Dial Square - Joss' Arsenal Story

[vlad-the-impaling-gunner]

Wilshere's passing is 19 at the start of the game?oO)

 

[Joss]

Wilshere's passing is 19 at the start of the game?oO)

Yeah, read the first page of updates/discussion - It's my custom database.

 

[fuelledbypassion]

Great interview Joss, easily the best and most realistic I've seen

 

[Joss]

Disappointing February for Gunners​

Arsenal will be delighted to have come through the month still top of the league after they managed only two wins from four very winnable games in the Premier League, on the other side of the coin, fans will be annoyed that they failed to extend their lead at the top of the table after both Tottenham and Chelsea failed to overtake the small 4 point gap at the top of the table.

The Gunners started at Goodison Park where they won 6-0 at the start of last season against a side they also beat 3-1 at the Emirates this season. Few pundits have questioned the quality at Everton but even less will have predicted that some resolute defending and outstanding shot-stopping from Tim Howard would give Everton a shock 1-0 win. Everton midfielder Marouane Fallaini scored the winner midway through the first half when some neat interplay culminated in Saha slipping a through ball through to the big Belgian international, who cooly sidestepped Fabianski before passing the ball into the open net. Arsenal attacked and attacked but some top goalkeeping kept Everton's lead intact with Jagielka and Distin looking solid in front of him too.​

Arsenal once again had to respond to a disappointing result, and did so well as they beat ten-man Fulham 3-0 at the Emirates to get their month back on track. Early Arsenal pressure paid off as the ball was cut back to Cameroonian Alex Song - his deflected cross was dropped by the unimpressive Mark Schwarzer and Chris Baird could do nothing but knock the ball into his own net as he was unable to react in time under pressure from Andrey Arshavin. Brede Hangeland was sent off in the second half, but the damage was already done when Fabregas found Van Persie in the area with a brilliant, pin-point pass - The Dutch forward took a touch before firing goalwards but when his shot was saved, Jack Wilshere was left with the simplest of finishes from 12 yards as he tucked the ball into the open net for his 3rd league goal for Arsenal in what has been a brilliant first full season for them after suggestions of a summer loan move to Bolton Wanderers didn't seem to unlikely after a successful spell there in the second half of last season - The now England international will be delighted with the first-team chances he has been getting and is rightly keeping the likes of Abou Diaby out of the side. As Fulham went down to ten men, Arsenal were more than happy to play their possession football and wait for a chance to come up. The chance did come as Alex Song and Wilshere were involved again in a 15 pass move - Wilshere's ball forward was stroked across the box by Samir Nasri and Song was on the end of it to put the ball into the net for the third time.
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See Arsenal's superb third goal courtesy of ATVO:
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3328byM7AA[/media]​

Next up in the league was a tough visit to St. James' Park. A somewhat dull match ended 0-0 as neither side really did enough to threaten the opposition goal. Newcastle seemed more than happy to sit back and defend, counter attacking if and when the opporunity arose where Asrenal preferred to stick to their possession-based, attacking approach, but to no avail - Some good defending and a hardworking midfield meant most of Arsenal's passes went sideways or backwards to the annoyance of the terrific visiting fans. When the magpies did go forward it was largely via the wings with Andy Carroll looking to take advantage of his aerial prowess to expose an area this Arsenal side has been heavily criticised for in the past but the excellent Laurent Koscielny kept him at bay throughout the game and was rightly named Man of the Match on the Arsenal.com poll.​

In the final Premier League game of the month, Birmingham were not so much demolished as some Arsenal fans had hoped, but were soundly beaten 2-0 thanks in part to a late Michel own goal. Nasri scored in the 21st minute to give Arsenal the advantage at half time when Van Persie crossed from the right and Nasri snuck in unmarked at the near post to poke the ball home past a furious Ben Foster. Earlier in the season, Arsenal failed to end Birmingham's superb home form when Jerome cancelled out Marouane Chamakh's first Arsenal goal. All hopes of a repeat were dashed when another dropped cross from the opposition landed awkwardly at the feet of the spanish defender, Michel who sliced the ball past his own keeper, despite being the scorer of the own goal, the defender is likely to be telling his keeper just how much of the blame he is willing to take.​

