Tag Archives: FA Cup

Back the team; not the regime

Leave a reply

And we go again.

The thing about football is the next big important game is always round the corner. You can feel lower than low on a Tuesday night, higher than high on a Saturday night. It is a rollercoaster of emotions.

For the last 6 weeks, the Arsenal rollercoaster has felt like a never ending drop. A downward spiral, you might say. But this weekend we have the chance to get a little bit of sunlight in our season. A bit of a lift. We are just one game from Wembley.

Since beating Southampton in the Fourth Round of the FA Cup, Arsenal have lost 5 of the 7 games played. The only victories against Hull and Sutton. 3-1 defeats away at Chelsea and Liverpool, and two 5-1 defeats against Bayern Munich has left a bitter taste in many fans mouths. The worst result of the run though was the 2-1 home loss to Watford. An inexplicable result.

Fan morale is at its lowest that I can remember in my 22 years of going down The Arsenal. There is hatred on the terraces, hatred towards the manager, the board, the players, hatred towards fellow fans, and it is all justified. But today, it needs to be put to one side, for 24 hours at least.

No matter what you think of Arsene Wenger, the board, or certain players, Arsenal are 1 victory away from Wembley. 2 victories from a Wembley final, 3 victories from another FA Cup. And ultimately that is what matters. Trophies over progression.

Today, no matter how angry you might be, how disappointed about how our season is potentially turning out you might be, it is important to back the team.

Put your agendas to one side. Saying stuff like “I want us to lose today so Wenger leaves” is stupid. Success over agendas. Wenger staying or leaving should not come into your thoughts when you think do I want Arsenal to win the FA Cup. The answer should always be yes, no matter if an FA Cup victory means Wenger will stay for another 2 years.

1 win from Wembley
2 wins from an FA Cup Final
3 wins from a 13th FA Cup

Back the team; not the regime

Keenos

Progression the new top 4?

Leave a reply

Is progression the new top 4

With this weekend being an FA Cup weekend, I thought I would try and put together a debate that I have been having recently with some mates.

I asked a few weeks ago to people “finish 4th and win the FA Cup, would you be happy with that? Would that make this season a success?”. The answer emphatically came back. NO.

When I asked them to expand their reasoning, one word continually popper up. PROGRESSION.

Over the last 10 years, and during our 8 year trophy drought, these guys were thirsty for a trophy. They became angry any time someone (Wenger) said something like “top 4 is a trophy”. Every time we were knocked out of a cup competition fielding a weakened side so as to rest players for the league (despite us having no chance of winning the league) they would call for Arsene Wenger’s head.

Trophies are king. Honours lists do not have top 4 on them. And I agreed.

Manchester United have won 2 trophies in 2 years. They did not finish to p4 last year, are struggling to do so this year, but history will not show the latter, they will show 2 trophies in 2 years.

So why has this attitude changed? Why is winning the FA Cup no longer seen as a successful season? And ultimately, what is progression?

When I asked them what is progression, they all listed various factors:

  • Challenging for the title
  • Beating top sides away
  • Getting past the Last 16 of the Champions League
  • Not making the same mistakes year after year

I understood the points they were making. That Arsenal have not challenged for a title in years. Have an awful recent record in big away games. The Last 16 record is a joke. And the predictable continual mistakes are frustrating.

c4ydpsiwaaeowt1

It feels like Arsenal as a club have not gone forward over the last 5 years. We are already double figures behind Chelsea and out of the Champions League. There has been no progression at the club in that time.

But then there has been 2 FA Cups. 2 trophies. 2 pieces of silverware. Surely that is more important than progression?

Let’s create a scenario:

  • Arsenal finish 2nd, 1 point behind the Champions
  • Arsenal beat big sides away – Chelsea, Man U & Man C – but lose away to all 3 relegated sides
  • Arsenal get knocked out of the Champions League semi finals

That is what my mates called for, that is the progression they demanded, but ultimately Arsenal ended up trophyless. Nothing to show for their efforts. No finals, not even a semi final trip to Wembley. A trophyless season where we progressed. Would you be happy with that?

Some will say yes, but I am in the no camp. Football is all about trophies. Not top 4 finishes, not showing progression.

I am sure the likes of Birmingham and Portsmouth would rather have won the trophies they did, and be in their current positions, than be a stable Premier League side like WBA or Stoke, but winning no trophies. The trophies are what is remembered, they are what go’s down in the record books.

Like top 4 finishes, progression that does not end in a trophy is pointless. No one will care about it in 20 years time.

Do you really think Man U will care about finishing 6th when they have League Cup already in the cabinet – making them the most successful side in the English game; overtaking Liverpool.

That expands my thinking further.

Finish above Spurs but without a trophy, or finish below them with a trophy?

Now I love this run we have going against that lot above the road. But what do we get for it? No cups, no silverware, just an ability to say it has been 22 years without them finishing above us. But if they finish above us, and we win the FA Cup, who has really had the better season? The side having a parade around North London for finishing above their rivals, or the side having a parade around North London because they won a trophy.

