Arsenal Lineup Versus Blackburn

I've been really busy lately. Match previews will resume normal service for Hull on Tuesday.

Thank God Almunia's ok!! :s

we're playing Bolton in disguise!

No its not Bolton its that useless bas.ard Fat git. for goodness sake get rid of the git. Someone will get really hurt from this game.

I like Almunia's Jens moment with Diouf (what a ****)! lol

That tackle could have been an Eduardo moment if Almunia was just a teeny bit slow or planted with more weight on that foot!! >_<

Lets hope we improve that little bit more. Denilson and Song are proving that they are the best partnership in the middle until Cesc comes back.

What a goal!!!! Who did AA hug after he scored? I didn't see.

Bendtner could have easily had a hat-trick, say what you want about adebayor but he would have put away at least 2 of those chances, but on the other hand Bendtner does get in good scoring positions

You know you've been Eboued when Eboue scores twice in one match!

Well done Booboo! :D

I said it before, but I'll say it again. Eboue deserves so much respect for how he has responded to the Spurs fiasco.

The team were obviously all Eboue'd as they wanted Booboo to give him his first brace instead of Vela's first league goal! lol

The team were obviously all Eboue'd as they wanted Booboo to give him his first brace instead of Vela's first league goal! lol

You bloody beauty well done the gunners, and big fat Sam stuff that up your arse.

Yes we beat the thugs, put 4 past Fat Sam, yay!!!

Eboue's perfect role. Come on when we're up by 2 and playing with confidence. Blackburn has just been Eboue'd!!!!!!!!

Eboue's perfect role. Come on when we're up by 2 and playing with confidence. Blackburn has just been Eboue'd!!!!!!!!

LD's post-match summary of the first Blackburn game was quite hilarious as I recall, hopefully this will be the same.

It's no coincidence that Bendtner gets all the chances that he does. He has a great football brain, and a great work-ethic. But when he has too much time to make up his mind what to do, he buckles. He seems to get his mind in a muddle, and his footwork slows down with it. He runs on instinct. There was a moment in that match when he flicked a lovely pass through to Theo, who dragged wide. That flick was all instinct. No concious thought went behind it. That's how Niklas works. He is still a great talent, and I still believe that he CAN make it here, but he needs to get some confidence, faith and composure before he can start to fulfill his potential.

Before the game, the media kept saying it's a far cry from the last 4-0 thrashing at Blackburn as we'd been failing to score at home and in the league. How funny we repeated the exact scoreline! :D

if eboue can score 2 against you, it shows how poor you are as a goalkeeper...Paul Robinson's record against Arsenal...lol

I agree with Rob on Bendtner. He seems to me that he's best when he uses his instinct. When he's given a bit of space/time to think about his shot, his execution fails him. (A comment that some pundit made about Robbie Keane when he's at Liverpool hehe.) Actually Theo too, the less he thinks, the better he executes the good ideas in his head. Maybe that's a thing with younger players?

Good analysis Rob. This phrase is overused, but at least he is getting into good positions. That is a positive.

i come in peace..., took all this time before ye actually hammered a team, an i bet ye wish ye had bought arshavin in summer, fair play to eboue scorin again an takin a peno, neway ye done us a favour can we do ye 1 tomor.....maybe..... but looks like yer hitting the form to get 4th spot .

spot on there Rob about Bendtner, and I too believe he can still make it here, he is still quite young and has much to learn from Wenger yet.

Can I also say, as I'm sure others already have, that we have a serious diamond of a footballer here in Arshavin. His vision is phenomenal, he hardly has to look up to know exactly where everyone is. He is always available to be passed to, his technique is exellent, he has flair, he has pace. He's not big, but he has the intelligence to use what he does have of his body to compensate for his small stature. I was expecting good things from him when we bought him but now I honestly believe it's possible we may just have the most talented talented player in the league. I'm just praying he keeps fit and stays away from injury.

Eboukamp!! Eboukamp!!Eboukamp!!

