Tag Archives: Arsenal

Calm down dear, it’s only a friendly 

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Arsenal lost 3-0 to Chelsea in a pre-season friendly in China. As expected, the toys were well and truly thrown out of a the pram.

“Didn’t take us long to go back to mentality weak c***ts did it” I saw one fan write. 

“Once again other team looks more prepared than we do” another messaged, “it has shown we haven’t changed.”

“Exactly, same mistakes the worry is we never ever learn” was the response. 

I see one blogger claim we “stank out Beijing with familiar performance”. Well done. A comment from a real fan blogging from his Manhattan high rise. 

The fact is, this was a friendly. And just like I wouldn’t expect anyone to go OTT over the drawvictoy against Bayern Munich earlier this week, I wouldn’t expect anyone to be moaning that we have lost a friendly. 

But of course, it is always forgotten that some Arsenal fans will look at any reason to man. 

The same fans moaning this evening about our defeat would have spent the night attacking fans being happy had we won 3-0. 

“But it’s only a friendly” they would have screamed had we won. 

So why is when we win, it is only a friendly, but when we lose, we have stunk out the place and on the verge of a club in crisis. Be consistent. Don’t change your narrative to suit the agenda. 

2014/15 pre season, Spurs went unbeaten. Chelsea lost to the likes of Besiktas and Werder Breman. Chelsea won the league. Spurs finished 5th. 

Pre season is about getting match fit. It’s about money, mainly. So dot get your knickers in a twist.

Bayern Munich lost 4-0 to AC Milan. Are there fans moaning?

Arsenal losing to Chelsea is a meaningless result in a meaningless game. And it would be the same had Arsenal won. 

Have a good Saturday. 

Keenos

Arsenal lose 3rd young Englishman abroad

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For years a criticism of English players has been that they do not test themselves abroad. It is one reason why the English national team has struggled over the years. No one go’s abroad and learns a different culture of how to play the game.

In recent years, we have seen very few players move to Italy, France, Spain or Germany.

Micah Richards and Ashley Cole both had stays in Italy. One rebuilding his career, one coming to the end. Whilst Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard were star names in the MLS. Jermaine Defoe also went to the American retirement, but soon realised there wss plenty left in his tank and returned to the Premier League.

It is around about a decade since Real Madrid took David Beckham, Steve McManaman and Michael Owen to La Liga. Since then, not so much of substance.

I will always remember the France 1998 World Cup winning side, and how the majority of their key players played outside the French league. Zinedine Zidane, Didier Deschamps and Marcel Desailly were all in Serie A during its glory years, Bixente Lizarazu played for Bayern Munich, Patrick Vieira for Arsenal, Christian Karembeu for Real Madrid. The lessons they all absorbed and brought back to Les Bleus’ party were regarded as vital.

So it is interesting to see 3 young Arsenal players leave for the continent this summer. Not on loan deals like 156 Chelsea players, but on permanent deals.

Highly rated youngster Chris Willock decided against signing a new deal at Arsenal this summer, and instead took his speed and trickery to Portuguese champions Benfica on a five-year deal.

At just 19, it could be a brilliant move for him. The Portuguese league promotes attacking, free flowing football. A player like Willock will thrive in the league. He will have a chance to show his skills at a high level, rather than sit in Arsenal’s reserves, or be booted around in the Championship.

Kaylen Hinds was the second Arsenal player out the door.

The Islington local, also just 18, joined German outfit VfL Wolfsburg on a three-year deal for reportedly ~£2,000,000.

Wolfsburg’s manager is former Academy Manager Andries Jonker, who is ably assisting by Freddie Ljungberg. They both must have seen something in Hinds whilst at Arsenal to make the youngster one of their first signings.

The final, and most recent, Arsenal youngster to make the move abroad is Dan Crowley.

When Crowley joined Arsenal at 16, he was labelled the next Jack Wilshere. Crowley to Wilshere is what Fran Merida was to Cesc Fabregas.

Crowley was loaned out 3 times whilst at Arsenal, the last being to Dutch side Go Ahead Eagles.

He must have impressed in his 6 month spell because it has secured him a 3 year contract with Willem II.

It takes a lot, as a teenager, to uproot yourself from your home country and work elsewhere. Especially in something as pressurised and cut throat at football. Some will say they get paid enough so the money should compensate but it does not compensate for the mental strain that any human being might face.

Too all 3, we wish you well and hope that by moving abroad, you open the door for more young Englishmen to make the move. And in turn the England National team improves as move players join up with the squad having learnt the game in a different country.

Good luck to all 3.

Keenos

Arsenal win first trophy of the season

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Arsenal maintained their unbeaten pre-season record yesterday with a penalty shoot-out victory against Bayern Munich on a hot and humid night in Shanghai.

In testing conditions, the Germans settled first and went close through James Rodriguez before they were awarded a penalty when Ainsley Maitland-Niles was adjudged to have fouled Juan Bernat in the area.

Robert Lewandowski made no mistake from the spot, but we responded brightly and came close to equalising when Mesut Ozil saw his shot saved after a raking move up the length of the pitch.

It may have been nearly eight o’clock at night, but with the temperature still touching 30 degrees, the players understandably took every chance to take on more fluids.

After one such interval, we restarted brightly and Alexandre Lacazette had a golden opportunity to equalise when played clean through – only to see his shot saved.

Bayern were always going to be a big step up in terms of pre-season opponents, and so they proved, twice going close through Rodriguez and again through Thomas Muller before the interval.

Petr Cech was the busier of the goalkeepers in the first half, and he was called into action once again at the start of the second period to deny James and then David Alaba.

Substitute Theo Walcott would go close in the closing stages with a curling effort that was well held, and it looked as though we were heading for our first defeat of pre-season… before a late twist.

Our injury-time equaliser came as the ball was slipped to Ramsey on the left, and he clipped the ball into the area to the onrushing Alex Iwobi who placed his header in to spark wild celebrations among our Chinese fanbase.

That was the last act of normal time, so the match went to penalties – with Emi Martinez the hero as he saved from David Alaba and Juan Bernat to secure us the victory.

The victory saw Arsenal lift a trophy at the first opportunity of the season. Although we are unsure what trophy it was. Probably one for being best dressed team as we wore our dazzling pink strip, customized with the sponsors name in Chinese.

Up next for the Gunners is Chelsea at the Bird’s Nest Stadium on Saturday. The game will be live on ITV, as Arsenal will look to win their second trophy of the season – as long as Vic Akers remembered to pack it.

Win Saturday and Arsenal will have a chance of completing a historic pre-season as they enter the highly competitive Emirates Cup – a competition Arsenal have had a lot of success in recently; winning 4 of the last 8.

All of this is good news in Arsenal’s attempt to keep Alexis Sanchez, who is reportedly motivated by trophies, not money. Whilst he missed out on the chance to lift the trophy last night, he will realise success breads success, and a pre-season treble, and even an unbeaten pre season, matching the Invincible’s of 2003/04, will be a sign of good things to come for the club.

Keenos

Obviously this article is in jest. pre season is mainly about fitness, not winning. I imagine there are some idiots out there who will take this article seriously and say look at that AKB Keenos celebrating a pre season trophy. Well the jokes on you lads.