Arsenal FC @ Emirates All Gunner fans fall in

[kiko]

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is looking to strengthen his defensive options by making a move for young Fulham centre back Chris Smalling, according to reports.

The 20-year-old, who made his debut for the Cottagers at the end of last season, has been capped by England at Under 21 level and has seemingly impressed more than Fulham boss by Roy Hodgson.

The former Maidstone United centre back has seen his name repeatedly linked with the Gunners with reports hinting that he could cost in the region of £7 million.

Sol Campbell has re-joined the Gunners, whilst Philippe Senderos looks to be on his way, so it seems a defensive hole is there to fill. Wenger looks to be planning for the future, given the fact the Campbell is a short-term fix and William Gallas is coming towards the end of his contract.

Rumour has it that Smalling has been penciled in as a long-term successor to Gallas and his arrival would swell the British contingent at the Emirates.

Craig Eastmond, Henri Lansbury, Jay-Emmanuel Thomas and Sanchez Watt have all penned new deals at the club and are looking to push Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott for starting places.

[kiko]

Arsenal are top of the Premier League.

Arsène Wenger's side produced a stunning four-goal comeback to beat Bolton at Emirates Stadium on Wednesday and overtake Chelsea on goals scored.

In the build-up to the game, the manager had charged his side with task of going top but, after 28 minutes of this pulsating affair, that dream was in tatters.

Bolton took a shock lead in the seventh minute when Gary Cahill struck from close range. Just before the half-hour, Denilson fouled Chung-Yong Lee and Matthew Taylor squeezed home a penalty.

Tomas Rosicky tossed Wenger's off-kilter side a lifeline with a long-range drive just before half time. But, after the restart, the home team were irresistible.

This was storming, storming Arsenal.

Seven minutes in, Cesc Fabregas burst through and steered home shot from an acute angle then, just before the hour, Thomas Vermaelen lashed home a loose ball after a corner.

It seemed that would be that and, frankly, most of us would have settled for it.

However five minutes from time, Andrey Arshavin bulldozered through the Bolton defence to fire home that crucial fourth.

Of course, in itself, this table means nothing. The last time Arsenal were top, on August 28, it was worth little either. Standings only lead to silverware in May.

But it does show Wenger's men are cast-iron contenders - strong in mind and body. These back-to-back games with Bolton have been mighty tough but Arsenal have come through.

Going top means they are now there to be shot at themselves of course. However, if tonight is anything to go by, this side is armour-plated.

Before kick-off, Wenger's only changes saw him bring in experience for youth. From Sunday's side, Craig Eastmond and Armand Traore dropped out; Denilson and Gael Clichy came in. It was the Frenchman's first start since the 3-0 victory over Tottenham on October 31.

Theo Walcott was named in the squad for the first time since December 27 but he only made the bench.
Bolton's main change was a surprise. Despite a lively game on Sunday, Ivan Klasnic dropped to the bench.

There was a strange lethargy about the Emirates Stadium early on. Transport delays meant the ground filled up late and there was little buzz just before kick-off.

Arsenal's start was entirely in keeping with that. Yes early efforts from Abou Diaby and Arshavin warmed the hands of Jussi Jaaskelainen early on but the saves were pretty regulation.

Bolton, meanwhile, had purpose. They clearly fancied the task tonight and their industry got them a goal in the seventh minute.

Arsenal had a couple of chances to clear a left-wing free-kick. From the second, Clichy skied his attempted clearance and Kevin Davies' nodded the ball down for Cahill to sweep home. A poor, poor goal to concede.

The home side were utterly stung. They were in danger of turning down an open invitation to go top.

In fairness, Cahill's goal woke them up. It was about time. In the 12th minute Rosicky's touch sent Cesc Fabregas clear on the left of the area and, as Bolton appealed for offside, the Spaniard's bounced a shot off Jaaskelainen when he should have scored.

Two minutes later, Diaby sent a raking ball to Eduardo just outside the area. With few outlets the Croatian went for what ice-hockey fans would call a slap-shot. It flew inches over the bar.

