AWQOTD: Live in the moment

by imothyt

“The only possible moment of happiness is the present. The past gives you regrets. And the future uncertainties. Man understood this very fast and created religion. It absolves you of what you’ve done wrong in the past and tells him not to worry about the future, because he’ll go to paradise. It means make the most of the present. Man “self psychoanalysed” himself very quickly through faith.” – Arsene Wenger on his anxiety and discord with time itself.

Arsene Wenger is my sponsor!

I hope these Wenger quotes annoy you.

Anyway, we play BATE today and I have faith that we will beat them. Our away form is poor but our home form is good. They survived the last match on a combination of listless play on the part of Arsenal and a turnip field which slowed Arsenal’s passing combinations in the final third. I won’t be surprised if Arsenal actually smash BATE today. Though, tempering my expectations I won’t be mad if we go out.

Live in the moment.

Qq

49 comments

  1. I thought the guy follow Zen Buddhism himself?! I hear ozil is coming back…. That means trouble for bate

  2. But when the present moment kinda sucks, the past at least holds the warmth of memory, and the future, the light of hope…

  3. Even if we scrape through, I’m fine.

    We need to salvage the season, very difficult to see us finish 4th, unfortunately Mourinho left about a month early!

  4. emery has given himself the chance to slide ozil back into the side without admitting he may have been wrong to continually omit the arsenal talisman. it sucks because ozil has not played regularly so he may not be at his best but at least he’s been training. i think emery’s been feeling the pressure of poor arsenal results and people continuing to clamor for mesut’s inclusion. like tim and others have said, no one would care about him dropping ozil if arsenal were winning but they haven’t been winning. in fact, they’ve been losing and putting in awful performances to boot. i believe the pressure is getting to him.

    arsenal are better than bate and should beat them with relative ease today. however, in knock out competition, the best team doesn’t always win. that’s why they play the games. we’ll see.

  5. Winning this competition would seem our only route into the champions league, but can anyone, hand on heart, see us doing that? I can’t. I see the 2 Manchester teams, Liverpool and Spurs locking down Top 4. So it’s Europa or bust, and with big injuries to key players, and systemic and tactical dysfunction, it’s bust. We should easily see off Bate tonight, though.

    The Ozil subplot is give it extra spice, but that is a sideshow. We have bigger problems. Saw a stat on twitter this morning (guy called Yankee Gunner) about the pass completion rates of our fullbacks, who are key to Emery’s play. Theyre not good. Kola can be eye catching in key moments, but it’d seem that he does a heck of lot wrong.

    Bate, 1st leg:
    AMN 77%
    Kola 71%

    Huddersfield
    AMN 61.5%
    Kola 55.6%

    So who do you think will win Europa, if not us? Of course pragmatism is not correlated to the level of support at kickoff. I approach every game with the belief that we can win it.

      1. Not a bad call, Bunburyist.

        BTW, Ozil starts and the social media reactions are hilarious. “He is risen”, said comedian Dara O’Briain 😀

        Have to add to my comment that Tim, in fairness, has been saying for more that a season now that Kola’s pass completion rate is unacceptable. But I was one of those who said “nah… he’s a fab player and he’ll grow into defending and passing.” Not writing him off, but you nailed that early.

        I hope he does well today, though.

  6. If Arsenal change managers, then they will win the Europa League, and make the top four too.
    Is Arteta still available?
    I see Pep constantly asking him what to do on the sidelines during games.
    Fire Emery, snatch up Arteta, City plummet out of top four, we sneak in.
    I’m a frikking genius I tells you.

  8. I think Emery is playing diplomacy here. By playing Ozil, he’s giving himself a bit of air. Coz, if Arsenal are knocked out without Ozil, he’s (Emery) done. Anyway, with or without Ozil, if Arsenal lose today… No, I cant mind it.
    Place au jeu.

    2. Wait. What?
      You’re at work. You’re getting paid (or paying yourself). On high-speed internet– you may or may not be getting gratis? Plunked down $3 to watch a game you can’t elsewhere for that price?

      And it’s just like a deadly disease.
      Glad I had my eyes opened.
      I’ll put on my airborne germ mask now.

      jw1

      1. I’m not entirely sure where you’re driving with that, actually. I’m getting paid, but I have the game on peripherally – it’s not affecting my output. The price is lovely. But the product makes me wonder if I’m not better off with a, shall we say, off-market stream.

        1. Just that I’m doing same. 😉
          As IT-guy? Aware of those ‘dodgy links’ (as our Brit-brethren are fond of saying) . While it’s nothing to send a telegram home about? I am pleased to have the feed! Your IT-guy is pleased you forked over the $3. Promise.

          jw1

          1. A very fair point. Besides that I don’t like putting my hardware through the malware gauntlet that is streaming. I haven’t streamed from unofficial sources in several years now.

