FM09 - Arsenal

[law90026]

8th July 2008, 8 am:

Shocking news at a sudden press conference arranged by the board of Arsenal FC as they announced that the Arsene Wenger had resigned as manager of the club. In a short terse statement, it was stated that:

"The board wishes to thank Mr Wenger for his contribution to the club over the past 10 years and for the trophies and success he has helped the club achieved.

However, we have decided that now would be a good time for a fresh start for the team and will announce the new manager's identity shortly. We wish Mr Wenger all the best."

Rumour has it that this "resignation" wasn't really a resignation. An inside source tells us that there was a long boardroom meeting on 7th July, during which questions were asked about the club's collapse during the 07/08 season, which swiftly degenerated into a shouting match between the manager and the board. More details will be provided if available but, for now, the Gunners fans are in shock.

[law90026]

8th July 2008, 12 pm:

Instead of a press conference being announced to reveal the identity of the new manager, all the club did was to put up a short bio on its official website. An unknown 30 year old, Dayne Ho, has been appointed to be the manager for Arsenal for 1 year.

Tons of questions arise: Who is he? What experience does he have? Why is Arsenal FC doing this now after a year when they came in 3rd in the Premier League?

Pundits have labelled the decision to appoint an unknown manager as "shocking", "disgraceful", "insulting to the fans" and "a disaster waiting to happen".

Fans have begun to protest outside the club, demanding answers.

[law90026]

And so, on my 30th birthday, I was appointed as the manager of Arsenal FC. I'm just as shocked as everyone else as to how this came about.

One minute I'm in my office in a lawfirm, drafting contracts while facing another long night at work, and the next? I get a call from Mr Peter Hill-Wood offering me this job, solely on the basis that I know how to negotiate contracts, love the club and have repeatedly criticised Mr Wenger on various fan forums as to how he's ruining the club.

Is this a joke? I have no idea but I'm going to take this opportunity and ride it out. Hopefully I know what I'm talking about and will not get fired 1 month into the job.

(OOC: backstory established kinda. Just picked up the game and going to use this dynasty to figure it out. The reporting style may change over time to something I'm comfortable with.)

[law90026]

At 6pm, I walked into the dressing room of the club, where I faced many serious and angry faces. All the backroom staff and players were there and I knew this was going to be a rough meeting because Arsene Wenger had been revered at the club.

I would need to win these guys over and fast, or else it would be an impossible season to manage.

As I took my seat, the room exploded into noise as the more vocal members of the team began to shout questions at me. Frankly, I could not decipher most of what was being yelled as it was noisy and spoken in heavily accented English.

Realising that this couldn't carry on and that I needed to be able to exert some authority, I grabbed the airhorn from my bag and blasted it for an extended time just to shut everyone up. Finally, after 5 minutes or so, silence. Blessed silence leading to my first speech to the team and staff:

"I understand you are upset. And I would be too if I were in your shoes. But let me be clear. Whether you like it or not, I am here as your manager, appointed by the board, and I have authority over most club matters. That also means your playing time.

I am not here to be a joke and neither am I here to be pushed around. I do not ask for your respect because that I will earn. But I will not be yelled at like a child on the playground being bullied by bigger kids.

So understand this. Tomorrow, we start work. Mr Wenger has done a phenomenal job over the years but it's time for a change. Hopefully, that change brings trophies. I need you to trust in me and, if you do, I believe we can make this season a success.

And that's it. I will be speaking to each of you over the off-season break but, for now, Pat (the assistant manager), let's go to my office."

And with that, I walked out of the dressing room. I've always believed in not overstaying my welcome.

While I wasn't sure of all I had to do, I realised though that I would need to send a message to the players, that I wasn't someone to be trifled with. That meant moving some of them out and soon.

[law90026]

It had been a long night.

Pat Rice had been surprisingly supportive. He had prepared dossiers on the players and they had been in my office for my review. His view was that we needed a new goalkeeper and more depth in the midfield, things which I also believed to be true. But, just to be sure, I began to set out my thoughts on the members of the first team squad and selected members of the reserves.

Goalkeepers:

Manuel Almunia, 31: Big Al looks like a decent keeper. He's not phenomenal but he's adequate. Might be a good stopgap if I can't find anyone else to replace him.

Lukasz Fabianski, 23: Not good enough for a 23 year old I think and Pat agreed with me on that. He definitely isn't ready to be a goalkeeper in the Premier League and I've offered him out to other clubs.

