Arsenals chances of a top 4 finish this season
- Thread starter Eyepopper
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik (@Rood) is joined by CEO Duncan Drasdo and Financial Director Andy Green from the Manchester United Supporters Trust for a special episode on all things behind the scenes at Old Trafford including a brief history of MUST and their aims today, views on INEOS and Sir Jim Ratcliffe so far, and the Old Trafford regeneration.
Same old arsenal, same old arsene, same old pete, excuses excuses excuses.
Simply not good enough.
You clearly don't know your arse from your elbow if you think bicep is part of the shoulder. It was difficult for the ref but not the lino.
It's the injuries and the refs giving Liverpool a leg up that is going to stop Arsenal at this rate.
Jesus. That's not what I was fecking saying Pete. I wasn't stating what I saw. I have the view of the replay. I saw how it went down after the third one. What I was pointing out is how the ref might have seen it or how he thought he saw it. Same goes for the linesman.
Christ this is like pulling teeth. It was handball OK. The lino is looking along the flight of the ball and should have seen it OK. Goal should have been disallowed OK. VdV should have got a second yellow OK.
VDV's goal wasn't hand ball and even if it was it wouldn't of been a second yellow card
I know you're one of the forum lamebrains but you don't need to trumpet it to the world.
It must be so frustrating being an Arsenal supporter.
Outplaying teams every other week but ultimately losing.
Outplaying teams every other week but ultimately losing.
Great game has to be said
1st half
We had plenty of the ball good chances and did'nt take them I though we dealt well with Modric vdvart and kept adebayor very quiet.
As soon as Gervinhio missed I fancied we'd go in 1 down somehow
Van dVarts finish was exceptional but unquestionably handball. There's one very telling angle that sky shows he plays the ball upper arm just above the elbow - handfkingball in anyone's language. As for sending him off that's utter bollocks - course he should not have been sent off
They took the lead against the run of play but not surprisingly imo.
2nd half
We came out on fire and Spurs did'nt have a kick for 16 minutes - they could'nt get the ball out of their 30 yards let alone their half. Inevitably we equalised. Good work from Song.
Thats when we should have went for the killer goal but we stood off and allowed them back into the game.
Frankly the goal shocked me - Szczesny has been so good this year I really could'nt believe he let that one through him. the timing of it really crippled us and frankly defensively we fell apart. The Bale chance when Sackful and Song went walkabout was comedy gold. Mertesacker has no pace and not enough guile to cover that fact - last ten minutes we could have conceded 3 more
For me the fairest result would have been a draw but often football dont work like that so........
There were aspects that were better from us but frankly defensively nothing has changed - we are tactically naive and positionally inept at the back and nomatter what else improves if that deosnt then we'll stay in the bottom half of the table
Wenger remains unworried so no problems there then..
1st half
We had plenty of the ball good chances and did'nt take them I though we dealt well with Modric vdvart and kept adebayor very quiet.
As soon as Gervinhio missed I fancied we'd go in 1 down somehow
Van dVarts finish was exceptional but unquestionably handball. There's one very telling angle that sky shows he plays the ball upper arm just above the elbow - handfkingball in anyone's language. As for sending him off that's utter bollocks - course he should not have been sent off
They took the lead against the run of play but not surprisingly imo.
2nd half
We came out on fire and Spurs did'nt have a kick for 16 minutes - they could'nt get the ball out of their 30 yards let alone their half. Inevitably we equalised. Good work from Song.
Thats when we should have went for the killer goal but we stood off and allowed them back into the game.
Frankly the goal shocked me - Szczesny has been so good this year I really could'nt believe he let that one through him. the timing of it really crippled us and frankly defensively we fell apart. The Bale chance when Sackful and Song went walkabout was comedy gold. Mertesacker has no pace and not enough guile to cover that fact - last ten minutes we could have conceded 3 more
For me the fairest result would have been a draw but often football dont work like that so........
