2008/2009 Fixtures

[JazzG]

EDIT: Fixture list removed.

 

[Dez]

Man U and Chelsea have it a bit easier over the Christmas period, but we have a relatively easy start and good god what a finish ay?

 

[True Gooner]

We'll win the league at Old Trafford or Stamford Bridge

 

[GaelForce22]

Fantastic.

Just like this season, we should be able to get off to a great start and of the 'big 4' games, two of the first three are at home. Hoping that Blackburn and Bolton are crap next year, the first three months are full of 'winnable' matches.

However, again it's going to be a really difficult run-in. Chelsea and Man Utd in May!
The games straight after Champions League knockout games are:
Fulham (H) - First Leg of the Last 16
Blackburn (H) - Second Leg of the Last 16
Wigan (A) - First Leg of Quarter Final
Liverpool (A) - Second Leg of Quarter Final
Portsmouth (A) - First Leg of Semi Final
Chelsea (H) - Second Leg of Semi Final
(Making the right assumption we will go that far,) Hopefully we will be at home in the games before the difficult Prem matches.

Can't Wait!

 

[True Gooner]

2008/2009 - Draft Barclays Premier League Fixtures

AUGUST
12/13 UEFA Champions League Qualifier - 1st Leg
Sat 16 West Bromwich Albion (H)
Sat 23 Fulham (A)
26/27 UEFA Champions League Qualifier - 2nd Leg
Sat 30 Newcastle United (H)

SEPTEMBER
Sat 13 Blackburn Rovers (A)
16/17 UEFA Champions League Group Stage - Matchday 1
Sat 20 Bolton Wanderers (A)
23/24 Carling Cup Third Round
Sat 27 Hull City (H)

OCTOBER
30/1 UEFA Champions League Group Stage - Matchday 2 (played on 30th Sep or 1st Oct)
Sat 4 Sunderland (A)
Sat 18 Everton (H)
21/22 UEFA Champions League Group Stage - Matchday 3
Sat 25 West Ham United (A)
Tue 28 Tottenham Hotspur (H)

NOVEMBER
Sat 1 Stoke City (A)
4/5 UEFA Champions League Group Stage - Matchday 4
Sat 8 Manchester United (H)
11/12 Carling Cup Fourth Round
Sat 15 Aston Villa (H)
Sat 22 Manchester City (A)
25/26 UEFA Champions League Group Stage - Matchday 5
Sat 29 Chelsea (A)

DECEMBER
2/3 Carling Cup Fifth Round
Sat 6 Wigan Athletic (H)
9/10 UEFA Champions League Group Stage - Matchday 6
Sat 13 Middlesbrough (A)
Sat 20 Liverpool (H)
Fri 26 Aston Villa (A)
Sun 28 Portsmouth (H)

JANUARY
Sat 3 FA Cup Third Round
6/7 Carling Cup Semi-Final - 1st leg
Sat 10 Bolton Wanderers (H)
Sat 17 Hull City (A)
20/21 Carling Cup Semi-Final - 2nd leg
Sat 24 FA Cup Fourth Round
Wed 28 Everton (A)
Sat 31 West Ham United (H)

FEBRUARY
Sat 7 Tottenham Hotspur (A)
Sat 14 FA Cup Fifth Round
Sat 21 Sunderland (H)
24/25 UEFA Champions League Last 16 - 1st leg
Sat 28 Fulham (H)

MARCH
Sun 1 Carling Cup Final
Tue 3 West Bromwich Albion (A)
Sat 7 FA Cup Quater-Finals
10/11 UEFA Champions League Last 16 - 2nd leg
Sat 14 Blackburn Rovers (H)
Sat 21 Newcastle United (A)

APRIL
Sat 4 Manchester City (H)
7/8 UEFA Champions League Quarter-Final - 1st leg
Sat 11 Wigan Athletic (A)
14/15 UEFA Champions League Quarter-Final - 2nd leg
Sat 18 Liverpool (A)
Sat 18 FA Cup Semi-Finals
Sat 25 Middlesbrough (H)
28/29 UEFA Champions League Semi-Final - 1st leg

MAY
Sat 2 Portsmouth (A)
5/6 UEFA Champions League Semi-Finals - 2nd leg
Sat 9 Chelsea (H)
Sat 16 Manchester United (A)
Sun 24 Stoke City (H)
Wed 27 UEFA Champions League Final
Sat 30 FA Cup Final

 

[gunnerGH]

a fantastic set of starting fixtures.

