tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60456755630290393002024-03-08T10:18:16.571+05:30Bloggers ParkSports, Book Reviews and my usual ramblings.BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.comBlogger317125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-75617772676669902492023-02-05T00:39:00.000+05:302023-02-05T00:39:59.332+05:30Book Review: 9 to 5 Cubicle Tales<p style="text-align: justify;">'9 to 5 Cubicle Tales' is a chronological account of a boy
who endures some testing times in his childhood, then graduates, gets into an
Information Technology firm and his life experiences with colleagues &
friends, frequent challenges faced and how he copes with each in this tech
field. The author, Harish Rijhwani, has 20+ years’ experience in IT and it goes
without saying that this book could be inspired by his own IT projects, colleagues
and experiences. But you know, if I get a chance to ask him, he will admit the
characters are fictitious and any resemblance to someone is purely coincidental.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Judging a book by its cover - </b>The book cover is exquisite
and very detailed albeit appearing simple and clean! The reader will understand
the nuances only after reading the book. A lot of what is mentioned in the book
is shown here. From the various locations that matter to IT professionals,
travel, to the currency, the deadlines, errors in the code, Uno cards, the
ladder of success (or failure, whichever way we look at it), love, savings,
home, coffee, books and many more are depicted. Each of this aspect of an IT
professionals’ life finds a place in the book!<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLAsI4M8p7isFMrQT8deGwxn7Z8SjHL2oCpvcjuX27AacH8BT72QHh7Kho4paUDeEPO-AEmsKpUf9BoHPU6R0BCG-eaUn6haIQ1THXBhWUOxlKb408nirk3jAoYbwGp9S7vFT787TemZLqtUiboOGuhRqUhypB8Dfz2LQYUbR03y0qaLZo6wM-Z9x4Yw/s1536/9-5-CubicleTales_Design-3c_E-Book-1024x1536.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1536" data-original-width="1024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLAsI4M8p7isFMrQT8deGwxn7Z8SjHL2oCpvcjuX27AacH8BT72QHh7Kho4paUDeEPO-AEmsKpUf9BoHPU6R0BCG-eaUn6haIQ1THXBhWUOxlKb408nirk3jAoYbwGp9S7vFT787TemZLqtUiboOGuhRqUhypB8Dfz2LQYUbR03y0qaLZo6wM-Z9x4Yw/w426-h640/9-5-CubicleTales_Design-3c_E-Book-1024x1536.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><br /><b><br /></b><p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>Who should read this book - </b>IT professionals, if it wasn’t
that obvious from the title! Students planning to pursue and IT career will
also find this insightful.</p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>What's the story like – </b>The book follows the life of a
boy-turned-man, Hridaan Rajdev, who experiences a tumultuous childhood of loss
of a family member, then moving to a different city with relatively less
relatives <i>(see what I did there?)</i>. The story, said from Hridaan’s first-person
account, moves quickly from his childhood to his college life to starting his
professional life. This is where the story opens up and expands on the numerous
work-related experiences, some of which are hidden right on the cover page. How
Hridaan grows from a talented newcomer to a seasoned professional in an
industry that gives you a lot but also takes a lot from you making you wonder
if the journey’s worth it <i>(personal opinion: it is)</i>.<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>How's the writing - </b>The book is divided into 51 chapters,
each covering a specific aspect of the life of Hridaan. The author has used simple
and easy to understand words to narrate the story, the surroundings, the
character traits of people involved and the protagonist's notions and feelings.
This makes it a breeze for a casual reader (by that, I refer to someone who's
not always seeking a book to read every day). The life-arc from a student to a
fresher in IT to an experienced pro to onsite opportunities is also linear and
we, as readers, aren't required to 'read-between-the-lines', which is a breath
of fresh air in today's convoluted and non-linear storytelling era. Description
of locations, unique personalities in Mumbai and the words used to describe
sounds are also well done. 'League of extraordinary gentlemen' as auto-rickshaw
drivers and BEST bus-driver as someone who aspired to be a pilot took the cake!<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>So, what do I think – </b>It’s a breezy read from start to
finish. If you are IT professional, you will relate to mini-stories in the book
and enjoy the overall premise for sure. If you are looking for a book with
writing that's easy to understand and one that doesn't force you to reach out for
the dictionary app, this is it. It’s been quite a while since I have gotten
hold of a book that doesn't have sub-plots, characters with varying shades of
gray, twists, thrills in the plot and a story that takes the reader on a
socially relevant roller-coaster ride. However, there was one aspect of the
writing that I couldn’t quite get used to. When a scene is being played out in
your mind while you are reading the book, that scene somewhat abruptly ends and
a new scene begins without a proper segway - as in a journal. I am not sure if
this was a conscious decision made by the author. It took me some time to get
used to this writing technique. It wasn't a deal-breaker for me though, just an
observation. Personally, I enjoyed the bits where Hridaan had to sit through
aptitude tests & more importantly, group discussions as it was identical to
what I went through during my time. Group discussions being a 'fish market' is
exactly how I would categorize the experience <i>(with all due respect to fish
markets)</i>. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><b>My Rating: </b>4/5</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">PS: Is it just me or
did you also feel that you were 'literally' part of this story? If you know,
you know.<o:p></o:p></i></p>BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0New York, NY, USA40.7127753 -74.005972812.402541463821152 -109.1622228 69.023009136178842 -38.849722799999995tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-85543848980662800692017-09-16T16:49:00.000+05:302017-09-16T16:49:57.065+05:30Time for Arsenal to unleash the AOL<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Arsenal went past AFC Bournemouth with ease scoring 3 past hapless defense last week. Considering the negatively around the club and the way in which Arsenal lost against Liverpool, this was a welcome relief. With all due respects to Bournemouth and Eddie Howe, their performance (or the lack of it) helped Arsenal's cause. The first goal was only because of Welbeck's determination (and not technique or talent) while 2nd and 3rd goals were mistakes from Bournemouth. In the end, Arsenal took the spoils and Bournemouth were left knowing they deserved more.</div>
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Arsenal played their first ever Europa League game and ran away 3-1 winners. After a flat first half performance, gunners came back with zeal and desire to finish the game as winners and they did just that. Both the full backs (Kolasinac and Bellerin) scored on either side of an Alexis goal. The momentum is now there after two straight wins and 6 goals in total. Arsenal fans cannot wait for the next game to arrive but they are about to face their biggest challenge of the league yet - reigning champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.</div>
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Chelsea have been in top form since their opening day loss against Burnley. Their last game was in Champions League and they romped their opponent 6-0. Many, including your truly, questioned Chelsea selling Matic to Manchester United. But they made astute business in the transfer window – Morata, Bakayoko and Drinkwater to name the best of the lot. With Morata at the helm, Chelsea have found a young and more prolific replacement of Costa. His transfer was overshadowed in the Premier League by Lukaku's transfer and then by the biggest transfer of them all - Neymar. Bakayoko and Kante have formed an impressive partnership in the center of the field. Defense looks solid and the attack will only improve further when Hazard returns. Arsenal have a task on their hands this Sunday!</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UoFCOtiLT9w/Wb0HmOKEReI/AAAAAAAAJWM/My-rMjfR2PQqvPflE3469B987Ap2GuDywCLcBGAs/s1600/Arsenal%2Bformation%2Bwith%2BAlexis%2BOzil%2Band%2BLacazette.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Arsenal formation with Alexis Ozil and Lacazette" border="0" data-original-height="1564" data-original-width="1372" height="640" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UoFCOtiLT9w/Wb0HmOKEReI/AAAAAAAAJWM/My-rMjfR2PQqvPflE3469B987Ap2GuDywCLcBGAs/s640/Arsenal%2Bformation%2Bwith%2BAlexis%2BOzil%2Band%2BLacazette.jpg" title="Arsenal formation with Alexis Ozil and Lacazette" width="560" /></a></div>
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A look at Arsenal's attacking options reveal, in no uncertain terms, that they have three top class attacking players in Alexis, Ozil and Lacazette. That's the “AOL” I am talking about. Imagine the front three in Alexis and Ozil just behind Lacazette! Quite intriguing, in my opinion. If Wenger goes with 3-4-3 formation, AOL as front three makes a lot of sense. If Wenger goes with 4-2-3-1, then I'd love to see Ozil as CAM, Alexis and Welbeck at wings (interchangeable) with Lacazette leading the line. Alexis has shown in the last season that he can score goals and create chances at will. His situation (last year of contract) will also be a motivation to show his suitors that he can perform against top opponents. Same is the case with Ozil. One criticism that Ozil has received in the last 4 years at Arsenal was that he goes missing against title contenders. This could be the occasion when he silences the critics. But, for Ozil to perform at his best, he needs defensive support from central midfielders in Xhaka and Ramsey. If Ramsey contains his attacking instincts and stay back to break the counter attacking football of Chelsea, we are in for a top-class game on Sunday. Lacazette has proved his attacking ability by scoring two amazing goals. Having Ozil and Alexis providing will be a striker’s dream and Lacazette is no different.</div>
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Should Wenger unleash AOL against Chelsea? Yes. You always need the best players to play for the team. Will Wenger do so? No, not yet. But Arsenal fans, we are not far from seeing this lethal combination leading Arsenal this season (finger crossed for no injuries).</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-67439747711390885912017-09-02T04:06:00.000+05:302017-09-02T04:06:53.672+05:30Crazy Transfer Window for Arsenal - Part 2/2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The transfer circus is finally over. Clubs scrambled for
last minute deals. Some got through, some didn't. Arsenal went through the day
apparently bidding for some top players like Lemar and Draxler but, as you already
know by now, it went flat. Sanchez remained with Arsenal and so did Ozil.
Mustafi staying was, for me, the best thing that happened for Arsenal on the
deadline day. So, barring the last day conundrum, how was Arsenals transfer
window? <o:p></o:p></div>
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Let's do some expectation setting here before analyzing the
window. We are talking about a club who fall in the below categories – <o:p></o:p></div>
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1. Europa league, not in the champions league<o:p></o:p></div>
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2. Has lots of fringe players who won't make it to first
team either they don't deserve or manager thinks they don't <o:p></o:p></div>
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3. Frugal spending mindset<o:p></o:p></div>
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4. Still believes they can win the domestic league and turn
a profit the same season (a la Leicester)<o:p></o:p></div>
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Given the above traits, how was Arsenals window?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eTa0S5TLCck/WangOQdCXVI/AAAAAAAAJQA/iPI8K_C4fkUBm-JR8tk_LKcIlapJpXifwCLcBGAs/s1600/Alexis%2BSanchez%2Bended%2Bup%2Bat%2BArsenal%2Bafter%2Buturn%2Bagainst%2BManchester%2BCity.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Alexis Sanchez ended up at Arsenal after uturn against Manchester City" border="0" data-original-height="584" data-original-width="798" height="292" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eTa0S5TLCck/WangOQdCXVI/AAAAAAAAJQA/iPI8K_C4fkUBm-JR8tk_LKcIlapJpXifwCLcBGAs/s400/Alexis%2BSanchez%2Bended%2Bup%2Bat%2BArsenal%2Bafter%2Buturn%2Bagainst%2BManchester%2BCity.jpg" title="Alexis Sanchez ended up at Arsenal after uturn against Manchester City" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>On the positive side, </b>Wenger said he will keep hold of his
top players and he did! Ox doesn't fall in this category and the Ox deal was, in
fact, a great bit of business by Arsenal as it ensured two things – sell a
player who doesn't fit the Arsenal structure on the ground and prevented Liverpool
to bid for Lemar. The fact that we didn't buy Lemar either is a different story
altogether. Either way that's 40 million well earned. Ozil's side was quiet on
the last day and it appears to me that Arsenal will eventually get Ozil to sign
a new deal. Had Arsenal decided to sell Sanchez and Ozil, they would've got a
sum north of 100 million. The fact that Arsenal didn't go ahead with it, itself
is a welcome deviation from the norm! Arsenal also managed to sell / loan
fringe players and kept them off the wage bill. Arsenal bought two top players early
in the window from their respective leagues in Kolasinac and Lacazette. Nice
additions and one that Arsenal fans, like me, won't regret.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>On the negative side, </b>Arsenal sold Szczesny. I just cannot
fathom why would Arsenal do that! Szczesny had two fruitful years on loan and
was ready to take on the mantle from Cech, who isn't getting any better and
younger. Ospina always wanted to leave and Arsenal are now stuck with him.
Selling Gabriel also came as a surprise. Although not a top defender, he was a
useful squad player. He can be a backup player at CB and can also cover the
team at right back. Given the way the deadline day went, Arsenal are now left
with two frustrated players in Sanchez and Mustafi. Both wanted to leave and it
just didn't happen. Now they return to the team they didn’t want to be a part
of! Imagine the feeling they will be going through and more importantly imagine
the dressing room atmosphere. If news reports are to be believed, some players
wanted Sanchez to leave because his tantrums were not helping the teams’ cause.
