Preston Escape & Swansea Preview

     Nina Simone is one old school act you should listen to, she “puts a spell on you” and you don’t know it or cant explain it but like birds flying high “I am feeelin good”. Anyway its going to be a quick one here guys so bear with me. I am feeling good not because Arsenal just bought Suarez, Modeste or Unai or  Belloti from their various clubs……naaaah! 

We all know our dear Arsenal don’t come close to doing things like that on the fly in the summer transfer window talk less of the January window, not a chance. We went to the North end of Preston to do a job and we did it however the performance was anything but captivating as we know we should. Arsenal was this close to being dumped out of the FA cup as we were stretched by the lower league team in ways I would rather not describe. An away game is always a difficult one no matter how much lower than the rungs of league football the opposition team may be but, if you wanna win a trophy, any trophy at all….you shouldn’t be playing like Arsenal did against Preston. The win aside, I look at the opportunities in the first half Preston had to finish Arsenal off for a big upset even though they have a much better head to head record on us. Preston didn’t and Arsenal got their B minus game on a bit in the second half, got a goal back early in the second half and Giroud continued his goal run of form by scoring the winner late into the second half. I would not want to disparage what the lads had done, after all Liverpool with a second string side couldn’t beat Plymouth at the KOP right? Wrong! We were lucky to win that FA cup game last weekend on the balance of it all, plain and simple!

     The weekend is upon us as the gunners travel this time to keep a date at the Liberty stadium as we play Swansea. With Arsenal currently in 5^th position o the log, I don’t need to tell you how important a win is here as any more dropped points ………. Look at it this way. Man United play Liverpool, Man City travel to Everton , Chelsea who lost their first league game in that record equaling run of wins, visit Leicester. We can see the opportunity here and I need not tell you how important it is to grab this by winning. If all goes well, I mean a big If, Arsenal could leapfrog all and sundry and perch in 2^nd Place by Monday, now that is a very BIG IF. Be that as it may, its still a chance to pile the heat on the other teams in the Top 6. The onus is on the gunners to win their game first and that’s where it becomes dicey, one which Arsenal would to stand up. Swansea on the other hand gives a bit of relief from concern [I hope I haven’t jinxed it], Second from bottom of the log, wretched run of form, recently sacked Bob Bradley for the new guy Paul Clement, what can I say? It’s a set up for us to slip against chasing the contenders right? I hope you are wrong. While our recent performances have been slow and leggy, the good news is, Welbz is coming back gradually  Özil Sanchez Welbeck Giroud Iwobi and Ox on “paper” should be more than enough ammo for the Swans even with Walcotts threat upfront still missing, if not then we really need to ask Wenger,  what we are hunting for this season? My "predicted" line up should be like this:  

Subs: Ospina, Martínez, Holding, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Reine-Adélaïde, Pérez, Welbeck

Image Credit: The UK Guardian Online

There you go, a solid looking team on Paper, now lets see what they can do.....Win or Burst. DO enjoy the game wherever you are..........Ciao

Points Dropped To 1 Point Gained & Preston Preview

   

Image Credit: The Metro UK

 I am so pissed!!! From an ooooh my…. to a Uurrgghhh. From making fans purr with ecstatic Joy almost wetting their pants to making them wanna tear their hair out in unbelievable frustration, you know it can only be Arsenal. What could have been a routine 3 points in the bag soon became an embarrassing scrap for a point, we sure know how to make a seemingly simple task harder than it looks. Well I have already mentioned it before that it can only be the gunners. Arsene may say his wards are now men but, performances like these ……. Le’ Proff plzzzzzzzz. What I see instead is what seems to be a battle between Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, you not sure which Arsenal team would turn up. It’s becoming harder to tell by each passing game. The game against Bournemouth left me feeling a complex mix of extremes, angry frustration at the way the team committed school boy error after error (Hector I am looking at you) till we were 3 goals down, then there’s the Joy from the determined comeback to level the deficit. Why and how the gunners got themselves into such a tight spot, remains a mystery, not for the first time too and that’s the mystery….WHY!?

In our preview, we noted how Bournemouth were in fine form at the Vitality Stadium and how they liked to play the ball. The 3-1 score line at the emirates back in November never reflected the complete perspective of the game not doing proper justice to their effort in that match. One would have expected us to be better prepared knowing how dangerous this team is at home… Ask Liverpool.

