Late Vernon strike gives Richmond Shield again

WENSLEYDALE LEAGUE MEDALS SHIELD FINAL
RICHMOND TOWN ACADEMY 2 HAWES UNITED 1 (aet)
By Ricky Butler at the RGPS

A goal from Sam Vernon three minutes from the end of extra time at Northallerton Town last night saw Richmond Town Academy retain the Medals Shield for a third year in a row.

With a closely fought final seemingly heading for a penalty shoot out, Vernon's 117th minute shot on the turn from 12 yards left Hawes United heartbroken.

Town, who had lifted this trophy for the past two seasons, went close early on through Jonathan Kellett and Ben Holmes but it was Hawes who went in front after 14 minutes.

Steve Calvert broke from midfield and fed Jonathon Champion on the edge of the penalty area. He played a neat 1-2 with Darren Bell before smashing the ball past Town goalkeeper Karl Lathum from 16 yards.

But the lead lasted barely 10 minutes. Mark Cleminson whipped in a dangerous free kick from out on the left and Ross McGuigan flicked the ball past Hawes 'keeper Chris Harrison from six yards.

Richmond were the better side for the remainder of the first half and they should have gone in front after half an hour when Josh Wooff hit the crossbar from close range after a low cross from Dylan Wardale.

But Hawes got on top in the second period with Brett Calvert, Daniel Peacock and Bell all coming close to winning it. although it was Richmond who nearly snatched the trophy two minutes from time.

Vernon played in Wooff and he displayed a neat touch to round Harrison, but Brett Calvert got back to make a superb last-ditch challenge as he was about to roll the ball into the empty net.

Extra time was difficult as players from both sides went down with cramp and the final was heading for a penalty shoot-out when Richmond grabbed a dramatic winner.

Cleminson showed a cool head on the edge of the penalty area before slipping in Vernon whose shot on the turn beat Harrison to give Richmond the Shield again.

RICHMOND TOWN ACADEMY - Lathum, Simpson, Muirhead, McGuigan, Cleminson, Carruthers, Kellett, Wooff, Holmes, Vernon, Wardale. Subs - Donaldson, Soulsby, Metcalfe, Battersby.

HAWES UNITED - Harrison, Iveson(L), Calvert(B), Guy(S), Allen, Calvert(S), Iveson(J), Dinsdale, Champion, Peacock, Bell. Subs - Guy(J), Hulley, Richardson, Iveson(A).

REFEREE - S. Peake
ASSISTANTS - E. Morris, J. Shuker
FOURTH OFFICIAL - J. Stephenson

Time to scrap the away goals rule?

Laurent Koscielny heads Arsenal's second goal in Munich in March, but should that have led to extra time?

FOLLOWING Arsenal's heroic failure in the Champions League at Bayern Munich this season, surely it is time to review the ridiculous away goals rule?

I understand why it was introduced - to encourage more attacking football in the early days of European club competition. But has it really achieved that?

It is now accepted that a 0-0 draw at home in the first leg is a good result. In what way is this encouraging attacking football?

Also, if the away team score early in the first leg they are happy to sit back, knowing a 2-1 defeat is not a disaster as a 1-0 home win will take them through. Again, hardly encouraging teams to attack.

All that tends to happen is that the home team sets out to keep a clean sheet - the definition of negative football. That has become more important than actually winning the game.

Moreover, the whole idea of football is to score more goals than your opponent. Putting the ball in the net is the hardest thing in the game which is why good strikers cost the most money. Therefore why should a goal scored away from home be more valuable than one scored at home? A goal is a goal after all.

In no other competition is the away goal rule used. Imagine if it were in place in the FA Cup. The away team gets a 1-1 draw but goes through as their goal is worth more. No one would think that was fair.

If we accept that the away goals rule was brought in to encourage the away team to attack, rather than just sit back for a 0-0 draw or 1-0 defeat hoping to turn it around at home in the second leg, then surely it should be overruled by an away win?

Therefore, if both legs end in away wins (say, 1-2 and 0-1) how can one away win be more worthy than the other if the aggregate score is the same?

I cannot for the life of me understand how Arsenal's 2-0 win in the Allianz Arena was not as worthy as Bayern's 3-1 win at the Emirates three weeks earlier? Both are 2-goal away wins, one should cancel out the other.

