1. Last minute winners from Nicklas Bendtner now? A Sun-style apology might be due from OTP soon. 2. Craig Gordon is the unluckiest player of the weekend. His excellent performance deserved to win all three points for Sunderland against Manchester City. 3. George Boateng has been watching too much Six Nations action (see video above). 4. And [...]...

One of the advantages of Premier League clubs being more desperate for points at this stage of the season is that it means that we get to see more open matches. It also creates more end-to-end action. This past weekend was a perfect example of this. I had the chance to watch Spurs against Blackburn, Birmingham against Everton, Hull City versus Arsenal and Sunderland against Manchester City. And except for the Tottenham match which was too one-sided in favor of Spurs, each of the other games I watched was brilliant. There were so many wonderful moments to choose from. Adam Johnson’s moment of brilliance when he curled the ball into the top corner of the net. The way Kenwyne Jones leapt to meet the cross and glanced the ball into the back of the net. Gareth Bale and the way he made...

Hull City 1 – 2 Arsenal 0 – 1 Arshavin (14) 1 – 1 Bullard (28 pen) 1 – 2 Bendtner (90) A less comfortable win than it should have been but victory nonetheless and at this stage of the season, three points is all that counts, especially since Chelsea had won convincingly earlier in the day. Nicklas Bendtner’s late goal was apparently not good for his manager’s heart but it was certainly good enough to keep the pressure on at the top of the table. This was a win reminscent of 1989’s victory at Ayresome Park. On that day, the most exciting Arsenal team to that point won through a late Martin Hayes toe-poke, overcoming stubborn resistance from a team struggling at the foot of the table. That title winning side was capable of playing far better than...

Let me just start off by saying that I’m so glad I put Nicklas Bendtner in my fantasy premier league team this week. So often dismissed as an arrogant egotist, he’s showed real ability in this past week, netting a hat trick against Porto and scoring the late winner in this morning’s game. I believe my cynicism has been well documented, and well justified. However, it is starting to look more and more likely that I’ll eat my words. The last ten minutes of the game against Hull reminded me of Manchester United. Their movement, sense of urgency, it resembled a United movement I like to call it. There was real intent to claim the 3 points, and while I disagreed with the substitutions Wenger had made, I was relieved that Denilson took that shot. He is possibly the only...

Manager Arsene Wenger believes Arsenal's dramatic 2-1 victory against Hull reflects their belief that they can win the...

Two teams with two different objectives. Hull City battling for Premier League survival. Arsenal battling to win the Premier League title. So, it was no wonder that the KC Stadium on Saturday resembled a battlefield with both teams getting physical as they attempted to become victorious. As it ended up, it was Arsenal that grabbed the vital three points to keep the pressure on Chelsea and Manchester United, but it was a close match and it took an injury time winner from Nicklas Bendtner to keep his team’s Premier League title hopes alive. It could have so nearly been a 1-1 draw. Hull City, obviously lacking in talent against a much more gifted Arsenal side, made up for their lack of superiority by playing with a heart, passion and drive that made Arsenal work even harder for those...

The trip to Hull brings back many fond memories of previous encounters, Phil Brown’s jocularity always shines through when faced with Arsenal and Brian ‘Laughing Boy’ Horton; well, what a guy. That stand-up routine he and Cesc had going really recreated Harlem from the Blaxploitation movies, right down to the public shoe-shine. This is one of those fixtures which Alex Ferguson referred to be as being ‘easier’, Hull’s league position being the driver to that comment. It is that fact which makes it one of the tougher of the run-in. Chelsea and Manchester City have both failed to take maximum points from their visits to the Humber, Machester United are one of only two sides to have achieved that this season, highlighting the paucity of the hosts form on...

I raid my record collection and nab a post title from The Buzzcocks. Darius raids his and comes up with a Tears for Fears lyric. Tears for bleedin’ Fears? Yea Gods. I know whose CDs I’d like to listen to and they ain’t his…although any article that references Steve Marriott can’t be all bad. The Association of British Specialist Insurers has suggested that in the last few weeks members have inundated them, seeking advice on how to approach the development of a new product. A select group of clients are clamouring to buy what has been described as ’Humble Pie’ insurance, seeking to find solutions that will save face, stop them from eating their words, and shield them from having industrial portions of humble pie shoved down their throats come the end of the football...