Vito Mannone, 20: Another young keeper that doesn't look good enough for the future. Also going to be offloaded.

Thoughts: Definitely need to pick up a good keeper, if not for this season, then for the future.

Defenders:

Kolo Toure, 27: One of our top defenders it would appear with a lot of strengths in the key areas for a defensive player. Going to be a mainstay in the defence this season.

William Gallas, 30: Another top defender though perhaps reaching the stage where he's starting to slow down a tad. Likely to partner Kolo Toure in the centre of defence.

Mikael Silvestre, 30: Decent defender, likely to be a backup to the first team though. Not sure why Wenger signed him but he'll be decent if we have injuries.

Johan Djorou, 21: Young still and I'm not convinced he will be able to play for extended periods in the Premier League. He still has time to develop though so he'll be a backup to the first team for now.

Alexandre Song, 21: Another youngster that hasn't developed enough to be a first teamer. His strength is that he can play a bunch of central positions so he's ideal to be a backup for this season.

Bakary Sagna, 25: Our first choice rightback in all likelihood. Good defensively and going forward.

Gael Clichy, 22: He looks pretty good but I think there are some flaws in his game. He's definitely not great offensively because he isn't good at crossing and his heading is definitely sub-par. His marking is also below average for a top knotch defender but his blinding pace allows him to recover from his mistakes. Not entirely sure whether I need to pick up another left back to be honest. He's the only left back in the team, which is a scary thought.

Emmanuel Eboue, 25: Eboue is decent in a number of areas but he doesn't excel. A back up right back and might be a candidate to be moved.

Thoughts: Looks like I need to sign a reserve leftback at the very least and possibly a better centreback for the future.

Midfield:

Denilson, 20: The young Brazilian is still raw and not ready to be part of the first team. I'm tempted to loan him out but he might be decent as backup for the times when players need a rest.

Abou Diaby, 22: He's out for 2 more months so he'll only really be match fit a few months into the season. He's a real dilemma. On one hand, he is a physical freak and he has good offensive attributes. On the other hand, he's a disaster waiting to happen as he's not great defensively and he also has poor concentration. Might move him.

Cesc Fabregas, 21: Out for 2 months as well, which hurts. He looks to be a potential key player for us when fit again.

Aaron Ramsey, 17: He's going to be sent out on loan. The kid has great potential and is already a superb passer of the ball at 17 years of age. It's just that he isn't developed enough for top flight football yet. Give him a few years though.

Theo Walcott, 19: Theo is an athlete. I'm just not sure he is a footballer. He may be able to run fast but can he contribute beyond that? I just don't know. Substitute for now and, sadly, I'm thinking of moving him.

Samir Nasri, 21: Quality offensive midfielder at 21. But he is going to be a sieve defensively, especially if I play him on the left wing. I'm not sure he can work with Cesc in the middle of the park either.

Tomas Rosicky, 27: Mr Sicknote himself is out for 4 more months. If he comes back, he'll be a decent backup to the first team while he gets used to playing football again. Another decent offensive player but weak defensively.

Thoughts: It's a decent set of midfielders but they are soooo young. I need a good defensive midfielder and either a first choice right winger or a backup at the least.

Forwards to come.

[law90026]

Forwards:

Robin van Persie, 28: Very talented forward who can also play as a winger. Concerns are that he can lose concentration and makes bad decisions too often.

Carlos Vela, 19: Young and one to watch for the future. Not quite ready for this season yet but may be useful for lesser fixtures.

Emmanuel Adebayor, 24: A physical freak but I'm pretty sure I'm going to offload him. His tendency to be disinterested and bad positioning makes him an easy target for me to send a message to the rest of the team.

Nicklas Bendtner, 20: He's a big strong forward with some skills. It's just his bad personality that concerns me and his poor teamwork.

Eduardo, 25: Out for 5 more months. A predator in the box but I can't rely on him as he'll miss half the season.

Thoughts: Need to sign another good forward I think. Maybe a swap deal of some sort involving Adebayor.

[law90026]

14th July 2009:

6 days in and I've made my first signing for the year.

Recognising that I need some steel in my midfield, I've managed to pick up Nigel de Jong from HSV for a relatively bargain price of 5.5 million pounds.

I was also pursuing some other options but, with this signing, I may be able to move past them now and focus on other areas of the squad.

I've also sold off both backup keepers (Fabianski to Juventus for 2.5 million and Mannone to Verona for 775k). That means signing a keeper is an immediate need.

