Official Gooners Thread - A New Hope

[gallsman]

Barca have moved on from last year, the little genius is a year old and Man United have gone backwards, it would be no contest only Chelsea of the English sides could give them a proper game.

have they Really?

They are currently level on points with Real Madrid unlike last year when they were walking the Spanish league beating Madrid 6-2 along the way

they also got knocked out of the Spanish cup & in the champions league this season Rubin Kazan beat them 1-0 in the camp nou & drew with them 0-0 at home to prove it was no fluke (barca won every cup they entered last year)

as for united they have gone back alittle but if they get over Bayern? they will have a great chance for replay of last years final unlike the mighty Chelsea who are OUT

Level on points with Real. How does that have anything to do with Barca's performance? They've lost one league match all season and have more points than at this stage last year. I'd call that progress.

[bingobus]

Jaysus Fearon, you're been far too obvious here and not getting the bites you're looking for as result.

Must try Harder.

Messi is a genius. The fact that Maradonna refuses to play him in a similar role as he played himself or as Messi plays for Barca could cost them a decent shot at a world cup. Too much ego.

[ONeill]

Keys and Gray caught slating Walcott


Sky Sports presenters Richard Keys and Andy Gray got caught out live on air after a technical glitch meant some of their comments were heard during a match.

..Veteran anchor Keys and chief analyst Gray were reportedly heard talking over some feeds of Arsenal's 4-1 defeat in Barcelona on Tuesday criticising Gunners winger Theo Walcott, with Keys also joking about someone's flatulence in the studio.

England international Walcott helped create the opening goal, but had an otherwise disappointing performance at the Camp Nou.

At one point during the match, the 21-year-old went to ground, Keys was heard to say on an online stream of the match: "Get up, you stupid little boy.

"You've been s***e, son, in your daft pink boots - absolute rubbish."

Later on, former TV-am presenter Keys asked studio pundits Graeme Souness and Ruud Gullit: "Who's farted? It's not me."

Gray was also heard laying into Walcott on a feed picked up on Dutch television.

The former Everton, Wolves and Aston Villa striker said: "That Walcott's s***e, isn't he?"

With Lionel Messi's sensational first-half hat-trick ending the tie as a contest, Gray's attentions turned to half-time refreshments, and he was also heard asking: "Is someone going to get the teas on?"

A Sky spokesman denied the incidents, saying: "There were no technical issues with the audio on the night.

"On Sky coverage no conversations could be heard behind the live match commentary, and we did not supply any feeds to outside broadcasters. Richard has no reaction."

[A Quinn Martin Production]

On the night their analysis seems pretty spot on...unusual for those two eejits

[ONeill]

They're years behind O'Rourke and Spillane in that regard.

[ONeill]

Pesky Gooners:

http://www.101greatgoals.com/videodisplay/5308242/

[ONeill]

I have learned that one of the biggest shareholders in Arsenal Football Club has put her stake on the market, a move that will effectively kick off a fresh battle for control of the Premier League side.
Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith has hired bankers at Blackstone to find a buyer for her roughly-16 per cent stake, which has been owned by her and her family for many years.
At first glance, Blackstone may not need to look further than Arsenal's two biggest investors to find a willing buyer: Kroenke Sports Enterprises, the vehicle of the American sports tycoon Stan Kroenke; and Red & White Holdings, which is fronted by the Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov.
However, I'm told that while Red & White may add modestly to its 26 per cent stake, Usmanov does not want to bid for the club at the moment, an action that would be automatically triggered under the City takeover code if its stake went to 30 per cent or more.
Kroenke, though, is unlikely to have such reservations, given that he has been slowly accumulating shares to stand on the brink of mounting a full takeover. Reports say that he is due to decide today whether he will sell his shares in the St Louis Rams, an NFL team, which would give him some of the financial firepower required to lodge an acceptable bid.
Kroenke made his debut on the Arsenal shareholder register in 2007, when he bought a 9.9 per cent stake from ITV. Since then, the club has enjoyed little real success on the pitch despite playing what most purists believe is the most attractive football in the Premier League.
My City sources say they are slightly puzzled as to why Lady Bracewell-Smith has appointed City advisers to sell the stake, given that she served on the board alongside Kroenke and knows many of the protagonists well already. Her decision to appoint Blackstone may therefore suggest that she has no intention of selling to the American.
This news about Arsenal caps a frenetic few weeks in the world of football finance. Last month, I revealed that a group of City financiers known as the Red Knights was plotting a bid to buy Manchester United; and on Saturday, I broke the news that Liverpool's American owners, are to appoint Barclays Capital to find a buyer for the club.
Nobody involved in the Arsenal situation was available for comment today, while Blackstone declined to comment.

