zuqiuwang

Hahaha...Unai Is A Joke At Arsena!

2019-10-23T04:16:00.000+08:00

I have written before that Unai Emery was a flop at Arsenal.

I still stand by my view that Unai ain't going to take Arsenal anywhere.

The clueless gaffer just isn't the man who will bring the club forward.

The joker has no football sense. Why the club went for him is a mystery.

Perhaps the guys at Arsenal are as clueless as the joke of a coach.

Unai plays conservative, timid football, backtracking at every little sign of a challenge.

At least with Wenger, he wasn't afraid of moving forward, playing fast and quick.

With the new manager, it is all about one step forwards, two steps backwards. With a still porous defence, that is suicide!

If you only think of backtracking instead of attacking, you are only inviting your opponent to hit the net at some point or another. That is just mathematical reality, while you have no chance of a score at your opponent's hehehe....

And why break the bank for Pepe who can't score at all. This guy just runs wildly, with no sense of where the goal is, even if it is right in front of him with nobody in between except the keeper.

And what is the gaffer doing, not playing Ozil? All because of personal bias? Envious of the London club's highest paid big name player?

Kick out the Unai joker quick or stay drowning!

Unai Emery Is A Flop At Arsenal, Only Wenger Will Do!

2019-05-30T14:57:00.001+08:00

Unai Emery is a flop at Arsenal!

When Arsenal replaced Wenger with Unai as the gaffer, I wasn't convinced he was the right man for Arsenal.

Sure enough, Unai quickly went on to lose the opening two premiership matches as the new manager. And though Arsenal subsequently went on a winning streak, it flopped at the end when it mattered most.

The same old story with the club. But at least under Wenger, when Arsenal lost, they at least lost in style.

Not so with the team under Unai.

Arsenal under Unai is a timid animal; uncertain what to do, hesitant, careless, cavalier and indifferent at times. Like how it just lost to Chelsea at the last opportunity they had to qualify for next year's Champions League being badly beaten 4-1 at the Europa Cup final.

I don't think Unai will take Arsenal far.

In fact, when Wenger was in a way forced to leave the club he loves, Arsenal's fate was sealed.

When you have a successful manager who helms a club for long years, it is hard to replace him and hope for instant success. Like how Manchester United still struggles to make headway when their long time gaffer Ferguson left after 26 years at the club.

6 years have passed and 5 managers afterwards, MU now languishes at 6th place in the Premiership when under the redoubtable Ferguson, it was always the top dog or thereabout.

Not certain Solskjaer will do much better next year as the latest MU gaffer.

What about Arsenal with Unai?

Not confident he will do any much better next year.

Maybe better bring back Wenger?

When Wenger first came to Arsenal, it was 'Wenger, who?' But he went on to make history by turning Arsenal into the 'invincibles'

Should Wenger return, it will be 'Wenger, again?'

Hahaha! Who knows, that might just lead to a remake of the 2003/2004 'invincibles'

As An Arsenal Fan I Would Have Been Mighty Delighted If Arsenal Had Been Eliminated From The Europa Cup By Ostersund!

2018-02-23T07:20:00.001+08:00

As an Arsenal fan, I would have been mighty delighted if Arsenal had been eliminated from the Europa Cup by Ostersund.

No matter how much you are a fan, a shambolic team like Arsenal was in the 2nd leg of the round of 32 of the Europa Cup match against Oster, they did not deserve to advance to the last 16 of the championship.

And the blame should have been laid squarely on the manager's shoulders. Arsenal already had more than half a foot in the round of 16 but Arsene Wenger took the half foot out by assembling a shambolic team that was obviously not only incapable to, but also afraid of playing football.

The defence was a total disgrace. Did you not see the clowns in Holding & Co? And when the midfield was also lost with the frontline lacking their manhood, Arsenal were a lost cause. The only thing that saved them was the 3-0 cushion they had brought from the first leg of the round of 32.

Do I think Arsenal have a chance to lift the Europa Cup and save themselves from the ignominy of failing for the second time in succession to qualify for the Champions League next year? No, of course a don't!

Not unless from on onwards Arsene plays the first team and stop taking things for granted.

But knowing the gaffer, that is something nobody dares to bet on his doing. There is a stubborn perversity about the man that costs Arsenal dearly time and time again, year in and year out for 12 years already for the record in both the English premier League and also the Champions League.