Sadly though, I think I may be forced to keep Adebayor after all. Sigh.

[law90026]

17th July 2009:

This was a deal I had to think long and hard about making. But, in the end, I couldn't resist and had to pull the trigger, paying 13 million to Sampdoria for a superb defensive midfielder, Angelo Palombo.

This makes the previous deal for de Jong seem silly, especially when my transfer budget is tight. Still, de Jong can play in defence as well, so that's another option there.

[law90026]

19th July:

We could only manage a 0-0 draw in a friendly against Barnet. I tried using a 4-1-4-1 formation for this match. While we dominated possession, it felt like we didn't really create many clear chances as we only had 3 out of 15 shots on target. We did have 64% of the possession though and were never in danger of losing.

The line-up:

Adebayor
van Persie Walcott
Palombo - Nasri
de Jong
Clichy - Toure - Gallas - Sagna
Almunia

[law90026]

21st July:

1-0 over Motherwell in a 2nd friendly. Our thin squad is really telling right now as our players are really tired.

The goal came in the 84th minute when Denilson got the ball at the edge of the box and played it in. Somehow, Eboue managed to turn and slot it under the keeper.

56% possession, 7 shots (4 on goal). Again, in no real danger of losing.

[law90026]

23rd July 2008:

Managed to finally get the signing of Samir Handonvic done today for 14 million pounds. Samir is a 24 year old Slovenian keeper and he'll deputise for Big Al for now but will be ready to pick up the No. 1 position if needed. Another headache out of the way.

[law90026]

26th July 2008:

And I'm nearly out of funds for transfers this year as I pay 4.3 million for the services of Mario Santana, a 26 year old right winger. He'll either start or backup Theo Walcott, something I have not decided on yet.

Breaking down the differences:
Mario is a better crosser of the ball, a better dribbler, better with long shots, better passer, and overall a better physical specimen than Theo.

Theo is a better finisher and overall faster but doesn't offer much more than that.

I think my choice is clear.

[law90026]

1 August 2008:

Arsenal 5-0 Boreham Wood
Vela 2
Vela 4
Gallas 46
Eboue 57
Bendtner 70
Finally, a more convincing win today as we beat non-league side Boreham Wood 5-0. We had to make some changes in the squad today as de Jong had international duties. The man picked to replaced him, Vela, impressed as he scored the first 2 goals, the first a tap into an empty net and the 2nd a 25-yard scorcher. Goals in the 2nd half from Gallas (a free header from a freekick), Eboue (poor marking from a freekick) and a 25-yard freekick from Bendtner sealed the win for us.

There was a drawback though as van Persie is going to be out for a month after suffering a twisted knee. Sigh.

Man of the Match: Vela

[DaddyTorgo]

still thin defensively though right? that'd worry me if I was you...maybe explore a formation where you can play de Jong & Palombo at the same time as twin-DMC's to provide additional defensive support?

[law90026]

I kinda am playing both at this time.

My formation is essentially 4 at the back, 1 defensive midfielder in front of them, 2 central midfielders (either de Jong or Palombo is one of them for now), 2 wingers and 1 striker.

For now, I think I need a leftback but I'm running out of cash >.>

[cschex]

Originally Posted by law90026

I kinda am playing both at this time.

My formation is essentially 4 at the back, 1 defensive midfielder in front of them, 2 central midfielders (either de Jong or Palombo is one of them for now), 2 wingers and 1 striker.

For now, I think I need a leftback but I'm running out of cash >.>

Is Traore still loaned out (or can you recall him)? I suppose you could emulate this season and use Silvestre as cover *shudder*. De Jong is a good passer, but tiny (isnt he like 5"8 ) for a central D, but hopefully Gallas doesn't fall off a cliff this year. Anyway, I 'm certainly following along.

[DaddyTorgo]

too bad you can't offload walcott or adebayor

could you bring somebody in on loan? have your ass man search for left backs to loan in...you might not find anybody of good quality but you might get lucky.

or try a swap with some team that's overloaded with left backs and toss them walcott?

[law90026]

Thanks for the comments and queries.

Re the leftback situation: Gallas can actually play there so I may not need a backup after all. I could switch him there if necessary and play either de Jong, Song or Djorou at centreback.

I would love to move Adebayor but I don't have the funds to make a big move. I'm tempted to try to exchange him for a "lesser" player but I'm not sure that would work out well in the long term for us.

