Arsenal FC :: Life after Thierry Henry.

[kibaxx7]

Making a predictions game. Guess who wins each game and win! 1 point per correct guess, 1 extra point if you guess the final score, and 1 extra point if you guess the halftime score (?-?)

Code: Select all

[i]Arsenal - Fulham[/i]: [b]???[/b] (?-?)
[i]Aston Villa - Liverpool[/i]: [b]???[/b] (?-?)
[i]Bolton Wanderers - Newcastle United[/i]: [b]???[/b] (?-?)
[i]Chelsea - Birmingham City[/i]: [b]???[/b] (?-?)
[i]Derby County - Portsmouth[/i]: [b]???[/b] (?-?)
[i]Everton - Wigan Athletic[/i]: [b]???[/b] (?-?)
[i]Manchester United - Reading[/i]: [b]???[/b] (?-?)
[i]Middlesbrough - Blackburn Rovers[/i]: [b]???[/b] (?-?)
[i]Sunderland - Tottenham Hotspur[/i]: [b]???[/b] (?-?)
[i]West Ham United - Manchester City[/i]: [b]???[/b] (?-?)

[Cartar]

(?-?) - halftime score?
well here is my prediction


Arsenal - Fulham: 3-0 (2-0)
Aston Villa - Liverpool: 0-2 (0-0)
Bolton Wanderers - Newcastle United: 1-1 (1-0)
Chelsea - Birmingham City: 2-0 (0-0)
Derby County - Portsmouth: 0-0 (0-0)
Everton - Wigan Athletic: 1-0 (0-0)
Manchester United - Reading: 4-1 (2-0)
Middlesbrough - Blackburn Rovers: 0-1 (0-1)
Sunderland - Tottenham Hotspur: 1-2 (1-1)
West Ham United - Manchester City: 1-1 (0-1)

[kibaxx7]

(?-?) - halftime score?

Hehe yes! Didn't say anything, just posted the template. I fixed it, thanks

[GoHornets]

Arsenal - Fulham: 2-0 (2-0)
Aston Villa - Liverpool: 1-3 (1-2)
Bolton Wanderers - Newcastle United: 1-2 (1-1)
Chelsea - Birmingham City: 4-0 (2-0)
Derby County - Portsmouth: 0-0 (0-0)
Everton - Wigan Athletic: 2-0 (0-0)
Manchester United - Reading: 2-0 (1-0)
Middlesbrough - Blackburn Rovers: 1-0 (0-0)
Sunderland - Tottenham Hotspur: 1-2 (1-1)
West Ham United - Manchester City: 2-3 (1-2)

[Mark.]

Arsenal - Fulham: 3-0 (1-0)
Aston Villa - Liverpool: 1-1 (0-1)
Bolton Wanderers - Newcastle United: 1-0 (0-0)
Chelsea - Birmingham City: 4-0 (1-0)
Derby County - Portsmouth: 1-2 (1-1)
Everton - Wigan Athletic: 2-2 (1-2)
Manchester United - Reading: 5-1 (2-1)
Middlesbrough - Blackburn Rovers: 0-0 (0-0)
Sunderland - Tottenham Hotspur: 1-3 (0-0)
West Ham United - Manchester City: 1-2 (1-2)

[kibaxx7]

Ok, 1st game will be coming this weekend, having a lot of tests at school! Don't think I already abandoned this.

[kibaxx7]

Arsenal FC - 2 (1)
---- Almunia; Hoyte, Touré, Gallas, Clichy; Hleb, Gilberto Silva, Fabregas, Rosický; van Persie, Adebayor :: 4-4-2
---- 24' van Persie (1-0); 31' Hleb; 55' Fabregas; 62' van Persie (2-0); 77' Diaby Rosický
Fulham FC - 0 (0)
---- Niemi; Baird, Christanval, Smertin, Bocanegra, Konchesky; Davis, Murphy, Davies; Healy, Dempsey :: 5-3-2
---- 37' Murphy; 62' Bouazza Baird; 66' Andreasen Smertin; 77' Hughes Christanval

LONDON, August 12 -- Two goals from Robin van Persie gave Arsenal an opening-day 2-0 victory at home to Fulham. van Persie's goals came one in the first half, when he sent a looping header over Antti Niemi, and the other in the second half, when he netted after 61 minutes from Tomas Rosický's pass.