[muppet]

I have learned that one of the biggest shareholders in Arsenal Football Club has put her stake on the market, a move that will effectively kick off a fresh battle for control of the Premier League side.
Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith has hired bankers at Blackstone to find a buyer for her roughly-16 per cent stake, which has been owned by her and her family for many years.
At first glance, Blackstone may not need to look further than Arsenal's two biggest investors to find a willing buyer: Kroenke Sports Enterprises, the vehicle of the American sports tycoon Stan Kroenke; and Red & White Holdings, which is fronted by the Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov.
However, I'm told that while Red & White may add modestly to its 26 per cent stake, Usmanov does not want to bid for the club at the moment, an action that would be automatically triggered under the City takeover code if its stake went to 30 per cent or more.
Kroenke, though, is unlikely to have such reservations, given that he has been slowly accumulating shares to stand on the brink of mounting a full takeover. Reports say that he is due to decide today whether he will sell his shares in the St Louis Rams, an NFL team, which would give him some of the financial firepower required to lodge an acceptable bid.
Kroenke made his debut on the Arsenal shareholder register in 2007, when he bought a 9.9 per cent stake from ITV. Since then, the club has enjoyed little real success on the pitch despite playing what most purists believe is the most attractive football in the Premier League.
My City sources say they are slightly puzzled as to why Lady Bracewell-Smith has appointed City advisers to sell the stake, given that she served on the board alongside Kroenke and knows many of the protagonists well already. Her decision to appoint Blackstone may therefore suggest that she has no intention of selling to the American.
This news about Arsenal caps a frenetic few weeks in the world of football finance. Last month, I revealed that a group of City financiers known as the Red Knights was plotting a bid to buy Manchester United; and on Saturday, I broke the news that Liverpool's American owners, are to appoint Barclays Capital to find a buyer for the club.
Nobody involved in the Arsenal situation was available for comment today, while Blackstone declined to comment.

Maybe she just wants the best price?

[ross4life]

No talk here about having Van Persie Back in Training



I'm sure Wenger is Happy

[ONeill]

Cmon Bolton. Just 70 mins to houl out.

[ildanach]

I have learned that one of the biggest shareholders in Arsenal Football Club has put her stake on the market, a move that will effectively kick off a fresh battle for control of the Premier League side.
Lady Nina Bracewell-Smith has hired bankers at Blackstone to find a buyer for her roughly-16 per cent stake, which has been owned by her and her family for many years.
At first glance, Blackstone may not need to look further than Arsenal's two biggest investors to find a willing buyer: Kroenke Sports Enterprises, the vehicle of the American sports tycoon Stan Kroenke; and Red & White Holdings, which is fronted by the Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov.
However, I'm told that while Red & White may add modestly to its 26 per cent stake, Usmanov does not want to bid for the club at the moment, an action that would be automatically triggered under the City takeover code if its stake went to 30 per cent or more.
Kroenke, though, is unlikely to have such reservations, given that he has been slowly accumulating shares to stand on the brink of mounting a full takeover. Reports say that he is due to decide today whether he will sell his shares in the St Louis Rams, an NFL team, which would give him some of the financial firepower required to lodge an acceptable bid.
Kroenke made his debut on the Arsenal shareholder register in 2007, when he bought a 9.9 per cent stake from ITV. Since then, the club has enjoyed little real success on the pitch despite playing what most purists believe is the most attractive football in the Premier League.
My City sources say they are slightly puzzled as to why Lady Bracewell-Smith has appointed City advisers to sell the stake, given that she served on the board alongside Kroenke and knows many of the protagonists well already. Her decision to appoint Blackstone may therefore suggest that she has no intention of selling to the American.
This news about Arsenal caps a frenetic few weeks in the world of football finance. Last month, I revealed that a group of City financiers known as the Red Knights was plotting a bid to buy Manchester United; and on Saturday, I broke the news that Liverpool's American owners, are to appoint Barclays Capital to find a buyer for the club.
Nobody involved in the Arsenal situation was available for comment today, while Blackstone declined to comment.

do your sources in the city give you much info

[ONeill]

Cmon Bolton. Just 50 mins to houl out.

Get stuck in Jack effing Wilshere.

[Puckoon]

Have Arsenal and the spuds ever played in such a vital game to both sides in recent history?

[ONeill]

Have Arsenal and the spuds ever played in such a vital game to both sides in recent history?

Probably not. A draw ruins both chances too.

[ildanach]

Have Arsenal and the spuds ever played in such a vital game to both sides in recent history?

the race for 4th a couple of years back