Poor performance, poor result

Aaron Ramsey against Norwich. Photo: Telegraph.co.uk

Norwich have given us all a reason of why having less internationals on your team is a good thing.

Norwich only had two players away on international duty, while Arsenal had 14.

Arsene Wenger (who celebrated his birthday yesterday - HAPPY BIRTHDAY WENGER!) said that having 14 players away proved we had very good players on the squad, but they were tired.  Cazorla especially was not the light, fast genius Arsenal fans have become accustomed to. By contrast he looked tired, as did a lot of our internationals. The international break meant we were disjointed, tired and didn't gel as a team.

However, no excuses. We can complain about the international break all we like, but we really should be beating teams like Norwich.

On the day, we played badly. We had more chances, more ball, and more possession, but we couldn't do anything with it.

Norwich should be commended for an absolutely fantastic performance, especially defensively. 

Arsenal will need to step it up before our mid-week Champions League match against Schalke.  The game should be interesting, it could go either way, but Arsenal will need to play a lot better than we did this weekend.

xoxo
- GoonerGirl

Every win counts!

Theo Walcott celebrates his goal. Image: Arsenal.com

Solid performance by Arsenal this morning...well the game was at 5.30am for me so I consider it the morning.

It is vital to win games like this. Some could argue "It's only West Ham". But the reality is in the premier league every point counts, and 3 points is 3 points, doesn't matter if its against West Ham or Manchester City.

The goals:

1-0: Diame 21
The great thing about this goal (looking at the positives here) is it wasn't a defensive blunder, more of a fantastic strike by Diame. He will be a dangerous player for West Ham. One could argue Aaron Ramsey should have defended better, but Ramsey's forte is not in defense, and the strike itself was deadly.

1-1: Giroud 41
Giroud's equalizer was incredible.  I was so happy he finally scored in the Premier League. It was a great left-footed jab too...Podolski with a fantastic assist. Kind of came out of no-where too, the reflexes he had to just prod the ball into the back of the net was just top class.  It came at the right time, too. I think it was great for Arsenal to equalise before the break, get a clean slate and make it even going into the second half. It made a difference mentally as well for Giroud to be the one to score, as he gained a lot of confidence and helped set up the 2nd goal.

1-2 Walcott 77
Walcott's goal was clean, composed and fast.  Set up by well Giroud, the goal confirmed Walcott's danger when he comes on as a super-sub. He makes such an impact, providing free space, speed and skill. It was a textbook Arsenal counter attack, which I always love to see.  Our counter-attacking ability was what kind of made me fall in love with Arsenal in the first place, which is why I rate Theo so highly as a player.

1-3 Cazorla 83
What can I even say? Top class. Too good. Cazorla is something else. Solo effort goal, fantastic finish, so well deserved. If we had paid double the amount we did for Cazorla, he'd still be a bargain. He is just magical on the field.

Overall there were a lot of positives to take from the match.  Still things to work on, of course. We are shaky at defending set-pieces, I get nervous for every corner.  But we got the 3 points, 3 goals, and confidence boost.

Good work gunners!

Now, I suggest you stop reading now if you don't want to read my little soapbox moment, although it is still football related.

ESPN Australia and NZ have not brought the rights to La Liga this season. This is incredibly disappointing and disheartening to football fans in the southern hemisphere. So tomorrow, instead of showing El Classio, they will be broadcasting College Football.

2 of the best football teams in the world are playing tomorrow, and we in the Southern Hemisphere miss out.

I understand the arguments around cancelling La Liga. It probably doesn't get as much interest as the EPL. I understand that. Its a two horse race. No one can really deny that either. But that does not mean that fans of Barcelona and Real Madrid should have to suffer.  I see lots of children here in New Zealand walking around in Barcelona and Real Madrid shirts, just as many as I see in Manchester United shirts.

They are global teams. Global brands even. There is a significant public interest to watch La Liga games.

Well, I can livestream it. But it is not the same! Television should be showing La Liga games, and it is just a joke that they think it is not worth buying for an Australasian audience.

In other news I need to get less passionate about Arsenal. I told my friend I was going to shove a Spurs fan as I walked passed him yesterday (joking...sort of) and then his friend said to me "That's not very nice."
Me: "He's a Spurs fan..."
Him: "Oi bet you're f***ing Arsenal scum"
Me: "Psssssshh, go gunners!" while I was walking away.

I'll get myself into trouble one day...

xoxo
- Gooner Girl

Negative Gooners and why negativity is pointless

I see a lot of negative gooners after every defeat. I understand this. When we lose, emotions are raw. I always feel drained, as if I've been running for 90 minutes with the boys. I'm emotionally exhausted.

But on my twitter feed, and my facebook, and various comments online all I see is "typical Arsenal" "same old arsenal" "f***ing giroud" "f***ing wenger" and that is just a selection of the more mild responses.

We lose one game, and the fans abuse Wenger and the players.

We lose one game, 2-1, to the current Champions League winners and team at the top of the EPL, and the fans give up hope. "Wenger out."

We lose one game and the fans give up.

We lost one game. One game. Imagine if the players themselves had that attitude? We'd never win. Ever. If the players had that attitude, they'd retire from football, think they were losers, and then get a job cleaning toilets at McDonalds.


That isn't how they became Premier League footballers. They became profession footballers through hard work, dedication, and not giving up.

Fans who have these types of negative attitudes about football and can't see the positives from the game...they're the same type of people who hate their jobs, get angry at their families, and genuinely aren't happy in their lives. They want to give up when they fail.

Failure is hard. It hurts. It hurts a lot sometimes. But how can you ever have success without the risk of failure? Failure is what makes success satisfying.

I'm not saying take football less seriously. Because take it seriously. I take it seriously. Too seriously, some would say. I'm emotionally distraught after a loss. But I channel that into positives and optimism. What can we do to improve? What are the positive sides? Where to next?

All I'm saying, is don't judge a season by one game. Don't judge a team by one game. Don't judge a player by one game.

Keep positive. Keep calm and carry on.
Love,
KiwiGoonerGirl