With over £14million spent in the summer, Arsène Wenger went with his trusted players, his hand partly forced by injuries to Theo Walcott, new face Bacary Sagna and Emmanuel Eboué. Croatian Eduardo da Silva, £7.5million from Dinamo Zagreb, could only get as far as the bench, with Wenger again opting for Emmanuel Adebayor at striker position. Fulham have spent more than ever before and they gave league debuts to Chris Baird, Steven Davis and David Healy, with Leon Andreasen and Hameur Bouazza on the bench for this season's opener.

Arsenal were sharp and clever from the start, with Rosický involved in all that was good about their forward play. One cross from the Czech midfielder was lofted over by van Persie, and he was a constant threat on the left. Fulham new boy Healy, used on the opposite flank, found space and time to also create problems but couldn't score.

Fulham's back line had appeared sound, but they conceded a goal they will be far from pleased with in the 24th minute. van Persie took it very well, but Fulham boss Roy Hodgson will be unimpressed by a defence that allowed a long cross to bounce, 18 yards out, and will look closely at Niemi's positioning. Alexander Hleb's cross from the right arrowed in, but only van Persie made an attempt to reach it. His looping header caught Niemi a yard or two off his line and soared high before dropping just under the bar.

Minutes later, Rosický jinked his way into the box and past three men before going down under a Danny Murphy challenge. Referee Jorge Gunter was only a few yards away and decided the big defender had marginally touched Rosický first before touching the ball, and Murphy earned himself a yellow card. Hodgson's team tried to hit back when Clint Dempsey charged through and set up Simon Davies for a shot which curled just over. Then Dempsey fired a 25-yard shot inches wide, but Arsenal were good value for their half-time lead.

Arsenal's second almost came when Niemi made a hash of a high Hleb free-kick. First he lost out in the air to Adebayor, and then he fumbled the dropping ball to allow Cesc Fabregas the chance of a close-range effort that was scrambled away.

On 61 minutes, Arsenal's second goal arrived. One more time, Rosický worked superbly on the left to get away from Carlos Bocanegra before clipping a clever pass across the six-yard box for van Persie to side-foot home, despite the attempts of Baird on the line to keep it out.

Within 60 seconds, Hodgson sent on Bouazza for Baird on 62 minutes and when Dempsey won a header in the box, Bouazza fired narrowly wide. In a strange position, Alexei Smertin was being used by Hodgson as a sweeper, and he was more than tested by Fabregas' trickery.

Arsenal sent on Frenchman Abou Diaby on 77 minutes for Rosický, who left the pitch with all Gunners fans giving him a giant applause. Anyway, Fulham were not finished and pushed forward the 13 remaining minutes. Dempsey's flick sent Paul Konchesky away on the left but Healy couldn't connect well. It needed a full-stretch save from Manuel Almunia to keep out another Healy shot from 25 yards, but Arsenal saw out the final few minutes to claim a deserved victory.

Fulham chief Hodgson was far from impressed with his side's defending at key moments. He said: "We went behind to what we felt was a lucky goal, but they all count. Then we had a good spell and couldn't score. And what you mustn't then do is to allow Rosický time to turn in the box and play a pass across like he did, the goals we conceded were poor."

Hodgson later added: "New players, particularly in defence, take time to gel. But we were still far from happy with the goals we conceded, but I felt we did well. David (Healy) on his debut was excellent, he is the sort of player who has you on the edge of your seat in expectation. Other players like Danny (Murphy) have the mark of quality that we need and know will improve us. Pre-season can be false, you don't know really how well you are doing. So I was pleased with a lot of what I saw, the effort we put in and the positives out there."

"We need points on the board, but there are plenty of other teams who have lost so we now must look to a couple of home games coming up", Fulham chief finalized.

[kibaxx7]

[Jing]

LOL now you are using FIFA pics... very creative dude.

