Normally my morning routine goes like this: Get up, bathroom, make coffee, write Arseblog.
However, this morning it changed. I did the first two things as normal, then realised I was absolutely bollixed from last night’s game of 5-a-side and sitting down at a desk first thing would not be good, so I took Archer to the park for a walk.
Except, halfway to the park the button on my pants came off. This is because my pants are very old and not because I am a fat bastard. This presented something of a challenge but then I remembered I had a whistle with me for dog work, and it was on a piece of string so I used that to keep my pants up.
The walk itself was uneventful. We spied a suspicious looking gang of West Highland Whites and a bully boy Staffie but they didn’t bother us. Either because Archer is a German Shepherd or because they said ‘There’s a bloke with his pants held up by a whistle on a string, we’d best avoid people like that’. I suspect it was the latter.
I’d have to admit I’m less bollixed from the 5-a-side but only very slightly. Like if you were starving and hadn’t eaten all day and somebody gave you half a mini Tuc cracker. But look, there’s nothing that can be done about that other than to sit here and complain about it.
As you might expect there’s not a whole lot going on because of the Interlull. There was a bit from Wojciech Szczesny yesterday in which he spoke about the competition from David Ospina. The headlines ran with ‘Ospina is not my friend’, as if he were throwing down a serious gauntlet to the Colombian, but he clarified this on his Facebook page, saying:
English press need to stop looking for a story when there isn’t one. I said I used to feel sorry for Lukasz Fabianski because he was my good friend and he deserved to play first team football. Little bit different then saying “Ospina isn’t my friend and I don’t feel sorry for him”, don’t you think? With social media these days your bull…t stories will get killed straight away.
What was most interesting from the interview he gave to the Polish press was the awareness that he’s got real competition now. He said:
I feel confident of being number 1 but I know I can’t let myself play a few bad games. I know Ospina’s ambitions don’t end at sitting on the bench and clapping his hands while watching me play.
Ultimately that’s a healthy situation for us as a club to be in, and now that Ospina is fit the pressure will really be on Szczesny. Yet he’s a a player that seems to thrive under those circumstances, so the upside is that we’ll have a keeper fully on his toes and the downside is that if he stumbles we’ve got another top keeper to come in. Quite the downside.
Meanwhile, Jack Wilshere has hit back at amoeba brained, English mangler Jamie Redknapp for his comments after just one game this season when he went to town on Wilshere’s entire career. Speaking at an England press conference yesterday, Jack said:
It’s easy for someone to go on television and say: ‘He should be doing this or that.’ But, if you look back, he was injured just as much as I was. Maybe more. I’ll take criticism. I know that’s part and parcel of football. But when it’s just reckless and aggressive, I don’t listen.
Good on him, I say. I think if criticism comes from someone you respect or admire, it’s a lot easier to take, but this is like a young actor being given lessons on emoting and believability from Tommy Wisseau.
That’s not to say he shouldn’t be aware of the expectation on him this season. He is at an age where he’s got to make a real step forward, but I think he knows that, and having come through last season more or less untroubled by the ankle problems which have hampered his career thus far, he’ll have the confidence to kick on and really make a mark. And at the very least, if it doesn’t happen, it won’t be for the lack of trying.
Finally, I’m sure you’ve all seen the Arsenal players in the funny, clever video for the #rainbowlaces campaign. If not, here we go:
Kudos to the club for being involved and at the forefront of this campaign. I have to say I’ve been heartened by the reaction to it online. I once said I’d spoon with Olivier Giroud after he scored a very important goal and many people on Twitter had to tell me they were un-following me because that was ‘too gay’.
I mean, the people who tell you they’re un-following you are hilarious because it’s oh-so important that you must know how strongly they feel about something. As if you’re going to run after them saying ‘Oh, please don’t!’, but there hasn’t been that kind of negativity to this which either means there’s been a little step forward or all the people who might object have un-followed me (but I like to think it’s the former).
For the most part people have taken this in exactly the spirit it’s meant and while we did have a small number of mindless, offensive comments, they really were in the vast minority, which is exactly how it should be. And the people who made those comments are now looking for somewhere else to talk their shit.
Now, I can’t help that I love bacon, and it’s breakfast time, so I’ll catch you tomorrow. Have a good one.
