Crucual 3 Days for Arsenal F.C

Arsenal FC is one. By two Games and In three Days, its faith may change dramatically and/or drastically. Udinese and Manchester United results could be a determining factor to what happens to Arsenal FC. Brace yourself, the Gunners could become the Goners!

     In its 115 years of existence, it undoubtedly has gone through some difficult periods which may have seemed destructive. It has mounted those challenges to arrive to the status they have today. For the last 15 years, a century after its existence, Arsenal employed a French man who worked in Japan. Unknown to the vast majority of fans- Arsene Who?. Arsene Wenger took up this responsibility and hit the ground running. A match made in heaven: “Arsene” – “ Arsenal”. It was meant to be. He managed Arsenal through the most successful period of its history and brought so much excitement alongside. Read more in Soccer « Five Reasons WHY It Will be an ALL Spanish Final in THE Champions LeagueGlory Glory Man United » Pretty football. Wonderful to watch. Pleasing to the eye. Great spectacles and memorable moments! Brilliant players and breathtaking goals Young hidden potentials flourishing into magnificent footballers. The rivalry with Man United. The tension with Tottenham Spurs. The invincible season. Even in the past 6 (six) years of no trophies- there have been thrilling close-shaves – Champions league finals, FA cup & Carling cup finals, good premier league attempts.     This is 2011/ 2012 premiership season and it seems Arsenal and Arsene Wenger have come to a cross road. A point of major decision or change. Like never before in his Arsenal Career, Arsene Wenger’s position has come under scrutiny. This was a man we said – In Arsene we trust. We have doubted his decisions in the past but he proved them right. This time it is different! It must be. Surely we can see how the team disintegrates in our very own eyes. Loosing matches from good starts (Tottenham 2-3), dropping points (Newcastle 4-4), defensive blunders (Carling Cup final with Birmingham, injury time with Liverpool and present season too in the Emirates). What has gone wrong? What Catastrophe has besieged this our beloved club? Is it a who or a what? We all have our own individual opinions and many are common and similar. Some will say – “Arsene has lost it all together” – “Obstinate. Weirdly discreet. Inflexible philosophy” Football enterprise has changed and is very much financial oriented. Money talks. This is evident by the Man Citys of this world. Good players are drawn like magnets. Honour, passion and devotion are slipping away from this great industry. The fans are left on their own. Arsenal has been excellently prudent and successful running the club. Is this at the expense of the squad?   Arsene Wenger or Arsenal Board or both? We could have a fill day going on and on but the bottom-line is here. The day of reckoning is here.   From the 24th of August, 2011, I believe Arsenal stands on cross roads. There are 3 days, 2games to make or break. Champion league qualifiers with Udinese and Man. United match in Old Trafford 3 days later will decide the path this club will take.   Win. Win – wonderful, why worry   Don’t qualify. Lose – disastrous, damning. A turn needs to be taken and I fear for the club, thenceforth … For now lets trust Arsene.  

Spurs preview - the last of the last chances

e dramatic nature of our draw on Sunday killed our title chances in the eyes of many, for two reasons – some felt United’s lead was now too great to overcome, others felt our ability to self-destruct would mean more dropped points before the end of the season. As I said after the game, I was close to writing us off – the only remaining hope was that United would drop points at Newcastle, therefore giving us the boost we needed to pick ourselves off the floor and beat Spurs.

Newcastle’s recent record at home to United (two 6-1 defeats) suggested it unlikely, but they did their bit last night, holding them to a goalless draw which gives us the opportunity to close the gap to four points. It would still take the perfect set of results (six wins for us, and United dropping points elsewhere), but the fat lady is still only doing her vocal warm ups. She is yet to be called to the stage.

Of course, we still have to win ourselves, and it has been in these crucial moments we have been found wanting – every time we’ve gotten close, we’ve come up with an inventive new way not to win a football match. But there are a million and one reasons to be driven on tonight. Here are just a few:

• It is Spurs.
• They embarrassed us at the Grove this season.
• They won the last time we played there in the league, with that Danny Rose goal, which was something of a Neil Mellor moment in its freakishness.
• If we didn’t win, it would be our greatest rivals hammering the final nail into our trophy hunt coffin.
• If we do win, we are unlikely to have to put up with the ‘Spurs in the Champions League’ love-in next season.
• A win speeds up St Totteringham’s Day.
• Watching Redknapp Sr twitch on the touchline and Redknapp Jr squirm in the studio is always fun.

