I suspect that they won’t be making a documentary of this team’s performance.

Judith - care to comment?

Thanks! I guess if I've got time to hang around on here being bitchy about American Gooner (must stop that), I should be able to spend time figuring that out.

The worst popups come from microsoft explorer, which seems to be engaged in a desperate attempt to convince me to use their useless browser and search engine. It's like whack a mole.

Explorer? Isn’t that dead yet?

Actually, there's one being produced by Amazon right now!

Do you think we might be running dead to get the ratings up. What’s the odds look like on the Indian bookies sites. After the international break there is a big betting plunge on us and we go undefeated for the rest of the season, winning the league by 10 points. TV ratings go thru the roof and everyone happy expect Sead K who simply disappears.

Based on your response, Rich would want a job where he is involved in the nuts and bolts but stays out of the public eye. I am a 'behind the scenes' type myself.
But my question was posed because you seem to have a passion for analysis and such. And to be fair, at times, have kept the forum focused purely on football, no drama, etc.

(although I like a little levity in any space, at times)

The Brentfood result was a shocker. It was a bad omen but things happen. The Chelsea and Man City results weren't a complete shock but HOW we lost was the big take away as well as not scoring at all. I think had we lost either game but fought valiantly, talk of Arteta being sacked would be minimal.
The team is 0-3 but they are aggressive and there is a visual change in us.

Of course that didn't happen and its the worst Arsenal start I've ever experienced and I would assume possibly ever if not for many, many years.

This makes the Norwich match pivotal. That word and others like it is thrown around a lot but I don't think this time its use is more than apropos. I don't think a draw will do. It's a home match against a weaker side. I think a draw will move Arteta a bit closer to being sacked. A scoreless draw would make that even more so. He may be at the point where a tepid 1-0 win, with a 'lucky' goal may still hurt him. Right now, how we play, even in a win, may still hurt him.

...and although he could have the excuse that he had first teamers out for the Chelsea and City games, at this point that excuse is falling on deaf ears. The fans expect whoever is wearing the shirt to fight valiantly.

I'm thinking that the job was too big for him and a very experienced second in command would have been better. Or Arteta himself should have periodically sought the advice of older, wiser, more experienced men like Wenger, Ferguson, etc to offer their opinion and advice but Mikel seems far too egotistical to humble himself like that. As crazy as it sounds, and assuming their relationship is as close as it seems, I think Pep would have even offered some needed advice despite being an opposition manager. The gulf in class is so huge, I don't think Pep would have offered bad advice. As crazy as it sounds to seek out an opposition manager's view.

I love watching old videos. A youngish Zidane breaking into the national team. Interesting seeing him and Cantona at the same time, which makes sense obviously but didn't really think about it. I wasn't watching football then.

In our eyes in America, the UK is progressive. So is Europe. Or so we thought. We were the country that had slavery for a 200 years, another 100 years of apartheid in the south and de facto apartheid elsewhere. Overt anti Semitism, anti Catholicism, anti LBGTQ, anti Woman.

The UK and other countries had women heads of state. We barely managed a VP recently. The nordic countries and other areas (France, etc.) accepted those who were openly gay. We could only manage it some large cities in safe spaces (West Hollywood, LA, San Francisco, the Village in Manhattan).

So, when I started getting into football and specifically in the PL I was aghast at the level of racial slurs hurled at players. It was ending for the most part when I became a fan but I heard a lot of stories. I also heard it was still prevalent in the lower divisions. I asked the regulars at the pub I went to in LA and some looked at me like 'What's shocking about it?' in a 'have you been to England, mate?' sorta look and others were very apologetically about it when they confirmed it.

I was also very shocked at the anti-semitic references to Tottenham. It was seen as the norm. I read 'Fever Pitch' at a later time and he touched on it. It had a matter of fact, shrug of the soldier response from the gooners I met in LA. A city (and country) where anti-semitism is addressed quickly and swiftly in whatever overt forms it takes. I've ended friendships with classmates over it (and others form of bigotry). It was the right thing to do we were told as kids.

Furthermore, its always been said that countries like Hungary were accepting of tourists from all over. Budapest is the porn capital of Europe its said. In the American porn industry, the girls are told not to do too much interracial porn because the average porn buyer/user is white and over 50. But the Hungarian and other Eastern European porn stars who came to LA, did it openly and rumor is liked it...hehe...and said if the American white women don't want that pay, we'll gladly take it....literally and figuratively.

