arsenal 6 blackpool 0

http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/tv-online-arsenal-v-blackpool-highlights

By Myles Palmer

From Rhys Jaggar : Theo surprises Myles

Yes, that was Theo Walcott, Man of the Match.

Perhaps you saw Hansen's comments on MOTD?

Pretty much what I said after the Burnley game last season, except I left out the bit about him not possessing a football brain, as I think he has one..........he's got a different learning path to Hansen IMHO.......

My asssessment of yesterday:

1. Rosicky continues to shine, AA slowly waking up.
2. Wilshere at home against Blackpool and can happily start more like that.
3. Diaby played like he was on dope. Slow, ponderous and looked like he'd had a few pies and curries this summer - bulked up not in a good way. Take the goal out and he was below par. He can come good this season still......
4. Chamakh missed a few sitters but has potential. How he missed AA's cross I still don't know - if that were Bendtner, you'd be writing most awful stuff......
5. Best touch was Eboue/Walcott hug - two who suffered with the Press sharing a warm celebration together.........
6. New bar set-up at Club is good, but ordering food there is not set up properly: 'SOME OTHER BUGGERS' FOOD, MATE!!!!' First day at school I guess...
7. Elvis Presley is now the order to get off after warm-up, not to enter the arena. The coming out bit was pretty naff, to be honest.....
8. Blackpool's LB is a better crosser than Clichy......
9. The 2 min HT warning still doesn't work properly - we want to be back on time, but we were late.

10. The Mexican thought he was Jim Baxter.....
11. Almunia stood around for 90 minutes doing not much...

Myles replies :

Rhys, you're a better crosser than Clichy.

Theo didn't surprise me. He just brought Zagreb to London N5.

What he did to Croatia, he did to Blackpool. Croatia had only one weak player, the left back. Blackpool have eleven weak players but at least they try to play football, which Stoke don't.

Theo Walcott was the star of a 12-minute match.

The first goal was the best tbecause it ended the mismatch long before a harsh red card put the visitors down to 10 men.

Eboue square to Clichy, first time up the line to Arshavin, help it on to Chamakh, run inside for his perfect lay-off, first time pass to Rosicky, two touches back to Arshavin again, angled first time pass across to the right side of the box into Walcott's run, sidefoot across the keeper. Just like Zagreb.

Exquisite stuff from the Colney traning pitch. That is AW : he aims to take his fast-passing training practices into his stadium.

When it works it's exquisite and Arshavin's razor skills and cool brain can make it clinical.

Chamakh might become the slick technician-target man that Arsenal's midfield has needed for four years.

Arsenal's midfielders pass to each other too much and need to be more direct, more penetrating.

Chamakh is nothing like Adebarndoor or RVP. A different animal completely. Let's see what he can do in his first 10 games.

Interesting that injuries forced Wenger to play Rosicky in his Czech Repub/Borussia Dortmund position, his natural position. Rosicky came to Arsenal to play with Robbie Pires, not to replace him.

When Theo has no time to think, he's good. When he has time to think, he's useless.

I agree with Hansen, who said, "If you don't have a football brain, you can't acquire one."

If Walcott had Wilshere's football brain, he'd be Jairzinho.

For younger readers, Jairzinho was a roaming right winger-striker who played for Brazil in the 1970 World Cup. He was strong in an elastic way, able to run through challenges that would have knocked other wingers into row F.

Also for younger readers : Slim Jim Baxter was a gifted lunatic-alcoholic who played left half for Rangers. Once after a Scotland tour game in South America, roommates Slim Jim and striker Neil Martin got totally, totally bladdered and in the morning Martin was found on his blood-soaked hotel bed with a big lump of glass sticking out of his bare foot. 

Jim admitted that he had got up for a pee in the middle of the night and seen his friend out cold on the bloodstained bed.

Aghast, they asked, "Why didn't you call the doctor?"

Jim's reply was, " I thought he was dead."

From Chris Rustle : Could Wilshere make Cesc stay?
 

Watching young Wilshere play gives me hope. He gets the ball and plays early forward passes. He can play one touch football the way Cesc likes it. Unlike Nasri and Diaby - who are both technically gifted - Jack is direct. Not only that but he is a fighter and plays with arrogance. He is similar to Cesc in some ways.

Arsenal have no partnership like Brady/Rix, Rocastle/Dixon, Cole/Pires/ Henry, and even Hleb/Cesc/Flamini. There is a partnership in the making here. We saw it last year in the Emirates Cup and there was further evidence against Blackpool. Wilshere can break up the French fraternity and be Cesc's new ally. Arsenal's Xavi and Iniesta.

We have Cesc until May 2011.

Hopefully, Wilshere can make him stay longer.

Myles replies :

I'd love to see that. But it might be wishful thinking.

Yes, football is a game of partnerships. But Fabregas and Wilshere are both small guys.

Either side of Vieira, maybe. Either side of Song, not really.

Petit-Vieira-Parlour was a partnership, Overmars & Bergkamp was a partnership. Being there every week watching how Parlour-Bergkamp became partners was interesting.

Ray loved playing with Dennis, as Freddie did, as anybody would, and he learned where Dennis wanted him to run and how Dennis wanted to use him.

It became automatic and Ray had just about the best attitude, game for game, that you'll ever see in a footballer. He was also strong, durable and fast. As Ray said to me once, "I'm quite quick."

Look at what Ashley Cole and Malouda have been doing at Chelsea during 2010. Malouda is cute as well as resilient and two-footed, and knows how to use Ashley. They have helped Chelsea to win 6-0 and 6-0 and that's why Carlo says managing Chelsea is like playing a computer game.

Jack Wilshere is by far the best footballer Arsenal have produced since Ashley Cole.

We do not know how good Jack can be. He's 18 and still learning a lot, still making the mistakes that teenage footballers make.

Fabregas is spinal, the backbone and brains of Arsenal, the face of the team, the strongest character of the team, the biggest star in the team, the crowd's favourite player, and the biggest replica shirt-seller.

But Fabregas will only stay if Arsenal win a trophy this season.

Read his programme notes yesterday. I think they're online at Arsenal.com, although I've never checked.

What Fab4 says, in effect, reading between the lines, is :  I've been forced to stay but I'll lead the team professionally.

If Fabregas enjoys this season, we will. If not, forget it.

Aug 22, 2010