We should win our opening 8 games if we put our minds to it!

 

[Beany]

I was just thinking that we should be 5 points clear by Christmas...

Could be a nailbiting May 09, mind...

 

[JazzG]

Hope Wenger looks at that and realises we could suffer the same problem again at the end if we don't have enough depth in our squad, out of the Top 4 we have easily got the hardest run in and if we go far in the CL as well then we are gonna have real issues.

Good we have a relatively straight forward start so that our newer players won't be thrown right in the deep end.

 

[Kraig]

so we have newcastle at home the day i get married. i suppose ill just have to watch match of the day...

 

[qs]

Novermber is horrible. We need to be top by the time we meet United.

 

[EMIR8_SOLDIER]

Very very happy, cracking set of fixtures

Im telling you, with a bigger squad we can do it this year. I wanted Chelsea much earlier so we can be the first team to beat them up SB in 4 years

Always good to have a comfortable first 3 set of games to get going. Last year we had 7 from 3 this year we look to have 9. Thos CL qualifiers are a pain though but at least it gives us a game in hand

 

[stuart]

At first glance they seem ok. We'll give Stoke a nice hammering to set us up for a home game against United. Im happy with the list to be honest. Couldn't have asked for a better start to the season. West Brom will provide good opposition as they'll be up for it, they'll hopefully play a bit of football too. Perfect game to start the season

 

[True Gooner]

tbh I dont really like playing newly promoted sides on the first day of the season, they play without fear and almost always try to cause an upset. Still thats not an excuse for not beating them at home.

Also, we need more depth, otherwise we'll probably be at or close the top till the end of the season, but we'll end up throwing the league away due to fatigue and injuries. Lets hope that our players and manager have learnt something from what happened this season and I think a huge factor will be the fitness of Rosicky and RvP.

 

[SamGooner]

Have a look at the last 3 weeks of the season:
Chel$ki
Manure
Stoke
FA Cup Final
Champions League Final

If we're in one of the finals and still in EPL race, then that month is gonna be crazy

 

[vin de guerre]

Eeee Bye Gumm we get two our bogey grounds out of the way by September!
Thank god we can go to Blackburn and Bolton while they still have grass on their pitches!

Come on you Gunners!

Campions del Mundo 2008-2009! (am I going over the top a tad?)

 

[JazzG]

We also need a build a lead up over Man utd here because nearly all their tricky away games are in the first half of the season so they are gonna build up a head of steam in the 2nd half. And we have the hardest run in by miles so we better hope we have some kind of a lead going into that.

Out of the Top 4 we have the worst set of fixtures imo.

 

[True Gooner]

Man Utd do have a tricky spell in the first half of the season though -

Liverpool (a)
CL group stage
Chelsea (a)

Might well drop a few points there.

 

[JazzG]

I'd rather get the tricky fixtures out of the way first then later, you can lose a title from a few bad results from March onwards but less likely in September/October.

 

[go49oner]

Imagine we win the league at Stamford bridge of old Trafford ...*time to stop dreaming*, Just noticed we got both Bolton and Blackburn away in succession

What happened to Jan 1st fixtures?

 

[lee1001]

I'd rather get the tricky fixtures out of the way first then later, you can lose a title from a few bad results from March onwards but less likely in September/October.

I agree. Losing to big teams damages your confidence and especialy in the later stages of the CL big games come thick and fast.