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November 30, 2004

You wouldn't walk...

Posted by gcurtis at 09:19 AM | Comments (2)

London Calling, November 30th

Dear NY Gooners,

Liverpool
As the curtain falls on another defeat the knives are well and truly out. Everyone and their mother are coming out of the woodwork to put the boot in and they are questioning everything and everyone to do with the club. We have gone from being the Media's flavour of the month to their whipping boys. According to most experts, and I use that term loosely, Arsene has lost the plot, they say he is not as great a manager as they originally thought and in fact he is no better than your average Prem' manager. I say b*llocks to them all, we are The Arsenal and we will come out of this bad patch.

The thing that I was most frustrated with on Sunday, as was everyone else who I have spoken to, was the fact that our 1st half performance was a mirror of all our 1st halves since the United game - we just did not look like we was interested. Now I'm not questioning our players professional integrity, and as the saying goes you do not become a bad team overnight, but there is no doubt that we are a shadow of our former selves. If TH14 is carrying an injury then AW should give him a rest now to help him recover for later on in the season, as at the moment he is doing very little for the team or himself. But it's not just Thierry who is not playing at his best; you could quite easily add Jose, Bobby, Dennis and in most parts Patrick, who apart from the second half at Anfield is very much out of sorts. He will miss the Chelsea game because of his fifth booking of the season, where our midfield will be very much a patchwork quilt of players playing out of position and all this just three days after we play Rosenborg in what is our most important game this season, since the last most important game we played anyway.

We need a change of luck from somewhere because although our first half was poor the second half performance deserved at least a draw and it was a cruel way to loose a game. But saying that, if there was a good way to lose a game it was like that, at least it was not with a whimper or down to some poor refereeing.

The sounds coming out of Arsenal are that it looks like Sol will be signing a new contract and that Mr. Ed(u) will be on his way, most probably to Barcelona in the January sales.

Following my fine performance at 5-a-side on Friday night I have contacted Arsene and told him that I should be available for selection soon if we do not have enough fit players. I don't think I can manage the full 90 minutes though, as the curry I had after was so nice I pigged out a bit.

Talk Sport? (part 2)
The morning show is followed by geriatric Mike Dickin, definitely a show to miss. This is followed at 1pm by "Hawksbee & Jacobs". Paul Hawksbee (Sp*urs) and his sidekick Andy Jacobs (Chelski) have what I think is one of the best shows on radio. It's three hours of chat, guests and jokes that are all football-related. Considering their football allegiances they give a fair and honest opinion on the game. Hawksbee will openly say that Sp*rs are so far behind the big teams that he is embarrassed at how they have fallen from grace over the last 25 years. Andy Jacobs is also open in his opinion of Chelski and Roman's money, saying that all the money he has pumped into the club will only be bad in the long run and it will all end in tears. They don't say these things to be controversial they just talk about their clubs like the passionate fans that they are.

The drive home show is the "Kinghorn and Cas Show", with Patrick Kinghorn and Tony Cascarino - the former Millwall, Villa, Celtic and Rep of Ireland international. Cascarino is a frank and intelligent man who also has a weekly column in The Times; the trouble is he has a problem stringing two words together, which sometimes gets very embarrassing when he is trying to hold an argument with more experienced presenters. The frightening thing is that Cascarino is the better of the two presenters on this show; Kinghorn is a complete plank of wood. He is the cousin of Tim Sherwood and I think the only reason he got this job was not because of what he knows but who he knows. He more often than not sounds like a demented 14-year-old who talks about as much sense as a person half that age. He attempts to be controversial but fails miserably. It's quite easy to see who is also listening to the show in their cars driving home as they will be the ones screaming "Cuuuuuuunt!!" at their radios.

There are also other evening programs most notably Adrian Durham's "Football First" show, a bitter man if I have ever heard one. He hates everything about the Premiership and the reason for this, he supports Peterborough. Durham has ginger hair and there is something about ginger-haired people that I don't trust; it may have something to do with the Umpa Lumpas from Willy Wonka.

So next time you're in the UK tune in and get your blood boiling or listen on the net

I Heard It Through The Grape Vine
Both Henry and Vieira are playing with injuries at the moment.

Life After Arsenal
John Devine, 80's right back. His footballing days were cut short by injury so after a time playing his guitar in Dublin pubs he decided to buy a motorbike and travel around India, playing music for anyone who wanted to listen and living the life of a hippy.

Spotted out and about.
Dennis and Mrs. Bergkamp in "Toys R Us" on the A10 near Enfield, thanks to Pigeon for that.

Players We Have Been Linked With This Week
Per Weihrauch (Hvidovre) Danish 16-year-old starlet. Aren't they all?
Steed Malbranque (Fulham) Head-banging midfielder.
Marcos (Palmeiras) Brazilian international keeper
Christian Obodo (Perugia & Fiorantina) Nigerian midfielder
David Beckham (Madrid) Again

Useless Arsenal Trivia
Arsenal used White Shite Lane for home games after World War II as Highbury had bomb damage.

Celebrity Gooner
Frankie Dettori, champion jump jockey.

This weeks "Totally Irrelevant" link to Arsenal
The Arsenal players of the early 80's used to drink in The White Hart pub on Southgate roundabout.

All the best,
Teabag

Posted by gcurtis at 09:03 AM | Comments (2)

Fixtures moved for TV

The Premier League have announced the following changes to upcoming fixtures as a result of moves to facilitate TV coverage by Sky:

Posted by gcurtis at 08:51 AM | Comments (0)

November 25, 2004

Happy Turkey Day

Just thought I'd wish all my fellow NY Gooners a Happy Thanksgiving Day. Eat, drink (a lot) and be merry, I certainly will be!

