the 370Z.com OFFICIAL football (soccer) thread

[cow]

I prefer the old kit to the proposed one.

[cow]

PS: how'd court go?

Originally Posted by phelan

all i have to say is f*ck bayern.

(lulz blue)

[cow]

... wow....

5-1

Looks like Van Gaal getting sacked was a good thing.

[phelan]

it's doom and gloom time at the emirates.

[cow]

How many points do we need to secure second?

[phelan]

i dunno, never really thought about it.

wenger was a bit of a c*ck to dalglish at the end, wasn't he? yes it looked soft, but come on, eboue had no reason to be there, STUPID foul to give away. ugh.

[Jon@AAMComp]

Originally Posted by phelan

wenger was a bit of a c*ck to dalglish at the end, wasn't he? yes it looked soft, but come on, eboue had no reason to be there, STUPID foul to give away. ugh.

I agree. Managers should always have a mutual respect for each other, regardless of the result. Typical of Wenger though, he tends to throw tantrums when things aren't going his way. Tough result for Arsenal supporters though. Where do you go from here? Clean house? Sack Wenger?


Out of the two Manchester clubs, I can say I'm happy City sent United on their way to vanquish any hope of winning a treble this season. I hope Schalke can keep their run of form going and upset them in the Champions League.

[phelan]

Originally Posted by Jon@AAMComp

I agree. Managers should always have a mutual respect for each other, regardless of the result. Typical of Wenger though, he tends to throw tantrums when things aren't going his way. Tough result for Arsenal supporters though. Where do you go from here? Clean house? Sack Wenger?


Out of the two Manchester clubs, I can say I'm happy City sent United on their way to vanquish any hope of winning a treble this season. I hope Schalke can keep their run of form going and upset them in the Champions League.

1.) We can't sack Wenger. His philosophy is too deeply ingrained into the team right now. If we sack him, who replaces him? Keep in mind that Arsene wields more power than even Fergie does at Manchester United. I think if Kroenke pulled Wenger, he'd have to hire the entire staff all over again. The fact that we can still finish 2nd or 3rd while looking like utter sh*t at times shows this team isn't THAT FAR AWAY from success. Wenger must stay for now, but Kroenke should apply more pressure on him.

2.) Clean house isn't the right term, but a bit of a 'pruning' job is certainly understandable. There are so many players this year who are underperforming in the red and white, it's ridiculous. Personally, I agree that Denilson MUST leave, and Eboue / Diaby have their time running out. Bendtner might be a bit extreme - we need an RvP replacement when he gets his usual intra-season injury break, and I don't see it in Chamakh.

A lot are calling for Arshavin's head as well, but I disagree. I think he has Wenger's almost lackadaisical approach developing in him, if Wenger clamps down on the team (hah!) Arsh would respond as well. He ran his socks off when he came into the team against 'Pool.

What Wenger MUST buy is another defensive midfielder to cover for Song. People are screaming for a centreback, and I think we could certainly use one, but everybody also forgot that Vermaelen is still on this squad.

A striker with a 'fox in the box' style would be welcome a la Eduardo, but it looks like Ryo Miyaichi might actually come good eventually. Eden Hazard would have been a good signing if Arshavin left, but since he resigned with Lille I doubt he goes anywhere.

The big question is if Fabregas leaves, what do you get? There's not another player in the world who offers the same kind of vision unless...we poach from Barcelona again. I know they LOVE that. Yoann Gourcuff seemed a likely name last year, but I've cooled on him after watching a few Ligue 1 games. Still very wasteful in possession at the strangest of times.

Next year would like to see starting XI:

......................Szczesny
...Sagna.....Djourou.....Vermaelen.....Clichy (or replacement, Gibbs is not the answer, not for another two years at least)
.................Song.......Wilshere
.....................Fabregas
.........Walcott.................Nasri
....................van Persie

BENCH - Cahill / Koscielny / replacement CB, Chamakh, Bendtner / Gibbs / "utility slot", Toulalan / replacement for Song, Arshavin, Fabianski, Ramsey

I could go on and on and on and on, but at this point, it's just depressing to see this team fall apart at the finish line. I'm just going to sit back and enjoy the season as much as possible from here on out, and then think ahead to next year. Who knows, maybe we'll get lucky and ManU will have like a massive brawl, Rooney / Hernandez / Berbs / Vidic / van der Sar / Scholes / Giggs all get bans that last them through the end of the season, Fergie goes nuts and starts playing his academy kids...

and Arsenal would still probably draw them 1-1 because we couldn't even handle the Mugsmashers at home

On a note about United - as much as I want them to lose, I want their CL hopes to stay alive as long as possible, so they're as tired as possible when they come to our house.

Wall of text

[phelan]

tl;dr version:

[Jon@AAMComp]

Well put phelan. I'd agree to keep the manager, but definitely make changes to the roster during the summer. Bendtner out, Chamakh out, Eboue out. If Cesc stays, I'd say all you need in midfield is another holding midfielder, like Song. Back four has been shaky at best sometimes this season, so another center half might not be a bad idea. A big, quality striker is also something I think would compliment the Arsenal attack very well. I think its the one thing Arsenal have missed for some time now. Dennis Bergkamp or Ray Parlour come to mind?

Looking forward to El Clasico II, III, and IV in the coming weeks.

[igotcabada]

Huge result from Newcastle... Cant wait for tomorrow's match!

[Jon@AAMComp]

No sooner did I think to myself, United will find a way, they draw with Newcastle! Tomorrow's match should be a cracker; one team fighting for another Champions League berth the other fighting to keep title hopes alive. The intensity is increased even further given the fact that it's a North London derby. Arsenal better come to play tomorrow.

News roundup from Germany:

Holger Stanislawski leaving my beloved St.Pauli for TSG Hoffenheim:

More coaching moves in Bundesliga - Soccerway


Nuri Sahin out for the remainder of the season:

Borussia Dortmund's Nuri Sahin devastated following season-ending injury - Goal.com


Papise Demba Cisse to Arsenal?

Arsenal told to pay £13m to sign prolific Bundesliga front man - Sportingo