Arsenal FC a very promising story

[Archer]

Good Ebening Ralph!

As you might recall I've always had a soft spot for Arsenal but that is exceded by my love for Unai Emery. Let's face it his goal celebration is the best.

It will be a shared love on Saturday at the Etihad where the concourses will be crowded watching the 2nd half at Villa Park. Amazing to think that if Villa win they are only 3 points behind Arsenal. City have a small interest as well of course and a tight title race is best for the league

[Karabiner]

This guy writes well and I think Nostradamus aka Archer will appreciate it too :

https://redstory.substack.com/p/on-the-beach

[Karabiner]

Turned out nice again!

I doubt Nostradamus could have predicted the last couple of rounds.

[tikay]

Turned out nice again!

I doubt Nostradamus could have predicted the last couple of rounds.

Just about every result perfect.

Liverpool next, Thursday. Should be simple enough.

Oh, & Declan is amazeballs. He missed a game with a swollen knee & was said to be doubtful for yesterday, (maybe Mikel mind games) but it did not stop him doing knee-slides after scoring.

[Karabiner]

I found this an interesting read about the "good old days":

https://arseblog.com/2017/03/the-bear-of-highbury/

[EssexPhil]

That was an interesting read. Nice mix of romanticism and realism, too.

As a lifelong Yid (won't catch any of us switching from Brentford), thought I would cheer you lot up before the North v South London Derby.

I was 1 of many who expected Frank to do well. Then I watched the Summer transfer window. We signed an entertaining show pony (Kudus) and 2 men with zero experience of the Prem (Kolo Muani and Simons). Good players, both, but the former will never be suited to English football, while the latter is trying ever so hard, while hoping next Summer to either play elsewhere or put on the 20 pounds of muscle needed. Presuming he doesn't want to be remembered as the new Bryan Gil

So. Do Spurs learn their lesson? No. We sign an Interim Manager (Tudor) with precisely zero experience of playing in or managing in England. He looks like a decent Manager. But what a time and way to appoint him. Can't sign anyone, no local knowledge, and told he's off in 4 months time. Meanwhile our last Assistant Manager (Heitinga) who had local knowledge from Spurs and Liverpool, as well as Managing Ajax, is shown the door.

The first goal at the Weekend is going to be important...

[tikay]

That was an interesting read. Nice mix of romanticism and realism, too.

As a lifelong Yid (won't catch any of us switching from Brentford), thought I would cheer you lot up before the North v South London Derby.

I was 1 of many who expected Frank to do well. Then I watched the Summer transfer window. We signed an entertaining show pony (Kudus) and 2 men with zero experience of the Prem (Kolo Muani and Simons). Good players, both, but the former will never be suited to English football, while the latter is trying ever so hard, while hoping next Summer to either play elsewhere or put on the 20 pounds of muscle needed. Presuming he doesn't want to be remembered as the new Bryan Gil

So. Do Spurs learn their lesson? No. We sign an Interim Manager (Tudor) with precisely zero experience of playing in or managing in England. He looks like a decent Manager. But what a time and way to appoint him. Can't sign anyone, no local knowledge, and told he's off in 4 months time. Meanwhile our last Assistant Manager (Heitinga) who had local knowledge from Spurs and Liverpool, as well as Managing Ajax, is shown the door.

The first goal at the Weekend is going to be important...

Morning Phil. A nice balanced Post, or at least for the most part...

I should apologise that there's no dedicated Spurs thread so you've had to find a way to post it on the Arsenal thread. Generally speaking, we only have dedicated Club threads for the big & successful teams.

[EssexPhil]

Arsenal are "Big and successful? Yes. And no.

The Premier League has always involved bigger teams using financial muscle to get players. Eze this Summer was a classic example. Spurs are (financially) a far bigger club than Palace. So when we offered him £8 milly a year, Palace knew they couldn't compete. Then Arsenal offered £10 million a year, doing to us exactly what we were doing to Palace. Like it or not, it's the reality-for everyone (except, possibly, Real Madrid). It's an open secret that 7 or 8 of the current Arsenal squad cost more than Spurs have ever spent on a player. And 6 or 7 of the current Arsenal squad are being paid more than Spurs have ever spent on a player. Saka, for example, earns more than £5 million a year more than any Spurs player. Which is, of course, why Arsenal are in various respects a bigger club than Spurs.

Postecoglu was completely right when he said that, in some respects, Spurs are not a "big" club. There isn't a "big 6". There is a Big 5 financially-(in no order) that is Arsenal Chelsea Liverpool Man City and Man Utd. Spurs are the 6th biggest financially-but rather closer to the likes of Newcastle and Villa than the ones above them.

1 way anyone can readily see the difference is in the approach to bedding in players from other Leagues. As an example, Hincapie is being given time to bed in. The size of your squad affords the luxury of picking his games to bed him in. Would he have got that time at Spurs? I fear not.

The Press take what I term as the Jamie Carragher approach. Make 1 half-decent point. And then bang on about it endlessly, to the exclusion of all other relevant factors. Let's mention 1-the importance of the Ground. No-one would ever suggest that the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is anything other than a massive upgrade on the old White Hart Lane. For exactly the same reasons as the Emirates and Highbury. But-and it is a big but-the new polished grounds do not provide the febrile atmosphere of a Lane or a Highbury. That is part of the reason why Spurs have not been as good at Home. Or why, in Arsenal's case, what is probably the 2nd best funded side in the Prem has not won the League since 2004. At Highbury.

[Karabiner]

Mind you Phil, if it weren't for the Premier League's very own Lance Armstrong we would have won it several times since 2004.

Meanwhile I hope we play better tonight than we did in the home fixture in which we only just squeaked a 2-1 win.