Hopefully we will have our own South American wonder kid in a few years time in Wellington Silva. Go on kid, go and do what Messi is doing. No pressure
Not a bad weekend of football for the Gunners, it could have been better mind you. I was punching the air when Fernando Torres headered beautifully past Van Der Sar, that tingle of excitement flew around my stomach but being at Old Trafford you can always rely on the referee’s to give Manchester United a soft penalty when they are behind.
The up and down roller coaster of emotions was at its peak when Reina got a hand to Rooney’s penalty but it wasn’t enough to stop Rooney from tapping in the rebound, cue deflation.
At that stage Manchester United were always going to go on and win it so I switched off just after Park scored.
I flicked back on for the Chelsea, Blackburn game and I was hoping that Inter’s midweek victory would crush their spirit, instead I watched Chelsea batter Blackburn for the first ten minutes and score a good goal after great work from Anelka on the right. Once again I switched off, expecting a Chelsea rout but later on in the afternoon I received a very warm text informing me that Diouf had equalised.
You know it is a special occasion when you are celebrating an El Hadji Diouf goal. There are not many players in the league who rival John Terry for the title of despicable footballers but Diouf is certainly in the running.
I have watched Chelsea a few times since they beat us at Stamford Bridge and I have been quietly confident that they will drop points, it was only a matter of time. They are a different side away from the comfort of their chavs fans. Manchester United on the other hand are a different proposition. They, like ourselves, have the momentum and they also have a hair receding front man who is scoring goals like there is no tomorrow so at this stage, I would gladly take a Chelsea victory at Old Trafford….I think.
Speaking of scoring goals for fun, did anyone manage to catch the Barcelona match? *sigh*
Were Barca fantastic? Not really, in fact they looked shaky defensively. An Arsenal side brimming with self belief and determination would give them a big problem, but Lionel Messi? Jeez! The guy is just exceptional. It would be very harsh to brand Barcelona a one man team because that wouldn’t be fair but he is currently at least 60% of their attacking threat and that is me trying to be level headed.
I know that everyone is currently waxing lyrical about his performances and I would much rather do that with our own crop of players but credit has to be given where it is due. He is a freak of nature, a very special talent. What is quite sickening, is the fact that he is still only 22 years of age.
If I hear any of the English media go on about how Rooney is on the same level as Messi then I may just have to puke up a little. If you believe that then I believe that I should have a place in the Arsenal squad.
Apparently we tried to cram Messi on the same flight to London as Cesc to join us but the little guy couldn’t get a work permit at his age. In another world we could have had Messi and Ronaldo on either wing but such is life. We will develop our own.
Hopefully we will have our own South American wonder kid in a few years time in Wellington Silva. Go on kid, go and do what Messi is doing. No pressure.
Ok, shoving the Messi love in aside for a moment. Let us talk about another Legend. Thierry Henry is talking himself out of a starting place against Arsenal by declaring his emotions about his former side.
It would almost seem wrong for Thierry to be sitting on the bench at the Emirates stadium. He should be playing but if I was Pep Guardiola I would be a little concerned about Henry’s mental state going into the first leg.
Henry said:
“Whenever there is a draw for the Champions League I’m in pain, I’m not saying I won’t try to fight or whatever because that’s the way the game is. But I don’t want to play against Arsenal. It will be weird for me to step on the pitch, even if it’s at the Emirates and not Highbury, with another shirt on.”
When asked if he would celebrate a goal, he added: “Forget about it. No. I do not want to play against Arsenal, simple as that. The bond that I have with the Arsenal fans I will never get anywhere else. Because I don’t think I will ever play for another team for that long.
“Eight years – I don’t think I will be with another team for eight years, I am getting old now.”
I only wish that some of our former players had the same love and passion as our record goalscorer. Many of them like another former top goal scorer use the media to slag Arsenal off at every opportunity.
I wouldn’t mind Henry scoring in injury time after we lead 6-0 but I don’t really imagine that working.
I was wondering what would happen to our midfield given Denilson’s two excellent performances. My maths isn’t my strong point (neither is my English mind you) but I do know that 4 into 3 doesn’t go and at this stage can Arsene drop Denilson, Song, Diaby or Cesc? *scratches head*
In the Camp Nou Denilson would be important, especially as Barca do not play a physical game, the only part of the game that Mr interceptor is lacking in my oh so humble opinion.
Anyhoo, I am getting ahead of myself but can you blame me for being excited? I know a large portion of supporters do not like Denilson or are not impressed with him. Perhaps you should listen to many of the fans hero, Andrey Arshavin.
Arshavin speaking about Deni said:
“Yes, he was the best in this game. Not because he scored early in the first half, but because he worked miracles in the second one. He kept on snatching the ball from West Ham players, he was everywhere, ahead of everybody like a clockwork bunny.’
“In my opinion, Denilson had a phenomenal game …I think we started off confidently. We scored a goal. “Unfortunately, as it sometimes happens with us, Arsenal slowed down, we were unable to continue playing in the same vein, there was no team pressure.”
As long as his team mates and manager can see what he brings to the team then that is the main thing. Well, the only thing.
If the club was managed by some of the pundits then Denilson, Song, Diaby and Eboue would have already been shipped out of the club.
On a brighter note, Robin Van Persie could return this season after all. I didn’t think that he would be risked this season but if we are at the stage where we are still fighting for the big ones and he is match fit then an RVP off the bench could be quite useful. Match winning strikes off the bench at White Hart Lane and in the Santiago Bernabeu in May anyone?
Back again tomorrow.
EXAMPLE OF AD POSITION