Even if United were twenty points clear, it would be a big game, but that it represents the last chance we have of lifting silverware this season makes it yet more vital. It should also be a great game – a draw suits neither side with their respective aims, and both are considerably better going forward than defending.

What I would like to see is more shooting. A novel concept, I know, but Gomes is a decent keeper, and he is more than capable of saving three or four good efforts. But he is also something of a clown, and will drop one out of fifteen routine shots into his own net. With Almunia missing, we have the advantage there. I’m not saying change the style of play entirely, I’m just saying if you get an opening within 20 yards, take it. Have a go. We are allowed to score deflected goals, rebounds and screamers, we don’t have to rely on tap-ins at the end of sweeping moves. I’d be delighted to see a scruffy goal, particularly if it were a Nasri effort deflecting off Gallas’ arse.

The team is likely to have a couple of changes from Sunday – Sagna is fit and ready to replace Eboue, while Wilshere, fresh from his Young Player of the Year award, may be rested as the long season finally catches up with him. He certainly looked weary against Liverpool, unsurprising given how much he puts into every game. Song can come in and free Cesc up.

I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Arshavin start ahead of Walcott, with Theo coming on later to test tiring legs, but otherwise the team should look similar to the weekend. Vermaelen aside, it is about as strong a outfit as we can currently field. Time to prove it.

Hope springs eternal. After tonight, we will either be right back in it or anxiously looking over our shoulders at Chelsea. This really is the last chance.

Arsenal much needed boost

Arsenal will be able to welcome back fit again defender Bacary Sagna for tonight's north London derby against bitter rivals Tottenham.

The full-back's return is a timely boost for manager Arsene Wenger as he prepares for a game that his side simply can't afford to lose as they look to stay in the hunt for the Premier League title.

The Frenchman also has goalkeeper Manuel Almunia available after his own knee problem but Wenger is likely to stick by Wojciech Szczesny, who made his own comeback from a finger injury against Liverpool.

Tomas Rosicky and Denilson are in contention for tonight's game as welll after illness and a toe concern respectively as the Gunners attempt to take advantage of Manchester United's slip up to Newcastle last night.

A win for Wenger's men against Spurs would cut the gap on United to four points following the leaders' goal-less draw at St James' Park.

Ten things to know about the new arsenal fc owner Stan Kroenke

Find out how much the new Emirates owner is worth and how he made his fortune.

With help from our friends at the Guardian we have brought you the story of the new Arsenal majority shareholder, Stan Kroenke:

Born in Columbia, Missouri in 1947, and obtained a Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Missouri.

Married to Ann Walton, part of the family which owns the Wal-Mart chain of shops.

Last year Kroenke became the majority owner of the St Louis Rams NFL franchise. Through his company Kroenke Sports Enterprises (KSE) he also owns the Colorado Rapids Major League Soccer team, the Colorado Avalanche NHL side and the NBA basketball team the Denver Nuggets.

Kroenke’s worth is quoted at $2.9bn (around £1.77bn) in the 2010 Forbes List.

He is a somewhat reclusive man who stays out of the limelight. He his popularly known as “Silent Stan” because he almost never gives interviews to the press. He rarely interferes in his teams’ day-to-day operations.

Made his substantial fortune mainly through real estate and constructing shopping centres, retail, business and residential developments.

KSE owns the Pepsi Center, which is home to the Avalanche and the Nuggets and is also an entertainment venue staging music concerts.

KSE opened Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in April 2007 as the home of the Rapids. As well as an 18,000-capacity venue for field sports which also seats 27,000 for concerts, the complex also includes 24 playing fields for youth and adult sports and 200 acres for retail development and wildlife conservation areas.

Arsenal already had a technical link-up with Kroenke’s Colorado Rapids when in April 2007 Granada Ventures, a subsidiary of ITV plc, had sold their 9.9% stake in Arsenal Holdings plc to Kroenke’s KSE UK inc.<

Kroenke increased his shareholding in Arsenal to 62.89% by purchasing the stakes of Danny Fiszman and Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith, and agreed to make an offer for the rest of the club at £11,500 per share, valuing the club at £900million including debt.

