Match Reaction vs Aston Villa (home).

[McNamara That Ghost...]

We hammered a team!

:faint:

Well done everybody.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

Taking the piss out of Aston Villa in the closing stages,

[AFC Leveller]

Great win all round, everybody put a shift in and we did it without Alexis.

Now onto the next one, which should be a classic, both teams in decent form.

Santi againt today ran the show, Ozil too was fantastic.

[Power n Glory]

We played well. Comfortable victory.

[Niall_Quinn]

First 4 goals coming on the break (are we back?)

Well deserved goal for Bellerin who was excellent. Coq quietly efficient too. If you overlook the fact Ozil doesn't really contribute when we don't have the ball he was excellent when we had it. Theo snoozed through the first half and then woke up and scored a nice goal. Kos and Monreal working well together again. Santi has shifted up a couple of gears in the last few weeks. Di Maria, Azzah or Silva? The correct answer is Cazorla.

Sharpen up a bit on the passing and take a bit of complexity out of our build up play and we'll be in good shape for the run in.

WUMger refusing to bring Gabriel on :doh:

Taylor badly off form, barely recognisable from the ref in last year's fixture.

[BOBN]

Best team in the country right now tbh. Best Arsenal for over 5 years.

Hopefully thats the last weve seen of Chesney and Wilshere.

WENGER IN

[Niall_Quinn]

Ozil MotM

Ashton :haha:

[Gooner23]

Great performance and result. Glad we kicked on in the 2nd half.

Bellerin and Monreal were quality. Great performances again from Coq and Santi. Ozil classy.

Also their Sanchez is toilet :haha:

[Marc Overmars]

A good old fashioned beat down.

Good stuff.

[Master Splinter]

Arsenal :bow:. Should have been 12-0.

Cazorla :bow:. Stunning player.

The speed and energy of Coquelin and Bellerin have made us a different team. And do not forget we have also Alexis and Ox who are having little bit winter break.

Walcott and Ozil scoring is great too.

Giroud is such an under-appreciated player. We know he has his faults but he is so valuable when he's sharp and his productivity is so much more impressive than some so-called big names all around Europe.

Monreal has been virtually faultless all season and Ospina is extremely solid and calm.

Good to see Akpom making an impact, despite his poor final ball/finish.

[Gooner23]

Akpom looks a much better prospect than Sanogo.

[Alpha]

Pros :
Good game , good goals , good performance .

Cons : being always under pressure even against shit teams at home even when leading one nil until the second and the third goals come . We should be able to relax against such teams from first to last whistle .
Special mention to Ospina : A real number one and game winner . SCNCZXX should be kept away from him . If Wojciech was in goal he could have let in at least two .

[Globalgunner]

Akpom looks a much better prospect than Sanogo.

Akpom is a footballer. Sanogo is a post office reject who landed a part in a reality show

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Just got back.

Coquelin superb.

Ospina clearly number 1 now. Another clean sheet and composed throughout. His kicking was excellent.

Ozil and walcott devastating as usual.

Bring on the vermin.

[alexander]

only 48% of the ball too. I have lost count how many times I have argued with the old man about this. When we have lost and have had 60-65%, I keep telling him its pointless unless we do something with it.

[Japan Shaking All Over]

Arsenal :bow:. Should have been 12-0.

Cazorla :bow:. Stunning player.

The speed and energy of Coquelin and Bellerin have made us a different team. And do not forget we have also Alexis and Ox who are having little bit winter break.

Walcott and Ozil scoring is great too.

Giroud is such an under-appreciated player. We know he has his faults but he is so valuable when he's sharp and his productivity is so much more impressive than some so-called big names all around Europe.

Monreal has been virtually faultless all season and Ospina is extremely solid and calm.

Good to see Akpom making an impact, despite his poor final ball/finish.

Agree with all that......

Good to see us doing that again
Carzola will get runner up for player of the year.....must keep
Ozil needs to feel he is loved and performances like that will go someway to bringing a lot of us on board......
Giroud haters talk out their arses IMO......he does make you thin WTF at times but who doesn't....he a much better player than when he first came.....an important member of the team
I really liked what we saw of Akpom......unfortunately his emergence could spell the end of Sanogo

[The Emirates Gallactico]

Ok sign me up to the Coquelin fanclub. Another game he completely bossed today and he was especially great in the first half when we were virtually camped out in their half and Aston Villa tried to break on a few occasions. Usually we'd get caught out but Coq was there doing his best Gandalf, "you shall not pass" impression. Still don't think we can risk not getting in a world class DM (especially considering Arteta's age) but I'm not sure he'd be able to displace Coq. He's probably been the best DM in the league for the past month.