Wedged between a difficult Newcastle tie and the home fixture in the FA Cup 5th Round against Manchester City's petrol billions, Arsenal faced German giants Bayern Munich. The team, which consists of World Cup finalists Arjen Robben and Mark Van Bommel as well as French playmaker Frank Ribery has long been recognised on Europe's biggest stage for club football, though Bennett will have been pleased not to draw Inter Milan or Real Madrid as they might have. Having finished 2nd in their group, the Gunners will have to play the first of the two legs in North London, with many fans suggesting this could be a disadvantage for new manager Bennett, who has already been knocked out of the Carling Cup this season, but the Arsenal gaffer disagrees, saying in a press conference earlier today:

Obviously a lot of people will say having the first leg at home is more difficult. I have heard people say that if we play the second leg at home then we know what we have to do: If we are losing from the first leg, we have the fans who will encourage and inspire the players so we can turn it around, or if we are winning than it is easier to keep possession and limit the opposition's chances. I do not agree with this, for me it is maybe better to play at Home first - we will have the fans behind us and get this lead you all talk about, so we go to Munich with confidence and with a good start. I don't think it matters either way though - If we play the way I know we can, then there are very few teams in the world that can beat us...

With so many good players on show, it was always going to be an exciting game, and tightly contested, as it was, with both teams picking up several bookings showing the passion of the players rather than aggressive approaches. Arsenal kept possession well, with the manager choosing to play with the regular formation, including two wing-backs and a fluid midfield unlike in other big games this season when he has instructed the more defensive of his players to curb their forward runs and attacking menality. The goal eventually came for the Gunners courtesy of yet another own goal. This time, a Fabregas set-piece found Sebastian Squillaci in a dangerous position at the far post - his shot was deflected sufficiently to deceive the goalkeeper, the ball flicking off the inside of Olic's leg and looping over the goalkeeper. Both sides had more chances, with Fabregas volleying just over in the first half and coming half an inch away from doubling his side's lead in the second, hitting the post via the keeper's glove when he was found by Van Persie's neat through ball. The best chance of the match though fell to Bayern Munich. Some suspect refereeing gave the German side a penalty when Squillaci was judged to have pushed Badstubder in the area. Ivica Olic stepped up confidently looking to make amends for his earlier error, but smacked the post with a right footed effort, it was just as well for the Gunners as Fabianski had gone the wrong way, but Arsenal cleared and hung on until the end to claim a tight, but good 1-0 lead to take to Germany. The lead means Arsenal have something to work with at the 70,000 seater Allianz Arena, but will have to be at their best to thwart the attacks of Die Bayern or to add to their goals.​

The FA Cup tie against Manchester City would round off Arsenal's month but it didn't end the way they had hoped. A young Gunners side featuring the untested Nordtveit as well as Craig Eastmond, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, and polish keeper Wolciech Szczsney went into the game perhaps demonstrating the naivety of the manager, who appeared to underestimate the opposition, or undervalue the Cup itself, despite this, he argued his team played well and the young players rose to the challenge. Once again, Arsenal failed to beat Manchester City as James Milner's headed goal after quarter of an hour proved the difference at the Emirates. The midfielder was excellent all afternoon and combined well with Gegory Van der Wiel on the right hand side of midfield as Manchester City lined up with three defensive Midfielders in Barry, Toure and ex-Gunner Patrick Vieira.

Next up, Arsenal will face two teams in the bottom half of the table as well as the all-important return leg against Die Roten in Munich. ​

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What does everyone think of the update? I hope it's OK - I spent the best part of an hour writing the original, but lost it when my computer randomly decided to reboot itself :S H Would also just like to ask anyone who is bothered to read my lengthy updates to comment on the thread and give me some feedback, it's always taken in and I'll add things if people think it will be better! So that's enough of that, next update up some time tomorrow or the next day

 

[Calum]

Great update Joss !

