Us vs. Them
Arsenal vs. Tottenham Hotspur
18th Nov. 2017 – Emirates Stadium preview
NLD Time
They’re coming here.
That’s right, the club with fewer trophies than us.
The club with far less league titles than us.
The club with a far smaller turnover and global fanbase than us.
But I love that they:
– claim to be a bigger club but with far less trophies than us
– have far less fans
– have smaller revenues
– have a smaller global brand
– have far less records in English and global football
– have less league titles
– have no trophies since 2008 and no decent trophies since 1991. And yes, the league cup is a recognised major trophy. But then I agree, as a tangent, with the notion that the league cup should be abolished.
They won the league in black and white
But there is more:
– I love how they say we bungled our way into the then first division in 1919 but there has never been evidence of this then or now. Any such records would be long destroyed or placed in an obscure archive somewhere. We moving to “Tottenham territory” is moot since I never knew they owned the freehold to the upper part of Islington…..
– That we played boring football under graham so we cannot gloat over Wenger’s sexy football. Well we won things that spurs hadn’t in decades, like league titles. To use a modern example Chelsea in 2015 were boring but they won the league and league cup (beating them no less for the latter). Many would argue that sport in any form is primarily about winning and competing, and we did that. It’s a shame for them at least that a team with Gazza and Lineker (two world class players and all time English greats) only won an FA Cup. They beat us in the semi but we won the league.
– They laugh at us for our top player s leaving when Alderweireld won’t sign his deal. Alli and Kane may still leave. Modric, Bale, Berbatov, Carrick didn’t play for then? Even Teddy left for better things a long time ago. As did Sol…. (haha) And Walker. Though we are more resilient since they crumbled when Bale left. We didn’t when van Persie joined United. We sustained our top four place, they didn’t.
– How Mr. Levy goes on about how his new ground will have stands closer to the pitch and how Gazidis never mentions a word about them. Neither do Sir Chips nor Kroenke. They have an obsession with us that runs deep, yet we don’t see them in the same way.
Spurs are to Arsenal as Everton is to Liverpool. Or even Internazionale to AC Milan. All big clubs, I guess, in their own rights, but Liverpool and AC Milan have better achievements than Everton and Inter.
Media darling and media punch bag
But wanting to mean business is one thing. Their manager is the darling now, but our manager who is past it and maligned actually still wins things. And he is seemingly getting more tactically adept. It didn’t pay off at City, but who knows, it could vs. the Scum.That said this club which is now the number three club in London (behind ourselves and Chelsea), is playing well currently. We were, admittedly, fortunate to finish above them in 15/16, and in 16/17 they finally broke their longstanding duck of falling below us in the table. Kane is the best English striker by a long distance, whilst Alli, Wanyama, Eriksen, Alderweireld, Vertonghen, Rose, and Lloris are all decent players. This is NOT the Spurs of 10-15 years ago. They want to mean business now but are they really stepping out of our shadow media, after one finish above us in 21 seasons?
These for me are the pressing issues here:
- Tottenham look good, but they’re not all that
They did beat Real Madrid well. And have been OK in the Premier League thus far. But many of their league wins have not been convincing. The Palace one wasn’t. And they lost to West Ham in the League Cup. So they are good, but not insurmountable.
If we’re on it, we can beat them.
- Kane
He’s done well yet again and surely now is England’s lock-in striker. But Wenger can prove his value, and try to nullify him. Son and Alli score goals, but not to Kane’s rate. He is their chief threat, but it’s an opportunity for Kos and the other defenders to step up.
- Their midfield
Wanyama, Dembele, and Dier, are all strong and technical midfielders. However, we also have capable midfielders, who on their day can match them. Xhaka and Ramsey need to be on it, as well as Coquelin if he starts.
- Their defence
If we play Lacazette, Alexis, Ozil, or even Iwobi (with a great goal vs. Argentina of all teams) we can do something here. Collectively, they have the best defence, but they’re not perfect. They know they have to be on their game to get something here.
- Wenger
Wenger tried to get something tactically from City game, and it didn’t work. However, he did still try, and this in a way is commendable. Nonetheless, he needs to do similar vs. the Scum, and ensure that we nullify them all over the pitch. As as he says the team needs to stay lucid and calm.
We should in my mind play a system that utilises strong midfield cover:
My team
Midfield is arguably their strength, but then if we can out-match them, we can get the win.
PREDICTION
Arsenal 2-1 Scum
For all other football predictions for this weekend go to thatsagoal.com
It’s about time we got a win against this lot. And I believe we can here.