I've never been comfortable with any of it. Not that I'm a saint. Ive used slurs, we all have if we are honest. It was routine to refer to a friend using the British slang for a cigarette, if you know what I mean. We all listened to rap and repeated lyrics. Philly (and pretty much every northern city) are really ethnic enclaves. This goes back to the 1800s. The last remnants of it are the various Little Italies that are still around and are usually tourist spots. But in the old days, if you told me what part of NY, Philly, Chicago or Boston you are from or a friend of yours is from, I could with reasonable accuracy determine your ethnicity and socio-economic background. Bensonhurst, NYC? You're Italian. South Boston? Poor or working class Irish. SW Philadelphia? Black. Brighton Beach, Brooklyn? Jewish of eastern European ancestry? Borough Park, Brooklyn? Hasidic. North side Chicago? German. Broadway & Filmore of Buffalo? Polish.

Some places in Europe, we heard weren't as progressive (Russia, Poland, parts of Italy). But by and large, Europe was seen as far more progressive. France was where black Jazz and Blues went to visit or live 100 year ago. Gay entertainers would retire to Sweden or France.

But nothing is concrete either way. As noted before, a woman head of state is not a big deal in Europe, but it is in America. Maybe it has to be with us being a very bellicose nation and having a man in charge of the largest military ever, needs a certain level of testosterone. I don't know. But America has had far more blacks in government than European cities and countries with a fairly decent black population. Blacks have been mayors of the largest American cities: NYC, LA, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, etc. Governors of states, generals, and head of the military high command, Senators, Congresspersons, every administrative position: Secretary of State, Attorney General, all the way down the line. Paris, London, Amsterdam, have fairly decent black populations and far as I know (and admittedly I know very little) not many if any political appointments or elected office.

50 years ago a Jewish president would not have happened but these days, its of no consequence. Same with a Mormon, a Catholic, and probably an atheist in the not too distant future.

It's a mixed bag. Europe are further along in some things and woefully behind America in others in terms of tolerance and bigotry.

https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/58428699

When it comes to a virus that can wipe out an innocent person or even kill a vulnerable person then I'm with TG all the way. Somebody pick him up you been misunderstanding me for ages.

Click on adblocker then click on allow this site or something similar then everything on SGF should sail through

I meant Hungary.

The one about Arsenal should be a right doozy. Ødegaard has said he doesn’t like the idea much because he’s not himself in front of cameras. Felt like a cue for a joke really.

I see a story that we can only name a 23 man squad instead of the usual 25 because we are a bit short in the home grown numbers. Do they have to be over 23yo?

Do you mean Internet Explorer or Microsoft Edge ?

Players under 21 doesn't have to be registered, so that's Saka, Smith-Rowe, Martinelli, Balogun and Tavares (I think). With our squad on arsenal.com I count 15 non-homegrown, and 6 homegrown non-U21 players.

I wonder if he may overestimate the number of people, be they his definition of trolls or whatever, who actually bother replying to his posts these days. I very rarely do. I only did that one yesterday because I had no idea whatsoever either what it meant, what it was about or who it was directed at. I still don’t.

Rich is possibly the member who replies most often to his posts now. But overall, my guess is that as a percentage (so the number of replies to his posts compared to the total of posts he writes) he gets fewer replies to his posts than anyone else.

I am quite curious how it will look actually. Especially if it ends badly. I hope and pray it doesn't but we may see some behind the scenes of Areta getting sacked, and stuff we only speculate about if it comes to fruition. I'd love to see if it all has a happy ending. I may actually shed a tear if its a story book ending. I recall a few of gooners crying with joy when Paddy made that final kick in the FA cup. Packed pub, Man Utd fans knowing they were going to win it, a matter of when not if and we win it. The gooners there were quiet the whole game till the final kick. A lone gooner voice yelled "Get in!"and then we were hugging, laughing and crying and the Man Utd fans stunned. Completely stunned. As Fergie once said "Football. Bloody hell".

A toon supporting friend said he thought he was going to be happy seeing the Sunderland docu but ended up actually "....feeling sorry for the poor sods". (You know you did if you are on here, dude..lol)

I am looking forward to it, good or bad season.

I'm just friends with everyone......

I think that Martinelli and Saliba(if he ever plays for us) will eventually count as home grown, in a similar way that Bellerin and Cesc did because we will have had them registered for at least 3 years before they are 21.

I think Brexit has pretty much scuppered this way of circumnavigating the home grown rules so the price on english players will go up again. Or you get creative and find players most people wouldn't think are home grown but they would count. For example, Lukaku counts as home grown. Gulacsi the Hungarian GK who played v England last night counts, as does Brentford's Spanish GK Raya....and of course Serge Gnabry

We really must have cut down our wage bill by a lot in the past couple of years, and it should come down even further over the next few years.
Gone are the sky high salaries of Özil, Mustafi, Sokratis, Mkhitaryan, Willian - I reckon that is close to £900k per week - or £47m a year.