Posted by gcurtis at 10:09 AM | Comments (3)

UEFA Champions League: PSV (1) 1 - 1 (1) Arsenal

On the trip from Eindhoven back to Amsterdam last night, the train stopped and all the Gooners onboard were forced to exit the train -- into a disgusting haze of white smoke.

No, it's not some 'shroom-induced hallucination. In fact, we came to find out that the problem was a simple brake fire. A new train was dispatched, we piled on and within 15 minutes we were on our way to Amsterdam.

Still, it's a good metaphor for the game we'd just seen. It was fiery at times, looked bleak here and there, but in the end it could've been much, much worse.

We caught a train from Amsterdam to Eindhoven at about 5 o'clock and wandered around the city center for a few minutes before we heard the first chant from the traveling supporters. By following the chorus, we made it to an Arsenal-friendly pub for a pint.

All the chanting seemed innocent enough -- even got a joint chorus of "There's only one Dennis Bergkamp" from both the PSV and Arsenal supporters. But, when a few shaven-headed Dutchman in bomber jackets with the Dutch flag on the sleeve showed up, we decided to make our way to another location.

Ended up in a quiet bar with mostly old-timer PSV fans who welcomed us in. We talked football, shared a few beers and shots and then headed to the stadium.

The Arsenal support in the stadium was excellent. I heard there were anything from 1,600 to 2,000 on hand. The Gunners were attacking coming towards us in the first half, so I think we all had a good feeling about it.

That ended quickly, with PSV scoring first from -- what else -- a set piece. But, about 20 minutes later, Henry and Freddie linked up on a nice one-two with a Freddie backheel putting Henry clear. A great finish and it was 1-1.

In the second half, the singing continued strong and the attitude in the crowd around me was pretty positive. That is, until the cards started coming out. After Lauren was sent off for a second bookable offense, the Gunners still looked more likely to score with a few good chances falling to Henry, Freddie and Van Persie.

(Side note: I just read that Lauren's first card was for "encouraging the referee to book an opponent" -- what a load of crap... maybe the ornery gooner next to me who kept yelling at the ref "wanking German c*nt" was on to something.)

It was down to 9-men after Vieira was sent off in the 78th, but credit to Flamini and Hoyte who both came on and made strong tackles in the box to keep the scoreline level.

All in all, it's a good result and leaves it all in Arsenal's hands in two weeks' time.

Man of the Match: Freddie. He's looking good again and his backheel to set up the goal was brilliant. Honorable mention to Cesc and Sol Campbell, who played well on his return. And Jens, who made a big save after Cole had let a player in on the left.

MIA of the Match: This is a tough one... all things considered, the team played pretty well. If Vieira times his second tackle better, it might've been 2-1 by the end.

Brilliant Security Idea of the Match: Upon exiting the stadium, an Amsterdam-bound train was sitting right there waiting for us. We didn't have to walk back to the Eindhoven train station or anything. The exit from the ground was the train platform. My mate Rob told the police officer what a great idea it is and the officer replied, in the understated way on the dutch can, "It's nice, yeah."

Bevvy Report: Hit the pubs in Amsterdam for a few before heading to Eindhoven, had a few prior to the match and then hit the bars when the train got back to the 'dam after 1am. All in all, I'd say about 10-12 pints.

Quote of the Week: My English friend Chris, without a hint of irony, says: "English people are fuckin' scum."

Thanks for reading this far... I'll do my best to find a pub in Berlin to watch the Liverpool match and give a report from there.... One thing I can tell you for sure, though -- no one will be screaming "wanking German c*nt" every few minutes.

Signing off...
EVG

Posted by gcurtis at 07:03 AM | Comments (0)

November 24, 2004

A last word (for now)

I thought this editorial by The Daily Mirror's Sports' Editor Oliver Holt was too good not to post in its entirity since it pretty much sums up my view on the racism displayed both last week in the England games and again yesterday when some of Real Madrid's fans racially abused Bayer Leverkusan's black players:

Posted by gcurtis at 09:33 AM | Comments (1)

Wenger wouldn't walk!

In an interview in this morning's Sun newspaper in England, The Boss insists that walking the team off the pitch in the event of racist abuse from the Eindhoven fans would be the wrong thing to do. Given the fact that Thierry Henry was racially abused in our last game there two years ago, the decision will be down to the German referee, Herbert Fandel, who has already said that he will abandon the game if the Dutch fans provide a repeat performance...

Fearing violence in that event, Arsene Wenger said,

I don't pretend to have the answers, though the strong stewarding and policing inside England's foremost stadia, combined with education and a zero tolerance attitude towards racism seem to have largely removed that blight from the English game. How you transfer that success to Europe, if you can at all, is another matter though...

Posted by gcurtis at 09:01 AM | Comments (0)

November 23, 2004

An amazing achievement...

