First of Ten Finals Begins Today

Couldn't get myself to do a bloody blog with all that has transpired over the past week. Its been heartbreaking to say the least, where just 3 weeks ago we were dreaming of at least one trophy in the barren cabinets of the Emirates while here we are today possibly staring at ending another season without any. For any club and its supporters to be out of 3 cups in a matter of a couple of weeks is shattering to say the least and its no different with Arsenal. What takes the piss out of me is the media spotlight on our failing campaign and how we are a bunch of chokers !! I'd just like to point out that we are where we are without spending over 200 million quid in the transfer market and still lie one place above City. We are where we are without spending 55 million quid in the January market on two players and are fighting for the top spot in the Premier League unlike Liverpool who will have to deal with Europa League for the third consecutive season. Yet i see no doom and gloom mongers running riot at these clubs.

Why isn't anyone taking these clubs, their management and their players to the executioner i ask  ? The answer for me lies in the fact that deep inside all the haters of Arsenal  Football Club envy where we have reached over the past few years with the kind of budgets that we have been operating on and the kind of infrastructure we've created. Right from the stadium to the youth set up everything we have is world class. And all this achieved while building a squad on whom money spent is marginally higher than that of Any Caroll's transfer fees !! There my friends lie your answers. I'm not saying its a conspiracy by the world against Arsenal, sure we have matters to be sorted, but to get the kind of coverage and grief we have been getting over the past few weeks is astonishing.

Enough of that now. Today marks the beginning of the first of 10 Finals that could see us lifting the trophy anytime between the end of April and May considering we win every one of those games. Like you i have my doubts on that but realistically what we need to do is match Utd for a every result and turn the tide upon them when they come visit us at the Wengerdome. Considering they are in 3 cup competitions the league could actually be a realistic option because at the moment Utd do look threadbare and the fixture list will take its toll on them. Thus a win in today's game is all the more important, even more so than the FA cup match and the CL match that we recently played. Lose today and its another opportunity missed at going joint top of the table equal on points and the two week inter lull will play its two bit part in creating uncertainty in the minds of the Gooners who seem to have lost all hope for this season.

While it all looks rather straightforward, barring tonight's game, we will have our full strength line up when we play Blackburn after the inter lull. Which means we'll have Cesc, Theo and Song back and the Theo Van Nasregas set up can fire us home in the business end of the season. We certainly know the potency of the team when these fellas play and there's no doubting the fact that they will be fired up in the last 9 games (when they return) to bring home the big prize. Doubts continue at the back of our defense though and lets hope the Sqillielny partnership comes good for us. On Almunia, well the lesser said the better. Only hope can save us on the GK side of things. I secretly hope that Mad Jens has told Almunia that there would be a cast iron awaiting insertion in his arse for every blunder he makes during the game and three cast irons should be concede a goal with his stupidity. Wishful thinking you might say, Lehman's in the locker room is my retort.

So i expect the team to line up as below

Almunia (Yikes!!)
Sagna-Squillaci-Kos-Clichy
Wilshere-Ramsey
Bendtner-Nasri-Arshavin
RVP

Lehman, Chamakh, Denilson, Ignasi, Eboue, Gibbs, Rosicky

I expect Ramsey to get the start ahead of Denilson with Wenger having Wilshere playing as the wall between midfield and defensive while Ramsey does what he knows best and creates chances alongwith Nasri.
Don't be surprised if the manager will play Denilson though but expect him to make a few blunders and nearly cost us the game. Sorry for the negativity with him and trust me i am one of the last to slate one of our own but with  Denilson i have no patience left, WHATSOFUCKINGEVER !!
Roy Hodgson will have his team set up to defend deep and hit us on the break and we know that they are well capable of doing that (need i remind anyone of what happened when they visited us) Its down to us to take our chances and score a couple and then get into the pass the ball around mode. We also need to approach today's game with the urgency that we showed against Chelsea and close down WBA every time they have the ball. We should have learnt a lesson or two during the ball possession classes we took while we played Cuntalona !!

Here's to a 4-0 thrashing of the Baggies at the Hawthorns and Bolton doing us a massive favour by taking some points off Utd who kick off at the same time.

Follow me on Twitter @Indigooner or on Facebook

Have a good day wherever you are.