Tag Archives: arsenal

‘Robin Van Arsenal’ A One-Man Team?

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Q: Why don’t Arsenal score from corners
A: Because Van Persie takes them!

Q: What’s the most popular item in the Arsenal club shop?
A: The Van Persie tea tray, because it carries 10 mugs!

Etcetera, etcetera, etcetera…

Unless you’re of a distinctly Arsenal persuasion, you’re probably sick to the back teeth of these stats by now, but here they are again one more time: 38 goals in 41 games in all competitions since January 1st 2011, 17 goals in 18 appearances since the start of the 2010/11 season (which is somewhere approaching 52% of Arsenal’s goals so far this term) and 10 goals in his last 5 matches.

‘Zeer indrukwekkend’ as the Dutch would have it.

Skip back a month or two to the start of the season and Arsenal were in disarray, supposedly suffering the cataclysmic meltdown that many predicted as a result of their high-profile summer departures combined with Arsene Wenger’s ‘I see no ships’ Admiral Nelson-style transfer policy.

The day they got publicly eviscerated at Old Trafford encapsulated their plight perfectly.

A self-induced loss at Blackburn followed shortly, but a week or so on down the line the Gunner’s experienced a sea change. Whether through coincidence or not, Van Persie hit a scoring seam against Bolton (notching his 100th Premier League goal in the process) at the end of September while Wenger relented and shipped in a platoon of deadline-day replacements and, by and large, everything in the garden has been rosy thereafter.

In fact, they’re almost unbeaten since that very day, save one defeat in the North London derby at the crack of October.

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The dangers of golf and other perilous stories of salad cream, watching TV and getting married

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Injuries are an occupational hazard of football. A slight muscle pull, an awkward landing on the pitch, or a crunching can all be sources of a spell in the sidelines.

However, there are surprisingly are a wide variety of different ways a football player can end up on the treatment table, as Swansea City defender Alan Tate recently proved.

The club vice-captain was involved in a “bizarre golfing accident” according to a club statement, which revealed that he was a passenger in a golf buggy that lost control on Sunday and left him with a fractured tibia of his left leg.

The injury rules him out for up to six months, but thankfully for Tate’s dignity, he’s not the only player to have come a cropper in odd circumstances.

Dave Beasant

The original safe-hands goalkeeper was allegedly the inspiration for Teflon frying pans and he proved this when attempting to hold a variety of condiments in his kitchen. Unfortunately though he dropped the salad cream and tried to save it from smashing by sticking out his foot to break the jars fall. However, it severed a tendon in his big toe and he missed the start of the 1993/94 season.

Steve Morrow

The year was 1993 and Arsenal would spend the majority of the season playing Sheffield Wednesday, but Steve Morrow wouldn’t feature in the replayed FA Cup Final, despite scoring the winner in the Other Cup. The unlucky 22 year old was hoisted onto the shoulders of Tony Adams after the match to celebrate his sides victory, but the clumsy oaf dropped him and the match winner broke his collarbone, proving that you should never accept a lift from the former Arsenal captain.

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Champions League 2011/12 Group Stage Draw

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All of UEFA’s perspex balls of destiny have been drawn from their respective goldfish bowls of fate and, as a result, the groups for the 2011/12 Champions League look like this…

Group A: Bayern Munich, Villarreal, Manchester City, Napoli

Group B: Inter Milan, CSKA Moscow, Lille, Trabzonspor

Group C: Manchester United, Benfica, Basel, Otelul Galati

Group D: Real Madrid, Lyon, Ajax, Dinamo Zagreb

Group E: Chelsea, Valencia, Bayer Leverkusen, Genk

Group F: Arsenal, Marseille, Olympiakos, Borussia Dortmund

Group G: Porto, Shakhtar Donetsk, Zenit St Petersburg, APOEL

Group H: Barcelona, AC Milan, BATE Borisov, Viktoria Plzen

Well, Man City’s draw could have been a lot worse with Barcelona, AC Milan and Dortmund being the toughest possible permutation but it’s not as though the balls have been especially kind to them – Bayern Munich are seasoned heavyweights whereas both Villarreal and Napoli are not to be underestimated.

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Arsenal Legend Robert Pires To Sign For Aston Villa

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Aston Villa have confirmed that former Arsenal midfielder Robert Pires will join the club this week.

French Bob, currently a free agent following his release by Villarreal in the summer, has been in talks with Villa. He has also been training with the Gunners to help maintain his fitness (see photo above).

Villa assistant manager Gary McAllister told the club’s website: “Robert has been training at Arsenal.

“I know the boss and Arsene Wenger are very friendly and I believe he’s going to join us in the next two or three days.

“It’s perfect. I am sure he will arrive at the training ground in good condition. He’s a player everyone can look up to because of what he has achieved.”

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Wilshere signs ‘long-term’ contract with Arsenal

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Jack Wilshere has been compared to Liam Brady, Dennis Bergkamp and Andres Iniesta

Wilshere, 18, has secured a prominent role in the Arsenal starting line-up and also became the tenth youngest player to represent England when appearing as a substitute in a friendly win over Hungary in August.

The midfielder is the youngest player to represent Arsenal in league and European competition and Arsene Wenger has welcomed news that the versatile player has pledged his future to the Gunners.

“It’s such great news that Jack has committed his long-term future to the club,” Wenger told the club’s official website. “Jack is a fantastic footballer with a huge amount of potential, and we have all seen with his performances so far that he is a very gifted player, who could be an extremely influential player at the top level of the game.

“At still only 18 years of age, there is still so much more to come from him and we’re all excited by the fact that Jack Wilshere will be an Arsenal player for years to come.”

Wilshere made his first impression for the first team during the Emirates Cup of 2008 and, after being handed Gilberto Silva’s No. 19 shirt at the age of just 16, scored his first goal for Arsenal in a Carling Cup tire against Sheffield United in September of the same year.

However, it was a loan spell at Bolton last season that saw Wilshere become a familiar face in the Premier League and he has built on that experience with his form in the early part of the 2010-11 season, leading to England recognition.

Wilshere said: “Arsenal Football Club has been like a second home for me and my family since I was nine years old. To be offered a new contract means everything to me.

“At this point in my career, when I’m only 18 years old and still learning so much about the game and myself, this is the perfect club, the perfect team-mates, the perfect fans, the perfect backroom staff and most importantly, the perfect manager to help continue that.

“I’ve got a long way to go before I can become the player I dream of becoming and I’m sure I’ll keep making the odd mistake, but it is a massive help for me having a special manager like Arsene Wenger and so many quality team-mates and the unbelievable Arsenal fans around me. I believe there is a lot more to come from me.

“I’ve been at the club for almost ten years already, so I would like to thank everyone that has been part of getting me this far, especially people like Liam Brady, Roy Massey and all his staff at the Hale End Academy. Also Neil Banfield, Steve Bould, academy coach Steve Leonard, academy scout Bob Arber, assistant head of youth development David Court, all the backroom staff, Arsene Wenger, all my team-mates and, of course, my family.”

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