I know I'll probably get hate mail from my fellow Gooners for this, but I have to add my own congratulations to ol'Red Nose today as he takes his team out for his 1000th match at Manchester United. As The Boss said,

Posted by gcurtis at 11:10 AM | Comments (0)

NY Gooners' Player of the Month for October

Well, the results are in again, and youngster Fabregas Cesc has been chosen as the NY Gooners' Player of the Month for October. Tel came in second place, while several players split third place. Here are the final results; why don't you leave a comment explaining your views in the comments section for this entry? The new poll is a topical one given the appalling behaviour of Spanish fans last week in both England's senior and U-21 games against Spain - events that were supposed to be a celebration of Spain's 500th Senior International fixture and instead turned out to be a damning indictment of the cultural state of that nation (in my opinion - more on that later). But what do you think... Given FIFA President Sepp Blatter's statement that he would have supported the England team had they walked from the pitch, do you think The Arsenal should walk if racist abuse is directed at our players (as has happened several times in the last few years in Europe)?

poll_process(7);?>

Posted by gcurtis at 10:19 AM | Comments (0)

London Calling, November 23rd

Dear NY Gooners,

WBA
Saturday did not start the way I had planed with my failed attempt to have the first "Hands Across the Water" meeting between your two match day correspondences. Sorry East, but maybe next time we should know what each other looks like, because a packed pub and the only description I had was "I've got short fair hair and I'll be wearing an Ashley Cole shirt" is not a great deal to go on, better luck next time.

As for the match itself it's another two points dropped, with the only consolation being that Chels' also slipped up. The slightly worrying sign is that the red nosed twat and his horde of cheating Mancs are making up points.

We had the chances on Saturday to have wrapped up the game before the inevitable goal we have been conceding of late. The first half went the same way as other games have lately, in that teams are playing against us like it was a cup tie. They strung five across the middle and stifled the midfield.

I feel sorry for young Fabrigas because he is still learning and he is being asked to do a man's job and it is not fair to put such responsibility on such young shoulders. Vieira is flitting in and out of games too much for most fans liking and he is not really helping Cesc as a captain should.

We picked up the pace in the second half with Bobby playing the type of football we have become accustomed, ably supported by Freddie. Chances came and went and the longer the game went on without us getting the all important second goal the anxiety levels grew not only in our play but in the crowd with everyone on edge knowing that the way we have been defending in the last few weeks a chance would come their way, as it surely did from Bugs Bunny look-alike Earnshaw. Fair dues to Greening for an amazing piece of skill to keep the ball in play before his cross, but where were Cole, Cygan and Toure who all had a chance to cut the cross out?

The next few weeks will be very testing and it could determine our season. A win on Wednesday will see us through to the next round no matter what happens in the last game and we can forget about the Champions league till February. But if our league form does not improve in the next few weeks we can forget about the Premiership till next season.

Talk Sport? (part 1)
Up to about 10 years ago there were only a handful of ways to listen to football coverage on the radio. Local stations would cover teams within their area on match days and then have the odd sports program during the rest of the week. The good old BBC also has its own local stations plus the national "Sport on 5"; this will cover all domestic, European and international football plus an excellent phone-in after games. The last and newest kid on the block is "Talk Sport".

Started around five years ago as "Talk Radio", it was originally formed as a phone-in station for all topics from politics to cooking and DIY, but the programs which attracted the most audience figures were the football shows. It was then decided to have a change of direction and become a sports station, making it the UK's first and currently only sports radio station, mixed in with some other talk programs, most notably the daytime geriatric shock jock, Mike Dickin.

The morning drive show is hosted by former Ipswich, Sp*r, Manc and Scottish international Alan Brazil added by co-presenter Mike Parry, a former Sun journalist who has been off air recently due to health problems. Considering Brazil's playing background he gives a far and objective view on the day's subjects, often siding with the players, with an air of "If you've never played the professional game how can you comment" attitude. Parry on the other hand plays Devils Advocate, slating everything that Brazil says just to get the phones ringing. Whilst Parry has been away his stand-in has been Graham Beecroft, or Beeky as he is know. Beecroft also tries to play the Parry role but with little joy. He hates Arsenal and is not afraid to say it. He was one of the many idiots who last year suggested we should be thrown out of the Premiership after the Manc game, saying it was some of the worst behavior he had ever seen on a football pitch; he has obviously never been to Hackney Marshes on a Sunday morning. Beecroft talks like a Sunday school teacher and I don't think many people can associate with him as he doesn't come across as someone who would have ever have stood on the terraces. This show is worth a listen for Brazil alone. (To be continued.)

I Heard It Through The Grape Vine
A friend, of a friend, of a friend who knows Pat Rice says we will be buying a top name defender from Holland in the January transfer window.

Life After Arsenal
David Price 1979 FA Cup winning midfielder, who later moved to Crystal Palace. Was last heard of driving a London black cab.

Spotted out and about.
Edu and his wife at "Chopstick Exchange" in Whetstone, North London. A Chinese buffet restaurant.

Players We Have Been Linked With This Week
Scot Parker (Chels')
Jean Alain Boumsong (Rangers) French centre-back
Gennaro Gattuso (Milan) Italian midfield lion
Massimo Oddo (Lazio) Italian right back
Edwin Van Der Sar (Fulham) Dutch keeper
Emmanuel Petit (?) He's blond, he's quick, his names a porno flick, Emmanuel.

Useless Arsenal Trivia
Arsenal played for one season in the early 80's in a Green & Blue away kit. The same style as our Red/White home kit but green body with blue sleeves, blue shorts and green socks. It sounds disgusting but in fact it was a lot worse.

Celebrity Gooner
Ian Poulter, Ryder Cup golfer who once put a red stripe in his hair in honor of Freddie.

This weeks "Totally Irrelevant" link to Arsenal
Roman Abromivich came to Arsenal first before going to Chels', but the board rejected his offer because they did not trust him.

All the best,
Teabag

Posted by gcurtis at 10:05 AM | Comments (3)

November 21, 2004

Arsenal (0) 1 - 1 (0) WBA

East Village Gooner's on a road trip and sent in this match report from London. He'll be in Eindhoven on Wednesday and posting a match report from there...

