Tottenham won their game and we won our. so we got the CL spot.
I can see the same happen this year too…
If we play our best we will be in the CL next year.

I DEMAND to have my St Totteringhams Day! It’s a familiar year in, year out tradition.

As much a part of my calendar as pancake day or Guy Fawke’s.

My Oxford-dwelling, tee-total half-brother is a STH Spud which is adding a certain frisson of spice to the season’s end.

He wouldn’t be shy of a sly dig or two and, without encouragement, he already naturally carries and unbearable air of smugness – so it’s unconscionable that they should take our place at Europe’s biggest table.

Unconscionable I say!

Not just “no fútbol brain” but only has pace and that’s all.

If you think about it, Theo has been very influential in our season, when Arsene finally lethim play he was scoring regularly qwhen we needed goals then in the middle of the season when Giroud and Podolski seemed to find their shooting boots he was assisting and then now when we needed results and goals the most to fight back into CL he has stood up and been accounted for.

That’s the worry, on average, over the last 7 years the spuds have emerged as our closest rivals – this will be the third season in 7 years where our final league positions will be decided on the final day of the season. It used to be a given, but of late our rivalry has been of a genuine nature.

If we start to challenge for the league again, spuds will again become an inconsequential irritant, but while we continue to amass around the 70 point mark, we’ll perennially be under threat from them, and any other decent team who has a season. Newcastle last season, Spuds and Everton (for a while)this …

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not whining about what we’ve managed over the previous 8 years, just stating that this has to be the last season of hoping that 70 points will be enough to see us through another season of debt management.

God I hope we win tomorrow!!!!

I was also thinking honestly where would we be without Theo.

Rooney and Mata.

Although there are several players who are round about these figures.

RVP for example has 8 assists, but 25 goals, Podolski 9 and 11 etc.

If we were facing missing out on CL to a resurgent Liverpool, or an over achieving Everton, I would still be massively disappointed but perhaps not devastated. Missing out to the enemy, finishing below them and handing them Cl football in the process however, is a thought too much to stomach.

I know many on here say they don’t give a shit about finishing above the spuds, that our own success is all that matters, but to a large degree I correlate our success with finishing above our neighbours: a relatively big club with a talented squad but ultimately a smaller, lesser club than The Arsenal in every way. Are lowest league position should now always be a minimum of one above theirs, such has been our hegemonic dominance over the past two decades.

The last 7 years or so have borne witness to them cranking up the volume and getting nosier and nosier; it’s about time someone called the environmental health and shut them down, or up as the case may be.

I just really hope that regardless of how tomorrow goes, the powers that be recognise that we are no longer shoo-ins for the top four, and the only way to ensure that we are is to enable Wenger to build a squad capable of actually winning the league. Now, this still may actually result in us coming fourth, as Chelski, Citeh and Utd will all undoubtedly expect to be vying for the top spots, but if we are only single figures behind the team at the top, those in 5th and 6th will be a mere afterthought.

07/08 We reached 83 points, finished 3rd, 4 points behind the champions and 18 points clear of 5th. That’s almost 6 years ago now.

Regardless of tomorrow’s outcome, a season of this ilk has to be the target.

COYG!!!!!1

The Guardian says that only 4 EPL players have both 10+ goals AND 10+ assists: 2 are Santi and Theo – which says something about the flexibility of our forward play. It also shows Theo in a good light, although the impression is he has more often been less influential than Santi.

I don’t really care but I idly wonder who the other 2 are?

I think we will get the necessary points tomorrow.

@JD

I disagree as I think Theo’s season has been a succes, we have seen him become a 20 goal scorer not to mention has scored massive goals to help get us in this position.

i got sick in my mouth already….

i dont care who we play in the group stage, i enjoy football, and i enjoy arsenal. I love seeing us play.

I want CL. Simples.

“For what it’s worth I don’t think we’ll win tomorrow but neither do I think will the spuds”

Reverse psychology, eh?

Morning all

:~)

Vermaelen (twice), Wilshere, Sagna (twice).

Kenny Sansom has the most appearances (eleven) in PFA Team of the Year.

For being so young he is very good in front of goal and strong. He has the makings of a phenomenal striker.

That is a blast from the past

Have to say that I am excited to see how Matthew Connolly performances for Cardiff City next year. One player disappearing after an Arsenal career the other rebuilding after his

http://www.thebeautifulgroan.com/2008/08/05/where-are-they-now-christopher-wreh/

not the suicides but an importation of wunderyutes…

i know weve been linked to some players recently with all this cash they announced but its not AWs way for a start.. it would probably just give him liscence to build a new under21 team without selling someone for 30mil.

Yea they tend to play in the earlier rounds of both the FA and CC as we seem to be taking both more seriously this year and hopefully next year. I think Arsene is thinking if we could win 1 it would be the springboard for a run at more silverware.

Yaya is not only 6’3 but still in the Anelka mold as JJ stated and a very good finisher fir his age.

@JJ

Bill would personally have Arsene’s kneck!

That mate would lead to a higher than normal suicide rate

he is 6’3″ as well, a project not the finished article.

It kicked off again this morning, and to quote Arsene “talks are at an advanced stage”.

The kid is playing in the 2nd tier of French football, as is Imbula another supposed target.

To early to say how Campbell will develop, but I am glad we have coaches and not fans in charge of making these decisions. Funny that whilst we use to have youth playing in the CC the pressure to win something saw a change in that thinking this year. As we saw it didn’t pay off. I have high hopes on a few coming through, time will tell of course.

arteta and cazorla are quality players.

i dont know why really we dont have any players in the dream team or whatever..my guess would be is people see us as underachieving?

interesting stat about it being the 3rd time..id love to know how many of these current players have been in it? sagnas done it twice but what about the rest?

but yeah santi should have been in at least this year

I promise I will leave it along after this. Where we disagree is I don’t believe that youth development and first team success have to be in conflict. We should develop as many good young players as we can possibly accumulate using the reserves and then the loan system. This can be done without affecting the first team. The young players that have come into our first team were all excelling in regular first team football somewhere else when we bought them which is really not any different then being on loan. The academy players that have made the first team all proved themselves on loan (other then Cesc) so in truth we are actually doing exactly what I am suggesting.

You made my point even more loudly, enjoying his fútbol in Spain and so is Campbell with him wanting another year there. I really do want Campbell as from everything I have seen he is exciting and direct on the left flank but will he enjoy Real Betis took much and not want to come back.

Did miss read you comment or did you just agree with Bill?!?!?!?!?!?!

I do think that will be the lineup but what affect will it have on Podolski after his brace is the question? I enjoyed the fútbol we were playing especially on the counter with brilliant passing and movement and I don’t want to go back to just goofing the ball up to Giroud. That is my only reservation with Giroud coming back in the side especially playing at St James Park.

reports have Vela really enjoying his time in Spain, could be he was a later bloomer or that we stunted his opportunities. In either case I wish the lad well and am happy he is enjoying his new club and doing so well.

I think it is the education and the whether they get in Spain that makes them not want to come back to London seriously, though another year on loans puts us in a difficult position with regards to his contract. We’ll never know what he can do if another year away is on the cards then he has just 12 months to walk away after that.

“Who starts for Arteta come Sunday?” I’m with Bill on this one. I see Giroud back in the middle flanked by Podolski and Theo. The midfield well be Rosicky, Ramsey and Cazorla. It has to be the most sensible and practical line up.