Appalling challenge. Should be banned for more than 3 matches. How he can just wipe out a fellow player's entire season and get off without a ban is typical of the FA. And Lanzini gets a yellow for taking his shirt off celebrating his worldy. The FA really are a bunch of clowns, but the ultimate responsibility lies with that imbecile Pickford. Still he said he's sorry so that's OK.

FA still hiding behind the "incident was seen by officials at the time so no further punishment will be handed out" with respect to the Pickford tackle on Van Dijk.
Is football the only sport that does this, nearly every other major sport I know has a proper disciplinary panel that acts in serious cases irrespective of what happened on the pitch.

The FA don't want to undermine the referee by acting over them, but the ref missed it and VAR missed it, by not acting it puts the ref and VAR firmly back in the spotlight. Everyone can see it is a clear red, there must be a 3 game ban.

If the FA and referee's association expect us to swallow it then they need to come out and explain why Pickford's tackle didn't meet the threshold for a red card for serious foul play.

"A tackle or challenge that endangers the safety of an opponent or uses excessive force or brutality must be sanctioned as serious foul play. Any player who lunges at an opponent in challenging for the ball from the front, from the side or from behind using one or both legs, with excessive force or endangers the safety of an opponent is guilty of serious foul play."

So come on Mike Riley or The FA, explain what part Pickford didn't meet?

Normally I'd expect to see starts for Kolasinac, Cédric, AMN, Partey, Willock, Elneny, Nketiah, Nelson in the midweek game vs Vienna, but Arteta has played some stronger teams than many would. This is on paper the toughest of our Europa League group gaes so it wouldn't surprise me to see us be quite strong

What about the cross he did at Wembley last season from the right flank that Aubameyang headed in ?

Or the one againest West Ham away last year from the right flank that got flicked in.

Or the one againest Newcastle at home last year that Aubameyang headed in,

Or,or,or

Does anyone here actually watch Arsenal games ?

Keep your wig on pal. I'm just suggsting that it might be an idea to move him across to the left flank where he could prove to be more effective. We all want to see the fella produce more than he is currently doing, notwithstanding the examples you have very kindly provided above.

And yeah I do watch Arsenal matches. Been doing so since 1969.

I’m struggling with Sky’s info. Not clear to me.

I see that the Leicester game is on Sky Box Office (something that I’d normally associate with such as boxing).

As a Sky Sports Subscriber it looks like I have to sign up to the Box Office and then stump up the cash if I want to watch the game. What isn’t at all clear (to me at any rate) is whether I can then watch the game on my TV as I would any other game. Or am I forced into watching it on an iPad app?

Agree with you both. Uncomfortable viewing.

I'd read a good book instead!

Hi Soc,

I think we know at this stage that the transfer fee was inflated...a Raul special. I have been underwhelmed to date but there's no doubt he had a difficult first season, something he admitted himself. It didn't help that Emery's tactics and selections were all over the place and bizarrely when it looked like he was coming into form Dick dropped him. He certainly wasn't a disaster though and has the tools to become a very good player.

As to Giggs or Hazard, I never expected him to be that good or even close really. Hazard is a top 5/6 in the world player.

Leicester win
Man Utd away shock win
Villa home win
Leeds away win
Wolves home win
Spurs away draw

I also read somewhere that he has history of doing the same. He did it to Dele Alli amongst others. Mason said it and thinks the guy should be banned before he breaks someone's legs.

What does non sequitur mean?

If this is a non sequitur post challenge - I will have a go - Martinez must be waiting for the upcoming game. They have only played 4 games but 2 of them will give us a direct comparison by the time we play them - Liverpool and Leicester.

Only if it’s raining.

It was a lovely backheel. He was awful for the first hour, though.

Saw a piece that noted that if Saliba had cost £3m instead of £25m then not many Arsenal fans would be getting frustrated that a 19 year old isn't quite ready for the first team. Saliba is younger than Medley and Ballard who are both on loan.
The shame seems to be that Saliba hasn't gone out on loan if that is what the management think he needs. Also a shame that he's not in the Europa League squad - perhaps because they thought he'd be going on loan - because games against Dundalk and Molde at least would appear to be good games to get him experience.

