Posts Tagged ‘Arsene Wenger’

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Arsenal Vs Newcastle United: Persie double in 3-0 win silences talks of club crisis

August 31st, 2008

Robin van Persie scored twice for Arsenal, as the Gunners silenced all the talks of a club crisis with a romping 3-0 victory over Newcastle United at the Emirates Stadium.

This win came as a relief to Arsenal Manager Arsene Wenger, who was under the hammer after a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Fulham in Craven Cottage.

Gunners outclassed Newcastle in all the departments and showed the same vigor, which was visible earlier in the week against FC Twente that got them through to the Group stages of the Champions League.

The goal scoring started in the eighteenth minute, as Dutchmen Persie scored from the spot after Newcastle’s N’Zogbia handled the ball.

Persie scored his second goal in the 41st minute, as he smashed a pass from Emmanuel Eboue past Newcastle goalkeeper, Shay Given.

Newcastle had their chances with skipper Michael Owen and Jonas Gutierrez constantly making a move towards the Gunners net. However, the home side’s defense was impeccable and gave little scope of conversion to the Magpies.

In the 59th minute, Brazilian Denilson scored a superbly crafted goal to make it 3-0 and wrapping up the game for the home team.

Wenger was all praise for his side and said that they delivered what they promised at the beginning of the season, ‘Flawless Performance’. For Kevin Keegan, it was a disappointing game for his side after they showed great vigor in the first two games of the season.

Elsewhere, Bolton Wanderers & West Bromwich Albion were involved in the first 0-0 draw of the season at Reebok Stadium. Hammers went past Paul Ince’s Rovers 4-1 at Upton Park to continue the away side’s miserable run at this stadium. Again, Middlesbrough also defeated Stoke City 2-1 at the Riverside Stadium with a late goal from Tuncay Sanli.

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Posted in Arsenal, Newcastle United

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Philippe Senderos to play for AC Milan

August 28th, 2008

AC Milan has signed Philippe Senderos as a part of a loan deal for one full season from Arsenal.

The transfer was approved by Arsenal, as Senderos was not getting chances to utilize his skills at the club owing to the presence of a large number of players, who could play at the center back position.

Senderos, who plays for Switzerland, has been playing with the London Club for quite sometime now. The defender had a wonderful stint with the Gunners for the past five years.

His former teammates wanted him to have a wonderful season with AC Milan. It is expected that the temporary move could become a permanent move for the Swiss player, if he performs well in the coming season at AC Milan.

23-year old has appeared in 115 games during his last five years of stay with the Gunners. He arrived at the club in 2003, before which he played for FC Servette.

Arsenal Manager, Arsene Wenger, said that the player is currently visiting AC Milan where he will be having a medical test.

According to Wenger, the player was being lent to AC Milan so that he could play and utilize his skills and not let it rot on the bench.

Meanwhile, Arsenal secured a place in UEFA Champions League by defeating FC Twente 4-0 at the Emirates Stadium. With goals from Samir Nasri, William Gallas, Theo Walcott and Nicklas Bendtner, Gunners crushed the hopes of former England Coach, Steve McClaren’s side. McClaren will now have to be contented with a place in UEFA Cup.

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Posted in Arsenal, Football Transfer Market

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Ferguson hopes still alive for Henry

August 26th, 2008

It has been a long summer for the English club coaches in the Barclays Premier League.

Rafa Benitez has had his fight for Gareth Barry, which turned sour as the club owners decided against the transfer. Arsene Wenger, on the other hand, might make a move into the transfer market yet again to pursue the same Gareth Barry. However, Sir Alex Ferguson is treading a different path altogether.

Ferguson, who has already made his intentions clear of signing in Berbatov over from the Tottenham side, has mentioned that he would not give up on the Barcelona striker Thierry Henry.

After a scrappy performance by his team last week, Fergie has made it a point to strengthen his side into a formidable barrier to break down. He surely looks confident to defend the Championship title at every cost.

On the other hand, Dimitar Berbatov is to be put on the Spurs bench while his teammates are to take the field. This may be an opportunity for Fergie to get one deal out of the two.

If Fergie does pullout Barcelona striker, Henry, it will be a major transfer of the season. Manchester United, already known well for their counter attacks, would then have an attacking line, which would be tough for the best of defenders to cope.

Now, only time can tell what is in stored for Fergie and his men? However, it does not seem that he would have to encounter any misfortune like that of his fellow Liverpool Coach Benitez.

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Posted in Football Transfer Market, Man U

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Arsene Wenger: Too early for making predictions

August 23rd, 2008

Arsenal coach, Arsene Wenger, has been wary of his team’s performance before the start of the season. He felt that they needed to focus on the Champions League as well as the Premier League with equal vigor to stand supreme amongst the European Clubs.