Arsenal on this day were second bested by an average team that came prepared, better prepared if I dare say and had the commitment to follow through. It was thus no surprise to find us on the back foot, 2 goals down by the 21^st minute. When Bournemouth broke with pace on their right before quickly switching play with a nice diagonal lob to their left. Bellerin was caught out cold, sucked into the center, he tried to readjust but couldn’t get his balance right, made a lame attempt to nick the ball from Charlie Daniels who calmly slotted home beating Cech at his near post. Everton at Goodison came to mind.

1-0 to Bournemouth

 We tried to rally but met a resolute and confident Bournemouth, 5 minutes later we were down by another goal. This time from Granit Xhaka’s rush of blood to the head as he made another of his silly mistakes at the wrong end of the pitch. What he was thinking when he shoved down King I think from the back is beyond me. Callum Wilson dutifully obliged the opportunity by slotting home from the spot. 

1-0  to Bournemouth

    2 goals down going into the interval was a first for the gunners this season and we needed a response from the lads. Bellerin and Monreal were being torn to shreds by Fraser and Stanislaus, Arsenal was all at sea but it was going to get worse, not better. We lost Coquelin to a hamstring pull so Ox came on. Then we conceded a third goal. Bellerin again a culprit. He really had a bad bad day at the office on this one. Frazer almost beat him to the duel sprint but just couldn’t so he did a little nudge for Bellerin to lose his footing, before scooping the ball to slot through Cechs legs. It was all falling apart for us.

Finally the lads woke up and started to play better, we began to claw back the deficit which starting from Sanchez (as usual) we did in 20 minutes. That’s the only positive I take from this match. That Arsenal fought back from 3 goals down, so credit to the Boiz for that! and that's where it stops!. The inexplicable annoyance is, what where we doing getting ourselves into such a jam in the first place? For a team that habours the ambition of winning Titles? That’s probably gone anyway if the keep this sham up.

    Hind sight is a chick they say….init? This was a game that we could have used to cement our grip on the top assault, leapfrogging Man City and squeezing the heat on Liverpool, better yet we gain 3 massive points on Chelsea having not to unexpectedly dropped points at Spurs. A massive opportunity lost. Xhaka has had couple decent games for some time now but he really need to cut out his ridiculous moments of “brainwave” else he would become a liability for all his talent. Bellerin on the other hand is usually most dependable, so imam give him a free pass on this day where he was just not at the races going by his high standards. Alexis Sanchez, for all his work ethic and immense talent should grow a pair of "cajones" and stop with the sulking, get behind the team and lead. Not pout ya lips in frustration because you think the others aren’t on the same wavelength as you. Mustafi has to be our good luck charm, Arsenal hasn’t lost a game he has started this season. Wenger should do whatever he can to keep him "embalmed". Just Kidding but that stat is real or have I jinxed it now? The whole Team needs to refocus in general if they really wanna win anything this season. All isn’t lost but we are throwing away points. Arsene Wenger i am Looking at you!

Preston Preview: Whatever the team we put out but, If we can’t win Preston on Saturday at the Emirates, then we might as well forget any trophy this season, no disrespect to Preston North End.  That’s it for my preview. No team sheet on this…..Ciao

2017 Beauty By The HFB & Bournemouth Preview

Courtesy: The Uk Mirror

         WHeeeeww, what a way to announce ya hunger gametime for 2017. Its moments like these this that makes one love the game of football, goals like that make you love Arsenal and the way they play. This is also part of what frustrates the fans, tease us with a thing of beauty such as that, then follow it up with a tepid ughhhhh kinda performance….God forbid. Have I finished drooling over the scorpion goal by Giroud, for those still wondering what I am yapping about? Of course I have, moved on with the 3 points in the bag too. I was only musing out loud, but just in case you want to relive that special magic moment, here it is… fully worth another look, trust me.

Giroud got Arsenal off to a perfect start for 2017, with a solid albeit kind measured 2-0 win over Palace, much has been talked about the beauty of Girouds goal, and I take nothing away from it when I say the match was just another 3 points so let’s not lose sight of that the performance was such that we controlled much of the game and limited Big Sam’s boiz to a short spell where Cech had to earn his thursday paycheck. There was a lot of encouraging points to take from the match. A win, second consecutive clean sheet, Benteke kept in check, Iwobi did well in Ozils absence, well anchored by the improving Xhaka and we shoved another defeat down Big Sam’s throat. Adding the beauty of Giroud’s goal was just a gloss over an afternoon of accomplished well controlled performance. So what’s not to like? All that is history now and we grind on by travelling down to the Vitality stadium.

