EPL Match Day 29: Arsenal v West Brom; Match Preview
Arsenal are in need of a feel better moment. That’s right, I said feel better. Feel good will be when this club eventually lifts some silverware. Right now they just need to have a match where they can put the last two weeks behind them and start to feel good about themselves again. Yeah, I know that sounds all touchy-feely but really if this club are going to press on then they need to get something positive out of this week’s match against West Brom.
The last time these two teams met was a nightmare for Arsenal. It was Almunia’s last EPL match up – coming down with a mystery injury afterwards it was his howlers that let West Brom charge out to a 3-0 lead. Only a late brace by Samir Nasri made the score respectable. But that was then and this is now and West Bromw have had to endure some changes as Roberto DiMatteo is no longer the manager and the free form football he had been espousing to at the club has made way for the more defencive nature of his replacement – Roy Hodgson. Hodgson coming over after his failed tenure at the red side of Merseyside has his new team fighting for their Premier League lives.
If not for the last minute heroics of Arsenal’s Carlos Vela – who is on loan at the Hawthornes, the picture for West Brom would look a lot more bleak than it does now. What all this really means is that Roy is going to be very happy to play for a point. His team will absolutely be set up to defend and try and nip something on the coutner.
For Arsenal the task is simple – break down the bus. Arsene’s boys are going to need is a concentrated effort to break down whatever setup Roy deploys his team with. The team is going to have to be patient and look for their opportunities. Absolutely getting that first goal will open West Brom up and force them to play which is only going to help the Arsenal cause.
But for the team that was looking so good two weeks ago – all is not so rosy now. Injuries are mounting again. Key players who have made Arsenal the only undefeated EPL team in the league since the turn of the calendar are missing. The likes Johann Djourou, Theo Walcott and Cesc Fabregas are out. They join injured keeper Szczesny at the trainer’s tables. Walcott and Fabregas are likely to be back by after the the international break but Djourou is likely lost for the season and Szczesny is out until the last few weeks of the season.
The loss of the polish wunderkid keeper has meant the return of a familiar face to the Gunners. Jens Lehmann – that’s right I said MAD Jens Lehmann is back. Maybe he has matured a bit, but he is back on the bench and while he is contracted as a player, Wenger is probably also looking at him as some sort of coach – cheerleader, bad cop kind of thing to keep the guys focused for this stretch of ten games.
Playmaker Cesc Fabregas is short on fitness and won’t feature which is an obvious loss for the whole team but actually better for Samir Nasri. When Nasri and Fabregas are on the pitch together, the scoring ability of Nasri goes down. When Fabregas was out on two separate occasions earlier this season – Nasri scored 5 and 4 goals during each of those abscences. We are going to need him to come through again if we are going to continue this run for the title. With the on-fire Robin Van Persie up front – the two of them are going to be key for this match and the rest to come.
Two weeks ago we had everything to play for – a cup final, Champion’s League football, the FA Cup and the EPL title. Now we are just down to the EPL title. The fixture congestion is gone e and there is only one thing to focus on – the league. But our form of late is once again raising all the spectres of the past few seasons.
For Arsenal – lose and we should no longer talk about the league. Losing simply is not an option. Win the last 10 outright and it doesn’t matter what anyone else – included United do – you win the title. But far from that right now, the Gunners should just come out and play this game as if it is the only game left and it had far ranging implications.
How the Match Should Play Out:
I think Roy is going to be happy to play for a point. He just wants his team to survive. He is not an attacking manager. His teams just don’t have that flair. So look for them to set up with 10 men behind the ball and one up top to try and snatch something on the counter. The Gunners need to come out flying. The must take the first goal to avoid the bus being parked for 90 minutes. If they can get West Brom to have to play the game then Arsenal are going to shred them. Look for the Gunners to get that early goal and open them up. There will not be a repeat of the match at the Emirates.
Players to Watch:
Arsenal: Robin Van Persie. This will probably jinx him,but he could very well be on his longest run of form since I can certainly remember. He is on fire snatching goals in almost every match he has played. If he gets the ball around the box, he is reliable to shoot and the way he has been playing he is likely to score.
West Bromw: The obvious choice would’ve been Carlos Vela. But young Carlito is ineligble for this match. It’s a shanem cause his form has helped WBA out immensely in recent weeks. So in that cause I am focusing on Peter Odemwingie.
