Oh What Fun……...

There was I relaxing after our arduous triumph at WHU this afternoon, when I get a call from the Examiner at 9.15pm wanting to know where my column for tomorrow's paper was! So not sure this is up to standard but at least the sub-ed at the paper received it in time for both him and me to sit back and savour it all again on MOTD

Eat, drink and be very merry and wishing everyone a happy & healthy New Year

Come on you Gunners

Bernard

PS. Chant of the day "Tim Sherwood, woh hoo, hoo, ho, he comes from Borehamwood, he ain't no f*cking good"

PPS. Amusing moment of the afternoon - when Phil Dowd awarded us a corner and was doubtless testing out his knowledge of the language of the master race, chatting up our £42 million pound man, with Mezut staring at him bemusedly, when the tubby little f*cker suddenly dashed off in mid-sentence as it dawned on him that we'd already put the ball back in play.

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Oh What Fun It Is To See Arsenal Win Away

            Boxing Day footie is always one of my Xmas highlights and there are few better places to enjoy it than at a dilapidated, old-fashioned ground like the Boleyn. It’s shame to think that it won’t be long before the Hammers decamp for the posher but sadly more antiseptic environs of the Olympic Stadium.

            Mind you, it’s always an outing that’s more pleasurable for the three points that we’ve grown accustomed to taking from our East London neighbours. The Irons made a decent fist of putting up a good fight and it took two goal-keeping cock-ups to really light the touchpaper, of what was up until then a disappointingly tame Boxing Day derby. I couldn’t help but feel some sympathy for Mark Noble. He didn’t really deserve to end up on the losing side, after his tireless graft dominated the middle of the park first-half.

            However one sensed that it wouldn’t be too long before the floodgates of our undoubted superior ability eventually told, but it took the wake up call of West Ham taking the lead just after the break, to lend our forward play the necessary urgency required.

It might've been an entirely different story, if the Hammers had made more of their couple of breakaway opportunities, after Carlton Cole poached the lead immediately after the break. But after Theo’s effort bobbled through the arms of the Irons’ hapless keeper, there followed a scintillating ten-minute spell of football that sealed this victory. It left us comfortably savouring the remainder of our “jingle-bells” awayday, with a two-goal cushion that was unlikely to be threatened by Fat Sam “Allardici’s” goal-shy outfit.

It remains to be seen whether the Gunners can carry forward such festive cheer to St. James Park on Sunday. But with a fit Podolski returning to the fray like a man possessed, I feel somewhat more optimistic about our chances of surviving the hectic Xmas fixture schedule with our confidence (and perhaps our table-topping pitch) intact.

Losing Aaron Ramsey and the forward thrust he lends our midfield was a blow, but with Santi returning to some form, pulling the strings in the middle of the park and with the likes of Wilshere having served out the suspension for his one-fingered salute, it’s not like Arsene is short of options in the middle of the park. However if Lucas can provide le Prof with the opportunity to give Giroud a breather, without us having to count on the self-serving Bendtner, this could prove a big bonus.

Meanwhile, the sooner Koscielny returns, the better, as I remain far from convinced by our team captain playing in his stead. In fact, I’m not really sure I like the idea of Vermalen retaining the armband, as judging by this afternoon’s display, I have my doubts as to whether our Belgian centre-back is truly “on board”, seeing him sitting lazing on his backside in the West Ham penalty area, while our hosts were on the counter.

Yet it feels a bit “bah humbug” of me to be complaining, considering we’ve ended the day still sitting pretty on top of the league. Moreover, one of the benefits of bowling over to East London for three points on Boxing Day is that I was back home in time to enjoy most of the day’s late game on the box. If I had to stake my life on it right now, I’d have to admit that with their formidable strike force, Man City do look certain favourites. Yet I remain convinced that Pellegrini’s mercenaries will continue to display the inconsistency that will ensure they drop more points on their travels and with the title race so open, it only remains for one team to string a decent run together, in order to draw away from the chasing pack. Who knows, it might just be the Gunners.

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