Arsenal were unable to break their hoodoo against Chelsea this weekend in what was another disappointing result for the Gunners against their London rivals. Didier Drogba once again proved to be Arsenal’s nemesis, with his powerful running and cleverly taken goal condeming his favourite opponents to defeat. So what five things have we learnt about Arsenal this weekend?

1. In the big games, a cutting edge is still lacking

Discounting the eventual result, there was not actually a lot wrong with Arsenal’s performance. For long periods they dominated the game, with their technically skilled players passing neatly and quickly to get them into the final third on a number of occassions. Arsenal’s problem against the big teams in recent seasons has not been their general level of play however, it has been the fact that they have been unable to take their chances and have often lacked a real cutting edge. Laurent Koscielny was guilty of missing a sitter, and good goalscoring chances were not in abundance, and it is something Arsene Wenger will need to address if Arsenal are to beat the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United.

2. Arsenal just cannot cope with Drogba

Didier Drogba has been tormentor in chief for Arsenal in recent years, and he has now plundered 13 goals in 13 games against the Gunners, a quite incredible record and one which tells you all about the woe the Ivorian has inflicted upon Wenger’s sides. The weekend was no different, as well as grabbing a goal, Drogba’s physicality and athleticism caused the Arsenal backline problems all day long. Koscielny and Sebastien Squillaci had not faced Drogba before, so it seems the new central pairing are finding it just as difficult to deal with Drogba as their predecessors.

3. Arsenal are missing Theo Walcott

Theo Walcott made an explosive start to this season, banging in 4 goals in just 3 games. Unfortunately his form was curtailed by an ankle injury picked up on international duty and Arsenal have really missed him in the meantime. Walcott has blistering pace and is one of the more direct players in the Arsenal squad, he also provides a goal threat especially when cutting into the box from the right. Samir Nasri is a more than capable right-winger but not having Walcott available leaves Wenger with less options on the wing.

4. Chamakh is looking good, but his strengths could be used more

In the first few minutes of the game Bacary Sagna provided a cross that lone front man Marouane Chamakh only narrowly headed wide. When crosses were put in, Chamakh consistently looked dangerous in the air but this kind of service to the Moroccan was all too rare. When your only striker’s main talent is in the air, the midfield and full-backs should be looking to put plenty of crosses into the box, and Chamakh has proven already in his short Arsenal career that he can but these chances away. Arsenal are not used to this style of play perhaps, but the team should look to utilise Chamakh’s strengths a little more in the future.

5. There is improvement from last year

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Arsenal may have lost, and the fans might well be disheartened, but the Gunners’ performance against the champions was certainly better than it was last season. In previous games Arsenal have looked like having no chance whatsoever of winning, but in this match there were some positives and had Arsenal had a little more luck, for instance with Koscielny’s header, things might just have turned out a little differently. Arsenal have looked like getting thumped by Chelsea in recent years, but this was not the case on the weekend and Arsenal can at least take some heart from the fact that they look like an improved outfit.

If you liked this article please follow me on Twitter. Subscribe to my RSS feed.

Chelsea defender Alex has pulled out of the Brazil squad for the friendly internationals against Iran and Ukraine because of a thigh problem.

The 28-year-old former PSV Eindhoven star picked up the injury after scoring Chelsea's second goal in Sunday's 2-0 victory against Arsenal. It is estimated that he will be out of action for three weeks.

Meanwhile, Michael Essien believes Manchester City will be Chelsea's main title rivals this season.

Roberto Mancini's side followed up their 1-0 win against Chelsea with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Newcastle United on Sunday as they moved up to second in the Premier League table.

Ghana international Essien said:"There is still a long way to go. The season is very long and we have to keep playing like we did against Arsenal and keep getting points.

"We led for much of last season but last season is gone. We have a new season now and it will be decided at the end.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

"Manchester City are our closest challengers right now. You can see they have made good signings and they will be up for it. We will see what happens. I don't know if they will have the stamina but they have the players to go out and do the job.