Also, in many ways, Arshavin has the same coolness as, withouth meaning to compare their style of play, Zidane (excluding the headbutt) and also, away from football, Roger Federer in is prime. An almost expressionless face during play, not giving anything away to the opposition, not showing any sign of being worn down, and enabling him to play without any stress or fear whilst stopping his opponent from growing too much in confidence. Take note Eboue + Nicky B.

Also, in many ways, Arshavin has the same coolness as, withouth meaning to compare their style of play, Zidane (excluding the headbutt) and also, away from football, Roger Federer in is prime. An almost expressionless face during play, not giving anything away to the opposition, not showing any sign of being worn down, and enabling him to play without any stress or fear whilst stopping his opponent from growing too much in confidence. Take note Eboue + Nicky B.

While we're without Cesc, AA also has the extra function of making everyone else play well with his passing and movement. Is it just me? And this crazy guy had a few stitches put into his ankle at half time and he still came back on and scored. Crazy crazy talent. And I believe we still aren't seeing him at 100% quite yet. :D

To add to robs' analysis i recall Bendtnar's second goal against wes brom, was much harder then any of those chances he missed today. Didn;t have time to think about that goal it was all in one motion. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2-hbD0puns

"and this crazy guy had a few stitches put into his ankle" is that why he came on so late for the second half? LoU. How did that happen?

"and this crazy guy had a few stitches put into his ankle" is that why he came on so late for the second half? LoU. How did that happen?

* on - just want to add Den was excellent again- how anyone can slate him is beyond me...

Sorry YiC forget what I said, now Newsnow I had seen a link to Northampton Chronicle & Echo (not strong source I know) that said they had a few stitches put into AA's ankle at half time. But now it seems that the site has revised that post. I guess they had the wrong info and have corrected it now. :P

Typo: I meant "ON Newsnow I had seen..."

Also got to give a shout out to song, worked hard for the team. His forward passing has improved and is looking more for that killer ball; plus his usual break up play and interceptions.

Yeah YiC, Song's another of our scandilously underrated players. He lacks pace, but he is tactically very aware in midfield and does his job very well. Also, as you say, he is now developing the offensive part of his game nicely.

Er, I'd mention Sagna then. He headed away a lot of dangerous balls into our area. Djourou was good and quite dominant too. Ah, and Almunia made a couple of great saves, even after taking Diouf's lunge. And Theo offered threat on the right wing throughout. Nasri also had a much better game today, I can understand the inconsistency and he's been good for a 1st year in the PL. (Anyone I haven't praised? lol)

So to sum up everyone -1 was **** brilliant today!

So to sum up everyone -1 was **** brilliant today!

the funniest moment of the day was when the stadium announcer said after Eboue scored his first, calling him Arsenal's goalscoring machine emanuel...lmao that bloke has a killer sense of humour, and for the second goal, who else, emanuel lol, classic stuff..

True luckys, I was laughin out loud myself when I heard that - goal machine indeed.

True luckys, I was laughin out loud myself when I heard that - goal machine indeed.

Good shout from Gunnerblog - AA's goal was our 100th goal scored at the Emirates, a goal very much worthy of the honour eh: http://gunnerblog.com/?p=1552

What a game when your team scores 4 goals, and you feel alittle disappointed?! As we know we should have won that game scoring about 6 or 7 nil!!!! Song had a very good game, bossed the midfield today, well done to him!!!

did yu read Wengers post match comments on the site. he said we have Fabregas and Adebayor coming back and Eduardo is injured. what does that mean? is Eddie out for a long time? Arsene said it's only a 4-5 day thing. i hope im not reading too much into it. and what about Rosicky? no mention about him? anyone's got any news on him?

Wenger was fired up. He yelled straight in Big Sam's face after a foul on Walcott. Does anyone know why Arshavin went straight to Ramsey after he scored? That was out of the blue!

Diof is a ****. that was a straight red. i was really scared for a moment cuz it looked like maybe Almunia had his ankle broken or seriously tweaked. hope it ain't too serious & he'll be ready for Newcastle..

ya gunnerkid tat was a bit strange, first i thot he's going towards Arsene..

a great result today lads..good luck for the top 4

I do think that Denilson was a lot better than Song, but Alex did have a good game.

