote, with Rafa4PM about the term "My Bad" that is)
[/quote]
What about "ain't"?
 
Okay..

What most differentiates the team that we put out and them is that theirs is chock full of first team wannabes and promising youngsters. Players like Nasri, Eduardo, Bendtner and Ramsey are all on the fringes of the first team, and their quality reflect that too. Gilbert, Gibbs, Eastmond, Merida and Watt are all youngsters full of potential. They didn't even have Vela or Wilshire who are considered the creme of the crop.

We on the other hand, had two first-teamers in Insua and Kuyt. Skrtel is in the squad but then that's it. The rest of the team had no chance of making a spot in the first team their own. Not now, not in the future, never. I guess that's the problem with our team at the moment. We have a very good first team, but the gulf in quality drop measurably after that. I really don't have a solution as to overcome that problem, other than investing a lot in young players and groom them to be of the required quality, but I guess we're doing that already.
 
[quote author=dossena link=topic=36805.msg974070#msg974070 date=1256774301]
Okay..

What most differentiates the team that we put out and them is that theirs is chock full of first team wannabes and promising youngsters. Players like Nasri, Eduardo, Bendtner and Ramsey are all on the fringes of the first team, and their quality reflect that too. Gilbert, Gibbs, Eastmond, Merida and Watt are all youngsters full of potential. They didn't even have Vela or Wilshire who are considered the creme of the crop.[/quote]

Very true, but this reflects Arsenal's buying policy which is 90% aimed at youth. Rafa is clearly trying to change our policy to provide more balance but currently we are far more reliant on 'mature' purchases.
 
I know it's repetitive, not to mention unfair to single one player out, but really... Ryan Babel can just fuck right off.
 
[quote author=Avmenon link=topic=36805.msg974086#msg974086 date=1256784236]

So their squad is basically a lot stronger than ours?
[/quote]
Lol. I'm not sure it's quite that simple.

For if that was indeed the case, it could simply be solved by Rafa spreading the budget thin to buy a few squad players here and there, not unlike what he did at the start of his tenure with us.

Any other conclusion?
 
[quote author=Delinquent link=topic=36805.msg973994#msg973994 date=1256769290]
[quote author=rage link=topic=36805.msg973938#msg973938 date=1256767153]
how is it we end up with youth like spearing and plessis? neither will make it and i can't believe we just gave plessis a new contract.
[/quote]

This from the fella promoting Championship quality youth above our first teamers just a day ago. You should try and keep track of your wind-ups.
[/quote]

yes i would have kept hammil and tried him out. i think you can do that with a winger. do you think either plessis or spearing will make it?
 
The way Plessis ambles about the midfield is a disgrace considering how young he is - he should be all over the pitch looking for the ball and supporting the defence and attack in equal measure.

I like Spearing and think he's good enough for the premier league but at a Bolton, Burnley, Hull City type club.

Degen!! What the fuck? He can actually play! No point getting excited about it though he'll be injured next week.

N'Gog looked a different player. That goal at the weekend seems to have given him a huge boost, hopefully he progresses from here.

Skrtel had a mare.

Kuyt was awesome although I'm not sure how wise it was to play him given the amount of ground the man covers in every game - he needs a break at some stage.

Voronin - Fuck Off.

Aquilani - should have been given 10 minutes more time on the pitch. He really looks the part and is obviously chomping at the bit. If he, Gerrard and Torres stay fit we will win the league.
 
Not sure if they showed this on the Tele, but when one of the Gooner players went down, Aquilani was strutting around in circles and clicking his fingers ... It was just funny to watch, he has this aura about him ... From the few minutes I saw of his debut, I'm really looking forward to seeing him play ...
 
[quote author=LeTallecWiz link=topic=36805.msg974159#msg974159 date=1256805800]
Not sure if they showed this on the Tele, but when one of the Gooner players went down, Aquilani was strutting around in circles and clicking his fingers ... It was just funny to watch, he has this aura about him ... From the few minutes I saw of his debut, I'm really looking forward to seeing him play ...
[/quote]

No, I didn't see his aura on the tele.

It's fun to get carried away, and why not, but keep in mind it has nothing to do with anything he's projecting, or anything he did, and everything to do with the fact that if he isn't at the very least a solid player, our season is fucked.
 
I think there are many positive aspects to the performance last night.
We have a decent back up keeper and a decent back up right back, not saying they'll come close to being first team regulars but it is reassuring to know that they are not complete poo.

Ngog had another good performance. He was everywhere along the front line and was doing a very good job of keeping the back four occupied on his own. Like Ryan (i think) said, his confidence is really high right now and well, why shouldn't it be?

Aquilani has a bit about him in terms of steel. I thought he'd be all fancy flicks and nice passes but he seems to have more of physical edge to him than I was expecting. But then he is a £20mil international midfielder so you'd expect him to have a bit of bite. Great to see him in the side, now lets just get Reina, Carragher, Agger, Aurelio Johnson, Mascherano, Kuyt, Aquilani, Gerrard & Torres on the pitch at the same time and see how we look.

Also, I am surprised Skrtel hasn't come in for more criticism in this thread. Only Jimmy really touched on how fucking shit he was last night. It is all very well criticising Spearing & Plessis for their performance (Arsenal's youth teams have made much better players than these two look like mugs) but Skrtel has been in the first team coming up on two years now. He is an international defender. He was shocking last night overall. He looks like all his confidence is shot to pieces. He'd wanna get his act together because Agger is made of glass and he will get some game time this season.
 
