Hello there,
So, today Arsenal has cocluded their pre-season in style, beating Man City 3-1 in a friendly in Helsinki. I haven't seen the game (the TV company that decides, what to translate, chose France's Ligue 1 over Premier League this season. Useless bastards), but the result left me shaking my head in disbelief. I know, it's a friendly, but still. Both managers went for as strong line-ups as possible. You can look them up, if you like, but suffice to say, Man City started both Fernandinho ans Negredo, with Jovetic and Navas coming on as late substitutes. We opted to have Giroud and Cazorla in reserve, in case of emergency, with Podolski spearheading the attack. Walcott scored the early goal and, I guess, that set the tone for the game. Giroud and Ramsey added two more around the hour mark and it was game over for Man City. They did restore some dignity with a late Negredo goal, but that was it. After the game, the manager said:
So, today Arsenal has cocluded their pre-season in style, beating Man City 3-1 in a friendly in Helsinki. I haven't seen the game (the TV company that decides, what to translate, chose France's Ligue 1 over Premier League this season. Useless bastards), but the result left me shaking my head in disbelief. I know, it's a friendly, but still. Both managers went for as strong line-ups as possible. You can look them up, if you like, but suffice to say, Man City started both Fernandinho ans Negredo, with Jovetic and Navas coming on as late substitutes. We opted to have Giroud and Cazorla in reserve, in case of emergency, with Podolski spearheading the attack. Walcott scored the early goal and, I guess, that set the tone for the game. Giroud and Ramsey added two more around the hour mark and it was game over for Man City. They did restore some dignity with a late Negredo goal, but that was it. After the game, the manager said:
It was a game of good intensity with two teams who were really putting all the effort on. We had a good tactical discipline. I'm pleased with many aspects of our game, even if there are some points to work on. Overall it's positive tactically [and] attitude-wise. We scored goals, created chances and were always highly focused. That's good.That's definitely good, there's no denying that. However, there is another side to the proceedings. This win, which, I emphisize, was achieved in a friendly, may hide the fact we only have a core of fifteen-or-so players, that can go out and do the job. Beyond these players, there's nothing. You need to look no further, than today's bench to realise that. Fabianski, Jenkinson, Cazorla and Giroud are all tried-and-tested, of course, but Zelalem is too raw for first-team action, while the other two guys, well, I've seen their names for the first time. Rosicky and Sanogo were left out for some reason, while we also shouldn't forget the injured Vermaelen and Monreal, but that makes it only nineteen senior players (and I have my reservations about Sanogo), assuming everyone stays fit. And they are not at the time of speaking.