Did you ever get the feeling it’s going to be one of those days? Having woken up with what feels like a broken face the Blogette informs me she needs €3 to pay for some thing or other at school. So I make coffee, try and retrieve some change from my change jar and spill a handful of it right into my cup of steaming Java. Booo.
We’ll start with Aretha van Persie who says Arsenal may not have won trophies but have won respect. He says:
People want to come and see us at the highest level because we can play fantastic football, and that is a big step for us because last year everyone was quite sceptical. So that is the trophy we have won this year – respect and lots of it.
And the winner of the FA Premier League respect trophy goes to …barf. Sorry, it’s nice that people appreciate our football but they’d appreciate it more if we had some silverware to show for it. To be fair to Robin that point is not lost. He goes on to say:
We just have to make the last step, to win trophies because for the last three years we haven’t won anything and that’s disappointing.
Yes indeed it is disappointing, and while I’ve enjoyed the football we’ve played this season you don’t get anything for looking good, unless you’re Miss World and in the swimsuit competition. And frankly the idea of Kolo Toure in a bikini frightens me a bit.
Speaking of Kolo he says he wants to stay at Arsenal for life and would be honoured to be captain. I think Kolo could do a job as captain and while I think he’d be the first to admit his season hasn’t been quite up to his own high standards I think every footballer goes through a sticky period from time to time. He’s been consistently good for us for a long time, there’s no reason to think he can’t be that good again.
Injury news ahead of Derby sees Abou Diaby is Rosickyed again, Hleb (who Inter have formally declared their interest in sits out due to suspension) and Tomas Rosicky is Tomas Rosicky. With Sagna and Flamini also out and the boss suggesting he might rest players heading for Euro2008 we may see some interesting squad selections in the final games of the season.
Slaven Bilic, Croatian coach, suggests Nico Kranjcar would be an ideal signing for Arsene Wenger. I like him, I have to say, he’s a very clever footballer and at 23 years of age has plenty of experience in the Premier League and at international level. There might be those who suggest he’s a bit lightweight but then so was Robert Pires when he arrived. Not that I’m suggesting Kranjcar is as good as Pires but physique is something that can be worked on.
Thierry Henry says Arsenal are in his heart (and not just his wallet, har har). The only way to prove that is to score a hat-trick at Old Trafford next week. That’s it. No other way.
Right, that’s about it. Arsecast time.
In this week’s Arsecast, sponsored by OleOle.com, I have an earache, I chat to the man from East Lower, Eboue is there, the Man in the Bar has a player history and I explain why I hate bees, the cunts.
To subscribe to the arsecast in iTunes – click here . To download this week’s arsecast directly – click here (14mb MP3 ). You can find the arsecast archives here . And you can listen directly below without leaving this very page.
[audio:http://arseblog.com/podcasts/arsecast_episode73.mp3]Ok, time for a breakfast of money tasting coffee, antibiotics, painkillers and perhaps some cornflakes. Mmmmm, delicious.