There were aspects that were better from us but frankly defensively nothing has changed - we are tactically naive and positionally inept at the back and nomatter what else improves if that deosnt then we'll stay in the bottom half of the table
Wenger remains unworried so no problems there then..
even after multiple replays there's still no conclusive proof VDV controlled it with his arm and again even if it was the ref would not of booked him for it. You get a yellow card for intentional hand ball not for controlling a ball with your armI'll just repeat the extract from the rules: ... a caution for unsporting behaviour is required when a player deliberately handles the ball, eg when a player:
- deliberately and blatently handles the ball to prevent an opponent gaining possession
- attempts to score a goal by deliberately handling the ball'
Hoddle's half time review of the Arsenal - Spurs game was pure dribble, never seen a more biased assessment for a while.
Except he didn't handle the ball
That was silly but I was more annoyed with Pussy Smith who should have stuck it to him over the handball. He's such a fecking scared cnut trying to hang on to his unbiased tag.
As a side note, I would really like to see the handball rule clarified.
If a defender tried to block a ball honestly but it hits his arm, no handball. An offensive player tried to collect a pass off his chest but it hits his arm, handball.
Unless it's outside the box, then any incidental handball is a handball foul and any intentional handball is a card.
I often hear that the offensive player has to be penalized because the touching of ball to hand gave him an advantage. But the same can be said about the defensive player.
They you have the John Terry's, who I have no doubt throw their arms out on purpose but manage to always get away with it.
Maybe we should just tie everyone's arms behind their backs.
If a defender tried to block a ball honestly but it hits his arm, no handball. An offensive player tried to collect a pass off his chest but it hits his arm, handball.
Unless it's outside the box, then any incidental handball is a handball foul and any intentional handball is a card.
I often hear that the offensive player has to be penalized because the touching of ball to hand gave him an advantage. But the same can be said about the defensive player.
They you have the John Terry's, who I have no doubt throw their arms out on purpose but manage to always get away with it.
Maybe we should just tie everyone's arms behind their backs.
Whatever but he should'nt get the red imo
How do you think our defending is coming along then?
'Whatever'? I didn't have you down for a 13-year-old girl. He had a yellow and got another yellow 1+1=2 and off. Defending wasn't bad considering we had one fit CB.
It was handball, should've been a goal but never a red either. It wasn't deliberate. I don't see it that way and rules are clear that it has to be 100% deliberate to be a card. If you try and chest it, which he was, and take it with your hand it's not deliberate but it's a foul.
You played football and can up with that claptrap? He knew there was no way on god's green earth to control that ball except by cheating.
That wasn't it. He wasn't trying to score with his hand. What the rules are referring to is like Maradona's hand of god or when Scholes got the sack vs Zenit in the Super cup.
I get it now why you think it was a sending off.
It doesn't have to be the act that propels the ball towards the goal, controlling it to get a goal will do.
I simply don't think so. It it were Zlatan he could have taken it down legally. I've seen him do it. You don't even have to be Zlatan. He's just a good example because he's tall as well.
VdV is a technically gifted player and probably believes he can do anything. He doesn't have height so he had to outdo himself by jumping. Of course he goes for it. What else was he suppose to do.
It's all fine and dandy that you believe that he's done it on purpose because he's a Tottenham player and this was vs Arsenal but the rules are clear on it. It's not just enough for the ref to spot the handball to award a card, he also has to be sure. And this forum has damn many answers from many sides that say that this wasn't deliberate and there for not a sending off no matter how much you want to be hard done by.
I agree with that, but I don't think he tried to control it with his arm. Not a yellow card for me. But it's a difficult one.
It was the 'apex of the shoulder'- Hoddle knows best. Surely no-one wanted VdV sent off for celebrating with the fans for a nano-second before pulling back. Big derby and by high-fiving a fan, he probably made his day. God forbidd we have player/fan interaction on any level.
