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Va-va-voom. Vintage Henry scores on Arsenal return.
The clock said 68 minutes, and no one at the Emirates Stadium in north London was looking at the action on the pitch as the fourth official held aloft his lit-up board to signal the re-introduction of Thierry Henry to English football.
Ten minutes later and he'd scored the game's eventual winner. Comebacks don't get this good this often.
14 to replace 15 shone the bright numbers before the goal, but alas Henry's former number has since been taken by young English talent Theo Walcott, who idolises the French great.
Now, for six weeks and six weeks only after which he will return to the United States with the New York Red Bulls, Henry can be seen wearing an Arsenal shirt with the number 12, the same as his France days during which he won the 1998 World Cup and 2000 European Championship.
The only numbers Arsenal fans will care about are 228, 229 and who knows, possible even into the 230s.
With a trademark movement of his right boot, Henry had added to his record Arsenal tally of 226 having watched his new teammates spurn chance after chance against Leeds United in the third round of the FA Cup.
Arsenal fans out there, does this worry you? Would you like to see Arsene Wenger bring in another striker in the January transfer window given the lack of goals?
What is Arsenal’s future?
By Zoran Milosavljevic in Belgrade
It is a bit early to single out Manchester rivals United and City as the only title contenders this season, but it appears highly likely that Arsenal will not be among the chasing pack now headed by the new-look Liverpool and Chelsea.
What is more, the 8-2 hammering the Gunners suffered at Old Trafford suggests that Arsene Wenger’s side might even struggle to finish in the top six, unless the Frenchman can swiftly turn around their fortunes.
Crippled by early injuries to some regular starters and even more so by the departure of Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri, Arsenal were so off the pace for most of the match that their fans will want to forget as soon as possible.
With the team’s vertebrae boiling down to inconsistent and injury-prone Dutch striker Robin Van Persie, Wenger faces a mammoth task of rebuilding his side which is now a far cry from the 2003-4 Invincibles who won the league title without losing a match and stretched their unbeaten record to 49 games the following season.
Ironically, that remarkable run ended in a 2-0 defeat by United at Old Trafford and signaled a decline which seems to have culminated in Sunday’s humiliation.
The 2005 FA Cup is the only silverware Arsenal have managed since and adding a fourth league title to his trophy cabinet always looked unlikely for Wenger after the Gunners swapped the intimidating atmosphere of dilapidated Highbury for their glittering new palace, the Emirates Stadium, in 2006.
Fergie the old hand shows softer side…for a bit
By Simon Hart
For a brief moment, it seemed Sir Alex Ferguson really might be mellowing with age.
Twenty-four hours after ending his seven-year feud with the BBC, the Manchester United manager spent part of his weekly news conference on Friday defending the record of his erstwhile chief adversary Arsene Wenger, who comes to Old Trafford with Arsenal on Sunday.
Ferguson then reflected on the potential of his latest crop of young talent before a question about the possible involvement of some of these young guns in the England senior team.
“It is not a problem it is fantastic,” he began. According to reports in Friday’s newspapers, four of the United players aged 22 or under who have caught the eye in the season’s opening weeks –- Chris Smalling, Tom Cleverley, Phil Jones and Danny Welbeck –- will be watched by England manager Fabio Capello on Sunday before the Italian names his squad for next month’s Euro 2012 qualifying matches.
Capello’s squad could include as many as seven United players given the presence of Wayne Rooney, Michael Carrick and Ashley Young. Rio Ferdinand may miss out due to injury.
Who can Arsenal actually buy?
With Cesc Fabregas gone and Samir Nasri possibly on the move too, there is a lot of gloom around Arsenal at the moment and Saturday’s 2-0 home defeat by Liverpool did nothing to help the mood.
Arsenal fans are for the first time questioning the stewardship of Arsene Wenger and have demanded some top signings to prevent yet another trophyless season.
But who could Arsenal actually bring in? Would a really top player want to go to a club resembling a sinking ship? The Gunners also don’t have the same financial clout as Manchester City, United, Chelsea, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and even Liverpool nowadays. (The Italian clubs are worse off though).
Valencia winger Juan Mata seems destined for Chelsea after Arsenal’s initial interest but even he is not the wow signing Arsenal fans want to ease the pain of Fabregas going back to Barca.
