Adrian Chiles is a muppet / Blind optimism

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Date	Time	C	Opponent	F	A	R	S
05 Nov	1:30 PM	P	West Ham United (A)	0	1	Lost

I hadn't watched Match of the Day in weeks, and when I did turn on the television last night to watch highlights of the match I was reminded of how sub-standard it was. Even the appearances of ex-Arsenal players Ian Wright and Lee Dixon failed to add that needed unbiased opinion on the show.

Ex-Brazil player Leonardo was the only saving grace – perhaps ironically, demonstrating to Adrian Chiles once again that foreigners are better than the English at their own game?

Chiles was no doubt ecstatic about the West Ham result earlier in the day, vindication he felt, of how the English spirit had overcome the foreign invaders. Which is why he never criticised West Ham manager Alan Pardew for his over-zealous goal celebrations when the Hammers scored in the 89th-minute, condemning Arsenal to their second defeat of the league season.

For goodness sake, even when Pardew apologised to manager Arsène Wenger in his post-match interview, admitting that he should have been professional enough to keep his distance away from the Arsenal manager, Chiles sarcastically commented, "Perhaps Pardew should apologise for Wenger's tactics as well?"

Is Chiles mentally challenged?

Alan Pardew had sought the high ground after an embarrassing moment and instead of acknowledging Pardew's mistake, Chiles had a swipe at Arsène Wenger. What exactly had the Arsenal manager done wrong in the unfortunate events on the touchline yesterday?

I suppose Chiles was of the opinion that there was no need for Pardew to apologise, seeing as his celebrations were done in the British way? In the British spirit? Whatever happened to gentlemanly conduct on and off the pitch? Waving your fist in close proximity to an opposing manager is not going to win you an OBE (the last time I checked anyway).

In fact, I so wanted Arsène Wenger to do a Brit and "lay one into 'em" that it was almost a shame that the fourth official had to get involved and restrain the foreign manager. After all, wouldn't it have been sensible for all of them to get involved? Possibly to protect Pardew himself, as he had already backed off, realising he had gone too far, when Wenger reacted and was advancing menacingly towards the rodent-like West Ham manager.

Admittedly, there was a sense of regret and embarrassment yesterday when Wenger refused to shake Pardew's hand. It was childish on the Arsenal manager's part, and added strength to the claims that he is a bad loser. I remember Wenger once remarking: "Show me a good loser and I will show you a bad winner." I wouldn't have it any other way with Wenger, and trust him to bring us out of this slump.

The title looks a distant target now but I am going to stick with my earlier prediction and say that we will win the league. My belief was strengthened when we beat Manchester United at Old Trafford. Each time we've won 1-0 at Old Trafford in the league, come May the title celebrations are always at Highbury. This year, it will be at the Emirates.

Call it blind optimism after yesterday's result, but that's what football fans are at the end of the day.

On a side note, it was even worse yesterday that we didn't take advantage of Chelsea's capitulation at White Hart Lane. Kudos to Spurs, they took the game to the champions and demonstrated to the rest of the Premiership that they are indeed vulnerable. No matter that Chelsea had hit the post in the dying seconds of the game, Spurs had enough chances to win the game.

The main talking point on Match of the Day was John Terry's red card. It beggared belief to see Lee Dixon and Ian Wright, along with the incompetent Chiles, have a go at referee Graham Poll. Instead of looking at the big picture, Wright (of all people) said that Poll was wrong to send off Terry. What had the England captain done?

Wright of all people should have known better, and once again it was left to a foreigner to educate the British pundits. Leonardo pointed out that it may not have been what Terry had done, but what he had said. Oh, to Wright's credit, he did notice that Terry didn't argue and promptly walked off the field of play. He knew that he committed an offence, but Wright chose instead to vilify the referee and highlight Terry's "professionalism".

After his run-in's with a certain Manchester United goalkeeper in the past, Wright should think that it could have been a racial slur that had gotten Terry sent off, and the England captain looked to have regretted what he said after as well. It might also explain why it was the coloured Spurs players, mainly Chimbonda, who were rounding up on Terry as he tried to walk away from the scene of the crime.