Now Sanchez comes back to a team who doesn't want him and who he doesn't want
either. What a combustible environment and one which Arsenal could've avoided.<o:p></o:p></div>
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A day after, it feels like Arsenal’s "business"
dealings weren't bad after all. Yes, from a footballing point of view, this was
a horrible window. Arsenal needed at least one defender with Koscienly and
Mertesacker at the wrong end of 30. Maybe retaining Chambers was the answer and
time will tell if it was the right decision. Arsenal needed a commanding
midfielder with only Xhaka and Ramsey as first team players. Both these players
aren't consistent enough to dominate the midfield. Elneny is an able backup. I
am not sure where Coq and Wilshere stand in all of this. Arsenal are forward-heavy
but not world class enough to score on a consistent basis. It feels like early
2010 when Arsenal had only average players and Wenger still ended up in top 4.<o:p></o:p></div>
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It will be a surprise if Arsenal wins anything this season with
the players Wenger has at his disposal and the unwanted dressing room
situation. Add to that, teams like Liverpool, Chelsea, Everton and Tottenham
have added quality. Manchester teams are already early favorites for the title.
This makes top 4 (Arsenals own trophy) highly unattainable.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Catalyst for change, anyone?<o:p></o:p></div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-12006290295411746962017-08-31T06:25:00.001+05:302017-08-31T06:25:40.211+05:30Crazy Transfer Window for Arsenal - Part 1/2<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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One day to go. One day to salvage something from this transfer window, if you are in any way linked with Arsenal. </div>
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Arsenal began the window with measured optimism. Sead Kolasinac joined the club for free. Yes, not just free but Wenger certified free! Oh, a bargain! In the long run, this transfer may turn out to be the bargain of the window from a value for money perspective. And Kolasinac is not just any left back who Arsenal got for free. He's strong, powerful and can make some lung-busting sprints from the left side of the defense which is a valuable trait in a league where flanks are the main counter-attacking route. This aspect is what Arsenal missed in the game against Liverpool. He could've controlled Mane better. </div>
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Then came the record breaking signing of Lyon forward Lacazette. This was the kind of signing Arsenal fans wanted for a long time. It appears that Arsenal have finally replaced Robin van Persie - like for like. Lacazette is a poacher and a finisher of some repute. With Ozil providing, Lacazette only stands to gain by scoring goals expected of him (theoretically, that is). The potential in this Arsenal squad looked tempting and Arsenal fans couldn't wait for the season to start (how things changed!). </div>
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To ensure that this transfer window is successful, Arsenal also had a challenge of letting out fringe players thereby recouping some amount and letting them off the weekly wages. Wenger was successful in selling players like Szczesny and Gabriel, both questionable moves as they could've challenged for first team positions. Gibbs is joining West Brom, which appears to be the right decision for all concerned. Ox could well be on his way to Liverpool. Arsenal still have players like Perez, Debuchy, Wilshere on their books all of whom needs immediate attention. </div>
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But the biggest concern is the Chilean – Sanchez! </div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--rHOefsVpNs/WadeSaKN0rI/AAAAAAAAJPk/2DgK7nCuajgTvMpky0yHCgMMaigW6Dp0gCLcBGAs/s1600/Where%2Bwill%2BSanchez%2Bend%2Bup%2B-%2BArsenal%2Bor%2BManchester%2BCity.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Where will Sanchez end up - Arsenal or Manchester City" border="0" data-original-height="517" data-original-width="705" height="291" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--rHOefsVpNs/WadeSaKN0rI/AAAAAAAAJPk/2DgK7nCuajgTvMpky0yHCgMMaigW6Dp0gCLcBGAs/s400/Where%2Bwill%2BSanchez%2Bend%2Bup%2B-%2BArsenal%2Bor%2BManchester%2BCity.jpg" title="Where will Sanchez end up - Arsenal or Manchester City" width="400" /></a></div>
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Alexis Sanchez, Arsenals biggest hope of winning something this season, is on his way out. Arsenal tried enticing him to sign a new contract, failed, tried again, and failed again. Wenger then went on to say that Sanchez will not be sold in this window. This statement was later tweaked to "Sanchez will not be sold, but board will have the final say" - as if to wash his hands off the Sanchez saga. Now, with a day remaining in the window, what remains is that Sanchez will be sold only for a crazy amount of money or cash + player deal. Manchester City appears to be the interested party. Doesn't it sound like van Persie to Manchester United deal? If Sanchez goes to City, that's like handing City the title on a platter. Sanchez staying will be a financial loss for Arsenal from a business perspective unless Arsenal go on to win the Premier League or at least reach the top 4 (a gain of approximately 30m which can justify Sanchez leaving on a bosman). Considering the form and momentum Arsenal carry, as on date, none appears likely. So, selling Sanchez and reinvesting in an attacking player appears to be the rational choice. </div>
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Another player who can leave on a free next season is Ozil. But, unlike Sanchez, Ozil has always shown a likeness for Arsenal and has made it very clear in no uncertain terms that he wants to stay. For Arsenal, it's great to hear this from a world class attacking midfielder but it amounts to nothing on paper. The dotted lines in the new deal on the table remains empty. Also, unlike Sanchez, there aren't many takers for Ozil in the market. I suspect Dortmund may make a move now that they have sold Dembele and are sitting on a cash pile. But will Arsenal sell? Your guess is as good as mine. </div>
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The climax is just a day away. We are in for a roller coaster ride. Fasten your seat belts. But if you are an Arsenal fan (like me), you probably know that lightning only struck once on transfer deadline day - when Ozil joined. Can it happen again (cough cough *van Dijk* *Asensio* *Seri* *Draxler* cough)? </div>
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Irony: Wenger always wanted the window to close before the season begins. Now these last few hours will be worth the value of gold (or Neymar, whichever is more) for him!</div>
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Part 2 of this will be the analysis after the window is closed.</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-9049688400883308182017-08-30T05:44:00.000+05:302017-08-30T05:44:38.186+05:30Couple of days after Arsenal humiliation<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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We have been through it. Season after season. It has now come to a stage where we remain inept during the humiliating 90 minutes, or should I say, 90 minutes of torture. These are the days we pray for no injury time and it's safe to say, even those prayers are not answered. </div>
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27th August 2017 was one such day. Arsenal took on Liverpool at Anfield. To begin with, I wasn't hopeful of an Arsenal victory. At best, it could be a draw. I felt the only way we can win is if someone in this Arsenal team does an Arshavin (one time ever, that is) or if Liverpool does a Gerrard slip! Neither happened. As the game began, whatever little hope I had were raised when we started getting chances to convert. We didn't make use of those chances (how can we, when our best striker was sitting on the bench). Then came the humiliation, which I don't want to describe here for obvious reasons. </div>
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Immediately after the game, I wrote these on my Twitter feed - </div>
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Had I written this blog-post immediately after the game, it would've been a rant that I may stand to regret later. Better sense prevailed! </div>
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Anyway, some amount of time has passed. I have regained a little bit of composure and courage, good enough to write this. What happened to this team? We were good at preseason. We strengthened our team by buying two players who were in their leagues team of the season. We strengthened our backroom staff and added what we thought was the missing pieces of the puzzle. We were (and still are) removing fringe players we don't need. Things were looking bright. Then what changed? I honestly cannot decipher. </div>
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What looks apparent to me is that our defense now appears very premature. Yes, we still have Koscielny, but that's it. We sold Gabriel (a good squad player) and on the verge of losing Mustafi. Koscielny is not getting any younger and Mertesacker will retire at the end of this season. We are now left with only makeshift or young options like Monreal, Chambers, Holding and Kolasinac. Surely there's no plan here! Please Mr. Wenger, tell me there's a method to this madness. </div>
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We are now left with 2 days in this transfer window to salvage what is already a lost season. Ox and Mustafi leaving will make our team even weaker. I will be shocked if Sanchez doesn't leave. That makes it 3 first-team players. If we don't replace them adequately, we are doomed (if not already). </div>
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We have brought ourselves in a situation where we will either not buy and strengthen our squad or we stand a risk of making spot-buys who we will later regret having on our books. Anyway, what's gone is gone. Let's see if something can be salvaged this season. Else, I still stand by my tweet "I can't wait for next season to begin".</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-78357823623774252192017-08-17T05:04:00.002+05:302017-08-17T05:04:23.794+05:30Proposed change to Transfer Window for next season<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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There have been news reports of FA working on reducing the transfer window duration. Such a move will ensure Premier League clubs will finish their transfer business a day before the season begins. Many managers are in support of such a decision. Post the approvals from every club, it will be made official. But is it a foolproof step? Does it have any loophole? Let's see - </div>
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<b>Background - </b>Premier League clubs have two windows in a year to do transfer business. This discussion pertains to the summer transfer Window (July 1st - August 31st). The deadline day changes if 31st August falls on a weekend - in which case it moves to the next business day. League season starts in mid-August, which means there's a fortnight of overlap. Deadline of August end was charted out by FIFA to ensure that the teams are finalized before the start of UEFA Champions League and Europa League. </div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4tbtGe5ybnY/WZTVnVKLd6I/AAAAAAAAJMk/_NZS6xIV0i0pAmIBZPWd_3c6bkRrzOO2gCLcBGAs/s1600/Will%2Bthe%2BPremier%2BLeague%2BLion%2Broar%2Band%2Bbe%2Bheard.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Will the Premier League Lion roar and be heard" border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="360" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-4tbtGe5ybnY/WZTVnVKLd6I/AAAAAAAAJMk/_NZS6xIV0i0pAmIBZPWd_3c6bkRrzOO2gCLcBGAs/s640/Will%2Bthe%2BPremier%2BLeague%2BLion%2Broar%2Band%2Bbe%2Bheard.jpg" title="Will the Premier League Lion roar and be heard" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b>Arguments in support of this move - </b>Summer Transfer Window officially begins from July, but clubs and managers start the work of rebuilding the squad as soon as the previous season ends. Shortlist is prepared of players who will be considered and who will move out. Negotiations start with the other clubs for prospective players. In some cases, transfer is also announced before the official window. What I am trying to drive here is that the clubs have a lot of time to prepare for next season. If the window ends before the season, it should hardly make a difference. Any manager with a rational take on this topic will agree to have the window reduced as all want to have stably before the season and not last-minute flip flops. </div>
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<b>Arguments against this move - </b>Clubs get few preseason matches under their belt to reassess their squad, strategies and give opportunities to new players to adapt. But what happens when, on the eve of the season, one of the key player gets injured? Or your key player has rejoined late after an international tournament and is in dire need of match fitness to get back to first team? Of course, managers need to have backups. You will have multiple players for a position, but none of the same top quality. The transfer window, in its present state, allows an option to look for a backup. If we agree to the new rules, we will be devoid of such an option. Suffice it to say that the current window can also stabilize an unstable team. </div>
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<b>Possible loophole - </b>Note that this proposal pertains only to the Premier League clubs only. This could mean that foreign leagues from Spain, France, Germany, Italy will still have an option to capture a premier league player! This loophole can completely undo the intention of making the window shorter. Premier League clubs will only be destabilized by this loophole. </div>
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<b>My take - </b>Conceptually, I totally l am in total support of this decision. For those against such a move, I don't buy the arguments put forth. The injury angle is not a legit argument as clubs need to have a squad to provide backup in case of player unavailability due to injury or international commitments. A top player getting injured is unfortunate and he just can't be replaced in any team, let's accept this fact. Now to the possible loophole - I am not sure if FA can make a rule to disallow foreign clubs to poach their player post the new transfer window deadline. If they can't, then there is no point to have a shorter window. I am all for the shortened window under the following two conditions - if all the European association decide to have such a move or else FA charts out a rule to block their player from moving to foreign shores after window closes.</div>
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Either ways, we have just started this season but the next season already sounds interesting!</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-24452900733447469212017-07-08T06:03:00.000+05:302017-07-08T06:03:18.832+05:30Possible ways to handle the Sanchez situation? <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Arsenal are in a conundrum. Their best player is not signing a contract extension. Sounds familiar? We have been there before and we have messed up big time before. We sold our top players to an upcoming cash rich team in Manchester City in 2011 and they went on to achieve big things and are now among the top 4 teams in the premier league. We sold our best player, RvP, to Manchester United in 2012 and they went on to win the premier league that season. In 2000's, we sold perhaps the best left back in the league, Cole, to strengthen our London rivals in Chelsea. Yes, all that was to finance our new stadium, but at what cost?</div>