The day started well, with my flight making it to Heathrow right on time. I got through passport control quickly, too, and made it to Highbury with about an hour to spare before kickoff. Headed with my friend Rob into the Auld Triangle for a pint (and an attempt to find Teabag - didn't happen - sorry 'bag!). Got chips and a sausage and headed into the match. Great seat in the North Bank Lower and all was looking good...

Needless to say, the headline of this match: Another week, another unsuccessful attempt at holding a 1-goal lead.

West Brom were up for the game, got a deserved equalizer after a great piece of control and left with their point.

After WBA scored to make it 1-1, Arsenal never really went close. This game was more about chances that went close but not quite in:

In the first half, Henry took a great freekick but it was sent away by an equally great save.

After Pires scored to make it 1-nil, he provided Henry with a great chance to make it two with a great run and even better pass. But Henry couldn't get it off his feet and nothing came of it.

Later, Dennis (who played poorly, to be honest) had his one sublime moment of the match. He picked out Cygan unmarked on the edge of the 6-yard box with a good cross, but Pascal was Pascal and hit his header over the bar. That should've made it 2-nil. And I swear if he would've scored I would've gone to the Arsenal World of Sport and had a Cygan jersey printed up. I'm not kidding. I might've even shaved my head -- just for you Neil.

Reyes and van Persie came on late, but it didn't make much difference... a draw was on the cards.

Afterwards we retired to The Gunners tavern for a few more pints. We had heard Chelsea had won 2-1. Then, inexplicably, Sky Sports flashed a 2-2 scoreline -- apparantely unknown to us, they game had been delayed. When the Chelsea draw was shown, the cheer went up in The Gunners and spirits were raised.

It's off to PSV on Weds... as my mate Rob said, we usually go into Europe looking great in the league and then look crap in Europe. We can only hope it'll prove opposite in Holland.

Man of the Match: Pires/Freddie. Our wide midfielders were easily the best players on the pitch -- especially on a day when Henry's touch repeatedly let him down.

MIA of the Match: DB10. Just had an off-game -- heard from another guy that was at the match that there were people in the North Bank upper saying he "should've retired already" and that Henry is "a waste of money." That's going a little far -- MILES far -- but they pair did have an off game.

Song of the Match: "Santini, oh-oh-oh, Santini, oh-oh-oh, He found out Spurs were shit, that's why he fucking quit. Santini, oh-oh-oh, Santini, oh-oh-oh."

Bevvy report: At least 10 Fosters over the course of the night, a Carlsberg at some point and a Budweiser -- the original kind, from Czechoslovakia or something. Oh, and one shot of something milky and alcoholic. We ended up watching the Real/Barca match at a Sports Bar in Leicester Square and hours later took a night bus back to Rob's in South London. Needless to say, I passed out on the bus. I have a tendency to fall asleep on public transport. It's a good thing I'm not a bus driver.

More from Eindhoven in mid-week...
EVG

Posted by gcurtis at 05:37 PM | Comments (0)

November 16, 2004

Freddie picks up an award

The man-of-the-match from Saturday's excellent win over our north London neighbours, Freddie Ljungberg, has been chosen as Sweden's midfielder of the year.

Posted by gcurtis at 09:28 AM | Comments (0)

Arsenal v WBA has been bumped...

As noted in the comments for a previous entry, and confirmed on soccertv.com, Arsenal's home fixture against WBA has been bumped for Chel$ki v Bolton Wanderers. This means that our next televised game in the US is our visit to Eindhoven to play PSV - which will be shown at 5pm next Wednesday.

Posted by gcurtis at 09:18 AM | Comments (0)

London Calling, November 16th

Dear NY Gooners,

Jumpers For Goalposts
What can be said about Saturday's game that hasn't been said already? It had everything, plenty of goals, a penalty, bad defending, putting one over the old enemy but most importantly a win at last. By the end of the game it took everything out of me and everyone else around me emotionally, it felt as if I had kicked every ball. We felt drained and we had won, so you can imagine what it did to the Sp*rs supporters.

I got a text after the game from my Sp*rs mate Paul who summed up their feelings really well, he said "I'm perplexed. What the hell do we have to do to beat you?" We seem to forget that they have had to sit and watch their closest rivals get bigger and bigger; how sick they must feel knowing that they are so far behind us and they will only be further behind once the new stadium is built.

They started the game the same way as Southampton and Palace did in a previous matches, they were determined in their approach, trying to put us off our stride and it nearly worked but I get the impression that we have learnt from the last two games and we raised our level of play to counter this.

The media have been going from one extreme to the other, calling the match the best and worst about English football, you can't please everyone all of the time.

There is no question that we are missing both Campbell and Gilberto especially when it comes to defending set plays and that is the thing which is really getting to most fans. The big question being asked is why we keep conceding from set piece plays, if George Graham was dead he'd be turning in
his grave.

For me the turning point was not Henry's goal but Lehmann's save when the score was still 1-0 to them. I think that if they went 2-0 up their confidence would have grown and it would have been a lot harder for us to get back into the game. Lehmann has taken a lot of stick recently but I would still prefer him to Robinson, who has now conceded 14 goals in the last three games he has played against us.

If any of you are wondering why the heading is called 'Jumpers for Goalposts' it's reference to a comedy sketch on a UK program called 'The Fast Show' which had a character called Ron Manager. He would describe his boyhood memories of playing down the local park with his friends and use their jumpers for goalposts with final scores being 18-19.