While Arsenal had yet to find their composure they had at least created a head of steam. In the minutes that followed Arshavin bobbled a shot just wide and Zat Knight sent a hurried clearing header inches over his own bar.

But, as on Sunday, the first half was open, exciting and attacking with Bolton playing a full part.

In the 16th minute, Vermaelen fouled Davies and Taylor's free-kick fully extended Almunia.

That duel would be repeated 11 minutes later. Again Bolton were afforded too much space in the area and Denilson brought down Chung-Yong Lee. A crystal clear penalty.

Almunia guessed correctly when Taylor stepped up to take the spot-kick however the ball still found a way into the corner.

It was looking bleak for Arsenal but, on the upside, they were certainly creating clear enough chances to get themselves back in the game.

In the 36th minute, Fabregas' meandered through most of the Bolton midfield before setting up Eduardo 10 yards out. The stumbling Croatian tried to steer the ball into the far corner but his effort lacked the strength to beat Jaaskelainen.

Five minutes from the break, Fabregas scooped a free-kick into the area and, off-balance, Davies nodded the ball against his own bar.

It was turning into a curious game. Arsenal were far from fluent and trailing 2-0 but they could have scored four themselves.

At least, when they did get on the scoresheet, it was a goal of quality. Fabregas, as ever, was the instigator, darting inside his marker and feeding the ball out to Rosicky on the right. The Czech midfielder was 30 yards out and tightly marked. But showing exquisite balance he jinked some space and lashed home a rocket of shot.

Emirates ignited, the game was alive. Arsenal poured forward until the whistle but could not find an equaliser.

The impetus was still with them when the game restarted. Bolton had a few minutes of early pressure but Arsenal had retained all the urgency created from Rosicky's rocket.
Seven minutes after the break, they found an equaliser.

As he has done so often in recent weeks, Gallas stormed forward to supplement to the attack. The Frenchman's challenge on Mark Davies won the ball but left the Bolton midfielder in a heap. Gallas played on and eventually Fabregas bundled his way through a couple of half-hearted challenges on the edge of the area before sliding an angled shot through the legs of Jaaskelainen and into the far corner.

While Arsenal celebrated, the keeper raced to the referee to protest. Gallas had appeared to tread on Davies' ankle and, after lengthy treatment, the youngster was carried off.

The home side now had the bit between their teeth. Fabregas crashed an effort inches over the bar and, in the 65th minute, their comeback proved irresistible.

Fabregas floated over a corner from the right and Vermaelen's high, hanging header was touched back into the Belgian's path by Diaby. The centre half swung a determined foot at the ball from 10 yards out. His contact was not perfect but he was so close to goal that the sliced shot bounced off the inside of the far post and flew into the net.

It was Vermaelen's sixth goal of the season and undoubtedly the most important.

Having worked so hard to get the lead you could understand Arsenal easing off the gas a little.

It seemed for a while that this tall tale would not have its happy ending.

However five minutes from time Arshavin withstood a couple of half-hearted Bolton challenges to fire home the fourth.

In the dying seconds, the Russian should have made it five but he spurned the support of substitute Theo Walcott to go for goal alone. It was a rare wrong move for Arsenal in the second half.

The home fans left Emirates Stadium singing ‘we are top of the League'.

Of course they are right but their team took them on one hell of a journey this evening.

[fullofrubbish]

Arsenal is really doing really well noe. Hope you guys can give Chelsea and Man U a run for thier money .

[kiko]

Title-chasing Arsenal maintained their long unbeaten streak at Villa Park but the woodwork twice denied them victory over Martin O'Neill's side.

Cesc Fabregas struck the post in first-half stoppage time and then Tomas Rosicky crashed a shot against the underside of the bar after the break.

Villa played their full part in a pulsating end-to-end affair but failed to add the Gunners to the scalps of the other 'big four' teams they have beaten this season - Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea.

It means Arsenal have now gone 12 years since last tasting defeat away to Villa as they extended their unbeaten Barclays Premier League run to 10 matches from which they have collected 24 points.