Shocked Sagna broke his eg though- shows that so many bad injuries come from innocuous challenges, eg Busst.
That's actually where the law isn't clear. Just like when they have to deem a handball a handball. It's the most unclear rule in the game and the one that is and will be argued about the most.
The handball rules are not good enough IMO but what can you do? As of now the rules are trying to find the middle ground for when it's deemed a handball. If it isn't always or never it's going to leave a lot of grey area.
If a proper ref goes on the record saying he agrees with your interpretation of the rules then I'll change my whole outlook on it but I don't think they will because I've seen this time and time again and two of the top Icelandic refs have always talked about it being a grey area.
TBH, if I were in your shoes after today's match I'm not 100% on what I'd call it. I'd probably say the same thing as I do now because I'm not the person on the matchday forum screaming handball after someone takes a shot because I believe most of the times it isn't deliberate and therefor not a handball.
The penalty, last season I think, that we got against you lot. Not a handball. Think it was Clichy that slid down and caught the ball with his hand. Not a handball IMO.
Yep silly - Nani kicked the ball at Clichy's hand when he was trying to lever himself up. Vidic handball at our place was kind of blatent.
I wasn't particularly happy at that Arsehole-Cunto challenge, didn't need to be made IMO.
handball - no card. even before seeing the replay = it looked like the angle of the ball changed too much to be chested down. i thought he get called for it but not intentional. adebayor did it at OT that was intentional and it stood.
For feck's sake how was it not intentional? His arm randomly flew out and he luckily controlled the ball - that's OK then.
Why are we talking about a mid table club? Shouldn't we be focussing on the real top clubs in England? Say, the top five or six?
United, City, Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham, Newcastle etc. etc.
United, City, Chelsea, Liverpool, Tottenham, Newcastle etc. etc.
Maybe because people are interested in football and not trying to be a smart cnut and failing dismally.
Now now, storey.
Your abusive language does bode well with your new surroundings on the league table. Stoke, Bolton - all places full of scum.
You and mid table mediocrity is a nice fit.
Your abusive language does bode well with your new surroundings on the league table. Stoke, Bolton - all places full of scum.
You and mid table mediocrity is a nice fit.
flew out - not really. hit him up high. that's what it loked like to me.
He, he, dull cnut.
Irony.
He intended to chest it. When you go to chest the ball, you shape your arms in a way so that the ball can be best impacted on your chest. It was accidental. Arsenal deserved to lose, and they did. The tactics need to change dramatically or Arsenal are going to keep losing when they are away from home, and teams are even having a good pop at the Emirates too.
For what it's worth, here's my opinion. It took God knows how many replays and it still wasn't cut and dried. In that context, I can understand the officials not giving handball - at full speed, I don't think the officials have done much wrong.
It all comes down to intent. It's clear as day that VdV has tried to control that ball, legally, on his chest. As a result, even if the ball has hit his arm, the most he should get is a disallowed goal - a second yellow would be absurd given that there's no intent. I think the rules that Pete has posted previously are very clear on that point.
If we're going by the laws of the game, then VdV should be given the second booking for going into the crowd. That would still be harsh though because refs up and down the country don't uniformly apply this - see Vidic getting away with one against Villa last season. In any case, the law is an ass in this regard.
It all comes down to intent. It's clear as day that VdV has tried to control that ball, legally, on his chest. As a result, even if the ball has hit his arm, the most he should get is a disallowed goal - a second yellow would be absurd given that there's no intent. I think the rules that Pete has posted previously are very clear on that point.
If we're going by the laws of the game, then VdV should be given the second booking for going into the crowd. That would still be harsh though because refs up and down the country don't uniformly apply this - see Vidic getting away with one against Villa last season. In any case, the law is an ass in this regard.
I thought it was handball to be honest but frankly, I couldn't give a flying feck.
Seeing Arsenal struggle always raises a giggle or two
Seeing Arsenal struggle always raises a giggle or two