Unlucky bout the FA Cup defeat

 

[Joss]

Short but sweet month for Gunners​

a

Arsenal picked up maximum points in the league to extend their lead over third placed Chelsea and put real pressure on Tottenham Hotspur, a new rival for the title this season. Many pundits are already suggesting that with 7 games to go, a 5 point lead over Chelsea is enough to mean the champions won't be retaining the trophy, although perhaps not when Arsenal's run in is considered - the leaders still have to face the rest of the new "Big Five" and three of those games will come away from home - to Tottenham, Manchester United and Liverpool while they face Chelsea at home just three games before the end of the season, these games will undoubtedly be crucial but the Arsenal manager is keeping cool, saying:

We have a difficult run-in, yes. But we have shown the big teams what we are made of already this season and despite having to go to Liverpool, Manchester and to White Hart Lane, I feel confident we can get results. This team has often been criticised for not being physical enough, we have proven this season we can be physical, for not shooting or not crossing, we have proven we can play nice football and score goals from everywhere so that is good and finally, they are criticised by the media for falling apart at the final hrudle, we will prove you wrong again, the players need to keep calm under pressure and I think they have already shown they can do this too. It will go down to the wire, and we are completely ready.

The Gunners started the month against a struggling Stoke City side, increasingly aware of the threat of relegation and a return to the Football League. The manager was clearly determined to put an end to their poor form at the start of months and set up with a very positive approach and line-up - Trusting Kieran Gibbs at left back and the more positive Thomas Vermaelen in central defence as well as Arshavin on the left and the combination of Chamakh and Van Persie, with the Dutchman starting further right, and the former taking a more central position. Arsenal's positive atttidue showed in the statistics, they had 11 shots at goal compared to Stoke's four, and pressed high up the pitch as they also won the majority of aerial battles and tackles. Cesc Fabregas scored the only goal of the match with what was somewhat of a collector's item - A good Arsenal move created space for Gibbs on the left and his whipped cross was flicked goalwards and into the top corner via the head of El Capitan, Cesc Fabregas. Stoke had more and more possession as the game went on, and managed to finish with a total of 50% of it but in truth, Arsenal dominated the game and fully deserved three points.

Stoke were limited to playing long balls, but Arsenal's defence was up to the job:

In their second and final Premier League fixture of March, Arsenal and Robin Van Persie continued their brilliant home form against Blackburn Rovers. The Dutch hitman scored twice in a 2-0 victory that didn't flatter the Lancashire side. Again, Arsenal's dominance was clear in the statistics, keeping possession well but Blackburn's defence did a good job of limiting the Gunners' clear-cut chances. It was Arsenal's hard work in midfield that paid dividends and they kept the ball well but were unable to penetrate the defence. The goal finally came after less than 20 minutes, a cross from the right was chested towards his keeper by Ryan Nelsen but Van Persie, who loves scoring against Blackburn, beat Paul Robinson to the ball to head home from 3 yards out. The rookie manager, Joss Bennett had to wait until the 89th minute to complete the win as Blackburn threw players forward for a late corner, the ball into the near post was headed away by Chamakh who found his strike partner brilliantly under pressure, Van Persie ran more than half the length of the pitch with the ball to score a a goal some might expect from a player like Thierry Henry and complete his brace. When the Arsenal players finally caught up with him, they grouped together in the corner in a real show of togetherness and desire to win.

Arsenal had near total dominance, with 65% of possession an averaging a pass completion rate of almost 85%, compared to 65% for Blackburn

In the Champions League return leg, Arsenal again had to work hard for victory by a determined German side in a very even game in terms of everything but the scoreline. A draw was perhaps deserved and would have sufficed for Bennett's side as they took a thin 1-0 lead to Bavaria but some tactical intuition and a clever line-up inspired Bennett's side to a late comeback to win 2-1 and progress into the quarter-finals of the competition. Clichy was able to return to the side as Denilson took the place of Wilshere and Nasri made a rare start on the right, having played predominantly on the left in place of Arshavin. Bennett claimed that the Russian was on the team sheet because he was a player that could "create a moment of magic at any time" - but his apparent laziness and refusal to track back this season meant the presence of Denilson would be key on the left of a central midfield pivot also featuring Alex Song, and Cesc Fabregas in the "hole" behind lone striker Marouane Chamakh with Van Persie missing out through suspension. It took less than 15 minutes for Ivica Olic to make up for his two errors two weeks previously as he raced onto a ball from Frank Ribery, who had cut inside Sagna and was left free by Song. Olic finished well with a neat but powerful finish into the near post on the run as he looked to outpace Sebastien Squillaci. After Bayern's storming start, the game quietened down as Arsenal's midfield pressed the ball well but created few opportunities at the other end and were often guilty of misplacing sloppy passes in the final third. The breakthrough for the Gunners finally came in the 88th minute, Bayern pushed players forward in search of a second goal to prevent extra-time but a counter attack resulted in a throw in deep in the Bayern half, the ball came out to Wilshere on the edge of the area and his pass was kept moving by Chamakh who prodded into the feet of Fabregas, the captain producing a marvellous finish into the roof of the net to make a quarter final place a near certainty. A minute later and Bayern lost the ball almost immdediately after kick-off, the ball was played to Samir Nasri on the right , who seemed determined to better Fabregas' effort with a delightful lob of the German side's keeper from all of 25 yards and into the corner. Arsenal were through, and the delight on the players faces was clear to see, a Man of the Match award was graciously taken by Fabregas, who protested Nasri deserved it for the quality of his finish, in a second he demonstrated Arsenal's presence as a team not a bunch of indiviudals this season and that has been the major difference for many.​

