Fads in March 07

1. Captain America is dead.

2. Earthquakes jolted Sumatra. We could feel the tremors over here too.

3. Holders Barcelona are out of the Champions League.

4. After 11 years, Roberto Carlos is finally leaving Real Madrid.

5. I hate to say this… Spurs is on course for the UEFA Cup while the Gunners is on course for… nothing.

6. First sand, now possibly, maybe granite.

7. Lionel Messi, the new Maradona hit a hat-trick in the Real Madrid-Barcelona thriller.

8. Thierry Henry is out for the rest of the season.

9. I love the daily flips and flops on the $20K payment.

10. Regarding the Great Biomedical Debate, I couldn’t agree more… Sometimes, the ground may know more than the helicopter.

11. Lippi, Rijkaard, Mancini, Deschamps and Hiddink are some of the big names linked to the Chelsea job for next season.

12. Singapore is luring F1 to her shores.

13. Wenger admitted that he got it wrong this season. Never mind, it’s okay. Just deliver the Fab Four next season. The Premiership title, Champions League, League Cup and FA Cup.

14. I am muddled about the young, old and a value system. Thank God… I’m no test tube washer.

Weddings, an all-new low

I attended a colleague’s wedding dinner over the weekend. Things were fine. The couple was radiant, accommodating and things run smoothly. However, there was some things that really irks me…

First, I saw people sneakily removing all the cute bear souvenirs and emptying it to their handbags. It was sure disturbing. Not only did they go for one table, they went bear snatching on other tables. My God. What insatiable greed.

The second blow came a couple of weeks earlier…before the wedding dinner. This colleague of mine was going around asking for kakis to "form" table. He approach me if I wanna “form" table. I was pretty puzzled momentarily….WTF. I thought the bridegroom or bride would allocate where their guests would sit? I thought that jerk's idea was illusory. Wait a minute...that bloke really went on to "form" table. KNN.

It was sheer "deafness" to the couple's wedding dinner preparations. I thought it was outright disrespect to the couple's arrangements. C'mon, u think it is your father's Dinner & Dance function?

Quite rightly so, it spoilt my weekend. What a load of crap from this people.

Men in Black

They are quite the top class metal band around. I am talking about Metallica, the no nonsense heavy rocking real McCoy. I like them.

Their songs, "Seek and Destroy", "Enter Sandman", "One", "Fade to Black", "Nothing Else Matters", and others are some of my metal favourites. Listening to such metal classics are indeed, a phenomenal experience. Many metalheads would or could chorus those words and raise their fists in the air…in unison. Metallica brings metalheads together. Sheer unadulterated rock.

I’m not sure how much changes have the band undergone. The Metallica I knew of was James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett and Jason Newsted. Oh, who can forget the late Cliff Burton. Watching them trading those grinding licks with their axes. What sweet cacophony. For an untrained metal ear, it is noise. To metal fans, like me, it is a bacchanalian celebration of life with all the attendance of joys and trapping of fears.

True… Metallica’s lyrics are morbid, anti-war, angst, frustration and disillusionment. Headbanging to their songs, their heady beats borne of life’s harsher knocks. I will always remember "One" as the most towering anti-war anthem of all time. "(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth" showcases the greatest metal bass solo ever. "Enter Sandman" was startling, in a sense that it sounded more mainstream than metal.

James Hetfield, the tall metal messiah. His gravel stab at what we call singing will always be a hypnotic mantra, a grim reminder that all is not right in this world. Hammett and the then bassist, Newsted trading those furious licks. Ulrich pounding on the drums with demonic fury. Top draw.

My men in black. Their trademark low-slung axes and all black attire, spewing with the panache and macabre fury that fed off us, the adoring metalheads.

The spear of AJ...ouch!!!

The match was rather even contested, both teams well matched…it seems that a draw is on the cards. Then… deep into injury time, as Everton was gathering for one final attack, it turned out to be the winner. Andy Johnson drove the ball home through a crowd of Arsenal players for a 1-0 win.

Another record got shattered… it was Arsenal’s first Premiership defeat of 2007. The recent spate of matches saw Arsenal conceding late… against Blackburn, Alex’s late equaliser for PSV and now.