[law90026]

7 August 2008:

Club Brugge 0 - 3 Arsenal

Walcott 24'
Ramsey 31'
Nasri 90'

Our last friendly for the year and we win at a canter as we dominated the match with 61% possession. A bright start when a corner was only half cleared and controlled by Ramsey at the edge of the box, who promptly played a first time pass for Walcott to run onto and a clean finish from the youngster for 1-0. 7 minutes later, another corner was cleared to 25 yards out and Ramsey showed no fear in taking 1 touch to control it and then smashing it into the top corner. Finally, in the 90th minute, a hopeful ball was punted up for Bendtner to chase. The Brugge keeper came very far out to clear but only to Nasri, who first timed it from 40 yards out into an empty net.

A good result for us and it will give us some confidence going into the first leg of our Champions League qualifying round.

[law90026]

11 August 2008: Signed 18 year old French teenager Sofiane Feghouli for 2.9 million pounds. My scouts rate him highly and he'll be parked in the reserves for a season or 2.

[law90026]

Champion's League Qualifier Leg 1:

Arsenal 1 - 0 Vit. Guimares
Walcott 17'

We get a win in our first competitive match under my charge. Pre-match, my major concern was how bare our squad was as injuries and the Olympics have robbed me of a number of players. We could only field 15 players instead of the regular 18 (11 players, 7 subs).

Still, we managed to eke out a 1-0 win over the Portugese side as Walcott pounced on an error by their CB at the edge of the box and first timed a shot past the keeper.

Overall, we played decently as we dominated the game and they had no attempts on goal. Santana had a good debut as he showed pace and skill on the right flank.

MotM: Vit. Guimares keeper as he kept out a number of efforts.

[law90026]

16 August 2008: Premier League Match #1

Arsenal 1 - 1 Sunderland
Vela 4'
Cisse 59'

Our squad was bolstered with the return of de Jong, Vela and Song from the Olympics. I had to drop Santana though as he was exhausted after the midweek match.

Our goal was a beauty as we knocked the ball around the park for a long time. A pass from de Jong to Nasri opened up the middle of the pitch and Nasri played a superb through ball for Vela who was accelerating from his left wing position. Vela promptly slotted it past the keeper coolly.

Cisse hit our bar in the 18th minute though, which should have served as a wake up call.

We had a disallowed goal in the 42' minute which I disagreed with (offside). Adebayor was put through in the 44' minute but he shot straight at the keeper.

The equaliser for Sunderland came in the 59th minute as they played a ball to Cisse at the edge of our box. He outmuscled our CB, turned and then blasted it past Almunia. Disappointing.

He nearly won the game as well as he scored in the 72' but he was clearly offside.

This was not a good game from the team. Walcott, de Jong and Clichy all played badly and Adebayor remains goalless for the season. Nice performance from Vela though.

MotM: Vela

[law90026]

24 August 2008: Premier League Match #2

Hull City 0 - 0 Arsenal

RvP injured during training and so is not available for this game. I decided to drop Adebayor and play Walcott up front, with Vela and Santana supporting him on the flanks.

Hull City indicated their intentions early as they had a number of heavy fouls on our players, including a few consecutive fouls on Nasri. Referee Chris Foy refused to book anyone though, wanker.

Santana was a threat down the right flank and came close to scoring on a few occasions. Nasri had to come off early at half time as he was injured from the fouls.

It was a disappointing draw as we dominated the game. They only had 1 shot on target compared to our 6.

I'm not entirely satisfied with the current formation, I think it makes it hard for our 1 striker to perform well. I might have to tweak it a bit.

[law90026]

27 August 2008: Champions' League Qualifying Leg 2

Vit. Guimares 0 - 3 Arsenal
Vela25'
Adebayor 37'
Adebayor 45'

Good news for us as Cesc is on his way back to fitness, resuming full training before the match. He won't be ready for full matches so soon but it's good to have him available as a sub soon.

We start the game brightly using a new formation (a modified 4-1-3-2). In the 25th minute, Vela scores as he blasts the ball in from outside the penalty box. Despite what I said about him not being ready, he's proving me wrong.

Adebayor finally comes to life with 2 goals, both headers (one from a corner and one from a freekick). Hopefully this new formation allows him to play better, especially since I can't move him.

MotM: Adebayor

[law90026]

28 August 2008:

We have been drawn into Group H of the Champions League. Our opponents are Juventus, Villareal and Shaktar.

I think it's a group that we can qualify from, provided we perform well against Villareal.

