A blog by @GoonerMV
Arsenal find themselves 5 points clear at the top of the league, in a strong position in a very tough European Group and have just been given an easy draw in the FA Cup, some team whose name rhymes with Hottenham Totspur. However, if we are going to shut up Alan Shearer and Alan Hansen, if that's even possible, we must come through the Festive period with flying colours. Here are Arsenal's games in December:
11/12/13 - NAPOLI (A)
14/12/13 - MAN CITY (A) (By the way this is on BT Sport, so you might want to give it a miss, or watch it on mute)
23/12/13 - CHELSEA (H)
26/12/13 - WEST HAM (A) (Also on BT Sport!)
29/12/13 - NEWCASTLE (A)
5 games. 4 away, 1 home. 3 on Sky Sports, 2 on BT Sport. God help us. Right then, now I've got you all unbelievably excited, I shall continue. Ideally, we would have beaten Everton and then we'd be 7 points ahead, ensuring that even if we lost to Chelsea and City we'd still be top. In my opinion, if we can get anything from the City game that'll be a great result because they've been immense at home so far. As for the Chelsea game, I'm more confident about that so if we can get 4 points from those two games that will put us in excellent shape. It could be argued, though preferably by someone more intelligent than me, that drawing both games as oppose to winning one would put us in a better position. The last couple of matches of the month are both away, but we should be looking to win both of those. West Ham shouldn't be much of a threat, and while Newcastle will be a very tough game, we should have enough to beat them. There are three vital areas (or players) that I feel will hold the key to our potential successes.
1) Bendtner - You heard. The Samurai Warrior Nicky B himself. Yes, he might be as helpful as a bin bag with a hole in, but he could be very important in the coming weeks. Unfortunately, Giroud can't play every game and so Nicky B may get a run out, possibly against Napoli considering all we need to do is avoid a 3-0 defeat. If he can get his two legs to work in unison and remember why he gets paid however much a week then he could ensure that Giroud gets a rest and we have a half decent striker.
2) Our Defence - The transformation of our defence has been remarkable. Sir Chesney seems to have matured overnight, while Bosscielny and BFG have been rocks. Big rocks. Huuuuuge rocks. Ginormous rocks with a cherry on top. Too far? Thought not. Sagna has found some consistency, and in Gibbs and Monreal we have two left backs that can perform at the tightest level, with Monreal being particularly impressive this season. Especially against Aguero and Negredo, our defence will need to be as tight as a really tight thing, and if they can keep goals conceded to a minimum and keep a couple of clean sheets, we will be flying at the top of the Prem. Fingers crossed they won't be giving out any Christmas Gifts.
3) Theooooooooo - He's back! We have lacked genuine width in his absence and with his pace he can stretch any back line. We will need to counter attack very well in the coming games and who else would you want running at someone slow like Demichiles? He adds another dimension to our play and when he is fully back Arsenal will be even more dangerous. Let's hope he brings some Festive cheer to us!
Reading this may have been as boring as watching Stoke play, and unfortunately for you it wasn't as short as a video showing all of Spurs' goals this season. Hopefully though you've seen how crucial this month is and that if it all goes well, we will be in a fantastic position. Thanks for reading!
Matt
11/12/13 - NAPOLI (A)
14/12/13 - MAN CITY (A) (By the way this is on BT Sport, so you might want to give it a miss, or watch it on mute)
23/12/13 - CHELSEA (H)
26/12/13 - WEST HAM (A) (Also on BT Sport!)
29/12/13 - NEWCASTLE (A)
5 games. 4 away, 1 home. 3 on Sky Sports, 2 on BT Sport. God help us. Right then, now I've got you all unbelievably excited, I shall continue. Ideally, we would have beaten Everton and then we'd be 7 points ahead, ensuring that even if we lost to Chelsea and City we'd still be top. In my opinion, if we can get anything from the City game that'll be a great result because they've been immense at home so far. As for the Chelsea game, I'm more confident about that so if we can get 4 points from those two games that will put us in excellent shape. It could be argued, though preferably by someone more intelligent than me, that drawing both games as oppose to winning one would put us in a better position. The last couple of matches of the month are both away, but we should be looking to win both of those. West Ham shouldn't be much of a threat, and while Newcastle will be a very tough game, we should have enough to beat them. There are three vital areas (or players) that I feel will hold the key to our potential successes.
1) Bendtner - You heard. The Samurai Warrior Nicky B himself. Yes, he might be as helpful as a bin bag with a hole in, but he could be very important in the coming weeks. Unfortunately, Giroud can't play every game and so Nicky B may get a run out, possibly against Napoli considering all we need to do is avoid a 3-0 defeat. If he can get his two legs to work in unison and remember why he gets paid however much a week then he could ensure that Giroud gets a rest and we have a half decent striker.
2) Our Defence - The transformation of our defence has been remarkable. Sir Chesney seems to have matured overnight, while Bosscielny and BFG have been rocks. Big rocks. Huuuuuge rocks. Ginormous rocks with a cherry on top. Too far? Thought not. Sagna has found some consistency, and in Gibbs and Monreal we have two left backs that can perform at the tightest level, with Monreal being particularly impressive this season. Especially against Aguero and Negredo, our defence will need to be as tight as a really tight thing, and if they can keep goals conceded to a minimum and keep a couple of clean sheets, we will be flying at the top of the Prem. Fingers crossed they won't be giving out any Christmas Gifts.
3) Theooooooooo - He's back! We have lacked genuine width in his absence and with his pace he can stretch any back line. We will need to counter attack very well in the coming games and who else would you want running at someone slow like Demichiles? He adds another dimension to our play and when he is fully back Arsenal will be even more dangerous. Let's hope he brings some Festive cheer to us!
Reading this may have been as boring as watching Stoke play, and unfortunately for you it wasn't as short as a video showing all of Spurs' goals this season. Hopefully though you've seen how crucial this month is and that if it all goes well, we will be in a fantastic position. Thanks for reading!
Matt
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