Arsene Inc. is a one-man club.
A gifted, energetic polymath has created a successful French club, pumped millions into French football, and supplied France with some superb international players. The operation aims to make a profit and finish third or fourth in the Premier League.
Arsenal continue to prove that you can fool most of the people most of the time, especially the mainstream media, who need football to sell dishes, provide viewers and sell newspapers. Football is the only sport that really sells satellite dishes and subscriptions and papers. That’s why Rupert Murdoch owns English football.
Arsenal lost 3-2 at home to West Brom because Wenger’s team didn’t turn up. And they lost 2-0 at Chelsea because they can’t finish and can’t defend.
Sunday’s game was closer than many of us expected. It was close because Chelsea were very careful, knowing Man City had won.
Arsenal missed chances, including two in the first minute. So Chelsea kept seven men behind the ball, soaked it up, let Arsenal have the ball in wide areas, and hit them on the break from time to time. The pattern was clear as early as the 6th minute, when a John Terry Route 1 ball released Malouda, whose lob went over the bar.
If Fabregas and Vermaelen had played, it might have been a different game. Encouraging to see Jack Wilshere playing very well in a contest as testing as this. Jack passed his test.
Bottom line, Arsene FC is a team of nice athletes who don’t shout at each other.
The dopey Song allowed Ramires get close enough to tackle him illegally, ref Mike Dean let it go, and Squillaci was so polite that he fouled Drogba, then passed the ball to him by way of apology, so Drogba could take the quick-free kick to Malouda, who took off, turned, passed back to Ramires, who won a 50-50 by poking the ball to Mikel, who gave him a simple ball back, and Ramires then split the defence with a pass into Ashley Cole’s run. Cole’s cross to the near post was flicked in by Drogba’s left foot in 39 minutes.
Anelka ambled past Squillaci and went round Fabianski before hitting the side-netting when he should have made it 2-0. Then Anelka was fouled by Koscielny and Alex did make it 2-0 when he smashed a 30 yard free-kick through the wall. Song turned his body and the ball swerved past him and past Fabianski’s dive.
In August and September I kept saying, “Let me see 10 games.”
Chelsea was the 10th game and Arsenal are revealed as rabbit-killers who can beat Braga and Blackpool 6-0 but promise four more years of pretty football and shambolic defending. No wonder Fabregas is leaving.
The players love Wenger. On their wages, so would you. But if they respected the manager, they would not “play” like they did last week at home when they went 3-0 down in 73 minutes to West Brom.
Not much more to say.
Didier Drogba is the only Premier League player who could have scored that goal from a ball that was behind him. Only Drogba could have scored that goal. It wasn’t even a half-chance. It was 35% of a chance.
Fernando Torres in his pomp couldn’t have scored it. Thierry Henry, scorer of dozens of brilliant goals, could not have scored it. Wayne Rooney on his best day could not have scored it. Jurgen Klinsmann in 1995 could not have scored it. Peter Osgood in 1970 could not have scored it. Denis Law, an agile master of deadly flicks and electric volleys, could not have scored it. Maybe Zola could have scored that goal. Nobody else we’ve seen could have scored that goal.
If you think it was lucky, if you think it was a fluke, think again.
King Arsene is well aware that the French abolished their monarchy in 1792 but this ambitious leader decided to establish a French monarchy in England. A powerful King, he now has many courtiers who do his bidding and collect his taxes. It’s a colossal and historic achievement by a multi-talented man who started out in a little-known village in Alsace.
Last night the Alsace King of Arsenal went on TV and said, “You get what you deserve. We didn’t defend well.”
We didn’t defend well? We didn’t defend well because you abdicated defending in 2004 !
Long live King Arsene ! Long may he reign over us, happy and glorious ! L’etat cest moi! Rejoice that he’s here till 2014 at least.