is this real or photo-shopped?

the fact cech is not wearing the captains arm band shows what a fool wenger is

is this real or photo-shopped?

No idea, but I love it!

the fact cech is not wearing the captains arm band shows what a fool wenger is

 

apparently mertesacker gave the band to walcott before the game. i think mertesacker knew he would f**k up and saved the inevitable of having to hand it over after the red card lol

if you like Claude, check this guy out & guess what? He is right

 

 

goodness me look at all those vaselines on his lips   

 

 

For me, this game was all about our benefiting from the unbelievable amount of prejudicial ‘sticking to the narrative’ on show when we play Arsenal these days. I’d put my evidence for this into three groups - the print prejudice, the pride and prejudice of a certain Arsene Wenger, and the misplaced Media prejudice - all of which served to concentrate a Chels mindset and befuddle Arse preparations. In that order and taking The Guardian as a typical example of self-fulfilling narrative prophecy in print, I could start stating my case with this news outlet’s week-long online feeding of Gooner frenzy, with articles such as the one detailing how Arsenal and Ozil in particular would dominate Chelsea, the German said to be on the brink of being hailed as the new Bergkamp. Or maybe it would be better just to begin with the one entitled ‘All-seeing Cech lays to rest Arsenal demons of Chelsea’s Mourinho era’, whatever that particular word concoction might actually mean. 

 

But then again, perhaps the point is already well made by merely referring to this swing-o-meter of opinion, as we all witnessed that steady rise in journalistic craving for significant change in both London club’s fortune throughout the Jose years of supremacy. Indeed, it could be argued that the Special One’s going was bound to force the pointer off it’s fulcrum and deep into any Red Zone of gleeful these-things-go-in-cycles philosophy. So, on to Arsene, recalling as I will the corresponding fixture at the Bridge and the Arsenal manager’s expression of amazement at Costa’s ability to ‘get away with it every week’, alluding to his behaviour on the park and how unacceptable it was. In the Frenchman’s eyes, his blind one was easily turned on Gabriel’s over-reaction, whilst his acutely observant one gazed critically on Costa’s criminality. This week, once more in Wenger’s World, it was but one simple step for him to take, resetting the narrative and reconfiguring Per’s problem to conform to what had gone before, whereas I'm seriously at a loss to understand how anyone in their right mind can suggest that such an ill-judged and ill-timed tackle, committed on a forward who has outwitted the defender and is clearly going to get a goal scoring opportunity, is not a red card offence. Yet Wenger and the Costa narrative deems it otherwise -Voila! 

 

Delusional though it may be, this Costa concept is constantly fuelled by the Media’s portrayal of Diego as the game’s pantomime villain, and it is little wonder that poor Arsene now acts like one of those storybook-fed kids, star-struck and out there in the audience, who instinctively boo every on-stage arrival of the bad man himself. Of course, unlike in the fairytale frequented by the Frenchman, the real truth of the matter casts ‘good guys’ in far from blameless light - Mertesacker killed this game with a suicidal challenge and Wenger compounded the felony by subbing Geroud off. Sentiment and woolly thinking then kept Walcott on the pitch, no thought given to the fact that he needs space in behind to prosper and our low block system, with Zouma as the right-sided CB, always likely to provide speedy cover for Branna. Once again, perceived narrative regarding both Walcott’s ability and Branna’s vulnerability influenced the situation in our favour and Arsenal’s only real chance of fighting back with 10 men [Giroud as the focal point] was discarded by a coach who has never been able to accept a simple truth - his teams have not been good enough to beat ours ever since Roman arrived. 

 

Lastly, we have the Media narrative, inexplicably expressed by Souness on Sky, with his ’cute’ verdict hastily buttressed by the one clear replay of the incident [from behind both players showing Mertesacker making clear contact on Costa's leg] being swiftly removed from the coverage after a single showing - it was to be replaced by two replays providing inconclusive evidence and if I had been Jamie Carragher, having already stated categorically that it was a sending-off offence, I’d have been screaming for its return to back up my case. But no, he didn’t and it was left to the BBC MOTD coverage to restore the critical viewpoint to our screens later in the evening. Not that this was anything more than a failed attempt to level out previous bias in my book, bearing in mind their commentary on the game continually posed the pleading [heart] question - what do Arsenal need to do to score? No neutrality in evidence here, just typical beeb narrative in action.  