After a Champions League week in which both Arsenal and United cruised through, the media in UK goes overboard. There are rarely any shades of grey in press coverage here. You’re a hero or a zero and that’s pretty much it. At the moment you’d think Rooney had actually invented heading the ball, so extreme has the praise of his goals been. It’s not that he doesn’t deserve praise – but my god it goes over-the-top. Thus, United were imperious and Arsenal majestic, despite the fact that both were playing against sluggish, over-the-hill teams. Teams which still needed beating, and which they beat well, but a little perspective would occasionally be welcome. The trouble is The Premier League and its cheerleaders seek any opportunity to laud the league as the best in the world. They...

Media reports of Nicklas Bendtner having the ‘last laugh’ put the whole of the coverage surrounding his performances in recent days into the perspective that they deserve. The image which sprang to my mind was a Python-esque character, dressed in Superhero garb, proclaiming, “I laugh in the face of danger“, his horn-rimmed spectacles perched precariously on his nose. The ‘danger’? Anyone taking the criticism and praise seriously without realising that they will return in equal measure, depending upon his performance at Hull on Saturday. Bendtner noted that this is the manner in which the ‘issue’ was dealt with ‘internally’: There was some criticism of me after the game last Saturday, but me and my team-mates have just laughed...

Thursday gives the team of Kartik Krishnaiyer, Laurence McKenna and Richard Farley their first chance to reflect on a banner week for the Premiership in the UEFA Champions League. The team gets together to discuss Manchester United’s 4-0 (7-2) win over AC Milan, Arsenal’s 5-0 (6-2) win over Porto, Thursday’s Europa League match for Fulham at Juventus, Liverpool at Lille, Monday’s Liverpool disappointment at Wigan, and the weekend’s important matches in the Premiership. Related posts:Mid-Week Review Show: EPL Talk Podcast EPL Talk Podcast: Mid-Week Review Show Weekend Review Show: EPL Talk Podcast...

At last a football performance to measure the fragrance of potential that has been sprayed in the North London air for many years.  Finally on a big European stage it could be smelled in from afar cities as Barcelona, Milan and Manchester. Arsenal’s 5 star unleaded performance against Porto was arguably the best all season, in particular Nicklas Bendtner.  Now as an Arsenal fan, I find I am regularly trying ways (with work colleagues) to defend the inclusion of Bendtner who deserved his hat-trick, to be blunt he is frustrating, very frustrating.  But at the same time Arsenal fans best get used to it!! “Why?” I hear is the cry? Because ‘number 52′ is the only man in Wenger’s locker who hasn’t got twinkle ‘Fred Astaire’ toes and runs like a Road...

Dear Monsieur Wenger, I wanted to take the time to congratulate you on your team’s recent successes in the Premier League and more specifically the UEFA Champions League. You’ve fought back and are in the heat of a title race and reaching the last eight in any competition is deserved of accolades, but the most prestigious Cup competition in the World, that’s something to be proud of. The way your team played with such utter confidence against Porto at home Tuesday night was something to behold (and look at the turn around in form of one Nicklas Bendtner from his lowly weekend efforts, simply stunning). The confidence your club displayed directly influenced the teams ability to move the ball at will, maintain possession and attack with purpose, not to mention, it was...

UEFA Champions League, Round of Sixteen, 2nd Leg Arsenal 5 – 0 FC Porto Arsenal win 6 – 2 on aggregate 1 – 0 Bendtner (10) 2 – 0 Bendtner (25) 3 – 0 Nasri (63) 4 – 0 Eboue (66) 5 – 0 Bendtner (90 pen) There are times when football is a cruel mistress; there are times when she is full of love and benevolence. Nicklas Bendtner experienced both extremes in the space of four days, a double hat-trick of chances missed against Burnley, a hat-trick to ensure comfortable progression on aggregate through to the Quarter-Finals of this season’s Champions League. Charles Dickens summed it up rather nicely indeed, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”. The final outcome cannot be argued with, Arsenal deserved the win for an...

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger praises the resolve of Nicklas Bendtner, who put recent media criticism behind him by scoring a hat-trick in the 5-0 Champions League win over...

Gunner finds his accuracy Now we know why Nicklas Bendtner didn’t take his shooting boots to the match last weekend - he was saving himself for last night’s match against Porto. The Arsenal striker came in for yet more criticism in the wake of his string of missed chances against Burnley, but found the perfect remedy [...]...

• Arsenal manager would welcome all-Premier League semi-final• 'It would be a good chance to show we can do it against them'Arsène Wenger said he would welcome the chance to face Manchester United or Chelsea in the Champions League quarter‑finals, after he watched his Arsenal team book their place in the last eight with a dismantling of Porto. They won 5-0 on the night for a 6-2 aggregate victory, thanks to a hat-trick from Nicklas Bendtner and outstanding contributions from Samir Nasri and Andrey Arshavin.Arsenal have suffered at the hands of United and Chelsea in the Premier League this season, losing home and away to both. The home defeats were particularly demoralising and led to them seeing their title chances widely written off. Wenger has even suggested that his team have...

