Blunderland Preview, Ramsey's Back, Congrats Wenger!



The best goal Cesc has ever scored for the club. Made me laugh.

      Well then. A fantastic win on Wednesday and we can now look ahead to playing United in the quarterfinals. For now, we have to focus on the league.

     United slipped up to Chelsea on Tuesday night and as a result we are four points behind them but with a game in hand. Therefore, if we beat Sunderland the difference between us and the Mancs is just a point. Not only that, but United takes a trip to an on form Anfield side without Nemanja Vidic. As a result, they might play with Johnny Evans. God bless them. Hopefully, United will slip up there as well and we can be in control of the Premier League.

     But I'm no Manchester United blogger. I'm a Proud Gooner. Let's stay on task.
     Being an Arsenal fan, we're more than used to injuries by now. None the less, it would be nice to have a vacant medical room for once.
    
     Apparently Cesc is fit enough to play Sunderland, but my guess is he'll be rested as a precaution. It's much more important he plays in the Barcelona match, and Arsenal as a club doesn't like to rush players back into the fray after an injury.

     So, we're missing Song, RvP, Cesc, and Theo.
     Without Song, I expect Diaby to step in, and I'm not too worried about that. Diaby had a fantastic performance on Wednesday night, even though it was against Orient. His physical presence is key and he will be the guardian for our back four.
     Without Walcott, Nasri will take up his post, and that's not a bad replacement, is it?
     Without Cesc, Rosicky should step in, and hopefully he has recovered from his concussion he received in the Orient match. Not only that, hopefully the performance he will put in will make me like him.
     Finally, without van Persie I expect Bendtner to get the call, and I think Wenger already told us that by taking the Big Dane off Wednesday night. Not only that, how about another hat trick Nik, eh?

     Wenger said that Ramsey will be in the squad to face Sunderland. I myself, don't think that Ramsey will start. He's not going to beat Wilshere out for a spot, and I highly doubt he'd take Song's spot. Ramsey and Wilshere as holding midfielders wouldn't be defensive solidity.
     If Ramsey were to start, I'd then expect Rosicky to be dropped and Wilshere to play in Fabregas's position. However, I highly doubt that.
     That being said, this is my predicted line-up:

                        Bendtner
    Arshavin                             Nasri  
                         Rosicky

               Wilshere      Diaby

Clichy     Koscielny     Djourou     Sagna

                         Szczesny

     Those of you that say Szczesny shouldn't start because of his blunder on Sunday, you're off your rocker. That's all I have to say about that. If you don't see why Szczesny should start over Almunia, I'm not going to try to explain to you why.

    
     While we suffer from injuries, Sunderland does as well. In fact, they're screwed, because they're missing:

1. Zenden (MF)
2. Welbeck (FW)
3. Gordon (GK)
4. Cattermole (MF)
5. Turner (DF)
6. Onuoha (DF)
7. Meyler (MF)

     Clearly they don't have their full squad, so that plays into our favor, including the fact that they've never won at the Emirates. Not only that, but Blunderland has lost it's last four matches. Brilliant!
     And we won't have to worry about Bent, either. That slippery little cash monkey has moved to Villa. Quite the step up, isn't it? The only real threat I foresee is Baby Jet. 
     Oh and this is slightly random, but have a look at this. Hahaha. Cute.
    
     We all remember what happened earlier in the season at the Stadium of Light. Cesc's weird goal, Rosicky missing his penalty to seal the match, and Darren Bent scoring a last gasp goal to share the points with us.
     We didn't exactly perform well on that day, but that match was away from home. Saturday is at the Emirates, and a chance to redeem ourselves.
     While Blunderland is a decent side with a fantastic home record, their away record is shit. Under Steve Bruce this season, they've only won three matches away from home. Hahaha. Cute.
     Some people are underestimating the importance of this match. In my eyes, it is the most important match of the season. You can argue that the home match against Chelsea was a "coming of age" win, (which it was) but I feel that defeating Blunderland asks much more from the squad. In terms of the upcoming match against United at the Emirates, the importance of that match comes down to our performance against Blunderland.
 
     I view this match similar to the cup final against Brum. The majority of people expected us to win the match, and the pressure I think brought us to defeat.
     Beating Sunderland is a must for the squad. The pressure is now upon us, and if we lose this match I can't see us winning the league. United is a great team, lets not be naive. But we can't win this league by simply waiting for United to slip up. We need to be in control and show that we are worthy winners of the Premier League.

     The players are being asked a lot to deal with the pressure of taking the three points from Sunderland. If the lads can do so, I think it will prove that we are worthy of winning the title.
     So, my prediction is 3-0 to the Arsenal. It may be asking a lot, but I have faith in the squad. Comment and tell me your thoughts. What do you think the scoreline will be?

     In other news, Wenger won manager of the month for February. He certainly looks happy about it, doesn't he?



'Say cheese!'
'No.'


     He's only won it 11 times, though. What bollocks. He should have won it a gazillion times. He will win it more in the future. Don't worry.

     Something else I'm suprised about is that RvP hasn't won Player of the Month for February! Is this a joke? How does Scotty Parker get it? Anyone who has a haircut like that and where's shorts almost as short as Joey Barton does not deserve an award!

UGH.

     Now I hate do it, but I have to bring us Arsenal fans back to the cup final loss. Clichy said this:

"First of all, on behalf of all the players we want to say sorry to the fans because it was a trophy we should have won and could have won [as] everyone would agree that Arsenal is a better side than Birmingham."

     Also, despite his momentary paralysis after scoring his goal, it seems he is slightly selfish now! Brilliant stuff all the same:

"My goal is even better than Nicklas’ hat-trick, it’s my second goal in I don’t know how many games so I guess this goal is more important than [his] hat-trick [but] I’m really happy for him, the team and of course myself."

     Well done Clichy, because one goal is greater than three, no matter how often you score.

     Something else interesting: Sunderland's website has a fan section where they predict the scoreline/outcome of the match. One picked Sunderland to win. The man looks like an unemployed Rafa Benitez.
     Wait a second...

     That's all for today. Be sure to comment and tell me your thoughts! And don't forget to check back for a review of the Blunderland match.
     Have a fantastic Saturday.