Re: General match thread

[RED]

we slept in the 2nd half, but we came through in the end. Incredible game and incredible response from our team.

Welbeck....honestly Caused their defence all sorts of problems today. incredible player.

On anotjher note, what was wenger thinking subbing off their best player Ox instead of Walcott. That was a really bad subb.

[Zero]

we slept in the 2nd half, but we came through in the end. Incredible game and incredible response from our team.

Welbeck....honestly Caused their defence all sorts of problems today. incredible player.

On anotjher note, what was wenger thinking subbing off their best player Ox instead of Walcott. That was a really bad subb.

You are right. He could've subbed Walcott off or just left the youngster there as he was their main outlet. He was having a great game then all of a sudden Wenger pushes the off button. What the hell.

[II Capitano]

What a great performance, we really shouldn't have given Arsenal a route back into the game. It was another one of those games from us, where we score a goal and go into self-destruct/defensive mode, whichever way you see it. Thankfully, this time, we showed great determination.

Arsenal lost the midfield and full back battle. I was mostly surprised with Song's performance. His consistency levels are pretty poor, for some reason, whenever I have watched him this season, his performance improves significantly in the second half. Ramsey, on the other hand, didn't have a clue what he was doing. He holds onto the ball for far too long, maybe someone needs to teach him that picking out the simple option is more beneficial. However, the two centre-backs, Mertesacker and Koscielny, played great. Mertesacker does struggle with pace, but his reading of the game is second to none, in my opinion. There were some crucial headers he won. Koscielny is a fantastic defender. I had my doubts over him last season

You kind of have to feel for van Persie, he does not deserve to be in this Arsenal squad, it's the poorest Arsenal squad he's ever been in. There was no support, he was isolated, in addition to this, Smalling and Evans handled him very well, I was actually astounded at the performance Evans put in. He looks more fitter and is on form, dominates in some of his weaker aspects, like aerially, which is great to see. Smalling is continuing his upward trajectory, he was crucial throughout the game.

The naivety Wenger shows, at times, is laughable. I don't know when Sagna and Santos are back, but you simply don't have adequate cover for the pair. Deploying centre-backs as full backs isn't going to work, unless they know what to bloody do. Nani proved to be too much for Djourou, who was lazy and didn't get tight enough to our players, he was one of the main reasons we scored - he didn't get close enough quickly to block Giggs' cross. It was a fantastic sight watching the time and space Nani and Evra received down the left. Nani had another great game against Arsenal, he was all over Djourou, but that decisive pass was missing. On the other side, Valencia put in an equally decent shift, a goal and an assist to cap off a performance to remember. It's no coincidence that Fergie took Rafael off when Arshavin was introduced and shifted Valencia to right back.

Finally, we need to secure Welbeck's long term future with us. What a prospect he is - his close control and pace were too much, however, his finishing and decision making can still improve.

[DagenhamDave]

welcome back Gladiator, i always enjoy reading your posts.

all of this talk of welbecks contract running out and him wanting 60 k a week is a load of tabloid bs to be honest. hes a local lad, loves the club SAF loves him, chooses him over berbz and Hernandez and he is only 20 years old. i can see him being at united for a long time to come.

[RED]

What a great performance, we really shouldn't have given Arsenal a route back into the game. It was another one of those games from us, where we score a goal and go into self-destruct/defensive mode, whichever way you see it. Thankfully, this time, we showed great determination.

