A tricky win, but a rest ahead

by JA

Well we can safely say that Burnley put up a real fight. I think its shows our new mentality that this Arsenal side can now withstand tricky games and CAN hold onto a lead. A few years back that would have been a game we dropped points in or even lost.

Before I get on to Arsenal I must have a quick mention for yesterday’s matches. Anyone will tell you that Arsenal have a very outside chance of catching Chelsea. We all know that it is highly unlikely that they will drop enough points to allow someone to pip them.

However, when you are an Arsenal fan its hard not to get caught up in the ‘what if’ scenario. Yesterday epitomised that for me, and now I will finally concede that the ‘What if’ dream that I had is over. Now, it is not over because Arsenal drop points ’cause we kept our part of the bargain. It is not due to the fact that the team we are chasing played well and won with ease. It is not due to the fact that the team Chelsea were playing rolled over and got their bellies rubbed. The reason it happen was because a goalkeeper who has represented his country at International tournaments was unable to kick a still ball out of his hands correctly. Pathetic!!

I think it is disgusting that this joke of a player can ruin every Arsenal fans ‘What if’ dream because he cannot do a fundamental skill that is required even at the most basic level. How bloody dare he? I have seen kids in a playground kick a ball further.

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It made me think of Rob Green much more deeper and try to get the picture of how I would remember him in my mind when he retires. His career if I look back on it would be made up of his stupid weak face after the mistake that he has just made. He is a calamity. Yes he is good shot stopper but when your career has been based at clubs that have been fighting relegation season in and season out you’d expect to have enough shots aimed at you to surely improve that side of your game.

I would perhaps half accept this terrible kick out if it was in the middle of the game and you were playing for a club that was enjoying the sunshine and mid table mediocrity with no fear of relegation. However, you cannot. This is a player that is a senior pro at his club that is in desperate need of points at home and in the 88th minute against the League leaders and your local rivals. I just don’t get it!! How can you not be focused? Have a breather, get your mind right and kick that leather ball further in length than in height, simple really….. oh and by the way we will pay you probably £30-40k a week to do it…. you are a disgrace. If I turned up for my sales role and instead of answering the telephone I threw my handset at the wall I don’t think I should be expected to pick up my salary…….. So annoyed…

If I was a QPR fan I would take note of this game and if we ended up going down by a point or goal difference come the end of the season I would be looking at Green as the single defining moment in our season that cost us.

This is not even to mention what the morale of that point yesterday could have done for them.

Anyway, enough of that.

What I think is a rarity is what we have coming up this week. A Premier League game week in which we don’t play whereas after it we will surely know our fate in terms of where we will finish up or what could be left to play for. Chelsea will play twice before we play again. If they beat United, then we will remain second with a game in hand over United, and then if they beat Leicester too I would definitely be confident enough to say ‘its all over’.
However, if they lose to United and perhaps drop points against a re-vitalised-from-a-win Leicester side then our match the following week becomes all the more important. If not to win the title but to get second place as a minimum.

For us, we have the FA Cup, and I can’t remember the last time an extra game at this stage of the season is as much a positive as this game on Saturday. You could see that on the weekend that some of these players who have been on top of their game for so long now could do with a little break and give some of the others who are chomping at the bit to play a bit of game time.

I was thinking that we could completely change the starting team from the weekend and still have a team that would probably be a top 4 Premier League side. Can’t ever remember having the opportunity to say that over the last few years that we could field 2 different sides and it shows the depth of what we have built and I am still confident that this is a great side in the making.

So the team we could have on Saturday could be;
GK Szczesny
RB Debuchy
CB Gabriel
CB Chambers
LB Gibbs
CM Flamini
CM Arteta
CM Wilshere
ML Rosicky
MR Walcott
FW Welbeck

Interesting huh?

Have a good week.