Thanks again bluemooner- good luck against chelski tomorrrow. Would love to see the smug smirk wiped off Hiddinck's face.

Just back from the game, Bendtner is a fu(kin disgrace, the worst player I've ever seen in wearing the Arsenal shirt...well maybe second to Eboue who was a fu(kin total (unt today, grabbing the ball to feed his own ego and then daring to run to the fans asking for adulation. That guy deserves a bloody good kickin, likewise all these newbie fans who cheer him and Bendtner every week, we are a club full of wally supporters, I'm embarrassed to be an Arsenal fan.

Great result guys, back to the old Arsenal. The early goal seemed to settle the team down and i thought you played some nice football.

what are you on about Frosty B? What good would it achieve if everyone join you in booing Bendtner and Eboue? I hope this is your idea of what constitutes sarcasm because I cannot believe that any thinking fan would be as bitter as your post suggests. Relax mate, grab a beer, smoke a reefer, just chill. Its just a game damn it!

Eh, in case you missed the goals, we actually won by 4-0, you know?

gk, it wasn't Ramsey, it must have been the member of staff who treated his injury at half time (hence why he came out a bit late), Ramsey was sat with Cesc and that lot.

Oh what a surprise... Frosty B with the standard, tedious Eboue/Bendtner whining. I am embarrassed to be an Arsenal fan with people like you associated with the club.

Bendtner had an excellent game today, the massive problem was that the crowd goton his back seconds before he went through one on one and when morons like Frosty B have been on his back for no reason, you could see his head drop and it really affected him. Walcott looked like an absolute amateur for most of the gametoday- he actually fell over the ball in the first half- but idiots like Frosty have pre conceived ideas in their minds so Walcott can play like a child and get unadulterated praise whilst Bendtner has a flawless game until he makes one mistake and malcontented people with unfulfilled lives like Frosty love to get on his back because they're frustrated with their own mediocre lives and love to unsaddle that negativity onto a couple of chosen players.

LD I don't think FB is a supporter its just a scum supporter sent to annoy us on our site. His comments are completely left field and i would prefer if he stayed in someone else. He's a complete Richard Cranium and only comes on here to stir things up. Agree re Nick he will be a star for us, just needs a little more time. All in all abrilliant performance look forward to Tuesday. (expect numbscull to come on here with more silly little comments0.

I do hope alwaysgunner is right about this delusional chap being a spuddie. If real fans who attends home matches are anything like him, few players would ever realise their potential at Arsenal. Strikers, nay, footballers strive on confidence, the supporters' duty is to provide "blinkered" support to the team, thats why an average player like Milner has come to believe that he's actually a wing genius, our players are young precocious talents, they need to know they're good, Wenger infuses them with confidence and it is moronic, imbecilic and patently counter productive for so called fans fortunate enough to be able to attend matches, to become mill stones around the players' neck. Frosty B, you are a disgrace to the club, assuming you're for real, if you're a spud in disguise, I ask that you concentrate on your own team, you have enough crap to occupy you their.

Make that *thrive

Oh it turns out the doc did put 4 stitches in AA's foot at half time, the boss said it's a cut on the outside. The guy whom AA ran to and hugged after scoring that screamer was the doc who treated him at half time I assume: http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/-we-know-that-every-game-is-a-challenge-now-

Denilson was excellent, Eboue fantastic, AA unbelievable, Bendtner was great - so much hard work - in spite of the misses (goals will come I think), Theo did well and tormented the Blackburn defence but was obviously rusty (your comments about him playing like a child are out of order LD), Nasri gets better and better and I can't believe the improvement shown by Song, was he MOTM again? The back four played very well apart from a couple of wobbles and Almunia still looks solid, but what the **** do I know about football? I think I'll shut up in future and leave it to the professionals. Great game, great result we must continue to work hard and improve still further. Come on you S***s (I never thought I'd say that).