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The circle is repeating itself again. </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vzPQW7uGHTA/WWAnxt5VxaI/AAAAAAAAIfI/ZBcUkYnvvLoPzmfyMeIittjBArZda4itQCLcBGAs/s1600/Possible%2Bways%2Bfor%2BArsenal%2Bto%2Bhandle%2Bthe%2BSanchez%2Bsituation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Possible ways for Arsenal to handle the Sanchez situation" border="0" data-original-height="725" data-original-width="1024" height="451" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vzPQW7uGHTA/WWAnxt5VxaI/AAAAAAAAIfI/ZBcUkYnvvLoPzmfyMeIittjBArZda4itQCLcBGAs/s640/Possible%2Bways%2Bfor%2BArsenal%2Bto%2Bhandle%2Bthe%2BSanchez%2Bsituation.jpg" title="Possible ways for Arsenal to handle the Sanchez situation" width="640" /></a></div>
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Alexis Sanchez is the player involved this time. Sanchez scored 30 goals in total last season and when we add double-digit assists, we know this was a breakout season for him. Arsenal have an offer on the table for Sanchez which is much better than his current one and perhaps comparable to offers from other teams. But Sanchez hasn't signed it yet. When asked, Sanchez said he is sure about what he will do next season but won't reveal it yet. All these statements are facts. </div>
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Now about unconfirmed statements - Sanchez wants to join Guardiola in Manchester City. Sanchez is asking for 400k in weekly remuneration from Arsenal to sign contract extension. Sanchez wants to leave Arsenal as we are no longer in Champions League (akin to leaving the sinking ship argument). Bayern have moved away from signing Sanchez due to the cost involved. Chelsea are monitoring the situation. Inter Milan is the latest entrant to entice Sanchez. </div>
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What can Arsenal do in this situation? Cash-in like we did last time? And to whom? See out Sanchez' contract, like we haven't done ever with our top players! Give him what he needs and let him sign on the dotted line? Every option comes with pros and cons. And is not as easy as it sounds too.</div>
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This is what I think Arsenal should do, in decreasing order of priority - </div>
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<b>3. Sell him to maximum bidder - </b>The easiest option to balance the books. We have experience in this regard. Sanchez going to Manchester City will immediately catapult the citizens as favorites to win the league this season. Arsenal, on their part, is bound to received at least 30-35 million - a decent amount for a player in the last year of contractual obligation. But, if this happens, Arsenal will remain as the team that doesn't have a winning spirit as we strengthen our rivals and decrease our own chance of winning the league. Where's the ambition? Yes, that amount recuperated will be spent on buying players, but that's always a risk, a risk that has hardly benefited Arsenal in the past. In my opinion, this should be the last option, unless Sanchez throws in the kitchen sink to force through a move to Manchester City.</div>
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<b>2. Sell him abroad, not necessarily the highest bidder - </b>A rational option for Arsenal to pursue is to sell him abroad. Arsenal won't get the money Manchester City were ready to pay, but will ensure Sanchez doesn't remain in the premier league and lead our competitors to league glory. So, who are the options? Real Madrid and Barcelona won't be interested as they are already full of top talent and Sanchez was a reject from Barcelona (irony!). That leaves teams like PSG from France, Bayern from Germany and Inter Milan from Italy. It appears that Bayern had shown interest but backed out due to cost constraints. PSG and Inter are cash rich clubs and can offer what Sanchez is looking for - assuming Sanchez needs more cash, Champions League and Trophies.</div>
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<b>1. See out Sanchez' contract - </b>Let me just state on record that I will be shocked if this happens. I have been an Arsenal fan for long. And I know for a fact that Arsenal won't allow the situation to come to this stage. Arsenal is a professionally run club that is equally interested in trophies and profits. But what a statement of intent will it be! The footballing world hasn't seen such an Arsenal club before. If we don't allow Sanchez to force through a move, we will have Sanchez for one more year. Add Lacazette and Ozil in the attacking three, we are truly a team that will challenge for the league this year. A positive string of matches followed by a killer instinct to win the games and the chemistry might just force Sanchez to believe Arsenal is the club where he should continue. And he might just sign an extension. If we lose him on a free next season, so be it. This statement will change the perception of Arsenal in the footballing circle and the players will know that Arsenal means business when it comes to honoring contracts. </div>
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Of course, the above options are assuming Sanchez is hell bent on leaving. Media is painting a dark perception of Sanchez and we, as Arsenal fans, should not fall for it. Sanchez hasn't mentioned anything concrete yet. I personally want Sanchez to stay but there's a part of me that feels he will leave. If his priority is participation in the Champions League and a better contract (probably his last big contract) is the key, then we cannot offer him that. </div>
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Arsenal, please make a statement here. Take a financial hit. Maybe Sanchez for one more year will be like a new signing!<br />
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-3577675867641964442017-06-10T18:53:00.002+05:302017-06-10T18:53:48.348+05:30Is Wojciech Szczesny an upgrade over Petr Cech?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Arsenal have 3 goal keepers who can compete for the top spot in the first team. Petr Cech is undoubtedly the best and the one with most experience at the top. His arrival ensured the rest of the keepers won't be given much playing time. Szczesny made the decision to move out on loan (right move, in hindsight) and Ospina decided to stay back and fight for the spot. </div>
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Wenger made it easy for Ospina to stay back by utilizing him for Champions League and FA Cup games and Cech for league games, thereby giving two keepers to continue playing regularly and compete for top spot. As a result, you now have Cech and Szczesny playing more regularly than Ospina. It's no surprise that Ospina has now decided to move on. </div>
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Arsenal are now left with Cech as no 1 and no one to compete with him. Arsenal are in market for a top goalkeeper. Szczesny can come back but he will now need assurances to more playing time. And he's not the old Szczesny we know. The boy seems to be a man now! His performances seem to suggest so. Juventus are in market for a new keeper after Buffon and seem to be looking at Szczesny. Isn't that his biggest appraisal? The legendary Buffon to be replaced by Arsenal's own. Are we missing a trick by letting go of him, if it actually happens? </div>
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Let's analyze if Szczesny is actually an upgrade over Cech - </div>
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<b>Statistical Comparison between Szczesny (past 3 years) and Cech (past 2 years) - </b></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7yuPbSVKMAk/WTvyg9hB6nI/AAAAAAAAIag/-FqwT1eGIOEQBIoI8mzLDL_5WuQKxVnhgCLcB/s1600/Szczesny%2Bvs%2BCech%2B-%2BStatistical%2Bcomparison%2B-%2BPart%2B1%2Bof%2B2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Szczesny vs Cech - Statistical comparison - Part 1 of 2" border="0" data-original-height="627" data-original-width="733" height="545" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7yuPbSVKMAk/WTvyg9hB6nI/AAAAAAAAIag/-FqwT1eGIOEQBIoI8mzLDL_5WuQKxVnhgCLcB/s640/Szczesny%2Bvs%2BCech%2B-%2BStatistical%2Bcomparison%2B-%2BPart%2B1%2Bof%2B2.JPG" title="Szczesny vs Cech - Statistical comparison - Part 1 of 2" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4AzTKT1kUq4/WTvyhPEmm5I/AAAAAAAAIak/e83O-n0xvO0ZiuiqVTpaVaWVU73EsnoYgCLcB/s1600/Szczesny%2Bvs%2BCech%2B-%2BStatistical%2Bcomparison%2B-%2BPart%2B2%2Bof%2B2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Szczesny vs Cech - Statistical comparison - Part 2 of 2" border="0" data-original-height="488" data-original-width="734" height="424" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4AzTKT1kUq4/WTvyhPEmm5I/AAAAAAAAIak/e83O-n0xvO0ZiuiqVTpaVaWVU73EsnoYgCLcB/s640/Szczesny%2Bvs%2BCech%2B-%2BStatistical%2Bcomparison%2B-%2BPart%2B2%2Bof%2B2.JPG" title="Szczesny vs Cech - Statistical comparison - Part 2 of 2" width="640" /></a></div>
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The biggest argument against Szczesny being Arsenal's no 1 was the fact that he made a significant amount of mistakes at the post and would hand over the advantage to the opposition. He was more leaky in front of the post and his decision making wasn't top notch. But Arsenal knew he was special talent, just not one of the best. But has that changed now? It appears so, if stats are to be believed. Szczesny's clean sheet count over past 3 years show significant improvement. In 2014/15 season, he had 0.18 clean sheets per 90 minutes which went up to 0.24 a year later (on loan) and 0.37 last year. That's about 2 clean sheets in 5 games. It may not be among the best, the improvement is visible. Even the saves count has improved from 1.68 (at Arsenal) to 2.45 (last season). His distribution accuracy has improved, which indicate he is involved more in the game and making less mistakes. Compare these stats with Cech and you realize you are getting a much improved Szczesny compared to a consistent yet slowly diminishing keeper in Cech. </div>
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The biggest attributes that should excite Arsenal management and fans alike are the "defensive errors" and "Errors leading to goals". This is where Szczesny lost out to Cech. He has improved by leaps and bounds here. 0.05 defensive errors mean 1 error in 20 matches. We couldn't relate that stat with Szczesny when he was with Arsenal, could we? </div>
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<b>Conclusion - </b>It won't be right to state that Szczesny is better than Cech, but we must admit he can now be compared with Cech in terms of stats and ability. The loan move to Roma has improved Szczesny to an extent where he can return to Arsenal and stake claim to what was originally his! Also, we need to note that Cech had better defenders in front of him last season compared to Szczesny during his last season with Arsenal. That plays a part too. Now with added support in defense, there is no reason to believe Szczesny can't flourish in an Arsenal shirt. </div>
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Bring back Szcz. We need him.</div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Stats compiled from Squawka Comparison Matrix - <a href="http://www.squawka.com/comparison-matrix#serie_a/2016/2017/wojciech_szczesny/717/717/226/0/p|serie_a/2015/2016/wojciech_szczesny/717/177/226/0/p|premier_league/2014/2015/wojciech_szczesny/641/126/226/0/p|premier_league/2016/2017/petr_cech/641/641/27/31/p|premier_league/2015/2016/petr_cech/641/165/27/31/p#clean_sheets/goals_conceded/saves/distribution_accuracy/punches/catches/defensive_errors/errors_leading_to_goal/defence_score/total_score#90" target="_blank">click here for link</a></span></i></div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-76949068216789427962017-06-08T04:36:00.001+05:302017-06-08T04:36:25.810+05:30Sead Kolasinac - A statistical comparison<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Arsenal just made their first signing. Sead Kolasinac, Welcome to Arsenal! I will admit it was one of the worst kept secrets, but a relief to know that we are in the transfer market this early and making things happen.</div>
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Sead Kolasinac is primarily a left back who played for Schalke and is now in the last month of his contract. Arsenal pulled a march on rival clubs who had Kolasinac in their radars. I am sure Wenger was impressed with few factors that helped Arsenal track Kolasinac and finally winning the transfer battle. For one, he is young (23). He is versatile, an attribute that rates highly for Wenger. He can play left back, left centre back in a 3-4-2-1 system (which reaped dividends in the latter part of last season), left wing-back and, if needed, further forward as a left winger. Add to this, the fact that he was available for free transfer was the icing on the cake for Wenger. In more ways than one, he is a young and ideal replacement to an ageing yet effective Nacho Monreal. </div>
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Let's have a look at how Kolasinac fares in comparison to Arsenal left-backs and Danny Rose (included in PFA team of the season as a left back for 2016-17 season) - </div>
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<b>Defensive Statistical Comparison - </b></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SVzqkr7IteY/WTfPrA5gv0I/AAAAAAAAIZ8/WqU3hw3cA-8rl7lKkmgKEEIhYAaSAJKIACLcB/s1600/Sead%2BKolasinac%2BSquawka%2BComparison%2BAnalysis%2B-%2BPart%2B1%2Bof%2B2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Sead Kolasinac Squawka Comparison Analysis - Part 1 of 2 Defense" border="0" data-original-height="622" data-original-width="558" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SVzqkr7IteY/WTfPrA5gv0I/AAAAAAAAIZ8/WqU3hw3cA-8rl7lKkmgKEEIhYAaSAJKIACLcB/s640/Sead%2BKolasinac%2BSquawka%2BComparison%2BAnalysis%2B-%2BPart%2B1%2Bof%2B2.JPG" title="Sead Kolasinac Squawka Comparison Analysis - Part 1 of 2 Defense" width="574" /></a></div>
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From a defensive standpoint, Arsenal have definitely got an upgrade on our existing left back and a player comparable to the current best left of the league. That is quite a statement! Kolasinac is statistically better in many of the defensive attributes in the comparison. He has won 2.22 tackles per 90 minutes and it's better than even Danny Rose. Same can be said about his interception count (3.39 per 90 minutes) and defensive errors (0). He is behind Monreal on blocks count but better than Rose (0.22 v/s 0.31 for Monreal) but you must know that Monreal has played in a centre back role where blocking a shot has more weightage. He has received more yellow cards than Monreal (experience counts) but much less than Danny Rose. His clearance count and fouls committed as the worst in the comparison (which will be the attributes he plan to improve given that he's only 23).</div>
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<b>Attacking Statistical Comparison - </b></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BwL_UaP-FNU/WTfP0TiZ_dI/AAAAAAAAIaA/lbsC-Tfc7fkKBlTSW66WQcs04YRHYADSQCLcB/s1600/Sead%2BKolasinac%2BSquawka%2BComparison%2BAnalysis%2B-%2BPart%2B2%2Bof%2B2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Sead Kolasinac Squawka Comparison Analysis - Part 2 of 2 Attack" border="0" data-original-height="442" data-original-width="554" height="508" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-BwL_UaP-FNU/WTfP0TiZ_dI/AAAAAAAAIaA/lbsC-Tfc7fkKBlTSW66WQcs04YRHYADSQCLcB/s640/Sead%2BKolasinac%2BSquawka%2BComparison%2BAnalysis%2B-%2BPart%2B2%2Bof%2B2.JPG" title="Sead Kolasinac Squawka Comparison Analysis - Part 2 of 2 Attack" width="640" /></a></div>
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A defender's primary and clear responsibility used to be to help teams to concede no / less goals. Anything more was usually a bonus. Not anymore. Defenders contribute to the attacking prowess of the team as well. Kolasinac has scored more goals and provided more assists per 90 minutes than any of the players listed here for comparison - which is definitely a match for a team like Arsenal who is more attack minded. So when Arsenal switches from defense to attack, expect Kolasinac to sprint down from the left side of the field and be ready to support the attackers. His attack score and total score are not the best but definitely comparable to the best that Arsenal has and the best in the league. </div>