     Its Bournemouth Tuesday evening. We all know how they play i.e the Eddie Howie way with the ball on the ground. Their home form while not stellar is quite good 5W 1D 3L isn’t a bad return for a team their size, beating Liverpool in here in one of the most shocking comebacks of this season. This has them at 9^th position on the log then you realize they are to be taken with seriousness. The last league encounter between these two teams back in November 2016 was a cracking affair even though Alexis genius helped settle the match at   3-1 in favour of Arsenal. The score line did not exactly reflect how fine the margins of that game were as Bournemouth could have gotten something out of it. I want to believe Wenger and his boiz are focused on the task at hand. One match at a time but a must win this is….yet again. 9 points off the top with just a point separating us Spurs and Man United, it’s really getting tight around the top six. The league is still Chelsea’s to lose but with 18 matches still to be played, none of the top six teams are out of contention. You just have to look at the momentum 6 straight wins for Man United has done to get that point into proper context, things can and do change in as little as 3 matches. Like I said though, lets take it one game at a time, stay focused and take nothing for granted. Benik Afobe has stayed back from the AFCON to help his club, the threats of Stanislus, Arter, King and Ake also adds more to us needing to be focused for this encounter. We have to win this game, a good ol’ one-nil to the Arsenal will be fine, since it appears we may have gotten back our clean sheets formula (I hope). Jack wilshere missing this one due to his loan may be another good one for us, he has somehow steadily found his influence grow in this team, which bides well for his continued return back to fitness. It also raises questions about our handling him on and off the pitch back at arsenal. What they not getting right about him. Anyway, that’s another matter for another day. Today is about getting another win on our travels. Potential banana skin it could be if the gunners lose focus and get complacent, there are no easy games should be the watch word. With the games coming thick and fast, I would give iwobi a rest and start Ramsey in the playmaker role, he needs the run of games and boost of confidence as his season has being more stop than start. Our depth in midfield has been the saving grace in helping Arsenal cope with Ramsey’s absence, Welbz should get a look in from the bench as he eases back to full match fitness while Mustafi remains a 50/50. My team will look like this:

Subs: Ospina, Welbeck, Jeff, Iwobi, Oxlade, Mustafi, Holding

Not an exactly strong bench we have there, but in light of injuries and suspensions, i think the mix is just about balanced. The gunners will need to cut out any silly errors here, keep the sheet clean for a slim win, thats hoping they can maintain focus. Whatever the team that turns out, lets just get all 3 points and close the gap on Liverpool having drawn, maybe Chelsea too if they draw against Spurs, but we need to win first. Do enjoy the game wherever you are...Ciaoooo

A 2016 Flash Back & Palace Preview

   

   And so here we are. As the 2016 train slowly grinds down to a halt we at anaijagunner would love to wish all our teaming readers, Football, Arsenal and Non Arsenal fans alike a very royal welcome to 2017 wherever you may be. Happy New Year folks. 2016, like every other year was one of highs and lows for us as Arsenal fans and Super Eagles supporters. The emergence of Alex Iwobi on the scene from the tail end of last season, teased us on what could possibly be...so much potential for his young age, already capped and scored for the Eagles at the young age of 20 signed a professional contract to boot. It seems the sky is just a starting point. Well it hasn’t being a straight up curve of success for the young man though, he has had criticisms for his seeming lack of goals amongst other things so I guess the jury is still out on him on how good he will come. There was that 3-0 thrashing of Chelsea my gaaawwd, was that good?  It’s been a long time coming and it was nice to see the boiz raise their game to deliver such a blitz of a performance. For the eagles though, Iheanacho’s star continues to shine as his stock does go up. He has shown he can be lethal in front of goal for both club and country, though not helping the eagles qualify for the 2017 AFCON. Next is the world cup qualifiers, let’s see how it goes. Then the lows, I grit ma teeth to type theses even though it’s easier to find yourself remembering the negatives while taking the positives for granted. Losing to Liverpool, City then the draw against Spurs for me was the height of ill preparation both mentally and physically. That’s just one win in in 5 against top 5 opposition…..NOT good enough I will like to continue but let’s just leave it at that for a little flash back on the past year, glass half full perspective.