But Wenger’s great strength has been buying near unknowns and making them great. Vieira, Henry and of course Fabregas.
There is no value in the market right now and really top players are not available. Trying to develop Jack Wilshere and Co into the new Fabregases looks like Wenger’s only option.
Fans will give him the season to prove he can work miracles again but come this time next year, the rumblings of discontent in north London could be full-blown protests.
So much has been written and said about Arsenal ad its Manager Arsene Wenger in the last few days. To Wenger, this week especially must rank as one of his worst in his career as a Manager.Two of his best players had just departed and his club was facing imminent exit from the champions league for teh first time at qualifying stage. Add to that the spate of injuries to what remains of his first team and you will understand his predicament.
We have all blamed Wenger for what Arsenal is passing through now pricipally because he has refused to buy big and more importantly because he had stuck to a policy that has failed in mordern football. But the cry over the departure of Captain Fabregas and midfielder Nasiri seemed over blown to me.No doubt the two are great players who will be badly missed in Arsenal but that is as far as that goes. The difference between Arsenal and most clubs is that Arsenal makes players not the other way round. Players who were nobodies come to Arsenal nad become over night stars. And when they leave Arsenal, you hardly will hear about them again. Some examples; Hleb, Flamini, Reyes, Adebayor,Thiery?, etc. I hope Fabregas does not become a bench warmer at Barcelona, that will be bad for global footballer. For Nasiri,I think Barcelona could have been the place for his game.But money speaks and b…….Arsenal will do well with some sensible signing by the Manager. But should Wenger think that because the team qualified for the group stage of champions league, all is now well, then certainly, he has past his prime.
elu alaekwe
Do Barca really need to splash out on Cesc?
In our latest post on Spanish soccer, Iain Rogers in Madrid looks at the latest round of speculation over the future of Cesc Fabregas and classy Mali striker Frederic Kanoute’s decision to play on at Sevilla for one more season.
Do Barca really need to splash out on Cesc?
The annual ‘will Cesc Fabregas leave Arsenal and return to Barcelona’ media machine has been cranking into gear in recent weeks and the man himself showed up in Madrid last week to present a new fragrance at a trendy art gallery near Atocha railway station.
Without having the decency to ask anything about the perfume, the assembled sports hacks packing the room subjected the slightly embarrassed-looking Spain international to a sustained grilling about his future.
Depending on which Spanish newspaper you worked for, Fabregas was either definitely on his way back club he left as a 16-year-old in 2003, had committed his future to Arsenal or was cosying up to Real Madrid.
From what he has said in the past, it would be amazing if Fabregas, a born and bred Catalan, moved anywhere else apart from Barca (if he ever does leave Arsenal) and he reiterated that it had always been his dream to play for their first team, where he is seen as a natural successor to his Spain team mate and fellow playmaker Xavi.
It’s interesting, and perhaps revealing, to see that Fabregas is not one of the players Arsenal have used in the promotional photos for their new kit on their website (www.arsenal.com).
Soccer Break Thursday – Power to Portugal
It was no classic but Porto cemented themselves as one of Europe’s top sides on Wednesday with a 1-0 victory over compatriots Braga in the Europa League final in Dublin, surely the start of better days for the Portuguese game.
Key to this is that Porto’s coach Andre Villas-Boas and figurehead striker Radamel Falcao have agreed to stay at the club, a nice touch in the fast-paced football world where players and coaches come and go all too often.
Predictions for Porto next season? Can they repeat history and win the Champions League the year after winning Europe’s second-tier club competition? Why not.
At the very least, Portugal’s fine showing in Europe this season may bring a much needed economic lift to the country. Manchester is apparently set to profit immensely from having two clubs in the Champions League next term.
On that topic, there could be some big moves this summer. Didier Drogba to leave Chelsea? Brazilian Neymar to fill Drogba’s void? The youngster says compatriots David Luiz and Ramires have told him “London is a beautiful place.”
As the season winds down, it’s time for another Arsenal player to give their analysis on another failed season. Agree with Robin van Persie? And Arsenal fans, are you hopeful of success next year?
Finally, with the FIFA presidential election on June 1 fast approaching, the never-ending corruption allegations seem set to tarnish the whole event. Read here for the latest.
Soccer Break Wednesday – Money buys success
Cash, dollars, bucks, dough, call it what you want, it paves the way for football clubs to be successful.
