A Big Christmas Week Match-up!
posted by The Blue Devil @ 2:12 PM
Lakenheath Old Boys
We are all former students at Lakenheath High School and other public schools in East Anglia. We were in school in the 70s and 80s and drank deeply from the well of British culture of those decades - the pints, the telly, and of course the footie!
Monday, December 21, 2015
Lakenheath Old Boys
We are all former students at Lakenheath High School and other public schools in East Anglia. We were in school in the 70s and 80s and drank deeply from the well of British culture of those decades - the pints, the telly, and of course the footie!
Contributors
Previous Posts
- Blatter and Platini Banned for 8 Years!
- Cribs, Richard Keys style
- Mourinho Walks the Plank!
- Music of 2015
- Premiership Plus Predictions Game - Week 16 Update
- Sunday Soccer Fest
- THE DRAW
- The Premiership Weekend Starts Here!
- Europa League Group Stage Wrap-up!
- Books of 2015
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Afternoon, chaps! Manchester City’s Premier League record at Arsenal is downright abysmal, with one victory in 18 attempts, and the Gunners’ home record this season, at least domestically, is roaringly impressive, with their only defeat coming against the Hammers. Nicely poised, then.
The two sides go in today 2nd vs. 3rd. Neither has a chance of topping Leicester, who are five points clear now and could be four points clear at the top at Christmas if this is a dull draw. A win for Arsenal would bring them within two points and a win for Citeh would close the gap to three points.
City make four changes: Sterling, Clichy, Navas and Bony are out, De Bruyne, Kolarov, Delph and Agüero are in. Bit of a risk with Aguero who's just back from a hammy and maybe a bit too early.
No sign of Alexis Sánchez in Arsenal’s squad.
Petr Cech has a chance to break the clean sheets record in the Premiership today, currently held by David James. He's had 7 clean sheets in 16 appearances for the Gunners.
Here are the teams warming up on the pitch right now:
Arsenal: Cech, Bellerin, Mertesacker, Koscielny, Monreal, Flamini, Ramsey, Walcott, Özil, Campbell, Giroud. Subs: Gibbs, Gabriel, Ospina, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Chambers, Iwobi, Reine-Adelaide.
Man City: Hart, Sagna, Otamendi, Mangala, Kolarov, Fernandinho, Touré, Delph, Silva, Agüero, De Bruyne. Subs: Sterling, Caballero, Bony, Jesus Navas, Clichy, Demichelis, Iheanacho.
Referee: Andre Marriner
A very flashy light show going on at the Emirates now as the teams gather in the tunnel.
The home side get us underway in tonight's clash.
Not sure that NBC need two color commentators tonight. Both Lee Dixon and Timmy Howard are alongside Arlo White. Too many chefs?
Citeh seem to be dropping deep from the off, allowing Arsenal possession. They look likely to be playing a game on the break.
Joel Campbell is enjoying an extended run in the side with Alexis injured. Giroud caught offside again. Citeh playing a high line against the Gunners front line.
Silva blazes well over.
Another shot! it’s Fernandinho this time, with his right boot, from about the same position as Silva if you’d looked at Silva’s shot in a mirror. It goes to almost the same place, too.
DeBruyne is in trouble now with Andre Marriner after chopping down Theo. Should be a yellow but Marriner gave him the benefit of the doubt.
Very evenly matched fixture so far, with no shots on goal to trouble the goalkeepers as of yet.
Kolarov is lucky to get off the hook there as he commits a professional foul to prevent Ozil from breaking.
I’d missed the moment when De Bruyne tried to take a quick corner, accidentally kicked the flag and nearly fell over. What a moment. One for the blooper reels.
The game is starting to stretch, with both teams having turns to push and prod.
Andre Marriner has finally run out of patience with Citeh - David Silva into the book for an elbow.
Oh - the Ginger Winger had a chance to play Silva in there but elected to shoot - and got it wide. Silva not best pleased. Best chance of the match.
GOAL! Theo breaks the deadlock with a top drawer effort.
1-0!
And of course it was Ozil who fed him that chance. He collected the ball, jinked inside and curled one into the far corner with his right peg. First shot of the game for Arse.
Oh - Arsenal go close from an Ozil corner now. Their tails are definitely up.
That Walcott goal should really open things up now. Citeh were relying on hitting the Gunners on the break. They'll have to be more adventurous in the second half now.
This one is winding down to the interval. Lots to talk about in the dressing room.
With Walcott racing left to right with a yawning chasm of space in front of him, Joel Campbell overhits his through-ball.
Otamendi is lucky to escape a card for that challenge on Giroud.
Citeh are goalless in their last three away matches in the Prem. Not a positive thought for their second half.
Only a minute of stoppage to play off now.
Some dazzling footwork there from Joel Campbell.
GOAL! And right on the stroke of half-time, Giroud doubles the Arsenal advantage!
2-0!
Another lovely assist from Ozil, dinking the ball through there on a plate for the big Frenchman to slide it home.
And that makes for a happy half-time cuppa for the Arsenal fans. 2-0 at the interval.
Raheem Sterling is warming up for a possible entrance in the second half.
We're back on for the second half and Sterling has replaced LUFC Academy kid Fab Delph. Citeh get get us underway.
Otamendi finally gets that yellow card he's been begging for.
Gibbs seems to be getting ready to come on.
Oh - Campbell misses a sitter. Swept it over the bar when it was easier to score from that Monreal cross.
Free kick chance for Citeh now. Kolarov to take....
Aguero darts in for a low header, straight into Cech's arms.
Oh - Campbell was in there but could only poke it tamely toward Hart.
And now it's Giroud with a chance, just wide of the mark. Arsenal are all over Citeh now.
Oh - great save by Hart from Theo there. Arsenal could be 3 or 4-0 up.
Wilfried Bony looks to be about to come on, probably for Aguero who's not fully fit.
That's the last action for Aguero, who had a quiet night, feeding on scraps really.
Otamendi’s diving tackle stops Campbell getting free in the area. He’s having to defend for two at the moment, because Mangala’s occupying some strange state in between existing and not existing.
Arsenal are rampant but one goal back from Citeh could change things momentum wise.
Yaya Toure is moving like an 80 year-old; what on earth is up with him?
Oh - Ramsey had a half chance in the area but the ball doesn't quite come down for him.
Campbell is replaced by Gibbs - Arsenal locking up the shop now.
Diabolical dive there by Yaya, punished with a yellow card for simulation.
15 minutes left for Citeh to change things here. They're not going to do it with that kind of play - only one forward in the box on that attack.
Bony gets his head to a long cross but Cech is able to easily grab it out of the air.
And now Arsene will replace Ozil with The Ox - nice move. The Ox can hold up things as well as anyone in the squad.
Oh - Citeh break through Navas but he elected to try to square it to Bony, which was a more difficult option. Cleared out by Mert.
Lee Dixon is underscoring that a team should never be caught on the break when they're 2-0 up.
GOAL! Yaya with a goal out of nothing passing the ball over Cech's head and into the top of the net. Superb!
2-1!
Oh - Ramsey had a chance to kill it off again, but he ballooned the shot over the bar.
Theo troops off after his goalscoring exploits.
Into four minutes of stoppage time now.
That's that - Arsenal run out 2-1 winners and close the gap at the top to two points.
Over and out from me today - cheerio!
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