West Ham vs Arsenal - August 25th, 2018

wow... whodathunkit??????

both teams heading into this match up on zero points...

so... three games in... two teams with new managers and embarking on paths unknkown... pretty much a relegation battle in the first month of the season.

To be fair... Arsenal haven't played that badly and like last weekend, didn't lose by much.

Jolly old West Ham by contrast have been pretty piss poor beyond a few minutes in the first halves of both games...

gonna be interesting... and by interesting, I'm figuring a combination of squeaky bum time and immense depression/anger...

it's a must-win game because we got some shitty match-ups heading our way over the coming weeks.

see you at 7am

Was it really just over 3 years ago that we went to the Emirates and walked all over Arsenal beating them 0-2?
I'd love that to happen toady ...... just the boost we need to get this season up and running.

COYI

Jiggs wrote:Was it really just over 3 years ago that we went to the Emirates and walked all over Arsenal beating them 0-2?
I'd love that to happen toady ...... just the boost we need to get this season up and running.

COYI

Love to see that happen but.......................

Not a lot of confidence if you look at our predictor but who knows, football can be a funny old game.

Here's hopping that we do well today.

all Arse for the first 2 minutes...

I'll need to check the team line-ups

not sure yellow socks really go with the blue away strip...

we had 1 attack thus far.. Masuaku running out of defense and playing it to Arnie who kinda messed up a weak cross into the middle that hit an Arsenal defender and ricocheted to the keeper...

oooh... Antonio?

from 1st team to no where to back to the first team...interesting.

Snoddy is out there...

Arnie - natch!

Fredericks

Masuaku...


few more West Ham spells of possession...

Arsenal v West Ham line-ups

Arsenal: Cech, Bellerin, Mustafi, Papastathopoulos, Monreal, Guendouzi, Xhaka, Mkhitaryan, Ramsey, Iwobi, Aubameyang.

Subs: Elneny, Lacazette, Torreira, Lichtsteiner, Holding, Leno, Welbeck.

West Ham: Fabianski, Fredericks, Balbuena, Diop, Masuaku, Sanchez, Wilshere, Felipe Anderson, Snodgrass, Antonio, Arnautovic.

Subs: Zabaleta, Adrian, Obiang, Hernandez, Yarmolenko, Lucas Perez, Rice.

Referee: Graham Scott (Oxfordshire)

no Noble???????

Arsenal get the ball in the net... pace counter attack... Fabianski tries to palm it away but fortunately the lino is there to save us....

still 0-0...

if Wolves can hold Man City... can we hold the Arse?


ooooh... Arnie beats the offside trap but slams the ball into the side netting...

masuaku is playing well... wins us a corner...

he and Antonio are providing the speed we need...

Diop in there challenging for the ball

and Arnie knocks it high and nowhere...

good run by Antonio...

we ge our first free kicks just outside the corner of the penalty area...

Fredericks in a heavy defensive tackle that hurts him and whoever the Arsenal player is....

both teams are very nippy on the attack... both teams a not really firing on ll cylinders up front...

Mondrial is the Arsenal player and is still getting treatment...

Arnie captain today - don't mind that at all

Sanchez has replaced Noble in mid... along with Snodgrass, Antonio and Wilshere (can we have a player score against their old club... pretty please)

Zab gets stuck on the bench, feel a bit bad for him...

Fredericks, Balbuena and Diop get the chance to prove they can do what they do...


Snoddy has been fairly well involved in our attacks thus far... nice to see us going down both flanks...

but Arsenal counter

woot!!!!!

Arnie and Anderson team up and pick their way through the Arsenal defense...

and Arnie slots a low shot into the corner....

so we lead for the 2nd time this season...

don't go counting any chickens just yet...

Good Arsenal attack... but we clear...

they're keeping the presureup... but approaching the half hour mark... we're still in the lead.

and there you go...

1-1

less than 5 minutes in the kead

and it was the 'injured' Mondrial who unmarked, slams the ball into the back of the net.

was just sitting here thinking... the defense still feels a little suspect...

when Arsenal get right behind us... all the way to the line and cross back through the scrambling defense for Mondrial, unmarked as I said, to slam the ball into the net...

So do we fold?

Do Arsenal take the initiative...

it's a very open game... could be 19-0 or 12-12....

Antonio gets through but his weak shot isn't a pass to Arnie but into the keeper.

Arsenal mess up their first corner of the game...

and we're on the attack again... until the ref blows in favor of Arsenal...

very end to end... both teams looking like conceding... both teams... kinda sorta looking like they can score...

it's like a Kevin Keegan wet dream out there...

Arsenal's 2nd corner come up...

ten minutes to go till half time...


danger over...

Ramsey is played in behind the defense again... Fabianski saves well...

Arnie goes on the rampage up front... slots the ball into the net... but is called back for offside from the pass

Arsenal up our end once more...

Antonio looks pretty lively... tries to curl a ball around the defense but it keeps going and not looping enough... and Arsenal are back at us...

trailing leg brings down the opponent and a yellow card for Diop...

will be an Arsenal free kick when play resumes...

free kick hits the wall...

we push Arsenal back into their own half...
but here they come again...

Snodgrass goes down... free kick to us when everyone stops rolling around in the grass...

3 minutes of injury time...

who ill make the break before the break...?

almost us as Arnie gets clear on the attack but can't link up properly...