Wednesday 1 January 2014

Match Preview: Arsenal Vs Cardiff City (Lets begin the New year..3 points style)



HappyNew year people!!!! Here's wishing you all the best 2014 has to offer.....2013 gone past was a mixed bag for everyone i'm sure..A bit of the ''good, the bad and the Ugly''(without the Old classic Music from that Western of course). Yes, some things in our lives went well, as some others didn't go as well as we would have liked. But as they say over here in Lasgidi, ''Man no die, Man no rotten''... Simply meaning whatever your struggles may be in this crazy world  we live in, as long as you are still breathing..shake off all your limitations, failures, doubts, fears, and just get on with living. There's still the best of you to come and it may come around sooner than you think. So if its worth anything, my exhortation to every dear reader of  this forum is to keep your head up no matter what you are up against..You ain't dead yet.

In the wonderful world of Arsenal, no time for New-year back slapping its straight into business mode. There are 3 points at stake today and if our march to destiny this season is to end happily, then we must take all three against Cardiff city. They have been in the news for all the wrong reasons lately as a result of a media storm attracted by their eccentric owner Vincent Tan. Be it far from me to get embroiled in the murky affairs of corporate football where fancy suits ( or in this case a dodgy mustache and weird hair) threatens to disrupt the simple joys of watching a good football match. After issuing a warning shot to erstwhile manager Malky Malkay over being sacked if he doesn't resign his position. The owner made good his threat after a three nil defeat to Southampton and fired Malkay. Leaving Cardiff manager-less as they make the trip down to London to face Arsenal. Its a poor situation to be in if you are a fan of a club struggling to stay up and then forced to cope with boardroom decisions like these that leave you scratching your head. Criticisms of the move aside, i just think there's pretty little any one can do about how a man chooses to behave with a property he has invested  a truck load of money on. 

We have a rash of injuries to report, Walcott,Giroud,Wilshere,Rosicky, all didn't come out of the last game ok. Vermaelen and Monreal also have question marks over their availability but its the boss's decision to assess their participation or not. Its winnable games like this we would have hoped to allow the likes of Vermaelen, Monreal and Bendtner get much needed playing time. The striker is a sure bet to start today in place of Giroud but Monreal and Vermaelen have obviously been  waiting for games like this one, so it'll be a shame if they miss out due to knocks. Vermaelen was excellent against Chelsea and very good against West ham over the end of last year and it goes without saying that being able to call upon his quality from the bench is so vital for our ambitions this year. I know there are speculations over his future (oh and by the way welcome January Transfer window) because he's a good player and good players want to play. But i just wish he stays because in him we have a great professional and leader. Its inevitable we will see changes today, but the boss spoke about ''Squad Balance'' in his team selection. I reckon he's trying to say we cannot afford to underrate the Men from Wales. And rightly so, after all this is the EPL. We saw how Crystal palace went to the Etihad and were far from rolled over, they were even close to sharing the points. We on our part have been immaculate over the past months swatting aside smaller teams in the division like Cardiff and i feel if we must remain around the top of the table come the end of season we must continue with that trend.  

Here's hoping we begin the year with a victory, which i believe we can comfortably secure despite the injury state we find ourself in. I'll be looking to see Podolski, Bendtner and Gnabry start. I expect that front-line will still give Cardiff a few troubles, the other areas of the pitch will depend on who the boss thinks can stand on his legs after the assessments. No much to talk about anymore, so lets go for the points and hope it'll be a happy match review in 24hrs.


P.S: I know Ramsey is injured for this fixture but wow, i just couldn't help but place that picture at the head of this post. I think its Brilliant. Get well soon Rambo

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