Though the Gunner’s won the first match against West Brom 1-0, they seemed a little shabby compared to Chelsea, who mauled Portsmouth 4-0.

The Blues, under the rule of Luiz Felipe Scolari and playing with the new draftee Deco, seemed to be unstoppable in their opening match.

Wenger confirmed that Chelsea played an “impressive’ game, but also mentioned that it is really difficult to maintain it over the entire season. Even, Arsenal had started the league with an unbeatable 15 game streak in the previous season but crumpled down later on.

Arsenal coach said that he watched the match only through the first half, and then stopped as he felt that the match was already over by then. He thought that it was a poor day for Portsmouth and it could happen to any side.

According to Wenger, Chelsea would be trying hard to overthrow the Champions Manchester United.

He felt that last season was very unlucky for them having lost the title in the final game of the season owing to a draw. This time the Blues look more confident with the experience of Scolari to back them up.

However, Arsenal has also added to its side the experienced defender Silvestre over from Manchester United. Wenger hopes that this experience may allow him to cope with the injuries and misfortune, which always clouds his side.

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Posted in Arsenal, Premier League

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Silvestre joins Arsenal for an undisclosed fee

August 21st, 2008

After a lot of speculation, Arsenal has successfully completed the transfer of Mikael Silvestre from Manchester United for a fee, which is still undisclosed.

31-year-old defender, who was out of action for most part of the previous season after damaging his knee ligament, has been reported to agree with a 2-year deal at Emirates Stadium after serving 9 years in Old Trafford.

There were rumors in the previous season of the Frenchmen of shifting to Manchester City or Bordeaux, as his contract was about to expire. However, he eventually went for the North London side, which was his choice from the very beginning.

With Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic forming a first choice partnership for the Red Devils, Silvestre was having tough time holding a position in the playing eleven. Again with John O’Shea & Wes Brown renewing their contract and Patrick Evra playing wonderfully in the left-back, only a miracle could have earned him a spot in the first team.

With this transfer, Silvestre became only the second player to leave the Old Trafford club and join their rivals in Premier League after Brian Kidd 3 decades ago.

Lately, Wenger has been reluctant to offer contract to players over 30 years and this move for the France International, who has played 40 games for his side, has taken everyone by surprise.

After an uncharacteristic move from Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger said that there was a need for Silvestre in the Gunners Ranks with his side lacking the needed experience in the defense.

Meanwhile, Gunners would be looking for continuing their clean sheet in the coming weeks following their 1-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion at the Emirates Stadium.

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Posted in Arsenal, Football Transfer Market

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Arsenal looking for a new midfielder before transfer window closes

August 20th, 2008

Arsenal has set up a target to get a midfielder before the end of this transfer season to further revitalize the squad.

With star player Cesc Fabregas out on the grounds of a hamstring injury, which will not enable him to be back before the club’s second leg UEFA Champions League match against FC Twente, the midfield is once again set to be a keen discussion topic among various football specialists.

Possible targets for a midfield slot within the BPL include Liverpool’s Xabi Alonso and Aston Villa’s Gareth Barry amongst others.

Another young gun, Swiss midfielder Gokhan Inler, 8 million pound rated star, currently at Udinese may very well be the answer to this question.

The Gunners won their opening match of the Barclays Premier League against West Brom on Sunday, and the club would be looking to carry their form when they go to Fulham this weekend.

In the mean time, Arsenal have successfully extended Togolese striker Emmanuel Adebayor’s contract, extending it possibly up to 2012. This new deal will enable the striker to earn in the range of 160,000 pounds per week.

While most parts of the Arsenal faithful have given a mixed reaction to this new deal, manager Arsene Wenger has said that in any case Adebayor is an important part of the squad.

Wenger said that the striker needs to be backed fully by the fans, as ‘every player needs to feel wanted’. According to him, the striker’s contribution in the last two games is considerable by all standards.

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Posted in Arsenal, Premier League

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Wenger being optimistic ahead of the new season

August 10th, 2008

The ever so confident Arsenal manager, Arsene Wenger, is unsure of what exactly could be referred to as a successful season for the Gunners. However, he hints that the Barclay’s Premier League and the Champions League are going to be the primary concern for his team.

Wenger has shown clear intentions of clinching top position at the Premier League after last year’s close fight to the top, where the top three teams were separated in between mere 4 points.

He says that the team might still be considered a young side, but at no point should their experience be questioned. Supporting his view, he added that Cesc Fabregas has played in both FA Cup and Champions League finals and now has also appeared in a Euro Final.