Soccer AM
Back in the 70's the only pre-match football coverage available was the BBC's 'Football Focus' or ITV's 'On the Ball' later changing to 'Saint & Greavsie' but since Sky TV got the football rights Saturday mornings have changed beyond recognition. Soccer AM is now established as the No. 1 Saturday viewing for football fans.

Hosted by Tim Lovejoy (Chelsea) & Helen Chamberlain (Torquay) it's a very entertaining way to start your pre-match build up, with a mix of sketches, guests and football trivia. They also have quite an influence on the supporters on the terraces running fun campaigns every season to see how many people will take it on. Last year one of Lovejoy's friends called Chip had a girlfriend who did not like him watching too much football and they ran a banner appeal where they wanted fans to hold up signs with 'Free Chip' on them and grounds were flooded. This year they are championing the case to have the word 'bouncebackability' listed in the Oxford Dictionary after Ian Dowie used it in a TV interview. Players are now using it in press conferences, journalists are putting it into their match reports and even politicians are using it in the House of Commons; who said the power of media doesn't work?

So, if you have Sky Sports 1, get up early one Saturday and have a look; or definitely catch it when you're next in the UK, you won't regret it! It's on from 9am till 12 (4am till 7am - New York) every Saturday

I Heard It through the Grape Vine
Adrian Muto has not been the only player to have snorted Charlie and been caught by the Chelskavich.

Life after Arsenal
Martin Hayes was sold to Celtic but only played a handful of games and spent most of his time in the reserves, he was finally transferred to Swansea and then fell into the semi pro game. He was working as a salesman at 'Highbury Ford', a car dealership on Highbury corner and is now the manager of semi-pro side Bishops Stortford.

Spotted out and about.
Giles Grimondi buying a train ticket for Wycombe.

Players We Have Been Linked With This Week
Julio Cesar (Flamengo) Brazilian keeper
Stuart Downing (Midd') English midfielder
Emir (Inter Milan) Turkish midfielder
Samuel Kuffor (Bayern Munich) Ghanaian ground thumping defender.
Emanuel Eboue (Beveren) Ivory Coast defender.

Useless Arsenal Trivia
Arsenal tube station was originally called Gillespie Road and Herbert Chapman made London Underground change the name. Some of the old signs are still visible.

This Weeks Celebrity Gooner
Dido (songbird) Season ticket holder and a genuine fan

This weeks 'Totally Irrelevant' link to Arsenal
My mate Metin lives in a house that was once Bob McNab's, the 1971 double-winning left back.

All the best,
Teabag

Posted by gcurtis at 09:05 AM | Comments (3)

November 14, 2004

ManUre v Arsenal TV Coverage

Nevada Smiths will be showing our Carling Cup match-up against the Mancs LIVE at 2.30pm on Wednesday December 1st. The game's on Setanta so there'll probably be a $10 door charge (though I'll confirm this for sure soon).

Posted by gcurtis at 10:11 AM | Comments (0)

Another TV Update for Arsenal v WBA

Because Jack expects the Barca v Real Madrid derby game to fill both the upstairs bar and Chrissy Mac's (downstairs) he'll be taping the 3pm FOX Sports World presentation of our match against West Brom and showing it upstairs in full at 6pm.

Posted by gcurtis at 10:05 AM | Comments (5)

November 13, 2004

The Scum (1) 4 - 5 (1) Arsenal

It's been about ten hours, but I'm still trying to figure out what the hell happened this morning. I woke up at 6:34, I think I watched a football match and I'm pretty sure Arsenal won. Other than that it's one big blur.

If the game against Soton two weeks ago was medieval torture, this was what it's like to be Dick Cheney -- persistant heart pain coupled with a quiet fear that the end may be near. Yet, in the end, it all works out. Thanks to Jack for keeping nitroglycerin behind the bar.

I believe the goals went like this, but again, I could be wrong. I may have dreamed this whole thing... but just in case it did happen, I'll number the goals for quick reference.

1. Spurs got the first from a free kick and Toure's missed clearance.

2. In first half injury time, TH received a ball over the top near the spot, held for what seemed like ages, then poked it home. 1-1 at the half.

3. Freddie was brought down in the box for a clear penalty, which Lauren cooly put into the right side of the net.

4. Good work from Vieira and a fortunate deflection put our French midfielder clear on goal. He beat Robinson to put us up 3-1 and start a loud chorus of "Vieira."

5. Within moments, Defoe had brought the totts back to 3-2 with a great strike into the far corner from the edge of the area. As TouresJersey said, this guy should be playing for England.

6. Cesc made a great tackle to win the ball, then got the ball back and played in Freddie, who finished well to make it 4-2. Game over.

Not.

7. Ledley King I think scored on a header at this point?

8. Pires ended up with the ball in the right side of the area, did a nifty dribbling move to get past the defender and slotted home past Robinson to the near post. The goal of the match for Arsenal. We went nuts. It was game over.

Not.

9. In the 87th minute, TH gave the ball away in midfield, and a good over the top ball put Kanoute in and he made it 5-4.

And, that's the way it ended...... I think.

Men of the Match: Cesc and Vieira. Our central midfielders controlled the game. Cesc beautifully set up at least one if not two of the goals and Vieira looked his old self throughout -- especially as he burst free on goal.

Honorable Mention Man of the Match: Freddie. Won the penalty, set up one after a great turn, and scored one.

Another Honorable Mention Man of the Match: Arsenal conceded 4 times and, from what I recall, Cygan wasn't directly responsible for any of them. That's noteworthy any way you look at it.