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<b>Conclusion - </b>Arsenal have opened the transfer dealings on a positive note. Kolasinac is definitely an upgrade over the existing setup. And with age on his side, expect him to continue his development and get even better. The only downside is his injury background. But Arsenal backroom staff are better equipped in that level going by their performance in the last season (least injuries compared to previous seasons). Some of the Arsenal fans may not be excited by Kolasinac joining and that's primarily due to his transfer amount - 0. But we need to understand, he chose to see off his contract (a sign of loyalty, if you may) and get the best possible deal for himself and his new team. Kolasinac ends up as a winner in this deal and Arsenal joins him in the winning list as well. </div>
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<i><span style="font-size: x-small;">Stats compiled from Squawka Comparison Matrix - <a href="http://www.squawka.com/comparison-matrix#bundesliga/2016/2017/sead_kolasinac/682/682/2196/0/p|premier_league/2016/2017/kieran_gibbs/641/641/374/0/p|premier_league/2016/2017/nacho_monreal/641/641/1736/0/p|premier_league/2016/2017/danny_rose/641/641/844/47/p#tackles_won/interceptions/blocks/clearances/defensive_errors/yellow_cards/fouls_committed/goals_scored/assists/attack_score/total_score#90" target="_blank">click here for link</a>.</span></i></div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-25262006755818680732017-06-07T04:37:00.002+05:302017-06-07T04:37:39.087+05:30Potential departures at Arsenal for 2017-18 season<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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2016-17 season's done and Arsenal ended up at the fifth position in the league - their worst position in the past 2 decades. That's right, we were always in the top 4 for the past 20 years. It became so routine that fans - within and outside - started ridiculing the consistency. Wenger kept on harping that top 4 in the premier league is nothing short of a trophy in itself. Football fans ridiculed him for this statement. And now, when you see top managers like Guardiola, Klopp and Mourinho fighting for the "coveted" top 4 position, we start to realize that Wenger was way ahead of times. </div>
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This is by no means a defense of Wenger. </div>
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As an Arsenal fan, I admit I am disappointed. We were among the top mid season only to lose out of reckoning the way only we can do. We kept on losing and dropping points and the contenders around us kept on minting points. It reaches a virtual knockout situation and we won 10 out of last 11 games with FA Cup and a 5th position in the league. Tottenham finished above Arsenal for the first time in last 20 years, to add insult to injuries. </div>
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But that's past now. Post that, Wenger signed a 2 year extension. That clears the air regarding the managerial position. The next step is to strengthen the squad - retaining top talent, buying those crucial elements to complete the squad and removing the fringe players. Ozil and Sanchez saga appears to continue. I want them retained. Ox is another player I want to remain with us. He can be a huge asset in the wing back position (more so if Bellerin goes back to Barcelona) and also in his preferred position of central midfield. More on this later. </div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GH63KWJ-HxY/WTc1ShexoyI/AAAAAAAAIZs/BnvV31q_sy0wkZu3xB5ZoTTWq7BFkD_qQCLcB/s1600/Arsenal%2B-%2Bwhich%2Bplayers%2Bwill%2Bbe%2Bsold%2Bthis%2Bseason%2Bin%2Btransfer%2Bwindow.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Arsenal - which players will be sold this season in transfer window" border="0" data-original-height="676" data-original-width="978" height="442" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GH63KWJ-HxY/WTc1ShexoyI/AAAAAAAAIZs/BnvV31q_sy0wkZu3xB5ZoTTWq7BFkD_qQCLcB/s640/Arsenal%2B-%2Bwhich%2Bplayers%2Bwill%2Bbe%2Bsold%2Bthis%2Bseason%2Bin%2Btransfer%2Bwindow.JPG" title="Arsenal - which players will be sold this season in transfer window" width="640" /></a></div>
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Let's talk about potential departures. Following players, I feel, might / should be allowed to let go by Arsenal - </div>
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<b>GK - David Ospina: </b>No one wants to play second fiddle in a team. Petr Cech is rightfully the better player and deserves to be no 1 at Arsenal. That doesn't mean Ospina is bad. He is a great player and needs to play often. He will leave, for sure. </div>
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<b>Defender - Gibbs: </b>Gibbs is a long timer at Arsenal but failed to cement the preferred left back at Arsenal. He had his moments when Cole left, but failed to fully capitalize. Wenger then bought Monreal and hasn't looked back since. Monreal can also be the backup centre back in case of injuries or rotation. The only issue with Monreal is his age and Arsenal needed a young left back to compete. Enter Kolasinac. Sadly, that means Gibbs has to leave. </div>
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<b>Defender - Debuchy: </b>Debuchy just didn't fit in at Arsenal. He was expected to replace outgoing Sagna. What made matters worse for Debuchy was the resurgence of Bellerin as the first choice right back. Add injuries and you have a player who hardly made a name for himself at Arsenal. He will leave Arsenal, maybe to France. </div>
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<b>Midfielder - Wilshere: </b>Sometimes you need to make a decision you don't like. Maybe it will end up being a bad decision. But something's got to give. Personally, I am a big fan of Wilshere when in full form. His goal against Norwich is a goal for the ages. His passion for Arsenal is unparalleled. He used to be Wenger's blue eyed boy. I always felt he will truly replace Cazorla and be the future captain of Arsenal. But that is yet to happen. Injuries played a huge part. He had a productive season playing for Bournemouth as a loanee until injured, again. Arsenal needs to let him leave. For his benefit, for his future and for his career. </div>
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<b>Forward - Perez: </b>I made a mistake analyzing Perez' arrival at Arsenal last year. I expected Perez to compete with Giroud for the lone strikers role. Wenger used Sanchez instead. And the plan worked. For Arsenal, not for Perez. Maybe Wenger thought of Perez as a backup option for Sanchez and Giroud. Then Welbeck came back from injury and Perez lost out. It completely backfired for Perez who now wants to leave (and rightfully so). His departure will be a loss to Arsenal, but has to happen. Perez, thank you for that amazing hat-trick in champions league. </div>
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<b>Forward - Sanogo: </b>He didn't fulfill his promises, got injured, contract ends in June this year and will leave. It didn't work out. All the best to Yaya. </div>
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Other players who can be considered in possible departure list include Coquelin (especially if Xhaka cements his position in midfield, Walcott (lots of promises but lacks consistency) , Bellerin (not sure if he has it in him to reject Barcelona). </div>
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Let's see how ruthless Wenger will be in the transfer window. Until next time. </div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-76572518997949660262017-02-04T06:41:00.000+05:302017-02-04T06:41:36.432+05:30Win, somehow win<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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This Premier League season is one of the most intriguing of them all. And this is despite Chelsea being clear favorites to win the league. Behind Chelsea, there is a mad rush to determine who's most equipped and capable to challenge the best team in this season. Amidst this chaos, even a draw in the last game ensured Chelsea increase their lead from 8 to 9 points. And to make it worse for us Gunners, Spurs rose to second and we moved down to third with Manchester City right behind us. </div>
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It would be a safe argument to say that none of the teams from 2nd to 4th are putting any sort of pressure to Chelsea. The lack of consistency in Spurs, Arsenal and Manchester City is helping Chelsea's cause. But to be fair, Chelsea are in a zone of their own. They are winning the relatively easy games. And they are ensuring the other top teams don't win against them. Liverpool 1-1 Chelsea is a case in point and loss to Spurs and Arsenal are their only blip this season. Also, the teams in the top quarter of the table have to play against each other too. All this plays into Chelsea's hands. It will only be a catastrophe if Chelsea were not to win the league this season. </div>
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One moment can, however, dampen Chelsea's progress. And it could happen on 4th Feb. Chelsea will be hosting Arsenal at Stamford Bridge. They are 9 points apart. A win for Chelsea will stretch the lead to 12 and it will be all over for Arsenal as far as winning the league is concerned (even for the most optimistic fan). A win, however, for Arsenal will close the gap to 6. This is what most of the other teams will be hoping for. A loss won't hurt Chelsea much but will be a huge boost for all other teams in the top 5. Chelsea can mathematically afford to lose thrice and still win the league. </div>
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From Arsenal's perspective, it seems to be a gigantic task. We have been terrible on occasions and sublime on other days. Typical Arsenal in a way! On days, we proved we can beat anybody convincingly (Arsenal 3-0 Chelsea) and on some days, we just couldn't score and win. Draws, when we should have won, have also contributed to our inconsistent performances. Non footballing reasons are also not helping. Ozil and Sanchez are yet to sign an extension. Wenger is keeping every one guessing on his own extension. Horrific performances against Everton, Manchester City and Watford (all 1-2 losses) mean we are now fighting for top 4 once again. Chelsea game will be a turning point for us this season - whatever happens. If we win, we are in it somehow. If we lose, it's back to retaining our top 4 position. A draw will also mean top 4 will be our plan B.</div>
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This season we boasted of depth in the midfield so much that Wilshere decided to go out for loan! Who would've thought that we will head into the crucial game against Chelsea with a non-regular midfielder in either Ox or a youth prospect. Santi Cazorla is injured for a long time now. Granit Xhaka is foolishly suspended. Md. Elneny is playing for his country in African Cup of nations and also injured too. Aaron Ramsey injured himself during the last game against Watford. Thankfully, Francis Coquelin is back which is a huge boost. I would love to have Ox team up with Coquelin. Ox had a game to remember against Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions League a couple of years ago. In the long term, I still feel either he or Wilshere will be the heir to Cazorla's position. You may not like both of my choices, but I have a gut-feel that our counter attack will be much smarter, quicker and stronger with them in the team and injury free! Of course, for this to happen, we need Coquelin to boss the defensive midfielder role. </div>
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At the back, despite being crappy, our defense picks themselves. Cech will play as #1 despite not being in the best of form. Bellerin should return to right back role. Koscielny, Mustafi and Monreal complete the back 4. Up front, we have a problem of riches. I would love to see Sanchez playing as a striker. Giroud is a great player but his presence completely changes our attacking strategy. Moreover, Ozil and Sanchez have that understanding to find each other when we are in the final third. Walcott will return as the left winger and I would like to see Perez start at left wing. Perez is in great form despite not being played regularly. A start for him against Chelsea will do a world of good for his confidence. </div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-u_XSYmCje_U/WJUjocrvwOI/AAAAAAAAISo/odRFHshqEWUUZeETlmDgkeBAnsYOcro_gCLcB/s1600/My%2Bplaying%2B11%2Bfor%2BArsenal%2Bvs%2BChelsea%2B04%2BFeb%2B2017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="My playing 11 for Arsenal vs Chelsea 04 Feb 2017" border="0" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-u_XSYmCje_U/WJUjocrvwOI/AAAAAAAAISo/odRFHshqEWUUZeETlmDgkeBAnsYOcro_gCLcB/s640/My%2Bplaying%2B11%2Bfor%2BArsenal%2Bvs%2BChelsea%2B04%2BFeb%2B2017.JPG" title="My playing 11 for Arsenal vs Chelsea 04 Feb 2017" width="515" /></a></div>
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Chelsea's formation of 3-4-3 have been their strength so far. Having 3 centre-backs in the playing 11 gives them extra cover while defending. Kante has been the key piece of the puzzle. He, as defensive midfielder, has been the best so far and has given Chelsea the assurance of having only 3 in defense. Costa, Hazard, Pedro and Moses complete their team from an attacking perspective. It would be rather interesting to see how Wenger tackles this formation. Personally, I feel Giroud will be a liability here as he will have 3 defenders to cope with. To win against such formations, you need to be strong in your counter attacking moves. With Sanchez, Walcott and Perez up front, we are potent there. Welbeck and Giroud and will be great as subs late in the game. Ozil versus Kante will be another battle to watch our for. </div>
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Strategies can be made and discussed at length. But at the end, what matters is those 90 minutes. We need to, somehow, win this game. A draw will favor Chelsea. Nothing other than a win will do. </div>
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Win, somehow win! </div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-56915333324408872542017-01-14T06:08:00.000+05:302017-01-14T06:08:05.478+05:30Arsene Wenger and the contract conundrum <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Arsene Wenger's contract with Arsenal will be over this June. This is no news to you. Wenger has a 2 year contract extension from Arsenal on the table. This is no news to you either. A sizable section of Arsenal fans want Wenger to leave this June. This comes as no surprise to you, especially if you are part of "that" group (Read: Wenger Out brigade). Arsenal's top two players (Sanchez and Ozil) are having a contract standoff with Arsenal over wages (I presume) and now Ozil has expressed the (main) reason that is preventing him from signing an extension. </div>
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<b>Reason</b>: Arsene Wenger's contract standoff. </div>
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Before we get to that, let's try to understand Arsenal's perception in the footballing world. For the past 2 decades, Arsenal have been managed by Arsene Wenger. Although Arsenal was a popular club back then, Wenger put Arsenal on the world map by his footballing philosophy. In the past 2 decades, Arsenal moved from a top team in the league to a global brand and among the best in the footballing world. A team who were once called the invincibles (49 game unbeaten streak), the unique one-touch passing style (known as <i>tika-taka </i>to some) and a team that plays the most eye-catching football in the world. It's truly a pleasure to watch Arsenal when in full flow. All this was possible because Arsene Wenger made it happen. </div>
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As it stands today, we still play the most beautiful football (the frequency of which has reduced significantly) sans the desired results. The stadium project took a toll on Arsenal's winning ambitions. The ambition was there, the resources and results not so much. But things started to change when we bought Mesut Ozil, one of the best attacking midfielders on the planet. So much so that Cristiano Ronaldo criticized Real Madrid for going ahead with this transfer. Arsenal turned a page into the future. The next year, we bought Alexis Sanchez and the signs of a turnaround was on the horizon. </div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JLGHGqCZjzw/WHlyl4vUbyI/AAAAAAAAINg/44vSx9ZOZ0MKDO6dilFlpHQcz603oSWVACLcB/s1600/Contract%2Bsigning%2B-%2BTime%2Bfor%2BArsenal%2Bplayers%2Bto%2Bsign%2Bthe%2Bting%2B-%2BArsene%2BWenger.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Contract signing - Time for Arsenal players to sign the ting - Arsene Wenger" border="0" height="424" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JLGHGqCZjzw/WHlyl4vUbyI/AAAAAAAAINg/44vSx9ZOZ0MKDO6dilFlpHQcz603oSWVACLcB/s640/Contract%2Bsigning%2B-%2BTime%2Bfor%2BArsenal%2Bplayers%2Bto%2Bsign%2Bthe%2Bting%2B-%2BArsene%2BWenger.jpeg" title="Contract signing - Time for Arsenal players to sign the ting - Arsene Wenger" width="640" /></a></div>
