Morning all, before we look ahead to today’s game at Burnley let’s deal with the bits and pieces from yesterday. Firstly there was a statement from Aaron Ramsey about the incident. He thanked all those who should have been thanked, including Stoke’s Glenn Whelan for his behaviour in the immediate aftermath of the incident.
He said he has been ‘blown away’ by the support of the Arsenal fans. Quite pointedly, I thought, he made no reference to Ryan Shawcross whatsoever. There was no ‘Well, he sent me a text message so everything’s ok!!’ and while they excuse makers are still out in force that is the clearest indication you need as to what Aaron thinks of his tackle. He is a young man but clearly an intelligent one. Professional footballers know that genuine accidents can happen on the pitch, they would be the last to see a fellow pro castigated for something that wasn’t his fault. The fact that Aaron didn’t so much as mention his name is telling, as far as I’m concerned.
Anyway, we’ll wish him luck again and all the best with his recovery. He’s got good people around him, sadly a medical team who have been through this more often than they would like, and colleagues who can help him make a full recovery. As he says himself he hopes to come back fitter and stronger and I think we all share those sentiments.
Arsene’s press conference took place yesterday and it was a reminder of what a great man he is. I know we’ve all got our frustrations with the way he does things at times but I’d challenge anyone to watch it and not be thoroughly impressed. He stood by his comments about the tackle, as expected, despite some of the more witless hacks suggesting they might have been made in the heat of the moment. He said:
I stand by what I said 100 percent. I knew exactly what would happen the whole week, that was quite easy to predict but I don’t know what is to be added to that.
And what he meant by knowing what would happen are all the HNTKOP©® crap that has been spewed forth by all and sundry. He was right. Arsene is a man who loves football, his whole life has been dedicated to it, and what he said isn’t just about Arsenal. Those who choose to ignore the wider issue, particularly other managers I feel, are not doing the game any service at all. Arsene says:
It is not Arsenal against the rest of the world. What I say is not just for Stoke or Arsenal players, it is for everybody. I defend football.
It is not that we are apart from anybody else. We are the same. I am continuing to defend the values that I believe are important for our club and football. That doesn’t mean we are angels and everyone else is the devil. It is for everybody.
And how right he is. Arsene has been in position this week where he has had the chance to address a problem for football in general, especially in England. While the majority of columnists and pundits have chosen to focus on the poor set upon Ryan Shawcross (the Newstalk clip in yesterday’s Arsecast of him being compared to Lennie from Of Mice and Men is wonderfully accurate), very few have asked the question ‘How can we stop it happening again? How can we ensure no player is hurt this badly in the future?’. The fact that it’s another foreign manager, Roberto Martinez, who has been more or less the only other manager to back Wenger speaks volumes.
And then you have the smart arses. The guys who think they’re so clever. This exchange was priceless:
Journo – “There was a tackle by William Gallas against Bolton which put a player out of the game for four or five weeks …”
Arsene – “It is not true. What you say here is not true”.
Journo – “But do you remember the tackle?”
Arsene – “The player played less than 10 days later”
Journo – “Yeah .. well …”
Arsene – “So that’s exactly what we face on the other side of the fence. It is always information that is not checked and that we have to stand up for”.
Journo – “But the tackle itself, do you remember it?”
And how Arsene kept his composure in the face of such fuckwittery I will never know. I don’t think I could do it. And whoever that journalist is he was made look most stupid as his transparent agenda had holes poked in it straight away. As the questions rained in about our reaction, about the fact that we have dared to be even slightly outraged at the sight of one of our players with his leg snapped in two, he remained calm but put things into perspective perfectly:
I am sitting here like I am in a tribunal. What do I have to defend? I love the commitment of the English game. I don’t want to change that and it makes the game even more attractive, but high commitment demands fair intention as well.
If you don’t have a subscription to Arsenal TV Online, I recommend it, especially for the press conferences. Arsene’s performance yesterday was a masterclass. What shone through was his intelligence and respectful nature when many others would be so different. In the middle of the Ramsey stuff there were questions taken from a Korean journalist who went so far off the point it was unreal. She asked him if he was going to the World Cup, if he might look at some Asian players while there and what he thought of Man United’s Ji Sung Park. Other managers would have scowled and given her short shrift. Not Arsene. He gave her time, and answered her questions with impeccable manners and good grace, under the circumstances, yet this is a man that half-arsed hacks like the Gallas question bloke think they can try and get a rise out of? He drives me mad sometimes but I do love Arsene. Especially when he makes idiots look like the idiots they are.
The bottom line now, as Arsene says, is that we give our support to Aaron Ramsey, ensure he comes back fitter and stronger and better and from now on we’ve got to concentrate on the football. Before we look at the Burnley game there was another belter from the manager. Asked about Chris Waddles comments about Theo Walcott not having a football brain he said:
“Not only does he have a football brain, he has a brain”.
Haha, in your face, Pelanty Boy! Also worth a read are the comments of Philippe Auclair from yesterday’s Arsecast – please forward to whoever you think might be interested in them. And even if podcasts aren’t your thing, I’d suggest giving yesterday’s a listen. Not just because it’s mine but because you rarely hear such insightful, intelligent commentary of the game we all love.
Today’s team news sees Arshavin, Denilson and Diaby return which is a timely boost. Song is missing for a couple of games due to suspension, Sol Campbell’s groin is being rested so Sylvester will accompany Vermaelen at the centre of defence. I don’t quite know what sort of team he’ll put out today, perhaps one with an eye on Porto, but nothing less than three points today will do. Will Burnley feel the backlash from the Ramsey incident? Certainly the team will be highly motivated and I think the atmosphere at the Grove today will be awesome. Below you see the banner which Arseblog regulars made and contributed to:
Big props to WestStandTone for organising, Ms K for ensuring it got paid for, Tres Rapide who designed it and everyone who chipped in their few quid to make it happen. Also, my sincere thanks to the lads at REDaction for their help in arranging to get it hung. And if you haven’t seen it already they have got a huge banner made which will be displayed before and after the match – take a look.
If you’re going today I’m sure you’ll enjoy what will be a special atmosphere. Let’s hope the lads on the pitch can match it in terms of the performance and that today, they do it for Aaron.
Till tomorrow.
