WBA v Arsenal

So this is where Arsenal get the chance to stake a claim for a top 4 spot midway through the Christmas fixtures.

This is arguably the easiest of the 4 matches as West Brom rarely get outside their half and are managed by Alan "can I shag you wife?...no?...well too late , been there done that" Pardew.

He has the morals of a rodent and the tactical nous of a West Ham manager

There is a never ending chatter about Wenger being prepared to replace Sanchez with Zaha

I guess that would explain why Zaha was so appalling for palace on Thursday...pissing off your new employers and fans is never a good idea...it was the same theory that led the OX to helping Liverpool smash you lot 4 nil

WBA are less cloggy nowadays...they just tend to waste time from the 3rd minute onwards so just do not go expecting to watch anything resembling an entertaining match.

Three points is a must from this match as you next fixture on Wednesday is v Chelsea...or as it is known to the rest of the footballing world...the big **** off

 

That ****ing cockfaced Spurs supporting muppet will be refereeing this game.

Dean has referee'd 52 Arsenal games over the last decade or so. And we have only won 22 of those - which is a win rate of 42%
Considering Arsenals all round win rate for the same period is 58%(16% less likely to win when he referees our games) it's clear the guy is a cheating, Spurs supporting twat of the highest order. If you see him in the street - give him a slap, he deserves it.

 

In all fairness they were gonna give him your match with chelsea but with 22 ****s on the pitch in that game plus 60000 in the ground deciding who he hated most anyone's guess and was giving him a headache so they swapped him to tomorrows match

With Chelsea and Liverpool winning this has become a vital need to win

 

With United slipping up today, they've dropped to 3rd place. This is a chance to close the gap on them to 3 points. Liverpool winning also means we need to win to keep the pressure on them. If we do, we're only 1 point behind them.

The race for the top 4 is hotting up. Assuming both us and Spurs win tomorrow (which of course is no guarantee at all, but on paper, we should), there will be 5 points separating 6th to 2nd.

 

The table after the christmas period usually gives a good indication of the whereabouts of the final standings. There's nothing really separating 2nd to 6th at the moment, a couple of games could change the whole order. We are very much in it, as ****e as we've been at times.

 

Depending on how far we progress in the Europa, there will be a point where our results in the League or Europa will have to be 'sacrificed' for one competition or the other. It's going to be a reality we will have to accept at some point. Interesting to see what Wenger will do when we cross that bridge.

 

Maybe, although we've progressed in the Europa league on a 2nd string team....

That said, I'm not sure we can sustain the level needed in both comps without some give. I think Wenger will prioritise the league to be honest as view the Europa league as a bonus.

 

Piskie, you know as well as I do that the further we get into the competition, we are going to be up against teams a lot tricker than who we faced in the group stages. There's simply no chance of the teams we previously fielded being able to win so convincingly against the other teams we could be up against, especially the CL dropouts.

There will be a point where Wenger will have to choose between which competition is the best route of getting us CL football.

Although I suspect you're right about him prioritising the league over the Europa, I am hoping (perhaps naively) that he can have a change of heart. Winning the Europa is a double-whammy. We get to enjoy European success, something we've not had much of for a long time, whilst also getting a spot in the Champions League the following season. We are also one of the stronger sides in the competition. It would be an opportunity wasted if we don't take it seriously.

 

Yeah, would love to see us win the Europa league. It's a decent trophy and a route into the Champions League. It would also be a European trophy and we haven't won one those for feckin yonks. It would also shut the silly spud ups about their 3 to 2 euro trophies, when they try and ignore our 13 to 2 league titles.

As you say, the latter stages of the EL will get tough because it will naturally have the better teams in it. There's also the distinct possibility that we might not have Ozil and Sanchez after January, and with Wilshere in the first team, the MF options no longer look as varied as they were when we were playing a 2nd string in the group matches.

Anyway, as you say, I'd love to see Wenger go for it in the EL. I'd much rather win it and finish outside the top 4, than simply finish top 4.

 

Liking the red shorts

First time we've worn that combo since 1978 apparently.

 

Yeah looks good.

 

Lacazette making soo many good runs. Iwobi etc.. need to be more accurate in finding him.

 

Accordinging to Chelsea and City fans that is simply not true...
















There was no football pre them getting rich

 

We are so much better with Wilshere in the middle.

 

Very open game,West Brom not parking the bus either,another slow start by us though need to step it up.

 

This is terrible,playing at a snail's pace and no quality to speak of.

 

Tidy enough passing, but no penetration. We need to speed things up and get in behind them. WBA will be happy to see us play in front of them all afternoon.

 

We are passing it around far too slowly and our transitions aren't quick enough, either. It's too comfortable for West Brom.

Sanchez and Wilshere have unsurprisingly been our best players so far. Any goal we score looks likely to go through them. Iwobi should have scored earlier, but he's not been a regular for a while. However, with 1 goal in 18 appearances, I don't understand why he's starting. Baffles me how he starts ahead of Welbeck or Walcott.

Desperately lacking creativity and width. It's all so packed anytime we attack through central areas.

Xhaka takes too long to release the ball and it is slowing our counter-attacks down.

Need a much better second-half performance. Utilise pace and width, and we can win this comfortably.

 

Play is soo slow.

We badly need some more creativity in this squad. Options who can come off the bench and change things.

 

Desperately lacking creativity and width. It's all so packed anytime we attack through central areas.

We do this most of the time these days,its like we are trying to play through a funnel which makes it easier for the opponent to defend against and we continue to do this time and time again.