[law90026]

30 August 2008: Premier League Match #3

Arsenal 1 - 0 Aston Villa
Nasri 39'

End to end stuff in an exciting match. Villa started more brightly and came close on a few occasions. However, we slowly began to take control of the game and the chances started coming, with a couple of close attempts from Walcott and Santana.

The only goal of the game came from a corner which Villa were not able to deal with. It dropped to Walcott at the edge of the 6 yard box and his shot was parried by Friedel but only as far as Nasri, who then blasted in his first goal for Arsenal!

Our Slovenian keeper, Handanovic, played well today, stopping a number of Villa attempts and getting the MotM award.

MotM: Handanovic

[law90026]

1 September 2008: Transfer Window round-up

While we brought in the most players (5), the big spenders were Man City as they signed the following:
Andrey Arshavin - 12.75million
Marek Hamsik - 14.25million
Fernandinho - 11million
Yury Zhirkov - 11.5million

Spurs picked up Joao Moutinho (13.5 million) and Darijo Srna (16.5 million).

Overall, a relatively quiet window as Man Utd, Liverpool and Chelsea didn't buy anyone of note.

[law90026]

13 September: Premier League Match #4

Bolton 1 - 2 Arsenal
Vela 32'
Taylor 68'
Walcott 88'

A game that we should have won by a bigger margin I feel. We played well and had plenty of chances but failed to convert.

Vela started the scoring when a through ball from Santana put him through. Vela continues to impress me though he suffered an injury and had to be taken off.

They scored in the 68th minute when Sean Davis proved too much to handle in the box and he flicked the ball on to Matthew Taylor to smash past Handanovic.

Walcott came on as a sub in the 74th minute and proved his worth as he raced on to a through ball and slotted it past the Bolton keeper in the 88th minute, ensuring we got the 3 points today.

MotM: Vela

[law90026]

Vela out for a month with cracked ribs after the Bolton game That'll be a disappointment, considering his good form.

[law90026]

17 September 2008: Champions League Group Phase, Match #1

Arsenal 2 - 1 Villareal
Cazorla 16'
van Persie 51'
Santana 93'

Success as we beat one of the other contenders in our group 2-1. Villareal started out very brightly and scored via Cazorla on the break.

However, the team really started to pick up their performances after that and it always felt like an equaliser would come. True enough, a great cross by Santana was tapped home by RvP, though he was lucky the centre back missed his clearance.

The substitutions were made in the 60th minute, with Walcott coming on for an exhausted Cesc, Bendtner on for a poor Adebayor and Song for a booked Gallas.

In injury time, a quick exchange of passes allowed Walcott to play Santana through the right flank. Santana cut in quickly and slotted it past the keeper to secure the win.

MotM: Santana

[Izulde]

Looks like Walcott's turning out better than you first thought and Santana appears to have been a great signing so far.

[law90026]

From what I've seen of Walcott, he doesn't play tremendously well as a starter right now but as an impact sub, he's doing well.

And yeah, I'm really really pleased with the Santana signing, considering his price.

[law90026]

21 September 2008: Premier League Match #5

Arsenal 3 - 0 Man City
Adebayor 38'
de Jong red card 71'
Bendtner 86'
Adebayor 94'

A strong result today from the team, during a match which featured yet another overly lenient referee. Seriously, if I have to replace 3 players at half time because of knocks they are taking and Man City has no yellow cards, he's doing something wrong.

Adebayor opens up the scoring when a corner is not cleared properly by Man City. Cesc played it back out wide to Clichy, who lofted a cross to Adebayor. One touch past the Man City defender and he slots it past the keeper.

de Jong is sent off in the 71st minute when he goes in 2-footed on Jo. Frustrations boiling over I suspect at this stage.

Man City start to press but Bendtner, who hasn't shown much so far this year, decides to channel his inner Henry by taking the ball at the halfway mark, accelerating down the left flank, cutting in and curling a beautiful goal past the Man City keeper. This seals the win for us.

Adebayor is then played through by Eboue and he slots past for his 2nd goal of the game. He looked offside though.

Injuries: Santana out with a pulled hamstring for a month

MotM: Adebayor

[law90026]

24 September 2008: League Cup 3rd round

Arsenal 4 - 1 West Ham
Eboue (og) 19'
Adebayor 37'
Fabregas 48'
Adebayor (pen) 58'
Ramsey 68'

This was a game where I wanted to let my reserves play. One thing it did reinforce though is that my squad isn't really that deep yet because this "reserve" team still had a number of first teamers in there.