All speculation at this point, of course, and at the moment, I have a game at Everton to look forward to.

User Comments

Mark

Posted on 7 Nov, 2006 at 10:58 PM - Reply

I am a west ham fan, but certainly don't hate Arsenal and I've got tons of respect for Arsene Wenger who has to take a lot of credit for changing the face of British Football.

Now. You think that Pardew was the one at fault on Sunday afternoon, and you wish that Wenger had actually hit him? Well, to be honest it was handbags at dawn from both managers, but Wenger showed himself up by spitting his dummy and not shaking Pardews hand.

Really, the worst incedent of the match was the coin throwing, and I apologise for that (not that it was me!)

But don't stick up for Wenger just because you're a gooner. He made an idiot of himself, and so are you for sticking up for him.

Donovan Smikle

Posted on 7 Nov, 2006 at 04:55 PM - Reply

I support your optimism and im not just following blindly behind my team but i can see far down the road. Chelsea have looked far from Champions against teams like Reading, Aston Villa and now a loss to Totenham. Manchester has been humbled by an unfavoured Arsenal team at Old Trafford. I am not saying Manu and Chelsea are getting worst but the quality of the opposition is getting better, the league is more competitive so right now the title is up for grabs.
I always fancied a win away to West Ham. West Ham are one of the few English teams that actually play football and bieng that they are at home they definatley would play for a win. I dont think Arsenal try to outwit their oponents. Games are not one by thinking that you have a superior team (like Chelsea nd Manu have learned) but through tactics, determination and skill. Too often we have out-classed our opponents only to end up on the wrong side of the score sheet. I think we should put a little more disire in our play, appeal every call, fight for every ball. The premiership has evolved since ''49 ubeaten' it is time we do.

renzo

Posted on 7 Nov, 2006 at 02:21 PM - Reply

To be honest, after everything Wenger has done for the team and to the team, he deserved better than the performance they put on against West Ham. I understand his frustration but I do not condone his behaviour. For all we know Pardew could have said things to send his blood pressure through the roof but the least Wenger should have done was bite his lip, shake the guys hand and give his team a kick. They need it.

With all the talent and skill at their disposal they need to get out of this mentality that says if teams only come to defend we can't play. This is Arsenal football club; they have played the best and worst teams in the world, all kinds of football. I don't buy this rubbish of not being able to play and Henry needs to give a captain's performance in every game. I don't care if he has off days either; he still needs to lift the players around him in whatever way he can. That said, they all need to stand up and be counted.

Arsene was annoyed and rightly so but he took his frustrations out on the wrong person. Let's hope Arsenal can't play any worse because if they do then we might as well start thinking about next season now. There is still a lot of work to do.

clockendjim

Posted on 7 Nov, 2006 at 12:18 PM - Reply

I think Adrian Chiles is a breath of fresh air on MOT. His comments and humour are always precise and entertaining.
Just because one week it is your team that is the butt of his summing up doesn't make him a Muppet. He even made acid comments about his beloved WBA when they were putting him through agony last year.
As a lifelong Gooner, I was extremely embarrased by Arsene Wenger on Sunday; especially when he had a couple of minutes to calm down, to still refuse Pardew's handshake offer. He has certainly blown his Mr. Cool image now. After all that Pardew has gone through, I could quite understand his elation. Just think though if it had been Ferguson or Mourinho who had thrown such a wobbly like Wenger did, you would be agreeing with every word Adrian Chiles was saying.

jamal

Posted on 7 Nov, 2006 at 11:09 AM - Reply

the players were BLACK not COLOURED. Sorry i am black and just had to point that out. Good article none the less. I cant stand MOTD especially when we lose. Alan Hanson most of all. His smug comments everytime we lose and we get no praise what-so-ever when we win, its always the other teams fault for not kicking us off the pitch. And about Wenger not shaking hands, why should he? For once i agree with what Mourinho said when there was a big thing about him and Benitez, why should they shake hands if it doesnt mean anything and is just for the cameras. If Wenger and Pardew want to make up they will do so in private first because it means something that way.