 

Oh, a final observation, personal narrative put to one side and credit where credit is due... the referee did just fine.

 

 

Well done Dorest.

I agree. I know some are moaning about the non-award of the penalty on Fabregas which on replays looked clear despite the fact we didn't make too big an appeal. But other than that I thought he had a great game and I think a lot of refs would have bottled sending off Mertesaker and only produced a yellow, so as you say, credit where credit's due.

 

My main problem with Clattenburg is how frustratingly inconsistent he is. He's basically the Ramires of referees. He is capable of commanding, near-perfect performances, but can also put in some absolute horror shows in which his incorrect decisions have a huge influence over the scoreline. Remember this?

 

I thought yesterday was quite a good example of the full spectrum of Clattenburg refereeing - he did really well not to bottle the Mertesacker red card, despite that it was for the home team and how early in the game it was, and also tricky ones like the Ramsey handball towards the end, but then somehow missed the stonewall penalty on Fabregas, and that irritating foul throw on Ivanovic, which while correct, was immediately followed by another foul throw by the Arsenal player (I think it was Oxlade-Chamberlain?).

 

I don't really want to moan too much as I don't particularly like blaming referees for the outcome of a game unless their performance was particularly egregious as I think it makes a fanbase sound petty, but I certainly think Clattenburg made quite a few mistakes including one quite big one.

 

I probably should say that I am, in theory at least, and as much as it frustrates me when it affects my own team, quite fond of the human error involved in refereeing. One of my problems about video technology is losing that element of chance (and thus excitement I suppose) which a potentially flawed refereeing performance brings to the sport, as well as, I suppose, a certain feeling of Luddism that the game should remain as pure in its format as possible. I don't necessarily mind stuff like chips in the balls and statistic gathering which expand the possibilities of post-event analysis, but I am really uncomfortable with the idea of losing another part of the game in its pure and basic format.

I agree. I know some are moaning about the non-award of the penalty on Fabregas which on replays looked clear despite the fact we didn't make too big an appeal. But other than that I thought he had a great game and I think a lot of refs would have bottled sending off Mertesaker and only produced a yellow, so as you say, credit where credit's due.

 

Disagree, he reversed a foul throw-in from us to them, this never happens in other games, he gave no protection to Tibo on crosses and corners, again this never happens in other games, you only have to go near a keeper and the ref blows up, he waved play on to Arsenal then called "end of advantage" then reversed it and gave the free kick to them, when does that ever happen ?

is this real or photo-shopped?

 

It's from a few years ago:

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2374793/Kate-Middleton-gives-birth-Royal-baby-boy-landmarks-globe-illuminated.html

 

Yeah, I know it's Daily Mail, but just scroll down and you'll see a familiar looking picture.

Realised that I completely went off on a tangent in the post above so I'll stick to bullet points for my thoughts on the game.

 

 

- We are now on a seven-game unbeaten run in the league, which is better than any other Premier League side currently. This is also our first double of the season against any side.

 

- We successfully defended a lead! We fought out a 1-0 away win against one of the best sides in the league, by playing intelligent football which forced the opposition into a potentially fatal mistake which we immediately capitalised upon. It almost felt like a vintage Chelsea big game performance!

 

- Costa and Fabregas are back in excellent form and are once again combining well. Costa is far more explosive than he was under José, Fabregas is beginning to look magical again, and we are making far better use of playing balls over the defence.

 

- Similarly Terry is starting to look good again with a well-organised midfield in front of him. Ivanovic is improving (his assist was really good), and even Matic looked somewhat revitalised in the first half.

 

- I noticed a strange fluidity in terms of positioning between Matic and Mikel, which is extremely odd off the ball, but seemed to work. They seemed to keep changing which side of the field they were covering.

 

- Azpilicueta is getting forward more often than he did under José, which was particularly useful when Arsenal were a man down as it provided crucial width and allowed him to make use of his decent deliveries.