  12. So Mesut played and Emery didnt spontaneously self-combust. But Im still miffed that he continues to sideline Elneny 🙂 (private joke between me and one of my breddas here)

    Seriously, how do you think he played? For all the electronic ink spilled on the subject of Ozil this past week, the silence is surprising. I saw only the last half hour. Terrible kickoff time, not just for ticket holders.

    1. 7(+) for Ozil
      Thought Mesut helped control the tempo between midfield and their box.
      We ate a lot of clock playing keep-away.

      A match where both goals were set pieces scored by CBs. (OG by CB too.)
      Not too physical. Our middies hounded BATE into 67% pass accuracy.
      Solid evening’s work.

    2. Some of us appreciated being able to watch while still fully awake, thank you very much.

      Ozil provided a lift. To the players and the crowd. He wasn’t particularly spectacular, but was efficient when he had the ball, and was creating space with his movement. Our passing seemed to be quicker than past weeks.

      We weren’t great, but then I didn’t expect us to be. We were decent and the crowd applauded some fairly normal passing moves and sang Mesut’s name. I think that can count as progress.

      Iwobi was very complimentary about Ozil after the game and said he hoped he can play more. Not just because of that, but I think the players had something to do with Ozil’s return.

      1. I especially liked the bit when he said “ we scored three goals because Ozil was there “
        And who can argue with that.

      2. Correction… I caught snatches of the first half, but could only watch the game uninterrupted for the last half hour. Caught extended highlights later. Glad you had less sleep interruption, pal.

        Question for Josh. What does Mkhitaryan do, apart from miss a lot of chances? He has made a specialty of ballooning shots way over the bar, while standing a few feet from goal. He did against Chelsea away 2nd game of the season, and we might have won that game except for terrible finishing. Did a few other times this season. Did a fair bit at United as well. He’s not a particularly secure ball-carrier either, and gets dispossessed a lot. On the plus side he is busy and hardworking, seems genuinely two-footed, and he does get into good goalscoring positions. The bloke is 31. Why cant he hit a decent shot, first time, on the half volley? He’s played a lot despite a long spell out for injury… should have 8 or 10 goals.

        Guy on twitter (a celebrity social media gooner, of which there are many) was trying to argue with me that getting him was a good deal because “we freed up Sanchez’ wages.” Except, of course that we contrived to pay him nearly 50% more than Alexis, when he didn’t come free (Alexis’ residual transfer value was 30m last January). Clearly he had massive negotiating leverage… pay me ridiculous money, or Im not going to help you to save face. Which is curious, because Mourinho would have personally chauffeured him out of town. Not our best piece of business. If he was doing it on the field, I wouldnt care; but we need regular and reliable goalscoring outside of Auba and Laca, and neither he nor Iwobi is going to give it to us.

        A year and a bit later Im not sold on Mhki. Want to sell someone to free up wages, Raul? Look no further. Is Suarez that goalscoring wide player? Impressions? Looks a decent ball carrier from his brief minutes for us, and a not too bad finisher on YouTube 🙂

  13. Solid, unspectacular and totally expected. Imagine if we hadn’t…the Arsenal Diaspora would be in total meltdown.

    So why don’t I feel great? Why the ennui? Is it just me? Is it the Arsenal Supporter Syndrome? Afterall, we are never happy unless miserable.
    Ok, maybe it’s just me but I’m thankful that we sort of don’t suck.

  14. At minimum, the match was a lot easier on the eye. More fluid and less static. But yes 1Nil, I have to ask myself why I am dissatisfied with 3 goals and a clean sheet in a game we dominated. As Tim says, ‘Live in the moment.’

  15. the players all looked happy that mesut was on the field and they looked to get him on the ball as frequently as they could. while he wasn’t at his very finest, that’s to be expected as he hasn’t played regularly since early fall. likewise, i think it’s better when lacazette is on the pitch; he’s a far better center forward than aubameyang both aubameyang and ozil like to drift so sometimes, in the build up, there’s no attacking presence in the center of the pitch. bate had to respect the fact that mesut was on the field and looked conservative sending players forward.

    1. if mesut gets a few consecutive matches (3-4) under his belt, we’ll see him back to his best.

      1. I don’t think you’ll see Ozil back to his best until Arsenal’s form improves as a team ,no matter how many games he plays. What’s unfair to Ozil is that some fans ( not necessarily you) still believe that Ozil can somehow exist as an island on a football pitch and it’s solely up to him to elevate his game.
        Hazard , Sterling, Pogba can be at their best without their teammates’ help but not Ozil. Too much of his game depends on other players’ movement, good touch and decision making.
        Also, considering how flaky Arsenal’s defending has been all season with or without Ozil, he might as well start the remaining games.
        At least he’s easy on the eye.

  16. I should live in the moment, but I tend to only catch up a day or two after the posts!

    So… just a thought on VAR.
    My take is that its a symptom of the shift in priority of TV. Its a TV ‘solution’ made by people who work in/with TV (if you have a hammer and all that).