I presume we haven't been paying the salary of Guendouzi, Torreira and Saliba the past 2 years. All 3 of these probably on small enough wages that we're not having to top them up to their loan club. Bellerin would have been on good wages as well.

Looking at who has come in I doubt any of our 6 signings this summer are on over £100k. I read White was on £80k a week but I can imagine Tavares and Lokonga for example being on closer to £30-40k - which would be a huge rise compared to their previous club.

Now we have £350k Aubameyang and £180k Lacazette and £100k Kolasinac. Elneny and Cedrid are probably hoovering up £60-80k a week each. Lacazette, Kola and Elneny contracts all expire next year

It is fair to say there is still some way to go but it has been bought under control - even if it was painful to do in some cases

Pfffft - Banned.

Interesting article in The Athletic on Newcastle.
Sounds exactly like the Kroenke ownership model, except we don't have the flamboyance and excitement.
"They are not the best at anything aside from stripping fun from existence and they are not striving for anything, either."

The writer, George Caulkin, finds it depressing because their declared strategy could have worked:-
"It is possible to strain for excellence on a budget, but it relies on having the best people in the right roles and for them to be capable of working together. Formulate an identity, hire a manager who can make it happen, bring in players with the physical and mental attributes to thrive in their allotted positions, build a team and then get your age groups playing in the same way and give them a pathway to progress." "There is nothing wrong with being economical and smart. There’s a lot wrong with being cheap."

You don't even have to be friends with everyone, just civil. So far, you are all about football. No other side drama. Refreshing.

I don't think we can make any assumptions to the postive about Guendouzi, Torreira and Saliba's wages. Unless we know for a fact. Too often we find out we've been paying wages, all or in part, that we didn't think was happening prior.

Nothing should surprise us anymore.

Lastly, don't feel pressured to respond (or not) to me or anyone. Keep doing what you are doing. The analysis is very interesting.

May not do any good but send a CV to the front office.

I find this article a non issue and trying to create a controversy that isn't there. So, he went from 13k a week to 40k a week. Bologna and Arsenal are disparate in class and size and wages. I was expecting to read he's on over 100k a week or whatever. It's a modest wage by Arsenal's standards. Nothing to see here.

A little surprised this publication 'went there'.

https://dailycannon.com/2021/09/arsenal-paying-takehiro-tomiyasu-3-times-bologna-wages/
Arsenal reportedly offered to almost triple Takehiro Tomiyasu’s Bologna wages when they offered him a four-year deal with an option for a fifth.

That first goal. Man! What a way to announce yourself.

There is a guy on twitter who makes these stats graphics comparing players. Here is one for Tomiyasu vs Kyle Walker vs Wan-Bissaka.
The similarity in their stats potentially shows you what sort of full back we have with Tomiyashu.

As much as people think of Walker as a flying attacking full-back, I don't think he is used like that as much with City, it is the thing Pépé does and we suspect Arteta is trying to do by tucking the right back in to form a back 3 and allow the left back to fly forward.

Haha. I've got photos of me as an 8 year old lad and it is not far off that lad in the gif!

Cheers.
I don't mind reading the non football stuff on here but don't tend to contribute to it too much. That would involve engaging ones brain to say something worthwhile, whereas with football chat I can just dribble out whatever is at the front of my thoughts and its more likely that someone will find it interesting.

Sometimes I probably miss people relying to me and I tend to come on and post in bursts, so apologies if people want to engage on conversations as I don't always scroll back to where I was when I was last on.

Kols is on 100k a week? I like him more than most fans but 100k a week?

Don't go down that road. Trust me on that. Just do what you are doing. lol

There is an article by The Athletic about arsenals transfer window and the inner workings of Edu and Arteta. I don’t subscribe to the athletic so just going by what others have said having read it.
Apparently Arteta really pushed for the signings of Ramsdale, White and Tomiyasu. And Lokonga and Tavares were highlighted by Edu’s scouting team and ‘approved’ by Arteta.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/58435485

I find this a bit off. Marc Bola (former Arsenal youngster) is charged by the FA over a social media post he made 9 years ago…….when he was 14!

It's ridiculous.
And in a similar case, Jarrod Bowen being to do an FA education course 9 years later when he must be 24 instead of 15. You'd expect that a fair bit of education has been going on over that period.

Absolute joke. Only not funny.

I saw excerpts and the bit that stood out for me was that it said Arteta pushed strongly to pay more for Ramsdale when Edu preferred to sign Neto the 32 year old Barça keeper for 13 million who is a client of Kia joorbachin his own agent. Edu seems completely morally compromised by that agent and that player would have been another of several failures he’s sold the club (soares, willian,Luiz)

I have a gut feeling Edu is out of his depth and some of the time not acting in the clubs best interests