It's the 92nd minute and Jesse Marsch is frantically beckoning Illan Meslier to go forward and add more numbers in the box for a free kick. Only minutes earlier Nicholas Pepe was almost through on goal after Meslier was left higher up the pitch but a crucial tackle by Dan James spared his blushes. Jesse Marsch clearly wanted the young goalkeeper to atone for his earlier mistake. Arsenal fans meanwhile couldn't understand how a dominant display could end so nervously. In the end none of Leeds' last minute efforts mattered as Arsenal were 2-1 winners at the Emirates. The win leaves us on sixty six points four ahead of Tottenham. A win at Tottenham would ensure Champions League football for the first time since the 16/17 season. There's a realization that we can actually do this. The stakes for the North London Derby couldn't be any higher.  Mikel when asked about the Tottenham game, "We know how decisive the game is going to be. The plan is to go there and win...

 Granit Xhaka ran towards the corner flag, hit a knee slide and then blew a kiss to the Arsenal fans. Crazy I know! He had just hit a rocket of a shot past De Gea from outside the box giving us a 3-1 lead against Manchester United. The Emirates was bouncing, fans and legends present started to dream again, chants of ," Arsenal" reverberated throughout the stadium. Arsenal have breezed through Chelsea and United in a week.  The match itself was a nervy but drama filled affair. Both sides looked unsure of themselves defensively. So it was not a surprise to see a goal within the first three minutes. Xhaka's pass to the box was badly misjudged by Varane giving Saka the chance to shoot from the right. De Gea made the save but Nuno Tavares reacted quickest to score his first goal for the club. We could not have wished for a better start. United were jolted into life after that opener. Ronaldo with a nice through ball to Elanga but his shot was too close to Ramsdale who made the...

 Arsenal were 4-2 winners at the Bridge putting to an end our three match losing streak. It was a much needed win for the team and Mikel who was under immense pressure from a section of the fan base. It was no surprise that it was the Hale end boys who stepped up again when it mattered. Nketiah with a brace, Smith Rowe and Saka completing the score. It was a defiant performance from us. We had twice taken the lead only to relinquish it in five minutes or less. Previous Arsenal sides would have folded. The manner in which we conceded both goals was a bit disenchanting. Timo Werner equalized just four minutes after Nketiah's opener, his shot deflecting off Xhaka and past Ramsdale. I felt that Ramsdale could have done better especially with his positioning. The second was again only five minutes after Smith Rowe made it 2-1. Ben White seemed to have been fouled but the ball found it's way to Mason Mount who put in a lovely cross for Azpi who's finish was superb.  Arsenal howe...

Disappointment was the overwhelming feeling among Arsenal fans today as Southampton beat us 1-0. It's not even 18/19 anymore it's worse especially when you look at the remaining fixtures. Less than a fortnight ago even the most pessimistic of fans had started to dream. Now only disillusionment reigns over the fan base.  Jan Bednarek gave Southampton all three points with a sharp finish leaving Ramsdale with no chance. It was a disappointing goal to concede as we did not clear our lines well. Mohammed Elyounoussi reacted  quickest after a poor clearance from Arsenal to square the ball to Bednarek. Scoring before halftime can only boost your confidence especially after a 6-0 thrashing so it was always going to be a difficult afternoon for Arsenal after that goal.  There was growing disenchantment with Arsenal's play in the final third. Lack of creativity had left us playing crosses from the right in hope that someone would get at the end of them. When Cedric becomes your go...

 It's been a difficult week for Arsenal after two defeats in a space of six days has our champions league hopes in tatters. Only a few hours after we had lost to Brighton, we had to witness Spurs completely demolish Aston Villa 4-0. The fans were frustrated. Frustrated at Arteta, the players, spurs, injuries.., it was that feeling again. It's difficult not to draw parallels to the 18/19 season when an Unai Emery led side lost four out of their last eight games missing out on top four . Arsenal finished fifth just a single point behind Tottenham . Ironically enough it was Brighton and Palace that dented our champions league hopes again.   So it's not been a surprise to see the reaction from the fans this week. There's almost like a dark cloud hovering over the fan base. It was made even worse when Unai Emery led his Villareal side into the semifinals of the Champions League.  The Arteta outers are back again while the Arteta loyalists (Artetasexuals apparently) are i...