Can't really fault any player today. All superb. Coq, Ospina, Monreal, Bellerin and Santi have really earnt their places in the starting line up and don't deserve to be dropped for the NLD.

Only minor concern was the lack of ruthlessness up front, especially in the first half. Like MS said, we really could have and ought to have won that 12 - 0. Didn't cost us but it may do in a tighter game ........ we need to take our chances and convert our dominance into more goals.

[Blink 1nce Quince 2wice]

only 48% of the ball too. I have lost count how many times I have argued with the old man about this. When we have lost and have had 60-65%, I keep telling him its pointless unless we do something with it.
I must have been watching a different game if we only had 48% of the ball.

Ok sign me up to the Coquelin fanclub.

You came round quick... :d

I don't agree with those saying Monreal has been faultless all season....I think that is an incredible claim, but he certainly has been fantastic of late. Didn't really believe he had this level of performance in him for this period of time, so I'll admit to being wrong about him.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

Nice not only to win and keep a clean sheet but to be genuinely entertained by the game.

When in the final 15 minutes were 4-0 and cruising, Santi Cazorla became the ring master in a circus performance (one devoid of clowns if you exclude Aston Villa) and with Akpom and Bellerin as the flying acrobats.

We were clearly showboating, but when you're so totally in control and the game is over as a competition it's fun.

[alexander]

I must have been watching a different game if we only had 48% of the ball.


You came round quick... :d

I don't agree with those saying Monreal has been faultless all season....I think that is an incredible claim, but he certainly has been fantastic of late. Didn't really believe he had this level of performance in him for this period of time, so I'll admit to being wrong about him.

Thats bbc stats

[GP]

I don't agree with those saying Monreal has been faultless all season....

Has anyone actually said that?

[mr_brighterside]

quality result, looking forward to motd

[mr_brighterside]

speaking of which is motd2 going to be on iplayer?

[Niall_Quinn]

Monreal has been faultless all season.

[Blink 1nce Quince 2wice]

Has anyone actually said that?

Yes. And not just NQ joshing....

[fakeyank]

Has Le Coq signed his contract extension yet? :cold:

[selassie]

I'm really enjoying watching us at the moment. We were superb again today, all the usual suspects doing their thing. Our depth looks great at the moment.

[Blink 1nce Quince 2wice]

Gives us a little leverage/wriggle room when pursuing a DCM in the summer too. Desperation is never a good look.

[mr_brighterside]

not sure if keown's piece has been referenced but interesting read on how coquelin and ramsey have formed a defensive wall ahead of the defence but not too close to it which has helped us be firmer at the back, obvious question is is it injury proof?

up front we have an embarrassment of riches which makes for a nice change. the summer purchases of alexis and wellbeck have proven just right.

problem is the spuds and united are also form teams, doesn't help us to get above them and the top two are surely out of reach.

[Maestro]

Villa are gash but we did what we had to. Brilliant assists and brilliant goals, ....and another clean sheet. Big shout out to Carzola again, Coq, Ramsey did some really good work in the middle of the park. Ozil and Giroud complemented their efforts with guile, guile work rate and astute movement and clinical finishing.

There will be tougher tests but really happy we have Sanchez, Chambo and Welbz on the way back.

I like Ospina and Bellerin, have settled into the team and are picking up form and consistency. Play well and win against the spuds and this will be a very positive spell this season.

[Maestro]

Villa are gash but we did what we had to. Brilliant assists and brilliant goals, ....and another clean sheet. Big shout out to Carzola again, Coq, Ramsey did some really good work in the middle of the park. Ozil and Giroud complemented their efforts with guile, guile work rate and astute movement and clinical finishing.

There will be tougher tests but really happy we have Sanchez, Chambo and Welbz on the way back.

I like Ospina and Bellerin, have settled into the team and are picking up form and consistency. Play well and win against the spuds and this will be a very positive spell this season.

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Ok sign me up to the Coquelin fanclub. Another game he completely bossed today and he was especially great in the first half when we were virtually camped out in their half and Aston Villa tried to break on a few occasions. Usually we'd get caught out but Coq was there doing his best Gandalf, "you shall not pass" impression. Still don't think we can risk not getting in a world class DM (especially considering Arteta's age) but I'm not sure he'd be able to displace Coq. He's probably been the best DM in the league for the past month.



I can vouch for that. He was brilliant.

What he does well is cover for others when they bomb forward or are caught out of possession. A number of times he covered for Bellerin/helped him out when Villa were attacking down the right.