     Fast forward to today, talk isn’t about transfers on ins or outs. It’s the visit of Crystal palace to the Emirates in a late New Year day Kickoff. The Eagles have recently hired a familiar foe in Sam Allardyce after sacking former player and Coach, Alan Pardew for a bad run of results… ouch!! Wenger and Big Sam encounters go way back to the Bolton wanderers’ days when they kind of became some sort of a bogey team to the gunners, other meetings after that have been more favorable to Wenger. Our Boxing Day clash with Westbrom was more steel than style according to wenger, I think we might need more of such doggedness. Chelsea is flying high, having matched Arsenals record on the number of consecutive wins, 13 on the bounce, while Liverpool suddenly has found a way to win 1-0. The reds win over city was their third in the last four matches. City is not looking as imperious as they should but the seat above us in 3^rd place.  I don’t need to hammer home the importance of 3 points at stake here, be it grinding out these wins no matter how parked the opposition buses may be. Thats what i loved about the game against the baggies, we eked out a 1 Nil win, our first in 13 games but hopefully many more to come.  Wenger says:

“Coming after two bad results, we didn’t panic, we kept going,” Arsène Wenger said. “We had a relentless attitude and in the end we managed to win it.

“We’ve done that many times this season, so that means the resolve is there and the stubbornness too. We said we want to have style and steel, and I think we may be showed more steel than style in this game, but it will be important for our season.”

The Season is half way through and the points at stake keep reducing with each passing game, the league is obviously not won yet with lots of points to play for but Chelsea’s as Wenger reckons are definitely super favorites thus theirs to lose. (They were top on Christmas day) With Walcott and Ox out, It’s not all gloomy as the squad is bolstered by the return of Mustafi and Danny Welbeck which a serious boost, if we get things right. So can we? That’s the question for Wenger and the team to answer. My predicted lineup here

Whatever the lineup we put out, the boys eed to be up for a fight cuz thats the way Big Sam will set up his team, get into our faces try to knock us out of our fluidity and hope for a hit on set pieces. We need to stay tough and stand up to the upcoming physicality. DO enjoy the game wherever you are....Ciaoo

A Dire 3 Points At Stake

   

Merry Christmas Folks.

Uurrrgghhhh, that was nasty. Before I get all critical and stuff let's say happy holidays and a merry Christmas to you on whichever part of the globe you chilling, from the stables of the naijagunner team we hope the new year is gonna be a more profitable one for us all considering how much southerly things went, looking at the economy, forex etc. It don't get any worse when someone like "Trumpeters" get to have their say and their way on who sits on that covered hot seat in the "Blue house". Did I mention anyone's name? You can't be too sure whose listening for non sporting reasons these days. That said, we still love football here, of course Arsenal, so we would like  to say.

Happy Birthday to our own Aron Ramsey 

hopefully you can get a goal today.

signed: anaijagunnerteam

even with their recent episode at flattering to deceive yet again. The match against City epitomizes what's wrong with the team, no leaders bar maybe Sanchez who was all day trying to get the Gunners to give City a go from their own half harrying and pressing. I hope they have sat down to do a critical post mortem cuz dropping 6 whole points from the last two games isn't exactly what we had in mind for the festive period especially when they were accompanied by sub par performances. The big guns need to step up. Özil needs to more than show why he wants that bumper contract, Sanchez has a pass on that. Koscielny has to with Cech lock that defence up tight. We are shipping goals in while Chelsea is grinding out 1-0 wins that tells a lot.

Westbrom at the Emirates is that opportunity we need to get back to winning ways. We can just forget about dreaming of the EPL if we dont win today.......Note I said dreaming ooo. I will start Giroud and Perez with maybe Sanchez back on the wings. Ox pulling a hammy yet again is unfortunate for him, he curve was seemingly on the up this season, nothing special but getting a semblance of good consistency and then blimey!! A shame really. I like Iwobi who has broken into the team but heis still a long way off although one can't fault his heart, the middle of the park is still bolstered with options. Maybe bench Özil and go with Xhaka Coq in the middle and play with Theo and Iwobi on the wings. A good ol' fashioned 4-4-2 as in the past. Knowing le’boss though , he wont go all 360 like I have tinkered up there instead he is likely going to stick with whats been working since except for the two successive defeats. Whatever the formation he uses, the boys need an emphatic win over Westbrom today and it's important they get it with a clean sheet to booth. Mustafi's absence at the back hasn’t been too rewarding so far, not that Gabby has been shabby just the whole team not lifting themselves. Any more slips against the top three then it's sayonara to the league and maybe Arsene's reign, who knows? Westbrom isn't any slouch couch right now granted they have lost their last two matches halting their fine run of form of 3wins in five. But it's been against top opposition, Chelsea and Man United, while I hope they are out of sorts against us I also know that Tony Pulis knows how to set up his side to knuckle down and deny teams like us time on the ball so we would have to be fired up. No lethargy permitted on this one at all. My predicted line up will be like this.

