History repeat itself again !!!
Newcastle 4 Arsenal 4
History keep repeating the same script due to the humanity never changed , inside the camp of Arsenal there is no leader in the defense , no Martin Keown , no Tony Adams and no Patrick Vieria in this team again , so they crashed and surrendered two goals lead within 5 minutes injury time at home when they played Tottenham 2 years ago.
Last season , when the team mathematically still have a chance to chase up the leaders : Man United and Chelsea , they were 2 goals up after 1st half playing against Wigan , in the last ten minutes they were crashed again and gave up the lead and lost at 3-2 at the end and finished the campaign in a very very discouraging manner.
This time we were lucky as we have 4 goals cushion but I cannot remember which teams can surrendered such cushion at such high and professional level even in 2nd half they are down to 10 men..
Of course the injury of Djourou which cannot play is factor 1, that stupid Diaby who thought he or the team can afford the risk of him being sent off due to 4 goals lead is factor 2. Referee is the most crucial factor as well as most of spectators cannot agree the 2nd penalty should be given.. a soft soft call!
However , the decision of substitution was all wrong as Rosicky should not have been come in to replace Arshavin , and then Eboue replaced Walcott is a real joke..
If they needed to adjust the formation to 4-4-1 then Walcott should be the lone striker , RVP should be replaced by a huge and mobile holding player like Chamakh , after Diaby was sent off , there was no body to be a holding midfielder , why don't Wenger send Chamakh to fill the hole , at least he has a good header as well!!!
The real cause is Wenger and his team already took this game as granted after 1st half and never expect Newcastle could come back ! Is that a crucial 2 points ｄ ｒｏｐ ? yes and how will this affect their next performance against Wolves at home ? I don't know.
Wolves just beat Man United at home last night at 2-1 so the gap was shortened from 5 to 4 points..
http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/36844/tv-online-newcastle-v-arsenal-highlights
chanreborn: I couldn’t agree more. Guess you must have read the news that there might be bribery and game fixing involved, and that our Rosicky and the Ref Dowd were under investigation. I question this piece of news (saying “source from French TV), I think it is not to be trusted.
If there is to be a suspect in game fixing, maybe it should be Professor Wenger who made those substitutions!
“Wenger admitted the psychological damage inflicted by Newcastle's fightback could have a lasting effect. Asked about the cost, Wenger said: "Mathematically, two points; psychologically, the damage is a bit bigger tonight because everybody is, of course, very, very disappointed in the dressing room. But only the future will tell.''
I am not sure if I wanted to count the points ｄ ｒｏｐped because of our own carelessness – 3 points vs Spurs, 2 points vs Man City, 2 points vs Wigan, 2 points vs Newcastle, etc etc. Just thought we should be topping the league by now. Sigh …
By Myles Palmer
Newcastle 4 Arsenal 4
Walcott 1 Djourou 3, Van Persie 10, Van Persie 26, Barton 68 (pen), Best 75, Barton 83(pen), Tiote 87
_____________________________________
Wenger's professionals, who are second in the league, got a draw away home on Saturday, while Manchester United lost at Wolves.
A dramatic game at St James's Park went something like this :
Andrei Arshavin supplies two pinpoint assists to set up two goals in the first three minutes.
The opener is a terrific first time pass which allows the just-onside Theo Walcott to zoom through and slot easily in 49 seconds.
What we call a flying start, I think.
Then Djourou heads in the Russian's perfect free-kick for 2-0 and Walcott cuts a ball back to let RVP bang home for 3-0 inside 10 minutes.
At the other end, Szczesny does well to catch a Nolan cross. When Sagna crosses, Robin van Persie has a completely free header from four yards to make it 4-0 in 26 minutes.
Frankly, Newcastle are a shambles, not up for it at all. Dismayed and depressed after a week in which club owner Mike Ashley rakes in £35 million for Andy Carroll (but doesn’t spend any of it), and Newcastle look dead and buried at half-time.
Theo Walcott is having his most accomplished game in an Arsenal shirt. One goal scored, another made, and more to come, it seems. A massacre looks inevitable.
But Djourou limps off in 48, Squillaci comes on, and Arsenal go rapidly into meltdown when, two minutes later, Squillaci gives Diaby a three-yard pass he's not expecting.
Joey Barton sees his chance to win a loose ball and goes for it and by then Diaby, reacting late, has put his left leg in a place where it could have been hurt. Diaby wasn't hurt because he immediately jumped up and grabbed Barton by the neck and threw him to the ground.
Seeing that, every player on the pitch knew Diaby would be sent off and Sagna grabbed Diaby as soon as he could, to prevent him doing something even worse.
Amazingly, Wenger claimed Joey Barton should have been sent off ! What for? How embarrassing can this manager be?
