Morning all, right here’s a fast Saturday round-up for you.
Workforce information and so on forward of Chelsea can wait till we preview the sport in tomorrow’s weblog, however there was a quick replace on a few of the gamers in Mikel Arteta’s press convention yesterday. There was additionally a bit within the presser about Martin Odegaard doubtlessly becoming a member of up with Norway for the Interlull.
At first, I interpreted this because the captain of his nation simply going alongside together with his teammates, however the reporting seems to be primarily based round the concept that he would possibly play. Arteta mentioned yesterday:
Let’s see how he goes, how he trains tomorrow. He’s obtainable, he’s match, if he does play it’s about how he’s feeling after that, after which we’ll make the choice between the three events.
On the one hand, you could possibly see the way it could be helpful for us by way of him regaining some match health. On the opposite, I can’t assist really feel it’s a bit mad that after such a very long time out, he’d be allowed go. Maybe, as we did with Thomas Partey prior to now, we ship one among our physios together with him to make sure that he’s sorted correctly (no disrespect to any of Norway’s medical workers btw).
My intestine feeling says it’s a nasty concept actually. Possibly that’s totally fear-based on my half. He may simply as simply choose up a knock in coaching, however until there’s a really strict settlement on what number of minutes he can play, I’d be very cautious about letting this occur. However when it comes proper all the way down to it, if there must be an edict from a participant’s membership about limiting his involvement for his nation, then he’s most likely not prepared.
After a poor run of type final season, the group headed for some heat climate coaching in Dubai, after which we gained 16 of 18 within the Premier League, dropping simply as soon as in what was a rare run of type. There’s no scope for doing that now, after all, however the supervisor was requested if there was something he may do to shift the environment. His response:
Yeah, we don’t know the place that clicked. As a result of if as a substitute of going to Dubai, we’re giving per week off and also you see the group in Las Vegas for one week, smashing the night time, we come again the next week and we lose two video games in a row, I’m in my home. I’m sacked.
In the event that they go to Las Vegas, they do this and we win three in a row, you’re telling me now, ship the boys to Las Vegas as a result of they’re going to kill it afterwards. I don’t know!
However on a extra critical be aware, he continued:
We are going to do one thing totally different. Ever day, I believe it’s making an attempt to do one thing that helps the temper, the vitality, the idea on that group, on that gamers to be the very best model of ourselves. That’s what we strive each single day with out exception.
Let’s hope no matter antics he’s as much as this weekend on the coaching floor, whether or not it’s pickpockets, lemons, music blaring from audio system, three young children standing on every others shoulders carrying an overcoat to disguise themselves as a really tall and weirdly formed man, it helps the group get a consequence at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
Elsewhere, there’s some attention-grabbing stuff from Opta concerning the quantity of yellow playing cards being proven within the Premier League this season:
We’re seeing a median of 5.1 yellow playing cards dished out per recreation. Once more, it may not sound like tons extra on a single-game foundation, however it’s a rise of 21.1% on the earlier all-time excessive. Extrapolate that over a full season and final time period’s complete of 1,602 yellow playing cards turns into 1,940.
A yellow playing cards complete of 1,940 would additionally mark a 41.2% improve on the 2022-23 season, and but, it nonetheless solely requires a participant to get 5 yellow playing cards within the first 19 matchdays.
There may be a lot dialogue of referees, and far of it revolves across the high quality and consistency of the selections they make. As Arsenal followers our senses are notably heightened, as a result of with out taking place any street of conspiracy or something like that, I believe we will genuinely level to selections made towards us which have by no means been seen once more. The 2 crimson playing cards this season, for instance; Takehiro Tomiyasu’s crimson card towards Crystal Palace; Gabriel Martinelli’s double-yellow inside 7 seconds; Granit Xhaka being despatched off for a deliberate journey, however nothing greater than that.
Now we have been scarred, no query. The broader level for me is that I can’t escape the sensation that Howard Webb has made a acutely aware choice to make officers stars of the Premier League soap-opera. Not a single weekend goes by with out one among his referees being entrance and centre, and if it doesn’t occur on the pitch, you may be positive VAR will intervene, for occasionally spurious causes, to make sure we’re all speaking about PGMOL.
He has his personal TV present now; he seems on The Overlap on Sky Sports activities described as ‘legendary’; broadcast cameras reduce to him within the stands when a contentious choice occurs at a recreation he’s attending. That is very deliberate. The person charged with the duty of a elementary a part of soccer sees it as a possibility to make himself extra seen. I can’t say for positive if he’s hungry, even grasping, for fame, however it positive appears to be like prefer it.
As for the stat about yellow playing cards, if this was making the sport higher, you could possibly haven’t any complaints. As an alternative, we see gamers proceed to get away with acts of harmful, violent conduct, whereas crimson playing cards are issued for minutiae – and all of the whereas they try to gaslight us with nonsense about selections being the ‘letter of the regulation’. On a weekend when it’s Michael Oliver answerable for us once more, I’d counsel Arsenal followers buckle up for what feels just like the inevitable, however hopefully we will play properly sufficient to make no matter nonsense he will get up a side-issue tomorrow.
Lastly, Arsenal Girls beat Brighton 5-0 final night time, and yow will discover all of the motion, aim clips, post-match response and so forth, over on Arseblog Information. You too can join Tim’s weekly publication right here.
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