Of course it is easy for people to think I am just a bitter Gooner who is unhappy that his team went out of the competition. Everyone knew the rules before the start. But I have no problem with going out if you actually lose the tie.

Last year, Arsenal lost 0-4 away in Milan and although they won the second leg 3-0, they were out on aggregate. Fair enough. The year before, Wenger's side lost 3-4 on aggregate to Barcelona. Again, no problem. But to win away from home, draw 3-3 on aggregate and still go out? No, I'm not having that.

And just because we all knew the rules does not make them right. The game has changed. The offside law, for example, has changed several times. Three points for a win was introduced back in 1982. Then we had the new back pass law ten years later. All were brought in to make the game more exciting.

As the game changes, the laws of the game need to change with it. The away goals rule is now out-dated. Unnecessary. Extra time and penalties were introduced to decide cup ties that finished level in every other competition. Why should Europe be any different?

1-0 to the Arsenal, part 2

SUNDERLAND 0 ARSENAL 1

HAVING finally broken our away-day duck this season at Wigan just before Christmas, Emerson and I made it two wins in a row with this exciting success at Sunderland on Saturday.

This Arsenal side have been accused of lacking heart and bottle this season, but after this performance they showed they have plenty of both.

In a first half display which was as good as anything we have produced all season, the lads dug in after Karl Jenkinson’s sending off early in the second half to ensure we left with the three points that were absolutely essential.

For reasons unbeknown to most Sunderland fans, the club have decided to move the away section to the opposite end of the stadium this season, above the traditional home end. Now while the view is undoubtedly better and the atmosphere superb, it did seem strange to see the team run out towards the opposite end to warm up before kick-off.

That warm up produced some drama as Laurent Koscielny, who had been named in the original starting XI, pulled up with a recurrence of his calf injury, so Jenkinson was brought into the side with Bacary Sagna switching to centre half.

I have to say I was not convinced about him playing there as he been poor in his natural right back role this season, but he was to prove me wrong with possibly his best performance in an Arsenal shirt.

The first half saw us attacking our end and we played some sublime football in between the Black Cats 'attempts to kick us off the park. Santi Cazorla and Jack Wilshere were both immense in midfield, while the movement of Theo Walcott and Olivier Giroud up front meant the chances kept on coming.

We should have been 3 or 4 up in opening twenty-five minutes as we tore them apart again and again. Simon Mignolet, a goalkeeper who would be a great addition to our squad, produced heroics to deny Walcott and Cazorla, while Giroud and Aaron Ramsey also came close.

But the goal we had been threatening finally arrived, ten minutes before the break. Another sweeping move saw Walcott find Cazorla on the edge of the penalty and the little Spaniard thundered a shot through the crowded box to send the away end into raptures.

It should have been 2-0 just before the break when Ramsey was denied by Mignolet from close range when he really ought to have scored, and I hoped that would not come back to haunt us in the second half.

It appeared as though it might however, when Jenkinson was shown a second yellow card by referee Anthony Taylor for bringing down Sessengnon right in front of the away end. No complaints about that as it was clearly a bookable offence, as was his earlier challenge on Jack Colback, but the poor official looked way out of his depth for much of the afternoon.

In this situation most managers would have panicked and threw on another defender at the expense of a forward, but Wenger kept calm, slotted Ramsey in at right back and dropped Cazorla a little deeper.  

Now I have been one of Ramsey biggest critics in the past but his form in recent weeks has been superb and he did a great job in another unfamiliar role. Sessegnon is a tricky customer at the best of times but the Welshman handled him very well and even managed to get forward when the opportunity presented itself.

Of course with ten men we came under a lot of pressure in the final twenty minutes, more so after Wilshere had been forced to depart after one too many cynical challenges, this time from the truly abysmal Alfred N’Diaye. Quite how this guy has managed to steal a living as a professional footballer is beyond me and I was not surprised to see him depart for the far superior Danny Graham.

We could have sealed the points ten minutes from time when Walcott struck the post in a lightening quick counter attack, but that would have killed the game and denied us the exciting finale that unfolded. Sunderland threw everything at us but we put our bodies on the line to preserve the clean-sheet and the three points.

