Arsha Silences The Kop: Part II

Two weeks ago Arsenal were 11 points behind Chelsea, 6 behind United, and written off by many pundits and fans who had lost patience. In these two weeks the leaders have lost the ‘Moneybags Derby‘ and drawn at home to Everton. Villa have taken three points at Old Trafford. Suddenly, everyone who had written us off is scrambling to save face.

Desi Gunner, one of the most authentic & insightful blogs on Arsenal, takes time out for 11Gunners in this Exclusive. Enjoy!

One important aspect that most people, especially pundits, tend to forget is the game in hand. I thought that given the tight nature of the league this year and our points disadvantage due to having played a game less, it would be interesting to look at the premier league table in a different light.

The following table focuses on the matches drawn, lost and points dropped. This gives a different perspective to the gap between the teams and shows how close the teams really are. I have taken only the top 7 teams as they cover a broad enough range and are generally believed to be competing for the top spots.

Legend: M – Matches; D – Draws; L – Losses; H – Home; A – Away; PD – Points Dropped; T – Total; GD – Goal Difference; %PD – PD as Percentage of Total Points Available; D+L/M – % Games Where Points Were Dropped; PT – Predicted Tally (Based on Same Form)

All columns are quite intuitive except perhaps %PD and D+L/M. %PD is the percentage of points a team has dropped. Arsenal have dropped 14 points out of a total of 45 (15*3), which is just over 30 per cent. The second last column (D+L/M) shows the percentage of games where a team drops points. Chelsea have 25 percent meaning they either draw or lose once every 4 games. Arsenal, on the other hand, fail to win once every 3 games.

Some people believe that Chelsea are clear leaders. Can any team that drops points every fourth game be ‘Invincible‘? However, we can see their dominance from the fact that if the Blues can maintain similar stats till the end of the season, and drop only 23 percent of total points available, they will reach close to 88 points, which would be an achievement and most likely win them the league.

In this regard Arsenal need to make an improvement as we would only reach 79 points based on our present record. United would be around the 81 point mark. Of course, these percentages can change drastically with a couple of losses or a run of wins.

It’s interesting to note that teams from fourth onwards have a D+L/M value of 50 percent or more. In other words, these teams fail to win one in two games or worse. Villa, who have defeated United and Chelsea, have only managed to win half their matches. Citeh, after spending hundreds of millions, are only winning 40 percent of their games. This is the best reflection of how tight the league is this year.

It’s not difficult to understand why Arsene believes that top teams will drop more points this year. Consider our league position with this perspective and there is enough reason to have faith in Wenger and his young squad. We just need a little more consistency.

To Be Or Not To Be!

There exists in England a newspaper called the Star. In fact there has been a newspaper in England called the Star for many years – but the current version of this paper is unlike any that has gone before it. The Star is not a newspaper in the true sense of the word. Part is true – it is printed on paper. But as for the other bit: ‘NEWS’ does not really have any part to play in the making of this newspaper at all. They make things up.

Tony Attwood, an Editor with Arsenal.com, takes time out and explains the above exclusively for 11Gunners..

Most newspapers have editorial conferences where the leading planners in the paper sit around a big table and argue about the main stories and features of the next edition. They might talk about the collapse of the British economy, the danger of North Korea having a nuclear bomb, big stuff like that.

But not in the Star. For them the big stories are TV personalities, and people who are dead. This might sound morbid, but I have always thought that the Star would be the best place in the world to work, because their news conferences each day would be so funny.

“What’s tomorrow’s big headline?” shouts the editor.

“Elvis Presley found living in a London bus on the dark side of the Moon,” says a journalist.

“We did that last week,” says the editor.  “There must be something new!”

“John Lennon is doing a comeback tour from his new base in Terra del Fuego,” says another.

“Possible, possible,” replies the editor.  “But what about football, we must have some football!”

“Cesc Fabregas is going to Barcalona,” says a new reporter who hasn’t quite got the hang of everything yet.  Everyone sniggers.

“No wait,” says the editor.  “I have it.   Liverpool are going to sign Eduardo!”

Now you might think this is an insane and stupid story. But it is true. It was run by several papers – and not only was the story in the paper, it was published the very day Eduardo signed a new long term contract with Arsenal!

In fact, football journalism is not quite as crazy as it might seem. You can do it if you want. You take a load of players names and write each one on a card. Put all the cards in one box. Now take another load of cards and write football clubs names on those cards. They go in another box.

Now you draw out cards at random and get Eduardo from the players box, and Liverpool from the club box, and that’s it. You have a story.

And better, it doesn’t matter what you wrote the day before, because the readers of these newspapers are so stupid that they can’t remember yesterday’s story.

