Arsenal(FA Cup Semi Final) Post Match Thread

willipp said:
I wouldnt call Barcas defence shit. Danni Alves for most of their success, Jordi Alba, Puyol, Mascherano, Pique are all class players and would walk into our current defence.
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Our defense last time I looked was the fourth best in PL
 
Got back from Wembley in time to watch it on BBC and it didn't highlight the consistent fouling and tackles from behind the the cockney twats did.
How the fuck did we get 5 yellows to their 2?
We dominate possession in most games but always seem to give away more fouls than the other team.
All officials make mistakes and if it's honest then it should be 50/50 or allowing for a margin of error maybe 60/40 but it seems like decisions seem to be 80/20 against us and probably 90/10 against us in big games.
Pep needs to get somebody to make a dvd of all yesterday's decisions and ask why we got booked but arsenal didnt and do same for all the games against the top 6 .
Apart from the disallowed goal and non penalty on Kun, Yaya was fouled before they got the free kick from which they scored.
As for the players Sane and KDB were very quiet, Bravo had a good game and Yaya showed his desire to win albeit in vain.
Subs were very strange and highlights the lack of depth in the squad.
We need to beat the scum on Thursday and that will be partly determined by the officials as per.
Hope Gabriel is fit to play and Silva is ok.
Let's get behind the lads on Thursday and shut the rags up.
 
Once again, Manchester City are fucked by the supposedly impartial officials. What a fucking disgrace Pawson and his assistants were. Mrs Vienna suggested that the FA wants Wenger to win the FA Cup as his swan song and the way he let the Arsenal players get away with some of their fouls, you have to wonder if that is indeed true.

Brilliant goal by Sergio. A lovely chip to lift it over Chec.

Yaya was my MotM, but very good performances from both Vinnie and Nico, as well as Navas and de Bruyne. I thought Sané and Sterling were very poor.

Now, we must ensure a top four finish and rebuild for a serious assault on all four fronts next season.
 
Time and time again this season we've had no players busting a gut to get on the end of crosses. So many times yesterday the ball went in their area with only one or sometimes none of our players within 10 yards. FFS!!We need to start doing better in them situations. However, and this is even more f***** annoying, on numerous occasions Navas, had the chance to put a first time ball into their area with our players actually in there,yet took an extra touch and either crossed too late or did his little lay off..by this time the goons had their backline sorted and the danger was no more. ******* infuriating!! On another note, YaYa was immense yesterday. Arr well, bring on the VERMIN.
 
jimmygrimblesboots said:
When we say we are unlucky hit the post/bar ref/linesman has robbed us , it sounds like sour grapes , but we have had some attrocious decisions this season , i read the bullshit about these things even out over a course of a season , well it f8cking does'nt , we have been royally shafted by the F.A. and officials and i cannot see this changing . As someone previously said we are the upstarts , and the people who run football and have invested heavily in the game want Goons , Chavs, Dippers and Rags back in the top four , and AC/Inter Milan and others back amongst the european elite , and when Scudamore himself says an unsuccessful Rag team is not good for the Premier league , then the alarm bells must sound. We will never get a fair crack of the whip and any trophies we win will be very hard earned , Guardiola is'nt just fighting the other 18 premier league teams and he will come to realise that , he has previously managed elite clubs that are accepted in their countries , but we are despised throughout european football because we are "new money" get used to it.
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You are right Jim, and that is why us City fans need to develop an us against them mentality. It needs to be displayed and voiced by unsurmounted support especially at home games. Pep has called for this already and has spoken to the owners of the club about developing the atmosphere at home games - some thought he was having a dig, when infact Pep recognises how vitally important us fans are in terms of pushing the team on.


Thursday is huge, time to make the Etihad a cauldron
 
Gordyola said:
Difficult to counter attack when teams are happy to sit back, the much mooted 3 at the back for the Arse was most of the time 5 Even with them sitting back we scored two legit goals hit the woodwork twice and should have done better with two other attempts, then there was numerous balls across the box which we failed to get on the end of.

If you think Pep is failing then where do you think we would be with any other manager, with this squad?
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We could easily attack much more quickly w - at least 10 times a game when the through ball pass is on yet they pass it along the line or pass it back. The slow build up play gives the opposition time time to set their defence and tge referees the chance to bend the game.

Pep clearly needs a top player in every position and also on the bench to be successful. A formula one driver rather than a Rally driver if you want an analogy.

Pep's substitutions leave me colld too being poorly timed and often taking off the player needed to spark the player coming on - but that's anither story altogether.
 
"He's not the messiah!" "This season he's been a very naughty boy!"

Very disappointed yesterday but I really believe we will be much better next season. Not sure the officiating will be as it has contributed to at least 75% of the matches we have lost this season and Gael Clichy/Claudio Bravo for the majority of the other 25%.

As always true blues onwards and upwards. Win the Derby on Thursday and we'll be back on track. Pep's a thinking manager and I just think he's been caught cold by English football coupled with actual state of our defence. Though he must be aware that he cannot let a bad season become an abomination which it will be if the scum beat us.

But he won't let it. 3-1 to the blues!!! Get ready for smug mode on Friday. (Prays)
 
A lot of people here want United beat. Don't think we can easily say City will anymore. If Silva isn't fit and Aguero is out, it becomes a more difficult task. The mental and physical drain of the semi-final loss will have an effect as well. Nonetheless, City need to seize the initiative. Liverpool fumbled. They can't fumble themselves. If there was anytime to be ruthless, now is the time.

