Tooj 17 Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 If Van Persie goes off in the first five minutes we might get something. Walcott and Oxlade-Chamberlain are going to be a nightmare for our defence. We've struggled against pace all season. Not at all convinced by our defence at the moment. That said, I'm not entirely convinced by Arsenal's defence either. We might be best having a go at them with Ben Arfa. Did Walcott play in any of the 3 games against them last season? Can't remember him doing so. Walcott tore us apart in the first half of the 4-4. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Besty 4 Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 Did in the Carling Cup game too iirc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monroe Transfer 0 Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 If Van Persie goes off in the first five minutes we might get something. Walcott and Oxlade-Chamberlain are going to be a nightmare for our defence. We've struggled against pace all season. Not at all convinced by our defence at the moment. That said, I'm not entirely convinced by Arsenal's defence either. We might be best having a go at them with Ben Arfa. Did Walcott play in any of the 3 games against them last season? Can't remember him doing so. Walcott tore us apart in the first half of the 4-4. Oh yeah. Weird game. I remember almost everything about the second half but have tried to forget the first half. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
magpie999 0 Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 1 spare adult ticket available, £35. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rogerbarton 24 Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 Yeah, I remember Walcott ripping us to shreds in the Carling Cup and the first half of the 4-4. not sure whether he played in the emirates game. In any case, the defensive solidity we showed that day in the 1-0 looks a long way off effectively since Saylor got injured. Any kind of pace has terrified us this season. Think Sturridge and the Tottenham/Fulham games Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Fish 10972 Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 His performance in the Cup and in the 4-4 always brings to mind Owen tearing us apart in 98 (It was 98 wasn't it?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christmas Tree 4839 Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 Could be a very interesting team selection given Pardews comments about the Tottenham game. 451? Will he start with Perch or Guthries as an extra midfielder? Will he trust Ben Atfa to graft? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tooj 17 Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 Could be a very interesting team selection given Pardews comments about the Tottenham game. 451? Will he start with Perch or Guthries as an extra midfielder? Will he trust Ben Atfa to graft? I think he'll drop Cisse for Ben Arfa. Also this whole thing about Ben Arfa not grafting is a myth as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monroe Transfer 0 Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 I think Pardew's biggest problem with Ben Arfa was to do with his effort in training more than anything else. But Pardew has now publicly said that Ben Arfa has been positive in training too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manc-mag 1 Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 Could be a very interesting team selection given Pardews comments about the Tottenham game. 451? Will he start with Perch or Guthries as an extra midfielder? Will he trust Ben Atfa to graft? I think he'll drop Cisse for Ben Arfa. Also this whole thing about Ben Arfa not grafting is a myth as well. I don't think it's about not grafting as it happens (in Pardew's mind), I think it's about giving possession away. On a personal note I don't mind if he loses possession up the field*, especially if he's in a midfield of Cabaye and Tiote as it couldnt get much more defensive sitting around him than that and hence he should be encouraged to attack. His cover from the full back is another matter I spose-that is inadequate-but because of the aforementioned centre midfield I think we have to forget that and give him the ball. *there was some stat on here a while back to say that the player who conceded possession most in La Ligua was Messi-which is absolutely no surprise when his modus operandi in possession is slaloming into the opposition box. It's just a fact of having the ball in that area, it's not like you'd drop him for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toonotl 3114 Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 That's exactly it. Attacking players lose possession, as long as they are losing it in the final third while trying to create something then who cares. People were getting on Ben Arfa's back for losing possession in the lead up to a goal (against Fulham??) awhile back as though the goal was his fault despite there being 9 players behind him when he lost it. I couldn't give a fuck if he loses the ball 20 times a game because if he gets it often enough he'll set someone up or score himself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CleeToonFan 1 Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 Long shot but don't suppose anyone knows where I can get two tickets? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Monroe Transfer 0 Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 Touts outside the stadium? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CleeToonFan 1 Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 Thought that like but apparently Islington Police have had a right crack down Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Southern Geordie 1 Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 Just go to the pub outside the away end (The Drayton Arms) a couple of hours before kickoff and there should be some spares knocking about. I got one when we played them in the Carling cup and tickets were like gold dust at £10. If all fails and you don't get a ticket you get a night out in London as its on sky you can watch it in a pub! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barney 0 Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 4-4-1-1 Ben Arfa won't start I think, judging by Rapeys comments. Raylor right mid. Ba playing quite deep, linking midfield with Cisse. Regardless, the end result is 3-0. Shola time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Howmanheyman 33876 Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 Thought that like but apparently Islington Police have had a right crack down After Smash and and Grab… Cash and Grabbed By Kevin Whitcher Online Ed: A tale of illegality, although not immorality I’d love to write about Arsenal’s stirring performance and almost comeback against Milan last night in the Champions League. But I can’t, because in spite of my plans, I did not make the game. I was asked by a friend (I don’t want to compromise anyone so let’s call him Charlie) at the Spurs game if I could find a buyer for his season ticket for Milan at home as he could not make the game. He sits next to a pal of mine (let’s call him George), so – as I knew another friend who was looking for one (let’s call him Graham) – I arranged to sell Graham a ticket (mine) at face value, and then go and sit in Charlie’s seat and watch the game with George, giving Charlie the money Graham had given me for my seat when I saw him. However, when Graham turned up to collect the ticket from me before the Milan game, he gave me the cash for it, and from nowhere, the police swooped. Before I had even given him the ticket. I was arrested for ticket touting. I was carted off to Holloway Station at 7.30, where I was queuing up outside the station in the cold waiting to be processed while the first half was in progress. The arresting officer was an Arsenal fan himself and relayed the scores he was getting on his mobile phone. I will admit, my enthusiasm was not as great as it would have been had I not been wearing tight handcuffs and freezing my bollocks off a few hundred yards north of the stadium, but nevertheless, I hoped the Gunners would do it, even if I refused to believe they could score enough goals and keep a clean sheet. I was finally booked in at the station from 9pm – the process took an hour, so by the time I was taken to a holding cell, the game was over and Arsenal had their pride but no quarter final place. I was finally interviewed at 4.20am. I didn’t get more than about three five minute spells of sleep in the six hours plus in the cell – a process which was broken by a transfer to Islington station at 1.30am as Holloway was closing. Both cells were pretty identical. A toilet and a hard raised slab that acted as a seat/bed with a thin hard vinyl covered crash mat style mattress. It wasn’t comfortable and my mind could not relax enough to sleep. I received some advice from a duty solicitor over the phone before the interview. She told me honesty would be the best policy as there was no profit involved and that I might get a more lenient outcome further down the line if I did not attempt to play legal games. She even advised me that having a solicitor in attendance at the interview could possibly make things worse. So I told the truth, which was fortunate, as Graham had also been detained – albeit for a much shorter time – and sang like a bird. I was read his statement after I had answered mine in the interview and they dovetailed perfectly. Sometimes honesty is the best policy, although my instincts were screaming against me to admit I had committed a crime given the moral aspects of what I was doing – helping out someone who couldn’t attend to the match and someone who wanted to. It’s a similar principle to the club’s own ticket exchange scheme, except for some key differences… - You know the person who will be using the otherwise unused seat - If the ticket is not sold for some reason, you have the option to still attend or give the ticket away (with the club’s ticket exchange you only get any payback if someone actually buys the seat) - There is no fee charged, as there is on the ticket exchange - The seller gets their money at the next home game, unlike ticket exchange where you have to wait until your renewal at the season’s end when the money is taken off what is due. - A physical transaction takes place involving the handover of a season ticket card. - You can get arrested. But what makes the way of doing it through the club more moral than doing it informally? – which on March 5th was viewed as a criminal activity by yours truly. Why, when you actually have someone you know who wants to buy the ticket, should you have to sell it to a complete stranger for less than face value and not get back the money you have paid last May until the season’s end? Because the same method of exchanging tickets for cash is used by bona fide touts, and there is no distinction in the law. Let’s face it, there is a huge informal ticket exchange going on at every match where thousands of seats are not sat in by the person whose name is on the membership card. Technically, it’s against the rules, and the act of handing any money to the seller, even if the price is face value or below – is illegal. It’s not immoral, just illegal, and that is what annoys the most, because the law is supposedly based on a moral code. I understand the police don’t have any desire to differentiate. The law is the law, but what worries me is the club’s (presumably automatic) response. My season ticket may be returned to the club in time, maybe immediately. But will they return it to me and let me attend matches? I am very much in doubt. Is there any sense of discretion used in these cases? You’d like to think so, but optimism is difficult at the moment. I am bailed until April when I return to the police station to be told – I assume – the date I will appear in court. And there, mitigation will be all that can save me from a lengthy ban attending home matches. So the moral of this story is – if you try doing someone a good turn, be prepared to suffer the consequences. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I find this story staggering if true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Howmanheyman 33876 Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 I bought a ticket in 'The Gunner' pub once. Don't know if it's still there/open? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racing_argentina 0 Posted March 11, 2012 Share Posted March 11, 2012 I can't watch the match, i will be in the school !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BestBaNone 0 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Shit or bust in terms of a top 4 challenge this. We've stagnated a bit lately, nicking a win here and it could kick us back into a winning machine. 3-0. RVPx 2 and Walcott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Howmanheyman 33876 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 I see Howard 'Stars in their eyes' Webb is the Ref tonight. As if we haven't got a hard enough game as it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christmas Tree 4839 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Still expecting all 3 points tonight. Think we'll turn on one of our superb performances getting us right back amongst it. Cant wait. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trophyshy 7084 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 If we kick on from our last 45 minutes we might get something, but it's hard to see anything other than a home win on recent form. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gemmill 46064 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Still expecting all 3 points tonight. Think we'll turn on one of our superb performances getting us right back amongst it. Cant wait. If at first you don't get enough bites, try again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitman 2207 Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Still expecting all 3 points tonight. Think we'll turn on one of our superb performances getting us right back amongst it. Cant wait. The only way I can see us winning this is keeping it tight, luck of epic proportions, and the ball going in off Williamson's arse at a set piece when he's looking the wrong way. Still, I hope you're right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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