Perhaps Arsene is just asking to be kicked out.

Well, can't say that he does not deserve to be - kicked out, that is!

The Sanchez Nonsense: Good Riddance To A Bad Influence!

2018-01-25T02:31:00.000+08:00

I say good riddance to a bad influence! In fact, I had long advocated to get rid of the player whose heart had long not been with Arsenal.

You don't want to keep a player whose heart is somewhere else except the team he plays for. That is a sure disruptive thing to any team.

And Arsenal suffered enough from that. No manager should kau tow to any player no matter how good he is.

Now that Sanchez has signed for United, Arsenal can go on without having to put up with his nonsense.

Indeed with Sanchez out, Arsenal returned to playing with the kind of flair that fans expect of and have come to associate with the team when they tore Crystal Palace apart 4-1 without the petulant player's disruptive antics to hamper the flow of affairs.

The last decent thing Sanchez should do is not to badmouth the team he had left.

Everyone has his own idea why Sanchez left. Arsene himself has alluded to it.

Smart fans are not bitter nor bothered with why Sanchez left. That is his own calling and he has every right to do what he wants to do.

Adios!

Modern Football Is An Industry That Will Soon Close Shop Haha....And May It Happen Sooner Than Later

2018-01-08T08:51:00.001+08:00

Modern football is an industry that is heading to its natural doom. With players nowadays costing 200 million pounds and the salaries of some of the players hitting 500,000 pounds or more per week we are talking madness.

In Bolehland terms, 200 million pounds is a cool billion ringgit. With the kind of money you could set up not just a business but a conglomerate.

Why would anyone think that a mortal football player is worth that kind of money? And with each passing year, the costs only skyrocket.

That is the kind of madness that is gripping the so-called beautiful game today. All because of the insatiable ego to stay one step ahead of others.

But big time spending is no absolute guarantee of big time success.

There must come an end to the madness. Because you can't operate a business when the costs of doing business go up and up and up in the twinkling of an eye.

A player has optimistically a 10 year shelf-life if acquired in his early 20s. If acquired in his mid 20s, he has optimistically only half of that shelf-life!

Not to mention that at any moment he may be seriously injured and out of the equation entirely. Insurers may think the premiums justify the risks.

Fools are always blinded by quick money.

And modern football by its big time ego.

May it die a quick death to save everyone the indignity of being part of the folly and having to pay big time for it.

Ha ha....

Arsenal Should Dump Sanchez Pronto!

2017-07-30T09:25:00.002+08:00

Sanchez was supposed to have joined his team-mates in training Saturday last.

Now it seems that he is down with the flu and is staying away. This is rather unusual of the player. The guy is (?) not a shirker and would insist on playing even if he was injured.

We do not know whether Sanchez is really sick or whether claiming that he is now not well is a ruse to force a transfer.

Whatever it may be, the long continuing saga and uncertainty over whether he will leave Arsenal or not is not doing anyone any good, especially not to the team.

Wenger should just dump Sanchez and get on with life!

No player is indispensable.

A single player does not win the championship. Sanchez himself is proof adequate. With him in the team for three years already and yet Arsenal has not won the premiership!

In fact, Arsenal has now failed to make it to the Championship League for the first time in 20 so years with Sanchez around.

If a player's heart is no longer with the team, it is pointless keeping him.

Sell Sanchez quick!

Arsenal Should Not Splash Crazy Sums Just To Attempt To Buy Success

2017-06-06T02:55:00.001+08:00

I have not written in a long time about Arsenal. I had long given up on the perennial flops. This season they could not even qualify for the Champions League for the first time in 21 years!

Winning the FA Cup was a consolation. And now that Arsene Wenger has re-signed for another two years, he should not go crazy spending huge sums to buy players just to satisfy the angry fans.

I am never one for spending crazy sums of money to buy a player. The situation is already getting out of hand, with clubs spending like there is no tomorrow. In fact, if player costs soar they way the do nowadays, there might not even be a tomorrow for football itself!

Buying a player costs more than buying a business and the sums just keep on soaring each year!

It is not expensive players that guarantee success. Last year, Manchester United spent like a madman but still ended up in a worse position than Arsenal even under a hot shot loud-mouth Mourinho.

They paid 90 million pounds for Paul Pogba - the most expensive player in the world! The irony is that Pogba was an MU player whom they sold for a penny and paid a king's ransom to get him back! How foolish!