MIA of the Match: JAR. Never looked completely comfortable thanks to the hack-a-Jose tactic, which seems to be the new hip shit.

Song of the Match: "Super Bob," which might have to have be updated to "Super Bob, Super Sub" if he keeps up this 60th-minute-sub/poacher routine.

NYGooner of the Match: John, who brought his (completely kitted-out) 7- and 3-year-old daughters to the match. That's good parenting.

Beverages report: Three Amstel Lights in honor of our long, lost NY Gooner Derrick, who was stuck working somewhere in Virginia, I believe.

Look for a report on next week's West Brom match direct from the North Bank Lower.

Match report courtesy of East Village Gooner

Posted by gcurtis at 05:31 PM | Comments (1)

November 11, 2004

Carling Cup Quarter-finals draw

The Gunners were matched with ManUre again in yesterday evening's Carling Cup quarter-finals draw. Wenger will be sticking with the young team that so effectively handled Everton on Tuesday evening while Red Nose says that he'll play the same team he fielded against Palace yesterday. The full draw is:

Posted by gcurtis at 09:18 AM | Comments (1)

November 10, 2004

TV update: Arsenal v WBA

Arsenal's home fixture against West Bromwich Albion will be shown on 5-hour tape delay on Saturday November 20th. I guess we'll be downstairs at 3pm though, since Barca v Real Madrid is on at 4pm...

Posted by gcurtis at 12:28 PM | Comments (4)

More Gunners up for awards...

The short-list for French Football magazine's prestigious Ballon d'Or (Golden Ball) has been announced and includes several Gunners, including Thierry Henry, Jose Antonio Reyes and Patrick Vieira. The winner will be announced next month. Last year Pavel Nedved swept the award with our very own Tel coming in second place.

The full list of nominees are: Adriano (Internazionale), Ailton (Schalke 04), Ayala (Valencia) Baraja (Valencia), Baros (Liverpool), Barthez (Marseille), Beckham (Real Madrid), Buffon (Juventus), Cech (Chelsea), Haristeas (Werder Bremen), Deco (Barcelona), Dellas (AS Roma), Drogba (Chelsea), Emerson (Juventus), Eto'o (Barcelona), Figo (Real Madrid), Giuly (Barcelona), Henry (Arsenal), Ibrahimovic (Juventus), Juninho (Lyon), Kaka (Milan), Kapsis (Bordeaux), Lampard (Chelsea), Larsson (Barcelona), Maldini (Milan), Maniche (Porto), Micoud (Werder Bremen), Mista (Valencia), Morientes (Real Madrid), Nedved (Juventus), Nesta (Milan), Nikopolidis (Olympiakos), Pirlo (Milan), Reyes (Arsenal), Carvalho (Chelsea), Ronaldinho (Barcelona), Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Ronaldo (Manchester United), Rooney (Manchester United), Rosicky (Borussia Dortmund), Scholes (Manchester United), Seedorf (Milan), Seitaridis (Porto), Shevchenko (Milan), Totti (AS Roma), Van Nistelrooy (Manchester United), Vicente (Valencia), Vieira (Arsenal), Zagorakis (Bologna), Zidane (Real Madrid).

One question though... I just wonder whether the magazine's editors thought they were nominating for the Palme d'Or when choosing Christiano Ronaldo, Rooney and Horseface...?

Posted by gcurtis at 12:01 PM | Comments (1)

Injury News for the Scum game

There was more bad news from Highbury today after Arsene confirmed that Edu broke a toe in last night's 3-1 Carling Cup victory over Everton. No news yet as to how long he'll be missing.

Edu joins Sol Campbell, Gilberto, Gael Clichy and Jeremie Aliadiere on the sidelines. Campbell will probably be missing for another two weeks or so with his long-standing achilles problem, Gilberto will probably be unavailable until almost Christmas with an injured vertabrae and Aliadiere is out until March or April. There's no update on Clichy yet; more news when the club makes it available.

UPDATE: The UK press is reporting that Edu will be missing for six weeks...

Posted by gcurtis at 11:45 AM | Comments (0)

The Scum game's at 7am, not 7.30!

Neil has pointed out that the Scum game starts at 7am, not 7.30am as I've had at the top of this page this week! (Serves me right for relying on soccertv.com instead of checking the proper fixture list!)

Nevada's will be opening their doors at 6.15am, so get down there early and have a few bevvies to get into a singing frame of mind before the kickoff!!!

Posted by gcurtis at 11:32 AM | Comments (0)

Got Football?

Need to talk more about footie? Tired of the BigSoccer boards? Why not try out the excellent "beautiful game" forums - for your football fix!

The forum's are very active and cover every aspect of the global game from the best (The Premier League) to the worst (The Scottish Leagues :-)). Not to mention that you'd be helping out a fellow Gooner - GoonerGal - who runs the site! Do yourself a favour and get over there and check it out now! (Well, not until after you've read today's London Calling though...)

Posted by gcurtis at 11:18 AM | Comments (0)

London Calling, November 10th

Dear NY Gooners,

It's Palace not Real Madrid
It was "Guy Fawkes" (ask a British mate if you don't know what that is) this weekend but there were no fireworks to talk about at Selhurst Park. It's true to say we are currently in a slump but let's not get carried away, we have not become a bad team over night and we will come out of this and most fans are happy to except that this is just a blip.