I see progression as the new Top 4. Only this time rather than those who back Wenger saying it is important, those who do not back him are the ones holding it in high esteem.

Essentially, winning a trophy trumps progression. Give me the FA Cup over finishing 2nd in the league any day of the week.

Tomorrow is the most important game of the season. Win the FA Cup and I do not care if we fail to win another Premier League game this season.

Stick your progress up your arse, it is all about the trophies.

Keenos

Sutton Away loophole, Fans set for refund, Transfer deadline day & Watford

Leave a reply

Sutton Away

So we got the tie a lot of fans wanted, an away game against Sutton United of the National League (formerly known as the Conference). As Arsenal fans celebrated a chance to visit a lower league ground, stand on the terraces, it slowly dawned on everyone that we will get next to no tickets.

With Sutton’s Gander Green Lane stadium holding just 5,013, Arsenal will get around in the region of 750 tickets.

image1

When Leeds visited at the weekend, they got a grand total of 750 tickets.

With Arsenal having around 1,200 on the away ticketing scheme (basically an away season ticket), tickets for the game will be put into a ballot as per the terms and conditions of the scheme. This means many of the fans who ‘celebrated’ and were looking forward to an away trip to Sutton will miss out.

dcdddThere is some talk that Sutton United could apply to move the game to a bigger venue – likely to be Crystal Palace’s Selhurst Park. However, in 2003, after Farnborough switched a 4th round tie against Arsenal to Highbury, the FA Challenge Cup committee slamed the door on Cup’s rogue venue-switchers.

This would seemingly make it impossible for the game to be switched. However, reading through the 2003 article, there still might be some options open to allow more fans to watch the tie:

No club will be able to benefit financially from such a switch

So as long as no one benefits financially, that the income taking from the move remains the same as the income the clubs would have received had the tie not been moved, then a move could possible still be open.

Those who move for the wrong reasons could be barred from the competition the following year.

What are the wrong reasons? Clearly the wrong reason is financial. So what are the right reasons? The right reasons will always be ‘on health and safety grounds’. Whilst Sutton United have a safety certificate enabling them to have 5,000 at their ground, what would happen if 10,000 fans converge on the area to watch the game locally? Would the police be able to control that? Fans attempting to jib in, force their way into a ground that can not be secured. It could be a massive health and safety risk.

The tie could possibly therefore be moved on police advice.

If a cup tie still had to be switched it would go to the nearest suitable neutral venue, rather than the opponents’ home ground.

So a tie can be switched to the nearest suitable home ground. In this case, it would be Crystal Palace.

If games are still moved, any excess money earned by the participants would go into the central pool.

So to stop people benefiting financially from a change of venue, any extra revenue generated go’s into a central pool and then distributed to all clubs.

The door is clearly open for a venue change. Sutton United and Arsenal will simply have to present to the police that holding such a big game at such a small stadium presents a health and safety and security risk.

Fan set for refund

As part of an Arsenal season ticket, fans automatically get the first 7 FA Cup / Champions League home games – this is why Arsenal always appear to have vastly more expensive season tickets than other clubs; we get 26 games.

If Arsenal do not play 7 home FA Cup / Champions League games, fans are then given a discount off next years season ticket.

With an away draw against Sutton making it 3 away FA Cup ties in a row for the Gunners, it leaves Arsenal fans having had just 4 of their cup tickets. The 3 games in the group stages of the Champions League and Bayern Munich in the first knock out stage.

In total, Arsenal have a possibility of playing another 4 games at home in cup competitions:

  • 6th round replay if we draw away to Sutton
  • FA Cup QF / QF replay if we get through the 6th round
  • Champions League QF
  • Champions League SF

Now you make your mind up on the likelihood of any of these happening.

The club bean counters will be getting nervous at this point. The cost of refunding 3 cup games to fans could be as high as £9,000,000.

Of course, the club (and fans) will be hoping we get through to the FA Cup QF and Champions League semi-final. This will also come with a cost, however, as the club are likely to make these games category A, and adding a charge to fans season tickets for next year.

Deadline day Arsenal transfers

Nothing to see here. Move along please.

Watford

So Arsenal enter a defining few days in this years title race. Victory tonight over Watford and a Chelsea defeat at Anfield blows the race right open again, and sets it up nicely for the weekends game at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea.

For the 1st time in a long, long time, Arsene Wenger has almost a fully fit squad to pick from, with only Santi Cazorla out injured, Granit Xhaka suspended and Mohamed Elneny in Africa

Having only just come back from injury, I would be very surprised if Theo Walcott or Danny Welbeck start. The former playing 90 minutes at the weekend against Southampton.

The biggest headache for Wenger will be whether to give Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain another run out in the middle of the park after a Man of the Match performance against Southampton, or revert to what he knows and have a Coquelin, Ramsey, Ozil axis. I think he will play it safe and go for the later. Although he will start Oxlade-Chamberlain on the wing.

Hopefully Stevie Boulds Red & White Army makes it 2 wins from 2.

Have a good day and stay warm and dry later.

Up the Arsenal.

Keenos