Villa also went close to snatching a winner, with Stewart Downing spurning two opportunities, but O'Neill will be slightly concerned they have now failed to score in four successive league games.

Fabregas had been Villa's two-goal destroyer in the Christmas clash at the Emirates Stadium and he turned in another classy performance while Andrey Arshavin was always a threat to the Villa rearguard.

Villa skipper Stiliyan Petrov defied an Achilles problem to produce a sterling display in the middle of the park.

Arsenal goalkeeper Manuel Almunia was called into action to prevent Gabriel Agbonlahor from giving Villa a fourth-minute lead.

Emile Heskey played in Villa's 10-goal leading scorer and his low cross-shot contained plenty of power and was tipped around the post by Almunia.

Heskey was again prominent in finding the overlapping Petrov in space down the left and his deft centre was only just too high for Agbonlahor.

Arsenal responded and Villa defender Richard Dunne deflected a shot from Eduardo for a corner.

Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel then went down to his right to parry away a dipping drive from the edge of the box by Denilson.

Heskey was posing plenty of problems and Arsenal defender Thomas Vermaelen was yellow-carded after bringing down the England striker 25 yards out.

It was a situation tailor-made for the dead-ball skills of Ashley Young and he curled his free-kick only a couple of feet wide with Almunia rooted to his line.

Downing squandered a good chance to break the deadlock in the 32nd minute after Ashley Young had shaken off the challenge of Gael Clichy.

His cross to the back post dropped invitingly for the former Middlesbrough player but he could not keep his shot down.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger was forced to make a substitution after 35 minutes with Vermaelen limping out of the action and replaced by Sol Campbell.

In first-half stoppage time Fabregas came close to breaking the deadlock when his shot flew across the body of Friedel but struck the far post and rebounded to safety.

Arsenal began the second half on the offensive and Friedel did well to block a shot from Fabregas.

But Downing should have done better for Villa when he headed wide from two yards out from a deep centre by Ashley Young before Heskey was cautioned for bringing down Fabregas.

Arsenal suffered a setback just after the hour mark when Eduardo limped off with what appeared to be a hamstring injury and was replaced by Nicklas Bendtner.

The Gunners were now looking the more likely to open the scoring and twice in the space of a few seconds nearly went ahead.

Arshavin showed his class with a run into the Villa box which forced a good block out of Friedel.

The rebound came out to Rosicky and his shot cannoned against the underside of the bar but did not cross the line.

Heskey was replaced after 77 minutes by promising youngster Fabian Delph and then Rosicky made way for Samir Nasri.

Clichy was yellow-carded with six minutes remaining for a challenge on Downing but there was no more significant goalmouth action as the game ended goalless.

[maplepig]

eduardo and vermaelen injured liao..

next 3 matches are against man utd, chelsea and liverpool...

doesn't look good for the gunners

[kiko]

Theo Walcott may not yet have secured his seat on England's World Cup plane to South Africa, but he could hardly have turned in a better audition than the performance he produced in front of England manager Fabio Capello at Emirates Stadium.

• Wenger insists race is on

Nicklas Bendtner scored the first-half goal and Cesc Fabregas the injury-time penalty that defeated a sterile Sunderland side but it was Walcott who produced the pace and the menace.

At times it had shades of Zagreb 2008, the night Walcott scored a hat-trick against Croatia which set England on the right course in their World Cup qualifying campaign.

There were no goals this time but if you want a winger to terrorise defenders, then Walcott in this mood does it better than most.

But if Walcott was Arsenal's most lethal attacker, the other man who made the difference was Manuel Almunia. Arsene Wenger had been anxious to stress his support for Lukasz Fabianski after the young Polish goalkeeper's two howlers had sunk the Gunners in their Champions League defeat against Porto in midweek, but it did not stretch to keeping him in the side.

He went for the experience of 34-year-old Almunia, who was back after passing a fitness test on an injured finger. Sol Campbell, whose backpass also contributed to the Gunners' downfall, started on the bench.

But if the disappointment of Portugal lingered then it did not show. Arsenal were quicker to the ball, Fabregas and Aaron Ramsey seizing control in midfield with their slide-rule passing and pretty patterns.

