It was strongly contested from both teams without there being too many
real chances for either side.
Evans, who was captaining the side on a bitterly cold night in the East Midlands, had the first
real chance for either side with a free - kick on the edge of the area that Conor Grant had won but he could not keep his strike down.
Not exact matches
Concluded Managing Editor Hutchinson in a three - part series on the TVA: «The projectors of this many -
sided venture have a
real chance to produce, on a scale to command imitation, a new order of life
for this country» (April 25, 1934).
There were
chances for both
sides before the end of the game, with
Real Madrid furious when a Luka Modric penalty shout was turned down.
This is an incredibly difficult question to answer
for a variety of reasons, most importantly because over the years our once vaunted «beautiful» style of play has become a shadow of it's former self, only to be replaced by a less than stellar «plug and play» mentality where players play out of position and adjustments / substitutions are rarely forthcoming before the 75th minute... if you look at our current players, very few would make sense in the traditional Wengerian system... at present, we don't have the personnel to move the ball quickly from deep - lying position, efficient one touch midfielders that can make the necessary through balls or the disciplined and pacey forwards to stretch defences into wide positions, without the aid of the backs coming up into the final 3rd, so that we can attack the defensive lanes in the same clinical fashion we did years ago... on this current squad, we have only 1 central defender on staf, Mustafi, who seems to have any prowess in the offensive zone or who can even pass two zones through so that we can advance play quickly out of our own end (I have seen some inklings that suggest Holding might have some offensive qualities but too early to tell)... unfortunately Mustafi has a tendency to get himself in trouble when he gets overly aggressive on the ball... from our backs out wide, we've seen pace from the likes of Bellerin and Gibbs and the spirited albeit offensively stunted play of Monreal, but none of these players possess the skill - set required in the offensive zone
for the new Wenger scheme which requires deft touches, timely runs to the baseline and consistent crossing, especially when Giroud was playing and his ratio of scored goals per clear
chances was relatively low (better last year though)... obviously I like Bellerin's future prospects, as you can't teach pace, but I do worry that he regressed last season, which was obvious to Wenger because there was no way he would have used Ox as the right
side wing - back so often knowing that Barcelona could come calling in the off - season, if he thought otherwise... as
for our midfielders, not a single one, minus the more confident Xhaka I watched played
for the Swiss national team a couple years ago, who truly makes sense under the traditional Wenger model... Ramsey holds onto the ball too long, gives the ball away cheaply far too often and abandons his defensive responsibilities on a regular basis (doesn't score enough recently to justify): that being said, I've always thought he does possess a little something special, unfortunately he thinks so too... Xhaka is a little too slow to ever boss the midfield and he tends to telegraph his one true strength, his long ball play: although I must admit he did get a bit better during some points in the latter part of last season... it always made me wonder why whenever he played with Coq Wenger always seemed to play Francis in a more advanced role on the pitch... as
for Coq, he is way too reckless at the wrong times and has exhibited little offensive prowess yet finds himself in and around the box far too often... let's face it Wenger was ready to throw him in the trash heap when injuries forced him to use Francis and then he had the nerve to act like this was all part of a bigger Wenger constructed plan... he like Ramsey, Xhaka and Elneny don't offer the skills necessary to satisfy the quick transitory nature of our old offensive scheme or the stout defensive mindset needed to protect the defensive zone so that our offensive players can remain aggressive in the final third... on the front end, we have Ozil, a player of immense skill but stunted by his physical demeanor that tends to offend, the fact that he's been played out of position far too many times since arriving and that the players in front of him, minus Sanchez, make little to no sense considering what he has to offer (especially Giroud); just think about the quick counter-attack offence in
Real or the space and protection he receives in the German National team's midfield, where teams couldn't afford to focus too heavily on one individual... this player was a passing «specialist» long before he arrived in North London, so only an arrogant or ignorant individual would try to reinvent the wheel and / or not surround such a talent with the necessary components... in regards to Ox, Walcott and Welbeck, although they all possess serious talents I see them in large part as headless chickens who are on the injury table too much, lack the necessary first - touch and / or lack the finishing flair to warrant their inclusion in a regular starting eleven; I would say that, of the 3, Ox showed the most upside once we went to a back 3, but even he became a bit too consumed by his pending contract talks before the season ended and that concerned me a bit... if I had to choose one of those 3 players to stay on it would be Ox due to his potential as a plausible alternative to Bellerin in that wing - back position should we continue to use that formation... in Sanchez, we get one of the most committed skill players we've seen on this squad
