Morning.
First up, properly completed to Arsenal Girls who beat Rangers 6-0 of their Champions League qualifier final evening. Caitlin Foord went full Arshavin and scored 4, however this time in a recreation we didn’t let the opposition rating the identical quantity. That was all the time the trick, you see.
Subsequent up Rosenborg on Saturday, and if we win that we go right into a two legged playoff to get into the group stage – the opposition for that will probably be drawn on Monday (thanks Tim!). You’ll discover the match report, objective clips, and post-match response over on our devoted Arsenal Girls part on Arseblog Information.
Elsewhere, 5 Arsenal gamers have been nominated for the Ballon D’Or this yr. New signing Mariona Caldentey has been given the nod for the ladies’s award, whereas Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice, and William Saliba are up for the boys. I suppose the popularity is good for them, however I’m not likely a fan of particular person awards in staff video games – past those you obtain on advantage like being prime goalscorer, most clear sheets and so on. These are based mostly on efficiency.
The Ballon D’Or is chosen by a panel of journalists, restricted to the highest 100 international locations from the FIFA males’s world rating (males), and the highest 50 international locations from the ladies’s world rating (ladies, obvs!). Now, with out eager to denigrate a whole career as a result of that may be foolish, there are some excellent soccer journalists, and a few not so good ones. That’s true the world over. You don’t want examples from me, however suffice to say there are some folks’s whose vote I wouldn’t pay a lot consideration to.
Additionally, I don’t know understand how anybody can take the Ballon D’Or critically when Pavel Nedved was voted the winner forward of Thierry Henry in 2003. That’s like Fabio Vieira being voted the World’s Strongest Man forward of that big Icelandic bloke who appears like he’s made out of boulders, or Fletch from TNT Sport profitable commentator of the yr forward of actually anybody else on this planet who might make even a gentle grunting sound right into a microphone.
Okay, Nedved was a superb participant, you possibly can’t deny that, however was he higher than Thierry Henry in 2003? The reply, after all, is not any – as a result of I don’t assume there was anybody higher than him at that time. Whereas stats don’t let you know every thing, he had 32 objectives and 25 assists in 55 appearances to his identify within the 2002-03 season, one which ought to have seen us retain the title, however then that Bolton recreation after which Mark goddam Viduka occurred and … too quickly, too quickly, I do know.
In the meantime, Nedved produced a really common 14 objectives and 11 assists in 46 video games for Juventus who gained Serie A (large deal, they have been dishonest everywhere because the Calciopoli scandal revealed and so they have been subsequently relegated), and misplaced the Champions League closing to AC Milan. He didn’t even play in that recreation, I feel he was suspended, and as I sit right here scripting this morning it appears clear that the entire thing was rigged. Identical to so many Juventus wins down the years.
Is that harsh? Presumably, however then I’m nonetheless not over the Liam Brady factor, so all of it balances out ultimately. Pricey Lord, what a tragic little life, Pavel. You ruined Thierry’s evening, fully, so you may have the trophy, however I hope now you spend a while getting some classes in grace and decorum as a result of you’ve all of the grace of a reversing dump truck with none tyres on.
And so forth.
Proper, I’m gonna go away it there for this morning. We are going to in all probability have an Arsecast for you a bit in a while, however for now, have a superb one.