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Now here's the interesting part - if you read their first interview after joining Arsenal, they mentioned that Arsene Wenger played a huge part in them joining Arsenal. And it's not only them, many of Arsenal players have said the same. Jack Wilshere considers Wenger as his father figure. Remember, when Wenger's contract was about to be over last time, Wilshere went on record saying he will leave if Wenger leaves. And this statement is coming from a lifelong Arsenal fan in Wilshere. Aaron Ramsey was snatched from the clutches of Manchester United by Wenger. Xhaka was excited to be part of Wenger's project. Cech joined from Chelsea for the same reason. Ok wait, he joined because he wanted to stay in London. But most of the players joined because of Wenger and / or his salesman-like persuasion of the Arsenal project. </div>
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So Arsenal fans, let's accept it - Wenger is a huge part of Arsenal brand. Whether you like it or not. And I don't find anything wrong, given the current situation, that Ozil wants to wait for Wenger's future to be sorted out before committing. As a fan I am not necessarily happy about it, as it should always be Arsenal FC not Arsene FC. But in a corporate setup (and Football is no longer just a game, it's now a full-fledged industry), resources leave their current project for better opportunities which includes money, location and an understanding boss. Arsenal with London as base and Wenger as boss provides a conducive atmosphere for players to play to their potential. If one of the two mentioned cogs (location and boss) are removed, the wheel will find it difficult to move ahead. This is where Arsenal management sans Wenger should come in and restore faith among the players and fans. And the management will have a huge role to play here. One bad decision can destroy the brand and one good decision can elevate Arsenal to levels closer to Real and Barcelona in terms of success. No kidding, it's possible.</div>
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I personally want Ozil and Sanchez to sign contract extension sooner than later as the next 3-4 years (in their late 20s) will see them reach their full potential as players. And I want it to happen despite Wenger's contract standoff. I am a Wenger fan and will always be one. I still believe Wenger is not part of the problem but is part of the solution. At the same time, I feel by extending Arsene Wenger's contract, we are delaying the inevitable problem of identifying a successor without impacting the Arsenal ship. Wenger will move on one day for sure. If Arsenal management doesn't have a well laid-out continuity plan, we will fall head over heels like it happened at Manchester United. </div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-17372100798793885632017-01-07T19:26:00.000+05:302017-01-07T19:26:32.506+05:30Arsenal and this January Transfer Window..<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The month of riches and creativity has arrived. Not for you and me, I am talking about the Football media groups. Let's have more gossips of players leaving and joining other clubs, about players declining contract extensions and general discontent regarding lack of playing time. In between all of this, you will have a genuine need to strengthen your squad for the challenges that lie ahead. </div>
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English clubs will have an added challenge starting January (Emirates FA Cup). Some teams are in UEFA champions league and some in Europa league. The league cup will end in January with semifinals and finals to go. African Cup of nations will force some teams to add numbers to temporarily replace the outgoing players. Add to that, the injury concerns and sudden availability of top players will force clubs to delve into their rich coffers. </div>
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Arsenal, this season, have been <i>relatively </i>better that previous seasons in terms of injury concerns. Yes, we have lost Santi Cazorla for months at length but we have backups in Xhaka, Coquelin (injured), Elneny and Ramsey fighting for 2 positions at the center. More on central midfield later. Suffice it to say that different combinations were used and have been decent enough to replace Santi. Our defense is now better with top centreback combination of Koscienly and Mustafi, with Gabriel, Mertesacker and Holding as backups. Our strikers are doing good with Sanchez and Giroud having a strong and healthy competition for the lone strikers' role. With Perez and Welbeck returning from injury, our backup in that department is also strong. Number 10 role is owned by Ozil, and I have no complaints there. Iwobi can be used there too. Wingers are also doing reasonably good with Ox, Walcott and Iwobi utilized specifically for these roles and Sanchez and Perez providing healthy competition. Don't get me wrong, there is always scope to improve the squad. But this is January Transfer Window so we can't expect major changes from any of the top teams unless a world-class player suddenly becomes available. </div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6z5oPNxfiGE/WHDy0GfJLUI/AAAAAAAAIL4/Iw2GmHXKzJA6dJByWnDe_QNvi3SyBq8aQCLcB/s1600/Areas%2Bwhere%2BArsenal%2Bneeds%2Bto%2Bstrengthen%2Bin%2BJanuary%2BTransfer%2BWindow%2B2017.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Areas where Arsenal needs to strengthen in January Transfer Window 2017" border="0" height="446" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6z5oPNxfiGE/WHDy0GfJLUI/AAAAAAAAIL4/Iw2GmHXKzJA6dJByWnDe_QNvi3SyBq8aQCLcB/s640/Areas%2Bwhere%2BArsenal%2Bneeds%2Bto%2Bstrengthen%2Bin%2BJanuary%2BTransfer%2BWindow%2B2017.JPG" title="Areas where Arsenal needs to strengthen in January Transfer Window 2017" width="640" /></a></div>
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Central midfield was finally considered to be the strongest in recent years so much so that we shipped off Wilshere on loan! Cazorla and Coquelin are our best midfield pair. However, both are now injured. Elneny is off to African Cup of nations. This leaves us with Xhaka (great and silly in equal measure) and Ramsey as last men standing. Ox can be used in central midfield too, but am not convinced if Wenger feels the same too. Another injury and we are looking at makeshift options! The situation is demanding enough to warrant for a dip in the market for options. Maybe a longterm replacement for Cazorla (No, Xhaka is not yet there). But, Wenger being Wenger, I won't be surprised if he goes for make-shift options or promotes someone from youth setup for a month till Coquelin returns. </div>
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Another place where I feel Arsenal need to invest is the full back positions. We have one of the best young right-back in Bellerin who appears to first choice right back for a long time to come. But we don't have a suitable backup to Bellerin. This season Gabriel was utilized when Bellerin was out injured. Although he did a decent job, he's still a makeshift option. Rob Holding is considerably young and inexperienced for this role. Debuchy will be sold or will leave on a bosman. Calum Chambers is doing good with Middlesbrough and may be suitable to compete for this position from next season. Maybe he will not. But that's future and is uncertain. What is certain is that we don't have a like-for-like backup to Bellerin. </div>
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Same is the case for left-back position. With Monreal and Gibbs, we have good depth but Monreal is not getting any younger and is bound to tone down his workrate sooner or later. Gibbs has been with Arsenal for quite a while but he hasn't cemented this position yet. Injuries have also taken its toll on Gibbs. Arsenal need to identify a player to replace Monreal when the time is ready and as on date, Gibbs doesn't seem to be that guy. On his part, Gibbs also should be looking for more playing time which means he may look for a transfer too. This is one more reason why we need to concentrate on this position in the near future. Also, Cohen Bramall, if we eventually sign him, is one for the future and definitely not a like-for-like backup.</div>
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January Transfer Window is not usually the time to identify long term solutions. It's pretty much quick fix. Arsenal have had exception to this rule and ironically, Monreal is one such example. I am not surprised that Wenger is not looking to be busy this time of the year. But he will do our team a world of good by looking to strengthen the fullback positions. We need genuine like-for-like backups and not a makeshift option. Fight for the title is still not over and we are in three different tournaments for the rest of the season. Addition to the squad will hardly do any harm.</div>
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Over to you, Professor. </div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-72520391369350978412017-01-05T07:09:00.005+05:302017-01-05T07:10:32.086+05:30Sanchez' passion is what we need..<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Arsenal dug a hole for themselves and at the last minute barely managed to get out of it. Haven't we heard this script before? Against AFC Bournemouth, we were 3-0 down, thanks largely to our defensive lapses. And then came the comeback. 3-1 (Sanchez), 3-2 (Perez, what a goal) and 3-3 (Giroud). We lost out of time to get the winner. I am sure, with the momentum we had, we were just 2-3 minutes away from the winner. </div>
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We got away with snatching a point from the away fixture. In the larger scheme of things, the appropriate narrative is that we dropped 2 crucial points. The battle to the top was steep and we managed to make it worse. The way we conceded all 3 goals was not worth of the champions we intend to be. Bellerin was the culprit for the 1st and 3rd goal and Xhaka became his usual self inside our penalty box. Emotionally, it was a topsy-turvy game and it ended with mixed feelings. What if? That's how it ended for me. </div>
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Anyway, what I got the see post the match completely defines what an Arsenal fan must have felt. We, as Arsenal fans, are used to our team "committing suicide" during the game and then coming back from the dead just before the game is over. As fans, we don't exactly know how to react. Should we be frustrated at what could have been or should we heave a sigh of relief? I think, for me, it's nothing but frustration, despite coming away with an unlikely point. </div>
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Did anyone see Alexis Sanchez' reaction? </div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YV40yPu1D8k/WG2izaYe1PI/AAAAAAAAILM/X-ZRA_MmdJUJ2dE8Ssi6fo36_JsmZO-mgCLcB/s1600/Alexis-Sanchez-left-frustrated-after-Bournemouth-Reuters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Alexis-Sanchez-left-frustrated-after-Bournemouth-Reuters" border="0" height="266" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YV40yPu1D8k/WG2izaYe1PI/AAAAAAAAILM/X-ZRA_MmdJUJ2dE8Ssi6fo36_JsmZO-mgCLcB/s400/Alexis-Sanchez-left-frustrated-after-Bournemouth-Reuters.jpg" title="Alexis-Sanchez-left-frustrated-after-Bournemouth-Reuters" width="400" /></a></div>
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That's exactly how I felt after this match and am sure that's how most of the Arsenal fans have felt. Utter frustration! I can see despair and a feeling of loss from other Arsenal players. But Sanchez took it to an altogether different level, a level most of us fans know. Yes, am sure the manager might have felt frustrated, but he never shows. Most of our players might have been dejected, but they appear to move on. The reaction from Sanchez shows he is just waiting to punch on his next opponent. </div>
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Mirror carried an <b><a href="http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/difference-attitude-between-alexis-sanchez-9560121" target="_blank">article</a></b> saying his passion should be the main reason why he should leave Arsenal. They claim he deserves much better. The second point, I agree. He surely deserves much better than a team bottling up chance after chance to be the best. But I have my reservations against the first statement. He should leave because he is more passionate? That's rude towards both Arsenal and Sanchez. I am actually thinking quite the opposite here. I want the remaining 10 players on the pitch to see his dedication and start lifting themselves to his level of passion and dedication. Why can't they? Sanchez is one of those players who, when in full flow, is a treat to watch but when he is completely out of form, his dedication and work-rate makes him a standout player. Compare this with Ozil, Mesut Ozil is pure class when in form but anonymous when out of form. </div>
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Arsene Wenger has a big job on his hands. If he has to retain Sanchez, he will not only have to shell out what Sanchez is asking for but also relieve him of his frustration by making him play with more top-class players rather than developing talents. Arsenal has to evolve more into a world class team rather than a home of developing players who get bought by world class teams. The signs are truly promising with Ozil, Sanchez, Cech, Koscienly in the lineup. But we need more finished products. </div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-73258881061114572642017-01-02T04:57:00.000+05:302017-01-02T04:57:27.523+05:30Giroud does a Scorpion!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Did you see that goal Giroud scored against Crystal Palace? </div>
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<li><b>Yes?</b> So, that means you want to see the goal again!</li>
<li><b>No? </b>You gotta see this to believe it!</li>
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Here's the <b><a href="http://arsenalist.com/f/2016-17/arsenal-vs-crystal-palace/goaaal-what-a-goal-olivier-giroud-1-0.html" target="_blank">video link from Arsenalist</a></b>.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4mB9Iwrf3D4/WGmNe3w-xMI/AAAAAAAAIKw/F3Cv85ycUTkixv2D4LfWwdhd0yXRCMI0ACLcB/s1600/Giroud%2Bdoes%2Ba%2BScorpion%2Bwhile%2BFlamini%2Bdoes%2Ba%2BPogba.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4mB9Iwrf3D4/WGmNe3w-xMI/AAAAAAAAIKw/F3Cv85ycUTkixv2D4LfWwdhd0yXRCMI0ACLcB/s640/Giroud%2Bdoes%2Ba%2BScorpion%2Bwhile%2BFlamini%2Bdoes%2Ba%2BPogba.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Thanks to this goal and another one from Iwobi (will do a world of good for his confidence), we defeated Crystal Palace 2-0 in a game of pure dominance and defensive stability. It's good to have a clean sheet after a while. Only regret, we created a lot of chances and should have had 3-4 goals at the minimum. Goal difference might come into play in the end. Just a single point now separates 3 teams from 3rd to 5th. </div>
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This is what Giroud had to say about his goal - "<i>Alexis gave the ball a bit behind me and I tried to take it with my heel. I had maximum luck! Yeah, I had good balance. It was a great feeling, I wanted to score early from Nacho’s cross but I was a bit short. So it’s nice that I succeeded to get a nice one for the team.</i>"</div>
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It's good that Giroud included luck as one of the factors in his goal. Even if you are the best striker in this world, you still need that little bit of luck to make such a goal happen? To admit that luck is a factor speaks of his modesty. </div>