MarbleHallsTV is an Arsenal social media account on Twitter, Facebook and Youtube. Been a Gooner since the 90s, inspired by Ian Wright, then Bergkamp, Vieira, Henry, Pires, Campbell, Rosicky, Koscielny, Ozil and Sanchez. A digital marketer/entrpreneur by profession, born in UK living in the Americas now.
Hahaha this SCREAMS how scared you see of us over taking you. It’s going to be a fun decade looking down at you, pointing fingers & laughing at the decline of ‘the mighty Arsenal’
I know it screams of how comical your insistence of supremacy is.
As an Everton supporter take slight offence to your comments. Prior to 1970 the biggest club on Merseyside was Everton so in terms of being the bigger club we beat Liverpool 85 years to 47 years. I appreciate the current situation but as we Toffees say “if you know your history “. As stated prior to 1971 Arsenal and Everton had won the league the most.
For a small club that as been in the top division the most of any club including Arsenal do not compare us as small or in relation to a Tottenham team that have hardly ever challenged for the title bar a few seasons since 1961.
We are Obsessed he says. He lists all of our team attributes which are surprisingly good, but then says we aren’t all that.
Obsessed?/you all and the media say you’re world beaters. You haven’t proven hence why ten years and you’ve won f-all.
Someone’s having a Kevin Keegan moment
Oh I’m calm. Its easier to cite how I detest spurs that way.
😀 made me laugh, thanks 🙂
Oh dear. ArseAnal insecurities on display once again.
Insofar as I know the only thing any sensible Spurs fan has said is that the two clubs were pretty much on a par until Mr Scholar nearly bankrupted Tottenham in the early 1990’s. At that point the two clubs had won approximately the same number of trophies, had similar fan bases (global wasn’t that much of a thing back then) and as seen as Spurs were the number one club for finances at the end of the eighties, it is hard to see how ArseAnal could have been miles ahead. ArseAnal were in the right place at the right time to get on the limited space BPL/CL/TV money gravy-train. That’s it. Tottenham struggling to slowly rebuild while ArseAnal disproportionately elevated. Not difficult to understand. Clubs much closer now as it was before the early nineties. No-one is saying Spurs are a “bigger” club.
It is interesting, though, how ArseAnal fans keep positing it in terms of “bigger” and then going on about trophies. In spite of this post early nineties era of eclipse, Spurs have still won three genuine recognised by UEFA major European trophies. How many genuine recognised by UEFA major European trophies have ArseAnal won? I’ll give you a clue it’s less than two I think it is important because many folk believe that the real mark of a big club is success in Europe!
Again, no Spurs fan has said ArseAnal “bungled” their way into the top flight. What has been repeated, because it is a fact, is that ArseAnal didn’t earn their place on merit and strong, and credible, allegations of bribery have been made. Deal with it.
Yes, you do have greater revenues. Not sure what the situation will be after Tottenham’s new, bigger and better stadium has been online for a while, though
Yes, you do have a bigger global fanbase. But the global fanbase is incredibly fickle.
This is the present reality:
Spurs have a better, younger and more valuable squad, nearly all on long-term contracts. ArseAnal have a first team have of whom are in the final year of contract or in their early thirties. Spurs have one of the best youth set-ups around, absolutely filled with highly rated talent. The ArseAnal youth set-up has been in decline for quite some time (your very own Liam Brady conceded Spurs was better when he left his post with ArseAnal). Spurs have state-of-the-art training facilities. ArseAnal have lost that infrastructural edge. Spurs will soon have the second biggest but best, most modern, most suited to purpose, best designed for atmosphere, club stadium in England. ArseAnal will be losing that infrastructural edge. Spurs have one of the most highly rated young managers around, and one who is adept at integrating the exciting youth talent the club is producing. ArseAnal have a dead man walking, ossified in his ways, and divisive to the point where their fanbase is in a state of virtual civil war. Spurs have one of the most savvy chairmen around and unity at board level. ArseAnal have another divisive figure as chairman and boardroom unrest.
Carry on as you were
Who cares about the past? Its now that matters. NOW you all say you are bigger which is comically false. Moreover Arsenal has always had bigger average attendances and long before the Emirates existed. And you do comically say we bribed our way 100 years ago. There is no proof of this other than bitter spurs fans citing conspiracies between long dead men.
I have nothing to be insecure about other than how your lot are scum and inferior to.us. most rivals do that as par for the course. Do you demand objective views of your club on an Arsenal oriented website?
And youth setup….. You didn’t raise alli. Some of our youngsters are world champions and young African players of the year…..kind of telling of our rubbish youth system….