Fruitful Trip to Lancashire

At the time of writing mad redo1 has not seen the goals from the Arsenal visit to Blackburn Rovers last night. After the conclusion of Terawih and Witr prayers he immediately took Mortimer to the McD Drive Thru Restaurant where Eezmo has been watching together with returnee GanuGooner, Spalding.

What left on the clock was just minutes and the score was 2-1 in favour of the visitors. Then Arsenal broke on the right and in the end the ball reached Jack Wilshere who only had Paul Robinson to beat. However the teenager's attempt was blocked by the veteran custodian and shortly after the man in the middle blew for full time.

It is good to know Theo Walcott keeps scoring goals for Arsenal and his opener certainly shows his continuous development as a forward which will bode well for Arsenal challenges on all fronts this season. However there must be a bit concern about Laurent Koscielny ability to withhold the physical nature of Premier League after he was shouldered off the ball by El Hadji Diouf en route of the home side equaliser, which was scored by Mame Biram Diouf.

Arsenal defended stoutly for the rest of the match in the face of Blackburn's direct route football and Manuel Almunia performed efficiently despite the uncomfortable nature of the match which saw heavy rain pouring down in Lancashire in the early part of it.

Andrey Arshavin's winner just six minutes into the second half did not kill off the match as the home side tried to force an equaliser. But the resilience showed by the Arsenal team was enough to ensure all three points went The Gunners' way, much to the delight of all Gooners around the world and especially the three at kT's McDonald's Drive Thru Restaurant.

However, there was some concern when Robin van Persie hobbled off with an ankle injury and according to Arsene Wenger the Dutchman will be out for ten days. Van Persie started his first match of the season and so was skipper Cesc Fabregas whose blocked shot led to Arshavin's winner in the second half.

Arsenal fans could be reunited with their former skipper William Gallas as early as September when both North London clubs were paired together in the Third Round of the Carling Cup competition. The match which is slated for 20-09-2010 will be at White Hart Lane. Arsene is expected to field his youngsters while Harry Redknapp will do otherwise, seeing the competition as one where his side could get their hands on a piece of silverware this season.

That will be a fodder for another day. For the time being just enjoy the fruit of labour from the trip to Ewood Park. It is certainly a good birthday gift for mad redo1 who turned 41 on the 19th day of Ramadhan.

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Reunion in the Champions League

Arsenal will be reunited with one of their alumni when the Gunners face Shakhtar Donetsk of the Ukraine in the Champions League Group H campaign. Arsene Wenger's men will also travel to Portugal and face their doppelganger side Sporting Braga who also play in red and white kit. Then another trip to one of the former iron curtain countries to face Serbian side Partizan Belgrade.

Many would say it is a relatively easy group but Arsenal do not have a good record against sides from the former Soviet bloc. In fact they were beaten 3-0 against Donetsk in 2000 before a Martin Keown stoppage time header in the return leg at Highbury secured their trip out of that group. Then another thing to be vary about is former Arsenal players tend to do well against their former club, thus I really hope that would not be the case for Eduardo, who has scored three so far for his new club.

Followings are Arsenal Champions League fixtures:

15-09-2010 SC Braga (h)
28-09-2010 FK Partizan (a)
19-10-2010 Shakhtar Donetsk (h)
03-11-2010 Shakhtar Donetsk (a)
23-11-2010 SC Braga (a)
08-12-2010 FK Partizan (h)

In another development, ESPN-Soccernet reported the completion of Sebastien Squilachi's transfer from Spanish side Sevilla to Arsenal despite no announcement has been made by Arsenal.com. The addition is certainly a welcomed one by many Gooners as the defensive unit looks a bit lightweight after the departure of Sol Campbell, William Gallas, Mickael Silvestre and Phillip Senderos.

The tall French international will add reinforcement with his good reading of the game and man-marking skills even which would make up for his lack in speed even though the pace in the Premier League is a notch higher than it is in La Liga. Thus it will take a while for Squilachi to adapt to his new environment.