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ia38L6guIW4

ARSENAL HAVE DRAWN EUROPEAN CHAMPIONS INTER MILAN IN THE QUARTER FINALS

 

[fuelledbypassion]

Should be a tougher test against Inter, good luck mate. Still a great chance of some silverware this season, but with a difficult run in it'll be interesting to see if the gunners can hold their nerve!

 

[PafcLad]

good luck against inter mate

 

[*Jamess*]

when is the next updat

 

[TeddyBearChelsea]

Really good so far. Can't wait to see how you do against Inter! Just a little piece of advice: maybe you could put the results and the team names in bold in the texts? Think it would help the reading.

 

[Joss]

Gunners struggle through difficult tie

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A month which Arsenal by all accounts were going to find tough was actually passed with with a surprising degree of success. The most testing fixture for the Gunners was inevitably going to be the two legs against European Champions, Inter Milan. The Italian side have been in scintillating form in the Champions League and having overcome Shakhtar Donetsk with relative ease in the First Knockout Round, most people were struggling to pick out just one player to look out for. Pundits suggested Eto'o would undoubtedly be a danger against an Arsenal defence that loves to push up from their penalty area and play the sort of passing football the North London side has become famous for. Wesley Sneijder, too would pose a threat - The Dutch playmaker has the vision and technique to spot and complete the most difficult of passes.


FIRST LEG PRODUCES 5 GOAL THRILLER

The start to the game was completely unexpected. In a packed Giuseppe Meazza stadium in Milan, flares lit up the stadium as the travelling Arsenal fans were stunned into silence after only 2 minutes. Diego Milito opened the scoring with a superb strike after an early Inter throw. Dangerman Samuel Eto'o received the ball from the throw-in, and turning past his man found Diego Milito. The big Argentine was able to turn into space with the usually impressive Koscielny for once found standing off his man, the result was devastating as he smashed a shot straight into the top corner. The travelling fans spirits were lifted momentarily as their side got back into the game and began to string together some neat passes, but the Italian fans once again lifted the roof off the stadium as Inter doubled their lead at the worst possible time. The impressive Milito this time turned provider as he slipped a ball into the path of Goran Pandev, the Macedonian taking his chance thanks, in part to some questionable goalkeeping - Lukasz Fabianski let the ball past him at the near post far too easily and suddenly Inter were crusing. 1-0 away from home would not have been the end of the world but at 2-0 the Nerazzurri doubled their advantage and made the second half task of the Gunners that much more difficult if they were to get any sort of result in Italy. Whatever Bennett said at half-time, it seemed to do the trick as they got righ back into the game through a brilliant Alex Song strike just two minutes after the restart. The defensive midfielder, in charge of limiting World Cup finalist Wesley Sneijder picked the ball up 30 yards out after half-time substitute Niklas Bendtner, on for Tomas Rosicky, had made a good run with the ball on the right. The Cameroon international proceeded into the box and arrowed a wonderful effort into the top corner. But 10 minutes later and the Gunners soon found themselves two goals down again, hero turned villain as Song failed to pick up Sneijder, the midfielder smashing another terrific strike off the underside of the bar and into the net. Arsenal still weren't passing well enough and Bennett, still chasing the game could be seen on the touchline, telling his players to calm down and find their rhythm - short, simple passes became the way forward and the players responded well, finally creating a couple of half chances before a late corner. Clichy's cross found Chamakh and his header was expertly tipped over the bar by Julio Cesar. The Gunners would get their reward for their pressure though as Nasri whipped a good ball into the near post and Christian Chivu headed past his own keeper to make it 3-2 with 15 minutes to play. The rest of the game was played out fairly evenly but Arsenal were unable to take advantage of the momentum and the game finished with Arsenal undoubtedly delighted that after such a miserable first half performance, they were still in the tie and had two away goals to take back to North London.