Probable Starting XI:
Injuries and Suspensions:
Arsenal: Fabregas (hamstring) Song (knee) Djourou (shoulder) Fabianksi (shoulder) Szczesny (finger) Vermaelen (achilles) Walcott (ankle) Frimpong (knee)
West Brom: Dorrans (ankle) Vela (ineligible – loan rules)
Last Meeting (Carling Cup):
Arsenal: 2
West Brom: 3
Current Form:
Arsenal: WDWWD
West Brom: LDDDW
Goals For:
Arsenal (away): 2.1
West Brom (home):1.6
Goals Against:
Arsenal (away): 1.2
West Brom (home): 1.6
Goal Differential:
Arsenal: 30
West Brom: -15
Leading Scorers:
Arsenal: Van Persie 14 (10 league) Nasri 14 (9 league)
West Brom: Odemwingie 9 (9 league) Vela 5 (3 league)
Match Officials:
Referee: Stuart Atwellr
Assistant Referees: Peter Kirkup & Martin Yerby
Fourth Official: Tony Bates
Broadcast Information:
US: FFoxsoccer.tv 11:00AM
UK: ??? 1500 GMT
GAMEDAY CHAT: It’s Open!!!!!! www.youaremyarsenal.com/gamedaychat
YAMA Prediction:
Arsenal: 3
West Brom: 1
Some Final Thoughts:
A lot has been made of Arsenal’s form over the last few weeks. The AKB crowd are clamoring for the Gunners to be given more time that they will come right. The naysayers are equally as loud calling for the head of Arsene Wenger. I am not sure where I fall on that spectrum but it is more than likely that I sit in the middle.
Let me say I am not ready to jettison our most successful manager ever. Not yet at least. Our biggest problem as fans (if it can be called a problem) is that we look at our teams through only one lens – what have you done fore me lately. For one set of fans keeping us competitive is enough, where others want only to win trophies.
But if you can separate yourself form your die hard positions lets be straight with each – sports teams are supposed to win things. That is what sport is at its core. But today they are also businesses and when you look at what Arsenal have tried to accomplish since their move from Highbury, at least for me for me it gets easier to temper my frustration.
Since their move to the Emirates the club have embarked on a cultural shift in how they wanted to run the club. They wanted it to be self-sustaining and lack the constraints that debt would’ve brought on them. Additionally, in terms of the product on the pitch, the manager was willing (for whatever reason) to make his shift to a younger team in a more drastic fashion than maybe any of us would’ve wanted. Our failures over the last few years has made the glaring flaws of that policy all the more evident.
The problem is that in sesimic shifts – in any entity – it takes time for the new culture to develop and for either the merits or flaws to bear out. Inevitably with any kind of shift in direction, there are issues. I believe that this season and the results at the end of it are going to be huge in terms of the future of the club. If the club end up trophyless again, Wenger and the board have to revualte the product on the pitch and do something about it. The club itself has made its shift as a business. The new marketing efforts show that the club is ready to move forward.
For the team itself, the starting XI built from this new direction and focus – if they can stay healthy – are as good as any team out there. The club should realize that and support it – build on it. Not just with youth and promise but with capable backups that don’t lead us towards financial contstraints and solidfy the promise of the first team.In other words, you don’t have to spend exorbitant amounts of money but you do have spend wisely.
As John Cross said in his opinion piece this week – it is not about asking Wenger to make some sort of drastic change to his policy – it is about getting him to tweak it. And because he should be allowed to tweak it – that is why I don’t think he should go – not yet at least. I know factions don’t like to hear this but keeping this team competitive with a smaller budget and changing how the club is run is a feat unto itself. Is it the ultimate prize of a sports team? No, of course not. But it is a solid achieviement and it should lauded. And Wenger should be lauded for it. It is now time however, for all that come together.
In terms of profits and such like that, Arsenal supporters are reeling from the possibility of the 6.5% increase in the costs of season tickets to the club level. So what that means – is if you can afford the current season ticket price of £5200 (approx) for a club box seat – you are now going to pay over £5500. Right now the plan for rises to the average seats haven’t been announced.
So was it really a bad plan to raise ticket prices or was it really bad planning on when the announcement came out? Forget for a minute that most match day goers don’t pay £5200 ST prices. They pay the average day to day rate of I think £60 (approx) what that equates to for 19 home games plus I don’t know. What we should really be looking at is the absolute crappy way this information ame out. For all the money the club spent on the marketing side of the team, they should’ve invested more in Twitter retweets and the PR side of the business.
Who at the club thought that after two miserable weeks like this, the club escape unscathed from reporting the ticket price now? It is about the biggest classic fuck up in PR you could do. Look I am sure the reason – the VAT increase is a valid reason and I am sure other clubs will increase prices to to meet the demands of the increase. However, given the current run of the club and the current economic environment, there is definitely a better way this could’ve been handled.
LIke I’ve been saying, Wenger gets a lot of stick because for the organization he is the one out there every day. But it is time that the board and senior management of the club start taking on some of the thrashings too. We often let them escape criticism – especially when it is due.
Finally, I am looking into ways to accept donations to the Red Cross and donating to the Japanese recovery effort. I’d like to do it in the name of the site. As soon as I figure how I can do this and not make it seem like I am looking for handouts – then I will let everyone know. Until then. . .
Stay Goonerish!!!
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