It's pastry week tonight. Lottie will have to improve on last week.

Arsenal, 30 years ago today anyone? No Googling.

So 20th October 1990? I’m struggling with this one. Wasn’t the date of our only league defeat that season, was it? Hence Chelsea away?

Nope, although we were away on the day.

Brawl at Old Trafford?

Give that man a Mars Bar

Red ones are the best.

Absolutely. The only thing 'undermining the referee' (and match officials more generally) is this failure to take responsibility. It gives the impression that the whole lot are closing ranks like an unaccountable mafia. Setting match officials up as the 'enemy' undermines them in my view.

Apparent the VAR official is now claiming he/she 'forgot' the rules with the Pickford tackle.

I can only imagines that this is the case with the Mané offside. If there is a frame where some part of Mané's body, feet or head is over the line (and not his elbow or sleeve!) they really need to show it. Otherwise their credibility is rapidly approaching zero.

I read that Van Dijk had only missed 35 minutes of premier league football since he signed for Liverpool and then went off injured at the weekend. Liverpool are now down to their only 2 senior CB's and hoping Fabinho can fill in as well. Testing times for them. I predict we may see less of Robertson and Trent flying so far forward with the loss of Van Dijk.

No, you are the only one who actually watches, in the deepest sense of taking in every detail and gaining infallible wisdom via the eyes

Yes I know but that is as I mentioned "rare". He also puffed up like peacock after that goal and thought his job for the day was done because he disappeared completely and stopped defending for the remainder. As noted in an earlier post, his workrate was an improvement against Man City so it looks like Arteta is giving him the judge he needs.

Have you watched any this year, apart from the Sheffield match?

Yeah plenty, he’s barely played

Thanks mate

Just make sure Arsene isn't looking....

I see that Liverpool, Man U and some other un-named Premier league clubs are in discussions with FIFA about creating a European super league. It makes me angry that 100+ years of football culture and history can just be eradicated because some greedy multi billionaire club owners want to make even more money and by trashing the game in the process. I'm all for progress but change isnt necessarily the same thing.

What makes the Champion's league exciting is seeing big clubs who typically don't see each other as much, square off. Barcelona vs Juventus, or Bayern Munich vs. Liverpool doesn't happen often, but when it does all eyes are on it. Normalize it where they are playing twice a year, annually (and you know they will have their own version of a league cup), and it will get boring. Decades old if not over a century old rivalries go by the way side. .

I can assure the American owners will be all for it. Changing cities is nothing to us. Very few clubs are left where there is enough nostalgia that it would get push back if they left. But too many change cities too often. The present LA Rams were originally in Cleveland, left for LA, then moved to St. Louis and moved back to LA, all within 75 years. Even the storied Los Angeles Lakers were originally from Minneapolis. (Minnesota is known as the land of a thousand lakes).

I was attracted to the English leagues over the other leagues for a variety of reasons. But over the course of 20 odd years, the league and the game as changed where its almost unrecognizable. The skill level has gone up alot but at the expense of a variety of things that made the league great.

Seems that as expected and trailed, Özil and Sokratis have indeed been omitted from our Premier League squad submitted today.

Good call

Also if Arsenal are involved that’s 3 American owners trying to drive it. It’s our national sport, there needs to be intervention.

PSG should get a PK purely for how ugly the Man Utd kit is.

Fine and sunny but the fish aren't biting. Wrong bait?

Liverpool having a whinge about Pickford.
https://www.theguardian.com/football/20 ... n-pickford
Apparently people like Jimmy Case, Souness etc were okay. I missed their article about the elbow to Tierney's face in the game against us. No sympathy for them at all. Scummy club and scummy supporters.

There was a guest on Arseblog or Daily Cannon (the only 2 I listen to beside Tuesday Club) who talked about the remodel they put forward was the first steps towards the European super league. It may have been Philippe Auclair but I am not sure. It might appeal to younger people but I have limited interest in such a proposal and if anyone thinks I would pay to watch my team in such a league - think again. I barely bother watching any CL or Europa League games and more likely to watch 3 minutes highlights.