"Maybe we have an advantage because we know what it takes to win the League but every season is different. We have to keep going. The rest of the teams are there and will be fighting for it. It is up to us to get as many points as we can."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

In the Premier League this weekend it’s all about derbies. There are a couple of tasty ones for you to enjoy as Aston Villa host Birmingham at Villa Park and Sunderland travel to St James’ Park to face Newcastle. Chris Hughton would love to get a win and ease some of the pressure the Newcastle manager’s come under this week, while there would be no better way for Gerard Houllier endear himself to the Villa fans than to get a victory over their Birmingham rivals. Passions are always running high in these games, so fantasy football players should bear in mind that bookings are likely and a sending off may even be on the cards!

Get the full list of predictions here.

Steve Bates is currently second in the predictions table and is enjoying a storming October. The People journalist has thinks that Liverpool will labour to a draw against Bolton at The Reebok:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=q02u9bQ5cAM%3Ffs%3D1%26hl%3Den_GB

The Mirror’s Martin Lipton has somewhat surprisingly gone for Sunderland to nick an away win in the Tyne-Wear Derby:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=wiUI13Q3JqY%3Ffs%3D1%26hl%3Den_GB

Andy Dunn from The News of The World has picked out the Manchester United v Tottenham match and predicts a home win for the Red Devils:

https://youtube.com/watch?v=2wbKXE9RrxQ%3Ffs%3D1%26hl%3Den_GB

Do you agree with the Premier League predictions made this week?

Football Writers’ Association Predictions – Week 12

Overall standings

1. Des Kelly – 54 (5)

2. Steve Bates – 53 (6)

3. Martin Lipton – 51 (4)

4. Andy Dunn – 49 (6)

5. Danny Fullbrook – 49 (4)

6. Shaun Custis – 48 (5)

7. Glenn Moore – 47 (3)

8. Patrick Barclay – 41 (4)

October standings:

1. Steve Bates – 25

2. Andy Dunn – 19

3. Des Kelly – 19

4. Glenn Moore – 19

5. Shaun Custis – 18

6. Martin Lipton – 18

7. Patrick Barclay – 16

8. Danny Fullbrook – 16

–

Patrick Barclay (The Times)

Home Team

Away Team

Arsenal

V

West Ham

H

Blackburn

V

Chelsea

A

Everton

V

Stoke

H

Fulham

V

Wigan

H

Wolves

V

Man City

A

Man United

V

Tottenham

D

Aston Villa

V

Birmingham

H

Bolton

V

Liverpool

A

Newcastle

V

Sunderland

H

Blackpool

V

West Brom

A

Aston Villa v Birmingham: Houllier’s Villains to be heroes

Des Kelly (Daily Mail)

Home Team

Away Team

Arsenal

V

West Ham

H

Blackburn

V

Chelsea

A

Everton

V

Stoke

H

Fulham

V

Wigan

D

Wolves

V

Man City

A

Man United

V

Tottenham

H

Aston Villa

V

Birmingham

H

Bolton

V

Liverpool

D

Newcastle

V

Sunderland

A

Blackpool

V

West Brom

A

Arsenal v West Ham: West Ham’s defence just doesn’t look up to coping with the speed and movement of the Arsenal attack. This has to be the banker result of the weekend.

Shaun Custis (The Sun)

Home Team

Away Team

Arsenal

V

West Ham

H

Blackburn

V

Chelsea

A

Everton

V

Stoke

H

Fulham

V

Wigan

H

Wolves

V

Man City

A

Man United

V

Tottenham

H

Aston Villa

V

Birmingham

H

Bolton

V

Liverpool

A

Newcastle

V

Sunderland

D

Blackpool

V

West Brom

D

Fulham v Wigan: Both sides have been inconsistent but Fulham should have enough to win at The Cottage.

Head to the next page for more football predictions…

Andy Dunn (News of the World)

Home Team

Away Team

Arsenal

V

West Ham

H

Blackburn

V

Chelsea

A

Everton

V

Stoke

D

Fulham

V

Wigan

H

Wolves

V

Man City

D

Man United

V

Tottenham

H

Aston Villa

V

Birmingham

D

Bolton

V

Liverpool

H

Newcastle

V

Sunderland

A

Blackpool

V

West Brom

A

Man United v Tottenham: Cracking game obviously. I think Manchester United will win this game – the workload can occasionally catch up on Spurs.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Martin Lipton (The Mirror)