See highlights from Arsenal's 5 goal thriller against Inter Milan
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umQIy_Oe4FM"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umQIy_Oe4FM[/ame]​

KOSCIELNY HELPS GUNNERS TO OVERTURN DEFECIT​

Arsenal produced a brilliant second half display to complete an astonishing comeback against European Champions, Inter Milan. The Gunners took the field knowing that they had to get a goal. Manager Joss Bennett had emphasized the importance of getting the first goal, but keeping calm and staying responsible at the back. Benítez came to the Emirates with an understandably contrasting approach to the game to Bennett. Deploying two defensive midfielders, the former Liverpool man looked to set up shop and defend - hoping perhaps to emulate the tactics famously used by Jose Mourinho when facing Barcelona, another team who likes to attack and play beautiful football. As a result, the first half was uneventful with both teams cancelling each other out. The nervous Arsenal fans expected, and hoped for better from their side and their encouragement from the stands was clearly a factor. An electric atmosphere was appreciated by the players on-field as two second half goals gave the Gunners a brilliant victory over the Italian side. The breakthrough came not long after half-time through a somewhat unconventional method for the gunners. A freekick from the returning Robin Van Persie was crossed deep into the far post in the 53rd minute and as the fans stood up in expectation, Laurent Koscielny directed a superb, looping header into the corner to put Arsenal one-nil up. The words at half-time from Bennett were obvious as the two wing-backs immediately dropped back and Wilshere looked to double up with Alex Song to try and limit the threat of Wesley Sneijder. Inter pushed players forward in search of a goal that would give them the lead again on aggregate and put them through to the semi's, but they were undone in the 60th minute as a long clearance forward created confusion as Lucio gave the ball away to the hard-working Chamakh. The Moroccan front-man passes the ball off to Fabregas, and a delightful three-pass move ended with Wilshere's through ball into the area being finished brilliantly by Chamakh to make it 2-0 with 30 minutes to play. Suddenly, Inter had a hill to climb and it proved to be too big a hill as they failed to find the net in London and Arsenal progressed into the next round in stylish fashion.
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The Three Amigos: Fabregas, Chamakh and Wilshere celebrate Arsenal's second goal against Inter Milan

ARSENAL HAVE DRAWN SHALKE IN THE SEMI-FINAL OF THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

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What does everyone think of the update? Started off writing about the whole month but had most of the match report for the first one and thought it would look a bit messy and too big if I wrote up about the rest of the month in the same update, so there'll be another one concentrating on the league when I have some time tomorrow!

 

[*JK*]

Terrif Story KUTGW

 

[Calum]

fantastic update Joss

Where are you in the league mate and are u in all the cups still?

 

[Joshhh]

Quality read Joss, using the database & tactic so it's interesting to see how you're going on keep it up mate ^^)

 

[fuelledbypassion]

Great update Joss, my favourite of the lot so far (although I loved the Keown interview too). Keep it up pal

 

[Joss]

Arsenal build momentum for final month

Arsenal came through a difficult set of fixtures with relative ease in a hot April month that gives them the firm advantage going into the final month of fixtures.

The Gunners started the month with what was predicted to be an easy game against newly-promoted West Brom, who have surprisingly managed to secure their place in the Premier League next season, against the odds. The game signalled young Welsh International Aaron Ramsey's first start for Arsenal since his return from injury after his horrific leg break. The midfielder has been used sparingly by new boss, Joss Bennett this season but has managed several appearances from the bench. The game started brightly, and it was the Welsh Wizard who opened the scoring as Arsenal broke from a West Brom attack. Wilshere broke away through the centre and fed Ramsey, who, having controlled closely, promptly chipped the ball over the 'keeper's head and into the net. Ramsey completed his brace less than 10 minutes later as Fabianski made a routine catch from a freekick and quickly released to Clichy. His short pass forward was collected by Rosicky, the midfielder taking the ball down the left before finding Ramsey to fire home again - this time, a well executed volley with his weaker foot from close range to double his side's advantage. Just one minute later and Arsenal had their third and final goal of the match. Sloppy West Brom defending led to tenacious midfielder Jack Wilshere picking up the ball again, this time finding Robin Van Persie with a superbly weighted through ball as the captain for the day beat the 'keeper to the ball to poke home. Arsenal continued to press in the second half, but were more than happy to see out the game with a clean-sheet and near-total dominance as both Chelsea and Tottenham failed to win at respective sides West Ham and Aston Villa to give Gunners fans even more reason to cheer and wave their flags.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZd8a0TTMjY​