for some years but that could all change soon, if it hasn't already of course... strangely enough, even he doesn't make sense given the constructs of the original Wenger offensive model because he holds onto the ball too long and he will give the ball up a little too often in the offensive zone... a fact that is largely forgotten due to his infectious energy and the fact that the numbers he has achieved seem to justify the means... finally, and in many ways most crucially, Giroud, there is nothing about this team or the offensive system that Wenger has traditionally employed that would even suggest such a player would make sense as a starter... too slow, too inefficient and way too easily dispossessed... once again, I think he has some special skills and, at times, has showed some world - class qualities but he's lack of mobility is an albatross around the necks of our offence... so when you ask who would be our best starting 11, I don't have a clue because of the 5 or 6 players that truly deserve a place in this
side, 1 just arrived, 3 aren't under contract beyond 2018 and the other was just sold to Juve... man, this is theraputic because following this team is like an addiction to heroin without the benefits
Nothing like one underachiever blowing smoke up the ass of another... we know that Ozil has some incredible technical gifts, but to be considered the best you have to bring more than just assists to the table...
for me, a top player has to possess a more well - rounded game, which doesn't mean they need to be a beast on both ends of the pitch, but they must have the ability to take their game to another level when it matters most... although he amassed some record - like stats early on, it set the bar too high, so when people expected him to duplicate those numbers each year the pressure seemed to get the best of our soft - spoken star... obviously that's not an excuse
for what has happened in the meantime, but it's important to make note of a few things: (1) his best year was a transition year
for many of the traditionally dominant teams in the EPL, so that clearly made the numbers appear better than they actually were and (2) Wenger's system, or lack thereof, didn't do him any favours; by playing him out of position and by not acquiring world - class striker and / or right -
side forward that would best fit an Ozil - centered offensive scheme certainly hurt his
chances to repeat his earlier peformances, (3) the loss of Cazorla, who took a lot of pressure off Ozil in the midfield and was highly efficient when it came to getting him the ball in space, negatively impacted his effectiveness and (4) he likewise missed a good chunk of games and frankly never looked himself when he eventually returned to the field... overall the Ozil experiment has had mixed reviews and rightfully so, but I do have some empathy
for the man because he has always carried himself the same way, whether
for Real or the German National team, yet he has only suffered any lengthy down periods with Arsenal... to me that goes directly to this club's inability to surround him with the necessary players to succeed, especially
for someone who is a pass first type of player; as such, this simply highlights our club's ineffective and antiquated transfer policies... frankly I'm disappointed in both Ozil and our management team
for not stepping up when it counted because they had a
chance to do something special, but they didn't have it in them... there is no one that better exemplifies our recent history than Ozil, brief moments of greatness undercut by long periods of disappointing play, only made worse by his mopey posturing like a younger slightly less awkward Wenger... what a terribly waste
In this excellent in - depth preview, Tony Scholes reckons that his
side were robbed of a point by the referee in last years fixture and have
real chances of getting their first League win over the Gunners
for over 40 years.
Wigan are one of five
sides that are in with a
real chance of getting relegated in my eyes (the bottom five, bar Villa instead of Birmingham), so we'll be in
for a battle.
The first tie is crucial
for Real Madrid's
chances of qualifying
for quarter final stage against a Roma
side who has not qualified beyond group stages since 2011.
This is the first
real chance to see the team against a top opponent at full strength, so Valverde shouldn't save anyone
for Wednesday and field his best
side at the Wanda.
Only one point separate the two teams who are currently 4th and 5th respectively and a defeat
for either
side will put their
chances of qualification in
real -LSB-...]
Maybe this is just a me thing, but wandering the Upper East
Side gives you the
chance to pop in and out of museums (I suggest The Frick and the Museum of the City of New York) while also scoping out
real estate that you can only dream of as you live off of ramen and pizza to pay rent
for the closet you live in (but I can't complain about ramen and pizza).
If you have the
chance to watch the sunset from the dock of the Pause Hostel on the western
side of the island, you'll be in
for a
real treat.