ARSENALISM©

I get uncomfortable when the Arsenal receive praise of any kind. I don’t like our club being the centre of attention, I cringe when pundits extol our virtues, I groan when there is a consensus that we are going to do this or that. I like it low profile. Fortunately there has been more focus on DiCanio, Moyes, Mourinho and a host of others to occupy the media spotlight. We are just quietly getting on with the business of winning games: pretty much adopting that cliché “one game at a time”. That approach suits this group of players. They seem a modest bunch who have grown into a resilient unit. That resilience was sadly lacking in previous seasons and now we see a galvanised team who at times capture the spirit of the Arsenal Way. We have seen what a touch of real quality brings in Ozil’s contribution, his control and passing are a cut above and one can’t help but wonder what might have been had we added just one player of his quality each season. Having an injury ravaged...

Sometimes I can though   Yes I can be as negative as the next blogger but it's nice to feel positive now and again. The Arsenal's current form is good and yes, there are some minus points, but some folk seem incapable of feeling satisfied. i'm not talking about constructive criticism I'm talking about unconstructive moaning. I've given my opinions negative and positive and try to show balance. Lets just enjoy our current succes and look ahead with a smidgeon of optomism Competing on all fronts is a footballing cliché associated with successful clubs and indeed that is the aspiration of most club’s that are of the requisite status. In order to do this luck is needed, good runs of injury free performance and above all squad depth. On this basis I think we can write off the Carling Cup, or is it the Capital Cup? Let’s just call it the league cup. Playing young aspirants with a smattering of first teamers has been our default in this competition but this se...

Arsenal One Off Unbeaten Season   Arsenal One Off Shirts   Arsenal One Off League fixture   Arsenal One Off Trophy sharing with Sp*rs   Arsenal One Off Champions following points deduction   Arsenal One Off Sporting offer of replay Picture courtesy arsenalonetwofive.wordpress.com Arsenal Star In One Off Proper Movie   

   Well I don’t know about you but it feels like the season is starting properly this weekend, thanks to the unwanted International break. All the clubs have the squads that they must rely upon until January now that the interminable transfer window has slammed shut and we have added four players to the ranks. Two of whom are unknown quantities, one a former employee who, judging by his cameo in the NLD has much to give and, of course, that rarity in this league: a genuinely world class player.                                                             Courtesy: thebottomcorner.com   We restart the season with six points and qualification to the group stage of the Champion...

[music: the opening of 'Good Old Arsenal [Voiceover] Arsenalism : Chapter One. He adored Arsenal Football Club. He idolised it all out of proportion. Eh uh, no, make that he, he romanticised it all out of proportion. Better. To him, no matter what the season was, this was still a club that existed in Red and White and pulsated to the songs from the North Bank. Uh, no, let me start this over. Arsenalism : Chapter One: He was too romantic about The Arsenal, as he was about everything else. He thrived on the hustle bustle of the crowds on a match day. To him,the Arsenal meant beautiful football and smart players who seemed to know all the angles. Ah, corny, too corny for, you know, my taste. Let me, let me try and make it more profound. Arsenalism : Chapter One: He adored Arsenal Football Club. To him it was a metaphor for the decay of football culture. The same lack of individual integrity that caused so many people to take the easy way out was rapidly turning the ...

...or can you? Of all the clubs in all  the world he had to walk into ours: Stan Kronke that is. Another rich man looking to generate income from a big club in a big city, only this time without splashing the cash it would seem. I say 'seem' because no one can be sure about anything at boardroom and managerial level at our club, the whole shebang is cloaked in secrecy. Or perhaps that cloak is of obfuscation; smoke and mirrors if you will. Information is heavily controlled Politburo style thus leading to speculation and in some cases, gesticulation from the seats of the Emirates. This lack of transparency comes across as arrogance which makes supporters feel very much marginalised. There is almost a civil war of words between supporters with differing views on how this thing of ours should operate, such is the level of frustration and unrest. We've seen tons of inaction and lashings  of transfer rumour piffle with very little comment about those bold words o...