Arsenal had to respond to their dramatic 3-2 loss at the hands of Inter in their next game as they looked to extend their lead at the top of the table with a trip to Spurs. With just two points separating the top two before this game, it was labelled, quite rightly as a title decider. As teams at the bottom scrapped in relegation six-pointers, Arsenal prepared to boost their chances of winning their first competition since their FA Cup victory in 2004/05. This game would not confirm anything, but the momentum would surely lie with the winning side as well as the usual bragging rights. After a disappointing 2-1 loss last year, Joss Bennett was determined this game would hand Arsenal the title, not lose them it:

This is a huge game in the calendar for any Arsenal fan. It's made all the more important by the fact Tottenham are so close behind and the league is so tight at the minute. A win could benefit this team hugely, but anything else and it must be stressed it is not the end of the world - I believe this team has the ability, the passion and the determination to win something this year, we are still in two major competitions and to come so close will be an achievement in itself, to win either will be outstanding.

Arsenal started the game the stronger of the two sides, applying early pressure before in-form striker, Robin Van Persie converted Arsenal's first shot at goal after just 17 minutes. Captain and chief playmaker Cesc Fabregas, on his return from minor injury was given far too much space when Diaby played the short pass in-field and his chipped through ball was fired home right-footed by the Dutch forward to the delight of the travelling supporters. Arsenal continued to create chances, Chamakh and Diaby both going close and both found by Fabregas after Modric had a shot tipped over the bar by Fabianski. Chamakh's aerial dominance was key, and he won the header which started a delightful passing move and goal for the former Bordeaux striker. A long kick from the keeper was flicked on towards Nasri, the frenchman's skill and determination taking him past Dawson before he passed it inside for Fabregas, whose first touch was exquisite, side-footing the ball on the run, forward for Chamakh to fire home from an angle. Corluka and Huddlestone misfired when presented with half chances, before a good Fabianski save denied Defoe, and a superb tackle in the area from Ramsey denied Modric a shot at goal. Finally, Modric summed up Tottenham's afternoon with a long-range effort that went well-wide in the last minute. Another clean-sheet and another good win in the league to prompt the Arsenal fans into songs of "We won the league at White Hart Lane..."

Buoyed by their Derby win, Arsenal went on to turn around their two goal deficit at home to Inter Milan, but 11 time Premier League champions, Manchester United would be a different test to that of an Inter Milan side looking to defend an already established lead. Having beaten the Red Devils at Home earlier in the season, Arsenal fans felt more confident this time around. They certainly expected a close-fought and exciting spectacle with plenty of passion on display. That's exactly what they got as a close game swung in favour of Manchester United with home advantage proving to be the difference. Both teams had chances in the first half, and the away fans were as vocal as ever but it was the turn of those in the famous Stretford End to celebrate when a United corner wasn't properly cleared and out-of-form Wayne Rooney fired the ball past Lukasz Fabianski with 20 minutes to play. A late goal came too late for any major tactical overhaul to take effect and Arsenal were once again defeated away to one of the big teams.

In their last game of the month, Bennett's side faced Wigan, who find themselves performing above expectations, hovering around mid-table under Spanish manager Roberto Martínez. In fact, this match proved to be a little more difficult than many people expected as Arsenal found themselves behind at the Emirates after only half an hour - Tom Cleverley finishing off a nice move to silence the home support. Arsenal's hopes were lifted just before half-time, however when Laurent Koscielny scrambled the ball home from a set-piece. A deep Robin Van Persie corner from the right was headed back across goal by the experienced Sebastien Squillaci as Koscielny was left unmarked to volley in a weak left footed shot. Arsenal grabbed their second just seconds after Fabianski made a superb stop to deny the imperious Hendry Thomas. The Wigan midfielder continued and grew in confidence after his assist for Man Utd loanee, Cleverley and this time played a one two with N'Zogbia before stroking a low shot which looked destined for the net. The Pole made a top save, however and Arsenal cleared their lines - eventually finding Walcott on the right hand side. Walcott's pace on the counter caused all sorts of problems and he drew players towards him before finding Wilshere in the area with a fine cross - The youngster collecting and turning with his first touch before curling a good effort into the back of the net on the hour mark, past a hapless Chris Kirkland. Four minutes before the end, Thomas looked to create something again, his cross for Rodallega well defended by Vermaelen and Arsenal utilised their own danger man as Theo Walcott burst down the right but hesitated to the agony of the Gunners fans and boss, going all the way to the byline before eventually squaring for Chamakh to tap home at the near post, unmarked. Unfortunately, Arsenal's loss at Old Trafford was taken advantage of by Spurs, who won their game to close the gap, and won their next game, too to keep the pressure up.