Home Team

Away Team

Arsenal

V

West Ham

H

Blackburn

V

Chelsea

A

Everton

V

Stoke

H

Fulham

V

Wigan

H

Wolves

V

Man City

A

Man United

V

Tottenham

H

Aston Villa

V

Birmingham

H

Bolton

V

Liverpool

D

Newcastle

V

Sunderland

A

Blackpool

V

West Brom

D

Newcastle v Sunderland: North East passions on display but despite last week’s win at West Ham by the Toon, the Black Cats will be purring

Steve Bates (The People)

Home Team

Away Team

Arsenal

V

West Ham

H

Blackburn

V

Chelsea

A

Everton

V

Stoke

H

Fulham

V

Wigan

D

Wolves

V

Man City

A

Man United

V

Tottenham

A

Aston Villa

V

Birmingham

H

Bolton

V

Liverpool

D

Newcastle

V

Sunderland

H

Blackpool

V

West Brom

A

Bolton v Liverpool: Liverpool aren’t out of the woods yet despite their win over Blackburn and they’ll find the going tough at The Reebok where Bolton held manchester United recently. But a point won’t be a bad result for Gerrard and Co.

Danny Fulbrook (Daily Star)

Home Team

Away Team

Arsenal

V

West Ham

H

Blackburn

V

Chelsea

A

Everton

V

Stoke

H

Fulham

V

Wigan

H

Wolves

V

Man City

A

Man United

V

Tottenham

D

Aston Villa

V

Birmingham

H

Bolton

V

Liverpool

A

Newcastle

V

Sunderland

D

Blackpool

V

West Brom

A

Wolves v Man City: Wolves are on a bad run at the moment and it is not about to get any better

Glenn Moore (The Independent)

Home Team

Away Team

Arsenal

V

West Ham

H

Blackburn

V

Chelsea

A

Everton

V

Stoke

H

Fulham

V

Wigan

H

Wolves

V

Man City

D

Man United

V

Tottenham

D

Aston Villa

V

Birmingham

D

Bolton

V

Liverpool

D

Newcastle

V

Sunderland

D

Blackpool

V

West Brom

A

Blackburn v Chelsea: Rovers’ home form has not been as strong as usual, while Chelsea have been ominously focused and have a full week to prepare. Away win.

Stoke City boss Tony Pulis has proposed a radical shake up of how referees are assessed in the Premier League, proposing that there should be a relegation system where the referees who have performed the worst over a season are relegated to the Championship. The proposal comes after a number of high profile incidents where Stoke have been on the end of some very poor referring decisions.

“It cannot be right that these decisions consistently go on without being addressed,” he told Sky Sports News ahead of the clash with Birmingham on Tuesday.

He explained: “Over the weekend I have thought about it and I want to be constructive, so I think we should put in place a system where every Premier League club has a vote at the end of the season on referees, and the bottom three referees should be relegated to the Championship and the top three referees from the Championship should be promoted.”

It is not right to place referees under such pressures. The problem with the proposal is who will mark the referees? If the managers are involved, a massive bone of contention arises. For example, take Mark Clattenburg’s decision for Nani’s goal at Old Trafford. Harry Redknapp blasted the ref for making the wrong call, whilst Sir Alex Ferguson concluded that the referee had made the correct decision, in the laws of the game. That decision is based on opinion. Some will say he got it right, others will disagree but it is wrong that the referee could be at risk of relegation by the say so of managers. The relationship between managers and referees is strained enough without bringing in such complicated measures.

As well as this, managers, players and fans all want to see the referee use as much common sense as possible when referring the game. If this system was brought into place, every single decision the referee took could be examined. This could lead to referees slowing the game down, making sure that every decision is as clinical as possible. Of course we want to see as many decisions as possible dealt with correctly but at the cost of common sense? It is a dangerous policy, and one that the Football Association shouldn’t take seriously.

However, this debate hopefully will open referees up. After games, what is wrong with the referee coming out and explaining a decision? It would save us all thirty minutes of Andy Gray ref bashing to start. Secondly, it would clear situations up. The more we speculate about referee’s decisions the easier it becomes to level abuse at them. On past occasions when referee’s have come out and explained decisions, the whole atmosphere is calmed. If we know why the referee came to a certain conclusion then we accept it and move on. The referee shouldn’t have to explain every single decision but it would be obvious to everyone the major decision over the course of a weekend that would need clarity.