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Villa are gash but we did what we had to. Brilliant assists and brilliant goals, ....and another clean sheet. Big shout out to Carzola again, Coq, Ramsey did some really good work in the middle of the park. Ozil and Giroud complemented their efforts with guile, guile work rate and astute movement and clinical finishing.

There will be tougher tests but really happy we have Sanchez, Chambo and Welbz on the way back.

I like Ospina and Bellerin, have settled into the team and are picking up form and consistency. Play well and win against the spuds and this will be a very positive spell this season.

Yep. We have a plethora of different options in attack which is a lovely problem to have.

Finally have quality depth across the team.

[Letters]

Yep. We have a plethora of different options in attack which is a lovely problem to have.

Finally have quality depth across the team.

...Wenger out? :unsure:

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

...Wenger out? :unsure:

:lol: Still WUMming I see.

If you want to wind up posters and stir arguments, why are you in a position of responsibility? Perhaps you should step down and let someone else do the job on GW? You're not setting a good example.

[Letters]

:lol: Still WUMming I see.

Nope. I was asking a question. :good:

Football managers are judged on results. Our results of late have been outstanding, we finally seem to have a squad with some depth. Does any of that change your opinion on things? If not, why not?

In your own time :coffee:

[Gooner23]

Things are going great at the moment but we're still 11 points off the top and very unlikely to make that up (would love to be wrong). This is the best squad we've had for a long time but I remain unconvinced if Wenger can get the best out of it on a consistent basis. Personally I still think we won't win the league again under Wenger and I think a change is needed, not that I'd want him to be sacked (won't happen anyway).

[Letters]

Things are going great at the moment but we're still 11 points off the top and very unlikely to make that up (would love to be wrong). This is the best squad we've had for a long time but I remain unconvinced if Wenger can get the best out of it on a consistent basis. Personally I still think we won't win the league again under Wenger and I think a change is needed, not that I'd want him to be sacked (won't happen anyway).
Someone on here pointed out we have two kinds of seasons:
Type 1 where we go off like a train, look like we might have a genuine title shot and then fall apart (but not so badly that we fall out of the top 4)
Type 2 where we're awful for the first part of the season, get it together for the run in but too late for a title charge but do enough to get into the top 4.

Last year was Type 1 although we did win the FA Cup which took the sting out of it. This seems like it's Type 2. Type 2 is quite seductive because it gives you hope for the future, makes you think that if we do the right things in the summer (:lol:) then we might just have a proper title challenge the next year. I dunno. The whole thing makes my head hurt. I don't think we'll win a title under Wenger again but with City and Chelsea around it's hard to see how we could anyway.

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Nope. I was asking a question. :good:

Football managers are judged on results. Our results of late have been outstanding, we finally seem to have a squad with some depth. Does any of that change your opinion on things? If not, why not?

In your own time :coffee:

Does 15 games wipe out 9 seasons? No.

Going on a good 15 game run when we're out of the title race and there's less pressure means nothing, because the league is ultimately done and dusted between the top 2 clubs now. It's no good going on this sort of run now we're out the title race. For me to change my mind we would need to go on a run like this at the crucial point of a title race i.e. when we're still in for a shout. Now you could say 'well we could still win the title', which is technically true, but do you deep down in your heart think we will? Or even put up a fight for it? No.

Another thing that would weaken my stance would be beating a team managed by Mourinho, because that's something we haven't done before.

Having said that, top 4 and the FA cup would be a good season and it would lessen my anger towards him too, because football's all about winning trophies and 2 in 2 seasons would be great. That would mean I give him another season to see how things unfold next season.

[Letters]

Fair enough, and :gp:
See? We can be civil to one another :hug:

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Always said you were the best mod on here tbh

[Letters]

:lol:

Wenger is massively frustrating. He's like a girl who you never quite break up with because every time she messes you around to the point where you're about to snap and call it a day, she does something really nice which makes you remember why you're with her in the first place.

There are a few signs that things might be changing - signing players like Ozil and Sanchez, winning the FA Cup, winning away at City. If we finish the season strongly I'll probably be swayed enough to give him one more season, sentimental old fool that I am.

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

:lol:

Wenger is massively frustrating. He's like a girl who you never quite break up with because every time she messes you around to the point where you're about to snap and call it a day, she does something really nice which makes you remember why you're with her in the first place.

There are a few signs that things might be changing - signing players like Ozil and Sanchez, winning the FA Cup, winning away at City. If we finish the season strongly I'll probably be swayed enough to give him one more season, sentimental old fool that I am.

:lol: So you were that guy in school.