Walcott announced his desire as early as the fourth minute, sprinting past Sunderland full-back George McCartney like an Olympic finalist - which is not that far-fetched, considering he has been timed at a hand-held 10.2 seconds for 100m.

McCartney must have wondered then if it had been a good idea to get out of bed this particular Saturday.

The answer came time and again over the next hour or so as Walcott tempted him in and then left him in his wake in a straight foot race.

Quite how Sunderland went in only one goal down in that first-half is one of life's little mysteries.

McCartney was part of the reason, deflecting one Samir Nasri shot over the crossbar and then somehow diverting a Bendtner left-foot blast on to the bar only to see it bounce to safety.

The opening goal, however, came courtesy of a slaloming run from Emmanuel Eboue which would not have been out of place on the slopes in Vancouver.

At the end of it he found a precision pass across the box which found Bendtner loitering in cavernous space at the far post. Bendtner may have scored easier goals but it is doubtful.

True, Fraizer Campbell did bring one fine save from Almunia - and how Kenwyne Jones did not score when clean through with only Almunia to beat only he knows. But for the most part Steve Bruce's side were out-thought, out-manoeuvred and out-played.

They were also somewhat fortunate to finish with a full complement after Sunderland captain Lorik Cana launched a two-footed tackle which felled Eboue. Referee Steve Bennett produced a yellow card, which could easily have been red.

The second half was more of the same, Arsenal flooding forward, full of spark. Walcott brought a fine save from Gordon, Thomas Vermaelen almost decapitated the Sunderland goalkeeper with a free-kick pile-driver and chances were made and squandered in equal measure.

Arsenal almost paid the price - and would have done if it was not for the quick thinking of Almunia, who raced out to smother a Darren Bent shot when the striker was clean through.

There were a few nervy moments for the Gunners as they failed to cash in on their superior possession, but in injury time Fabregas was brought down by Campbell on the edge of the area and the Spaniard, forever Arsenal's orchestrator, got up to rap home Arsenal's second from the spot.

It was no more than Wenger's men deserved.

# Wenger insists race is on

Arsene Wenger believes Arsenal are back in the chase for the Premier League title after closing the gap to two points behind second-placed Manchester United and six behind leaders Chelsea.

Asked whether they were back in the title mix, Wenger replied: "We are, but the only thing we can do is win our games and hope the others drop points.

"The top two will drop points because they play against each other. Everton have beaten Chelsea and Manchester United and there are plenty of teams where you can drop points.

"We have two fights: one is to get away as far as possible from the teams in fourth, fifth and sixth and the other is to get as close as possible to the top."

Wenger revealed United's defeat at Goodison in the early kick-off was not mentioned by his Arsenal players, who erased the disappointment of their midweek Champions League first leg defeat against Porto in midweek.

He said: "We had good pace in the first half. We gave a lot physically on Wednesday night and you could see that, but the team is focused and responded well to the disappointment of Wednesday night and that's all you can ask."

Wenger picked out Theo Walcott and Emmanuel Eboue for special mention.

Wenger said: "[Walcott] is much sharper than three weeks ago. He still lacks a bit of confidence in the final third but for 70 minutes he looked dangerous and I believe he is on the way up."

And the Gunners boss believes Eboue has silenced the doubters who jeered him so vociferously 12 months ago that Wenger was forced to substitute him.

Wenger said: "You can always change the opinion of people if you keep focus and produce on the pitch. The people who booed him one year ago love him now and that is down to his attitude and that is the credit he deserves. He's a good football player."

For Sunderland manager Steve Bruce, who saw Kenwyne Jones, Darren Bent and Fraizer Campbell all miss good chances, the defeat stretched his side's run without a win to 13 matches.

Bruce said: "It's been a frustrating time. We feel as if the world is against us. We've had more chances today than I've had coming here in ten years as a player or as a manager, really good chances, and we needed to take one.

"It's disappointing that we haven't taken something from it. We had to ride our luck a bit but the longer it went the more we came into it."

Bruce vowed his side would not surrender in their bid to claw their way out of relegation trouble.