Of course we were thankful to Wojceich Szczsney in the end for a series of outstanding stops, some of which were almost Schmechiel-like. Good to see too as the Pole has looked a little shaky in recent weeks.

One save in particular, from Steven Fletcher’s close range header, defied belief and was easily one of the best I have ever seen. Last season on this ground, a late Thierry Henry goal saw us move into the top 4, a win that proved significant in the final reckoning, and the celebrations at the end here, both on the pitch and in the away end, showed this could be just as important came May.

In a way it was the perfect away performance. Electrifying in the first half and solid in the second. Strong at both ends of the pitch. This is clearly a team still in transition but as the season has gone on they have grown together.

With the young British lads like Wilshere, Walcott, Ramsey, Jenkinson, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Kieran Gibbs all tied in to long term deals, the future looks bright.

I have been saying it for a while now and have been called a dreamer, but I really believe this team can win the Premier League within two years. The addition of one of two new recruits this summer could even make it happen next season.

Optimistic? Perhaps, but if Emerson and I can see two away wins in a row this season, then anything is possible.

The Hazard of being a ball-boy

THE big story in football this week is not about 'little' Bradford City becoming the first club from the fourth tier of English football to reach a Wembley cup final.

It is not about Swansea becoming the first Welsh club to reach the final of the English League Cup. It's not even about Arsenal scoring five against West Ham or the serious injury sustained by Hammers' Dan Potts in the same match.

No. The Story of the week is about a ball-boy who refused to give the ball back and was kicked in the ribs for his trouble. Correct me if I am wrong but is it not the job of the ball-boy to retrieve the ball and return it to the players as quickly as possible? Is that not the first lesson they receive at ball-boy school?

Yet young Charlie Morgan - I say young but he is in fact 17 years old, a veteran in ball-boy circles - had boasted on his Twitter profile earlier in the day that he was going to 'waste time.'

Of course from a fans point of view that is totally understandable. With his club so close to a cup final he wanted to do everything he could to ensure they got there. We have all felt like that, right? However, this usually just involves singing as loudly as we can and perhaps booing the opposition players.

But on the night he was not a fan. He was representing the club, his club, and doing a very important job. A job that most young lads would give their right arm to do.

Five minutes before the much-talked about incident, with fifteen minutes of the tie remaining and Swansea still leading 2-0 on aggregate, the ball went out for a Swansea goal-kick and Morgan took his time retrieving it. So much so in fact that several Chelsea players gestured to him and pointed it out to referee Chris Foy.

Perhaps what should have happened then was for someone from the club to have had a quiet word with him. Tell him that was not really on. Maybe the assistant referee on that side of the pitch could have intervened.

But no. So when the ball went out of play again soon after, Morgan was not going to rush. In fact he wanted to take even more time. As Eden Hazard approached to get the ball himself, Morgan turned away to prevent him from reaching it.

Of course Hazard was frustrated. His team was losing and he wanted to get on with the game. With so many footballers these days criticised for cheating and time wasting, it was refreshing to see one in such a hurry to get on with it. Funny how losing does that to you.

Morgan then appeared to slip and land on the ball, but instead of moving away so Hazard could get it, he again shielded it from the Chelsea man.

Hazard had clearly had enough now and his frustration got the better of him. He knew, as we all knew, that Morgan was deliberately trying to stop him getting the ball. He reacted in exactly the same way as most of us would in that situation. He attempted to kick the ball from under him.

Unfortunately it appeared he had also caught Morgan in the ribs with his boot and the ball-boy made sure everyone knew about it. Milked it for all it was worth.

At this point Foy was looking in the opposite direction and was only alerted to the incident by the reaction of Swans skipper Ashley Williams, who ran over to confront Hazard. After consulting with his assistant, the official then produced a red card for the Belgian for serious foul play, but was it really a sending off offence?

I have to say I have never seen an incident like that in over 30 years of watching the game but I have seen players fall on the ball and then prevent an opponent from getting it. What usually happens is a sort of free-for-all where one or more of the surrounding players try to kick the ball out, inevitably catching the player who is protecting the ball. And the result? Usually a yellow card for the player on the ground for ungentlemanly conduct.

So what happens now? Well despite his apology immediately after the game, Hazard will no doubt get the book thrown at him. Fined, banned and warned about his future conduct.