Referees must be accountable for the job they are doing, that is obvious. Is it fair to judge certain referee’s so openly. If a referee makes a high profile mistake, they are moved off top flight duties. After all we are involved in a sport that is based on opinion, and we all see decisions in different ways. So referee’s make mistakes, but we shouldn’t lower the standard of our game to punish them so openly.

No referee does it on purpose, or have a vendetta against a team. Stoke City are on a bad run of form – of course Tony Pulis is deflecting attention away from that. We should not take these proposals seriously. We need to get behind the men in black, rather than hang them out to dry. Mistakes are a fact of life. Until we introduce technology to help the referee’s we have to accept that mistakes are an inevitable part of English football.

Like what you read? Comment below and contact me on twitter

Click on image below to see a gallery of Cristiano Ronaldo’s latest lady

With the transfer window fast approaching and Manchester United starting to hit form, rocking the boat might seem a little strange. However, there are still a few issues at Old Trafford that need to be resolved. There are three players that could be sold off in January to make way for better players, or players that will offer a bit more to the squad. We look at one Manchester United fan’s opinion on three players that should be sold this Janaury. You do not have to agree.

Gabriel Obertan

The French winger is not good enough to play for Manchester United. He has offered the club very little since his arrival from Bordeaux and with Valencia returning after Christmas why do Manchester United need to keep him? In the Carling Cup this season he hardly shined against Scunthorpe or Wolves and has looked out of his depth against Premiership defenders. Obertan has pace, and that is a great asset in the Premier League, but he has nothing to go with it. He has a poor first touch and his delivery into the box is erratic. He scored a superb goal against Bursaspor in the Champions League, but apart from that what else has he done? Gabriel Obertan is another David Bellion and Manchester United should cash in come January.

Wes Brown

The Manchester United defender’s time at the club has probably come to an end. He has been a loyal servant to the club but does he possess the ability to warrant a first team place? The answer is no, so why keep the lad? At the start of his career, terrible injuries plagued him – had they not occurred I doubt this would be an issue. Manchester United have settled on a right back, have invested heavily in young centre backs, clearly Wes Brown’s time at the club is at an end. He is still Premier League quality, and could rejuvenate his career elsewhere. Playing football is better than sitting on the bench and Brown should opt to play football. Manchester United fans would be far happier to see Evans and Smalling battle it out for third choice centre half ahead of Brown.

Owen Hargreaves

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Six months ago I never thought I would write something like that. Just to clarify one thing. Manchester United fans would not want to see the back of Owen Hargreaves, but it’s time for Sir Alex Ferguson to end his Manchester United career. In a couple of weeks I could be proven totally wrong, but after the last six months I fear I wont be. After Owen Hargreaves’ break down against Wolves in November how long can Manchester United wait? Will he ever be calm enough to be selected to play? Will it all get on top of him again – will the stress make another injury more likely? For the player himself how many set backs can he have? Sure, being told his Manchester United career was over would be tough, but what would another set back do for his mindset? Owen Hargreaves was a fantastic purchase for Manchester United and did the club proud. However, this January I feel it’s time for Sir Alex Ferguson to say enough is enough. Manchester United need clarity on the situation, I sincerely hope I am wrong but I don’t believe we will see Owen Hargreaves play in a United shirt again.

Comment below on who YOU think should be sold – if anyone. Follow me on twitter here

Holy Crap – it’s live fantasy football! Become part of Juventus v Man City and play Picklive for FREE Watch and bet live – spices up any game!

Arsenal flexed its proverbial muscle with a 3-1 victory over Leeds in their third-round FA Cup replay at Elland Road on Wednesday.The English Premier League powerhouse made clear its intentions after just five minutes when Samir Nasri coolly poked the ball past United goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel to hand the Londoners the lead.

This was in stark contrast to their third-round proper clash at the Emirates, when Cesc Fabregas scored a 90th-minute penalty to get Arsene Wenger’s side out of jail and into a replay.

Defender Bacary Sagna double Arsenal’s lead in the 35th minute with a powerful strike, with Schmeichel unable to stop the shot from flying into the top left corner of the net despite getting one hand to the ball.