Porto arrive at The Emirates, defending a one-goal advantage, on the back of a poor record when visiting London. The Portuguese champions have not won on their last six visits, indeed losing them all. If Arsenal are to progress that record must continue. It is the night when comic pundit Ian Wright ‘feared‘ that Arsenal’s season would be over. Perhaps he should return to the company of Fozzy and Kermit. They will have to achieve that victory without Cesc Fabregas. Losing your best player is disadvantageous but unlike previous seasons, Arsenal has depth in its squad to cover this loss. The likeliest replacement is Samir Nasri but any one of the Frenchman, Tomas Rosicky or even Andrey Arshavin can fulfil the playmaker role, other personnel can be shuffled to compensate for...

Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas will miss Tuesday's Champions League tie against Porto because of a hamstring injury he picked up during Saturday's win over...

Cesc’s hamstring is dominating the lead up to the encounter with Porto, Arsene has to decide whether or not the risk of aggravating the injury, and potentially the title challenge, is outweighed by the requirement to retrieve a one-goal deficit. It is all reminscent of the first Champions League campaign hosted at The Emirates, PSV Eindhoven held a similarly slender lead – although Arsenal did not have what may turn out to be a precious away goal – with a key player, that time it was Thierry Henry, having an injury which ought to have precluded his involvement. It did not and the Premier League campaign limped to its conclusion, fourth place attained. The chance of winning the remaining two competitions puts Wenger into the quandry, the solution for which he is paid to...

1. Nicklas Bendtner and Mame Biram Diouf could potentially form the country’s most lethal strike partnership. 2. The timing of FIFA’s decision to reject goal-line technology yet again was absolutely impeccable. Just ask David James. 3. If BBC 6 Music and Asian Network are getting scrapped to save the Beeb money, surely the Portsmouth fan club subscriptions [...]...

• Arsenal manager says playing captain would be a gamble• Tight hamstring forced Spaniard off after goal against BurnleyArsène Wenger says it would be a gamble to play Cesc Fábregas in Tuesday night's Champions League last-16 second-leg tie against Porto at the Emirates Stadium and one that he will not be prepared to take if there is too great a risk of the Arsenal captain suffering another serious hamstring injury.Fábregas was forced off with tightness to the musclein the 39th minute of Saturday's 3-1 Premier League home win over Burnley after scoring his 17th goal of the seasonmoments earlier to put his team 1-0 up. The manager gives him "a little chance" of being fit for the game against Porto, who lead 2-1 from the first leg. Wenger, who also said he would be without the...

Arsenal 3 – 1 Burnley 1 – 0 Fabregas (34) 1 – 1 Nugent (50) 2 – 1 Walcott (61) 3 – 1 Arshavin (90) A day of squandered chances when the scoreline could have matched the Arsenal Ladies 10 goal drubbing of their Tottenham counterparts. On any other day, Nicklas Bendtner would have scored a double hat-trick. Arsenal remain third albeit closer to the summit than at the start of the day. The victory has come at a potentially high price. Cesc was withdrawn shortly after scoring the opening goal with a hamstring injury, Arsene unable to shed any light on the damage but it seems unlikely that he would risk his most influential player for the midweek clash against Porto with the Premier League title at stake. Following the Spaniard’s departure, Samir Nasri...

• Rooney set to miss Milan return with knee injury• Fábregas pulls hamstring in win over BurnleyManchester United and Arsenal may have to play their Champions League second-leg matches this week without key players Wayne Rooney and Cesc Fábregas.Rooney is expected to sit out United's home tie against Milan with a knee injury, while the Arsenal captain's pulled hamstring looks likely to leave him on the sidelines for the visit of Porto. "How big the damage is we don't know yet," said Arsenal's manager, Arsène Wenger, whose side face Porto on Tuesday trailing 2-1. "We have to make a late decision over whether he plays."Rooney missed United's 1-0 win over Wolves at Molineux after aggravating a knee problem during England's 3-1 midweek victory over Egypt. Sir Alex Ferguson was not...

As weeks on the defensive go, this has been a memorable one for Arsène Wenger. As if the Aaron Ramsey injury and all its molten opinion were not enough, there was the delicate matter of Theo Walcott. "No football brain," complained former England winger Chris Waddle. "Not only does he has a football brain," retorted Wenger acidly, "he has a brain."Walcott could have chosen no better way to thank his manager for his unwavering support than the footballing intelligence he showed when Arsenal found themselves in a precarious position against the worst travellers in the Premier League. Burnley had snaffled an equaliser through David Nugent's opportunism, and nervousness was trickling around the Emirates Stadium. Cesc Fábregas was off the pitch, having been withdrawn early to nurse some pain...