Meanwhile young Morgan, just five years Hazard's junior, will probably get away scot-free. His days as a ball-boy are probably over anyway, as according to his Twitter profile he had only come out of 'retirement' for the Chelsea game due to others dropping out.

No doubt he will be looked on a celebrity in his village with countless interviews on the local news and slaps on the back from his mates. A claim for compensation could also be on the cards as I bet the injuries he sustained are far more serious than they first appeared. And Hazard is loaded, right?

I wouldn't be surprised if he was given free tickets to the final by the club and travels to Wembley on the team bus. He certainly played his part in getting them there.

But shouldn't he have to face some sort of punishment? The lad who ran onto the pitch to confront Rio Ferdinand in the recent Manchester derby, a lad around the same age as Morgan, was banned from all football grounds for life.

Of course that was far more serious, even though he was prevented from actually reaching Ferdinand by the intervention of Joe Hart, and I wouldn't suggest a similar punishment in this case. But he certainly should never be allowed to represent the club again and be denied pitch-side access in future.

As usual I expect the FA will probably take the PC approach and set up a Ball-boy Academy to teach youngsters the art of retrieving the ball both quickly and safely. It will probably be called the Charlie Morgan Academy and have his statue outside the front gate.

But we need to keep some perspective. This was a one-off incident. Both parties made mistakes and I'm sure both realise that now. Perhaps we should just accept that and move on. However, I get the feeling we haven't quite heard the last of this.

Second half Arsenal blitz sees off Hammers

ARSENAL 5 WEST HAM UNITED 1
By Ricky Butler at The Emirates
FOUR goals in a scintillating 10 minute second half spell gave Arsenal a much needed victory at the Emirates last night, although the result was somewhat overshadowed by a serious head injury to West Ham substitute Dan Potts.

The match was held up for more than 10 minutes in the second half as the defender lay stricken on the turf following a clash of heads with Bacary Sagna, and with Sam Alladyce having already used his three substitutes, the Hammers finished the game with only ten men. The result however, had long been decided by Arsenal's earlier blitz.

Arsene Wenger's side began the night seven points behind fourth-placed Spurs so they knew nothing less victory would be enough to keep their Champions League hopes alive. But despite going a goal down inside twenty minutes, courtesy of a great strike from Jack Collison, Arsenal fought back in impressive style.

Having missed Sunday's 2-1 defeat at Chelsea due to illness, Lukas Podolski was back in the side and it was his magnificent 25 yard drive that brought the Gunners level just four minutes after Collison's effort.

Arsenal should have been ahead by the break as Podolski saw another effort cleared off the line by Joey O'Brien, although Aaron Ramsey was forced to do likewise at the other end to deny Carlton Cole.

But Arsenal nerves were settled within a minute of the second half. Theo Walcott whipped in a low corner from the left and Oliver Giroud arrived to turn the ball home at the near post. And that opened the floodgates.

Six minutes later Podolski played a lovely one-two with Santi Cazorla and the little Spaniard tucked the ball home from close range with a clever back-heel. Podolski then crossed for Walcott to make it 4-1 with his 16th goal of the season, and the German then created the fifth for Giroud with another inviting delivery from the left.

A repeat of the seven they scored against Newcastle recently looked on the cards, but the injury to Potts 15 minutes from time ended the match as a contest. Walcott and substitute Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain both came close in a subdued finale but the points were already safely in the bag.

"West Ham defended very well in the first half," said Wenger. "We looked dangerous but couldn't finish our chances. We came out in the second half and attacked with tremendous pace. The injury to Dan Potts was the end of the game really but until that moment we played very well.

"In the Chelsea game there were a lot of positives, it was disappointing to lose, but we took the positives and transferred that into to this game.

"You want to be at your best every single game but we have many new players and it takes some time to get to know each other very well and I think that understanding is getting better."

West Ham manager Alladyce said: "It was 10 minutes of genius. You could say we could defend better but I thought they hit the ground running.

"The encouraging thing for them was that we switched off for one corner and that lifted them. In the first half we defended exceptionally well but that 10 minutes blew us away."

ARSENAL - Szczesny 7, Sagna 7, Mertersaker 7, Vermaelan 7 (Koscielny 58, 7), Gibbs 8, Ramsey 9, Cazorla 8, Wilshere 8, Walcott 8, Giroud 8 (Oxlade-Chamberlain 77, 6), Podolski 9 (Santos 70, 6).