The reserves in were Eboue (RB), Djorou and Song (DB), Denilson (DM), Diaby (CM).

We started brightly but they scored first when Eboue scored an own goal. We didn't give up though and continued to pressure them, resulting in an Adebayor goal when Bendtner flicked on a header for him to chase. Adebayor showed his strength when he outmuscled 2 defenders to slot past the West Ham keeper.

This was followed by a Cesc goal from the left side of the box, an Adebayor penalty after Cesc was brought down and finally Ramsey scored a 4th within moments of coming on, as poor marking left him alone in the middle of the penalty box and he gleefully lashed the ball home.

A better result than expected.

MotM: Adebayor

[law90026]

27 September 2008: Premier League Match #6

Liverpool 1 - 0 Arsenal
Keane 14'

We fail to beat one of our rivals for the title this year, despite dominating possesion 54-46. We had 0 shots on target while they had 4. Their goal was a deflected attempt from long range by Keane, which sucks.

A major concern is that Adebayor is out for 2 weeks, Toure for 2 weeks and Clichy for a month. The injuries are starting to pile up.

MotM: Palambo

[law90026]

30 September 2008: Champions League Group Phase Match #2

Juventus 0 - 0 Arsenal

A goalless draw works for us under the circumstances and keeps us in a good position to qualify. We had to field a makeshift defence, with Gallas at LB and Song and Djorou at CB.

Song impressed though, earning the MotM award. It was also impressive that we dominated the game at Juve's homeground, considering we had 56% possession and 10 shots on goal, compared to their 44% possession and 6 shots on goal.

MotM: Song

[law90026]

1 October 2008: Recap

Angelo Palombo is named the Player of the Month for October.

Bendner's goal against Man City won Goal of the Month.

Right now, I think we're doing ok, save for the spate of injuries. We are currently 7th in the Premiership with 11 pts, 5 pts behind Chelsea (16), and a host of other clubs at 14 pts (including Man Utd). Liverpool are currently 9th with just 8 pts.

[law90026]

4 October 2008: Premier League Match #7

Wigan 0 - 1 Arsenal
Eboue 75'

A game in which we struggled to impose ourselves. It was definitely not the most exciting game until Eboue, a substitute, popped up in the 75th minute to head home from a corner. This prompted Wigan attacks and they put the ball in the back of the neck in the 92nd minute, only to be called offside.

MotM: Eboue

[law90026]

18 October 2008: Premier League Match #8

Arsenal 6 - 0 West Ham
van Persie (pen 13', pen 17', 25')
Adebayor (pen 30', pen 37')
Robert Green (og 44')

One of the more ludicrous results I have ever seen and I'm glad it's in our favour. We destroyed West Ham today and scored 5 goals from setpieces, 4 of which were penalties! Our passing was a joy and it was clear that the West Ham defence could not handle us.

It was nice to see Robin pass up 2 penalties for Ade to take after he had gotten his hattrick.

MotM: Robin van Persie

[law90026]

21 October 2008: Champions League Group Stage Match #3

Shaktar 1 - 2 Arsenal
Nasri 30'
Brandao 92'
Walcott 94'

I wouldn't say we were fortunate to win in Russia but a draw wouldn't have been an unfair result either. Shaktar came out with a vengeance and were pressing us hard right from the kickoff. We coped well enough though and we scored first as de Jong played a sublime long ball out wide to Santana, who crossed for Nasri to head past the keeper.

They equalised in injury time and I was furious as Brandao was clearly offside. However, the lads didn't hang their heads and attacked immediately from the restart and, as they say, fortune favors the brave. A long ball punted up was flicked on by Adebayor and Walcott, a late substitute, managed to run on to it (again that pace!) and slot past the Shaktar keeper.

There was pandemonium in the stands and we hurriedly left the stadium for our flight home. This results puts us in a good position to qualify. 1 more win against Shaktar at home would pretty much guarantee it I suspect.

Eboue out for 2 months after the game though as he broke his toe.

MotM: Brandao

[law90026]

25 October 2008: Premier League Match #9

Arsenal 3 - 0 Fulham
Adebayor (pen 2', 4)
van Persie (8')

The game was effectively over as a contest in the first 10 minutes as we hit Fulham with 3 goals. Adebayor scored from a penalty then a header after Santana sent over a beautiful cross. van Persie then scored a 30 yard screamer which the keeper had no chance of stopping.

Since the formation change, Adebayor has been on fire. He now has 10 goals in all competitions.

