Written by George Sezer Tuesday, 04 May 2010 11:22

GunnerTalk Blog

By George Sezer

Before today’s game against Blackburn AW talked about Fabianski being a great talent and insisted that a new keeper is not necessarily on his shopping list. "Let people think and let me do, But it isn't an area that I necessarily want to strengthen” were his exact words. I wonder if he will reconsider now.

Although we underperformed today we would have won the game if we had a decent keeper between the sticks. That’s what other top teams have and do. We always seem to have to play very well and outscore the opposition to win a game. We have now conceded over 40 goals this season, worst in 8 years.

Questions have to be asked about Wenger’s team selection. If anybody knows why Song, Bentdler, Clichy and Rosicky were not in the squad let alone in the team, please enlighten me. I think Vela has already given up about having a future with Arsenal and that is how he played, Traore is just not good enough and Silvestra would not get into any other team in the top two divisions.

The team played like we have nothing to play for with no urgency even after going 2-1 down. They might live to regret it if Sp*rs win on Wednesday against Manchester City; hey we can always trust in our old boys, can’t we?

It all started so well when Van Persie headed home after a flick from Sagna from a corner kick. It was giving some of their own medicine back that made me think it is going to be our day. How wrong was I, soon I realized that with a defence like ours backed with a goalkeeper from Flapoland was always going to struggle with the aerial bombardment we inevitably would get. The ingenious tactics of crowd around the keeper and hassle him from the Walrus worked a treat for them.

It was a sorry sight to see AW throwing his arms up in the air complaining to the 4^th official about the strong arm tactics of the opposition. Unfortunately this how it is in the Premiership, it always has been and it always will be. I don’t agree with it but nothing I can do but accept it. On the other hand AW is in a privileged position to do something about it even though he doesn’t agree with it: BUY SOME PLAYERS that suits to the league that we are playing in. Nobody was complaining about it when we had Viera, Petit, Adams, Keown ....and a proper, BIG goalkeeper, actually the complaining was done by the other teams and their managers.

We have a lot of players just not good enough or ready for the League we are in. Vela, Traore, Denilson, Silvestre, Merida, Almunia, Fabianski. We need to replace these players with battle hardened, ‘on their prime’ players. It would also help if few of these replacements were to be British.

Five seasons without a trophy is the worst run we have had since the 80’s and it has got to change. The changes must be more than Arsene Wenger’s intention of buying 2 or maximum 3 players.

Defeats usually put me in a very foul mood but today I am not, as I am sure the latest disastrous performance of Fabianski will change AW’s mind about the goalkeeper situation. So in a way this result might be a blessing in disguise.