 

- While I think he was generally solid, Courtois made an awful, awful mess of that Ozil free kick (won by Ramsey if I remember right) from the right in the second half. These outswinging crosses seem to have been a bit of a problem since his return from injury, whereas previously I considered Courtois' aerial ability and confidence to be one of his greatest strengths. That said, Zouma and Ivanovic deserve credit for their composure in blocking and shepherding respectively the ball away from danger.

 

- I can't help but notice that Zouma is looking more and more confident in using his left foot and is passing the ball around more frequently with his left. This seems quite remarkable for a young centre back who doesn't possess any particular natural technical talent. I wonder who taught him to do that...?

- I also noticed that the stewards at Arsenal don't seem to pay any attention to the fans they are supposed to be monitoring and spend the entire time fixated on the game, which seems strange as you would get sacked for doing that at Leicester City (where I work). It is understandable though - they probably didn't notice the Arsenal fans were there!
 

- Finally - a 'haw haw' to Arsenal and a 'you're welcome' to the two City sides currently occupying the top two. There are few things I enjoy more in life than watching us piss all over Arsenal's shoes.

Realised that I completely went off on a tangent in the post above so I'll stick to bullet points for my thoughts on the game.

 

 

- We are now on a seven-game unbeaten run in the league, which is better than any other Premier League side currently. This is also our first double of the season against any side.

 

- We successfully defended a lead! We fought out a 1-0 away win against one of the best sides in the league, by playing intelligent football which forced the opposition into a potentially fatal mistake which we immediately capitalised upon. It almost felt like a vintage Chelsea big game performance!

 

- Costa and Fabregas are back in excellent form and are once again combining well. Costa is far more explosive than he was under José, Fabregas is beginning to look magical again, and we are making far better use of playing balls over the defence.

 

- Similarly Terry is starting to look good again with a well-organised midfield in front of him. Ivanovic is improving (his assist was really good), and even Matic looked somewhat revitalised in the first half.

 

- I noticed a strange fluidity in terms of positioning between Matic and Mikel, which is extremely odd off the ball, but seemed to work. They seemed to keep changing which side of the field they were covering.

 

- Azpilicueta is getting forward more often than he did under José, which was particularly useful when Arsenal were a man down as it provided crucial width and allowed him to make use of his decent deliveries.

 

- While I think he was generally solid, Courtois made an awful, awful mess of that Ozil free kick (won by Ramsey if I remember right) from the right in the second half. These outswinging crosses seem to have been a bit of a problem since his return from injury, whereas previously I considered Courtois' aerial ability and confidence to be one of his greatest strengths. That said, Zouma and Ivanovic deserve credit for their composure in blocking and shepherding respectively the ball away from danger.

 

- I can't help but notice that Zouma is looking more and more confident in using his left foot and is passing the ball around more frequently with his left. This seems quite remarkable for a young centre back who doesn't possess any particular natural technical talent. I wonder who taught him to do that...?

- I also noticed that the stewards at Arsenal don't seem to pay any attention to the fans they are supposed to be monitoring and spend the entire time fixated on the game, which seems strange as you would get sacked for doing that at Leicester City (where I work). It is understandable though - they probably didn't notice the Arsenal fans were there!

 

- Finally - a 'haw haw' to Arsenal and a 'you're welcome' to the two City sides currently occupying the top two. There are few things I enjoy more in life than watching us piss all over Arsenal's shoes.

 

And what kind of shoes do they wear ? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hush Puppies of course 

For what it's worth, even Dermot Gallagher thinks Clattenburg got it right when he sent off Mertesacker and got it wrong when he didn't award a penalty for the bodycheck on Fabregas:

 

http://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/10143166/ref-watch-premier-league-weekend-decisions-analysed

For what it's worth, even Dermot Gallagher thinks Clattenburg got it right when he sent off Mertesacker and got it wrong when he didn't award a penalty for the bodycheck on Fabregas:

http://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/10143166/ref-watch-premier-league-weekend-decisions-analysed

I'm looking forward to Mike Riley's apology. We'll get one, right?

Edited January 25, 201610 yr by dkw

I'm looking forward to Mike Riley's apology. We'll get one, right?

 

I wouldn't be surprised if he did, just as a middle finger to Mourinho.

