Gunnerrific

What a remarkable performance by “the kids” on Sunday. This final was by far one of the most wholly entertaining matches I’ve seen in a long time. I am still reeling a bit about everything this game included and I feel like I need to watch it again to see everything. However before that happens here are some things that stood out the most:

The Performance

Sure, a win would have been better, but barring that Arsene and the team proved everything they set out to prove (and more) about the quality of the youth program at Arsenal. We were the better side for the majority of the match, and there’s a special sort of joy that comes with seeing a team who’s average age is just under 21 make Chelsea’s costly first team look like the poorer side.

Oh, and Theo’s goal! What a magnificent build-up to a finish that was pure class. His first Arsenal goal really couldn’t have come at a better moment or looked any prettier.

I honestly can’t say enough good things about the team’s performance. Diaby looked immense out there and his ability to anticipate the flow of play and break up Chelsea’s moves was breathtaking. I might go so far as to say that he looked like Viera from the 03-04 season. His work on Sunday makes the news of his injury all the more frustrating. Let’s hope it isn’t too bad this time. Traore is really coming along, too. While he looked a little raw trying to deal with some of Chelsea’s seniors this was by far his best performance and any mistakes he made during the game were overshadowed by his promise.

The Controversy

I’m glad John Terry’s injury wasn’t as bad as it looked because it was definitely a tense few minutes in the pub while waiting for him to get medical attention. I’d also like to join in the applause for Arsenal physio Gary Lewin. It seems like he’s always the first guy out there to help out when someone is injured. Kudos to him.

The “brawl” was really not that bad. Toure definitely overreacted to the foul but didn’t do much more than yell at Mikel until Lampard tried to get involved which led to Cesc holding him back by his neck and things just descended from there. At least that’s how it looks to me. Adebayor didn’t deserve a red card and there’s been some talk that the referee might have carded the wrong guy, meaning to send off Eboue. That actually makes sense after watching this video. Arsenal have appealed Adebayor’s card with the FA so hopefully it’ll be overturned. And can we please get rid of Eboue already? He’s ridiculous.

Cesc has been getting a lot of stick for being “a brat” lately but I quite prefer Goodplaya’s take on him. A sore loser with impeccable taste in loathings.

Here’s a question: What’s the deal with the celery that was being chucked towards Cesc everytime he took a corner? Is there a meaning behind the celery that I’m missing or is it the only vegetable that Chelsea’s fans could get their hands on?

As mentioned here on ArsenalAmerica there is a gathering of sorts for Los Angeles gooners. I encourage you to stop by the Fox and Hound and check it out. For that matter there are several American viewing parties being organized, so I hope that you can find some like minded individuals for Sunday morning’s affair.

I myself will be at the Lion and Rose in San Antonio (Alamo Heights location) to enjoy the match. It doesn’t matter that it’s 8am local time for me. I will be drinking.

And lastly there weren’t nearly enough comments on Otto’s last post. It’s a shame really, I felt like it was comedy gold.

No doubt we’ll see a near 1st string side from Chelsea, while the Arsenal youngsters will make their last debut in the cup this season. It will surely be a monumental struggle and I can’t wait to see how they do. Come on Arsenal!

For the first time ever, a football club was invited to Buckingham Palace to have tea with the Queen. That club was Arsenal, and it came about after Her Majesty had to cancel plans to open the new Emirates stadium due to a strained back.

Unfortunately, what started out as a quiet and respectful meeting and tour quickly degraded into an embarrassing spectacle as Freddie Ljungberg played a practical joke on Jens Lehmann by stealing his scone. Lehmann was then said to have gone into a fit of rage, producing a goalkeeping glove from his back pocket and pointing it in Ljungberg’s face while berating him.

Julio Baptista and Gilberto Silva were able to subdue the German keeper and restore order to the palace, but witnesses say the mood had turned irreversibly sour by that point.

Link to the full story »

Thus concludes two relatively poor performances in a row by The Gunners. While the game did have a few highlights we never really looked like we cared until PSV slid one just past Lehmann. It’s a familiar tale where urgency only comes out of the risk of a loss.

Instead of writing a full match report, which I’m pretty sure nobody really wants to read, I’m going to outline a few things that I’ve been missing from Arsenal’s game in the past few fixtures.

• Robin Van Persie, who’s obsession with scoring incredible goals has been sorely missed up front since his injury.
• Aliadiere, one of the few sources of creativity in Arsenal’s distressing performance against Blackburn.
• Henry, who despite a few nice chances here and there looked absent for huge stretches of the game. The way he receives a ball and holds it for 5+ seconds, standing still while looking for the perfect opportunity, frustrates beyong imagine.
• Top-form Gallas. It’s nice to have him back but it was painful watching him give up possession and get beat so often today. Our right side was entirely exposed as a result.
• The Beast. From underwhelming at his start for Arsenal, to overwhelming in his four-goal role in the Carling Cup evisceration of Liverpool, to underwhelming again. Why can’t we get “The Beast” on a regular basis?

So we look forward to meeting PSV again in two weeks at the Emirates. The pressure will really be on if we want to stay in the Champion’s League, but before that we meet Chelsea in the Carling Cup final. I’m hoping Arsene left Aliadiere on the bench to rest him for a starting spot in that game.

All that being said, I don’t think the loss today is going to be too much of a disaster for Arsenal. Considering some of the brilliant performances the team has put in, I would be more surprised if we didn’t find our form again in the next game. Yes, the last two performances have been pretty shoddy, but we’ve had an amazing run since the new year and it won’t be hard for the gunners to find their form again.

So what do you think Arsenal has been missing lately?

Jens is out of the squad for tomorrow’s match against Bolton. While that’s not really newsworthy it gives me a great segue into presenting a humorous video of our favorite keeper:

Hopefully Almunia can pull a few stunts like those tomorrow. Arsenal need to do their best to keep Jens around for at least a few more years, at least until he can impart a little of the unique mix of insane skills and hilarity that make him such a joy to watch. If he leaves, I’ll be sad to see him go. I can’t be the only one right?

While searching for some good Arsenal gear at one of three Los Angeles “soccer shops”, Will and I stumbled upon this wonderful little gem (courtesy Will’s cameraphone).

This is the logo from an infant-sized Highbury commemorative kit. Apparently someone at Nike decided that since the little bastard who will be wearing it probably can’t read, it would be okay that the embroidered text around the logo is so poorly done it looks like it says “Highbory”. Quality! Either that or it’s a fake. Does anyone have an infant-sized shirt like this for comparison?

And speaking of craptastic embroidery, has anyone ever found a decent looking Arsenal cap? Every single one that I have found here in the states, be it from Nike or not, has this same crappy illegible embroidering. Why can’t they make the crest on the hat the same as the crest on the rest of the strips?

Anyway, looking forward to the FA Cup replay against Bolton on Wednesday it sounds like Diaby is match fit or close to it. This is pretty good news as he was starting to get back into form and look more like “the old Diaby” in that last Carling Cup game.

Hleb and Ljungberg are training again and should be nearing fitness, Ljungberg probably being the closer of the two. It’ll be great to get them back into the squad, or at least have the option. Although Ljungberg’s consistent injuries and transfer rumors doesn’t bode well for the Swede.

Let’s see about getting that win against Bolton! And farewell Highbory!