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[Twitter] Fans react to Podolski and Ramsey's super performances

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Arsenal produced a scintillating display against Galatasaray on Tuesday night to cruise to 4-1 win in the final Champions League game.

Aaron Ramsey and Lukas Podolski scored two goals each to help the Gunners to a win, although the London club still finished 2nd in the group after Dortmund drew 1-1 with Andrelecht but it was a valiant effort from the boys.

Podolski opened the scoring with a scintillating left foot shot in the 3rd minute, before Ramsey doubled the lead with a cool finish in the 11th minute. The Welsh international then scored a belter of a goal to find the top corner from 30 yards out in the 28th minute to give the Emirates club a 3-0 lead going into the half time.

The Turkish giants pulled one back in the 88th minute as Wesley Sneijder converted a free kick from the edge of the penalty area. However that was not the end of the goal fest as Lukas scored in the last minute of extra time to make it 4-1 in favour of Arsenal.

It was great to see Podolski back in Arsenal colours and he showed with his performance that he still has the zest in him to be a regular starter for the Gunners. Ramsey too had a wonderful game and showed glimpses of his form last season. It was job well done but still we finished second in the group and will face one of the bigger teams in the round of 16 and hopefully we also can raise our game for those challenges.

https://twitter.com/fkhanage/status/542405869934092289

https://twitter.com/Jagsy10/status/542410097138212865

https://twitter.com/jimcullen65/status/542418904744611840

https://twitter.com/Goonerz1886/status/542451424676683777

Were you impressed with Podolski’s performance?

Campbell and Podolski to start as Wenger names starting line-up

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Arsenal will make a trip to Turkey in the hope of topping the group when they take on Galatasaray in the final Champions League group game on Tuesday night.

The Gunners have already qualified for the round of 16 and only have a minute chance of winning the group, with the possibility of Dortmund loosing to Anderlecht being very low.

TEAM NEWS: 

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has taken the unusual step of announcing the starting line-up for the Galatasaray game at his pre-match press conference, almost 24 hours before the game. However he had some good news in store for the fans, here is the team news for the game.

Debuchy is back in full training and will start in Istanbul on Tuesday night. The Frenchman has been sidelined since September after damaging his ankle against Manchester City and will provide a big boost for Wenger, who is struggling to put up a solid back-line due to injuries.

His return will mean that youngster Hector Bellerin will move to the left, with Mertesacker and Chambers continuing at the center of the defensive line. Koscielny is suffering from an Achilles tendon injury and hasn’t traveled with the team for the game.

Szczesny will start in goal replacing youngster Emiliano who performed well for three games, but struggled against Stoke City by making some judgmental errors. Arteta is still out injured, so Flamini will start in front of the defence and will be accompanied by Ramsey and Chamberlain.

However the major shock comes in the form of attack as Wenger has rested all him main men. Sanogo will start up front and will be assisted by Podolski and Campbell from the wings. It will be great opportunity for Campbell and Podolski to prove their worth to the Boss and it will interesting to see how they combine at front.

The Gunners bench will be one of the youngest in the Champions League with Chuba Akpom, Gedion Zelalem, Alex Iwobi, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Glen Kamara and Stefan O’Connor in contention to make an impact from the bench.

CONFIRMED LINE-UP

http://www.footyformation.com/team/view/slug/jP6

Can Arsenal finish the Champions League group stage on a high?

Galatasaray vs Arsenal: Can the Gunners bounce back?

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Arsenal will face a tricky game when they travel to Turkey on Tuesday night to face Galatasaray in their final game of the Champions League group stage.

The Gunners suffered a thrashing at the hands of Stoke City over the weekend and their performance in that game was one of the worst we have seen this season. The team’s morale will be very low going into the game, after their pathetic defensive performance against the Potters.

Ataturk Stadium is a tough place to visit and after watching the North London club’s poor form, the Turkish giants spirits will be very high. It’s quite surprising that they failed to win a single game in the group, but let’s not forget that this was the same team who knocked out Juventus last season.

The qualification for the round of 16 is already secured, but this game might ultimately decide on who will top the Group. The chances of Dortmund losing to Anderlecht are very thin, so even a win might not stop us from facing a big team once again. On paper we are the stronger team, but seeing our form so far this season, I definitely won’t bet on that.