Burnley arrive at The Emirates today, wedged by the media into the role of sacrificial lambs, ready to be slaughtered at the altar of pure football. Arsene has no doubt warning the players that the visitors will fight, the relegation place predicted for them at the start of the season being good motivation for them not to succumb willingly. Even so, Arsenal should have too much ability for three points not to be taken. To do so, the back four will have a little bit of a makeshift look. Sol Campbell and William Gallas will be absent, a starting line-up place for Mikael Silvestre the likeliest option to partner Thomas Vermaelen. The inclusion of Kyle Bartley in the squad looks to be purely so that there is a specialised centre back on the bench although having two left-sided central...

We have another article from Sporting Intelligence. Originally posted here. Read below: Wenger an Easy Rider as Blues take Cup break from Premier League dramas By Brian Sears 5 March 2010 If we define a nail-biting game as one in which the result could be changed with the last kick of the match, then they’re becoming rarer in...

Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey speaks for the first time about the horrifying injury he suffered against Stoke last...

Aaaah, Friday. The day before the weekend and a match. A day when I get a lie-in, Darius takes over. So big fella, take it away. What???!!! You need a week off because of work? Work is for wimps, mister. As Jim Royle would say, “Work, my arse”. Oh bugger, I’d better get my act together…. Right, profuse apologies proferred from Darius so here we go. Nigel Winterburn has got the ball rolling ahead of the visit of Burnley to The Emirates tomorrow, having a James moment, believing that the title may just be the squad’s destiny calling: They have a great chance now, they are right in there after Chelsea’s defeat on Saturday, and they have to feel they can win most of these last 10 games and push United and Chelsea all the way. The key is to put pressure on...

In a well-known game in England, one footballer slid into another late.  The challenge was poor, two-footed, and probably deserved a card, but there was no malice associated with it.  Unfortunately, the defender missed the ball and caught the other player’s foot, breaking his metatarsal bone.  The injury was hardly career threatening, but it did put the victimized player in danger of missing the rest of the season and some important games that followed. This was an unfortunate event, but the British treated it as if one player had pulled out a knife and stabbed the other.  You see, the victimized player was David Beckham and the injury put him at risk of missing the 2002 World Cup.  The perpetrator was Deportivo La Coruna’s, Pedro Duscher, an Argentine national.  Despite...

14 games without a Premiership win would be worrying for several sides, but when you’ve spent the best part of £50 million to improve the team, 4 months without a win is disastrous. When Bruce took the reigns at the Stadium of Light in the summer, the club had survived a dreadful season which had seen Roy Keane walk out half way through and they limped to the final day staying up. If you were brutally honest, Sunderland stayed up due to the ineptness of the other clubs at the foot of the table. For the amount of transfer outlay the Black Cats have spent, around £130 million in 3 years, two successive relegation battles are simply not good enough. For all the criticism that came last season, Bruce’s tenure started so well and Sunderland were comfortably placed in the top...

International week draws to a close and the true extent of injuries will become clear. Reports suggest Carlos Vela scored and then limped off, the expectation that the Mexican will be missing for a few weeks, something that will no doubt be confirmed or denied by Wenger in pre-match press conference. Elsewhere, Nicklas Bendtner scored for Denmark whilst Theo Walcott had a forgettable evening for England, along with the rest of the starting line-up, in the victory over Egypt. Peter Crouch is being hailed as the solution to England’s goalscoring problem which is fine if we are playing Hungary, Uruguay, Trinidad, Jamaica, Greece, Andorra, Macedonia, Ukraine, Belarus or Estonia. Against top-class opposition, we remain totally buggered. Gael Clichy opined that confidence was not affected...

Ivan Gazidis re-affirmed the board’s desire to retain the services of Arsene when his current contract ends, leaving an open interpretation as to whether or not negotiations have taken place: It’s very low key and it will get done at the right time. Lest anyone doubt why the board are keen to keep the manager, I think it is very difficult to encapsulate in any succinct way what Arsène Wenger has done for this club,” says Gazidis. His discipline and his vision are why we are in a new stadium and why we are redefining the way the game can be played. He has created a young squad that has a tremendous future without having the resources that some other teams have. Those achievements are down to Arsène’s sense of responsibility not to himself but to the club. When he...