The squad go in every season handicapped because he fails to address all the weaknesses. Having said that, he's slowly sorted the attack out, now with Paulista here the defence is sorted, so that leaves DM.

If he ships out Diaby and Flamini in the summer (the only reason I don't add Arteta to that list is because I think that's unrealistic and won't happen), ties Coq down to a long term deal, then signs a top DM in the summer, we would be ready to give the league a proper go next season.

But things never seem to work out smoothly with us, so we'll probably have our worst start in 100 years next season. Equally, it wouldn't surprise me if we won the champions league this season. That seems to be the way with us in recent years; a complete mind fuck. Full of extreme lows followed by extreme highs.

[Herbert_Chapman's_Zombie]

I'm not so sure Arteta leaving in the summer is that unrealistic, the media reported he'd signed a one year extension the other day and Wenger was quite dismissive of those reports.

Not to say he will go in the summer, but I think he's not a sacred cow either (captain or no captain)

Coquelin and Akpom would be happy if both sign contract extensions soon

[Marc Overmars]

Akpom seemingly has some outside interest so hopefully he signs and is given a fair chance. I'd hate to lose a homegrown talent and see them thrive at a rival.

[Niall_Quinn]

The fans were pissed because last transfer window we didn't make the obvious signings in defence and midfield. This time around we have signed the defender. We also got lucky with a midfielder hitting form but Wenger had to call him back and play him for us to get lucky. So he's just about gone in the direction the fans were demanding. It's unlikely he did so in response to demands, that's not how he operates. But he's arrived where we wanted to be nonetheless so we're all on the same page now.

The performance against the gypos was huge. Again, the fans have been demanding a performance like that for a long time. We haven't been saying he has to win the title, or win the CL, we've been looking to properly compete against our major rivals and kick out the crazy shit that saw us get battered every other time we played them. That has happened. Again we're not sure why it happened but at least it has happened.

We've strung together a series of wins and we haven't dropped off the pace as the teams around us pick up points. So that's an indication of an improving character in the squad. Injured players are starting to come back. We also signed a player who has made a huge difference right across the team, Alexis. A guy who is an inspiration to everyone around him. The difference between signing an Alexis compared to a Flamini on a free is incalculable and shouts of ambition rather than make do and mend.

So however we got here, we're here and things are going well. When things are going well you can't shout for the manager's head. Therefore, as things stand it's Wenger in. Keep on doing what you are doing and don't fuck up. I'm being entertained by the team and I'm looking forward to the matches again so I'm a happy camper.

[selassie]

Akpom seemingly has some outside interest so hopefully he signs and is given a fair chance. I'd hate to lose a homegrown talent and see them thrive at a rival.

I like what I have seen of Akpom so far, he looks a little raw but with massive potential IMO. I hope we keep him.

[fakeyank]

Does 15 games wipe out 9 seasons? No.

Going on a good 15 game run when we're out of the title race and there's less pressure means nothing, because the league is ultimately done and dusted between the top 2 clubs now. It's no good going on this sort of run now we're out the title race. For me to change my mind we would need to go on a run like this at the crucial point of a title race i.e. when we're still in for a shout. Now you could say 'well we could still win the title', which is technically true, but do you deep down in your heart think we will? Or even put up a fight for it? No.

Another thing that would weaken my stance would be beating a team managed by Mourinho, because that's something we haven't done before.

Having said that, top 4 and the FA cup would be a good season and it would lessen my anger towards him too, because football's all about winning trophies and 2 in 2 seasons would be great. That would mean I give him another season to see how things unfold next season.

:gp:

[rodders]

Arsenal :bow:. Should have been 12-0.

Cazorla :bow:. Stunning player.

The speed and energy of Coquelin and Bellerin have made us a different team. And do not forget we have also Alexis and Ox who are having little bit winter break.

Walcott and Ozil scoring is great too.

Giroud is such an under-appreciated player. We know he has his faults but he is so valuable when he's sharp and his productivity is so much more impressive than some so-called big names all around Europe.

Monreal has been virtually faultless all season and Ospina is extremely solid and calm.

Good to see Akpom making an impact, despite his poor final ball/finish.

Churlish to be negative but yes it should have been 12-0. Final ball in box still sloppy

[She Wore A Yellow Ribbon]

Anyone see that analysis from Neville?

Bellerin :bow:

[fakeyank]

Link?

[Xhaka Can’t]

Link?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tPoEBUVl8M

[The Emirates Gallactico]

Link?

http://arsenalist.com/f/2014-15/arsenal-vs-aston-villa/gary-neville-praising-hector-bellerin-on-mnf.html