WEST HAM UNITED - Jaaskelainan 6, Reid 6 (Diarra 62, 5), Tomkins 5, O'Brien 6, Demal 7, Collison 7 (Potts 62, 6), Taylor 6, Noble 6, Nolan 5, Cole(C) 6, Vaz Te 5 (Diame, 6).

REFEREE: A. Marriner 6 - An easy night for the Birmingham-based official.

MAN OF MATCH: Podolski (Arsenal) - One cracking goal and three assists. Possibly his best game for the club.

TICKETS SOLD: 60,081

Expectations lowered...

GONE are the days when I expect us to beat any of the big clubs. All I hope for is a good performance and that we can pick up enough points against the rest to finish in the Champions League places.

So in that respect the game at Chelsea was a success. If you discount most of the first half anyway. But it would have been a very different story had Giroud put away the early chance that presented itself. For Arsenal to have won they simply had to score first, and Giroud simply had to score.

Walcott put the Frenchman clear and he should have taken a touch to push the ball in front of him instead of letting it go across his body which made the angle so much tighter. Walcott has had his critics but you just know this is the sort of chance he would have stuck away, as he proved in the second half.

We played well after the break of course, forcing Chelsea back and creating numerous opportunities to get something from the match, but you cannot play for just 45 minutes against the top sides and expect to get a result.

Yes, both their goals were dubious to say the least. Coquelin was clearly fouled in the build up to the opener while it did appear as though Ramires simply slipped over in the incident that led to the match-winning penalty. Or perhaps he just conned the referee. He anticipated the challenge from Szczesny and fell over. Either way it was a harsh award.

But at least we showed some character after the break. Walcott's goal, his 15th of the season - not bad for someone who allegedly can't finish - came at just the right time and I was convinced we would go on and get a point.

But the late pressure came to nothing and in the end we were grateful to Vermaelen for a goal-line clearance to deny Ba an undeserved Chelsea third.

So where does it leave us? Well the squad looks very thin on the ground. With no Arteta, Podolski or Ox, the bench was especially weak. Things were so bad that even Arshavin was given a run-out in the closing stages. I really wanted him to grab the equaliser but it is not going to happen for the little Russian now so it is time to wave a fond farewell.

With under two weeks left of the 'Transfer Window' (sponsored by Sky Sports), Wenger really does need to spend. A striker, a defensive midfielder, a left back and a centre half are all required if we are going to fulfil the potential in players like Wilshere, Ox, Walcott and Cazorla.

But it probably won't happen. Wenger will not buy a defensive midfielder as he will not want to hamper the progress of Coquelin. Plus, he will say, we have Frimpong waiting in the wings and Diaby is fit again.

Having persuaded Walcott to sign a new contract on the basis he will play more often as a central striker, Wenger will not want to buy another forward now, especially as we already have Giroud and Podolski.

So we will probably see out the season with the same group of players who have so far flattered to deceive. At times brilliant - Liverpool and Reading away, Southampton and Newcastle at home were all performances of potential Champions.

Yet at other times we have been so poor it's been painful. Norwich and Villa away for example, Swansea at home. Sometimes we have gone from one extreme to other within the same 90 minutes. As we did at Chelsea.

Having said all that, I still think we will finish 4th. We have an easier run-in than most of the teams around us and we seem to have a knack of pulling it around when it really matters.

But is that enough? Many Arsenal fans would argue that it is not. With the price of tickets surely we should be able to compete with the likes of Chelsea, City and United, they say. Plus it is nearly 8 years since we last lifted a trophy.

However, I would take 4th place over an FA Cup success any day. A day out at Wembley is all well and good but it is soon over and then all you have are the memories, a few hundred quid less in your pocket and a place in the Europa League to look forward to.

No, not for me. I feel we have to be in the Champions League. After everything that has happened this season, that would be a real success. Plus it would mean Spurs missing out again. Come on you would like that wouldn't you?

Late Wilshere strike sends Arsenal through

FA CUP 3rd ROUND REPLAY
ARSENAL 1 SWANSEA CITY 0
By Ricky Butler at the Emirates

A WONDER goal three minutes from time from the outstanding Jack Wilshere kept Arsenal's season alive at a frozen Emirates last night.