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This is what Arsene Wenger said about the goal - "<i>It was up there with strikes like Dennis Bergkamp’s wonder-goals against Leicester and Newcastle, as well as Thierry Henry against Liverpool. I think it was an exceptional goal because it was at the end of a fantastic collective moment, which is what our game is about. He transformed that goal into art – because of the surprise, because of the beauty of the movement and because of the efficiency. That will be remembered as the Giroud goal that nobody will forget. People come to the games to see these kind of goals.</i>" </div>
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Too much praise from Wenger won't do him and Arsenal any harm as far as the contract renewal with Giroud is concerned. Right? Personally, this is one of the top 5 Arsenal goals that I have seen and, believe me, I have seen quite a few world class goals from Arsenal during the past 15 odd years. All in all, a positive day for the Gunners. We scored 2, kept a clean sheet, went back in 3rd place and are now 3 points behind Liverpool and 9 behind Chelsea. Although we are significantly behind the league leaders, we are not giving up without a fight! And who knows, a bad phase of 3-4 games for Chelsea and Liverpool dropping points coupled with us going on a winning spree, we can make it to the top again! Too much of an ask? Maybe. A tall order indeed but nothings over until it's over.</div>
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I couldn't have expected for a better start to the new year. Thank you Giroud for this memory.</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-16527553798032264982017-01-01T05:58:00.000+05:302017-01-01T05:58:03.201+05:30Can anyone stop Chelsea?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Date: 11th Sepember 2016. Match: Swansea City vs Chelsea. Result: 2-2</div>
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<i>Fact: This was the last time Chelsea drew in a Premier League this year.</i></div>
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Date: 24th September 2016. Scheduled Match: Arsenal vs Chelsea. Result 3-0</div>
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<i>Fact: This was the last time Chelsea lost in the premier league this year.</i></div>
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Since then, Chelsea have been unstoppable! They have won 13/13 Premier League games and deservedly, are top of the standing with a safe gap of 6 points from Liverpool in 2nd place. In terms of records, Chelsea are now 2nd in the list of winning streaks in Premier League. The list is led by Arsenal's <i>invincibles </i>for 14 consecutive wins (Feb 2002 - Aug 2002). Chelsea are just one win away from equaling the best and 2 away from beating the best winning streak. And to make it interesting, their next two games are against London rivals (Tottenham) and current champions (Leicester City) - both away. Even a draw against Tottenham will break the streak. <i>This game is an irony for Arsenal fans like me who want Chelsea to lose their winning streak but at the same time want Tottenham to lose anything that comes their way! After a lot of contemplation, I guess I will settle for a draw!</i></div>
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Post the match against Arsenal, Antonio Conte reacted by changing the formation to 3-4-3, with 3 Centre Backs and the 2 "wing-backs" for added support in attack as well as defence. This formation has worked wonders for Chelsea and none of the opponents they faced had an answer to this including their very own Jose Mourinho, whose Manchester United were thrashed by Chelsea 4-0. Another feature of this formation is the role of the CDM, who is even more restricted in his movements and, at times, will act as a virtual CB when under attack. In such occasions, you need a strong and disciplined CDM and Chelsea have that in N'Golo Kante. In attack, Chelsea have Costa leading the line flanked by Hazard and Willian. They have surprisingly formed a destructive partnership post the Mourinho era where something just didn't work right. Add the return to starting place for Fabregas as a box-to-box midfielder and Chelsea are now potent in all areas.</div>
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Now, let's come back to my original question, can anyone stop Chelsea? At this juncture, even a draw would mean Chelsea dropping 2 points - such has been their form. They seem to have the desire to win every game they play. The fear has started creeping in for the opposition teams and they will start reacting to Chelsea's winning streak by dropping deep (just like with Stoke did, but eventually caved in to pressure). </div>
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<b>Chelsea's next 5 fixtures - </b></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hV7tNqVTwFA/WGhMU41ILCI/AAAAAAAAIKc/Z_0rgNoRVXE-iGfwPFB5pXwebcCogMXpQCLcB/s1600/Chelsea%2B-%2BNext%2BPL%2Bmatches%2B-%2Bscreengrab%2Bfrom%2BFotmob%2Bapp.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Chelsea - Next PL matches - screengrab from Fotmob app" border="0" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hV7tNqVTwFA/WGhMU41ILCI/AAAAAAAAIKc/Z_0rgNoRVXE-iGfwPFB5pXwebcCogMXpQCLcB/s320/Chelsea%2B-%2BNext%2BPL%2Bmatches%2B-%2Bscreengrab%2Bfrom%2BFotmob%2Bapp.jpg" title="Chelsea - Next PL matches - screengrab from Fotmob app" width="217" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">screengrab from Fotmob app</span></i></td></tr>
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From a neutral standpoint, I expect Chelsea-Tottenham to be an even battle and Chelsea will need all their momentum to get 3 points from this match. The reason why I say this is because these are the 2 best defensive teams of the Premier League and if Tottenham have any ambition of winning the league, they will have to stop the gap between them and leaders Chelsea and this could be their match. As it stands today, Tottenham are 13 points behind Chelsea with a game in hand, which would virtually make it 10 points - still a significant gap.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-L2U-R2JXBpU/WGhHjUBrzLI/AAAAAAAAIKM/_RX5nqrDrKAqhcWbkxoAc6HIoWUQ_tXMwCLcB/s1600/PremierLeague.com%2Bstanding%2B-%2BScreengrab%2Bas%2Bon%2B31st%2BDec%2B2016.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="PremierLeague.com standing - Screengrab as on 31st Dec 2016" border="0" height="360" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-L2U-R2JXBpU/WGhHjUBrzLI/AAAAAAAAIKM/_RX5nqrDrKAqhcWbkxoAc6HIoWUQ_tXMwCLcB/s640/PremierLeague.com%2Bstanding%2B-%2BScreengrab%2Bas%2Bon%2B31st%2BDec%2B2016.JPG" title="PremierLeague.com standing - Screengrab as on 31st Dec 2016" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: xx-small;">screenshot from Premierleague.com</span></i></td></tr>
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If Chelsea wins against Tottenham, then they will breeze past Leicester City, who were patchy at best and would be without some top players due to their participation in African cup of nations tournament. Their next biggest hurdle will be against Liverpool and I fully expect it to be a virtual decider of the season. Assuming Chelsea continue grabbing points every game and Liverpool continue to impress, this game will be explosive. If Liverpool fail to snatch all 3 points against Chelsea, then we can consider Chelsea as the firm favorites to win the league. Then comes Arsenal. We can claim to have the bragging rights over Chelsea this season, something that Chelsea would be least bothered about anyway. To be fair to Arsenal, we had the bragging rights over last season's champions as well (we did a double on them too!). But again, these are just bragging rights and also shows that we were too inconsistent last season as well as this, in terms of competing for the title. </div>
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Its important for the quality of the Premier League that the leader in the table is not too far from the second. There has to be some amount of competition for the top spot. Liverpool are playing well and are the team most likely to challenge Chelsea, followed by inconsistent teams like Manchester City, Arsenal and Spurs. Let's not dismiss the resurgent Manchester United (who are on a 5 match winning streak of their own in the league). But for now, Chelsea fans - rejoice! The rest - we need to buckle up. There's more to be done next year.</div>
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Happy New Year everyone! Stay Blessed.</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-76166455230432040722016-12-31T05:01:00.002+05:302016-12-31T05:01:39.923+05:30Chinese Super League!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Here's a trivia for you - <b>Who is the highest paid football player? </b>And your options are - </div>
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<li style="text-align: justify;">Lionel Messi</li>
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<li style="text-align: justify;">None of the above</li>
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Most of you would have gone for either Ronaldo or Messi, simply because they are the best and probably deserve the best remuneration too! Your loyalties would have decided your answer. Anyway, the answer is Cristiano Ronaldo. Closely followed by Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale. However, this should not come as a surprise. But guess what, there's a string of players who are joining this group. And they all belong to one league! No, not the English Premier League.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-redkasi8FGU/WGbtaihZfFI/AAAAAAAAIJs/1eg51DwaQHsnNfN8iZVcS6SV1speC7TegCLcB/s1600/Chinese-Super-League-screengrab.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-redkasi8FGU/WGbtaihZfFI/AAAAAAAAIJs/1eg51DwaQHsnNfN8iZVcS6SV1speC7TegCLcB/s400/Chinese-Super-League-screengrab.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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One among them is Carlos Tevez! Who? You'd ask. No, I am kidding. If you follow Football, you would have heard of this strikers name. If you have been a Manchester United fan, a Manchester City fan, a Premier League fan, a Juventus fan, Italian League fan, or even a fan of Argentina, you know him. There's also Oscar, who's popular and highly criticized move from Chelsea showed how money-oriented footballers are over carving a career playing with the top team. I personally don't find anything wrong with Oscar's move. If you were in that situation where you are being offered more money (actually double or even more) for doing the same job with more exposure and opportunity to be a leader, would you decline? At least you would've give a thought. And even gone ahead!</div>
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<b>But how did all this happen? </b>Anyone knows about Chinese Super League? I initially thought the American, Chinese and the Indian Soccer Leagues were for players who crossed their prime (late 20's to early 30's). This is probably their swansong phase of football playing career and start of management. But boy, I was wrong. These clubs have big money to spend and a huge untapped market to tap. China and India are the top two countries in the world in terms of population. More population means more eyeballs, more eyeballs mean more viewership, more viewership means more money and eventually more money means more players ready to take the risk of going to an uncharted territory. That's how Tevez got in. He signed for Shanghai Shenhua.</div>
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Carlos Tevez, in a rather emotional move, had rejoined Boca Juniors in 2015 - his childhood club from Juventus. This showed the guy has an emotional connection with his childhood club and their fans. And in the process, he opted not to go for another big money move and compromised on his earnings. This is a rarity in Football now-a-days. But then, a couple of years later, he might have thought that emotions wont give him the luxury he had when he played for some of the top clubs. Parity, unfortunately, was restored. Same goes for Oscar and even Hulk!</div>
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Many players are now open to the idea of joining Chinese Super League for more money and a new challenge. Tevez, Oscar, Hulk, Lavezzi and among them. These are the players who can still make a mark in the most challenges leagues in Europe and still be among the top. But they chose an option unknown to most of us. Money is definitely a huge pulling factor here. Doesn't that say something about the clout that Chinese league has over other leagues? I won't be surprised if more players decide to take the plunge! We are in for an exodus and as a premier league fan, it disappoints me. But hey, Football is growing rapidly in newer markets and with far greater fan following. This is not bad either.</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-25417479857218392332016-12-30T05:43:00.001+05:302016-12-30T05:43:47.467+05:30The different types of football transfer news<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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What's the one thing that happens in Football twice a year? Transfer period, of course! It's a month of rebuilding the team, replacing non-performers with supposed performers, adding depth to cover for injuries, replacing players with more ego than desire. Buying world-class players who are suddenly transfer listed. The list just goes on.</div>
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But this is just one side of the story. The side that should have ideally remained that way. The other side - the "stories" - makes this phase a juicy phase especially for the fans. And that's where the media houses come in. These two months are when (I suspect) they usually have higher targets to achieve and more often than not (I suspect again) they achieve those targets with ease. Financial targets, article count targets, article page-view targets, Facebook and Twitter trending targets, you name it, they achieve it all! How, you may ask? That's where this post comes in. Read on.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SmKaiVE1x-c/WGWmhEd-L4I/AAAAAAAAIJU/2pWU4TqOD8AeTmFcrY7GLN7xJXBrHcJDgCLcB/s1600/Random%2BTransfer%2BNews%2Bsnippets%2B-%2Bscreengrab%2Bfrom%2BGoogle%2Bimages%2B-%2BLabelled%2Bfor%2Breuse.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Random Transfer News snippets - screengrab from Google images - Labelled for reuse" border="0" height="273" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SmKaiVE1x-c/WGWmhEd-L4I/AAAAAAAAIJU/2pWU4TqOD8AeTmFcrY7GLN7xJXBrHcJDgCLcB/s640/Random%2BTransfer%2BNews%2Bsnippets%2B-%2Bscreengrab%2Bfrom%2BGoogle%2Bimages%2B-%2BLabelled%2Bfor%2Breuse.JPG" title="Random Transfer News snippets - screengrab from Google images - Labelled for reuse" width="640" /></a></div>
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There are many different types of articles being published in many footballing websites. Some footballer looking for more playing time, some manager had a bust up with a footballer on the pitch, some clubs with lots of money approaching a player or his agent, one footballer was looking for house in a place different from his club location, players from different clubs caught dining together. All these are juicy gossips and were initially considered to be harmless. Not anymore. These are serious news making situations. Any of the above mentioned situations can turn into potential transfer news and media houses rake in enough money to sustain one whole month, if not more. </div>
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<b>Truthful - </b>These are actual news. You will have to be a genius to sort out these types of news. E.g. Oscar transfer to Shanghai SIPG. The deal happened, the player passed on his goodbyes, the club is also fine. No recurring revenue for football websites here. </div>
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<b>Situational - </b>These are possibilities. Here the articles play on the current situation at hand. One situation could be that the player is getting less playing time. Other could be his contract status. E.g. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain transfer news since he has only 18 months left in his contract. These types of news provides recurring revenue till the situation resolves itself. </div>