And Pogba turned out to be an outrageous flop! Fool's money for fool's folly you could say.

It is good that Arsenal's alleged offer of 86 million pounds for Kylian Mbappe has been shot down. Monaco might think that the kid cost a 100 million pounds! Well, MU or Real can go get him! Arsenal should not persist on joining in the folly. No matter how magical a player may be, he is not worth that kind of money!

Leicester last year made a blardy fool of everyone and a mockery of the the inane philosophy that expensive is best.

Arsenal themselves were not a big spending club when Wenger took over as the manager, yet under him the club came out tops without splashing crazy sums money to buy success. They even clinched the accolade as the 'Invincibles' for winning the EPL title in 2004 going without losing a single game in the entire season!

And Arsenal should not be afraid of dumping players who think they are too big for the club and want out unless they are paid mad sums of money just to kick ball.

Sanchez and Ozil can leave if they think they that they are too good for the club.

The trick is that Wenger needs to have a team of good and dedicated players (not necessarily expensive ones) who stick by each other and their manager. And Wenger needs to cease playing predictable football. Not the usual one-dimensional, passing the ball to death type.

Wenger needs to mix it up, have players who are willing to run at the defence and take risks at goal, instead of trying to score the perfect goal every time.

And maybe stick to the 3-4-3 formation for the time being and adjust when the situation calls for a change, depending on which team they are facing and what formation their opponents adopt.

Arsene Wenger Has To Go!

2017-03-06T03:12:00.003+08:00

Arsene Wenger has exhausted whatever goodwill he had left of the club's long suffering fans with the crucial 3-1 loss to Liverpool.

And he has only himself to blame. Being stubborn may be a positive trait when being stubborn gets you the results you want. But being dense is altogether inexcusable.

We didn't know what got into his head to not start Sanchez. His explanation that the team needed the more muscular presence of plodder Giroud and Wellbeck simply made little to no sense at all!

Giroud did indeed plod and for much of the game, limb. Still, it took the gaffer till half-time before he condescended to bring Sanchez into the equation. And look how that transformed and reinvigorated the team and proved Arsene Wenger no longer has the football smarts!

Still, why did he persist with Iwobi the Duck as the starter? It would have made better sense to have started with both Sanchez and Walcott and bring in Perez at some point than start with Giround the Plodder and Iwobi the Duck.

Just because you have undying faith in someone does not mean that you are right. Or that undying faith will magically transform an average or mediocre player into a Messi or Ronaldo.

There is a thing called misplaced faith. Wenger obviously hasn't heard of it. Or he never believed in it anyway.

Now, if Wenger loves the club and wants only good for it, he needs to leave and let someone else take over.

Twelve moons is too long a time to remain a fourth-grader. No professional football club aspiring to greatness should be stuck in a perennial rut.

Someone called Luis Enrique at Barcelona is now available. Arsenal has to try to lure him to the Emirates.

There is no time to linger and second guess.

Act fast.

Or rot in fourth or worse!

Arsenal Are Confirmed Gonners Again

2016-12-19T05:37:00.000+08:00

I wrote the other day that Arsenal's season was as good as gone when they lost 2-1 to Everton.

That was a match they could not afford to lose just to stay within Chelsea's shadow. And a match they could and should have won if they did not play as if it would be a stroll in the park against Everton. Being over-confident and underestimating your opponents is a sure way to commit harakiri.

My fears are now confirmed with the team's 2-1 loss to Manchester City in a 'do-or-die' match for both.

You cannot, however, fault Arsenal for being inconsistent. Come Christmas time, they consistently choke up and surrender their collective balls (manhood) - pun intended - to Santa Claus.

And thereafter, it is all yo ho ho and a team of punch drunk fourth graders ever grateful for consistently coming up short.

The Ox's day with the team is over. If the gaffer is still dreaming, it is time to pack him off also. Together with the duck Iwobi.

And where was Ozil? This guy went missing - perhaps on an early X'mas leave. You could hardly find him on the field. If you are demanding to be paid like a champion, you must play like a champion - not go MIA just when you need to show that you are worth what you are demanding for.

No team can hope to win if out of your 10 attempted passes, 12 went missing, especially not when your opponents did just the opposite with theirs.

And no team can hope to win by defending a slender 1 goal lead when you are content to just sit back and let your opponents bombard your goal at will.