    This means it is also a symptom of the shift in priority to the TV audience over the stadium fans.
    I think the belief is that the TV fans dislike the ‘proven’ poor decision-making after seeing instant(ish) video replays and that the only remedy to improve the refereeing decisions is to provide TV to the ref.
    However, unlike say Rugby, football refs are always wrong in the eyes of football fans. They’re “w@nkers” even when we agree with them!
    Refereeing in any sport is judgement – and football happens to have fans that don’t (and likely never will) respect the ref.

    However their solution could (in their eyes) make the TV fans’ experience more heightened as the ref walks over to the sidelines to consult the godlike TV monitor (ooh the drama).
    Screw the stadium fans though – they’re just scenery.

    I think VAR should possibly change to becoming in-game what probably has always happened at half-time, when the officials sit together, admit they got something wrong to each other and in the second half even bad call up by letting a challenge go with a warning or give a ‘harsh’ yellow etc.
    VAR will just be advice in the ear of the Ref during the game and he’ll balance that with the next judgement call.

    But if they persist with the “oh, this doesn’t solve ‘poor’ decisions but its made the TV product even more dramatic – yay!” then we’ll have crowd dubbing (canned roars) in future, either just through TV or even in-stadium over the tannoy.

  17. So how does a billionaire NFL team owner celebrate a super bowl win?
    Apparently by booking a visit at a strip mall day spa to release some tension.
    A massage with a happy ending for a mere $80 an hour.
    And that’s why they’re billionaires. So shrewd with their money.
    Any thoughts, Doc? 🙂

  19. “Dean could be seen telling Pochettino to ‘go away’ as he vented his anger within a few inches of his face.”

    What a fine morning it is too.

    jw1

    1. Poch shouldn’t blame anyone but himself on this one.
      When you tell Tottenham players “this game is like a final “, there can only be one outcome 🙂

  20. sorry, claude. i just read your post asking about mkhi. i’m a dortmund fan and i remember when gooners were clamoring for wenger to try and sign mkhi. he’s hugely talented but i never wanted him to move to the bpl; didn’t see him being a good fit. for the record, i said a similar thing about sokratis but he’s been an excellent signing; shows what i know, lol.

    first thing, arsenal couldn’t allow alexis to go for nothing so mkhi was a good option for both teams; man united wanted to be rid of him and arsenal needed to replace a few wide players (alexis, theo, campbell, perez, etc). second thing, having mkhitaryan (with lacazette and ozil) likely made arsenal seem a bit more attractive to aubameyang and could have been the primary purpose behind signing the armenian.

    as for what he brings to the side, he’s dynamic in all attacking positions. he was part of the dynamic dortmund attacking quad that also included marco reus, aubameyang, and lewandowski. all four of those players were comfortable in either of those attacking positions, which made mkhi a complimentary addition.

    as for his finishing, some people are fabulous attacking players but poor goal scorers. i’ve played with a player and coached another player who was like that. alex hleb was a dynamo in attack for arsenal but a dreadful finisher. besides, hitting a ball on the half-volley isn’t that easy, especially if the ball comes at you quickly and on your weaker foot. in fact, scoring is the most difficult thing to do in soccer, which is why goal scorers tend to get paid more. mkhi is not a great goal scorer and i’d be surprised if he ever got more than 10 goals in a season. 8 goals and 13 assists and a ton of good pre-assist work is about what i’d expect from mkhi at 100%. lower your expectations, man. that’s the current theme.

    1. Felt the landing of Mkhi in the Sanchez deal was worthwhile. And by the relative impact of both– even at the rate we pay Mkhi– we’ve still gotten the better end of it. Will say (as I’ve posted elsewhere often) that he’s had a load of chances this season (4GS, 1ASST all in PL). But almost every ball delivered to him was in less-than optimal locations for him to convert. Always just a tad off. But yeah, with better delivery (or positioning) he might have had a dozen now.

      All those things true? Mkhi’s a good guy to have.
      Hoping to see what DSuarez has to give on the right. Maybe tomorrow?

      jw1

    2. Appreciate the reply and analysis, Josh.

      I think, after watching him for a while now, that he’s pants (that’s using the English application of the expression) — a kind of minimally effective busybody. Did his cast at Dortmund make him look better?

      Think you’re spot on with his “optimal” observation, JW1.

      1. Sorry, JW, made a hash of the last line. I actually don’t agree with the “optimal” thing. That’s being too exculpatory. He really is a bad finisher (sometimes hilariously so), and his klutziness in front of goal is not all the fault of ALL the other guys except him. Did you see his comical attempt at a header against Bate, from the penalty spot? I think it was closer to the corner flag.

        He DOES get into good positions consistently though, and that’s what is so frustrating. He’s played significantly more than Mesut (despite being out injured for some time), for an almost identical return. Ramsey, who has played even less, has more goal involvements than he does. We have always had good goalscoring wide players. It’s kind of painful to watch now.

        I don’t know what happened to Alexis at United, but he’s a class apart. Mourinho pulled our pants down before, in the Cole for Gallas deal.

        1. No worries Claude. Our recollections differ– and I’m referring more to earlier in the season as well.

          jw1

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