The 21 year-old, who only returned from a 17 month injury nightmare in October, finally ended the brave Swansea resistance with a thumping half-volley just as it was beginning to look like a tale of missed opportunities for Arsene Wenger's side.

Arsenal had dominated the second half to such an extent that Wojciech Szczesny was in danger of catching hypothermia in the freezing temperatures.

Chance after chance went begging as the Gunners did everything but score. Theo Walcott, playing on the right, chipped narrowly wide after a superb through ball from Abou Diaby, before seeing a close range effort cleared off the line by Danny Graham.

Oliver Giroud, back in the starting line up in place of Lukas Podolski, twice came close as did Santi Cazorla, while Michel Vorm had earlier saved well from Thomas Vermaelen and Francis Coquelin.

But with extra time less than five minutes away, Wilshere finally made the crucial breakthrough. Cazorla found Giroud on the right side of the penalty area and the Frenchman's lovely flick sat up nicely for Wilshere to drill a half-volley beyond Vorm from 20 yards.

After Sunday's defeat at the hands of Manchester City, this was a match Wenger's side could ill-afford to lose. With the FA Cup their only realistic chance of silverware this season, an early exit would have piled more pressure on the Frenchman.

The fans had already shown their disillusionment with thousands of seats left empty, a situation rarely seen at the Emirates, but those who stayed away missed a thrilling tie.

Swansea gave as good as they got in an even first half. Former Gunner Kyle Bartley headed onto the crossbar while only a desperate, last-ditch tackle from Vermaelen denied Nathan Dyer.

But there was only one team in it after the break. With Abou Diaby and Coquelin providng a shield in front of the back four, Wilshere and Cazorla were given the freedom to run riot. But with time running out and extra time imminent, Wilshere finally broke Swansea hearts to seal a 4th round trip to Brighton.

"Jack was outstanding tonight," said Wenger. "He played in a different position, a bit higher up the pitch, and it suited him well. I didn't expect him to be this good at this stage.

"I always thought that if we could get Jack back to a reasonable level by January we will have done well, but he is ahead of what I could imagine.

"He is back to what he was before the injury, I think so, yes. A complete midfielder can defend and attack and Jack can also dribble and give a final ball so the closer players like him are to the goal the better it is for them."

Swansea manager Michael Laudrup said: "We tried, we defended well, at times heroic.

"They had two or three chances where you say 'It's only a matter of time when they score'.

"If they score a few minutes from the end you think it could have gone into extra-time, but they deserved the win in the end.

"I want to win every game and the players want to, but it's not possible for anyone. It's not a question of saying it doesn't matter and I am disappointed."

Meanwhile, Wilshere was delighted with only his second goal of the season.

"It was a great set-up from Olivier [Giroud}. I didn't want extra-time. It was important we got the winner before 90 minutes. We know Brighton play football, they play great football, so it will be another tough tie."

ARSENAL - Szczesney 6, Sagna 6, Mertersaker 6, Vermealen 7, Gibbs 7, Diaby 6 (Ramsey 82, 6), Coquelin 6, Wilshere 9, Cazorla 8, Giroud 8, Walcott 7. Subs not used: Mannone, Jenkinson, Santos, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Arshavin, Podolski.

SWANSEA CITY - Vorm, 8 Richards 6, Bartley 7, Chicco 7, Tiendalli 7, Brittan 6, Agustien 6 (Hernandez 59, 6), Dyer 6, De Guzman 6 (Jung-Yeong 60, 6), Routledge 6, Graham 5(Michu 71, 6). Subs not used: Tremmel, Davies, Monk, Shechter.

REFEREE: M. Clatenberg 7 - Got all the big calls right and went about his business in a calm and assured manner.

MAN OF MATCH: Jack Wilshere (Arsenal) - Is there a better midfielder anywhere in the World right now ?

TICKETS SOLD: 58,359

City fans should look closer to home for the price of tickets

                   

IS it just me who sees the irony in Manchester City fans complaining about the price of tickets at the Emirates on Sunday?

It has been their club's irresponsible transfer and wage policy which has forced clubs like Arsenal to raise ticket prices in order to try and compete.