If nothing else, mathematically, the odds don't favour you. One or more of your opponents' attempts at goal will find the net, period. It is not hoodoo - just plain law of averages at work.

Arsenal fans should now just sit back and enjoy the same old forth-place magic is good enough at work again.

Poor gonners!

It Is Still Early On, But Arsenal's Season Is As Good As Gone - Once Again!

2016-12-14T06:55:00.000+08:00

Although the Premier League is only at the half way stage or so, Arsenal's season is as good as gone with the 2-1 loss to Everton. I don't see Chelsea losing many games.

Arsenal might as well cash in on Ozil and Sanchez. If these two are only interested in huge pay rises as their contract extension negotiations drag on interminably, they won't be able to play with all their heart.

See how poorly Sanchez played in the Everton match, hardly able to string decent passes. Ozil spurned 3 good goal scoring chances. And the rest of the team similarly played as if it was going to be a stroll in the park for them to beat Everton, showing little urgency and playing with such inexcusable cavalier attitude.

By the 20 minute of the match, I was telling myself that Arsenal would be lucky to lose 2 points. At the end, they thoroughly deserved to lose the 3 points. And had only themselves to blame.

It is hard to understand why Wenger did not sub either Walcott or the Ox by the 60th minute of the match by putting in Lucas Perez. Subbing both speedy wingers at the same time late on with Giroud and the Duck wasn't going to help.

Iwobi is just overrated. This guy can't even run properly. He waddles like a duck and is atrocious at passing.

And Giroud is anything but Speedy Gonzales.

Arsenal: The Consistent Flop

2016-04-25T02:53:00.000+08:00

I have not written anything on Arsenal for quite some time now because there is nothing new to talk about the 'gonners'

Arsenal are a one-dimensional team and a consistent flop. They only know how to play passing the ball to death.

They have no idea of first-timers or taking on defenders or anything else.

Their gaffer continues to insist on 'beautiful football' that only the losers know how to play.

It is a team that choke up on schedule. That believe being fourth means being a success.

Their gaffer loves keeping faith with duds - ones like Giroud, Ramsey, Walcott & Co. Or the perennial walking wounded.

Now wonder being fourth is all they can hope for and all they are consistently good for.

Good for nothing is closer to the truth.

Now, if only Arsene would step back a little and see the consistent flop that he has proven to be and let others take over the rein of the club, there might yet be some hope left to salvage Arsenal's future - if there is any left to talk about, that is.

Arsenal Needs A Complete Overhaul By First Getting Rid Of Wenger!

2016-02-29T00:41:00.000+08:00

Arsenal were a total disgrace losing 3-2 to MU, a team everyone else seem to beating this season.

And that too, against a team reduced to 10 men! How pathetic were Arsenal with pretensions to Premiership glory this year?!!!

But the reality is that Arsenal under Wenger have become a one-dimensional team.

They don't play long balls, they don't take on defenders, they don't do first-timers.

All they do is pass the ball to death. Unfortunately, they are not Barcelona.

For Arsenal to dream on by continuing to play they way they do, they might as well give up the ghost.

No point in trying to deceive themselves that next year they will win the English Premiership.

Or the next.

Next year, if they continue the Wenger way, they will get demoted.

To save the day for themselves and their long suffering fans, Arsenal needs to get rid of the deadwood in the team, starting with sacking the manager himself!

Get rid of Ramsey, Walcott, Wishere, Arteta, and Flamini! That will be a good starting point to rebuilding the team.

When Arsenal lost their midfield maestro Carzola, they lost the direction.

And if Ozil is not happy playing for the gunners anymore, sell him too! Arsenal can't afford any player who will no longer be happy playing for them.

The same goes for Sanchez if he is no longer happy playing for the team too.

Arsenal needs a complete overhaul!

No two ways about it!

Start with getting rid of the gaffer!

English Football Referees Are Easily Fooled!

2016-01-25T17:20:00.002+08:00

English football referees are easily fooled.

That is why when you have bullies like Chelsea's Costa, you can get away with murder.

That was what had happened when Arsenal were reduced to 9 men in their 2- 0 loss to Chelsea earlier.

In yesterday's match, the referee should have flashed the yellow card at the Chelsea bully for simulation instead of sending off Mertesacker, though I personally have no sympathy for the Arsenal tortoise.

