Monday, March 17, 2008
A tale of two strikers
With Arsenal facing up to a critical week in early April, how many critical weeks has that been this season, playing Liverpool thrice some attention may well be focussed on the respective managers and their approaches to this season.
Rafa and his much derided rotation policy that had everyone scratching their heads earlier in the season coming up against Arsene's more stable approach. But as the fates would have it we could end up seeing this particular trilogy coming down to a personal battle between two strikers who haven't featured perhaps as much as they could have this season.
Fernando Torres came to Anfield with a growing reputation from some successful seasons in Spain and finally the mickey mouses have a striker in the Aldridge/Rush mould. Rafa wrapped his fellow Spaniard in cotton wool during the early part of the season saying at the time he wanted to keep him fresh for the run in.
While Torres was in pampers his team all but dissappeared from the title race by September and despite the questions and abuse in the media Rafa stuck to his plan and easing the striker into the game. My we all tittered at the time but then Rafa earns big bucks while the rest of us fight for the morsels that fall unwanted from the table.
With those irritants like the Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup out the way Liverpool can now concentrate on the Champions League, perhaps Benetiz' favourite toy of all and with Barnsley's win at Anfield now forgotten by the rest of the country Gerrard and his merry band have been collecting victory after victory, running into form at the optimum time?
Seven straight wins post Barnsley with Torres netting nine goals.
Arsenal on the other hand are looking anything but comfortable in the Premier League with four consecutive draws against opposition we should, if we wish to call ourselves Premier League contenders, be winning comfortably. We can't epect every team to politely roll over and die against us nice though that would be.
Falling behind against muppet teams then scrambling late equalisers is what we were doing last season and ok, we may have only lost once all season in the Premier but it's points that win titles and picking up one's will win us nothing.
In our last six games, since our Old Trafford farce, we are also unbeaten. However we have just one win to show for that, admittedly in Milan, and we have scored six goals. And four of them in the last six minutes of games.
But as Liverpool have Torres running into a rich vein of form we have Robin van Persie returning from a series of injuries at possibly just the right time. But while Torres is an Adebayor our Rob plays just behind the main striker and with space being at a premium over the last few weeks in the final third I'm dreading the mercurial Dutchman being suffocated by no mark defenders who get it up for the Arse yet are pants the rest of the season.
We need van Persie and we need his goals. Our last six goals have come from Walcott (2), Bendtner, Adebayor, Fabregas and Toure.
All of course is not doom and gloom. Arsenal traditionally do things the hard way and if any team can win the Champions League without scoring too often then it's us. But with Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United scrapping for the Premier League and with all four of us going for the Champions League I can tell you the run in to the end of the season ain't gonna be a lot of fun.
There is a section of the Arsenal support who believe 2008 is our year for the Champions League. To get there we need to go through Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United...
Rafa and his much derided rotation policy that had everyone scratching their heads earlier in the season coming up against Arsene's more stable approach. But as the fates would have it we could end up seeing this particular trilogy coming down to a personal battle between two strikers who haven't featured perhaps as much as they could have this season.
Fernando Torres came to Anfield with a growing reputation from some successful seasons in Spain and finally the mickey mouses have a striker in the Aldridge/Rush mould. Rafa wrapped his fellow Spaniard in cotton wool during the early part of the season saying at the time he wanted to keep him fresh for the run in.
While Torres was in pampers his team all but dissappeared from the title race by September and despite the questions and abuse in the media Rafa stuck to his plan and easing the striker into the game. My we all tittered at the time but then Rafa earns big bucks while the rest of us fight for the morsels that fall unwanted from the table.
With those irritants like the Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup out the way Liverpool can now concentrate on the Champions League, perhaps Benetiz' favourite toy of all and with Barnsley's win at Anfield now forgotten by the rest of the country Gerrard and his merry band have been collecting victory after victory, running into form at the optimum time?
Seven straight wins post Barnsley with Torres netting nine goals.
Arsenal on the other hand are looking anything but comfortable in the Premier League with four consecutive draws against opposition we should, if we wish to call ourselves Premier League contenders, be winning comfortably. We can't epect every team to politely roll over and die against us nice though that would be.
Falling behind against muppet teams then scrambling late equalisers is what we were doing last season and ok, we may have only lost once all season in the Premier but it's points that win titles and picking up one's will win us nothing.
In our last six games, since our Old Trafford farce, we are also unbeaten. However we have just one win to show for that, admittedly in Milan, and we have scored six goals. And four of them in the last six minutes of games.
But as Liverpool have Torres running into a rich vein of form we have Robin van Persie returning from a series of injuries at possibly just the right time. But while Torres is an Adebayor our Rob plays just behind the main striker and with space being at a premium over the last few weeks in the final third I'm dreading the mercurial Dutchman being suffocated by no mark defenders who get it up for the Arse yet are pants the rest of the season.
We need van Persie and we need his goals. Our last six goals have come from Walcott (2), Bendtner, Adebayor, Fabregas and Toure.
All of course is not doom and gloom. Arsenal traditionally do things the hard way and if any team can win the Champions League without scoring too often then it's us. But with Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United scrapping for the Premier League and with all four of us going for the Champions League I can tell you the run in to the end of the season ain't gonna be a lot of fun.
There is a section of the Arsenal support who believe 2008 is our year for the Champions League. To get there we need to go through Liverpool, Chelsea and Manchester United...
Labels: Arsenal Liverpool Robin van Persie Fernando Torres
# posted by Me @ 11:08 AM 
Comments:
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Hello Anthony
i just got your links from a friend of mine, Andi Bachtiar Yusuf. Looks like we both have same in common, i'm also an author on www.bolanova.com
Maybe we can have a coffee, just to sharing experience ? i will contact u soon..
Best Regards, Andy Gultom (blueandy_2000@yahoo.com)
Post a Comment
i just got your links from a friend of mine, Andi Bachtiar Yusuf. Looks like we both have same in common, i'm also an author on www.bolanova.com
Maybe we can have a coffee, just to sharing experience ? i will contact u soon..
Best Regards, Andy Gultom (blueandy_2000@yahoo.com)
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