I thought Song had a very goog game. He has improved a lot lately. I feel sorry for Bendtner, after his misses, his head went down a little bit. At least he's getting in the right positions and in a year or 2 might be banging them in. I spoke with some of the players after the game. I have to say Sagna is the most humble guy i have ever met, almost apologetic. By the way, why didn't the referee book Pedersen for his shameless dive?

Yeah GF, I also fancy Sagna to be the most intelligent in the Arsenal squad. With regards to LD's comments, I agree in many ways, a large part of the nation and Arsenal fanbase has become Walcott-obsessed, and Bendtner/Song-oppressed. It's just become such a stigma that everytime Walcott tries to make something happen and fails, everyone says 'well at least he's trying to do something', whereas when Bendtner does the same it's automatically 'The worst player ever'. The fact is that they're both equally raw tallents, but equally exciting as well. Song is another one who gets slated by idiots who have never seen him play. However, I have to dissagree about Theo playing like a child. I thought he was good yesterday, considering that he was the youngest on the pitch and had been out for 4 months.

Arshavin is what we needed. He seems to always take the right option very quickly, whether it is a first time pass or a dribble. Terrific vision. He reminds me of Bergkamp. With Rosicky, Cesc, Nasri, Arshavin we have some of the very best playmakers in Europe.

Song is showing what confidence can do to a player. All of a sudden, the backheels and flicks are coming off. I have criticized his positioning in the past but he will improve.

ArsenalRob put it better than I did, being that I was at the business end of a crate of Guinness when I posted. I wasn't having a pop at Theo per se, just pointing out that, whilst an undoubtedly exciting and effective player, he makes very elementary errors that pro players should not make regardless of age. By and large he dodges the boo boys because he's English and everyone loves him. But it was a great display yesterday fromthe whole team and Arshavin has added somuch soquickly with his class and eye for a pass. What a shame he cannot play in Europe, but I can'twait to see what he can do once he's fully adapted next season.

anyone got a link to a replay of MU's trashing by Liverpool? I missed MOTD.

LittleDutch, you are a wet behind the ears guitar playing Tory Boy who knows little about football. Everyone knows Eboue and Bendtner are the cancer of our club, the big I AM players who are absolutely clueless on a football pitch. Wenger needs telling, these players are simply not good enough and thinks their the dog's bollo(ks. I felt like jumping over the barrier and nutting that tw*t Eboue yesterday when he started his silly jungle dance. He needs a good slap, just like you!

Frosty, are you seriously saying you know better than Wenger? Then you must be the next Alex Ferguson that noone has ever heard of.. Eboue scored 2 good goals and there was a feel good factor at the emirates yesterday.. I thought his dance was amusing actually, loved it.

Frosty B, it is the kind of individuals like you not Eboue who continuously ruin the occasion for everyone. Your ilk are those who believe they are the 'real' fans yet the Emirates is more silent than it has ever been. The notions that "Everyone knows these players are the cancer of this club" is laughable and stupid as the bitter one who came up with them. Everyone knows? Really? You don't see the utter stupidity in that sentence? I guess you just feel silly and a tad more frustrated when occasionally your habit of venting your frustrations on players that don't 'excite' you runs out of ammo, thus you have to keep making yourself sound more miserable. And you want to slap Eboue? haha, he'd wipe the floor with you.

It would have been funny to see Frosty B - foaming at the mouth - leap over the barrier only to be manhandled off by the stewards like all the other idiotic low life fools who believe the response to those who he disagrees with is a 'good slap'.

lol Amos... re 'foaming at the mouth'.. classic

Despite the opposition that was one of our best performances of the season, if not the best. So many of our team played so well - I was really impressed by Denilson and Song, it was as though all this playing time has finally given them the freedom and experience to relax and play. And in Arshavin we have exactly the kind of player this side needed - i.e. someone that can find the killer pass and commit players by taking them on in a direct way. As for Bendtner, frmo where I was sitting, I mostly heard fans singing his name and trying to encourage him - and he did respond when he was on the pitch by applauding the fans. I suppose he's scored at international level and so we can expect the goals will definitely come for him.