Wenger’s men did not have it all their own way, however, after Leeds midfielder Bradley Johnson scored a screamer in the 37th minute from long range to give the home fans plenty to sing about and Leeds the impetus in their hunt for an equaliser.

But the injection of star pair Fabregas and Robin van Persie on 71 minutes proved an inspired move from Wenger, with the latter heading home a well-weighted Nicklas Bendtner cross five minutes later to seal the win for Arsenal.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Arsenal will host League One club Huddersfield Town in their fourth-round affair on January 30 at the Emirates.

Joe Cole may not have contributed much since his summer signing, but a last ditch winner may just have saved his manager’s Anfield career.

It was a fantastic turnaround for Liverpool in the second half and the nature of the 2-1 victory against a good Bolton team may just prove the kick-start Roy Hodgson’s team needs. Steve Gerrard was an absolute colossus in the second half and he was a driving force behind Liverpool’s win today.

So how did Liverpool fans feel about today, and what are the five things we learnt about the Reds this afternoon?

[divider]

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

[divider]

Holy Crap – it’s live fantasy football! Become part of Chelsea v Aston Villa and play Picklive for FREE Watch and bet live – spices up any game!

After Arsenal suffered a shock 1-0 defeat to Championship outfit Ipswich in the first leg of the semi-final of the Carling Cup at Portman Road a fortnight ago, the Premier League giants have been left with the task of overturning the deficit at The Emirates Stadium this evening. Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger will be relying on his big guns to get the job done, and they don’t come any bigger at the moment than Robin van Persie.

Dutch forward van Persie has been in a rich vein of form in recent weeks, scoring a hat-trick in Arsenal’s most recent Premier League encounter against Wigan, and his return to the cup competition will be a welcome one for the Gunners. I wouldn’t be surprised if he netted again tonight as he’ll certainly be in the mood for it and such be the first player you select in your Picklive TRIO tonight.

If you look at the first leg at Portman Road, it was Arsenal players who dominated the points scoring. Denilson completed a massive 108 passes over the course of the 90 minutes, helping him rack up a huge 133 Picklive points. If the Brazilian starts tonight, expect him to put many of Arsenal’s attacks in motion and enjoy relative control in the middle of the park.

With Arsenal having to come from a goal down to make the final at Wembley, you can expect Wenger to pick a strong starting eleven, and thus one that contains captain Cesc Fabregas. The Spanish midfielder was awesome at The Emirates at the weekend and also broke the 100 points barrier in the first leg of the Carling Cup semi-final, so he’ll certainly be one to watch and therefore to select tonight.

As far as Ipswich are concerned, Paul Jewell will be conveying to his players the fact that they have a great opportunity tonight to reach a final and make a name for themselves. That’s exactly what Tamas Priskin did in the first leg, so will he be the man to do it tonight or will another Tractor Boy step forward?

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

It’s very hard to look past Arsenal tonight, as Arsene Wenger and his team won’t want to miss out on an opportunity to get one step closer to some elusive silverware. Therefore your Picklive selection is likely to be dominated by Gunners, with van Persie, Denilson and Fabregas somewhere near the top of the list. So what are you waiting for? Make your Picklive selections now!

[divider]

Love fantasy football? Love live footy? You’ll love live fantasy football! Take part in the Arsenal v Ipswich match and play Picklive for FREE Go on, give it a go!

Barcelona and Real Madrid set up a tantalising Copa del Rey final after both posted wins in their semi-final second leg matches.

Leading 5-0 after the first leg with Almeria, Barca scored another three goals in the away leg to run out comfortable 3-0 winners at the Estadio de los Juegos Mediterraneos.

Despite resting Lionel Messi, Xavi, David Villa and Andres Iniesta, Pep Guardiola’s men still had far too much firepower for Almeria, who they thumped 8-0 in their last league meeting on November 20.

Brazilian defender Adriano opened the scoring after 34 minutes before Thiago Alcantara doubled the advantage eight minutes after half-time.

Dutch midfielder Ibrahim Afellay added the third after 66 minutes as Barca progress to just their second Copa del Rey final in 13 seasons.