Another development in the transfer front is the availability of Newcastle defender Steven Taylor after the player fails to agree terms for a new contract with his hometown club. However, I do not see Arsene making a move for the English defender, especially with his defensive unit is already full with French speaking nationals.

The manager also calls for more protection for goalkeepers during set-pieces, especially corners when opponents have a specialist in obstructing goalkeepers from getting to the ball fairly. This is especially true when facing physical sides such as Bolton Wanderers and this weekend's opponent Blackburn Rovers.

Former custodian Jens Lehmann was the favourite among opponents to use this tactic as the goalkeeper could be easily provoked just by having a player standing in front of him. However current short-stopper Manuel Almunia is more stable in that sense. However after seeing how Stoke City scored against Sp*rs last weekend, Arsene feels more protection is needed against such unfair plays.

The trip to Ewood Park will see the return of midfielder Denilson from injury while Laurent Koscielny who was suspended against Blackpool should take his place alongside Thomas Vermaelen. Thus there would be some changes in the midfield with Alex Song is expected to take the role as the enforcer in front of the back four. If Cesc Fabregas is fit, then the skipper is expected to take his place alongside Tomas Rosicky which will see Jack Wilshere and Abou Diaby dropping to the bench.

With an early kick-off time it will be interesting whether mad redo1 will place his butt in front of the telly or otherwise. Whatever it is, C'mon Gooners!

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Half A Dozen of Delights

I was glad Theo Walcott did not make it to South Africa for the ill-fated England World Cup campaign. With a good summer break he came back fresher and more determined to show that he has what it takes to become part of a more successful England side of the future.

Three goals against newly promoted Blackpool may not be a prime indicator of his talent but for many Gooners they are hoping it will be a start of a wonderful season for him and his team-mates. A four-nil win at Wigan Athletic last week certainly made Arsene Wenger wary of such win could do to newly promoted side, hence his instruction to his charges not to underestimate the Sea-siders.

For mad redo1 in kT, it was the second week in a row he found himself at McD's drive-thru restaurant at Padang Hiliran, this time with fellow Gooner Eezmo of Sleepy Jeremy fame. Unlike last week when Arsenal fans were outnumbered by non-scousers Liverpool fans, this time it was us Gooners who were the majority (hardly surprising eh?).

The score was still nil-nil when we arrived. mad redo1 settled down and watched the proceedings while Eezmo parked the car. Then to justify us seating there mad redo1 went to the counter to get some refreshments and when he came back Arsenal were 1-0 to the good.

Arrgggghhhhh!!!

He just missed a typical well worked Arsenal move which ended with the ball in the opponents' net. Luckily for mad redo1 Arsenal would find the net five more times in a match that saw Maruoane Chamakh opened his competitive goal account for Arsenal, using his height and good leap to score the sixth and final goal.

It was also good to see skipper Cesc Fabregas appearing for the first time this season together with Robin van Persie, both on their way to full fitness after a late pre-season due to the World Cup campaign with their respective countries.

Arsenal midfield trio of Tomas Rosicky, Abou Diaby and Jack Wilshere were full of running. Diaby who seemed to be taking too many touches everytime he received the ball decided to take Bacary Sagna's square ball with a first time effort which Blackpool goalkeeper Matthew Gilks no chance at all.

Andrey Arshavin who had a quiet performance at Anfield last week was full of life this time around even though he only found the net from the penalty spot after Chamakh was adjudged to have been brought down by Ian Evatt inside the box. Blackpool had to play with numerical disadvantage when he was shown the red card for his trouble.

However, the day certainly belonged to Walcott and for us Gooners we pray for it to be the sign for all good things to come.

Go Gooners!


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Catch That Chicken Reina

It was the first match of the season and after driving around for fifteen minutes finally we decided to try our luck at the McDonald's Drive Thru outlet near the Giant Hypermarket. We (Liverpool fan Mohd Hilmi and I) entered the outlet and as usual Gooners will always be outnumbered.


