Sign him up!

What do we have for entertainment? Not cops kicking gypsies on the pavement, as Strummer once sang / rapped / shouted and not a lot else as the dust begins to settle on perhaps the finest team performance since the Grove opened for business three summers ago. I finally got around to watching MOTD 2 last night, I don't record games I'm going to because; a) everyone time I've done it in the past, we've either lost or played very poorly and b) because Jo never lets me have two hours to myself to watch a game we've already seen. Which, I suppose, is not that unreasonable.

Anyway, three things struck me about the programme.

1) In lauding Didier Drogba's muscular performance on Sunday, they completely failed to mention the fact that his theatrics are getting so embarrassing, "honest" John Terry had to tell him to sort himself out on Sunday. Not that significant, perhaps, but if you only ever watched MOTD, you might be under the impression that it's only Arsenal players rolling around in the mud.

2) Sam Allardyce and his assertion that Blackburn had been denied a 100% penalty and that Vermaelen should have seen red for the challenge that should have led to the penalty. Yes, it probably was a penalty, but perhaps the referee was influenced less by the fact that it was in the Arsenal penalty area then the fact that Dunne seemed to be on his way down from the first, legitimate, challenge from William Gallas. Either way, it certainly wasn't a red card and even if the penalty had been awarded and then scored, I think the force was with Arsenal to the extent that it wouldn't have mattered a damn. Less a "turning point" and more just one of those things. Of course, we might also have had a penalty ourselves, just before Bendtner's rocket. Anyway.

3) Theo Walcott's interview. I know he's a nice, grounded young man and it's a pleasure to see him speak so articulately in the era of Rooney et. al... yes, there's a !"but" coming.

But when I hear him talk of how nice it is to be able to play in the team and how he's just happy to be involved, I want to pick him up by his trendy little sideburns and shake him. I want him to go out there and know that he is out there because the manager believes in him. I want him to go out there and play because he believes in himself. I think what I'm getting at is, a touch of arrogance in his game wouldn't go amiss. He's not little Theo, the great English hope anymore. He is Theo Walcott of Arsenal and England. Of course, I'll probably be writing a blog in two years time bemoaning the petulant, nasty side that has developed in his game and praying that he gets shipped out to Chelsea. Or Manchester City. Such is the life of a blogger.

Of course, it isn't Theo Walcott of England this weekend (thank you Don Fabio), so the boy (see, even I'm doing it) looked set for a week in the company of the boss and Manuel Almunia - what a party that would be, eh? Until Psycho Stuart Pearce got on the phone to Arsène Wenger and said that unless Theo was made available for the England Under-21's, Arsène would be getting stabbed up, next time he got into the shower. Or was it sleeping with the fishes? At least, I heard that's what happened, if you don't believe me, check it out here.

Finished? Okay, so maybe I, um, got that a bit wrong. Let's try Tomas Rosicky and his threat to quit Arsenal if he is not offered a new contract.

No, he didn't say that either. Well, actually he kind of did. But then, if no new contract is offered to him, we're kind of telling him we don't want him in the first place, aren't we? As it happens, he has spoken with the boss, although not the club. Furthermore, I'm sure his return to action and- to be fair to him, after 20 months out of action - almost seamless reintegration into the first team has proved his worth to the club already. Yes, he has had injury traumas the like of which we hadn't seen this side of Eduardo, but he is such a great player, he has to be worth retaining. I'm sure I'm not the only one who rose to applaud him off on Sunday who was thinking, "God, I love Tomas Rosicky".

And when having Rosicky means no Eboue or Diaby on the wing, well, I think that's certainly one contract worth renegotiating.

User Comments

User Comments

• Got something to say?
• Read comments

Vs chelsea