“Denilson wanted by Real Madrid,” is a possible headline. (I just made that up but it could appear – and the fact that for 18 months every single paper in the Britain called Denilson not Pereiria Neves Denilson – which is his proper name – but “Lightweight Denilson” – endlessly suggesting he was useless.    The fact that Wenger played Denilson more than any other player last season suggested merely that Wenger had ‘Lost It’ and no longer knew how to pick a team.

The fact is, when it comes to transfers, no one can ever predict Arsène Wenger. He never does what you expect him to do. We have a perfectly good right back called Eboue. Everyone says, we really must sign a new centre forward. So Wenger goes and buys another full back called Sagna (a man whom most of us have never heard of). Then he takes Eboue and plays him in midfield. Sometimes it works, sometimes not. “Play him as a Full-Back or not at all,” everyone in the crowd shouts. So Mr Wenger turns him into a Forward.

This is how it always is.  Henry leaves. Surely Arsène will bring in a big name superstar striker. He brings in Eduardo, again a man without much of a reputation. The same is true over and over again. Which is why all the predictions in the press about Arsenal’s transfer dealings are so stupid. Mr Wenger never does the obvious.

When he first came to Arsenal, Arsène Wenger introduced three great revolutions. One was to change the diet and lifestyle of all our players. One was to say that we needed a new training arena – which we then built. And one was to introduce World-Wide Scouting.

It is this last revolution which has given us the exciting football we have seen. To begin with World-Wide Scouting was used to bring in players from around the world who were not known in Britain but could perform. Vieira was one of the first, and one of the greatest. Pires, Henry, Lauren, Ljunberg, Adebayor. When Wenger signed these players there was no competition for them. There were no articles in the press everyday linking them with Milan or Madrid, because no one was talking about them. He signed players we had never heard of – and then turned them into superstars.

But then having set up that approach he did something even more remarkable. He started up a second round of world-wide scouting with ever younger players, finding 16 year olds across the globe who could develop into the very best in the country. And behind that he started recruiting an 11 year old team. Last year as the under 18s they won the youth cup. They have been playing together for 6 years.

We all now know that Walcott is a great player, but when he signed, not everyone was sure. Except Wenger. When we signed Ramsey, or Vela, who really knew what they could produce on the pitch? No one, except Wenger. No other European manager would touch Vela because they knew how often he would have to fly back to Mexico to play for his country. But Wenger saw something so incredible in the young man, that he was willing to accept that disruption.

So it continues with Arsenal – and this is one of the great joys of watching Arsenal. You never quite know who you are going to see next. Not everyone works out. I thought Julio Baptista could have been a sensation – but he never really functioned. When I watched Lupoli in the reserves I thought he was Theirry Henry II.  So what do I know?

Which makes me think, maybe I should be working for the Star today. I’d stop focussing on Liverpool buying Eduardo, but instead think maybe of Arsène Wenger’s next buy.

Wenger to buy 12 year old goalkeeper from Peru. “I see him as potentially a great winger,” says Arsène Wenger. That’s how I’d write it.  And the chances are, even now and then, I’d be right.

Tony Attwood: A True Gooner

Tony Attwood is editor of two daily blogs: UNTOLD ARSENAL – which is dedicated to telling the stories of Arsenal than no one else ever tells, and WOOLWICH ARSENAL which re-tells the Gunners’ daily history from 100 years ago.   He is the Committee Member of Arsenal Independent Supporters’ Association in charge of the Arsenal History project, a contributor to Highbury High, the Arsenal programme and the Official Arsenal.com biography of players, and the author of the novel MAKING THE ARSENAL which tells the story of 100 years ago through the eyes of a Fleet Street journalist.   Details of Tony’s work can be found on www.emiratesstadium.info

Also Read By Tony Attwood:

Untold Arsenal feat. 11Gunners: Arsenalisation of India!

Following Arsenal from Afar..

11Gunners Goes International..

11Gunners is proud to announce that we have been featured on Untold Arsenal, one of the most prominent blogs on Arsenal. Tony Attwood, the man behind it, is a legend of sorts when we talk of blogging and more. We hope we continue to get the love and support from fans world over. The real aim behind 11Gunners and StepOver is indeed to unite the football community. And that we shall, Ahoy!

Tony Attwood, author of Making the Arsenal, is an Arsenal season ticket holder, the Committee Member of Arsenal Independent Supporters Association responsible for AISA’s “Arsenal History” project, and a contributor to both the Highbury High fanzine and the Arsenal Player Database on Arsenal.com.

Tony also edits two daily blogs: Untold Arsenal & Making The Arsenal, and fervently supports the Wenger revolution and draws on a team of top writers to provide daily news and analysis of all things Arsenal.

You can read the full article here:

Arsenal and India: All You Never Knew!

Hope you like it. Keep Gunning for now..

Also Read:

By Toni Attwood: How To Become A Football Journalist..

]]> http://11gunners.com/11gunners/untold-arsenal-feat-11gunners-arsenal-in-india/2638/feed/ 10