Team News:

Here’s what Wenger had to say on the team news.

A few players [will not travel] because there’s not a lot at stake and we have given a lot in the last two weeks. We have to recover a little bit.
Alexis will not travel and I don’t think I can play, for example, Koscielny. He didn’t play on Saturday and I don’t see why I should risk him for a game where’s there’s not a lot at stake. First place hypothetically, but there’s maybe a 10 per cent chance.

Wenger will have some problems in defence, with only a handful of players to choose from and it will tough for him to arrange his defense against a team like Galatasaray. It will definitely be a tough and hostile night in Turkey tomorrow, but hopefully Wenger and his boys will show a bit of character and mental strength after a disappointing performance.

Can the Gunners bounce back against Galatasaray?

Stoke City 3-2 Arsenal: Review and Player Ratings

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It was a typical Premier League game which we all want to see but this time the result was not on our side. Arsenal struggling at Stoke was not new to us, but the way we played the first half has shocked every fan all over the world.

We conceded 3 goals in 45 min which is not at all acceptable for a team with high standards like Arsenal. Playing a youngster like Bellerin at Right Back is a risk against a team with the physicality of Stoke and the first goal was an example of it, but still we could have done better.

Bojan was everywhere left right and center was hard to mark, Per failed to spot his run and paid the price. Walters then smashed home at the far post from a corner for 3-0 lead going into the half time.

Wenger brought on Welbeck at the start of the second half, which was a bold move from the Frenchman, who dosen’t fancy early substitutions. The substitution showed what we lacked in the first half, as Giroud lacked the agility and tactical awareness. The French striker is very good creating chances for the mid field but he lacks a killer instinct like Sanchez.

Will Arsenal score a goal? was the question that was killing me and BOOM there came a PENALTY!! I was excited when Santi scored the from the spot. This acted as a catalyst which ignited the spark into the team and the players started pushing forward and showed some character which we lacked entire first half of the game .

The Gunners took 114 corners to get a goal and the boy it was Ramsey. He was desperate to get goal, which effected his game a lot in the recent games. The Welshman got what he wants and hopefully we now get our old Ramsey back. When we all thought we can pull off a miracle, Chambers was sent off, you cant blame the ref he did what he can. Wenger pushed Poldi and Sol on to the pitch to get a goal back and Stoke was ready for the challenge.  We came so close yet so far.

PLAYER RATINGS

Emiliano Martinez | 5 : Showed his inexperience and made some silly mistakes

 Hector Bellerin | 5 : Couldn’t stand against the physicality of Stoke’s forwards. Subbed off at half time.

Calum Chambers | 3.5 : Was poor throughout the game and couldn’t deal with the crosses coming in. Capped off the day with a stupid sending off.

Per Mertesacker | 3 : One of the worst games in an Arsenal shirt for the big German. Don’t know why he looks a total different player when Kos around him.

Kieran Gibbs | 5 : Didn’t have a good game and the crosses for the first two goals came from his side. Wasn’t anywhere near his best in offence too.

Mathieu Flamini | 4.5 : Didn’t make any big mistakes, but should have done better in stopping the opposition forwards.

Aaron Ramsey | 6 : Was very poor in the first half. but raised his game in the second half. However he is still not at hois best.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain | 6 : Got past some defenders with his pace, but didn’t know what to do after getting into good positions

Alexis Sanchez | 6 : Played well but not his standard. Had some chances and hit the post once.

Santi Cazorla | 6 : Had few shots in the initial stages, but didn’t have any impact after that.

Olivier Giroud | 4 : Poor performance. Had a great chance but in the 10th minute and had no impact after that.

Subs

Danny Welbeck (for Bellerin – 46) | 6.5 – Had a good impact and had some really good chances

Lukas Podolski (for Giroud – 63) | 5 – Wasn’t effective

Campbell (for Gibbs – 88) | N/A – Only played 4 mins

Who should be blamed for the defeat?

Stoke City vs Arsenal: Preview and Predicted Line-up

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Stoke City vs ArsenalArsenal will look to continue their winning run in the Premier League when they visit Britannia Stadium to take on Stoke City on Saturday evening.