Can Terry rediscover his form in time to rescue Chelsea? For the entirety of the season, Chelsea have seemed poised to put insurmountable distance between  themselves and the nearest opposition.  Yet this moment never arrived.  Draws and losses, often at those crucial games, have seen them lose ground in the Premier League, till now the gap between first place glory and second ignominy is one point. The question is, can Chelsea fulfill its promise of this season and reclaim the domestic throne, or will they once again see the trophy lifted elsewhere? In this article, I’ll discuss the reasons that they’ll lose; in another, I’ll discuss why they’ll win. 1.  Defensive Injuries Ashley Cole had been the world’s superlative left back until a recent...

That’s it then. Arsenal have officially turned the corner. In the same way that Eduardo’s injury, Stuart Parnaby’s dive and William Gallas’s teary outburst reflected the collapse of their 2007-08 title challenge, so Ramsey’s injury, Danny Pugh’s waving arms and Cesc Fabregas’s penalty will reflect Arsenal’s glorious rampage to the title. Yet despite the significance of the result in terms of getting Arsenal back into the title race, is there really enough to suggest that Arsenal have turned the corner, other than the obvious historical overtones to the result? On the surface, it certainly seems that they have. As Aaron Ramsey was carried off the field, it seemed that Arsenal’s title hopes were being carried away with him – not...

Robert Johnson reputedly sold his soul to the devil at the crossroads near Dockery Plantation. English football today stands at a crossroads. The Devil we know in one direction, the righteous path to improvement another and the third, no-one dare look down. Each week, the Premier League serves up a mixed fare, the spectrum served from the passing game of Arsenal through to the routine, long ball variant of Blackburn, Bolton and their ilk. In that mix, there is a speed and physicality unmatched by other countries domestic games. Some matches are good, others turgid. Sometimes there are incidents which ought to force contemplation. Aaron Ramsey’s injury is one of those. One quote sticks in my mind, the imagery vivid. Ramsey’s national team manager, John Toshack, said: It is a...

Tomorrow sees that magical mark of 100 days until the 19th World Cup begins and the chase for places outside of the main names is really beginning to hot up. Fabio Capello will probably have a definite idea of around 10 names who will certainly be on the plane to South Africa injury willing. James, Terry, Ferdinand, Gerrard, Lampard, Barry, Rooney, Defoe, Milner and Beckham will probably be certain of inclusion but for once, the rest of the squad would seem to be all to play for. Over the next few days, I’ll be casting my eye over some of the outsiders and squad players who will be hoping to be involved this summer and make a real name for themselves. Some may be reliant on players failing to recover from injury, some will be hoping to force themselves in to the reckoning and some...

It's the first day of spring and James Richardson is joined by the gloriously in bloom Sean Ingle, Rafa Honigstein and Barney Ronay for your latest edition of Football Weekly.We start with another weekend in the Premier League. Manchester City stunned Chelsea in the sideshow to the John Terry/Wayne Bridge handshake debate, and Arsenal emerged victorious after their brusing (and leg-breaking) encounter with Stoke. What impact will the results have on the fate of the teams invloved? Meanwhile, Manchester United picked up their first trophy of the season after they beat Aston Villa in the Carling Cup final. Will that impact on Villa's chase for fourth spot? Can Tottenham hold on to the final Champions League place? Or will Liverpool, with Fernando Torres back in the starting line-up, still...

The usual suspects have lined up to defend Ryan Shawcross’ challenge on Aaron Ramsey, blithely dismissing it as ‘one of those things, football is so fast‘. It is not one of those things because football is faster now, nor is it acceptable because there are ‘40-50 tackles which are just as bad‘ – Alan Hansen fearing that Steven Gerrard will be pulled up for his usual two-footed lunge at some point. As is normal, apologists are stating that the manner in which Arsenal play invites a more robust approach from opponents. In admitting that, English players and coaches roundly invite themselves severe criticism for failing to improve the native talents to control and pass a football. If that is the standard that the English have, little wonder that Arsene has...

Ryan Shawcross had no intention of turning Aaron Ramsey‘s leg into putty when he went into his tackle yesterday.  Martin Taylor had no interest in seeing Eduardo’s leg shattered in two when he went studs up against him two years ago.  Dan Smith took no delight in the crunching sound of Abou Diaby’s ankle being fractured and dislocated when he went in late against him two years before that.   To accuse them otherwise would be to accuse them of being sociopathic maniacs.  I am sure they are not. However, what I am sure of is that all those injuries are the result of a particularly pernicious facet of English football in general, and playing against Arsenal in particular – the art of “getting stuck in.”  This talent, which is occasionally also called “Playing a man’s...