I think that Song has suddenly become the guardian angel of the football club for nothing more than two decent performances. We must remember that I am a huge fan, but the lad did not do anything special. Denilson had a purely awesome game but he gets a clap, but Song gets Man of the Match appreciations. And I totally agree with LD's comments.

Tom, Song is not 'the guardian angel' of the club, but I think he deserves some recognition for his recent good form. After all, would you not have pointed out how dire he had been if he had had a bad match? He's had some very low points in his career, and most people would not have thought a couple of years ago that he would be at this club, or in a top league, but he has responded to his critics quietly and positively, and he deserves some praise for his efforts and improvement.

I was/am a big Song supporter, but you only have to read the blogs to notice that Song only had to put in two good performances to sway public opinion. I think the way he looks has a large part of this, whereas Denilson's slight figure makes it harder for him to either a) be noticed b) give the shock/clap factor to his good work or c) makes it look fantastic, rather than effective. Had Denilson put in the same performances with long hair and a snarling facial expression, preferably a bit taller, he would be lauded as one of the better players at the club. But he is not because he looks like a child at times.

Personally I liked Song as a player before the Burnley win (assuming this is the first of the '2 decent performances' that he's put in). He has generally done his job very well, albeit quietly, and has made a significant contribution to our recent defensive security. When Liverpool visited the Emirates, for example, I hardly saw Gerrard, because Song contained him brilliantly. As for Denilson, I can only agree with you. He is a superb player and helps Song, as Song helps him, to perform well. I also agree that it is due to his stature and appearance that some still think he is not 'Arsenal quality'.

for the first time in god knows how long Denilson decided to get out of his comfort zone (i.e. the 4-5 yard passes) and thread through balls left and right. However, in his defence it is quite obvious that having Walcott and Arshavin on the wings and working the channels is quite different from having Eboue and Diaby doing the same thing. I think he has a lot of Deschamps and Dunga in him, and that is yet to surface. As for Song, his improvement is there for all to see this season. He does the mop-up stuff like Gilberto used to do and now he needs to prove he can be consistent. He is never a starter in my book but he is a fine back-up.

Song does not play that role at all G4L. He played ahead of Denilson, trying to tackle further up the pitch and break forward as our attacking midfielder. I like the Deschamps comparison for Denilson though.

he still has the mop up job as well IMO. Bert didn't actually sit all the time in front of the back for either, he joined in the attacks on a regular basis and actually led our midfielders in goals category in his last season. i was merely pointing out to the role of a quiet but effective destroyer.

Bendtner will develop but needs encouragment and support from the fans right now everybody can see Eboue does not have the temperment nor football brain to play at this level

I feel a little bit ashamed but delighted at the same time. Why? Ashamed because I began to get frustrated with some of the performances and critical of some players thinking that they wouldn't make the grade as first team Arsenal players. Delighted because those same players are now proving me mistaken in my belief by showing both guts and ability in recent games. Wenger has also shown once again why he is a top class manager - one of the best in the world - and I am just a fan. Signing AA seems to have been a master stroke, he has made such a difference to the team and looks to be really happy here. Song and Denilson continue to develop in the right way, as does Bendtner whose overall contribution to the game continues to impress, goals will come. Nasri is world class and Kolo is getting back to his best, Gael had a good game and Sagna is solid. The side is better balanced with Theo in it and his pace troubles defenders, he also has an eye for a pass and a good shot. There is plenty of improvement still to be made both as individuals and as a team, but they are getting there. Now we must try to win the next game and then the next and so on whilst hoping that Villa drop a few more points - I can't see the other three dropping many if any.

G4L, of course he does do that whilst playing, but he is not a "quiet destroyer". Denilson has that nametag firmly establiched on his behind.

Thanks Lou, for pointing me in the right direction. Its so amazing reading all the posts and seeing how much this victory has lifted eeryone, its best imagined what its done for the players. I do believe that we are on the threshold of something great with this team, if Wenger can keep them together in the summer and strenghten the defensive part of our game, we can win it all next season. And unlike the swamp dwellers, thats based on cold facts, not illusions or toxicants!

Hey, no problem at all. Welcome to VA. Also check out the forums and post away!