Missing Out
Missing Out on 4th
Rafa Benitez more or less admitted in his interview after Liverpools draw with Fulham on Sunday that their chance of getting fourth place in the premier league has gone. He said “2 or 3 teams
have to make mistakes”, and “the difference is too much”. Fairly categorical statement of resignation I would say. Earlier in the season when he was under pressure with Torres and Gerrard out
injured and Liverpool performing badly, he promised – strong word but he did use that exact word – that Liverpool would finish 4th. It now looks likely that not only will they miss out on 4th
place, but could lost out on 5th too. I’m fairly certain that would spell the end of Benitez at Liverpool and while I’d love to see a longer term collapse, a change can be good, and if they
bring the right manager in (Morinho anyone?) it could spark their team again.
Missing Out on 4th (revisit)
Sp*rs losing to Pompey in the FA Cup Semi-Final on Sunday was absolutely priceless. You couldn’t wish for a better match (apart from some Sp*rs injuries or red cards perhaps). The best bit was
not the loss though – even if that makes them depressed (because it could just as easily act to push them on) – it wa the 120+ minutes they had to play. So we go into the game on Wednesday with
a weeks rest, and some injured players back, and Sp*rs go into the game having had only 3 days rest after playing 120 minutes of hard football on a devestatingly bad pitch. To be fair, Arsenal
bloody well better win.
Nothing like seeing a Sp*rs player in misery to make you jump for joy
To add to Sp*rs misery, Man City slaughtered Birmingham, putting them in 4th place, 4 points ahead. Which means Sp*rs fate is not in their hands anymore. And if Arsenal beat them on Wednesday,
it will officially be St.Totteringham’s day – the day when Sp*rs cannot finish above Arsenal in the league, no matter what the results. An utter delight to do so at their ground. Let’s all hope
fate throws us a few crumbs from the bread it’s taken away from us so many times this season!
Missing Out on 2nd
Man Utd meanwhile could not beat Blackburn without Rooney. Oh, did I say without Rooney? Surely one man doesn’t make a team! Ferguson said “It’s a blow, there’s no question about it. It makes
it really difficult to win the league now” – what he should have said is “blow me, we’ll be very lucky to get 3rd”. It’s in Arsenal’s hands to get 2nd now (I’m not writing us off for the title
just yet, but it’s Chelsea’s to lose to be fair) – and we have to take that chance.
Man Utd face Man City at Eastlands next week, and I expect City to take points of United, with at least a draw. That would certainly put paid to their title challenge, and, assuming we do beat
the spuds, put us in prime position for at least 2nd.
And how Ferguson must be regretting letting Tevez go! He’s got 22 goals this season, and with Rooney out would have kept United in it. Bad bad mistake. Worse, even than ‘Arry letting Darren
Bent go to Sunderland, where he’s scored 22 goals this season.
Missing Out on 1st
We can only hope Chelski throw it away, but to be fair it’s not looking that likely. They face Bolton next, and Ferguson said on Sunday “We have a lifeline if Chelsea blow it. But to my eyes
they have an easy game against Bolton on Tuesday. We would expect them to win that and it will put them four points clear.” Funny – and gamesmanship of course – to poke Bolton, hoping for
a response from them.
It’s a shame that Howard Webb is such a useless twat, otherwise the chavs would have to do without their captain for the next 2 matches. After his potentially leg breaking tackle on James
Milner on Saturday, he should be banned. Webb, and the toothless walruses at the FA didn’t and won’t do anything against him though. Disgraceful is the only word that fits.
Terry is a really nasty piece of work (never mind all the “he’s not that kind of player” b*ll*cks).
It is true however that with 3 home games to go (against Bolton, Stoke and Wigan), that looks like a definite 9 points for the chavs. Their away matches are at Sp*rs and Liverpool – both
drawable I would think (if not loseable). But 4 points dropped would give us the opening we need, if we can win all our remaining matches.
Stranger things have happened. And if we did win the league this term, they should give us 2 trophies for all the crap we’ve had to overcome.
Lastly
Slow Arsenal news day today but it will start to hot up tomorrow no doubt.
p.s. I freely admit to ‘borrowing’ the gif above, of Terry’s awful tackle, from Arseblog’s fine, erm, blog, to be found here: http://www.oleole.com/blogs/arseblog