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<b>Incorrectly read between the lines - </b>These are creative transfer news based on one interview or simply an act. For example, if a player is being interviewed and he says he admires the way the other team is playing, or he appreciates a manager, or he is close friends with another player playing for a different club, all these and more could be actual incidents. However, the creative writers of the transfer market will weave a story around it in such a way that the player has "indirectly" asked to be transferred to a different club. Case in point - Alexis Sanchez saying life is difficult in London. I don't think Alexis meant he wants a change here. He just mentioned life is difficult when you are staying in a global city like London. I don't see any issue there. </div>
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<b>Outright Fake - </b>Most of the transfer news falls here. These are just random news articles just to excite the people and make them visit the sites. There's no truth, no situations, nothing. Just fake news. </div>
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We are slowly moving away from real life situations to virtual life situations thanks to social media. Now-a-days, even a harmless "like" on a social media post of a fellow footballer is considered a cryptic message and some bold sites even mention the player has already signed on the dotted line and they are waiting for the news to be officially announced. Wow! Talk of confidence. This works because these sites have nothing to lose and everything to gain. If the news turns out to be false, there's no retribution but if it is true, they claim they were the first to report it, which makes them famous. You see how these work work out in the end? </div>
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So, the next time you read a transfer gossip, treat it as just that - gossip. Read, enjoy and move on. The moment you start treating these as news and if it impacts your club, you are doomed for a month. Because you will keep on following up by checking their site often, their page views increase, they get better deals from ads, they win, you lose. Don't play into their hands. </div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-54377016105715156162016-12-29T05:20:00.004+05:302016-12-29T05:20:52.863+05:30Another day, Another sack<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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If you need any proof of the fact that we are living in a fast paced day & age, then look no further! Swansea City have just sacked their manager Bob Bradley. </div>
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Bradley was appointed as their manager in October 2016. Yup, that's just 2 months ago. In October, Francesco Guidolin was sacked as Swansea manager and Bob Bradley was surprisingly hired. Bradley's past experience and pedigree includes managing US national soccer team. In my opinion, Bradley as Swansea manager was a bold move because of two reasons - Swansea knew they have a battle on their hands to stay in the Premier League for another year and also the fact that a known person - Ryan Giggs - was also in the running for the job. </div>
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Premier League clubs have started showing zero tolerance with their managers, which is terrible for the manager community. You don't need knowledge of quantum physics to know that every job in this world involves a settling period. We take time not only to adjust to the new setup, but in many cases new countries, new ways of paying the game, new strategies, new people et al. Bob Bradley should consider himself very unfortunate. But hey, he should have seen it coming as this is the new footballing world we live in. </div>
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On the positive side, Sam Allardyce was sacked few months ago by FA for being part of a scandal and he's now back to regain his lost glory with Crystal Palace. Bob Bradley might get back to managing soon, but probably in a lower league team in England if he's to make a name for himself in England. He may get opportunities from clubs in other European countries. Swansea City, in order to fill the hole they created, are now looking at Ryan Giggs and Alan Pardew. It'd be quite a funny story of any of the two gets the nod. Ryan Giggs was overlooked when Bradley was signed, so by going for Giggs they don't mind going for 2nd best (by their own reckoning) option. If Alan Pardew comes back, it proves my hypothesis that karma has started allowing second chances to anyone and everyone and all the time. </div>
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Looking at this from a different perspective, why would anyone think of managing Swansea City, a club who has fired 2 managers in a span of 3 months? I don't think the person who comes in, will be passionate about the club! In fact far from it! The one who comes in, will only be interested in adding to his resume of managing a club in the Premier League. He will be sure that his neck is also on the line. If he succeeds to avoid the drop, he can kick-start his career (again). If he loses to do so, there's no harm either. No one expected him to do it anyway. So its a far bigger risk for Swansea City than for the new manager. </div>
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Whatever! </div>
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Let's just spend a moment in silence for the managers of the Premier League who's decline is inversely proportional to the financial growth of the league. Premier League clubs know they need to be in the top 17 in the table at the end of the season which means their financial coffers will continue to grow exponentially. Below top 17 means a year of obscurity, drought, famine and hard-work to be promoted again. Thus, clubs in the top of the league will do anything as long as it's not illegal (hopefully) even if it means adding instability to the club in the middle of the season. </div>
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The Perils of more money!</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-53496992009682237532016-12-28T06:08:00.000+05:302016-12-28T06:08:07.920+05:30Uncle Sam from England is one lucky guy<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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What happened to <i>karma </i>now-a-days? And what about the old adage - <i>As you sow, so shall you reap? </i>I guess most of us have learnt that the mistakes we make are liable for punishment. Only a handful of us get second chances in our lives. I don't know about most of us, but Sam Allardyce is one among the handful. </div>
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Let's absorb these phrases first - England National Football team manager, Highly reputed, Highly popular, Strong will, High net-worth. These are the phrases we used to associate Sam Allardyce with. But greed crept in somehow and he caved into committing to make decisions that are completely against the phrases we knew him for! Post the hidden cam video that went viral, Sam decided to step down and face the law. He didn't have any other option anyway. During all this hullabaloo, many managers were shortlisted for this role and one such manager was Alan Pardew. Eventually it didn't happen that way. Pardew continued to be manager of Crystal Palace and Sam quietly moved away from spotlight and into uncertain oblivion. </div>
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Few months later.. </div>
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Crystal Palace is down in the dumps, fighting to stay in the much coveted, financially satisfying and highly competitive English Premier League. Patience ran out of the owners and one fine day, Alan Pardew was sacked! He didn't step down, the official statement made it clear that the decision was made by the management and there was no mutual consent. Guess who stepped to fill this void?</div>
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Yes, karma and irony aside, it was Sam Allardyce himself! Now, I don't deny the pedigree Sam has to bring a struggling team back to safety. He has done that many times in his career. From a professional and success-oriented standpoint, it's a great decision. No doubt. But what about the baggage he is carrying? What about the scandal that he was part of? By bringing him back from oblivion, Crystal Palace proved that they don't care to be associated with a guy who was caught red handed and who took full responsibility before stepping down as England manager. </div>
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Is money the only thing that matters in English Premier League? Does history and image take a back seat when it comes to a financial landfall for staying in the Premier League? It appears so. At the core of the Premier League is the game we live and adore - Football. As a fan, I feel terribly pained to see how certain teams have thrown in the towel to achieve success at all costs - success in this case is to stay in the league and not be demoted to a lower league. Talking of Sam Allardyce, shouldn't he be banned by the Football Association of England for being open to make decisions that humiliated the FA in front of the footballing world? </div>
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Is it only me or does no one care about all this anymore? </div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-68305559425095899112016-10-01T05:00:00.000+05:302016-10-01T05:00:28.865+05:30Arsene Wenger as England manager? Why not?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Uncle Sam of the United Kingdom decided to earn some quick buck the wrong way. But ironically the cash registers are ringing at the office of the Daily Telegraph. </div>
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For the uninitiated, Daily Telegraph carried a sting operation on England head coach over transfer dealings and ways to bypass the FA rules and regulations. All the hype and hoopla over Sam Allardyce being the messiah of the England football team died within 67 days. That's it, that's all it took. The only solace Sam has is that he is probably the only England manager with a 100% success ratio. He managed one game and they won thanks to a last minute goal by Adam Lallana. </div>
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What I found funny was the press releases. FA and Sam ended their contract by "mutual consent"! Really? Mutual consent? It's like saying the Judge and the accused have decided to punish the accused to 4 years of rigorous imprisonment by "mutual consent". Sam should have been fired by the FA, not just his contract ended by mutual consent. </div>
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Anyway, we are now back to square one. England team are in tatters, not just by poor showing on the field but also by incidents off it. Now the hunt begins again. Who's going to be the new manager? Like it or not, managing England is still a prestigious job. A team with a lot of potential but without proper direction. A team that had players who can single-handedly change the game but for some reason, are unable to. What they lack, in my opinion, is proper leadership on and off the field. So, is there anyone who understands the FA administration and the England football in detail and is available in the near future? Is there anyone who can make-do with what he has at his disposal and lead England Football to new heights?</div>
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Did I hear anyone whisper Wenger? </div>
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<b>Arsene Wenger. </b></div>
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It's no secret that FA has Wenger as one of their shortlist. I am not sure if Wenger is FA’s no 1 choice. However, I won't be surprised if that's the case. Wenger ticks all the boxes. He is an established manager and has led Arsenal Football Club through thick and thin. Wenger understands the English Football market much better than anyone out there. He can bring the best out of footballers. He had a knack of picking up true gems from out of nowhere. He is a thorough professional and perhaps the only one, along with Sir Alex, who can bring dignity back to FA. His style of football is exciting to watch. And his contract with Arsenal is ending next season. </div>
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Now let's address the Elephant in the room. Wenger's criticism. Wenger is accused to be a financial manager. As the England manager, he won't be involved with finances anymore. So, that's not a problem. Wenger is accused to be someone who's not hungry for success. I strongly doubt it, but for the sake of argument, let's assume that's true. As the England manager, his main role and possibly his only role will be to make his team win games and tournaments. He won't be handling anything else. No transfer dealings, no building of a new stadium. So there's no running away, either he succeeds or he fails. No excuses. Wenger is accused of supporting youngsters more than they deserve. If at all anything, this will only help the England squad more than it hampers them. Did I miss any other criticism of Wenger? No, top 4 as a trophy does not apply to the national sides. So that's not a criticism. </div>
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This will be an interesting season for sure. Wenger has not rejected the England proposal yet. Arsenal would obviously want him to continue being their manager. A considerable portion of the fans would want him to continue. Players surely want him to continue. However, I won't be surprised if he decides to leave after this season. A change of scenery, with relatively less pressure, could be the main reason for this change. The media will be gunning for an opportunity to take him down, but Wenger has 20 years of experience in handling English media who exaggerates success and failure in equal measure. Handling them will be a cakewalk for Wenger. </div>
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If Wenger gives any positive vibes / hints to FA, I am sure FA will be prepared to wait for the season to end and then appoint Wenger. Wenger had always respected his contract and will only be available after the season. </div>
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Whatever happens, England Football team can only move up from here.</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-74325865929309237792016-08-13T16:19:00.000+05:302016-08-13T16:19:42.622+05:30Let the Premier League season begin..<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Finally, after 12 weeks, we have a new season of premier league. You know there's something amiss even if your weekends are going fine. There's something lacking to make the weekends even better that it actually is. It's a lot like cooking, you know the food is great but maybe a pinch of salt will elevate it to an altogether new level. Just a small tweak. That's all it takes. For me, Premier League was that salt I was looking to add during the weekends. And it now tastes great!</div>
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So what's new? Both Manchester teams brought in new managers. Not just another manager, but the top ones. <b>Manchester United </b>has Mourinho and <b>Manchester City</b> has Guardiola. This will surely make Manchester Derby even more interesting than what we had in the previous seasons. When new managers come in, expect new players too. That's what has happened. United has Ibrahimovic and Pogba among others and City has Nolito and Gabriel Jesus. I expect Guardiola to buy defensive enforcements as City is poor defensively. I also expect United to follow Mourinho's defense first strategy, which means it will be relatively more difficult to score against United. </div>
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<b>Liverpool </b>and <b>Chelsea </b>have also upgraded their teams. Klopp now has more years under his belt to make Liverpool great again with the players he need. Chelsea have had a terrible season by their standards. By bringing in Conte, they have again shown their intention of competing with the best. Conte is an astute tactician and will be interesting to see how he changes the way Chelsea plays. </div>
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<b>Leicester City </b>are the reigning champions. I still can't believe this happened. Premier League will now be closely watched to check if Leicester can maintain the same level of performance this season. They haven't done badly in the transfer window either. For starters, they have retained all their top stars except Kante. They also went on to buy value-for-money stars like they successfully did last season. But I feel they now need something more up their sleeve to surprise their opponents as most of teams will now be better prepared to tackle Leicester City's strategy of counter attack. </div>