The match was already in its twentieth minute and there was no goal even though I found out later Thomas Vermaelen already had a screamer pushed away by Pepe Reina. As we settled down in our seats Arsenal looked the more threatening even though the home side managed to hit back on quick counter-attack on a number of occasions.

Then Joe Cole in his first appearance in the Premier League in the red colour of the Merseyside club was flashed the card in the same colour of his kit for a high tackle on Arsenal debutant Laurent Koscielny. The incident happened when the first half was just about to end.

It did not give me any joy the numerical advantage that Arsenal would have in the second half as the opponent would be more defensive which in turn would restrict the Gunners from playing in their usual style.

Arsene Wenger must have feared the worst when almost right from the start Liverpool took the lead. Jack Wilshere misread a pass and the ball went to Javier Mascherano who released David Ngog who unleashed a shot that beat Manuel Almunia at his near post, much to the chagrin of Arsenal fans around the world who now feel a world class goalkeeper is really needed in order to really challenge for honours this season.

With having scored the lead, it seemed Liverpool would be content to sit back and soak the pressure and tried to hit back on the counter. The introduction of Tomas Rosicky, Theo Walcott and Robin van Persie underlined the Gunners determination to salvage something from the match.

Maruone Chamakh had a good outing and had a continuing battle with Jaime Carragher. Most of the time the former Everton fan managed to get the better of the Morrocans but in the end Chamakh played a vital role in saving a point for his side.

Perhaps the sun got into his eyes when he flapped the high ball and Chamakh managed to divert his header towards goal. However it hit the post and Reina dived for the loose ball a-la catching a chicken for a 'kenduri' (feast). Unfortunately the chicken got away and left all the eggs on the Spanish number two's face.

It will remain as one of the funniest goal ever scored or conceded in the Premier League, cementing Reina's name in the English league folklore, perhaps befitting the prank he and Puyol pull on Cesc Fabregas during Spain celebration after winning the World Cup last month.

Overall it was a good match and the result was fair for both sets of fans. Hopefully Arsene boys will get it right against Blackpool at the Emirates on Saturday in their first home match of the season. More on that later.

And Hilmi, thanks for the McChicken!

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Here We Go!

The best news on the opening day of the season for an Arsenal fan like me is not the signing of a player by manager Arsene Wenger but the Frenchman signing an extension to his current contract that will keep him at Arsenal until 2014.

The fear of him leaving for another club has been hanging in the air but Arsene clearly loves to finish his project here where he is given the freedom to shape the future of the club which at the moment look very bright. After being criticised for having few English players within the Arsenal ranks now it seems England will get their core players from the red and white section of North London.

With captain Cesc Fabregas a bit doubtful for the match at Anfield tonight due to late pre-season programme for players in action at the 2010 South Africa World Cup, Arsenal fans would be delighted if Jack Wilshere takes the field and provide the forward impetus for his team-mates.

Samir Nasri could be the main creative point for the Gunners and Abou Diaby should be the one starting just in front of the defence even though Manu Frimpong could also be in the picture after impressing the manager during the pre-season programme.

The forward line would likely be without Robin van Persie which means Marouane Chamakh could be alone upfront with Andrey Arshavin and Theo Walcott in support from the flanks. Many Gooners are hoping the Russian will continue his scoring streak at Anfield tonight having scored five goals in two matches he played there.

It will be a tough competitive debut for Laurent Koscielny as he partners Thomas Vermaelen at the heart of the Arsenal defence, a section that Arsene really hopes to improve significantly from last season's showing. However, the main concern for many Arsenal fans is still who will be the man between the posts this season.

Arsene has came out and says whoever is chosen tonight will be his number one, though not permanently as the goalkeeper will be judged on his performance. Wojciech Szczesny is unlikely to start due to his lack of top flight experience. Thus it will be a three way battle between Manu Almunia, Lukasz Fabianski and Vito Mannone.