He added: "I'm not going to single out Kenwyne Jones' miss but when you come to Arsenal you have to take them. I've been delighted with the way they've played today and over the last two weeks we just haven't got the rub of the green. We must stay positive and get through it.

"That is the Premier League. Sometimes it is unforgiving. Our luck will change. We've conceded four times in the last minute and could have been eight points better off.

"We have four games on the spin at home. That will define our season and I think we have enough to finish the season in a respectable position."

[kiko]

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger was unable to celebrate his side's vital 3-1 win at Stoke after teenager Aaron Ramsey suffered an horrific injury.

Ramsey was injured in the second half in a tackle with Ryan Shawcross, who was sent off and left the pitch in tears after seeing the extent of Ramsey's injury.

''I'm proud of our game because it was an unbelievable battle from the first minute. We needed to be tough and resilient to win,'' Wenger said. ''I'm very proud and of course very sad because of what happened. We know it's a bad injury. We have to transfer him to London tonight to see if he needs emergency surgery. We don't know how long he will be out but it's certainly long term.

''I'm not very happy with the tackle. We know what we are expecting, a battle everywhere, but we have now lost three players on horrendous tackles and I refuse to believe it's always coincidence.

''I don't believe it when you are hit as many times as we are. I just believe in what I see and when you see a player getting injured like that it's not acceptable. Commitment is right, but that is not right.

''All the questions I get in press conferences about we don't fancy the physical side of it, that's the result.''

The game was level at 1-1 when the incident occurred but Arsenal somehow regrouped and scored a late penalty through Cesc Fabregas and an injury-time third from Thomas Vermaelen.

''We could see the team was shocked but this team is very strong mentally and we will do it for Ramsey as well because he deserves it,'' Wenger added.

Fabregas himself added on Sky Sports 1: ''In five years I've seen three of them, Abou [Diaby], Eduardo and now Aaron. What can I say. It's difficult. You could say we are not protected enough. We are sometimes victims. I'm not complaining, football is like that.

''There are things that are a little too much but three times in five years is a little bit too much.''

As for the rest of the game, Fabregas added: ''We learned from when it happened to Eduardo, we lost a lead that day. It's very difficult to stand up but we showed character and knew if we won today we still had a lot to say [in the title race].''

[kiko]

Almost two years after Arsenal forward Eduardo suffered a broken leg in a challenge from Martin Taylor in Birmingham, Arsenal once again suffered a serious injury in the Midlands, this time Aaron Ramsey having to be stretchered off in the second half after being subjected to an out-of-control tackle by Ryan Shawcross.

Somehow, his team-mates collected themselves and overcame Stoke City with goals from Nicklas Bendtner, Cesc Fabregas and Thomas Vermaelen. They will not be celebrating, though.

This was football with attention deficit disorder, and nothing less than enthralling because of it: the only problem is that it can create an environment in which players easily find themselves carried away.

As the Britannia Stadium shrilled to a cacophony of whistles and yells, fluctuating between exhortation and irritation, Shawcross went into Ramsey with a horrible challenge for which he was rightly sent off, and Ramsey stretchered off.

The incident left Wenger standing granite-faced in his technical area, shaking his head. Whatever he would have us believe, the Arsenal manager does not think Stoke are a fine footballing side.

As one would expect, he had still pointed out that they have scored 15 goals from set-pieces this season, 14 of them at home, and of those 14, most were from their long throws.

Perhaps he not think to tell his players, though. Eight minutes in and, you guessed it, Rory Delap directed his throw to Shawcross, who eluded Bacary Sagna and flicked on to the far post.

Danny Pugh was inexplicably unmarked and, with Manuel Almunia stranded in the middle of the box, had the simple task of heading into an open net.

Delap’s ability to launch the ball like a ballistic missile never ceases to amaze, but even more incredible is that, after almost two seasons, their opposition have still not come up with an initiative, a Star Wars programme, to deal with it.

With nearly half an hour gone, Arsenal had only one proper attempt on goal, a Cesc Fabregas drive from outside the area which went a foot wide. Time to adopt the when-in-Rome philosophy.