Every ref that has commented said Red card for the big German, pen for Cesc, and a resulting 2nd yellow for c**tshellney.

Disagree, he reversed a foul throw-in from us to them, this never happens in other games, he gave no protection to Tibo on crosses and corners, again this never happens in other games, you only have to go near a keeper and the ref blows up, he waved play on to Arsenal then called "end of advantage" then reversed it and gave the free kick to them, when does that ever happen ?

 

I think he gave the foul throw against Ivan because he took so long to take it and thought he was wasting time so in the end blew up. It was a minor thing anyway. Very few refs will go through a game where they get everything 100% right. He got the major decision right and that decision ultimately assisted us to win the game and many of the 50\50's he called in our favour. I'm quite happy these days whenever I see Clattenburg is reffing one of our games.

The Arsenal fans at work were very unhappy today. The game wasn't discussed until the afternoon (there was too much tension in the morning) and there was a real sense from the Gooners that the game is proof that they can't win the league this season. I'm not sure that Arsenal are not good enough technically but there is a mental issue there; they can be intimidated and bullied and you can't win the league with that mindset.

The Arsenal fans at work were very unhappy today. The game wasn't discussed until the afternoon (there was too much tension in the morning) and there was a real sense from the Gooners that the game is proof that they can't win the league this season. I'm not sure that Arsenal are not good enough technically but there is a mental issue there; they can be intimidated and bullied and you can't win the league with that mindset.

I hope you enjoyed the game as much as we did Spud. I sort of agree with the bolded bit but we did neither yesterday, we didn't intimidate or bully them, we just beat them fair and square. They really are a fragile team mentally when push comes to shove and have been for a good many years. The blame for that must surely lay at Wengers door ?

its because he plays boys, barring cech there is no men in that team

I hope you enjoyed the game as much as we did Spud. I sort of agree with the bolded bit but we did neither yesterday, we didn't intimidate or bully them, we just beat them fair and square. They really are a fragile team mentally when push comes to shove and have been for a good many years. The blame for that must surely lay at Wengers door ?

I enjoyed the game. You make a fair point - they were beaten and that's that. There was some of the mental aspect of the Gooners at the end of the game; some Arsenal players looked defeated and there wasn't a sense that they'd brush themselves down and push on.

I don't want to tempt fate with them though.

For what it's worth, even Dermot Gallagher thinks Clattenburg got it right when he sent off Mertesacker and got it wrong when he didn't award a penalty for the bodycheck on Fabregas:

 

http://www.skysports.com/football/news/11095/10143166/ref-watch-premier-league-weekend-decisions-analysed

Even Clattenburg knew it was a penalty.  After all, he did book Mikel for the exact same type of body-check challenge  5 minutes after ignoring Kolscielny floor Fabregas in the box.

And the prize for the biggest whingers in the game continues to be awarded to the gooners...despite the vast majority of pundits, ex refs etc saying it was a red card etc, they refuse to accept it...step up next arsenal rep to look like a bitter twat:

http://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/football/490069/EXCLUSIVE-Diego-Costa-is-a-serial-cheat-and-should-have-been-sent-off-for-diving

And the prize for the biggest whingers in the game continues to be awarded to the gooners...despite the vast majority of pundits, ex refs etc saying it was a red card etc, they refuse to accept it...step up next arsenal rep to look like a bitter twat:

http://www.dailystar.co.uk/sport/football/490069/EXCLUSIVE-Diego-Costa-is-a-serial-cheat-and-should-have-been-sent-off-for-diving

Did you know that Arsenal have gotten more red cards (3) than points (2) against CFC in the last 3 seasons?  #WengerIsAGenius

Did you know that Arsenal have gotten more red cards (3) than points (2) against CFC in the last 3 seasons?  #WengerIsAGenius

 

To be fair, they've only scored three goals against us (in all competitions, even including the Community Shield at the beginning of this season) since the 5-3 under AVB... which was in 2011!

 

In fact we've won more Champions Leagues than they have competitive matches against us in the past four and a bit years.

Oh Lawd...You must read this article by ESPN Goonie David Hirshey. Then gaze at the comments below the article. Just funny as sh*t to read from the pistols