Arsenal lost the midfield and full back battle. I was mostly surprised with Song's performance. His consistency levels are pretty poor, for some reason, whenever I have watched him this season, his performance improves significantly in the second half. Ramsey, on the other hand, didn't have a clue what he was doing. He holds onto the ball for far too long, maybe someone needs to teach him that picking out the simple option is more beneficial. However, the two centre-backs, Mertesacker and Koscielny, played great. Mertesacker does struggle with pace, but his reading of the game is second to none, in my opinion. There were some crucial headers he won. Koscielny is a fantastic defender. I had my doubts over him last season

You kind of have to feel for van Persie, he does not deserve to be in this Arsenal squad, it's the poorest Arsenal squad he's ever been in. There was no support, he was isolated, in addition to this, Smalling and Evans handled him very well, I was actually astounded at the performance Evans put in. He looks more fitter and is on form, dominates in some of his weaker aspects, like aerially, which is great to see. Smalling is continuing his upward trajectory, he was crucial throughout the game.

The naivety Wenger shows, at times, is laughable. I don't know when Sagna and Santos are back, but you simply don't have adequate cover for the pair. Deploying centre-backs as full backs isn't going to work, unless they know what to bloody do. Nani proved to be too much for Djourou, who was lazy and didn't get tight enough to our players, he was one of the main reasons we scored - he didn't get close enough quickly to block Giggs' cross. It was a fantastic sight watching the time and space Nani and Evra received down the left. Nani had another great game against Arsenal, he was all over Djourou, but that decisive pass was missing. On the other side, Valencia put in an equally decent shift, a goal and an assist to cap off a performance to remember. It's no coincidence that Fergie took Rafael off when Arshavin was introduced and shifted Valencia to right back.

Finally, we need to secure Welbeck's long term future with us. What a prospect he is - his close control and pace were too much, however, his finishing and decision making can still improve.

Great analysis, mate.

[RED]

I'm developing a huge man crush on Smalling. He is a mixture of Rio and Vidic...the way he was heading every ball that was coming to our box was Vidicesque like.

And I also agree that Valencia put in a another brilliant display to continue on in his form of the past month and a half.

Can't believe how young Welbeck is, he's finishing will hopefully improve...but what I like about him is that, unlike Chicha (who is still great btw), he has more to his game than just finishing. He has a good close control, good passing, good movement off the ball.. He could have scored a hat trick yesterday...that miss towards the very end was due to him being so knackered.

I also thought SAF took off Rafael maybe because he was on a yellow and didn't wanna risk maybe a red card?

[UnitedFan1]

Will be fun to crush pool on Anfield. I hope it will be clean sheet and 3-4-5 goals. I hope the team will be like this.
Lindegaard
Evra-Ferdinand-Jones-Smalling

Valencia- Ando- Cleverley-Nani:

Rooney - Welbeck ( I would like to have Chicha in but i would change Welbeck with him in the second half ).

Subs that i would consider: Scholesy, Chicha and Carrick

[II Capitano]

I'm developing a huge man crush on Smalling. He is a mixture of Rio and Vidic...the way he was heading every ball that was coming to our box was Vidicesque like.

And I also agree that Valencia put in a another brilliant display to continue on in his form of the past month and a half.

Can't believe how young Welbeck is, he's finishing will hopefully improve...but what I like about him is that, unlike Chicha (who is still great btw), he has more to his game than just finishing. He has a good close control, good passing, good movement off the ball.. He could have scored a hat trick yesterday...that miss towards the very end was due to him being so knackered.

I also thought SAF took off Rafael maybe because he was on a yellow and didn't wanna risk maybe a red card?

Thanks DagenhamDave and Devil-Is-Red. I have been active on other forums, because this one is full of lulz sometimes, especially in the General discussion section. It's like, do some members actually form a valid or at least solid opinion? Haha.

Anyway, I think it wasn't down to Rafael picking up a yellow card, I can see where you're coming from as he normally gets a bit overenthusiastic. However, I genuinely believe Arshavin triggered Fergie into moving Valencia to right back. Arshavin is as lazy as it gets regarding a lazy footballer, sounds amusing, but it's true. The lack of drive shown by him was once again portrayed, he is the worst player in the Arsenal squad, based on form. Back on topic, look at how poor a job defensively he did when he came on.

[RED]

LFC V United

FA Cup 4th round.

