What’s it like to feel so negative all the time? « Untold Arsenal: Arsenal News, supporting the club, the players and the manager

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“Making the Arsenal” – the book of Arsenal’s decline and rebirth

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By Tony Attwood

Thus we are progressing nicely through our 14th consecutive year in the Champions League.   14 years of ending in the top 4 in English football in order to qualify – something that has never previously been even remotely approached in our 125 years history.  The nearest we got before this run was five consecutive seasons in the top four – from 1930/1 on to 1934/5.  The following season we came sixth.

So high are expectations that there was talk before this match of “wrapping up qualification” so we could put the youth team out in the last two matches.

That’s the problem really: no matter how high the bar we raise the bar higher.  In the dreadful Rioch season we all went mad because in the last minute or so of the last game we came 5th because after coming 12th the previous year that was real progress.  Wild delight because we got into the little Euro cup.

Now top four and entry to the group stages is the absolute minimum – even though from time to time giants like AC Milan play in the little cup.  Only Real Mad and Manchester U can claim 14 solid years.

Even a 5-3 win away to the multi billionaires of Chelsea is not enough – we have to do it every game.  If we don’t hammer WBA next saturday the AAA will be out calling for Mr Wenger’s head again.  (Incidentally I see AAA is creeping into the vocabulary now on other sites.  Another bit of Untold entering the lexicon, along with “rotational fouling” and “rotational time wasting”.  A nice was to make a mark).  (In case you missed its origins, AAA stands for Anti-Arsenal Arsenal – the endless moaners around the club).

Of course it was not the greatest of games, but still an enjoyable evening out in north London.   But still I was left with a sense of bewilderment.

Someone said on the radio that we had two goal attempts all night.  I have come across these things before, and I suppose these days I subconsciously count attempts on target.  I think I made it seven, but I did not record the game so can’t go back and check.   Maybe we need the equivalent of Walter’s team of statisticians who do the ref reports to count the goal attempts too.

Lee Dixon made some bizarre comments on the radio after the game about how in his day he used to get the ball from Adams and pass it to Bergkamp’s feet who would sweep the ball forward.   Yes, sometimes.   But not always.   Even God-like Dennis had down times, like when he got himself sent off for elbowing.  Even majestic Dixon passing so sublimely made mistakes – like his majestic own goal against (I think) Coventry, scored from about 30 yards out because with no pressure on him he didn’t even bother to check where the keeper was before making a back pass.

So, this was not a great game, but I think we had seven chances on target, there was lots of excitement, and we have every chance of moving through to the next phase – quite possibly as the top team in the group, which is where we currently are.

Then there was some action in the away end – not the jumping up and down and singing, but obviously something that got the stewards a bit excitable.  No one reports that any more… so we never quite know.  (Oh and maybe we need someone close up observing the away support and reporting on the chanting.  On the way home on the radio we had all sorts of negative comments about Chelsea’s chanting and how it damaged their image.  Come on guys, that is Chelsea.  No one damages their image.  They have no image).

One thing we can agree on is that Vermaelen came back as everything we hoped he would come back as, and the revitalised Vermaelen / Koscielny combination ought to be something else when we see it – perhaps at the weekend against WBA.

Anyway, 10 games played, 8 wins, 1 draw, 1 defeat.  That’s the sort of series of results we picked up in championship winning years.  Of course we are only 7th, and I would love us to be first, but we are still in the 14th consecutive year, we are still on a terrific run, and we are still top of our Euro group.   That’s not bad is it?

I wonder about the AAA and their journalist friends.   What’s it like to be that bitter all the time.

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