We knew the Premiership was not won in September when we were winning every game and we know that we have not lost it in November because we can't hit the proverbial cow's arse with a banjo. Obviously the media is full of crisis stories but no one is buying into that, all we are concerned about is that it doesn't carry on for too much longer. We have drawn 2 and lost 1 of our last three games and it says a lot about our team that this is regarded as a crisis, Christ if that's a crisis what are Sp*rs going through?

Arsene puts it down to fatigue and too many players being off form at the same time. Confidence plays a big part and footballers are, after all, only human. Where last year things were happening naturally, you can see that they are playing with a bit of edge at the moment. Last season certain players hit purple patches and carried the team when others were not playing well, this year that has not happened. Vieira has come out and said that he is not playing well (no shit) and that he will get better; this statement could be attributed to any number of players. Our only saving grace at the moment, and the reason that we are not getting slated even more, is the fact that the Mancs are playing really crap and most of the press is concentrating on their downfall. The fact is our real challenge this year was always going to come from south of the Thames and so this has been proven. It's going to be a bumpy ride this season I hope you are all strapped in.

The weekend didn't turn out to be such a disaster, after the game we had a huge bonfire and barbeque to celebrate Guy Fawkes night and on the Sunday for the final part of Joanna's birthday treats I took her to The Dorchester for afternoon tea. Very posh and highly recommended if you're a tourist and you don't mind paying 28 a head.

THE London Derby
Over the last 15 years THE London derby has meant more to the white half of North London than it has to the red. We have had bigger fish to fry but do not let anyone tell you that these games do not mean something to every Arsenal fan. This is an opportunity to put one over the old enemy and give one set of fans a few months of bragging rights. Can you believe that they still think last season's game at White Shite Lane was a result for them because they did not lose, even though we got the point we needed to win the League there! A mate of mine actually came out with the comment that at least we did not beat them. I once asked him which he would prefer, Sp*rs to win the Premiership or Arsenal to get relegated and he said Arsenal to get relegated. When I told him that we would never look at that as success he then backtracked and changed his mind but to me that just about summed them up, they are happier when we lose than when they win.

Chelskavich may be a bigger club than Sp*rs now but when it comes to derbies this is still spoken about in the same breath as the Manchester, Liverpool and Glasgow ones, something that the blue noses will not except, this is and always will be the only London derby worthy of note.

Over the last couple of years with the whole Sol saga and their lack of success, this fixture has returned to its most violent past, one takes one's life in your hands going to this game especially at The Lane. The local old bill seem to turn a blind eye to the barrage of bottles and coins thrown at our fans in the queue to get in and you run a gauntlet of hate as you leave the ground. It was bad in the 70's and early 80's but the current climate is really ugly.

One of the best games I went to there was the famous replay of the League Cup semi when Rocky scored the late winner after we were trailing for most of the game. I'd got tickets through a Sp*rs mate and ended up in the Shelf surrounded by Lilywhites. When Clive Allen scored to put them one up I was pulled and pushed by their fans and it was almost like an out of body experience watching so many overjoyed Neanderthals hugging each other. When Ian Alinson got our equalizer I stood up but kept my delight bottled inside, but when Rockys winner went in I couldn't hold it in any longer and neither could pockets of other Gooners scattered around The Shelf, how we got out of there alive God only knows.

I Heard It Through The Grape Vine
Gary Neville thinks that Rio Ferdinand is the greatest defender England has ever produced. Umm, now let me think, Billy Wright, Bobby Moore, Terry Butcher and Tony Adams. Stupid as well as ugly then Gary?

After Arsenal
Paul Vasson was only 19 when he scored the winning goal that beat Juventus in the CWC semi final in 1980. His career was cut short by injury and after attempting to make a go of it in amateur football he became a drug addict and committed suicide when he was in his early thirties.

Spotted out and about.
Thank you to Alicia for this. Patrick Vieira leaving "Dim Sum", a Japanese restaurant in Hampstead.

Players We Have Been Linked With This Week
Shaun Wright-Philips (Man C) Munchkin son of a gun
Alberto Zapater (Real Zarzgoza) 19-year-old midfielder.
Javier Mascherorano (River Plate) Midfielder
Younis Kaboul (Auxerre) 18-year-old defender

Useless Arsenal Trivia
George Clooney & Brad Pitt were both seen on the set of the new "Oceans Twelve" film wearing Arsenal tops

Celebrity Gooner
Tony Hadley, front man for 80's pop combo Spandau Ballet.

This week's "Totally Irrelevant" link to Arsenal
Sheffield United manger Neil Warnock's name is an anagram for Colin Wanker.

This has nothing to do with Arsenal apart from the fact that we beat them in the FA Cup semi's a couple of years ago plus I think it's funny.

All the best,
Teabag

Posted by gcurtis at 10:51 AM | Comments (0)

November 09, 2004

Big Tone resigns from Wycombe

The BBC is reporting that TA6 has handed in his resignation as manager of Wycombe Wanderers, citing personal reasons for his decision.

The BBC report is quite bland, but The Grudian's Fiver newsletter carries a much more humourous take on the affair:

Posted by gcurtis at 12:09 PM | Comments (0)

November 05, 2004

Bunky Update

As some of you know, Bunky's back in hospital... The little sod (as he shall henceforth be called) was conning me into thinking that he was taking his antibiotic pills - when in fact he was actually pretending then spitting them out in secret later! Not surprisingly, he got ill again. Hopefully he'll be back home today or tomorrow - and the docs say I can inject antibiotics into his subQ fluids instead, guaranteeing that he gets what he needs...