Arsenal has taken a more frugal approach. They only spend on transfers and wages what they can recoup in ticket sales and merchandise. In other words -  the correct way.

What this has meant however, is that they have been forced to sell their better players to clubs like City in order to balance the books. They have also been left behind in the transfer market. A player who might otherwise have been happy coming to the Emirates on £55k a week is suddenly having his head turned by the prospect of £150k at Eastlands.

And transfer fees go up as a result. Arsenal bid £10million, City bid 25. The only choice Arsenal have is to either risk future financial meltdown by speculating with money they do not have, or increasing ticket prices to try to make up the gap.

So excuse me if I feel very little sympathy for the City fans who travelled to London on Sunday. Of course I understand that the fans are not to blame for how their club chooses to do business but they need to look a little closer to home before complaining about others.

They have been quite happy to see their club splash out unsustainable amounts of money on transfer fees and wages as they have seen them go from a yo-yo club into Premier League champions. They have been quite happy for them to trample over other clubs along the way.

You cannot have it both ways. The consequences of your clubs' actions are higher ticket prices for everyone.

So City fans, next time you think you are paying too much to watch your team remember the trophies you have won in recent years and how you have been able to win them. Surely £62 is a small price to pay?

1-0 to the Arsenal - away wins like they used to be

'WE want our Arsenal back' has been a popular chant from the travelling Gooners this season, and over the previous five days that is exactly what we have got.

Monday night at Reading we saw the free-flowing, Arsene Wenger Arsenal at it's very best. Flaky at the back, sure, but incisive and inventive going forward.

Wigan, on the the hand, saw us back to the days of George Graham. Solid and pragmatic, grinding out a 1-0 away victory. The sort of victory, in fact, that success is built on.

Both performances were impressive in their own right and showed that this team has more about it then perhaps they have been given credit for.

Of course it was only Reading and Wigan. Two sides in the bottom three and games we should be expecting to win. But in a league where everyone is capable of beating everyone else, two away wins at opposite ends of the country inside a week is pretty impressive stuff.

Anyone on Saturday who was expecting another Reading was always going to be disappointed. Wigan had been struggling with defensive injuries and were never going to allow us as much space and freedom as Reading had afforded us. We needed to work for this one. Grind it out.

Yes, we had one or two things go our way. Arouna Kone should have given Roberto Martinez' side the lead midway through the first half when he raced past the otherwise immaculate Per Mertersaker but fired wide of the target.

Then there was the penalty. My initial reaction was that it was a foul. Theo tricked Bousejour into the challenge and he was caught. Yes it was soft, but a foul is a foul and Mikel Arteta duly converted from the spot.

Having waited 330 minutes to see an away goal in the Premier League this season, Emerson and I were not about to complain about this one that was for sure! Plus, of course, when the goal is a penalty you get two celebrations for the price of one - the first when the referee points to the spot and the second when the ball actually hits the net.



Arteta slots home the winner to give us something to cheer at last

The banter with the Wigan fans to our left was great. They started it with a rendition of 'Robin van Persie, he left 'cause you're s**t.' But we responded with possibly THE chant of the season - 'Titus Bramble, he left 'cause you're s**t!' Hilarious.

But instead of going on to dominate as we had at Reading, for some reason we decided to sit back after that and the substitutions showed our intentions.

The Ox, who had been impressive down the right, was replaced by Ramsey, Podolski was replaced by Coquelin and Cazorla, who had had little influence on proceedings, was replaced by Laurent Koscielny. I wouldn't mind betting all these decisions were made by a certain Mr. Stevie Bould either.

They put us under pressure in the closing stages but that old Graham spirit shone through. Thomas Vermealen and Metersaker were outstanding, while Coquelin and Arteta gave them the necessary protection in the closing stages. 1-0 to the Arsenal. Got a ring to it, eh?

The win lifted us up to third place, thanks to Spurs failing to beat Stoke later in the day, so a club that was in crisis a couple of weeks ago is now looking in fine shape.

Of course I will not get too carried away. Improvements are needed, reinforcements are needed, but in the circumstances we should be fairly happy with our lot going into Christmas.

A title challenge in 2013 looks out of the question, although we did pull back a similar gap in 1998, but this is a work in progress. With the 'Young Guns' tied to long term deals, and Theo expected to sign his soon, this group can only grow and I wouldn't be at all surprised if we do indeed get our Arsenal back before too long.

