This feels like a very Interlull morning. It’s gray and raining outside, and there’s no news from Arsenal. I have no choice but to go back to the archives and see what was happening on this day in years past.
September 22, 2003
Reporting on an uneventful 0-0 draw at Old Trafford the day before…
Moments later there was a high ball, Ruud van Nistelrooy leaped into the air, kicked Vieira in the chest, landed on Paddy’s back and when he landed the Arsenal captain made a half-kick motion towards the Dutchman who jumped back as if there would be a rabid dogs trying to bite his balls off. Looking at Sky showed how the referee would have seen it, and from there it looked worse than it was. Vieira never contacted Ruud, but I guess he got his second yellow on intention. After the game, Arsene Wenger was interviewed about van Nistelrooy and basically called him a diver and a cheater.
Fun times! And let’s not forget that we are up against Ruud van Nistelrooy’s PSV in the Europa League this season. In a team full of disliked players, with faces like Gary and Phil Neville, the Dutchman was always very close to the top for me. I love how, in recent years, we discovered how obsessed he was with Thierry Henry and how many goals he scored.
More than your friend.
September 22, 2004
Real Madrid are reportedly after Arsene Wenger.
The herald spoke from the mount to respond to the news of the Castilian longing for Arsene Wenger. The Rev Peter Hill-Wood told the Standard: “I am absolutely sure Arsene will stay at Arsenal. I can’t believe he goes there and Madrid can fornicate with Zebedee’s third wife’s goat.
Quite.
September 22, 2007
We hear from new shareholder Alisher Usmanov as Red and White Holdings increases its stake in the club…
Alisher Usmanov yesterday revealed his intention to buy a ‘blocking stake’ in Arsenal. He said:
I want to be in a position that allows me a blocking stake. Then I’ll wait for it to rise in value.
So what we have on our hands is at best an aggressive speculator, at worst someone who will make life as difficult as possible for the people running the club at the moment.
Yesterday on Reuters: Germany raids properties of Russian oligarch in money laundering probe
????
September 22, 2010
The night before, Arsenal beat Sp*rs 4-1 in the League Cup, and Jack Wilshere played a big part in that with a stunning performance despite trying to get him off the pitch. Sadly a recurring theme of how teams would try to deal with Jack for years to come.
The blog ended with this concise observation:
We saw what football is all about last night, what it is that unites us all, what it is that makes this game so good: seeing little boys cry with dicks on their shirts.
And who can argue against that?
September 22, 2011
Times are tough, the start of the season has been rough and there is a lot of scrutiny online about Johann Djourou. It wasn’t long before he was praised as a key part of Arsenal’s defense but, like the team, he is struggling and drawing a lot of ire.
I try to find some middle ground.
I don’t like what’s going on at the club at the moment, it hurts me the way we are, just like it sure hurts you, and the idea that we should ignore that and blindly accept the team’s failings is surely of no benefit. for no one. At the same time, though, maybe a little more reason should be applied down the road when it comes to players and their weaknesses.
Not everything can be negative, all the time. Otherwise she will get an ulcer. And the ulcer could burst and the acid will eat into your stomach and burn another hole. No one needs two butts, and I think as confusing as it is, that’s a lesson we could all learn.
I suspect that given how some of the subsequent years have gone, we might have some fans who are known, at least in doctors’ offices, as Johnny Five Ass.
September 22, 2013
Arsenal are about to play Stoke, who have sacked old foe Tony Pulis and now have Mark Hughes in charge. The Aaron Ramsey stuff is front and center again, and in fairness to Hughes, he speaks highly of his fellow Welshman, but the feud between the two sets of fans continues.
It’s always a hot topic and even the change of manager influences that:
Hughes and Wenger have their own story, of course, after Hughes was very, very, very upset that Arsene committed the war crime level sin of not shaking Hughes’s hand even once.
I miss nonsense like that. If I remember correctly, the reason Arsene refused to shake his hand is because Hughes and his assistant spent the entire 90 minutes abusing him from his technical area. I think it’s perfectly reasonable to base your actions on that, and not some post-game convention that says whatever happens, a handshake makes everything better.
Of course, all the headlines and pundits’ outrage are about disrespect for not shaking hands and not about 90 minutes of vitriol, but isn’t that always the case? Kind of like people getting mad at a talented 15-year-old playing a few minutes at the end of a comprehensive win or something.
The more it changes, and all that.
That is all. Have a good. We’ll be back tomorrow with a new Arsecast.