Subs: Ospina, Giroud, Neny, Ramsey, Jeff, Holding, Perez, Gibbs

Image Credits: The Guardian Uk

     The above team on its day can hurt any opposition but the question is, which arsenal will turn up this afternoon? The imperious free flowing Gunners coming out all canons blazing or .......lets not say it please. The consequences are too dire to contemplate. Do enjoy the game wherever you are...Ciao

City Preview: 3 Points For Xmas Will Do

    That was a stunner, wake up boiz as no game is an easy ride on the path to winning the EPL, the voice snapped in my head. We knew Everton away was gonna be tough but that’s not what we were expecting from the TEAM. This is the premiership though so why not?  Arsenal were unbeaten away this season so far,  and despite Everton's yoyo form, they was still unbeaten at Goodison park this season, add the fact that Arsenal was the last team to beat Everton at home, you would think the game had banana skin written all over it. We should have known. Having taken the lead in the early stages of the game from a deflected Sanchez free kick, we slowly relaxed our guard and got caught by a silly equalizer we shouldn’t have conceded. The central defensive pairing of Kos and Gabriel isn’t as solid when it’s “Kos-Stafi” but the goal was conceded the moment Walcott missed the tackle that allowed the delightful cross to come in from Leighton Baines. The kick in the teeth was the timing, 43^rd minute of the first half.....Jeezeee. We did the same for the Everton winner, though we have shown in the past that we can turn over a deficit to snatch 1 or all 3 points but conceding the second goal late in the 2^nd half made the job all the more herculean besides that our luck was going to run out soon than later, well on Tuesday night, it did. Stats say its our 11^th straight match without a clean sheet, worrying times if you ask me. On the other side of London, Chelsea is going about the bizness of cruizing to 3 points so far. 11 straight wins of which, 3 straight 1-0 wins against the grinder. You will not always score goals but you give yourself a chance of snatching 3points by keeping a clean sheet. We need to learn that. Now go back and read it again….Arsenal needs to learn that.

Anyway moving on, it’s Man City up next away at the Etihad and then Westbrom on boxing day, it don’t get any easier people. This would be a good time to show the doubters what stuff the team is made off init? A very good way to do that is by getting a win 1-0…2-1…3-0 just get a win. Arsenal losing at Goodison Park in midweek was not the best as couple with Chelsea win this weekend putting them tentatively 9 points clear makes a win at the Etihad more desperately needed. That’s pressure but I don’t think that’s a too tall an order for a team that Arsene believes has matured into men as he calls them.  Arsene knows that as he says:

“The key to big games against City is to defend well together and not be timid every time you get the ball,” said Wenger.

“We have to have a go and try to attack, because that’s part of our philosophy. Overall that’s what you have to do but you have not to forget as well that City’s team is very strong going forward, maybe even more now with Pep Guardiola, so we certainly have to focus on defending well.”    you can read more here.

    Well that kind of puts it nicely succinct, the whole team needs to key into the defensive duties. Harrying and chasing down every 50/50. City without Aguero isnt any easier only a bit less dangerous if you ask me. De Bruyne , Nolito, Gundogan, Sterlin, Yaya, can run riot if you allow them but Chelsea, Leicester  and other teams have shown they can also be ripped apart. City isn't in sterling form right now, Stones, Otamendi and Bravo seem to be on a competition of who gives the opposition the most freebies and we might as well cash any offered cheques. That’s why I say the gunners can do it, they need to stay really focused when defending while balancing being clinical in front of goal when City present them with chances as they always do. I don’t know how they would get that delicate balance right but that’s for the Boss and the team to figure out.  Predicted team selection would be as shown below.

Image Courtesy: The UK Guardian

I do hope, that team is able to get at Man City in ways that hurt them, their achilles heel is their defence but i think midfield battle would be very key. That's it from us here, do enjoy the game wherever you are......Ciaoooo 

UCL Thoughts, Everton Preview & Tit Bits

Monday came and we said shall we? So we walked in through the revolving balls and what do we get? It’s Arsenal V Bayern yet……..Again (rolling my eyes here). Honestly I don’t know which it is, the system is rigged or just Arsenals luck to draw the short ended stick. Oh well, I would say maybe both cuz with the mess most of the sport’s governing bodies are these days I wouldn’t put it past FIFA no I meant UEFA (all na same jaare) it’s our 4^th meeting in the round of 16 and that’s the most for any two sides so forgive me if I say "NO" I don’t think its random coincidence!! That in addition to that our luck where we seem to have a penchant for turning down the easier option and choosing the hard way instead. One can’t point accusing fingers this time though, the team has been very businesslike this season in the champion’s league campaign, no howlers from Ospina or Silly dropped points here and there and when they needed to take advantage of a slip up from PSG, they did it in very commendable fashion in terms of performance and points so kudos to them. That’s that. Now that we know it’s going to be:

Manchester City                      v                           Monaco Real

Madrid                                     v                           Napoli

Bayern Munich                        v                           Arsenal
Benfica                                    v                          Dortmund 

Porto                                       v                           Juventus

Bayer Leverkusen                   v                           Atletico Madrid    

Paris Saint-Germain                v                           Barcelona

Sevilla                                     v                           Leicester City

Now that the draws are out of the way, its February 13, 15, 21 and 22^nd for the 1^st legs of the round of 16 matches while the 2^nd legs kick of through March 7, 8, 14 and 15^th. Having said all that, I do believe we have a better chance of progressing this season not certain but better. For one, we play the 1^st leg away in Munich, we get a good result and we stand a good chance of doing the business at home, PSG was the only team to take a point from us throughout the group stages. Also this team is showing some character coming back from deficits which is good or bad however way you look at it. All in all, I want to believe the team is better equipped to see break the round of 16 set back of the past seasons this time, from there on…….who knows

Away from the champion’s league now, it’s the gunners away at Goodison park. Everton welcomes the gunners in what’s the 1^st match of the festive season’s hectic schedule. Team management, player rotation and total focus would be very Key. Everton like Man City had a flying start to the season but have tailed off lately which has seen them only pick up 2 points from their last 5 league matches 0W 2D 3L. The Koeman effect seems to be wearing off, and pressure is beginning to tell. Ronald Koeman reiterated their need to improve both mentally and physically after their latest defeat to Watford over the weekend. I hope Arsenal has something to say about not allowing that to happen. Chelsea is really flying high currently although I wonder if they will be able to cope if Diego Costa picks up an injury. Arsenal will have to be wary of Everton’s potential, in that the likes of Lukaku, Mirallas Deulofeu can cause problems not forgetting Gueye and vintage Barry in the middle of the park. Their defence is where they are really weak these days, leaking very silly goals and conceding penalties, which is surprising considering the fact that Koeman knows how to set up a team defensively. Don’t know what the issues are but our game plan should be one that can take advantage while keeping Lukaku and co at bay. I am sure Wenger would have an eye on the next game against Man City so a bit of rotation might be in order. Sanchez and Özil on the bench while Giroud and Perez get a start for me. The defence picks itself with the same back five that finished against Stoke, I would have been tempted to put in Gibbs at left back but…..i think our defensive stability against Everton might be key so lets not tinker too much here is to a solid partnership of Kos & Gabby in the absence of Mustafi. My preferred line up will look like this.

Subs: Ospina, Alexis, Özil, Walcott, Jeff, Holding, Gibbs, Neny.

Now if we can pick up 6points in 2W from Everton and Man city away, that would be fantastic, 4 points from both would be good, let’s not consider anything less please. We know it’s going to be tough but that’s what you deal with to win any trophy these days, of course with a bit of luck on ya side.

In Other news Lagos beach soccer tourney is on from today Dec 13^th -18^th at the Eko Atlantic for beach soccer lovers follow the hashtag #BSAfcon2016 or #BeachSoccerLagos while Christiano "CR7" Ronaldo  won d Ballon d’Or 2016 beating Messi by 745 to 319 points (emphatic!!). Kudos to him for an amazing year, winning the Champions league  with Madrid in May, the Euros with Portugal in July and now this award for World best in December. Lastly its Arsenal’s own Santi Carzola’s Birthday today, hope the Team can give him a nice win to celebrate it (touch wood), shall we? The anaijagunner team wishes him a very happy Birthday, and thats it from us, do enjoy the game wherever you may be….ciao