Any contact there was was only the slightest, but the Chelsea clown made such a meat of it, fooling the ref.

Any referee with a sharp eye and perception would have noticed the farce and seen the ruse as a dramatic ploy to get the Arsenal tortoise sent off.

English football does not deserve referees who lack sharpness or are easily taken in by the theatrical antics of players.

English football does not need bullies and thespians.

English football deserves footballers like Messi who play the beautiful game the way it should be played - with consummate footballing skills, not with theatrics more suited to Broadway.

Even though considerably smaller and shorter than most footballers, the diminutive maestro does not need to simulate or resort to theatrics to win games.

That is the measure of a true footballer with skills.

And English football referees need to show that they are up to the tricks of some footballers.

Whatever Happens Now, Arsene Wenger Should Leave The Scene Gracefully

2016-01-25T03:57:00.002+08:00

Whatever happens now, whether Arsenal eventually goes on to win the English Premier League or not this season, Arsene Wenger should honestly think of leaving the scene and get in Pep Guardiola.

The Arsenal gaffer has lost the smarts he once had. And even the mojos.

Playing tortoise Mertesacker with bully Diego Costa, who himself is no tortoise, in the team for Chelsea was a glaring elementary mistake of a choice and a disaster waiting to happen.

Wenger should have started Gabriel instead of the tortoise. And taking out Giroud was madness beyond belief.

He should have taken out Walcott instead.

And what was that about making Walcott the captain on the occasion just because he just reached his ten years with the team?

Walcott is a one dimensional player.

It is time to sell him!

And cash in on Ramsey too, now that Barcelona wants to pay good money for him.

Losing to Chelsea when Arsenal probably had the best chance in years to beat their nemesis and show who was boss, was unforgivable and showed up the Arsenal gaffer as lacking the mojos and missing the smarts to lead Arsenal anymore.

Arsenal needs someone like Guardiola.

Yo-ho-ho And A Bottle Of X'mas Bitters For You Arsenal!

2015-12-27T22:28:00.001+08:00

Arsenal's 4-0 drenching in the Boxing Day encounter with struggling Southampton uncovered the Gunners' soft belly once again.

Arsenal is not a team known for a strong belly. Their last strong outfit went out of fashion with the Invincibles a decade long time ago.

Gifted with the chance of going top of the table following Leicester's own defeat, Arsenal duly spurned the gift!

Perhaps they underestimated the Saints. Perhaps Arsenal were still in the Christmas mood.

Nobody was chasing down the ball.

Nobody was playing with any sense of urgency until it was too late, too late - way beyond any hope of redemption.

Southampton were playing the long balls - that was the only feasible way for them to defeat Arsenal - and the Gunners were unable to deal with those.

(Arsenal themselves hardly tried the long balls - why bother to waste Walcott's pace then?)

Mertesacker waddled like a duck, as his wont. Koscielny, for once, was lost in the pool.

Ozil probably had already wrap-gifted his assists to someone as a Christmas present.

Ramsey, never one of my my favourites, was more a muddle than a midfield maestro.

Giroud was missing.

And even the great Cech was a-floundering at the gate.

In fact, nobody turned up for the game.

Perhaps they were all still a-carolling and a-yohohoing.

Well, jingle bells to Arsenal.

If you want to be the numero uno at the end of the day, you have to wake up from the X'mas reverie!

Christmas gifts don't come everyday.

So Now The Special-Not-So-Special One Is Sacked Again!

2015-12-18T04:28:00.000+08:00

So, the special not so special one is now sacked- again!

That was a little late in coming really.

When you started the season taking issue with your medical staff, referees, the players and everyone else except taking responsibility as the manager, you can't expect others to sympathize with you.

As the gaffer, the ultimate responsibility and blame for things going wrong and the team's performance lie at your own door and you must be man enough to face up to it.

Whining and pointing the blame on others are not a gentlemanly thing to do and show up your own lack of leadership.

Mourinho had been mostly lucky in his managerial career.

Whether he was really the special one, the jury is not unanimous.

If you manage a team not expected to win anything at all but still go on to win, then that will show you up to be someone special.

Not when you take over a team on the cusp of winning a championship like when he first took over at Chelsea, or at already great teams like AC Milan or at Real Madrid.

Mourinho has some lessons to learn on humility.