The semi's also showed a lack of depth, as well as, unavailability of a game or game changers. I'm sure Pep wishes the summer could come sooner. Only thing fans can do is push them on till the end of the season.
 
Josh_D said:
A lot of people here want United beat. Don't think we can easily say City will anymore. If Silva isn't fit and Aguero is out, it becomes a more difficult task. The mental and physical drain of the semi-final loss will have an effect as well. Nonetheless, City need to seize the initiative. Liverpool fumbled. They can't fumble themselves. If there was anytime to be ruthless, now is the time.

The semi's also showed a lack of depth, as well as, unavailability of a game or game changers. I'm sure Pep wishes the summer could come sooner. Only thing fans can do is push them on till the end of the season.
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We definitely have a lack of depth but we also have 37 players out on loan. Go figure that one.
 
It's perfectly appropriate to be critical and give opinion; that's what this site is all about. Furthermore, the extremely tactically astute and inventive management team, for whom our owners have paid a Sheikh's ransom, should be open to scrutiny. They are supposed to see things and understand playing situations far more ably than the fan in the stand.
We have much to bemoan from yesterday's game; bad luck, refereeing decisions, players' performances, and tactics.
I would like to make one observation, (I don't want to call it a criticism because I'm not arrogant enough to suppose I know better than the aforementioned management team) but after David was kicked out of the game we didn't change the way we approached the match: With David in the side we can play through the middle because he exploits those spaces between midfield and defence like no other player in our squad (or very few players anywhere, ever). Without David we didn't alter our formation. We still built up methodically and deliberately but without anyone playing in those spaces and being able to play-in a telling pass to the danger areas. Surely what was then required was pace and width to exploit space in behind their defence.
What played out was rather turgid and disappointingly uninspiring football for the majority of the game. The fact that we still managed to create more chances and have more corners, shots and shots on target than Arsenal makes me even more depressed! How poor were they?
 
Stretch said:
Time and time again this season we've had no players busting a gut to get on the end of crosses. So many times yesterday the ball went in their area with only one or sometimes none of our players within 10 yards. FFS!!We need to start doing better in them situations. However, and this is even more f***** annoying, on numerous occasions Navas, had the chance to put a first time ball into their area with our players actually in there,yet took an extra touch and either crossed too late or did his little lay off..by this time the goons had their backline sorted and the danger was no more. ******* infuriating!! On another note, YaYa was immense yesterday. Arr well, bring on the VERMIN.
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yup, we seem to have this style or rule that we mustn't lose the ball, that every ball into the box has to be perfect. It slows us down to fuck. I think the odds of upsetting the opposition defence with constant crosses and attacks are far higher than not letting them have the ball! It's more exciting too, because at the moment it is boring to watch this slow play, it stifles the team and the crowd!
 
This season I have criticized us for not being clinical enough but yesterday I just think everything went against us. Injuries, key decisions, woodwork and just the fine margins. I thought we deserved to win over the full 90. It's important now (as if it wasn't already) that we put everything in to getting that top 4 spot.
 
Gordyola said:
Barca do

Allardyce! are you serious?
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Barca don't have a shit defence. As for Allardyce i said it would be interesting to see what he would do with a squad like ours. Why not Allardyce anyway? He thrives on playing the dinosaur and he has proved he is a shifty money grabber like most people involved in football. Leaving that aside though he is an astute coach who gets the best out of what is usually a poor squad. From a football point of view it would fascinate me to see him manage a top squad.
 
paulchapo said:
Barca don't have a shit defence. As for Allardyce i said it would be interesting to see what he would do with a squad like ours. Why not Allardyce anyway? He thrives on playing the dinosaur and he has proved he is a shifty money grabber like most people involved in football. Leaving that aside though he is an astute coach who gets the best out of what is usually a poor squad. From a football point of view it would fascinate me to see him manage a top squad.
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Not difficult to organise a team into a solid unit, when defence is the only priority by putting 10 men or more behind the ball, whereas to make a team expansive and entertaining, playing to win games is far more difficult. That's why the top coaches capable of doing it are few and far between and why the likes of Allardyce and Pulis will only ever achieve top ten like success. IMHO Pep has over achieved with this aging squad with inherent weaknesses that the club for whatever reason have failed to address for a number of seasons.
 
its funny seeing barely any mention in the media that sterlings goals should have counted and we should of had a penalty. the referee robbed us of a win imo/ one of the main reasons we didn't win.
 
Tom_mcfc said:
Listen I get that and agree largely and we have been harshly treated. What you do though is power through it, we had a goal wrongly ruled out then managed to take the lead. We then threw that lead away. Whilst getting the decision makes life a lot easier you still then need to perform on the pitch. It wasn't the refs fault like every game we will get to the edge of the area, fuck about with it for 5 minutes then play it wide to clichy or Navas for them to twat the ball off the first man. Not good enough.
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But if the goal had been given then the penalty correctly awarded we'd have probably been 2-0 up, instead we're denied both, that would have made it 3-0 or 3-1 if their pen had been given. It'd be a totally different game by then, same as it would/should have been V Chelsea, v Spurs, v Arsenal away, v Liverpool. All the dodgy decisions come against us at key points in the game, Christ we didn't even get the Pen v Saints but thankfully went on to win it.

He was on their side from the off, the foul on Navas the the foul by Otamendi in the first 10 minutes were laughable.
 
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