Emmanuel Eboue cannot throw as far as Delap, but he found Fabregas, who crossed deep into the box and Nicklas Bendtner arched his header beyond Sorensen’s fingertips and into the far corner. Wenger sprinted out of the technical area, arms raised, proof he’ll take them any way they come.

The second half began as the first had finished, full speed ahead. Eboue’s drive from 20 yards was palmed away by Sorensen. Then Shawcross felled Ramsey.

The players crowded around, and rapidly signalled their concern. Shawcross tried to console the stricken midfielder, but was advised to walk away. Yet Arsenal continued to attack. Pugh handled in the area, Peter Walton pointed to the spot. Fabregas drove his penalty tight into the corner.

Then Vermaelen, one of those who had been most affected by Ramsey’s injury, covering his eyes in dismay, found his way past Sorensen.

[redeyemf]

arsenal.my farourite.aww.there is still chance for premier league throphy.yes all the way

[kiko]

Theo Walcott silenced his critics with a fine strike as Arsenal closed in on the top of the Premier League after a 3-1 win over relegation-threatened Burnley.

• Fabregas injury sours win

But there will be some concerns following the victory for the home supporters after captain Cesc Fabregas withdrew with what appeared to be a hamstring problem.

The midfielder had volleyed the Gunners - now level with leaders Chelsea, although having played a match more - in front, before being taken off as a precaution.

Burnley - who had picked up just one point away all season - equalised at the start of the second half through David Nugent, before a fine finish from England forward Walcott and Andrei Arshavin's stoppage-time strike sealed victory.

The events of last weekend at Stoke were still on the minds of Arsenal fans as they chanted Aaron Ramsey's name before kick-off, while a large banner was also displayed in support of the promising Wales international and the players wore 'Get Well Soon Aaron' T-shirts during the warm-up.

Arsenal started brightly, with a last-gasp tackle from Tyrone Mears denying Nicklas Bendtner in the six-yard box before Thomas Rosicky fired a 20-yard effort over.

At the other end, Clarke Carlisle headed a corner straight at Manuel Almunia.

Walcott - who came in for some criticism after his midweek outing for England - looked lively down the right, but lacked a decent final delivery.

On 13 minutes, Emmanuel Eboue and Fabregas played a neat one-two which released the Arsenal captain into the right side of the penalty area, but his low shot dragged wide. Daniel Fox relieved the pressure when he fired in a 25-yard effort, but Almunia collected it comfortably.

Arsenal appealed for a penalty when Walcott went down under a shoulder charge from Mears, but referee Chris Foy was not interested.

There was a stoppage when Samir Nasri and Burnley goalkeeper Brian Jensen collided going for a 50/50 ball. Bendtner almost got on the end of Eboue's low cross through the Burnley box as the one-way traffic continued.

Arsenal took the lead on 35 minutes through a superbly-crafted effort. Nasri made space for himself on the edge of the Burnley box, before chipping the ball over the defence. It had the perfect weight for Fabregas to get ahead of Alexander and volley through Jensen's legs for his 17th goal of the season. Bendtner then fired wide when sliding into the six-yard box as the Gunners looked for a quick-fire second.

Walcott squared up to Fox after the Burnley midfielder slid in for a 50/50 ball on the touchline, before calm was restored after a talking to by the referee. Fabregas, who had not been running freely for some time, was then replaced by Diaby.

Arsenal came out in determined mood for the start of the second half. Walcott whipped over a fine cross from the right, which Bendtner - who had scored a good header at Stoke - somehow glanced wide from six yards out.

The Dane was not having a good afternoon, as he then blazed over after Walcott had cut the ball back from the goal-line following Gael Clichy's deep centre. Walcott then had a go himself after being released by Nasri, but his angled 20-yard drive flew just over.

Arsenal were made to pay when Burnley equalised on 50 minutes. A clearance from Eboue was headed back towards the penalty area by Leon Cort, and as the defence hesitated, the ball bounced right through to Nugent, who lifted it past Almunia.