Always bragging and being dismissive of others are not signs of someone comfortable with himself nor of his own abilities. In fact, they exhibit an inferiority complex that perhaps speaks of a man who knew that he was just lucky to take over teams that were expected to do well anyway.

Jose Mourinho is just too egoistical abrasive for the good of himself and football.

Sorry, But No Sorry, Arsenal: You Are A Complete Disgrace!

2015-11-05T06:08:00.001+08:00

Arsenal's display losing 5-1 to Bayern Munich in the return leg at the Allianz was a complete disgrace.

If that was what Arsenal were capable of, they don't even deserve to become the Premier league champion, let alone qualify for the next round of the Champions League.

I have never understood the philosophy of defending in football, not even when you are leading.

To lie back when you were already 2-0 down was just stupidity beyond comprehension.

Wenger must seriously reflect on what he was hoping to achieve when taking the bulls by the horns would have had given Arsenal a better chance to fight back.

When you defend, you are always going to make a mistake. On the other hand, if you are on the attack, you deny your opponents the chance to score. Just keep the back line tight.

But if you just lie deep and allow your opponents to come at you constantly, you are only openly inviting disaster, especially against a strong team like Bayern.

Hoping for the rare break is like capitulating to capricious fate.

Football is not about fate.

It is about skills and a belief in yourselves - that last Arsenal always seems to be sorely lacking when they face a strong team like Bayern who loves to go on the offensive.

Sorry, but no sorry, Arsenal - you are a complete disgrace to the Premier League!

Because you have exposed the Premier League as a no-standard league as compared to what the Continent has to offer.

Is Mourinho Fast Becoming 'The Special Failure'?

2015-11-04T10:31:00.000+08:00

The self-proclaimed 'Special One' is fast becoming 'The Special Failure'

This should not come as a surprise.

The Chelsea gaffer has lost his plot.

When he can't win games, he blames it on the perceived bias of the referees instead of taking stock of the problems with his own management .

Or he takes digs at Arsene Wenger whom he fears most among the other managers because he knows that Wenger is smarter and his most dangerous competitor and one who plays far better and more attractive football than he himself is ever capable of.

Or he blames the medical staff, ha ha!

These days, instead of the smart-alec smirks, Mourinho pouts to no end.

He knows his days at Chelsea are numbered - and that is putting it mildly.

His self-proclaimed reputation as 'The Special One' is severely in jeopardy.

No one is taking the gaffer seriously these days. He looks more terrible than his squad - lost, forlorn and recalcitrant.

Well, serves him right!

He should pay more attention to football than trying to massage his own ego.

But really, if you looked closely, his past successes came on the backs of his predecessors at the teams he had coached.

Chelsea was a good case in point.

When he first came to Chelsea and proclaimed himself 'The Special One,' Chelsea were already a formidable team on the cusp of winning the Premier League.

Ditto, in Inter and then at Real Madrid

And in all the cases, the first thing he did at the clubs he coached, was to spend big time to further ensure success.

As if confirming that 'The Special One' is not so special after all, the Chelsea gaffer's success at any team never went beyond two or three years.

Unlike Ferguson or Pep Guardiola or even Wenger.

Chelsea's Diego Costa Is A Disgrace To The Footballing World!

2015-09-20T07:47:00.002+08:00

So, Arsenal lost 2-0 to Chelsea!

That is something that cannot be changed.

Down to 9 men, there just was no way Arsenal could hold their own against their bitter rivals.

Their gaffer had it wrong again! Just like in the Champions League match against Dinamo Zagreb the other day.

Playing the wrong men in the team.

Against Zagreb, he had fielded a team meant to lose.

Why start with Giroud when it would have been better to have started with Walcott upfront.

And starting with Debuchy and Arteta!

Against Chelsea, if Arsene Wenger had shown more gumption and started with Walcott, Giroud and Oxlade Chamberlain instead of Alexis Sanchez.

Sanchez may be a good player, but he is no longer the terror he was last season. So why persist with him in all the games when he has shown that he has lost the touch to score.

After the exertions and the high of the Copa America, Sanchez should have been rested a little longer for him to recover his touch. He is just too tired and jaded now to play his best.

But I am not here to talk about Arsenal.

I am here to talk about Chelsea's Diego Costa.

This guy is a disgrace to the beautiful game!

Football is about skills, not about how you could terrorise your opponents by brute physicality, constantly trying to provoke a response from your opponents to try to get them red-carded and sent off.