Real Madrid were less convincing in their semi-final, and after enjoying a 1-0 away win over Sevilla in the first leg they posted a 2-0 victory on Wednesday.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Germany international Mesut Oezil opened the scoring in the 82nd minute before substitute Emmanuel Adebayor scored on his home debut to seal a 3-0 aggregate result over the holders.

The April 20 final will be Real’s first in the Copa del Rey since their 2004 defeat to Real Zaragoza.

Abou Diaby’s petulant match-turning red card against Newcastle was just the latest in a long line of controversial incidents on and off the pitch involving Arsenal’s players this season, which begs the question, is ill-discipline becoming a very real problem for the club to deal with?

Glancing at the statistics, Arsenal already have the third worst disciplinary record in the Premier League this season, which boasts a rather unenviable record of 6 red cards and 44 yellow cards. Contrast this with last season’s total of 56 yellows and 1 red card, which left them as the club with the third best disciplinary record in the league and the difference is startling.

Diaby’s red card was fully deserved at St James’ Park and his reaction was simply unacceptable. His dismissal came hot on the heals of another controversy involving the club; this time surrounding captain Cesc Fabregas and his supposed comments to the match official at half-time during the club’s home fixture against Everton.

David Moyes, not usually a manager to stick his ore unnecessarily into other people’s business, let alone court controversy, alluded to the fact that Fabregas questioned the referee’s integrity in the tunnel at half-time for allowing Louis Saha’s dubiously offside goal to stand.

Moyes opined: “Cesc Fabregas should have been sent off at half-time in the tunnel for the comments at the officials coming up the tunnel. It was disgusting.” Moyes later went onto clear things up a little better and it has since emerged that Fabregas asked fourth official Lee Mason how much Everton were paying him to swing the game in their favour – a ludicrous suggestion it has to be said.

It appears frustration got the better of Fabregas on this occasion. You simply cannot question the integrity of Everton football club and the match officials in the manner that he did. All it does is add fuel to the fire and it does nothing more than put manager Arsene Wenger immediately on the defensive after the result. At a time when the only topics Wenger should be discussing are his side’s fantastic comeback or the great resilience shown by his title contenders, he has to waste his time discussing incidents outside of his control.

But that is the point entirely – just how much control does Wenger have over this Arsenal side?

He is a father figure at the club, that much is beyond question, and he was also the main reason that Fabregas decided to stay in the summer despite overtures from his boyhood club Barcelona. This Arsenal side is the best team that Wenger has had at his disposal for the past 4-5 years and they remain Man Utd’s main challengers for the title this season.

They are not particularly bad natured, nor are they especially dirty, but there is a petulance that bubbles beneath the surface throughout the whole side and the manager has to take some credit for this. Wenger is widely known for his less than humble post-match remarks to the press, particularly in defeat and perhaps this attitude has seeped through to some of his players somewhat.

Jack Wilshere too was fortunate to escape FA censure over his comments via his Twitter feed after the Newcastle game where he questioned the quality of the decision-making of referee Phil Dowd. In all honesty, Wilshere made a sound enough point and Dowd did have a poor day at the office, but surely the club has to have a blanket set of guidelines for players on social networking sites? If they don’t, they should certainly look to install one in the near future.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Over at Liverpool, the furore that surrounded Ryan Babel after he posted a mocked up photo of Howard Webb in a Man Utd shirt proved to be the straw that broke the camel’s back and he was out of the club within a matter of days.

It wasn’t necessarily what Wilshere said that was the main problem, it was the fact that it led to another series of difficult and needless questions for his manager to face. Wilshere, of course, is no stranger to trouble and the player in question has been involved in numerous scuffles off the pitch since his breakthrough into the Arsenal starting eleven, and while he’ll certainly mature with age, his penchant for getting himself into hot water is a worrying aspect to accompany his developing career.

On the pitch, this Arsenal side plays to the strict blueprint laid out by their astute manager, but off the pitch, Wenger seems to have a little more difficulty controlling this talented group of players.

A siege mentality is a great thing to have, especially if you can harness it to your benefit. Certain sides such as Liverpool and Chelsea thrive under one. But with the spotlight focussing on Arsenal’s title challenge at the moment, the sheer amount of newsworthy controversies dogging the club only serves to highlight that a degree of discipline needs to be brought back to the Emirates, before it has the potential to derail any title ambitions the club may harbour this campaign.