The Gunners have struggled since the start of the season, but will come into the game on the back of two successive wins over West Brom and Southampton.

The victories have given some much needed confidence boost to the team after their pale performances against Swansea City and Manchester United. The North London club are currently in sixth position and will have the chance to get into the top four with a victory ahead of United’s game on Southampton on Monday, both of whom are above us in the table.

We have only won once in our last 8 visits to the Potters in all competitions with the last win coming back in 2010. Stoke away has always been a tough fixture for Arsenal and we have have often failed to break their resistance at the back in these games.

However the Potters are currently struggling having lost their last three games and are currently in 13th place just three points above the drop zone. Considering the current form, we are prime favourites to take all three points but we got to convert our domination to goals early on or else it will be the same old story of us conceding on the counter.

TEAM NEWS

The Good news is that we haven’t had any new injuries in the past few days, so it looks likely that we will play a team similar to that of the mid-week game. Here are the updates:

Szczesny is still not fit enough to make the starting line-up but has trained for the first time in two weeks, so Martinez will start in between the sticks.

Ramsey and Flamini will start in the middle with Wilshere and Arteta still injured. Monreal has a minor knee problem so Gibbs will take his place on the left.

Debuchy has started full training and might make the substitutes bench, but he is not expected to start the game. Walcott is still a week away, so it’s likely that Wenger will stick to the front three of Welbeck, Giroud and Sanchez.

PREDICTED LINE-UP

http://www.footyformation.com/team/view/slug/jNm

PREDICTED SCORE : Stoke City 0-2 Arsenal

Can Arsenal keep their winning run going?

Giroud was the real hero in Arsenal's win over Southampton

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Alexis Sanchez grabbed the headlines for scoring the winner against Southampton on Wednesday but the turning point of the game was the introduction of Olivier Giroud.

It was very surprising that Wenger did not start the Frenchman after his impressive display against West Brom where his intelligent hold up play allowed the likes of Danny Welbeck and Alexis Sanchez to cut inside from the flanks.

However with fixtures coming thick and fast over the festive period it was perhaps the right decision from the manager to not overuse the player considering the fact that he has just returned from a long injury layoff.

The Gunners lacked the fluidity in the attack and were a bit too one dimensional to really trouble the compact Southampton defence. We were just trying to get behind the defenders through the middle without using the width of the pitch and adding to that the Saints had a goal keeper who just looked unbeatable until the final minutes.

With the game seemingly heading towards a draw, Wenger brought on Olivier Giroud and that changed the complexion of the game. He offered a robust focal point to the Gunners attack allowing us to find new angles and we started to the use the whole width of the pitch. The pressure started to build and Southampton finally succumbed in the 88th minute to a Sanchez goal. Giroud played a key part in the goal as it was his tussle in the box that created havoc in the penalty box and allowed Sanchez to score the all important goal.

The Frenchman is unique among the forwards we got at the club and his aerial presence is just superb. He hasn’t got the speed like Sanchez and Welbeck but his vision is a key component of his game. His physique gives him the platform to receive the ball with his back to goal, which brings other players around him into the game and this helps the team to create more chances.

It doesn’t mean that we have suddenly got a world class player, but it shows that if we can use our strikers in combination then we have got enough versatility to beat any defence that we will encounter.

Was Giroud the catalyst for Arsenal’s victory over Southampton?

[Twitter] Arsenal fans react to win over Saints

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Arsenal striker Alexis Sanchez rescued the team once again as he netted a late goal to help the Gunners to a 1-0 win over Southampton on Wednesday.

The North London club produced a sloppy display for most part of the game as they missed some really good chances, until the final 15 minutes when Wenger brought on Giroud.

The substitution changed the game completely as the Gunners pressed with attack after attack in pursuit of a winner and the goal finally came in the 89th minute, when Giroud’s shot from inside the box appeared to hit a hand only to find Ramsey who crossed it to Sanchez who buried into the back of the net.

We have now won three games in a row without conceding a goal and are now just two points off a top four place. Koscielny and Mertesacker combo has worked well for the defence and with a run of winnable fixtures lined up, it seems we have finally kick started our season.

