Tag Archives: She Wore

Arsenal’s Class is International

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I am a “soccer” coach in New York.

Last summer we held our pre-season camp at the Golden Goal Residence in Upstate New York. Golden Goal host many teams and organisations, including the Arsenal Academy Camp (Arsenal School USA).

Arsenal’s camp was being held while I was there with my team. They had top class coaches replicating the coaching from Hale End and London Colney.

I witnessed some session and they were impressive. Kids who had registered for that camp had the new kit before it had been officially released.

The same week, there was also an organisation who had bought underprivileged kids from the Bronx to Golden Goal so that they could experience a residential camp experience outside of the City.

Those kids were so happy to be there, living the dream.

When the organisation overseeing these kids learnt that Arsenal were present, they humbly asked Arsenal Academy if their coaches could give these youngsters one afternoon session – can you imagine those underprivileged kids going home and telling their parents that they were coached for one session by The Arsenal?

The Arsenal coaches not only agreed to undertake a single session with these kids, but took it too a higher and unexpected level.

Arsenal added all the underprivileged kids to their own residential camp for free!!!!

Those kids got top coaching from Arsenal for a week, and went back to their neighbourhood with the new kit.

Some of these kids were crying and most of them could not believe it! Some thought it was a prank!

They would have left with memories that will last a lifetime, and for some it would have been a life changing experience.

It was a very moving moment watching these kids, who have nothing, realise that they were going to be coached by Arsenal Football Club. It made me proud of the club I support!

Proud to be a Gooner!!

Keenos

Why never Arsenal?

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During the Huddersfield v Manchester City game, the conversation turned to how brilliant the Manchester City side was.

That with 12 games gone, they have won 11, drawn 1, scoring 42 and conceding just 8. Their goal difference is already +34 and they are 8 points clear at the top. Only an idiot would not say they are not an awesome team.

The conversation soon moved on to Arsenal this season.

Now we all want to compete for league titles. To compete should be a minimum requirement – although I would also argue that to win is a minimum requirement. But with City in such great form, and looking to break all sorts of records (they are on a 21 game unbeaten run in the league, losing just 2 league games this calendar year), would it really be a failure to finish below them?

To a man, we all agreed no. That if City get 90+ points, it would have taken a herculean effort to finish above them. An impossible effort infact.

Since we last won the Premier League – back in 2004 – no side has ever gained more than 90 points and not won the league. 4 times in 13 seasons, sides have breached the 90 point mark and secured the title. You can easily argue that 90+ points guarantees you the title.

Lowering the barrier by a single win – so 87 points, only once  has a team got above 87 points and failed to win the league – Manchester United in 2011/12 when they finished level on points with Manchester City.

Again, you could argue that 87 points will almost guarantee you the title.

In the last 13 seasons, the league has been won by 87+ points 9 times. In each of these seasons, it would have been near impossible, based on recent history, for Arsenal to have gained more points and gone on to win the title.

In those 9 seasons, it would not have been a poor season to finish second. The best team one and, in the majority of the cases, won by a distance. Finishing second would be nothing to be ashamed of in those season, we all agreed.

But then I asked the question; Why never Arsenal? Why do we always sit there and say Well done Manchester City / Chelsea / Manchester United. Great teams, would have been impossible to catch you anyone.

Why can we not expect Arsenal to ever get 87+ points?

It is easy to praise others, to say well done, to agree that finishing above Manchester City if they get 87+ points this season would be impossible.

Just like no-one was ever going to finish above Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea in the 2004/05 (91 points) and 2005/06 seasons (95 points), or Manchester United in 2012/13 (89 points – won the league by 11) and 2008/09 (90 points).

There have been 4 seasons since we won the league unbeaten in 2004 when the league was won by less than 87 points. So why then could Arsenal not have got 87+ in those seasons?

Why are we sitting around praising other teams mammoth points totals, instead of saying why can we not accrue a massive points total.

In Arsene Wenger’s time at Arsenal, we have breached the magical 87 point mark just twice. In 2001/02 and 2003/04.