Big game tomorrow. Can't wait to watch it. I'm going for a draw. 1-1.

Hopefully the boys pull out a win of course.

[Nishankly]

If you draw today. Then you go through, Don't see us winning at OT.

What's your team news like?

[RED]

If you draw today. Then you go through, Don't see us winning at OT.

What's your team news like?

Injury fcking us up the ass as usual this season. Last I read, nani and Rooney will most likely miss this game, although the latter could be just mind games served up by SAF. We'll see.

Jones is out, Ando is out....we are so thin in the middle that we'll most likely start with Scholes and Giggs. Can't see them doing the whole 90 mins.

I don't know...I'm totally clueless as to who will start for us tbh. We've got a match on Tuesday against Stoke, so whether SAF decides to prioritize is anyone's guess.

[Nishankly]

Thats bad. A good game at a time of season and both teams are not full strength, Kills the fun. Hopefully the league encounter will be better.
But its still a 50-50, Anyone can win.

[RED]

game raising fcking bastards.

[II Capitano]

Disappointed that we lost to Liverpool, but for large parts of the game we were the superior team. I don't think Liverpool deserved to win the game, but they took their chances, with a little bit of help from de Gea. Also, was it the right decision to play Evra? Ah, it doesn't even matter now. Well done to Liverpool, can see them winning the FA Cup now. We dominated the midfield, for large parts of the game we were on top. Considering that wasn't our first team out there, we did pretty well, the lads should be proud of the performances they put in, I couldn't have asked for much more, apart from a win obviously. Like I said, de Gea did help you in winning.

[Nishankly]

I don't mind that tbh Gladiator.

Its your fault you couldn't make anything out of the possesion. Taking Scholes off was the point where we took control. Fergie is to blame, More than De gea.

[II Capitano]

I don't mind that tbh Gladiator.

Its your fault you couldn't make anything out of the possesion. Taking Scholes off was the point where we took control. Fergie is to blame, More than De gea.

I'm not going to solely blame de Gea, I have defended him time and time again, mistakes are part of the game, plus, there were three other players who were more to blame for the winner. However, all I'm merely saying is that de Gea was the reason you won, nothing more. Yeah, I agree about taking Scholes off, but it was a decision that had to be made, it was inevitable, the guy was tiring out there. Nonetheless, I'm proud of the performance, just shows how much depth we have.

[Nishankly]

Yes, good performance. Good game.

[RED]

Still can't believe we lost to that pile of garbage. Honestly, LFC are fcking shit. A mid table cup team.

I know i'm coming across as a bad loser, but i fcking hate when we lose to them...especially when we played them off the park.

Evra is more to blame for us losing than DDG imo. Where on earth bwas he for their 2nd. He pisses me off at times.

[Nishankly]

Still can't believe we lost to that pile of garbage. Honestly, LFC are fcking shit. A mid table cup team.

I know i'm coming across as a bad loser, but i fcking hate when we lose to them...especially when we played them off the park.

[RED]

^^^ I'll be alright by later on. Coming here after seeing Utd get beat a by a rival is never a good idea.

Well done anyways. Congrats to LFC. *mofokkers*

[Nishankly]

^^^ I'll be alright by later on. Coming here after seeing Utd get beat a by a rival is never a good idea.

Well done anyways. Congrats to LFC. *mofokkers*

I never attacked you or your team, Your the one who is so pissed lol.

[RedOranje]

I would argue that Liverpool weren't outplayed, as Liverpool had more shots, shots on target, and chances created compared to United's greater possession... It's all semantics at that point, though.

[II Capitano]

I would argue that Liverpool weren't outplayed, as Liverpool had more shots, shots on target, and chances created compared to United's greater possession... It's all semantics at that point, though.

That's just the statistics, which don't tell the full story. Liverpool were far from convincing, at home, too...

[RedOranje]

I would argue that Liverpool weren't outplayed, as Liverpool had more shots, shots on target, and chances created compared to United's greater possession... It's all semantics at that point, though.