Final thoughts : BOOM! Sanchez was again at the right place at the right time. Catch him if you can should be the right word, I guess?

Here are some of the tweets from the game.

https://twitter.com/Goonerz1886/status/540259422518644736

https://twitter.com/__arsenal_news_/status/540257694985519105

Can Arsenal continue this good form?

Wenger: The king will definitely return one day

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Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has confirmed that Thierry Henry will certainly return to the club in some capacity in the future.

Henry who is Arsenal’s all time record goal scorer, announced on Monday that he will leave New York Red Bulls after a four-and-a-half-year spell in the United States.

When quizzed about Henry’s return in the pre-match press conference, the French manager suggested that it is only a matter of time before the former striker returns to the Emirates Stadium.

Speaking to Arsenal’s official website, he said:

What I understand is that he wants to reflect for a while on how he wants to go into his next life.
The only thing I would like to say is that I gave him his start at the age of 17 at Monaco, today he is 37 so he had 20 years of competitive football and that deserves high respect and congratulations. Not only for what he achieved but also for his attitude, his exemplarity and his focus on football.
He has the right to reflect and think of what he wants to do now. He is an Arsenal man – the best moments of his life and career have been experienced here. Certainly one day he will come back here. In what role I don’t know, that is what he has to think about: what direction he wants to give to his next life.
He has all the qualities [to be a coach] because he is intelligent, committed, he loves the game. He just has to think, ‘Do I want to sacrifice all the rest of my life to be involved in that job?’

It just took 4 minutes for Henry to make his intentions clear about returning to the club which made him the superstar he is now. Immediately after announcing his departure, he changed the background picture on his social media page to a image of his statue outside the Emirates stadium.

The Gunners management made a mistake with Patrick Vieira by not offering him a role with the club and we shouldn’t repeat the same with Henry. He has already made a comeback once with his fairy tale loan return last year and it seems the time has now arrived for a final return.

He has multiple options at Arsenal as he can either take a position in the board or a coaching role deputing Wenger, although my preference will be of the coaching. His presence would give everyone associated with the club a huge lift and our young players can grow leaps and bounds training with one of the game’s greatest finishers. He is willing to offer his help and the club should undoubtedly accept it.

Henry and Arsenal are always one. What say Gooners?

Wenger: I’m still the right man for the job

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Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has hit back at the fans for calling him technically inept following the Gunners poor start to the season.

The North London club have endured their worst start to a League season in 32 years and some section of fans held a banner during the game against West Brom asking Wenger to leave the club.

The French manager has now hit back at his critics by emphasising his commitment to the club and has also insisted that he is still the right man for the job.

According to the Mirror, he said:

I can do my job. I do my job with total commitment, I would like people to live with me and see for seven days what kind of work we produce, and you will see that it is total commitment.
I do what I love, but I think I do it with honesty and total commitment.
I started to manage a team at the top level in 1983. If I am completely useless tactically, I am a genius [because] I can hide it very well.
Look, in [each of] the last 15 years, we are qualified for the last 16 in the Champions League. Give me another club who has done that. I think we have shown extreme consistency and that’s all we can do.
We’ve had ups and downs in the league – yes, it’s true, but you only come back again when the spirit is strong and healthy and united inside the club. And I think if you have shown such a consistency, it’s because we have that at the club. We have values and we respect them.

The only trophy we’ve won in the past few year’s was the FA Cup last year and it’s getting harder by the day to defend Wenger. The lack of spending was seen as the reason for their poor performances in this lean patch, but with the big name signings of Ozil and Sanchez there isn’t any scope for excuses anymore.

His ideals have been the primary reason for the Gunners success all these years, but his decisions are now starting to cost the team. He is being blamed for everything that’s currently happening at the club which is a bit unfair considering the injuries we had and poor performances from some of the players. His decision making hasn’t been great and he definitely has to take some part of the blame, but it remains to be seen how he responds to this situations.

Despite the Gunners poor start to the season. the race for the top four is still wide open with only Chelsea looking likely to be one of those. Wenger has to realise that inspite of the poor performances so far he can still finish the season on a high, but he needs to act as soon as possible. He needs to strengthen defensively and has to change the tactics depending on the team he plays.

Is Wenger still the right man for the job?

 

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