Untold Arsenal » 2009 » February

The club where the fans make too much noise

If you are worried about the lack of atmosphere occasionally at the Ems, spare a thought for supporters of Middlesboro.  This is the club that kicked out a season ticket holder a few years back because he fell asleep during a 0-4 defeat to Arsenal at the ground (he went to court and got the […]

A moan free zone

The new issue of Highbury High, on sale against Fulham  tomorrow, has been declared a moan-free zone.  It is an unusual move as fanzines are usually the ideal place to get things off your chest. So why a moan-free zone. Editor Ian Trevett explains
“Having a good old moan-up has always been a part […]

Analysis of Highbury Square finances

The following article appeared on the RedAction news service, written by Robert Gaffney.  It is reproduced with permission, but Robert asks me to add that it is speculation on his part.   Even so, it is the best bit of speculation I have seen on this.
I’ve been looking at the property piece of the finance figures […]

FIFA and UEFA plan joint attack on Arsenal

Fifa – the organisation of which a US judge famously said that they “lied and lied again in court” claims that it has now worked out a way of restricting the number of foreign players in each team, while staying within the rules of the European Union.   It wants to talk to the European Commission […]

There’s only 3 Dennis Bergkamps

Its a bit like the proverbial bus – you wait for ages for one, and then two come along. Dennis was unique, original, a genius, something beyond everything else we had ever seen.  We would not see his likes again, we were told.

And then in an unguarded moment the word slipped out – Jack Wilshere was […]

Just how many matches are fixed?

Jose Mourinho said yesterday that he thought the ref was biased against his team in their game against Manchester United – and the big news today was that for some reason he is not going to be sanctioned by UEFA.
Not that I want him sanctioned – but I just like to understand the rules.  Why […]

Next season’s heroes

I have just been struck by the number of players we currently have on loan.  I suspect this must be an all time record for us – and maybe for any league club.

Jay Simpson: WBA Gavin Hoyte: Watford Rui Fonte: Crystal Palace Henri Lansbury, Scunthorpe Utd Paul Rodgers: Northampton Town Rene Steer: Gillingham Armand Treore: Portsmouth Nacer Bararaozite: Derby County

James Dunne: […]

How to save football: the solution

Flint McCullough has a better grasp of Slovakian than I, so I am taking his word for it that the Gunners.sk site is advocating no points for a draw.   But it got me thinking – could this be the answer to the crisis that football finds itself in?
I’m going to suggest a modification of […]

Arsenal 14 Sunderland 3: this is not football

100 years ago football was in total crisis, with games regularly ending 0-0, and 1-0 being a treat.  The football authorities responded (although rather belatedly) by changing the off side rule from needing 3 opponents to 2 in front of the attacker when the ball was kicked, and restricting handling by the goalkeeper to the […]

Robin said nothing of the kind

It’s saturday morning and nearly time to get the Morris Minor out for the long treck south, across the dusty wastelands where capitalism once flourished before the evil bankers came in and stole everything, leaving the poor asking why we didn’t fight them in the high street and on the landing grounds, as they took […]