UPDATE: Bunky's doing much better and coming home this (Friday) afternoon... :-)

Posted by gcurtis at 10:41 AM | Comments (0)

New Galleries coming online

Don't forget to check out the Galleries page when you have the chance. I've added some pics from Teabag at Highbury on Tuesday already, and will be adding Keith's pics from his and Chandler's trip to Peru and Paul's pics from England soon.

Also don't forget that if you've any pictures (from Nevada's or elsewhere) you'd like to get published, send them to me at nygooner at nygooners dot com!

Posted by gcurtis at 10:29 AM | Comments (0)

Bolton Wanderers v Arsenal

Arsenal's visit to The Reebok has been moved to 12.15pm (5.15pm in England) on Saturday January 15th. This means that the game will be LIVE (and FREE) at Nevada's.

(If you want to be automatically notified of fixture changes, you can sign up for the Club's Fixture News Service and get an e-mail from Arsenal any time a fixture is moved.)

Posted by gcurtis at 09:53 AM | Comments (1)

You'd throw the lot at Red Nose!

Posted by gcurtis at 09:29 AM | Comments (0)

London Calling, November 5th

NY Gooner's note: I actually got this a couple of days ago, but a combination of Bunky being readmitted to hospital, having a cold and celebrating a couple of events this week (my birthday and the election results, both on Wednesday) delayed me getting it online... Sorry 'bout that...

Dear NY Gooners,

It's All Greek To Me
Again we fail to succeed. How many times are we going to come up with the same excuses? Chelskavich and the Mancs seem to have no problems adapting their play to the European game but we always struggle. Going into this match most of the noises coming out of Highbury were about not panicking and staying calm, well I can tell you the fans last night were not as confident, with most of the discussion being the different permutations about what is going to happen in the next two games.

If we draw with PSV, and Pana beat Rosenborg, then we could still beat Rosenborg and go out if Pana beat PSV was the general feeling amongst the crowd. The atmosphere was helped last night by the very vocal Greek following but you could feel the tension amongst the Arsenal. There was a feeling of doom even before they were awarded a penalty; everyone seemed to feel that we would not hold onto the lead and that a second goal was needed to kill the game off. The groans of discontent as Cygan's OG went in summed up the night. So it's onto PSV in three weeks for another nail biting night.

The night was not a complete disaster as I took Joanna for her birthday treat to the best little Italian restaurant near the ground - the San Danielli on Blackstock Road. We were joined for dinner after the game by Patrick Vieira, Liam Brady, David Dean and Nick Hornby, well when I say we were joined for dinner they just happened to be in the same restaurant but who was counting the forty or so people who were also there. This is a great restaurant to go to after a game, because you are guaranteed to see faces, the only problem is its normally booked months in advance but sometimes it helps to be friends with the owner. We have had some fantastic nights there in the past after European wins but I am afraid to say last night was not one of them.

Southampton
The sun shone on this the last match before the clocks went back and the general consensus is that now is when the season really starts. The first two and a half months are looked on as an appetizer but once the clocks go back and we go to games in semi-darkness it becomes the main course. The feeling was that this game was a "gimmi", all we had to do was turn up and Southampton would roll over and die, the trouble was no one had told The Saints this. They were 16/1 to win this game and the way they played you would have thought they had put a few quid on themselves. It never ceases to amaze me with teams like Southampton and Spu*s who play crap every week but when they come up against us they find an extra gear. If I was one of their fans I would feel cheated that they didn't play like that every week. The simple fact is the team had an off day as did the crowd, which reverted back to type as the "Highbury Library".

The other thing that I can't stand is people booing the team; we are not going to win every game 4-0 and these so-called fans have to accept that teams will take points off us; heaven knows what they would be like if we lost. They should have sat through some of the rubbish we had to endure under Graham, Howe and Neil to appreciate the gourmet football we are being served now.

Another question: why do people leave games early? When the Saints second goal went in there seemed to be a mass exodus. These people always say they are leaving early to avoid the traffic. I have this image of them going to restaurants and leaving before the desert trolley comes so they can avoid the rush. This reminds me of the time my mate Metin went to a League cup tie a few years back when we played Birmingham at Highbury. With the score tied at 1-1 Met left, thinking the game was going to a replay. When he got home his wife asked if it was a good game to which he replied is was a 1-1 draw. She said that his face was a picture when she told him it went into extra time and we had won 4-1. So to all those who left early on Saturday, we drew 2-2 by the way.

I Heard It Through The Grape Vine
Edu chinned Van Horse during the food fight.

Life After Arsenal
Gilles Grimandi left Arsenal after our double win in 2002 and ended up stateside playing for Colorado Rapids, but after a few months returned to France and took up an administrative post at French second division side Valence. He also works for Arsenal as a France-based scout.

Spotted Out and About
Ashley Cole & Jermaine Pennant at Eros nightclub on the A10 near Enfield.

Players We Have Been Linked With This Week
Diego Capel (Savilla) Spanish midfielder
Francesco Toldo (Inter) Italian keeper
Stav Kyprianides (Aris) Greek full back
Zoltan Stieber (Ujpest) 15-year-old Hungarian
Adrian Mutu (?) Unemployed Romanian white-liner

Useless Arsenal Trivia
The Arsenal Director Ken Friar has Silver Cloud granite on his kitchen worktops

This Weeks Celebrity Gooner
Prince Harry, third in line to the crown and royal scraper.

This weeks "Totally Irrelevant" link to Arsenal
Anders Limpar has a bar in a railway station in Sweden called "Limp's"

All the best,
Teabag

Posted by gcurtis at 09:13 AM | Comments (7)