That's just the statistics, which don't tell the full story. Liverpool were far from convincing, at home, too...

As I said, semantics.

United weren't exactly convincing either, considering how little they did with the ball despite spending so much time in possession. You can spin it however you want, but neither side played well and neither side controlled the match.

[II Capitano]

Talk this morning has been all about John Terry: He is no longer England captain, but England’s former captain. This is not the first time Terry has been stripped off the England captaincy. I am sure most of us still have a vivid picture of why he was stripped off the captaincy a couple of seasons ago. Briefly, just so that this does not seem like a Terry post, this is what the FA had to say,

"Following the decision to adjourn the court case against John Terry to July, the Football Association confirm he will not captain the England team until the allegations against him are resolved."

André Villas-Boas was not too pleased with the decision that the FA have taken. Anyway, away from this issue, Chelsea will be missing two integral players on Sunday, in coincidentally Terry and Ashley Cole. Villas-Boas has apparently stated that he is injured, which is a bit odd, but my theory is that he is just protecting the player, with all the pressure he will suffer from against Manchester United. Cole, though, is suspended. Villas-Boas said that it will either be Ryan Bertrand, an experienced England u-21 left back, or Jose Bosingwa, who has not exactly set the world alight this season, playing out of position.

Will Villas-Boas play with Gary Cahill and David Luiz? We know what happened last time when Luiz played his début game for Chelsea. The Blues went onto win the fixture 2-1, thanks to a Luiz scoring a fantastic volley, which was the equaliser, and his man of the match display. I am not saying Cahill will score in emphatic fashion, he rarely gets forward from the back anyway, but we may witness another performance like Luiz’s.

But Chelsea’s main problem lies in midfield. The industrious Ramires, who normally does all of the running in midfield, is out of action for up to four weeks, which is a big blow for Chelsea. Their midfield has not been ticking this season on a consistent basis. Frank Lampard is a doubt, but reports have emerged that he is set to play. After all, Chelsea need his experience in the middle. Raul Meireles has been a poor signing – the transition from central midfield to, essentially, a holding midfielder has not gone as planned. We have to remember, also, that Meireles was one of the reasons Chelsea lost by three goals to one at Old Trafford, earlier in the season. Things wont be the same this time round.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s comments about the upcoming fixture,

"That was a crazy game. It could have been 20-18. I don’t think it will be like that on Sunday. It will be much tighter."

United also have similar problems, most notably – Anders Lindegaard is out for at least a month. The Dane has enjoyed a great streak of games under his belt, showing tremendous confidence and displacing David de Gea on the bench. Ben Amos is in contention to start, let us not forget that. He has looked relatively comfortable in the two games he has played in this season, against Crystal Palace in the Carling Cup and Stoke City in the Premier League. Nonetheless, most people expect de Gea to start this crucial fixture, but questions are still being asked of the Spaniard.

No problems in defence, as of late. Chris Smalling and Jonny Evans are hot on form, which is great to see. Rio Ferdinand should start the fixture, alongside either Smalling or Evans, either one will do, but you still get a sense that Smalling is more dominant. No questions at right back or left back, but let us hope Patrice Evra continues the fine form he has been in for the last few weeks.

The squad should be boosted with the return of Tom Cleverley, Nani, Ashley Young and Wayne Rooney. I strongly doubt that we will see Cleverley and Young start, but we will definitely see Nani and Rooney feature from the beginning. Those two are crucial, granted that they have not been in the best of form over recent weeks.

A win is crucial, we are currently level on points with City. We need to win every game leading up to the game at the Etihad, which, I know, is easier said that done, but it is not impossible. The loss of Terry and Cole is a big blow for Chelsea, and we should really be looking at taking advantage of their defensive frailties.

My latest post on my blog.

[DagenhamDave]

i think evra has been pretty shocking lately to be honest.

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