Hira

Posted on 7 Nov, 2006 at 08:05 AM - Reply

Refusing to shake hands wasn't what we expected Arsene Wenger to do but he was frustrated, he was angry and it happens. I think he will apologise. And as the media is trying to suggest, it wasn't all Alan Pardew's angelic celebration or something. He was in the wrong too and I am sure he said something to the effect of British players beating foreigners or something. If he wasn't in the wrong, why would he apologise later for one? Anyway, West Ham did win and we have to accept that. Better luck next time I hope. Lets take the positives out of this. Adversity brings out the best in people, and I am sure we'll come out of this better, stronger. Good luck to the team.

AFC fan

Posted on 7 Nov, 2006 at 02:44 AM - Reply

I don't ever for the life of me think you can even begin to fault Wenger so casually for refusing to shake hands, not at least till things settled. It's hypocritical to expect that immediately after the confrontation. He's not that hypocrite like the WH manager - who realised his own fault. Wenger was reacting to a two-fisted provocation right in the face. Just imagine if this happened on the field - disastrous. Anybody would have probably responded and smashed that nutcase flat out.

Aussie Fan

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 10:32 PM - Reply

You know we set such high Standards, and i guess as supporters we can!! But 6 W 2 D AND 1 L IN OUR LAST 9 GAMES IN All comps hardly is a Slump is it?
Wenger is A winner Mentally, and doesn't like to lose as we Gooners!! But one thing i Love about the Arsenal Fans, Win Lose or Draw Home or Away the True Fans show their Appreciation and realise it just wasn't our day!! As for Pardew well he is a Knob what has he won as a coach?

Jatt Gooner

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 09:29 PM - Reply

Spot on Mr Chong. Wrighty has lost the plot and is noe quite patently in the pocket of the Russian mafia. Allegedley.

Ken

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 08:11 PM - Reply

Ah come on. I'm a Gooner but even I can see that arsene made a big mistake. He's appeared ungracious and magnanimous, while Pardew has apologised. Actually, I think Arsene has made a bit of a fool of himself. he's lucky to escape serious criticism by the press.

So, let's have a bit of balance. Criticism of the great man IS allowed.

rodnot71

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 06:12 PM - Reply

i prefer to be boring and win trophies. the way we play is dynamic and entertaining, but with opponents playing against us with five midfielders, we are not finding a way past them.
why should we try to score perfect goals?
another thing is that our team is unlucky. the turning point against whu was the penalty denied to hleb. but again the team is not finding a way past opponents with five midfielders.

Andy

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 03:20 PM - Reply

Who writes this article? we were beaten fair and square, they celebrated a last minute winner, so what! its no excuse for our manager to embarasss us by throwing fists around... i am embarassed to be an Arsenal supporter today.

Tony

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 03:16 PM - Reply

A bit far fetched... i was embarassed by Arsene's reaction, if anything i think Padrew was gracious in apologising, all he did was celebrate a struggling teams last minute victory.... I felt disgusted with our manager yesterday and felt MOTD went quite easy on us, sometimes you just have to hold your hands up and say West Ham were better than us on the day... hopefully we can improve for the next game... i also think West Ham fans have showed us a lesson in supporting our team, the stood by Padrew through 8 successive defeats and they created an incredible atmosphere, better than anything at the emirates and we have twice as many fans in the ground.... Lets take a leaf out of west hams book and get behind our team and try to create the kind of atmosphere they create... well done West Ham

Oneteaminlondon

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 02:29 PM - Reply

As an Arsenal fan I understand your frustration, but I think that we ourselves would be guilty of blinkered thinking if we exhonerate Wenger for his behaviour on the touchline, and single out Pardew alone for criticism. They both behaved badly, it's as simple as that.