Everton’s Lee Carley was the midfield general last night. He was their anchorman, winning, intercepting, passing and distributing superbly. He was bossing the midfield like what Vieira used to do for the Gunners.

It will hold true… for all the pretty football that Arsenal dishes out, the failure on those incisive final move… those goals… might prove costly, one day.

There is some bucking up to be done. The final run-in of Premiership matches are here. The Gunners have got to start scoring and winning in order to secure that third place spot.

The highs & lows of the season so far...

The highs so far…

Reyes leaving. I reckon from Day One, he was hoping to go back to Spain.

Cygan leaving. The weakest link left.

The Cole-Gallas exchange.

Diaby recovering from that long term injury.

Completing the Double over Man Utd.

The Dennis Bergkamp testimonial match at the Emirates.

The Gunners moving to their new home at Ashburton Grove.

Wenger’s 10th year anniversary.

Van Persie scoring that volley against Charlton. It looked every bit like the "Goal of the Season" to me.

Whipping Liverpool thru’ and thru’ this season.

Beating Spurs 3-0 in the first ever North London derby to be staged at the Emirates. It was sweet!

Gilberto is my vote for this season’s "fox-in-the-box".

Baptista’s 4-goal haul at Fortress Anfield.

Rosicky’s wonderful 2 goals against Liverpool.

Henry’s last minute header that won the game against Man Utd at the Emirates.

Henry rubbishing reports that he is leaving Arsenal. He is a Gunner for life.

Unbeaten run at the Emirates still intact…


The lows…

Dennis Bergkamp retired. Robert Pires and Lauren left.

Sol Campbell leaving for "overseas". Pompey was overseas.

Henry’s injury plagued season.

Going out of the Champions League so soon.

That wretched 11 days.

Losing to the lesser lights like West Ham, Fulham, Bolton, Sheffield Utd, etc.

Wenger’s wild shove.

The melee "started" by Chel$ea at the final moments of the Carling Cup Final.

Senderos losing much of his duel with Drogba everytime Arsenal meets Chel$ea.

Losing to Blackburn in the FA Cup.

Winning Ugly

Recovery is on the way. Abou Diaby’s first half goal settled this match. A landmark match for Wenger. It was his 400th Premiership match in charge.

Diaby’s second ever goal came when he deflected Baptista’s shot past Thomas Sorensen. In fairness, it was his illustrious run from the left that brought Arsenal the lead. Soon after, there was enough chances to kill off the game. Once again, the goal mouth shyness rears its head again. It is a recurring nightmare.

Luckily, Aston Villa did not punish the Gunners. John Carew was quite a handful, though. I remember this tall chap bundled the Gunners out of the Champions League some seasons ago.

This match also tells us more… Jérèmie Alaidière and Julio Baptista are quite capable of appalling finishing too. To wrap it up, a fine effort against the hosts and Arsenal are up to third place.

A Gunner for life

It was reassuring to hear Henry coming forth to put the rumours to rest. It was great to hear the Great Man reiterating his loyalty to Arsenal for life. The best piece of news coming out from this lukewarm season so far.

On top of every Gooner's wish list is for Henry to be at his devastating best come Season 07/08. I was a bit surprised to read that Le Professor admitted that he was a bit lost.

I reckon all is not lost... what with the chasing of third spot in the Premiership still a possibility.

Something to think about...

Sigh… in a matter of days, the Gunners got dumped out of three Cup competitions. Domestically, they are left to fight for third place for an automatic Champions League spot. Another barren season, so was the last season. Sad too… Bergkamp, Pires, Reyes, Campbell and Lauren all left.

No trophies to parade for the Gunners as they settle in to their new home at Ashburton Grove this season. Going out of the Champions League was quite a bitter pill to swallow. The other Big Three were through. What went wrong? Was it injuries? A team too young? Growing too one-dimensional? Did the players over-elaborate with their passing, created openings and yet, fail to find the net. Ultimately, football is also very much about converting chances and scoring goals.

Quite rightly, the Gunners played the Beautiful Game to death. They are the masters of short passing. Have they become predictable? Or did those wily coaches finally mastered to counteract the Gunners’ football approach. Grooming the youth and giving them chances to perform on the pitch is the right thing. Can’t really go wrong with investing and training youth. On the basis of the modern game, is it prudent to throw the 18 & 19 year olds into the fray? I am talking about getting those talented Arsenal youths to exercise control in those must-win matches. Something like the PSV match.