Just don't expect it to be the class of 2004. More like 1994, but that will do for me. 5-2 wins are great of course, but it is the 1-0's that win you silverwear.

Michu at the double as Arsenal suffer shocking home defeat

ARSENAL 0 SWANSEA CITY 2
By Ricky Butler at the Emirates

Two goals in the final two minutes from leading scorer Miguel Michu gave Swansea a shock win at The Emirates on Saturday.

The Spaniard twice capitalised on Arsenal defensive errors in the closing stages to pile more pressure on beleaguered Gunners boss Arsene Wenger.


The Frenchman had spoken in the build up to the game about the need to win their home matches but his side rarely looked like scoring against a resolute Swans defence.

In contrast, Michael Laudrup's men should have been in front long before the end. Carl Jenkinson did well to block an early effort from Ashley Williams while Angel Rangel was twice kept at bay by Wojciech Szczesny before the break.

Nathan Dyer then broke from half way and would surely have opened the scoring had it not been for a great last-ditch challenge from Thomas Vermaelen.

Arsenal created very little in a first half display lacking any fluency. Jack Wilshere showed his frustration by berating Gervinho and Lukas Podolski for a lack of movement in front of him and the nearest they came to a breakthrough was a Santi Cazorla header which landed safely in the arms of Swans goalkeeper Gerhard Tremmel.


Wenger's side came out at the start of the second half with more tempo to their play, but they still struggled to create anything tangible.

Twice Cazorla fired straight at Tremmell while the Spaniard then claimed a penalty after he appeared to be brought down by fellow countryman Chico Flores, but referee Mark Clatenberg was unimpressed.

Wenger threw on Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Oliver Giroud and Tomas Rosicky - his first appearance of an injury hit season - for Gervinho, Podolski and Wilshere but it was the Swans who continued to create the better chances.

Szczesny saved well again from Rangel and substitute Dwight Tiendalli before Michu struck two minutes from time.

Vermaelen and Per Mertersacker were both attracted to Luke Moore leaving Michu with a clean run on goal which he never looked like missing.

With the Emirates still in shock, the Spaniard then capitalised on a mistake by the otherwise impressive Jenkinson in stoppage time to seal a famous Swansea victory - his 10th Premier League goal of the season.

"It was not a good performance," said Wenger at the final whistle. "I felt Swansea deserved to win. We were very jaded physically after two tough away games and today we were not at the races at all.

"We were guilty at 0-0 with two minutes to go. When you can't win it is important not to lose. We were not cautious enough defensively to keep a 0-0," he continued.

"We tried very hard in the second half to get into the game but we were not sharp enough to create many openings.

"We need to get the balance right in our offensive game. We had many attacking players on the pitch but we didn't create enough chances and we will work on that.

"The fans are right to boo. You cannot be happy when you don't win the games. We need to win our home matches but what we produced today was not convincing enough to keep our fans happy."

Swans manager Laudrup was delighted with his side's performance. He said: "It is a fantastic result and a great performance. It was easy to be motivated against one of the big teams.

"We have had a very good week with seven points from three games. It has been absolutely outstanding.

"We could play with no pressure. All the pressure was on Arsenal because they needed to win today.

"I felt we played very well. We created five or six big chances but when we did not take them I felt Arsenal would maybe get the winning goal. Fortunately it did not go like that and we scored two good goals.

"Michu is a great finisher and a great worker but in this team right now everyone is playing at a very high level which is great to see."

ARSENAL - Szczesny 8, Jenkinson 7, Mertersaker 6, Vermaelen 5, Gibbs 5, Arteta 6, Wilshere 5 (Rosicky), Cazorla 7, Walcott 6, Gervinho 4 (Oxlade-Chamberlain 6), Podolski 5 (Giroud 5).

SWANSEA CITY - Tremmell 6, Rangel 7, Yeoung 7, Chico 6, Davies 7, De Guzman 8(Tiendalli 6), Britton 7, Shechter 6 (Moore 6), Williams 7, Dyer 8, Michu 9.

REFEREE; M. Clatenburg

STAR MAN; Michu (Swansea) - Two superb late finishes capped a fine all-round display.

ATTENDANCE; 60,098