On Tuesday the bank-rolled Manchester City outfit reached the Champions League qualifiers for next season and could even secure an automatic berth if they pip Arsenal to third place in the Premier League. That would be a real kick in the guts to Arsene Wenger, who has barely spent anything in comparison to City since he took over the North Londoners in 1996.
A further blow to the Gunners would be the departure of captain Cesc Fabregas. Would he go to City of all places?
Football fans out there, is this fair? Should clubs’ success be based purely on the size of their owners’ wallets?
City’s rise has coincided with Tottenham Hotspur’s demise this season. Spurs’ foray into the quarter-finals of the Champions League proved a big step and ultimately hurt their chances of a place in the competition next season. They may not even secure a Europa League spot. Double disaster. Or is it?
Staying with wage bills and money in the game, salaries in Major League Soccer are up 12 percent, and, surprise surprise, David Beckham is the biggest earner.
Beckham however represents everything that is good about the game, an honest, hard-working individual. What we saw on Tuesday was the darker side of football with the FIFA corruption allegations.
Soccer Break Thursday – United roll on
Manchester United just keep on winning despite a sluggish season by their usually high standards and will now face Barcelona in the Champions League final on May 28.
Predictions? Hard to see even a full strength United keeping Messi and co at bay, especially as Barca coach Pep Guardiola will be seeking to continue his love affair with Wembley.
Next up for Alex Ferguson’s men is the visit of title rivals Chelsea on Sunday, certain to be a much stiffer test than a disappointingly lacklustre Schalke 04 on Wednesday. Will United’s formidable home record count in their favour?
Staying in Europe, and Thursday is Europa League day. Porto take a 5-1 lead into the second semi-final leg against Villarreal, while compatriots Benfica beat fellow Portuguese club Braga 2-1 at home.
Braga, less fashionable than their illustrious rivals, play their home games at the Quarry. Could be an explosive match.
Taking a look at a wider football issue, are tickets too expensive? Read here for what Arsenal are doing to combat the rise in prices.
And finally, referees have a hard time, especially with the stakes so high in Europe, but read here to find out about a New Zealand official’s ‘empty net’ penalty decision.
Soccer Break Monday – Goalline technology…again
It is never over until the fat lady sings or should that be until Alex Ferguson stops talking about refereeing decisions?
The Premier League title race is reaching boiling point and Ferguson is hot under the collar that his team did not get a penalty in their 1-0 defeat to Arsenal.
It could be, after all, only three points now separate United and Chelsea ahead of next week’s showdown between the top two at Old Trafford.
Ferguson’s sense of injustice was no doubt heightened by Chelsea’s win over Tottenham Hotspur that managed to re-ignite the debate over the need for goalline technology and highlight Heurelho Gomes’ flaws as a keeper in the space of a couple of seconds.
Redknapp did prove, however, the need for someone to sit down and explain to all Premier League managers the difference between flying to the moon and goalline technology as there was once again widespread disbelief that one has been accomplished without the other.
Its doubles passion when one play for title game , dats why premier leagues is behaving so aggressive and energetic in competitions.منتديات كرة
Soccer Break Thursday – Mourinho wins. Again.
Jose Mourinho and winning appear to go hand in hand after the colourful Portuguese coach delivered at the first time of asking in Wednesday’s King’s Cup final.
All the more significant was beating Barcelona for the first time as Real coach, which sets up a fascinating double header in the Champions League semi-finals on April 27 and May 3.
The pictures of Real’s celebrations are everywhere but what was not captured was defender Sergio Ramos dropping the trophy off the open-top bus during their victory parade. Or maybe not.
Real fans will be hoping their team do not let slip their slight pyschological advantage ahead of the Champions League having kept Barcelona dangerman Lionel Messi largely quiet during the final. The pacy Argentine stood still for five minutes after the final whistle, inconsolable.
The likely opponent for either Real or Barca in the Champions League final is Manchester United, whose form has dipped recently but all the same Alex Ferguson’s men seem destined to win another league title after Arsenal faltered against Tottenham Hotspur in another classic North London encounter. Chelsea are trying their hardest to make it interesting mind you.
Finally, our thoughts are with Gerard Houllier after the Aston Villa manager was taken to hospital. The stresses of football management cannot be underestimated, if that turns out to be a possible cause.
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