MotM: Adebayor

[law90026]

30 October 2008: Premier League Match #10

Middlesborough 1 - 1 Arsenal
Downing 23'
Fabregas 50'

I'll take the blame for this loss as I fielded a weaker side today, with Song coming in for Toure, de Jong coming in for Palombo, Vela in place of Fabregas and Nasri for Santana.

Still, we had enough chances to win the game, especially when Cesc and Santana both came close in the last 10 minutes.

Downing's goal was a super freekick that no keeper could have stopped. We kept attacking though and Cesc eventually equalised when he came on after halftime, pouncing on an Adebayor strike that came off the woodwork.

MotM: Sagna

[law90026]

Recap so far:

I figured I would do quarterly recaps and now's a good time since it's 10 games into the Premier League season.

Overall:
I'm pleased with our performance overall. We're currently 3rd in the league and in good shape to reach the knock out stage of the Champions League.

Our top performers so far this year are Palombo (7.34 rating in 13 games), Santana (7.30 rating in 12 games) and Sagna (7.23 rating in 15 games). Glad to see that two of my buys are there

Our top goalscorers are: Adebayor (10) and van Persie (5) with a bunch of others on 3 goals.

Top assists are: Walcott and Santana (5 each).

Right now, the squad could maybe use a little more depth in central midfield. Cesc is a starter there with Nasri as backup. Rosicky is coming back soon too. Yet it feels like a little more quality there could be useful. Our strikeforce could also maybe use 1 more out and out forward, since the only other option I have right now is Bendtner, who is adequate at best.

Premier League Standings:
1. Man Utd Played 10 Win 7 Draw 3 Losses 0 For 18 Against 3 Pts 24
2. Tottenham P 10 W 6 D 4 L 0 F 15 A 3 Pts 22
3. Arsenal P10 W 6 D 3 L 1 F 18 A 4 Pts 21
4. Newcastle P10 W 5 D 4 L 1 F 15 A 8 Pts 19
5. Chelsea P10 W 6 D 1 L 3 F 16 A 10 Pts 19
6. Liverpool P10 W 4 D 4 L 2 F 14 A 9 Pts 16

So the top 4 clubs are right there in the top 6, with Spurs and Newcastle being potential pretenders to the throne.

Top goalscorers: Aghonbolar (Aston Villa striker) 7, Adebayor (Arsenal) and Darren Bent (Tottenham striker) 6

Top Assists: Ishmael Miller (West Brom striker) 5, 4 others on 4

Top Rating: Aghonbolar 7.52, Zuiverloon 7.49 (West Brom RB), Fernandinho (Man City attacking midfielder) 7.44

[law90026]

1 November 2008: Premier League Match #11

Arsenal 1 - 0 West Brom
Fabregas 38'

Prior to the match, van Persie was presented with his Player of the Month award. I had come in 2nd in voting for the Manager of the Month, so no prizes for me.

We came out in determined fashion and absolutely dominated this game, though we failed to score more than 1. Fabregas made a late run into the box to meet a Santana cross and planted a firm header past the WBA keeper. Memories of Dennis Bergkamp flashed across my mind.

As an indication of our domination, we had 58% possession and WBA did not have a single attempt on our goal. his reuslt pushed us to 2nd in the league (Spurs first?!?) as Man Utd lost to Stoke 1-0 in a shock result.

Bad news though as Sagna was injured and is out for 5 months! Toure is going to swap to RB for this period and either Djourou or Song will play a lot more in the middle of defence.

[law90026]

5 November 2008: Champions League Group Stage Match #4

Arsenal 3 - 0 Shaktar
Song 63'
Nasri 86'
Santana 88'

The scoreline reflected our domination of the game. While the first half was goalless, it was clear we were the better side and we would score at some point. This was proven to be true when Song headed home from a corner. A possibly offside goal from Nasri clinched it for us as Bendtner played him through down the left flank and he blasted it past the keeper. Santana then finished the match off with a powerful shot from just inside the penalty box after Adebayor cut it back for him.

This win also guarantees us qualification from the group with 10 points, level with Juventus. Villareal only has 3 so far, a win over Shaktar. They've lost twice to Juventus and once to us. Time to let the reserves play more for the next 2 games.

MotM: Nasri

[law90026]

9 November 2008: Premier League Match #12

Tottenham 2 - 5 Arsenal
Jenas 3'
Bentley 16'
Song 51'
van Persie 54'
Adebayor 69'
Fabregas 86'
van Persie 88'

What a game of 2 halves. I feared the worst when they scored twice in the first 16 minutes and we really really looked shell-shocked. Frankly, both goals were soft rebounds and the defence was just not pulling its weight.