Gunners Mould Potters

Özil  loops in his 9th Goal of this season

    I really don’t have to say this but…….WOW!! That’s 9 in 9 now, I mean 9wins on the bounce for Chelsea as they put in another clean sheet in a slim but enough 1 nil win over the baggies. Nice one, Conte must have really hated the 3 nil hiding they got at the Emirates back in September. Anyway on to things gunners sheeeyy? Arsenal got the much needed win against Stoke but they had to earn it the hard way…..as usual. It was a test of the team’s character having to fight back from behind. In the preview I mentioned the fact that Stoke these days can play and they came into the game in some kind of good form. Arsenal kicked the game off but it was Stoke who seemed to settle quickly trying to get at the gunners from the get go, Koscielny had to be alert to make a couple of clearances from as Shakiri and Arnautovic in swingers, Muniesa had a pop of a volley from one of such clearances and his shot had Cech scrambling his fingertips just to make sure the ball was not going in, early warning signs. The pendulum swung as arsenal started to settle in, but no sooner had we started to reign in the potters than the first of the mishaps happened. Mustafi falls down to an injury having pulled a hammy, it was clear that he was struggling and had to be substituted in the 25^th  minute. Not one of the brightest starts one would want but Mustafi had to go and in comes Bellerin who thank God was fit enough for the Arsenal bench, while Gabriel moved into central defence. The substitution turned out to be arsenals disappointment that became a blessing but not yet. Xhaka had one of those careless moments where he half jabbed half wrestled Allen in the penalty box, leaving Referee Mason no choice but to point at the penalty spot, Up stepped Charlie Adam to calmly slot hom the spot kick sending Cech the wrong way. How many Penalties against us now? Don’t have the exact figures but we must be really careless the way we concede them penalties. At 0-1 down the boiz woke up and started to really boss the game with Bellerin providing better width on the right side, no offence to Gabriel who was a capable if not equal deputy in his absence. Arnautovic almost made it 2 nil when he went on a mazy run into the box but Monreal was on hand to make the vital block. With the clock ticking, Arsenal started to turn the tide for the equalizer. Sanchez found bellerin in space just outside the Potters penalty box, the right back whipped in a dangerous low ball into the box which Walcott turned in at the near post for the equalizer and his personal milestone of 100 club goals, he gets a coffee machine that according to him. Game on, Arsenal almost made it 2-1 before the half when Bellerin found Ox again with a sweet cut back but Ox couldn’t find the right finish so 1-1 it ended at half time.

     The second half started where the gunners left off and in no time the gunners were ahead again, Özil stole in behind the defence Ox tracked his sneaky movement by sending over the back line a deft lobb, Özil had just enough time to spot keeper Lee Grant in between somewhere and nowhere and then went ahead to loop a header over him. It was deft smooth and sublime all at the same time. Kudos to Ox for spottin Özil’s run, that was pure vision and I hope Ox continues to improve all round, his stats are definitely pointing in that direction and long may it continue. At 2-1 in Fvour of the gunners, Stoke wasn’t gonna just roll over like Westham , they were still in with a shout.  A third goal was needed to kill off any ambitions of acomeback by stoke. Sanchez was fouled at the edge of the box but referee allowed the advantage which Iwobi curled into the lower right corner. 3-1 to the gunners. Smiles all around.

What I like the most about this win was the way the team dealt with the early set backs, Mustafi going off injured and that silly penalty we gave away. Wenger should stop crying foul cuz it was a clear penalty if you ask me. If it had happened to an Arsenal player, I am sure Wenger would sing a different song. An Arsenal team of old would most likely have buckled under the pressure of those setbacks but this team showed character by getting on with the game and getting the win regardless of the fact that they weren’t at their best and things weren’t going the team’s way at first. These are good signs, plus, Sanchez in double figures for goals & Walcott too, then you have Özil approaching those numbers for the 1^st time, Ox and Iwobi chipping in here and there. All of which can only bode well for the team as any trophy winning team needs at least 3 of its players getting in double figures of goals scored, coupled with a good defence, such team stands a chance. That’s where I worry for the gunners, we are not shutting out teams, clean sheets are nowhere and with the festive season games kick off midweek, most teams will be stretched. A test of our resolve you might say, well let’s wait and see, up next is Everton and then Man City both teams in some sort of limbo right now. Perfect timing or potential banana skin? Time of 180+ minutes will tell, till the next preview from us it’s……..Ciao

Stoke City Preview

     A lot of hi fives going around after whats been a past 7 days of emphatic response that has seen us put “minows” to the sword (remind me if any team is a minnow these days)  scoring 9 goals and conceding a whole 2 goals, what happened to the our keeping clean sheets? That’s ma only gripe, I was telling someone I would rather take a 3-nil win over a 5-1 win or 2-0 over a 3-1 win, yeah I know football is about scoring goals but that’s just me. I cant complain much though, the boiz needed to bounce back from the EFL set back against Southampton and they have done so by emphatically, doing the "bizness" against West ham away in the league and thrashing Basel away in the champions league, topping the group in the process. Alexis Sanchez was the star of the show again but a deserved mention to Lucas Perez who is warming his way back into the team with goals having scored a hattrick midweek in the UCL. All that is history now, the weekend is upon us and it’s a visit from Stoke city at the Emirates. Every match is like a must win so why not this? Last weekend was good with City, Liverpool and man United dropping points while the gunners were on hand to take advantage, can they push and and make this weekend even better with another win with a clean sheet this time? I suppose 90 minutes plus stoppages will tell.