I am quite sure Fabregas, Denilson and Diaby are the midfield force to be reckon with in the years to come… They will be a joy to watch…they will be the future Petit-Vieira-Overmars-Pires axis. Right now, the midfield park is "greener" than the flanks. On the flanks, we’ve got Rosicky, Hleb and Ljunberg… great exponents.

There is a missing link here. Quite pressing, the Gunners need someone masterful enough to give that "missing" variety. The man to give that difference amidst all the superb ball inter-passing. Bear in mind, among all the great movement, failure to find the net, the vital ending…is as good as losing all earlier impetus. All the pretty moves will just fall flat.

Two seasons of trophy-less seasons…Come season 07/08, with a well rested Henry up and running and possibly some signings... the "transitional" period should end and I see the team challenging for honours again. But, as for now... on a night where we got to beat PSV, it was Koeman who triumphed. The evening where steely nerves was needed, alas, it wasn’t there.

The wretched 11th Day

Oh… on the night where it matters… a not so up-there performance blew Arsenal out of the Champions League early. Of course, courtesy of Koeman. Once again, the Dutch freekick master found luck in English soil.

Oddly, it was a "Chelsea" player who inflicted the damage. It was Brazilian centre-half Rodrigo Alex who put PSV 1-0 down and balancing the aggregate score at 1-1. However, in the 83rd minute, he won the game by leaping higher than Abou Diaby to head home. Our dreams were quashed.

Poor Henry, his performance was pretty subdued. Well, in fairness, he has not fully recovered from that sciatic nerve problem back then. With all Cup and Euro distractions all gone, he should seek a hiatus now…

As for now, all Gooners must reunite and root the team to go for third placing in the Premiership. I guess, when a club wants to go ahead with stadium plans.... It is inevitable, the team will suffer. Arsenal did not come off any worse. Look at the shape of Southampton when they built St Mary’s or Sunderland with the Stadium of Light.

In any case, I think Emmanuel Adebayor deserve a raise. He was the one man who look dangerous against PSV. His presence was good enough. I can’t say much about the converting of his chances, though.

It was tough predicament when they lost at Holland around a fortnight ago. By gaining a 1-1 draw at home, all was lost… Voicing a personal opinion, I think Baptista’s loan stint should end right at the end of season 06/07. Pretty unthinkable, this team was so darn close to winning the Champions League final last May.

An all-Brazilian affair

Last night's 2-1 home victory over Reading was just the perfect response to end a dreary three match Cup defeat streak. It was something that the Gunners were not quite accustomed to. That losing streak ended all domestic Cup hopes.

Well, Reading nearly forced a draw. Thanks to Jens Lehmann's superb save. Around half-way through the match, the German was seen screaming at Gallas. I'm not sure if it was his quick temper or his total commitment to the cause.

In all, it was a deserving victory for the Gunners.... A fifth consecutive league win at the Emirates Stadium. Once again, Hleb was magical. Twisting, turning and creating. The Cesc spurned a couple of easy chances. The two goals came from the boys from Brazil. Gilberto scored from the penalty and the Beast striking home after steam rolling past the Reading defence.

Talking about Wenger's foreign policy, about a quarter of the Arsenal team were Brazilian. The next one is the tricky tie against PSV. Let's hope the Gunners win and progress through the Champions League. Against the Royals, the Gunners actually look quite weak without Titi.

Cup woes Part II

Oh dear, losing to Blackburn and getting dumped out of two competitions in the space of four days.

All I can say is that Benni McCarthy’s well executed strike was the highlight of what seems like a normal tie, seemingly devoid of Cup fervour and passion.

To be fair, Arsenal were the much better side in over 180 minutes of football. However, failure to score did us in. The lack of killer instinct in front of goal and quite frankly, the Gunners look jaded.

With impending fines and suspensions over the Carling Cup final melee looming… things are not looking good for Arsene’s army. Nothing much left this season… the Gunners still got the return leg against PSV in the Champions League to turn around.

Well, Sparky’s men may not dished out Barcelona football. I thought that lone strike was Barca class all the way.