Arsenal suddenly had more urgency, but were now faced with a determined ten-man rearguard. Walcott was away again down the right, and his shot was parried behind by Jensen.

The England forward finally had his goal on the hour after cutting inside and stroking a low, left-foot effort inside the far post.

Arshavin came on for Rosicky as Arsenal looked to up the tempo. The Russian, though, blazed over after more industrious work from Walcott.

Bendtner once more stroked the ball wide from six yards out when it looked a certain goal after Walcott's low centre. The hapless Dane's afternoon was eventually ended when he was replaced by Eduardo with 17 minutes left - the striker being given a somewhat ironic standing ovation.

To their credit, Burnley continued to look for an equaliser, and substitute Steven Thompson fired over with five minutes left.

Arsenal finished strongly, though, as Jensen pushed Walcott's curling effort behind before Arshavin stroked in a third during stoppage time.

[Arse-nal]

Arsenal will win easily against Porto
the portuguese had a lucky win in the 1st leg, don't think they can tahan Arsenal, away especially ... with or without Cesc


Hope Arsenal win by a BIG margin

[average jOe]

Well, they won big time against Porto totally annihiliating them. Well done. But they really need to be consistent. On their day, they are a combination of a Brazil and Spain team, sweeping anyone on the match day. I love their style and the manager great principles in financial control. Ten years down the road, the gunner fans will see and appreciate the wisdom of Wenger. But this season, especially this season, they have been horribly inconsistent. Even though they have a much easier run in, they are still not the favourite according to the pundits. I sincerely hope they pull their act and shows those big money spender that titles can be won through perservered belief in the right system. It will be a resounding refute to impatient and faithless club who constantly believe that buying big can win title. All the in the champion league, Arsenal surely deserve to win at least one.

No, i don't support Arsenal but i speak from observation.

Cheers.

[kiko]

Nicklas Bendtner struck in stoppage time as Arsenal kept pace with Chelsea at the top of the Premier League with victory at ten-man Hull.

• Wenger believes Gunners can take title
• Campbell: Deserved victory

The title-chasing Gunners went in front when Andrei Arshavin prodded in after 14 minutes but Jimmy Bullard levelled with a penalty after 28 minutes following a clumsy Sol Campbell challenge on Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink.

Arsenal struggled to break down Hull following the 45th-minute dismissal of George Boateng but Bendtner earned a fifth straight win by netting after Denilson's swerving shot was not dealt with by Boaz Myhill.

Arsenal were far from their fluid best - illustrated in the 5-0 Champions League win over Porto in midweek - but Hull must be given credit for disrupting the visitors' rhythm and were ultimately unlucky to suffer a fourth straight loss. The Tigers remain in the relegation zone with nine games remaining.

Bullard was retained in the starting XI and Nick Barmby dropped to the bench in one of six changes made by manager Phil Brown in the wake of the 5-1 humiliation at Everton. The City midfielders were this week involved in an altercation in front of members of the Women's Institute near the Humber Bridge. Captain Cesc Fabregas was still absent for the Gunners and his playmaking ability was missed.

Jozy Altidore flashed a right-foot shot from 20 yards wide after turning Campbell early on before Vennegoor of Hesselink nearly got on the end of Bullard's chip forward.

The burly City forward pairing were clearly drafted in to get physical with Campbell and Thomas Vermaelen from the start, but Arsenal's defensive duo stood firm and the visitors pounced on the break after 14 minutes.

Having scored three in the 5-0 midweek win, it was no surprise to see Bendtner involved in the opener. The Dane found Arshavin with a pass across the edge of the box and the Russian stumbled through attempted tackles from Boateng and Bernard Mendy before prodding beyond Myhill.

Hull equalised from the spot after Campbell was adjudged to have hauled down Vennegoor of Hesselink. Dean Marney's ball was flicked on by Craig Fagan to the Dutchman, who appeared to be in an offside position, but Campbell's attempted tackle led referee Andre Marriner to point to the spot. Bullard stepped up and converted into the top corner.

Campbell was booked and City's Andy Dawson followed for a late tackle on Denilson.