Substituting brute physicality for a lack of skills makes football ugly to watch and bespoils its good name.

The trouble nowadays is that referees and linesmen can be so caught up in themselves that they are often blinded-sided by their own self importance and become oblivious to what happens around them.

Often lacking in good judgement, penalising the more minor infractions and letting off the more conspicuous fouls.

Congratulations Arsenal For Winning The FA Cup Again!

2015-06-01T03:23:00.001+08:00

Congratulations Arsenal for winning the FA Cup for the second time in a row! You did that once before, we know.

You have broken the record of the most FA Cup wins by a team, 12 to be exact.

And the manner of the win was simply impressive. That should be how football is played!

The last time you won the FA Cup consecutively, if I am not mistaken, you went on to win the Premier League unbeaten for the whole season and became 'The Invincibles'

Now you need to go get some new guys in - an out-and-out striker, a no-nonsense central midfielder and defender.

But forget about Benzema. And forget about Khedira.

Perhaps too, you should go get Petr Cech.

Whom you eventually bring in, we trust you know who would best serve the team.

Forget about Mourinho and his tale of three rivals who play better football but could not win the Premier League.

The Chelsea gaffer must still be feeling sore at your fans' taunt because he surely know deep down that they were right - Chelsea under him do play boring football (In fact, the teams that played under him always seemed to play boring football!)

If you could win playing beautiful football (like Barcelona under Pep Guardiola and yourselves when you ruled the roost as The Invincibles) why opt to play boring football?

Football should be played the beautiful way.

They don't call football 'the beautiful game' for nothing.

The last laugh is still on.

If Arsene Wenger Is A Specialist In Failure, Then Jose Mourinho Is A Specialist In Boring Football

2015-04-30T02:38:00.000+08:00

When Jose Mourinho hit back at Arsenal fans taunting his team for playing boring football, he really must have felt the sting of the comment because deep down Mourinho knew that the Arsenal fans were right!

If Arsene Wenger is a specialist in failure, then Jose Mourinho must be the specialist in boring football.

Scoring more goals than your nearest competitor and winning titles do not automatically equate with plating beautiful football.

Barcelona and Real Madrid (except for the time Mourinho was their manager), and Bayern Munich in recent times, do the same but they do play attractive football.

Though Arsenal fans may not be happy with their team for failing to win the premiership title for a decade now, none of them would (or could) say that their team play boring football.

Parking the bus in front of the goal and hoping for the lucky forays when playing the bigger teams for fear of losing, is not the mark of a great team who believe in their ability to play attractive football.

You could win titles by playing dull football, but that is another matter. You can't claim that you play beautiful football when you do so.

When Arsenal were winning titles under Wenger, they certainly were not playing boring football.

One reason why Mourinho was sacked during his first stint as the Chelsea manager, despite his success, was the boring brand of football he had brought to the club.

Now, after five years without a title, I guess Chelsea's owner was desperate enough to reengage Mourinho to try to win again, boring football or not.

Jose Is Right: Arsene Wenger Is A Specialist In Failure!

2014-03-02T02:52:00.000+08:00

This is going to be one of the shorter posts.

Jose Mourinho is right: Arsene Wenger is a specialist in failure!

Arsene screws up year after year - for 9 years! And he gets paid for it, handsomely!

Getting it all wrong playing softie Ozil against Bayern Munich.

Ozil guy is so softie that he could not even take a penalty properly, let alone score from one. He has twice failed to score from penalties in his short time with the team.

Not starting with Ox Chamberlain who is fast and unafraid to take on defenders unlike the other players who often only know how to tiki kaka meaninglessly when Arsenal most needed him against a tough and uncompromising team like Stoke, and couldn't afford to lose, was just inviting failure.

Arsenal is a team of shorties, except for one or two players.

Failing to bring in Sanogo early to partner Giroud (a surprisingly cumbersome striker who ought to be sold sooner than later, anyway) against a team like Stoke who have many tall players including 6' 7" Peter Crouch was surely inviting trouble.

Starting with Arteta instead of Flamini was a bad idea against a resilient team like Stoke. Arteta has become more like a standing joke and bad omen for the team when he starts against tough opponents.

Arsenal is also a team incapable of doing anything from free kicks.

When was the last time they had scored form a free kick! 9 years ago when Thierry Henry was around?

The only hope left for Arsenal is to finally sack Wenger.