Barton had done nothing wrong. He made a fair challenge for a ball that was 60-40 in his favour. And he won it. I couldn't blame Barton for putting his arms out in the classic gesture that says : Ref, what have I done?
For me, it would have been more appropriate for Diaby to grab Squillaci by the neck and throw him to the ground for giving him a hospital ball.
Newcastle's first penalty was unprofessional play by Koscielny in the box. You don’t clatter into the back of players in the box when they're going nowhere.
That’s his game on the 30-yard line, nicking the ball in front of the striker, and he’s good at that. But not in the penalty area! So risky, so stupid, so unprofessional !
Joey Barton sends Szczesny the wrong way from the spot. So it's now 1-4.
Wenger then takes off Arshavin and brings on Rosicky.
Arsenal were 4-0 up in 26 minutes and after 68 minutes they were still 4-0 up.
Now its 76 and they’re 4-1 up with 10 men and Pardew brings on the springy, fast Nile Ranger, a determined athlete.
Rosicky dribbles in his own box and flicks the ball to Clichy. But the flick goes to Barton, who pokes the ball forward to Leon Best, who spins and scores for 2-4. He’s flagged offside. But the dawdling Rosicky, walking out, is playing Best onside.
Rosicky doesn’t think like a defender and has already prove that by flicking the ball , as if he's in midfield, and now he walks out far too slowly. But the goal is ruled out by the linesman. Its a legit goal but it’s disallowed, so it's still 1-4.
Then Jose Enrique crosses to Best who gets up and heads the ball against Clichy's back and when the ball breaks for Best, he slots from five yards for 2-4.
Koscielny ends up sitting on Szczesny as the ball hits the back of the net and soon after that Szczesny makes a terrific save from a Nile Ranger rocket.
Wenger then throws the game away in the 79th minute.
He bottles it completely when he takes off a superfast striker who has scored one goal and made another and brings on midfielder Eboue, thus inviting 11+ minutes of continuous bombardment.
What masterstroke that is. Kamikaze!
If he leaves Walcott on, Arsenal might score again and Newcastle know that. If Walcott is still on the pitch, Newcastle have to keep two defenders back to mark Walcott, so the game is 8 against 8.
But he takes Walcott off and puts on Eboue and that makes it 10 against 9. It's madness because it invites a siege that can only end one way : with more goals by Newcastle.
Alan Pardew is still 2-4 down and can’t believe his luck. He’s standing there watching Wenger, the most famous attacking coach in Europe, taking off his only chance of scoring another goal.
Eboue did nothing, contributed zero. When Fabregas fouled left back Jose Enrique, Eboue kicked the ball away and got booked.
From that free-kick, Barton measured a long free-kick to the corner of the six yard box, where Wilkinson jumped above Koscielny and Rosicky pushed the defender while he was in mid-air. Phil Dowd gave another penalty and Barton hits his second penalty down the middle and in off the keeper's shin.
Rosicky then misplaces a pass to Clichy on a counter-attack, miskicks a clearance into the sky and then, as the ball ｄ ｒｏｐs, Rosicky stupidly nudges Barton off balance.
Free-kick to Newcastle and Barton hits the ball into the box and Clichy heads it out and the ball drops to the unmarked Cheik Tiote who scores the volley of the season from 25 yards to make it 4-4 and trigger pandemonium at St James Park.
What a left-foot volley from distance !
It's a dipping thunderbolt that swerves into the bottom corner.
Rivaldo, eat your heart out !
For the first time since the Premier League started in 1992, a team has come back from four goals down and the decisive strike is by an Ivorian who has never scored for Newcastle before.
What a goal by the 24-year old who had a superb game at the Emirates when promoted Newcastle won 1-0.
In 20 minutes, Newcastle have scored a penalty and a tap-in and another penalty and now they’ve scored the goal of the season.
The greatest Premier League comeback we've ever seen is also the greatest collapse we've ever seen.
Eboue for Walcott when you're 4-2 up? You cannot be serious, monsiour.
It was a pulsating Saturday as the English Premier League for once lived up to Sky's relentless barrage of hype.
Strong winds blew up and down our green and pleasant land and Manchester United were beaten for first time this season, by the bottom club.
Wolves 2 Manchester United 1 is a scoreline that cost me money. But who cares?
A glorious day of crash-bang-wallop football in wet and windy conditions. Finesse? Not much. But lots of exciting action. It was 5-3 for Everton against Blackpool and 4-3 for Wigan against Blackburn. There were 41 goals in eight games, with five comebacks by the team that went behind.
Being English, I love English football. It's in my blood.
Yes, of course I love Spanish football, Dutch at times, also Brazilian, Argentinian if they don't cheat, great players and class teams from all countries, like Ghana in the last World Cup.
Luis Figo wasn't from any of those countries but he could play.
Feb 7, 2011