february 23rd
Sorry about the lack of blog action yesterday, but I just really didn’t feel like it. And it felt good not feeling like it and not doing it, because other days I’ve not felt like it but still done it. If that makes any sense to you. And this morning I slept late.
So back to football and we get Portsmouth in the FA Cup 6th round after they ended Liverpool’s chances of silverware this season. Houllier blamed the pitch and the weather and increased his Incomprehensible Buffoon count to 99 out of a possible 100. Surely the best manager Arsenal fans have ever seen Liverpool have. I doubt he’ll be there in August though. Which is a shame.
Dennis Bergkamp’s form has been impressive over the last little while, and he wants to complete 10 years at Arsenal with a contract extension. He says “The way I feel now I don’t want to stop. I feel great.”
With Kanu almost certain to leave, and Wiltord’s future up in the air, it seems unlikely that Arsene Wenger would want to lose 3 such experienced players in the summer. I’d be happy to see Dennis stay another year. Players like Jose Reyes, David Bentley and Jeremie Aliadiere can still learn a lot from him, and when you see him craft goals like he did for Vieira on Saturday you know he’s got something to offer even if his goals scored tally is a bit too low for a player of his quality.
Wenger on Edu: “He’s been getting better and better every year, and he’s been outstanding this season.”
Early team news for tomorrow night’s Champions League game against Celta Vigo suggests that Patrick Vieira will be fit, despite fears about his right knee. Ashley Cole however will miss out as he’s not quite fully recovered from his back strain. We’ll have a better idea about the line-up tomorrow.
There are unconfirmed reports this morning that the stadium funding announcement has been made to OFEX, where Arsenal’s shares are traded. I don’t have link or anything yet, but expect some news today.
UPDATE: An official announcement from the club.
Arsene Wenger : “This is very exciting news. This Club has such an illustrious past but today is one of the most important dates in our history. It has been a big target of mine to participate in pushing the Club forward and relocating to a new stadium is a necessity as it will enable us to become of one the biggest clubs in the world. Also, I love the fact that the new site is so close to Highbury, it’s where our heart is and from a personal point of view, I am hopeful of being the Arsenal manager when we move to the new stadium in 2006.”
This is great news for the club, and credit has to go to the manager, Danny Fiszman and the board who have struggled and worked tirelessly to get this project off the ground, in the face of stiff opposition. It’s the start of a new Arsenal era. We’ll have more on this, and more reaction, over the next day or so.
A day off today, more or less. Only one class to teach and that’s not until 8pm. A lazy day ahead, methinks. I’ve just perfected the art of scoring direct from a corner in PES3 with Edu. A left-footed inswinger fools the keeper most of the time, but practice makes perfect.