For this year again, forget about winning any trophy!

It is boringly predictable.

And we don't need Jose to tell us.

Arsenal Were A Complete Disgrace!

2014-02-10T03:44:00.000+08:00

For a table topper, Arsenal were a complete disgrace, losing 5-1 to Liverpool in a match many had expected them to win.

Instead, they were 4 down by 20 minutes of the match!

To me, Mertesackar is always a doubt. He is not only disturbingly ponderous but also moves slower than a tortoise.

It is pitiably painful to see him completely outpaced and out of his depths and woefully lost at sea against speedy opponents.

Ozil continues to under perform and disappoint. When he lost the ball that led to the third goal, Arsenal's fate in the match was well sealed for them.

Giroud still plays like a clumsy clown instead of a respectable striker.

What hope does Arsenal have left if things continue the way they did in the match against Liverpool?

Amazingly, Arsene Wenger had no answer to Liverpool's gung-ho-come-out-with-all-guns-blazing-from-the-start approach even though the gaffer had expected this in his pre-match interview.

That says a lot about Wenger's increasingly doubtful credentials.

If Arsenal fail to pull up their socks and beat Manchester United in their next Premier League match, any prospect of their putting an end to their 9 year title drought will quickly vanish much like in the recent past seasons.

Then, Arsenal will well deserve all the brickbats and condemnations that will come their way.

And time, surely, to sack Arsene Wenger.

Another Zilch Season For Arsenal?

2013-12-15T09:05:00.000+08:00

ALTHOUGH it is still early, I won't bet against Arsenal not winning any trophy again this season.

You can't hope to win anything if you play with fear in the hearts and lead in the legs against the stronger teams.

Against Man City, which it lost 5-3, Arsenal looked lost and timid. Passing was school-boyish. Defence was amateurish and the otherwise reliable Kos guy looked like he just stepped out of a horror movie and got himself duly injured and stretchered off.

The only saving grace was Walcott.

The midfield was mostly struggling to resemble anything like an efficient engine.

Ozil was mostly Ozed. The vaunted Ramsey left his boots mostly in Cardiff. And where was Arteta? I only saw the red card he picked up in the Championship game with Napoli, which match Arsenal also horribly lost in another hard to understand performance except to blame it on a lack of steel in the legs and belief in the hearts.

Giroud, I don't want to talk much about. He is an overrated striker that Arsenal could do better to let go. This guy just isn't constituted to run .He may be tall, but he just can't run!. He is more tortoise than striker, profligate at goal and lost for ideas. Only good in holding the ball with his back to the opponent.

Talking about tortoises, Mertesacker is profoundly painful to watch when he has to chase after the ball or man. God only knows that most times he isn't so required to do either.

We don't have to talk about Bendtner because he is only part player precious only to himself. But if truth be told, languid may be an adjective closer to a description. Or outright lazy and indifferent.

Well, Arsenal maybe can afford to lose one or two more games at most, but it can't afford not to lose the Dane. Bendtner has to go and Arsene has to buy a hard running, competent and intelligent striker.

We need to see more of Gnabry and surely more of the Ox fellow who is unfortunately indisposed due to a season lasting injury.

What I am saying is that Arsenal need one or two more guys who do well, and do enjoy, effectively running at defenders. Wilshere tries and Cazorla too, but their efforts are sometimes not well sustained to wrought results.

Beautiful football is nice, but sometimes you have to mix it up.

This Referee Should Be Sacked!

2013-11-10T01:54:00.000+08:00

I am not an admirer of Chelsea nor am I a fan of West Bromwich Albion.

And I hardly speak about referees.

But the guy in black in the just concluded Chelsea-West Brom match needs to be sacked and removed from the referees' roll.

He is a danger to the sport of football. He practically stole two points from West Brom by awarding Chelsea a last minute penalty that even a blind mice could see that it was not one.

Referees should be very wary about awarding a penalty in the last minute of a match, especially one that could very well change its final countenance.

There is not justification for awarding a penalty that clearly doesn't look like one.

No wonder Fergie had been such a strident critic of the English referees' competence.

Granted, Fergie was an interested party and often only spoke out when it suited him.

But if the referee in the Chelsea-West Brom match is the average English referee you get, than I am mighty sorry for English football.

Nobody wants to see hard work, skills and good football go to waste because of refereeing incompetence.