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Arsenal vs Newcastle United - 12/03/12 @ 8pm (live on Sky) - pre-match thread


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A win in this match would be massive. Obviously away at Arsenal is a fixture most (including me) expect to lose, but it's been too long since we won a match and there are form teams approaching fast.

 

sadly i fear a hammering,  Spurs defeat to Everton has just given Arsenal an extra incentive to win as the 3 points puts them a point behind Spurs.

 

When we are in this situation where we have all the incentives to get the win we often don't. So hopefully the same happens to arsenal.

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A win in this match would be massive. Obviously away at Arsenal is a fixture most (including me) expect to lose, but it's been too long since we won a match and there are form teams approaching fast.

 

3 games, in which we only lost 1? :lol:

 

We'd just won 4 out of 5 before that.

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Spurs was terrible, but that wouldn't have been anything like a 5-0 with Cabaye & Tiote in for Perch & Guthrie. I still think we'd have lost soundly mind. Wolves was a shocker, and we should have beaten Sunderland.

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Arsenal are on a good run, could beat us, I'm more anxious tbh that we play well and don't start hoofing it again, really getting sick of it. A win is certainly not out of the question, would be amazing, but kind of feel we start two goals down automatically because of van persie...If Ba gets back on form though we can be similar.

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4-4-1-1 for me: Krul, Simpson, Williamson, Colocinni, Santon, Obertan, Cabaye, Tiote, Jonas, HBA and Ba

 

Wouldn't necessarily play HBA as a #10: I'd play him in between Sagna and Koscienly but a bit deeper: like a 2nd left winger and have Jonas slighly infield: basically narrowing the space for Arsenal

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Obertan for Cisse man. I know everyone's entitled to their own opinion, but yours is wrong.

 

:lol:

 

Agree with keeping Cisse in there. :thup: The rest of the formation looks sound. I'm starting to sway towards the opinion of trying Santon down the right, and Raylor down the left, but it's a matter of do we want to risk that in a match like this? If it doesn't work, could go horribly wrong.

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Obertan for Cisse man. I know everyone's entitled to their own opinion, but yours is wrong.

 

Fair enough: I just think we will get beat up like we did against Spurs if we play with 2 up top: having said that, we will have Tiote and Cabaye back. We could in theory play Ba as the #10 and HBA to exploit the weakness of Gibbs

 

You happy now  :lol:

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I see where Mikky is coming from - our latest humping in London will influence Pardew's team selection/tactics. 'Park the bus' prediction.

 

Said it a few times, but I'd like to think he'll realise that'll not happen with Cabaye, Tiote & Ben Arfa replacing Guthrie, Perch & Obertan.

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Gonna go for a slightly odd formation myself

 

                      Krul

 

Simmo    Willo    Collo    Santo

 

              Tiote    Jonas

 

      HBA      Cabaye    Ba

 

                    Cisse

 

Was going to put Guthrie back centrally but think Jonas's game is reasonably suited to being more central and could naturally cover the left more than Ba is going to. The three in front are fairly fluid.

 

(never going to happen)

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Good post Tiresias.

 

See the merit of using Gutierrez there to support Tiote. Utilising his key strengths for the team - stamina, defensive cover and transitioning/squeezing defence to attack. [Finishing/completing attacks being his weakest area, obviously].

 

My only concern would be how well we could hold that shape - especially as it's unfamiliar and we're unlikely to dominate possession. I can see all but Cisse dropping back into a confused flat five-man midfield... with our usual monstrous chasm between midfield and attack. Although maybe the inclusion of Ben Arfa in the side may mitigate that somewhat. It's interesting. :thup:

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Guest BlacknWhiteArmy

Don't think it's that crazy putting Jonas there, to be honest. I'd prefer him to Guthrie for this one.

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I agree with that, just understood Mikky's thinking behind Pardew's possible thinking.

 

I don't want us to be overrun in midfield: by my reckoning it'll be Song, Arteta and Ramsey in mid with Oxlade-Chamberlain and Walcott providing the width with Van Persie up top: If we can somehow nulify the midfield 3 with Jonas, Tiote and Cabaye, and counter with HBA, Ba and Obertan we may have a chance of a point or so.

 

Think I have been watching Mourinho's teams too much  :snod:

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I want to see Cabaye playing further up and think it would be up to him to demand the ball in the middle in the final third. Ba drops deep anyway so not sure would be much of an issue. Would be a concern if it ended up that dreaded 4-5-1. I worry it would end up very narrow still but it seems to fit the styles of Ba, Cisse and HBA more than a 4-4-2. Agree need to work Ba threatening, but he always plays deep anyway, if he got lost out wide would be a problem.

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Gonna go for a slightly odd formation myself

 

                      Krul

 

Simmo    Willo    Collo    Santo

 

              Tiote    Jonas

 

      HBA      Cabaye    Ba

 

                    Cisse

 

Was going to put Guthrie back centrally but think Jonas's game is reasonably suited to being more central and could naturally cover the left more than Ba is going to. The three in front are fairly fluid.

 

(never going to happen)

 

More tactical nous than Pards tho.  :shifty: :azn:

 

edit He's too concerned with positional awareness when we don't have the ball.

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Cissé should never be dropped for this. He deserves at least 10 starts before anyone suggests otherwise. Look at f***ing Obertan and his crazy run of starts. And look at Ba, he needed a few games before he started banging them in.

 

----------------------------Krul---------------------------

Simpson -------- Willi  -------- Colo -------- Santon

------------------------------------------------------------

----------------- Tiote -------- Cabaye ----------------

Ben Arfa ------------------------------------------Jonas

------------------------------------------------------------

----------------- Cissé -------- Ba ----------------------

 

Of course in actual game play players like Cabaye, Ben Arfa, Jonas and Ba would wander a lot out of position, hopefully creating some movement -> creating some actual football.

 

Regarding Ben Arfa/Raylor I don't know what to make of it. Pardew's been hailing both of them in recent quotes. Although if he uses his brain he knows who to start. Impact in games > Whatevs.

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One thing we should do is to try and keep Van Persie quiet (goes without saying actually) and I really think that the best way to do that is to set Tiote on him, in a man-marking type role.

 

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