Pardew should not have taunted Wenger, and Wenger should not have reacted. Wenger is a role model and an ambassador for grown-up, sporting values. Today, all around the world, there are kids who now think it's okay to start shoving their opponent when goaded. It's not on, and the remedy for a superior manager like Wenger is not to have a public spat, but simply to just snub Pardew behind the scenes.

Disapproval from Arsene Wenger, the professor of football and reinventor of the English game, is powerful enough when expressed merely by raised eyebrows. He doesn't need to go down to the level of the playground.

guinertron

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 02:02 PM - Reply

i think there is a slight anti- Arsenal tilt within the BBC and yes some fo it maybe due to the likes of hacks like Childs and co. This chap has no real knowledge of top flight football or the requirements of clubs like Arsenal to compete at the very top level. Its ll very well for fans like Childs to level claims that Arsenal are ruining British football for the sake of national pride. It is not Arsenal or Arsene Wenger's fault that English football is in a state of producing sub standard players at top level. And if Arsenal were to blame would they have invested in Walcott, Hoyte, Cole etc. The staff on match of the day are there for ratings only and are happy to wear the emperor's new clothes.
For the past few years Wenger has been a genius in the plebs at the beeb's eyes now he is out to ruin english football, and how great is Alan Pardew for standing up for the morals of the game. This from the same guy who thought that he had pinched two Aregentin world beaters who Pardew felt would reshape his club, maybe they sniffed out his narrow minded veiw on English football. I agree with AW maybe ther is a tinge of racsim within the whole debate?

JD

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 11:21 AM - Reply

Nice article, good read. I didn't catch MOTD2 but every time I see it I wonder why / how this guy from a daytime economics programme got to present one of the most viewed football related TV programme on (for those of us without the ubiqitous Sky Sports, of which I'm generally not a fan).

Adrian Chiles really is an idiot and never ceases to amaze me with his huge omissions and child-like, laddish behaviour. And Leonardo is a great pundit he really surprised me over the World Cup coverage and turned out to be one of the most insightul guys there, actually paying attention to the game and reporting his views fairly and eloquently.

End of rant.

GunnerPete

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 11:03 AM - Reply

WE (AFC) have a very big decision to make soon. Do we want to win the legue and other trophies or do we just want to be admired for our pretty style?

I want us to win everything or die trying. With the same players, but re-educated we could & should win the lot. How?
Very simple! First AW has to acknowledge that his big mistake of making Henry captain has failed. Second he has to make Kolo our captain and give him the prime position he deserves and that is in PV4's position of destroyer in midfield. Silver is a good player to have, but like Henry, no leader.

I would then put Senderos back where he belongs beside Gallas, we have missed his will to win in the air at the back and up front.

Third, I would promote immediately our two prolific goal machines Bentner & Stokes....if they are good enough they are old enough.

I pray that Arsene sees this and thinks about the reasons why we have lost two matches 1-0 against poor opposition and why Manure would not. They score even when outplayed, mostly. Maybe the fact we mudered them at their place was due to the fact we had two centre forward playing and no TH14??

Kolo for king and Arsenal..think about it?

kassahun

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 10:04 AM - Reply

whatever u say, players with such low morale can't win us a title. May be if in January we get a striker a want to score but it would be too late

Pichka

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 10:01 AM - Reply

Wenger shouldn't behave like that.

Peter

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 10:00 AM - Reply

Since when has it been illegal to celebrate a match winning goal? From the pictures I saw, the miserable Frenchman takes umbrage to West ham scoring against his team. Again! Some Arsenal fans appear to be even more sore losers than Spurs fans.

Mel

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 09:28 AM - Reply

Excellent points - I do get upset seeing a Spuds team with more passion than ours - sadly skill alone cannot win game after game - can you tell me whyRVP always gets substituted when TH14 plays badly !

J

Posted on 6 Nov, 2006 at 09:19 AM - Reply

Doesn't Adrian Chiles support West Brom?

I, and other people, tend to like him as he is a bit clueless, but that's better than some 'professional' pundit on Sky (for example) who has an agenda (see today's Arseblog).

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