Just Arsenal News

For once a game has produced the result that gives Arsenal the advantage in the race for the Top Four, and may even give us the chance of nicking Third Place back from Chelsea as well.

Chelsea totally dominated Bale FC in the first half and Oscar’s opening goal seemed inevitable, but the Blues missed an amazing amount of chances to put the game beyond Spurs reach. When Adebayor pulled an equalizer out of nowhere it looked like it could be Tottenham’s lucky night. .......Read the full article here

There are always bones of contention when the PFA announces it’s shortlist for the Player of the Season award and this year is no different. Not one Arsenal player made the list, despite statistics showing that the Gunners have had some high performances this season. The one Arsenal player that should feel the most disappointed not to have made the list is the little Spanish magician Santi Cazorla.

Chelsea have two midfielders in the six man list, Juan Mata and Eden Hazard, while the Manchester United midfielder Michael Carrick also appears on it. The only one of these three that can be compared to Cazorla this season is Juan Mata. Cazorla has scored more Premier League goals than any of them, with 12 so far. .......Read the full article here

One story in today’s papers caught my eye and made me think there is something seriously wrong with the recruitment policy at Arsenal. Whoever is ultimately in charge of signing new players needs to take a long look in the mirror, because we seem to have dropped the ball, and not for the first time. The story, in the Express, concerns a potential move by Chelsea for M’Baye Niang from AC Milan, who they are looking at as a possible replacement for the misfiring Spanish international Fernando Torres. .......Read the full article here

Santi Cazorla fits into the Arsenal way of playing like a hand in a glove, and has become a vital and integral part of the Gunners. The Spaniard has played in every single Premier league game this season, starting all but one of them. He also started all the Champions league games except the final one where Arsene Wenger rested a lot of players. .......Read the full article here

The newly signed Arsenal striker (!) Theo Walcott started his new career in fine style by scoring the only goal against Chelsea this weekend, after being caught offside about 20 times in the first half, and is very happy to have been praised by some of our opponents after the poachers goal.

Walcott also believes that he is now playing better than any other season he has had with Arsenal. He said: “I’ve been happy with the last couple [of seasons], but more so this season, being more consistent and scoring more goals, in the bigger occasions as well,” .......Read the full article here

Both teams were desperate to take an early advantage, so the first few minutes were fast and furious. Walcott played a beautiful ball through to Giroud who fired just wide. A minute later and Chelsea ere ahead through Mata. Arsene Wenger was furious because Ramires fouled Coquelin in the build up. It was a studs up challenge that should have earned Ramires a booking, but we didn’t even get the foul and Chelsea scored. The only way it could have been worse was if Coquelin was injured. .......Read the full article here

Chelsea vs Arsenal preview, line up and score line prediction by KJ

It’s probably the biggest London derby of the season so far in regards to the positions in the table. If we win today, we’ll be 2 points off Chelsea and would be within a shout for 3rd… However, if we lose, we’ll be 8 points behind Chelsea and 3rd will be all but over (this is providing we win against West Ham – our game in hand).

This is going to be a very difficult but exciting game. Wenger and Benitez are old managerial rivals from Benitez’s Liverpool days meaning both will want that win a bit more than they usually would. Chelsea are a changed outfit from previous seasons. They are more possession oriented whilst we have become a more direct team. .......Read the full article here

Arsenal fans will be surprised at the player that Arsene Wenger chose to compare Santi Cazorla to because of his connection with the hated Tottenham Hotspur. Wenger compared our new favourite player to none other than Glenn Hoddle.

“Cazorla is like Glenn Hoddle in some ways.

“Left footed, right footed, you could not say what he was and Cazorla is similar.

“I don’t remember anyone else I have worked with who was as two-footed and it is so important to have this quality in the modern game.

“He has the ability to make everyone a better player and that is why I feel he is fantastic to watch.” .......Read the full article here

The Arsenal right-back Carl Jenkinson is well aware that Chelsea are currently top of the League, but fully believes that the Gunners can take anything that their London rivals can throw at them in todays lunch-time KickOff.

He especially knows that he will have to be on top of his game to cope with Chelsea’s extremely talented attacking force. “They are everywhere in this league anyway, but everyone knows the quality of the likes of Mata and Hazard,” said Jenkinson.

“Of course they are great wingers but I have to make sure I am on top of my game whoever I mark. Even if it is not them, you have Victor Moses or someone else. Chelsea have an abundance of talent, so I have to be on my mettle whoever I am marking. .......Read the full article here

Santi Cazorla Is This Really Happening? By AH

Arsenal midfielder Mikel Arteta has spoken out about the recent reports concerning Santi Cazorla.
Wenger stated his thoughts on the Málaga player;

“I share the opinion of Mikel Arteta. Cazorla is a great player, we bought Olivier Giroud and Lukas Podolski but we are not at the end of the transfers. We will still bring players in.”

This comment was quickly deleted from the article that was posted on Arsenal.com. The quote was clearly deleted because there is something happening there and Arsenal always want to keep the media attention away from the deal for many reasons.
Firstly media attention can drive up a player’s price tag, and can lead to interest from other clubs ,and eventually it’s likely that a club with Arsenal’s transfer activity will not get their man that they have been scouting for. .......Read the full article here

Arsene Wenger doesn’t mind spending by KJ

It is a popular media ‘fact’ that Wenger doesn’t like to spend money but I want to question that notion as I think it’s wrong. Recently, the call for Wenger to spend has been furiously spread by the media and Arsenal fans alike. It is a justified outlook as I myself can’t see us getting anywhere next season without serious reinvestment by Wenger. However, I feel he isn’t actually the reason we don’t spend, it seems to be more to do with board policy rather than Le Prof’s philosophy. .......Read the full article here

With Drogba suspended – and his record of 13 goals in 14 matches against Arsenal today irrelevant – Torres takes his place in the centre of the Blues’ front three, looking to replicate some of the form the aforementioned Ivorian is capable of. However, with Koscielny and Mertesacker looking mightily strong in the middle of the defensive line, the chances of him being able to be dealt with are looking promising.

Daniel Sturridge is looking to start too, but undoubtedly the main threat for the Gunners today will be wing wizard Juan Mata. Not only does the Spaniard enjoy heading down the left wing, he can cut inside to offer an extra man to the midfield three. .......Read the full article here