Ian Tanner
The Welsh primate at a zoo near you has twice recently dived in his opponent’s area, winning unfairly penalties which Barn Door converted. Pity Stevenage. After the first, there was an in-running 13 points chasm between the Spuds (North London’s leading team, I’m reliably informed) and ourselves; effectively 14 points as the goal difference difference (geddit?) was a whopping 15, reflecting as it did the balance of power shift from N5 to N17. Fast forward three more rounds of matches and we now hold a point advantage. And the “GD” column shows us at +19, the Spuds at +18. What was looking, from our perspective, a 1-from-4 shot at Champions League footie next season is suddenly 2-from-3 London clubs. Newcastle and Liverpool have GDs of 0 and +6, respectively. Their league positions have flattered them. All the bulls*it about what a great job Alan Pardew has done on Tyneside is just that: B.S., though selling Andy Carroll for £35 million was admittedly a decent bit of business. Credit where it’s due.
In Arsenal’s most recent home game, Krul Luck, as Pardew might like to think of it – deluded man-child that he is – saw him finally get his comeuppance. In 2006, he celebrated West Ham United’s late winner – after Alex Hleb had been denied a blatant penalty – on the Upton Park touchline in Arsene’s face, fists clenched provocatively (think Pete and Dud). Proving that this was not a classless one-off, that Pardew’s lack of grace is indeed total, he gave Martin O’Neill the same treatment after Newcastle’s even later equaliser in last week’s Tyne-Wear derby.
Issue 223 of The Gooner is as negative a read as I’ve ever endured, though predictable given the outcome of a recent OnlineGooner poll; over 70% of respondents wanted immediate regime change, while half the remainder will demand a summer managerial transfer if Arsenal’s run-in does not meet their exacting standards. I suppose if Huddersfield Town can sack their manager for having the temerity to lose thrice in 55 league games then Arsene is fair game, despite not finishing outside the top 4 in each of his 15 completed seasons. Lucky David Moyes, idolised by Evertonians for precisely a decade despite just one freakish dalliance with the Champions League in 2005 and no silverware. With fourth spot guaranteed, he famously told his players to enjoy their next game, which happened to be at THOF. Arsenal 7, Everton 0. Nobody mentioned Everton’s final goal difference that season: -1. Arsenal’s GD was +51, incidentally. Issue 223 is still worth reading, I hasten to add, not least because ‘Arry cops it big time. And to think that he and our Esteemed Ed could have ended up sharing an 8’x10’ cell with no en suite. Ho, hum.
Having effectively lost three-quarters of last year’s first-choice midfield, having had so many injury “ishooos” that have left us bereft of quality cover in key defensive positions simultaneously and for so long (but haven’t Nico Yennaris and Francis Coquelin done well?), I don’t think things are anything like as bad as the collective Gooner Nation portrays. Like Jack Wilshere two seasons ago, Ryo Miyaichi is making a real impact at Bolton Wanderers; next season the competition for starting places – even squad places, actually - will be intense. Keeping our captain is vital, of course, but Robin’s body language is not that of a want-away who has already agreed to join the mercenaries at Manchester Citeh.
Keep the faith.