Only twice since 2003/04 have we breached the 80 point mark – 2004/05 and 2007/08. No team has won the Premier League with less than 80 points since Manchester United in 1998/99.

Whilst other teams in the last 13 years have gone on to get mammoth points totals which would guarantee them the league, Arsenal have failed to get close.

On 4 occasions in that period, a team has won the league with less than 87 points. Twice sides have won the league with 80/81 points.

Why could Arsenal have not gone on in those seasons to be the side that gets 87 points?

Whilst you should give praise where it is due, and it is not a failure to finish second to a team getting 90+ points, it is a clear failure that Arsenal have not got anywhere near the points total required to be champions in the majority of the seasons since we last won a trophy.

Finishing 2nd to Manchester City this season will not be a failure. Finishing 2nd to Leicester City when they only won 81 points is a failure.

Only twice in those 13 years have we won more points than Leicester did in 2015/16.

So rather than praise a side for breaking records, as the question Why can it not be Arsenal that is breaking the records?

Why never Arsenal?

And we all know the answer…

Keenos

Burnley caps off brilliant week for Arsenal

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If Carlsberg did great weeks and all that…

It started the Saturday before last. An early kick off against that lot up the road. It was supposed to be a game where Spurs cement themselves as the premiere club in North London. Show that the power shift is real. That despite the lack of trophies, they are top dogs.

Arsenal played them off the park. Destroyed Spurs. And showed that North London is red. And the drink up in the afternoon and evening was incredible.

Roll on to Sunday, and whilst we were all nursing hangovers and what-not, the world of Arsenal Twitter was exploding with #TeaGate as journalists up and down the country who make a living by winding up fans for hits got wound up themselves. How did this happen? Arsenal posted a GIF of Mesut Ozil drinking a cup of tea.

The fall out was hilarious as journalists who make a career winding up Arsenal fans then denied that they had ever written an article intended to wind up.

It ended with a lot of journalists realising that they were not as popular as they thought.

On Wednesday morning, we all set off to cologne for what ended up an epic trip.

Despite Arsenal’s defeat, a great time was had by all. 3 days on the beer in cold, wet Germany. It was one of those where you only understand how great it was if you were there.

To prove that the result was secondary, despite Arsenal losing, we still managed to secure top spot in the group with a game to go.

In the Europa League, it is all about qualifying using as little energy as possible. Arsenal got through with two games to go and secured top place with a game to go, all whilst barely using a single first team player.

Over the years, the Europa League has proved a thorn in the side of many teams as they historically struggle at the weekend fixtures. Arsenal have won 3 of the 5 weekend fixtures, and drawn away to Chelsea. The sole defeat being against Manchester City.

I am still recovering now…

And then we move on to Saturday. Spurs drop points. Liverpool drop points. Chelsea drop points. Arsenal set to play Sunday with a chance to get above Liverpool and Spurs and a single point behind Chelsea.

A dull, turgid game up North. Cold and wet. We struggled. The game petering out to a draw, Aaron Ramsey gets pushed over in the penalty area. Penalty. Goal. 92nd minute.

Is there anything better in football than an injury time winner? What a great way to beat the horrible lot from up North.

It was the 3rd time in a row that we had beaten thuggish Burnley with a last minute winner.

October 2016, it was a 92nd minute Laurent Koscielny winner to break the hearts of Burnley fans. 3 months on, Alexis Sanchez hit a 98th minute penalty, having seen Burnley score their own debatable penalty to equalise in the 93rd minute.

And then we come to yesterday, another penalty from Sanchez, this time in the 92nd minute. How Burnley must hat injury time against The Arsenal.

Maybe if their players, big tough guys like Ashley Barnes, did not spend the game throwing themselves to the floor at every opportunity, feigning injury, then there would not be as much injury time?

To top it off, #twitterclarets on Twitter made it an entertaining end to a great week.

Seeing those Burnley fans cry their salty tears over losing to Arsenal once more in injury time was the cherry on the cake.

And to top it all off, we end the weekend above Spurs.

Keenos