At 21, Fabregas has gained respectable amount of experience and is being currently rested considering his summer with Spain.

Furthermore, Kolo Toure is expected to return after light training following his mild malaria strife. Even the future of Emmanuel Adebayor is no more uncertain and the striker from Togo is expected to show the flair he is more known for after his goal against the current Spanish Champions, Real Madrid, in the Emirates Cup encounter. All seems to be going fair for Arsenal and the Gunners are likely to come back with more zeal and enthusiasm, as is expected of them.

Wenger was heard saying that the Gunners would be looking forward to give hope and belief to all their supporters prior to the new season by playing their usual game full of quality and bring back glory, which has eluded them for a long time.

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Van Persie: Looking forward to fire alongside Adebayor

August 10th, 2008

With disappointments from the previous season after finishing third in the premiership in spite of a promising start, Arsenal will be looking forward to bank on Robin Van Persie & Emmanuel Adebayor for giving them a solid run in the first half of the league.

Dutch playmaker Van Persie also has high hopes this season and is looking to be injury-free for most part of this season and simultaneously, forging an unbeatable strike partnership alongside Emmanuel Adebayor.

Dutchman, who got a much-needed practice during Gunners Emirates Cup encounter with Spanish Giants Real Madrid, showed his skills to the maximum with Togo Striker, as Arsene Wenger chose his first-choice pairing in their 1-0 victory over current La Liga Champions.

Persie, who will be celebrating his 25th birthday in a few days, said that it was imperative for the two strikers to work as a unit and always be on the look out for one another. He also said that with the game they have shown the critics hints of the combination’s lethal effect on the field.

Dutchman was also looking to regain the same form that got him 6 goals in first ten games of the Premiership season, which allowed the Gunners to top the table. However, it was only his knee injury, which kept him out for 2 months and stopped both him and Arsenal to achieve Premiership glory.

With confidence flowing in the veins of the former Feyenoord striker and the Premiership start not that far away, Arsenal is sure to be threat for their opponents.

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Gallas keen on sorting out his past mistakes as skipper

July 31st, 2008

Arsenal captain William Gallas have accepted to the media that he committed some great errors for Arsenal last season when he led the side. He has also promised the fans of Arsenal that he would make considerable alter in his attitude and approach.

The leadership of Gallas came under strong scrutiny after Arsenal’s hope to win any challenge was washed away last Christmas and some ugly news followed his way regarding the fact that the captain had lashed out at a hoarding of an advertisement when Birmingham scored a last minute equalizer against Arsenal in February.

One of the things that have got Gallas’s captaincy under the hammer was his leadership skills and the talent to gel a unit. Although, he played the role of a peacemaker during a confrontation between Emmanuel Adebayor & Nicklas Bendtner at White Hart Lane, still the unity seemed missing in the side.

The 30-year old skipper pleaded for another opportunity and claimed that he got to know the game better by playing for Arsenal. He added that it was quite natural of the fact that sometimes he committed some mistakes leading to the downfall of his team. He guaranteed a change in his attitude this season by modifying the way he interacted with the players of his team.

Reports, however, suggests that Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger has not guaranteed Gallas as the skipper. The Gunners Manager as been looking for Gallas’s replacements and Kolo Toure, who plays centre back at the Emirates, would be on highest priority.

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Posted in Arsenal, Premier League

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‘More’ is what Wenger wants from Walcott

July 24th, 2008

Arsene Wenger, the manager of the Arsenal Football club, has made it clear that the team desires more from striker Theo Walcott. Walcott is believed to be of very high potential and his skills are believed to be at par with the best footballers of the world.

Arsene Wenger was quoted saying that he would like to see Walcott more in the starting line-up of Arsenal. According to Arsenal manager, the player, who has been very impressive with his football for the past 2 years of his career with The Gunners, should improve for giving the club chance in this year’s title race.

Wenger also agreed upon the fact that Walcott was improving consistently. His last season performance was better than the previous one.

Arsenal plans to use the player to the utmost limit this season, as he is improving each day and is only 19.

The coach said that Arsenal is looking for a player, who can support Walcott’s game as he generally makes his own run. So, they are looking for the right combination for the team upfront.

According to Wenger, Walcott, whose target was to represent Arsenal in about 15 matches last season, should try to be a regular in the line-up.

When asked about Walcott’s chances to make a cut in the English national side, the manager was very hopeful and said with age on his side, he can improve. He told the reporters that he would like to see the young player’s game improve each day. This would not only help the London Club, but also help the player to see himself in the national colors one day.

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Posted in Arsenal, General

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