     Mark Hughes potters are much different from the attritional hard knocks that used to be the spine of former coach Tony Pulis ( mind you, Pulis is currently high flying with the baggies), Hughes has tweaked them into a bit more ball playing technical side with Allen, Shakiri, Borjan, imbula giving them a bit of sleekness on the pitch, but don’t be fooled cuz their muscle men are still there. Artunovic can be a rough rugby player at times, his push on Debauchy into the ad boards last season comes to mind, also Shawcross while not playing today remains a totem for their beastly old ways. Speaking of Shawcross, Ramsey has not exactly set the gunners alight with his performances since coming back from injury although his last game in the middle with Xhaka was a much improved performance in recent times, I would not start him. Its Coquelin and Xhaka in the middle for me. Coq for his snap and bite, while Xhaka helps to dictate play from deep, freeing the likes of Ozil to do more damage to the opposition up front. One has to be wary of Stoke's recent form after a less than ideal start to their season. Mark Hughes men seem to have turned a corner……note a corner, not the corner, sitting 11 points adrift of the gunners in 9^th place. Despite their recent form, I hope the gunners can reign them in with a good 3-0 win to the Arsenal.

    The form book has both Teams mirroring themselves, Arsenal has 3W 2D 0L in the last 5 premier league games, Stoke has 3W 1D 1L. Not much difference if you ask me just the draw/loss. That tells me we may be in for a tough day at home especially when you remember that we have dropped most points thus far at the Emirates, hopefully i am wrong on that one, knowing that Stoke City has never picked as much as point on their visits to the Emirates. My predicted line up will look have a few tweaks shown below

Subs: Ospina, Jenks, Ramsey, Perez, Giroud, El Neny, Jeff.

Image Credits: The Uk Guardian online   

This line up leaves us with a pretty strong bench just in case Arsenal needs to go more direct with long balls in the box. Whatever team  Arsene puts out there, here is hoping they continue the winning streak building the much needed momentum into the Festive season's hectic schedule. That's it from us, do enjoy the game where ever you are.....Ciao

Alexis Hammer & Basel Preview

   A Late late Review/Preview this is. What a spanking response from the boiz over the weekend. A dark cloud hung over the Team after the listless performance against Southampton that saw Arsenal bow out of the EFL cup.  We asked for the perfect response in form of an excellent performance at Westham and the gunners duly delivered a 5star one ….or make that 4 ½ star for that goal conceded, a silly one at that when you consider that the whole team froze after Dimitri Payet’s freekick struck the upright, the whole defence forgot to play to the refs whistle. I wouldn’t want to gripe too much about this as It was the only blemish on that performance. Sanchez was at the heart of it all, setting up Ozilla for a tap in at 1-0, then came a flurry of “what a save”  “aaahs ohs” and “almosts”. Sanchez then decided that enough with the kidding around, taking the game by the scruff, he ended up with a hat trick and of course the man of the match award to booth. All nice and dandy but we need these kind of performances from the gunners more and more consistently if they are to win anything of note this season, thank God the carling cup is out. On that note I would say one less distraction to worry about. I see Mourinho’s men are already in the semis, taking cups seriously as always despite Man United’s far from progressive play in the league. Man City and Liverpool losing was a lovely bonus if I must say, Liverpool’s own jeeez reminiscent of the old Arsenal, how they lost that game beggars belief….still a Klopp fan shaa.  

   Anyway tonight is about the final group game in the Champion’s League, Yep! Arsenal go away to FC Basel in Switzerland for a game that almost may not have any consequence on who qualifies but on who gets to top the group. Well I have to say after the draw with PSG in our last home game, chances for top spot was out of Arsenals hands. PSG entertain Ludogorets, it would take a mammoth miracle for them to drop points against the Bulgarian side who gave them a run for their money back in Sofia. PSG lost over the weekend, could there be vestiges of a hangover from that loss against Montpellier? I guess we would have to wait and see, I wouldn’t be holding my breath for that though. This years champions league is such that you do have some “Big Teams” sitting in second Madrid, Bayern anyone? Maybe, just maybe coming second might not be so bad after all.

Since we have gotten our bogey month if November done and dusted, it would be nice for the gunners to keep the winning form going, a tough line up of matches await us during the festive period and the matches come in every three days, it’s an endurance test. Lets kick it on with another win away at Basel. Resting Sanchez and Ozilla with other ringing changes, my Team sheet will look like:

Subs: Cech, Sanchez, Ozil, Jeff, Oxlade, El Neny, Giroud, Monreal.