 In a week where Pep Guardiola was accused of overthinking in the Champions League, his disciple Mikel Arteta might have just been guilty of that today. Arsenal fans were left frustrated as the gunners lost 1-2 to Brighton at home.  Leandro Trossard gave Brighton the lead after a superb cut back from Enock Mwepu . The Belgian smashed it into the top corner giving Ramsdale no chance. Enock Mwepu wrapped up a decent Brighton move with a nicely controlled finish into the bottom corner for 2-0. A deserved goal for the Zambian who was brilliant throughout the game. Martin Ødegaard pulled one back with a deflected shot halfway through Brighton's half but it was not enough as Brighton held on to an important win for them.  Arteta controversially decided to play Granit Xhaka at left back with Nuno Tavares benched after his horrific performance at Palace on Monday. The prospect of Ødegaard, Saka, Smith Rowe and Martinelli all playing at the same time was mouth watering, at lea...

 A defiant Mikel Arteta faced the media after a disappointing 1-1 draw at Turf Moor left his side 10 points off the top six. Brave faced, he declared that one day his Arsenal project was going to bang . In his own words, " I think this project is going to go 'bang' and this is where we are . Sometimes it is difficult to see the moment now, but I'm sure where we are going." That was a year ago and an engrossing summer transfer window later. Arsenal now sit in fourth place on 54 points, 5 behind Chelsea in third with a game in hand. The gunners are staunchly in the top four race. The first time in a long while that Arsenal fans are experiencing the thrill of a top four race again. Since the defeat to Everton on 14th December Arsenal have won 10 out of 14 Premier league games. Only defeats in that period have been to Liverpool and Manchester City. There's still a long way to go but his words ring true. It's not just about the winning run, Arsenal have been p...

 It's finally here , the 2021/22 Premier league season is upon us . Depending on your team this will either mean nine months of tolerating banter from your friends or nine months of pure ecstasy. For Arsenal fans well..... It's just six days before Arsenal kick off their season against newly promoted Brentford. Normally this would not be an issue as Arsenal have a strong record historically against promoted sides but this comes after the worst Arsenal campaign for years. The fact that fact the club is not in any European competition speaks volumes. The club however do not seem to share these concerns . In the words of Mikel Arteta last season " I think what we have to do in the summer is unprecedented for a club of this stature. " Those were the words of Mikel Arteta in March as he gave an insight into what was needed going into the transfer window. Twenty four days remain before the window shuts and the Arsenal first eleven looks exactly as it did three months ago ba...

 We're finally here . A month of pure footballing brilliance leads down to one last battle at the home of British football. It's the Final of Euro 2020 at Wembley and it promises to be an indelible final. We have enjoyed some wonderful games along the way made even more special by the presence of fans in the stadiums for the first time in over a year. It's the Azzuri against the Three Lions . Will football come home or Rome ?  ENGLAND VS ITALY  It's not the final many expected but Italy and England have proven to be the two best, or in England's case , most effective teams of Euro 2020. The two teams however have not only followed different paths but also have quite different styles of play. While Mancini's Italy have entertained us with some of the best football in the tournament , England have been effective . They have got the job done and are in a final of a major tournament for the first time in 55 years. They definitely don't care how they've got t...

 Euro 2020 has now reached fever pitch and we cannot wait to see how it all pans out. The Round of 16 offered us crazy non-stop entertainment that kept us at the edge of our seats. From Italy's Extra time revival to Switzerland stunning France the Euros have well and truly lived up to expectation. Nothing compares to tournament drama .  France was given a friendly reminder that football is played on the pitch and no one is assured of victory. The Spanish were given one hell of a scare by Croatia who came from 3-1 down to tie it up in normal time . England somewhat surprised their own fans by edging Germany in what was a tight encounter. Czech's stunned the Dutch while Ukraine's fight proved too much for Sweden. Belgium did a professional job to dump out Portugal leaving a new king to be throned this month.  Football fans all over the world are living a dream . What more could we ask for?  The drama is far from over as we now take a look at the Quarter final matches. ...

 Euro 2020 has reached the part we all love . The emotion filled knockout stages that bring the very best out of players and staff who are driven by the passion to make their country proud. This is where memories are made , this is where legends are born . We cannot also forget to mention the penalty shootout. Some love the shootouts some hate it but what is guaranteed is drama.  We cannot wait for the knockout stage to begin. A brief look at the group stages and what we can learn from them . The Netherlands were the highest scorers in the group stage scoring 8 goals . They were followed closely by Italy , Belgium and Portugal on 7 . The Dutch were in a more favourable group but we cannot discount some brilliant attacking displays from them especially from Memphis Depay. Cristiano Ronaldo tops the scoring charts on 5 goals with Lukaku , Wijnaldum , Patrick Schick and Emil Forsberg all on 3.  While they were knocked out at the group stage Hungary and North Macedonia did th...