At half time though, I put in van Persie for Vela and Walcott for Santana. Vela had started this game because van Persie had not been playing incredibly well the past few games while Santana has picked up a knock.

And what a difference van Persie made as he orchestrated our comeback. He was everywhere it seemed as he scored 2 and created 2 more.

The first goal came when van Persie crossed it nicely for Song to head home. This was followed up with a beautiful finish when van Persie was put through by Walcott, though there were suspicions that van Persie had controlled the ball with his hand. Nasri then played a nice throughball for Adebayor to tap home. This was followed up by a Fabregas 25-yard strike from a van Persie pass. van Persie then scored the last goal of the game with a rocket from the edge of the penalty box.

It was a tremendous game and showed a lot of character from the team. Importantly, it put us top of the table as well as being a major win over our archrivals.

MotM: van Persie

[law90026]

12 November 2008: League Cup 4th Round

Aston Villa 2 - 4 Arsenal (after extra time)
van Persie 3'
Carew 14'
Rosicky 39'
Carew 86'
Laursen (og, 106')
Adebayor 108'

I wanted to let some of the reserves play tonight, including a nearly fit again Tomas Rosicky. Song and Djorou played in the middle of defence, de Jong started at defensive midfield and Bendtner got a start in place of Adebayor.

We started very well when de Jong won the ball in the middle of the park, played it to Nasri who then knocked it first time forward to van Persie to put him through. A classy finish followed. Carew equalised though when Young also played a really nice throughball for him to slot past Almunia.

In the 2nd half, I though we had done enough to win the game when Rosicky marked his first competitive start with a curler from just inside the penalty box. However, lax defending meant that Carew stole in to tap the ball home inside the 6 yard box just before full time. Worse was to follow as van Persie had to be taken off and we faced extra time with 10-man.

The team did not disappoint though as they continued to play attractive football. A Denilson shot was deflected by Laursen into his own goal at the half time of extra time. We then caught them on the break as Adebayor was put through and he chipped it sublimely over the Villa keeper to seal the win.

I was a little upset that the players had to play extra time though, that doesn't give them the rest I would have liked. More bad news as van Persie will be out for a month with a twisted knee. Sigh.

MotM: Rosicky

[law90026]

15 November 2008: Premier League Match #13

Arsenal 5 - 0 Blackburn
Bendtner 24'
Nasri 26'
Bendtner 39'
Adebayor 43'
Bendtner (pen) 50'

A sparkling first half performance meant that the 2nd half was a mere formality. A flickon from Adebayor allowed Bendtner to race through on goal and slot it below Friedal. Nasri then scored a beautiful freekick from 25 yards out. Not to be outdone, Bendtner also scored a freekick after that. Adebayor outjumped the Blackburn defence at the far post to head home our 4th goal. Finally, Bendtner stepped up to complete his hattrick after we were awarded a penalty.

MotM: Bendtner

[law90026]

22 Nov 2008: Premier League Match #14

Man Utd 0 - 3 Arsenal
Walcott 7'
Walcott 18'
Fabregas 41'

Top of the table clash early in the season against our archrivals and we get a most satisfying result. Walcott's pace upfront today (he starts in place of the injured van Persie) was too much for Man Utd to handle. He scored first when he was first to reach a Santana cross and his 2nd goal was somewhat fortuitous when he managed to get his head to a long ball that resulted in a a chip over van der Saar. Fabregas then ran on to a Adebayor flickon and toe poked it under van der Saar to seal the match.

The injuries continue to pile up though as Rosicky is now out for 3 weeks with a bruised shin.

MotM: Walcott

[law90026]

25 November 2008: Champions League Group Phase Match #5

Villareal 0 - 2 Arsenal
Nasri (pen) 79'
Denilson 95'

A game where I wanted to field a reserve team since it was inconsequential, only to realise I couldn't even field a first 18 with the recent spate of injuries we had. I started Ramsey on the right wing, Denilson in attacking midfield just to patch up the holes and to try and let Santana and Fabregas have a rest.

The game was always close, with both sides coming close to goals. However, it was in the 2nd half when we scored, after Nasri scored from the penalty spot when Walcott was brought down in the box. Denilson then scored from the halfway line late in injury time when Villareal pushed everyone up, including their goalkeeper. Great finish from the youngster

MotM: Denilson