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Went for a new layout this time. Big month and a lot of writing so it suited it more to have smaller writing and more pictures to look at!

For some reason some of my pictures aren't centering, despite having

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tags wrapped around them! Not sure why, so sorry if it's a bit messy. Anyway, what do people think - decent update? Should I keep it like this or go back to the old style?

 

[Frank]

Love the new style layout. Only thing I'll say is that isn't the header wrong? Isn't that for buying tickets and stuff? Nevertheless it looks great, so not a big issue.

The new font and the attention to detail is great. Keep going Joss.

 

[Calum]

good update Joss unlucky about the united result

 

[Joss]

Love the new style layout. Only thing I'll say is that isn't the header wrong? Isn't that for buying tickets and stuff? Nevertheless it looks great, so not a big issue.

The new font and the attention to detail is great. Keep going Joss.

'Tis indeed, but looks far better than the other Arsenal header, so I use that.

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Fabregas and Van Persie have Gunners firing on all fronts

With one game left to play in the Premier League, Arsenal look set to claim the top English prize for the first time in over five years after Fabregas and Van Persie helped Arsenal make a storming start to final month of fixtures.

Nine goals. Three games. Seven points. Arsenal came into May on the back of a terrific comeback against Inter Milan to book their place in the Semi-Finals and a dominating win over North London, and main title rivals, Tottenham Hotspur but lost out once again away from Home against one of the so called "Big Four". With a trip to Anfield and an evening fixture at home to Champions Chelsea, pundits challenged Bennett's side to overcome their hoodoo and not to once again fall apart come the end of the season. This year, Arsenal have shown they can beat the big teams, doing the double over Tottenham and beating Man Utd in North London but have been inconsistent as they came away from Stamford Bridge with a somewhat fortunate draw and lost at home to an incisive Liverpool side. First up, a trip to Liverpool one day after the Kop's Merseyside rivals Everton gave the Gunners a helping hand with a 1-0 win over Spurs. Liverpool. fighting for pride after effectively being ruled out of a Champions League spot would be a tough test for the Gunners but Bennett's side looked far more up for the game from the first whistle.