[quote author=gkmacca link=topic=36805.msg973982#msg973982 date=1256768604]
Nothing yet but bewildering sights about Degen: very fast when he arrived, then injured all season. Then wretchedly poor defensively this pre-season, then injured. Then tonight fast again. No idea what kind of player he can be if he's ever really fit.
[/quote]

I guess there's a reason why Dortmund let him leave on a Bosman.
 
[quote author=Farkmaster link=topic=36805.msg974160#msg974160 date=1256806057]
[quote author=LeTallecWiz link=topic=36805.msg974159#msg974159 date=1256805800]
Not sure if they showed this on the Tele, but when one of the Gooner players went down, Aquilani was strutting around in circles and clicking his fingers ... It was just funny to watch, he has this aura about him ... From the few minutes I saw of his debut, I'm really looking forward to seeing him play ...
[/quote]

No, I didn't see his aura on the tele.

It's fun to get carried away, and why not, but keep in mind it has nothing to do with anything he's projecting, or anything he did, and everything to do with the fact that if he isn't at the very least a solid player, our season is fucked. [/quote]

That he's a solid player is I think obvious - but we need him to be more than that.

But a player who projects confidence and calm is something that this team has been missing in our middle the whole season - it's refreshing to see a player just ping a 40 yard pass, or backheel a pass to skrtel with a few gooners on his tail .... The lad has it.
 
[quote author=Wizardry link=topic=36805.msg973954#msg973954 date=1256767798]
If Spearing makes it he'll have to be a destructive, crunching DM - cause there is nothing else to his game.
[/quote]

I have my doubts about the lad, but this switch from 'give Jay a chance' to 'denounce Spearing as the antichrist' is really brutally premature. If you've seen him play for the reserves regularly you'll know, for example, that there's FAR more to his game than this, and, when confident, he's a sharp and imaginative midfielder who is also very tactically aware. I don't deny for one moment he's has a couple of stinkers in the first team, but this mad rush to dismiss him for all time already just epitomises how hard it is for any academy graduate to make it here. They get wildly hyped, largely without being watched, and then absolutely slaughtered if they don't look great immediately and remain great all season. You wait for Martin Kelly's first bad game - suddenly it will be 'He's been found out,' 'Get rid' etc etc. Give these young players SOME time at least!
 
Spearing didn't play well again but hes definetly ahead of Plessis now. Will be interesting to see how he does if he ever gets to play with one of the senior centre mids. Its not easy playing centre mid with a a slow, can't be arsed Plessis and a lazy Babel who doesn't want to do the ugly things and defend.

Babel should never play left in a 4-4-2. He doesn't put in a good defensive shift and looks utterly clueless.

N'Gog was our best player and was wrongly subbed.

I hate Voronin and wish Pacheco wasn't with Spain.
 
[quote author=gkmacca link=topic=36805.msg974202#msg974202 date=1256811691]
[quote author=Wizardry link=topic=36805.msg973954#msg973954 date=1256767798]
If Spearing makes it he'll have to be a destructive, crunching DM - cause there is nothing else to his game.
[/quote]

I have my doubts about the lad, but this switch from 'give Jay a chance' to 'denounce Spearing as the antichrist' is really brutally premature. If you've seen him play for the reserves regularly you'll know, for example, that there's FAR more to his game than this, and, when confident, he's a sharp and imaginative midfielder who is also very tactically aware. I don't deny for one moment he's has a couple of stinkers in the first team, but this mad rush to dismiss him for all time already just epitomises how hard it is for any academy graduate to make it here. They get wildly hyped, largely without being watched, and then absolutely slaughtered if they don't look great immediately and remain great all season. You wait for Martin Kelly's first bad game - suddenly it will be 'He's been found out,' 'Get rid' etc etc. Give these young players SOME time at least!
[/quote]

Couldn't agree more. All this castigation of players, especially young players is mindless, and usually by people who have never watched these boys mature and show what they're consistently capable of in the reserves.
 
Am I the only one that wasn't to impressed with the "Wizz" kids from Arsenal.

Granted Gibbs and Ramsey will be good players for them in the future. But the rest were average.
The wankfest over the Arsenal youngsters is well overrated imho.
 
[quote author=gkmacca link=topic=36805.msg974202#msg974202 date=1256811691]
I have my doubts about the lad, but this switch from 'give Jay a chance' to 'denounce Spearing as the antichrist' is really brutally premature. If you've seen him play for the reserves regularly you'll know, for example, that there's FAR more to his game than this, and, when confident, he's a sharp and imaginative midfielder who is also very tactically aware. I don't deny for one moment he's has a couple of stinkers in the first team, but this mad rush to dismiss him for all time already just epitomises how hard it is for any academy graduate to make it here. They get wildly hyped, largely without being watched, and then absolutely slaughtered if they don't look great immediately and remain great all season. You wait for Martin Kelly's first bad game - suddenly it will be 'He's been found out,' 'Get rid' etc etc. Give these young players SOME time at least!
[/quote]

Well said. The slating Spearing has gotten since the Sunderland game has been embarassing.
 
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