Fulham drew at Bolton Wanderers without Mark Schwarzer in goal, fueling speculation that the Aussie custodian will become an Arsenal player in the next few days. That would be an interesting situation. Former Cottagers' manager Roy Hodgson who is now in charge of Liverpool will be hoping for a good start for his side after bolstering his side with Joe Cole, Milan Jovanovic and Chris Poulsen.

Another Arshavin Super Show is most welcomed but at the same time another clean sheet at Anfield would be very, very much appreciated.

C'mon Gunners!


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Pre-Season 2010-11 Part 3

The pre-season programme has ended and now we Gooners are just eagerly waiting for the trip to Anfield on 15-08-2010 where Roy Hogdson Liverpool will be waiting for us. Hopefully there will be a review of the match by yours truly a few days prior to that date.

However, the BEST news an Arsenal fan could wish to hear all summer long is the one from skipper Cesc Fabregas confirming that he will be 100% committed to the Arsenal cause this season, having put behind the transfer tales between his employer Arsenal and his boyhood club Barcelona.

At one point I felt that it is much, much better to let Cesc go rather than forcing him to stay against his will at Arsenal. However, being a great person he is, the Catalonia born midfielder gives his assurance that Arsenal will get the best of him in their quest to end their trophy drought since 2005.

The last pre-season match that Arsenal played was the trip to Warsaw, playing Legia who was celebrating the opening of their new 31,000 seater Wojska Polskiego Stadium. You could be forgiven for thinking it was a tennis match given the 6-5 scoreline in favour of the Gunners.

Despite Arsene Wenger asking fans to detach themselves from pre-season results, questions would be asked regarding the performance of the two Polish goalkeepers in action in front of their compatriots. Lukasz Fabianski who started the match conceded three goals in the first half while Wojciech Szczerny picked the ball twice from the back of his net.

Conceding goals is not the ideal preparation for goalkeepers for the coming season but I rather have them doing that now rather than when the serious stuff starts. Despite my wish list to see the likes of Manuel Neuer or Gigi Buffon strutting their stuff between the posts for us, it seems Arsene will stick with the four stoppers he has now, with one going out on loan in the next few weeks.

The five goals conceded in Warsaw also point out that much need to be done with our defence. Despite the assured display during the Emirates Cup by Thomas Vermaelen and Laurent Koscielny, they showed lapses that could be fatal for our causes during the season. Even though Johan Djoruou has recovered from his injury the feeling is that another experienced centre-half is needed to last the long hard season.

The rumoured interest in Bosnian skipper Emir Spahic remains as a rumour for the moment and while the name Per Mertesacker has been bandied around all summer, nothing concrete has materialised, fanning more transfer gossips in fan forums.

Whatever it is, we are hoping for a good start for the season this weekend.

Let the countdown begin!

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Pre-Season 2010-11 Part 2

Just one more pre-season match for Arsenal before the real stuff get underway on 15 August 2010 at Anfield, where the Gunners will take a new look Liverpool which currently under rebuilding process by new manager Roy Hodgson.

The trip to Warsaw to play Legia is the last friendly match after the first one was played in mid July, thrashing Barnet 4-0. Since then Arsenal have won their matches against Austrian sides, Sturm Graz (3-0) and Neusiedl 1919 (4-0). They retained the Emirates Cup on the weekend after drawing 1-1 with AC Milan and beating Celtic 3-2.

There were many positives from those matches with new signing Maruone Charmakh finding the net against the Rossoneri and Laurent Koscielny's performance earning praises from partner Thomas Vermaelen. Jack Wilshere once again performed well in the tournament as he did last year. But this time around he was joined by Manu Frimpong and Jay Emmanuel-Thomas in putting up good performance for the Gunners.

The speculation of skipper Cesc Fabregas's future will always be one of the hot talking points for Arsenal fans as the interest from Barcelona seemed never to die down. For the time being he will be leading Arsenal when they take the field at Anfield in two weeks time, unless something happen in between.


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