Boateng and Bendtner were yellow carded for an exchange in the aftermath of the foul in scenes reminiscent of a fracas which saw the teams fined following their last meeting in December.

Gael Clichy forged forward down the left and went down in the area under a challenge of Boateng, but found himself booked retrospectively for a dive in a frantic final few moments of the first half. And Boateng was soon walking off prematurely after a high challenge on Sagna saw the Hull captain dismissed for a second yellow.

The numerical disadvantage forced Brown into a reshuffle, with Altidore moving wide and Vennegoor of Hesselink going it alone up front. But in a scrappy opening to the second half, Kamil Zayatte was fouled by Campbell and had to go off moments later.

Arsenal encountered stern resistance and Bullard attempted to relieve the pressure for ten-man Hull only to see his 25-yard drive go over.

Arsene Wenger introduced Theo Walcott and the England international's pace had an immediate impact. He soared through on the right, cut back for Samir Nasri and Arshavin ballooned the ball over.

Arshavin and Walcott combined to gift Bendtner an opportunity, but the striker's poor effort was blocked and looped out for a corner. Walcott then had a half chance from Arshavin's pull back but could not connect.

Altidore was withdrawn for Kevin Kilbane late on and Hull put men behind the ball to frustrate Arsenal.

There were six minutes stoppage time and the visitors threw men forward. Clichy had a shot from wide on the left, but Myhill was fully behind it.

The Tigers stopper could only block a swerving effort from Denilson soon after, but Bendtner reacted first to break the hosts' resistance and earn the Gunners a valuable win.

# Wenger believes Gunners can take title

Arsene Wenger believes Arsenal's last-gasp 2-1 victory at 10-man Hull could go a long way to delivering a first Barclays Premier League title since 2004.

"It's maybe not good for my heart, but for the championship it's not bad," he said. "We have eight games to go, we are in there - why should we not believe?

"What I believe especially is that we will give absolutely everything to do it. You saw that in the game today. We were a bit jaded but we kept going. We needed the three points and we got it after the 90 minutes."

Wenger had no complaints about the penalty, but did not feel Campbell's challenge was worthy of a red card as the last defender.

"Vennegoor of Hesselink played him in an intelligent way," he said. "Sol had no other option than to touch him but there was no intention - it was accidental - and he (Vennegoor of Hesselink) was offside at the start."

Hull manager Phil Brown felt Campbell - a player he spoke to over a move to the KC Stadium last summer - should have been sent off.

"The pivotal moment was undoubtedly in favour of Arsenal," Brown said. "He should have been red carded, it's as simple as that. It was offside, but it wasn't offside because the flag didn't go up.

"He's denied a goal-scoring opportunity and, under the letter of the law, he should have been red carded."

After a difficult week in which Bullard and Nick Barmby were involved in an altercation in front of members of the Women's Institute near the Humber Bridge, Brown was delighted with the attitude of his side.

"I apologised to the Women's Institute during the week for the fighting spirit we showed unfortunately in public; I won't apologise for the fighting spirit shown today."

Brown also defended Myhill for his error and Boateng following his dismissal.

"Boaz Myhill has done a fantastic job at this football club," he said. "Yes, he'll get judged on the way the ball came off him and George Boateng will get judged on the fact he got a red card.

"But these players can hold their heads up high because of the determination and the pride in the performance they put in.

"I'm very proud of my players. Ten men have harried and chased one of the best footballing teams in the country, if not in Europe, if not in the world."

Meanwhile, Brown faces an anxious wait to discover Kamil Zayatte's fate. Zayatte was on crutches following the match after being forced off early in the second half following a strong challenge by Campbell.

[fullofrubbish]

Steady lah gunners all the way .

[tatata21]

We'll need to win all the leftover games!!! Believe in the team.

In Arsene, We Trust.

Champions league is tougher target, give everything to EPL is more wise, it has been some time since we win it.

Hope Liverpool can do the London clubs a favour tomorrow against Man Utd. Chelsea still need to face Man Utd too. Their fixtures are tougher, but there is no relaxing for us, smaller clubs fighting for european participation and relegation zone.