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And finally <b>Arsenal</b>. Same old, same old, I hear again. Arsenal are in dire need of a quality defender, despite buying a high potential defender in Holding. Arsenal are in dire need of a quality striker to challenge Giroud. With Xhaka, the midfield problem of having a tough tackling midfielder has been solved. What remains to be seen is how Wenger handles his midfield with all the talents at his disposal. I expect Wenger to dip into the market to add 1-2 players to cover his defensive and attacking gaps. The advantage Arsenal has is the form of youngsters like Iwobi and Chuba Akpom. Same old, same old, I hear again. </div>
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What makes me excited about this season is the competition between top managers. With Guardiola, Wenger, Mourinho, Conte, Klopp and Ranieri vying for the top honors, you can't help but wonder who among these will accept failure this season. Add to it the fact that Wenger may leave his coveted post after this season makes the battle more intriguing. This is his final opportunity to win the league and leave on a high but this is by far the most toughest season he will face. </div>
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Rest assured, we are in for a ride this season. Prepare to be amazed and saddened at the same time as the team you support may not win the league as you expected. Manchester teams are obviously the favorites. But count the London teams out at your own peril. </div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-86112247326005207572016-08-01T05:50:00.000+05:302016-08-01T05:50:22.199+05:30Transfer Window - bound to be Pogba-tic!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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English Premier League has exactly nine months of a single season. The soccer is exciting. There are top clubs who compete for the top honors in England. There are favorites but none clear enough to win the league before the ball is kicked. Italy have Juventus, Germany have Bayern Munich, Spain has one among Real Madrid / Barcelona. England? It could be anyone among the Manchester Clubs (United and City), London clubs (Chelsea and Arsenal) or Liverpool. But it’s not that simple now-a-days. For example, Leicester came and won the league convincingly. Just the season before the last season, they were fighting tooth and nail not to be relegated from the premier league! You have shock results, surprises, winning streaks, non-losing streaks, injuries, comebacks et al. All in all, entertainment guaranteed for nine months at a stretch.</div>
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And then the inter-lull (defined as a phase when nothing happens. I guess it’s a soccer term) happens. Inter-lull is defined as a phase when nothing happens; I guess it’s a soccer term. 3 months of off-season. You are so habituated to see soccer during the weekend that the next 12 weekends become damp squib. That’s how we soccer fans thought. Media companies saw a market in this inter-lull. Guess what? The Transfer Window!</div>
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Transfer window, for the ignorant folks, is a window where players are transferred from one team to the other. This feels like a boring phase, isn’t it? I mean, why should we care about players coming in and going out of a club as long as we get our weekly dose of soccer. That’s what I thought in the early 2000’s. Not anymore. Ever since Chelsea was bought by a Billionaire, the financial dynamics behind managing a Soccer club changed. Add to that, the revenue generated by the television rights for a season makes even a newly promoted club with limited resources attempt to buy a “top talent” from the European market.</div>
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Transfer window is huge business for the media companies. They play on the “hope” factor for the teams that have a significant social media presence. Media is primarily responsible for having a divide in the fan base. Case in point: Arsenal. Then there are deals that are absurd in the real sense of the term. </div>
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Take Paul Pogba for example. He is a great talent with strength, vision and pace who will lead the team from central midfield. Acquiring his services would improve any team. It completely makes sense for a top team to buy him from Juventus. Everything makes sense till now. Now let’s look at the price being quoted for him – 100m+ pound. You can replace pound with Euro and it will remain still that – absurd! And to think that Manchester United are ready to finalize the deal, which by the way, is one-fifth of the clubs estimated revenue for 2016, shows how ridiculous the market has become. </div>
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There are means by which we can justify the price. Pogba is one-of-a-kind player and you won’t find his talent and potential elsewhere – a qualitative assessment and is debatable but still a fair point. EPL clubs have loads of money from the TV rights that they can quote over the top figures to get their player – fair point. Paul Pogba is young and has years of top quality football left in him, which means Manchester United are paying for his future potential and hence the amount. If we go by this logic, then Juventus is already making a huge profit after buying Pogba for less than a million and selling him for more than 100 million! </div>
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This is nothing against the player and the buying / selling club. This is just my assessment of the way transfer businesses are being held. I won’t be surprised if players are being bought and sold for 200m+ in the coming years. Where are we going with this? In my opinion, to doomsday! All this brouhaha over the transfer amount and the absurdity behind it is because of the TV rights and renewed sponsorship deals of a club. It’s like a balloon that is expanding and the club is enjoying every phase of stretching the limits of the balloon. But every balloon can handle only so much pressure and once it crosses that point, it will burst. In footballing terms, all it needs is a financial scandal to cut off TV revenue and sponsorship deals. That’s it! </div>
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The “top” clubs enjoy high revenues but have equally high debts (Case in point: Real Madrid). The returns are high, but so are the risks. I wish these clubs have a contingency plan to weather the storm coming their way. Else, fans will stand to lose in the long term. Our years of investment (time and money) in supporting our club will come to nothing. </div>
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Greed is one of the seven deadly sins, and it will be ready to haunt us for the rest of our lives!</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-66349409734516572592016-07-23T17:40:00.000+05:302016-07-23T17:40:40.287+05:30Howdy! Let me reintroduce you to...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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..ME!</div>
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That's right. I have been <i>off blogging </i>for a long time now. Exactly 3 months to be precise. Why, you'd ask. I honestly don't have a reason. I have many excuses though!</div>
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I have been in US for almost 11 months now. Things have been pretty interesting here (in both good and bad ways). Maybe I took more time to adjust to the new environment. Being on H1 visa also has its own perils. Since I am starting off in US, my credit history is still in its infant stage. This becomes a hurdle everywhere. The auto loans are high and the way banks accept you as a auto loan customer makes you feel they are doing a big favor. IT returns are also interesting here. We, as a family, went through the highs and lows of first time filing. The process is good but what made it bad was our tax consultants - "<i>Newwave Tax Consulting</i>"! It seems they were under an offshoring contract. There were tax "experts" sitting somewhere in Hyderabad doing night shifts. By the time their offshoring contract expired, I was not done with my tax filing. They just stopped responding to my emails and calls. When I narrated this incident to my colleagues, the first thing they told me was "not to go with Indian offshoring companies when it comes to US tax". Although, I must admit I was slightly offended, but it made sense to me because it happened with me! I then found a "credible" tax consultant (also from Indian origin, we are everywhere!) here in US and he ensured the rest of my experience remained smooth. As a result, I had to pay consultancy fees twice. Anyway, lesson learnt the hard way.</div>
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The above mentioned experience is just one among many and is in no way an excuse not to blog. I was so preoccupied with life here that I lost the urge to write something. I feel bad to say that I 'lost the urge to write'. But hey, you always come back to the things you love the most. So, here I am!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Image courtesy - https://i.ytimg.com/vi/eBh7zkxVF3A/maxresdefault.jpg</td></tr>
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A lot of things happened while I was away sorting my own stuff. Under normal circumstances, I would've blogged about them. IPL came and went. Pretty boring this season. Leicester City won the English Premier League. That's right! 5000-1 were the chances bookies had on this team at the start of the season. If you had bet on Leicester City with such odds, you would've been a millionaire by now! Leicester proved that costly players are not the recipe for on-field success. But EPL will never learn this lesson, am sure. Copa America came and went. The team I was rooting for - Chile - won again and my man Alexis Sanchez won the player of the tournament. Then came the Euros. I was rooting for Germany. They lost the semis. I was rooting for France. They lost the finals. Damn! I am an Arsenal fan, but if this trend (of my team losing) continues, I would follow all other 19 teams this EPL season. </div>
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In Indian Cricket, Anil Kumble became the national coach. A very good decision coming from the BCCI stable. Ravi Shastri's spat with Saurav Ganguly was portrayed as a case of 'sour grapes'. Shastri did a great job as a caretaker. But now its time for India to have a full time coach and take the Indian team forward. If you follow Indian cricket, you'd know we are batting heavy team and relatively light in the bowling department. If I had to select a coach, I would've selected someone who's a bowling legend, had been through tough times and emerged victorious, a credible person who commands respect of the entire dressing room. Also, one who's not too old and comes from the previous generation. Two names come to mind - Anil Kumble and Javagal Srinath. I would have been happy with either but am not sure if Srinath is keen to take up this role. That leaves Kumble and he's what he got eventually. I am happy.</div>
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When this was happening on the field, some cleaning was also happening off the field. Supreme Court decided to go with the Lodha Committee recommendations. BCCI now has no other option but to clean the mess they have created and ensure Indian Cricket fans get to see Cricket in its purest form and more transparency in administrative matters. If you were an ex-Cricket fan, maybe this is the time to return to your original love!</div>
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Personally, its so good to be back to blogging again. I feel like a newbie in the blogging world again. Maybe taking a break is a good thing (it eventually turned out well for Ross and Rachel from F.R.I.E.N.D.S). </div>
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More from me soon.</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6045675563029039300.post-77257431759099462442016-04-23T06:35:00.000+05:302016-04-23T06:35:52.828+05:30Why so toxic, Gooners?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Before I attempt being realistic and practical, here's my rant - </div>
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Season after season after season, we bottle the league. And the question is not whether Arsenal will win the league next season. The question for the past few years have been how differently will Arsenal bottle the league this season! One season we mess up the initial few games and are playing catch-up for the rest of the season for something that defines our consistency - top 4. One season we consistently top the league gameweek after gameweek, waiting for someone to be injured and then the bottling begins. This season, we were competing not with the heavyweights but with an amazingly resurgent Leicester City and, dare I say it, unbelievably consistent, Spurs. But when the rest of the team are playing against each other, Arsenal chose to play against itself. We kept on dropping points when we were ahead and now we are fighting the battle we master in - top 4. Same old, same old they say.</div>
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That's it. Rant done.</div>
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If you read my above frustration carefully, I haven't blamed anyone. It could be Stan Kroenke's fault, Wenger's fault, player's fault and even fan's fault. For Kroenke, its business and its going perfectly fine in terms of numbers. Why repair when it ain't broke? For Wenger, team has been consistent over the past 19 years and, despite the fact that he wants to win the league, he still applauds top 4 position as it guarantees UEFA Champions League for next season. For the players, they know Wenger will trust and support them despite the lack of form or persistent injuries and there's hardly any pressure on them. Even they know that the fans nail Wenger for every loss and the players get away with it every time. For fans, we link every loss with Wenger's transfer business (or the lack of it), Wenger's sacking (or the lack of it). It could be a joint responsibility for all we know. We cannot expect Kroenke to leave (unless the situation drastically changes and he finds sale of Arsenal Football Club as a more profitable deal than continuing with the club). Arsene Wenger is sure to complete his contract. And the players, well, will go through another season thinking what could have been, IF..</div>
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But what about us fans? I completely understand the frustration. Count me in too. But how is so much negativity helping the team during a season? Will it help the club win anything? No. Will it help ease pressure on the club? No. All its doing is to make us a laughing stock in front of other teams. Its putting our players under even more pressure to perform. Its almost as if Arsenal is playing against fans every weekend! The other team is just for academic purpose who make use of this sensitive situation leave with 3 points and we restart the circle of blame game. This season has been a prime example of it.</div>
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Here's my personal take on this - I couldn't wait for the season to end. We've had perhaps the worst season in the past one decade and we are still 3rd in the league. This could've been the season for us. Our competitors are languishing in their own hole and we, instead of owning the league, dug our own hole and are now attempting to come out of it. There are now 4 games to go. Traditionally, 3 are easy fixtures. There's one against Manchester City which could turn out to be the fight for 3rd place, unless Spurs slip. Let's support our team for these games and then start the blame game / revolution. </div>
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Let's not be our teams biggest enemy, definitely not during a season.</div>
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BGThttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14949058048585399102noreply@blogger.com2