Arsenal took the lead early on once again as some beautiful "tic-tac" football left captain, Cesc Fabregas through on goal after a one-two with Brazilian holding midfielder, Denilson. Fabregas looked certain to score what would be his 14th league goal of the season but was denied superbly by Spanish compatriot Pepe Reina - unfortunately for the goalkeeper, he was only able to parry the ball to Chamakh, who was perfectly positioned to pass the ball into the empty net from 12 yards. Arsenal continued to look the brighter of the two sides as Robin Van Persie's curling effort was pushed away by the 'keeper before Steven Gerrard had Liverpool's best chance of the half - slipped in by Dirk Kuyt, the England captain could only fire against the post and Kuyt fired the rebound well wide but Arsenal held on to finish the half one goal to the good. Few would have expected what the second half would bring, though as Liverpool started brightly and Babel headed narrowly over. From the resulting goal kick - Koscielny was able to bring the ball forward before another fine move ended with Chamakh playing in Nasri on the left of the box, his low ball in being converted well by Denilson to double Arsenal's lead. If the second goal seemed undeserved, the third goal was a disaster as Arsenal counter attacked from a long Liverpool freekick, getting from end of the pitch to the other in just four passes. Clichy found Nasri and when the ball was moved inside and eventually came to Fabregas, there only looked like being one outcome. A first touch pass weighted perfectly for the vice-captain Van Persie was dispatched expertly on the edge of the box into the bottom corner. At 3-0 the game was already over, and so Kuyt's goal - disallowed for an easy offside decision was to make little difference, but Arsenal took confidence in their luck to go on and grab a fourth right at the end. This time it was Wilshere who would take the plaudits for a perfect pass, sliding it through to Van Persie who finished with a neat finish across the keeper.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVgYM3UaukA
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In their next match, at home to fierce rivals and Premier League Champions Chelsea; Arsenal once again started brightly. Again their early pressure paid off as Arsenal villain Ashley Cole gave away a cheap penalty when he appeared to push Tomas Rosicky in the box. Before the game, Bennett highlighted the threat that would come from the wings and Arsenal appeared to counter this by moving the ball down the flanks themselves in an attempt to pin down attacking full-backs Jose Bosingwa and Ashley Cole. After just 10 minutes, Clichy's left wing cross searched out Rosicky in the box - The Czech midfielder went down somewhat theatrically but the Arsenal fans jeered their former left back when referee Anthony Taylor pointed to the spot. The crowd fell silent in a mixture of expectation and nervousness and erupted once more when Fabregas continued his fine form by placing a brilliant penalty into the corner of the net. Chelsea were to pull level just 20 minutes later, however and it was same old, same old for the Gunners as they were undone by a long Frank Lampard pass over the top to Didier Drogba, the Ivorian cooly finishing past Fabianski to draw his side level. The rest of the half went by without much action and with neither side looking particularly more dangerous. Words of wisdom were clearly said at half-time by both managers as Chelsea came out the blocks but Arsenal pushed them back. When the ball finally came to Drogba inside the area, he smashed his shot narrowly wide when he should have scored, Arsenal again scored against the run of play - Ashley Cole's miserable outing continued as he was booked for an unnecessary trip on Marouane Chamakh - Rosicky stepped up to take the freekick and did so quickly, catching the Chelsea defence off-guard as Djourou flicked a header in at the near post. Arsenal pushed forward in search of a third goal to finish the game but were almost outdone again when a long ball forward was misjudged by Eboue. Ashley Cole raced onto the loose ball but hesitated and eventually fired his shot wide with Chelsea's best chance of the match. The Gunners put Chelsea to the sword again and once again made the left-back pay for a mistake, this time he was caught the wrong side of Bendtner, who happily collected the ball in space and crossed the ball into the danger-area. Van Persie did brilliantly to shurg off two Chelsea defenders with his strength and close control before laying the ball of to his captain who did the rest, finishing low into an empty net to wrap up an invaluable three points.

The penultimate Premier League match of the month would give Arsenal a chance to claim the title at the Stadium of Light, against Europa League candidates Sunderland. Another early goal put Arsenal on their way when, after some good work by Sagna, Cesc Fabregas picked up the ball 30 yards out and took it into the box, skipping past the challenge of Lee Cattermole and firing his shot across the keeper - somehow the keeper got a hand to it but there was no stopping Wilshere who tapped into the net with the rebound after less than quarter of an hour. The Gunners were displaying a real determination and Bennett said before the game that the key to their success was enjoying their football, and taking confidence from good results, but dismissed his own part in it, arguing instead that a lot of the work had already been done by Wenger and that he should take a lot of credit. But the Gunner's title-winning lead was to be short lived as they were undone by a simple short corner when Al-Mohammady picked it up and knocked it past two players before drilling the ball into the six yard box for Andy Reid to finish. Arsenal found themselves ahead again shortly before half-time when they were awarded another clear penalty. Bramble appeared to get his footing all wrong and clattered into Chamakh from a corner. The penalty was easily slotted into the bottom corner by Fabregas and the half finished with the Gunners on top, and heading for glory. Ex-Tottenham man, Darren Bent was determined to spoil the party, however and Sunderland defended and pressed well to prevent a third, killer goal from Arsenal. Instead Jordan Henderson played in Darren Bent two minutes before time, the English striker's perfectly timed run was rewarded as he smashed the ball into the roof of the net. Arsenal hoped for a result at White Hart Lane, but Spurs cruised past Newcastle to keep the pressure up until the final day. Arsenal are set to face West Ham at home, while Spurs have a small chance to win it at the last minute if Arsenal lose, and they beat Birmingham.

 

[Calum]

Woooooooooooooooooooooooooo

We are champions again at last