Blackpool vs Arsenal preview: Do, or die. Plus favourite line-up

The Game

This is not an easy moment for Arsenal. It’s not easy to be Arsene Wenger, not easy to be a player and not easy to be a supporter.

Whether you like it or not, whether you deny it or not, we are living one of the darkest chapters of the season and what makes all this even more painful are all the excuses coming out now that we are only competing for the English Premier League and some remarks made by our manager during yesterday’s press conference, remarks which I’m more than sure you read by now.

Allow me to analyse some of the things that took place following the Blackburn defeat and my personal point of view on each and every one of them.

This team is 23, this team is absolutely amazing for what they do at their age

This is a complete contradiction of what our manager said in September when he told L’Equipe, “My players don’t have the excuse of inexperience any more. They are eager for titles. I believe they are capable, but they have to show it.”

This, is the complete opposite of what Robin van Persie said in September of 2009 when he told Arsenal.com. “We now have more experience too. There is me, Clichy, Fabregas and Song – we cannot hide behind saying we are inexperienced anymore. It is now about how much we really want it.”

And this, is the complete opposite of what Theo Walcott said before the season started, in July, when he told Arsenal TV Online, “We want to win things instead of using the excuse that we’re experienced young players, we need to turn experience into winning trophies”.

The above are all documented quotes spoken by our manager or players. Why the sudden change? What is the reason why bullish remarks such as “We want to win things instead of using the excuse that we’re experienced young players” have turned into “this team is absolutely amazing for what they do at their age”?

Nobody talks about the fact we built a new stadium

Wrong. Unfortunately many still do and I still cannot understand the reason. Let’s understand one basic thing: we started the season with a squad and Manchester United started the season with a different squad. These two squads were built with different financial power but when the season kicked-off, quality wise, the two squads were as equally-strong.

If we were talking about a different type of business, let’s say a restaurant, I would agree that someone spending £20 to build his empire will have more power than someone spending £5. But this is a “different” business, this is football and this is Arsene Wenger. With less cash spent, Arsene put Arsenal in a position to have a squad which I repeat, is as competitive as Manchester United and Chelsea.

I mean seriously, you either believe our squad is not good enough or else you agree with me that quality-wise we were on the same level as Manchester United in August, yet for a reason which apparently is a mystery for many, with two months to go, they are fighting for three trophies, we are fighting for one.

Is money spent the reason? No! I repeat, when the season started both teams were of equal quality. Granted, I was a little skeptical on our defensive department yet as our manager said we conceded less goals than the Red Devils this season and you cannot blame the defence for goalless draws against Blackburn and Sunderland.

To give the same example I gave weeks ago, Arsenal under Arsene Wenger is like a Formula 1 car which qualified in the last row of the grid, managed to get in the first positions during the race, could have easily taken the lead and won the race but ran out of gas because the driver opted not to re-fuel even if all his mechanics kept on warning him about the lack of fuel. Funnily enough, I’m told they took fuel out of the equation during pit-stops last year.

What Now?

We now have to win tomorrow’s game and hope for Manchester United to drop points or be tired when they get to face us at the Emirates on May the 1st. That is what Robin van Persie said apparently, maybe because we not capable of beating them if they are not tired.

Incidentally I believe it’s the complete opposite. I’m more than sure we will play a great game, I’m more than sure those at the Emirates will support the players in the same way they did when we played and went a goal down against Barcelona and I’m more than sure we will win the game.

But then what? It’s no use playing the game of your life, supporting the players as if you’re supporting your own son and then go back to square one when we get to play Blackburn or Sunderland or any other low-ranked team in the Premier League. It’s either always or never, maybe that is what we have to talk about ahead of the future.

As always, my favourite line-up is below. Remember you can submit your own at Arsenal Interactive and then share it on Twitter and Facebook.

Favourite line-up

There isn’t much to say about tomorrow’s starting line-up. Manuel will start in goal with Bacary to carry out a late fitness test that if failed will see Emmanuel Eboue started on the right.

In midfield, Abou Diaby and Cesc Fabregas are fortunately both fit to start so they will join Jack with Robin up front supported by Samir and Theo. The latter was fantastic in the first half against Blackburn and so was Andrey mind you, but to start with I would opt for the pace of the Englishman.