[kibaxx7]

1) Mark. - 12 points
(Arsenal-Fulham halftime + Aston Villa-Liverpool halftime + Middlesbrough-Blackburn both + 8 guesses)
2) GoHornets - 11 points
(Arsenal-Fulham final + Chelsea-Birmingham halftime + Everton-Wigan halftime + Middlesbrough-Blackburn halftime + 7 guesses)
3) ratrac - 6 points
(Everton-Wigan halftime + 5 guesses)

[kibaxx7]

LOL now you are using FIFA pics... very creative dude.

Better late than never, finally I was able to post the game. In the friendlies I played with PES because I had problems making friendlies at FIFA Manager. Season is now in FIFA Manager as it works perfectly.

[Cartar]

I missed a lot, hope to recover next week, otherwise nice win, although it was a must-win game.

[Mark.]

Nice win mate, good to see RVP in form, now lets just keep him from getting injured like he does in real life

[kibaxx7]

Thanks guys RVP in top form.

[kibaxx7]

.:: Wenger: "Our play merited more goals than we did get"
Arsenal manager delighted with win over Fulham; news on injured players.

Arsène Wenger was delighted with his side's 2-0 opening-day victory over Fulham and with the stunning goals by Robin van Persie.

In the press conference, Wenger said: "We did the job, our play merited more goals than we did get. At 2-0 I felt it could go to 3-0 rather than them scoring. Apart from the few minutes after their goal, I felt we were pretty comfortable."

Only van Persie made an attempt to reach Alexander Hleb's 24th-minute cross and his looping header caught Fulham goalkeeper Antti Niemi a yard or two off his line and soared high before dropping just under the crossbar; their second goal arrived after Tomas Rosický worked superbly on the left to get away from Carlos Bocanegra before clipping a clever pass across the six-yard box for van Persie to side-foot home, despite the attempts of Chris Baird on the line to keep it out.

"Robin's first goal was terrific, a header from that range. You have to give him credit for getting his effort on target and in the place he managed to put it," Wenger added. "Some people might question the goalkeeper's positioning, but I would rather praise Robin for the execution of the goal. It was that good I doubt Niemi could have got it. In the end we deserved that win and it has got us off to a very good start to the season."

On other news, Emmanuel Eboué is recovering from his injury and, if no problem appears, will feature against Newcastle. While Bacary Sagna is still out, Theo Walcott will undergo a new exam today.

[Mark.]

Nice post match conference. Good to hear Eboue is probably healthy, that means that you will be able to sell him . I look forward to the next update

[GoHornets]

"Our play merited more goals than we did get" Classic.

[kibaxx7]

Nice post match conference. Good to hear Eboue is probably healthy, that means that you will be able to sell him . I look forward to the next update

Thanks man... I kinda like Eboue's style of play but I don't have any problem in selling him

"Our play merited more goals than we did get" Classic.

Hehe yes... Wenger was very, very happy.

[kibaxx7]

.:: Walcott returns for Toon but duo ruled out
Eboue and Sagna will both miss game against Newcastle.

Arsène Wenger has only Theo Walcott back from injury for the match against Newcastle United on Tuesday.

Speaking to Arsenal TV Online this afternoon, the Arsenal manager ruled out Bacary Sagna (strained medial ligaments) and Emmanuel Eboue (adductor). That means Justin Hoyte is likely to fill-in at right back one more time, just as he did against Fulham.

“The good news is that Theo is available again,” said Wenger. “He still has some pain but he should be OK if needed. However, we won't have Bacary available because it is too early for him, and Emmanuel is still out too. He has not recovered from his adductor injury in time."

[kibaxx7]

.:: Arsenal to face Linfield
Gunners will play against Irish champions in 3rd qualifying round.

Arsenal will face Linfield Football Club in the Third Qualifying Round of the Champions League.

Arsène Wenger's team will travel to Northern Ireland for the start of their latest European campaign on August 15 before welcoming Linfield back to Emirates Stadium for the second leg on August 29.

[Mark.]

Should be a pretty easy run to qualify then

[kibaxx7]

[align=center]
No surprises in the first week of the season. Clear victories were recorded by Portsmouth,
Manchester United and Arsenal. Anderson's debut at Old Trafford team could hardly have been
better as he performed very well, scoring his first goal for the club. A total of 3 players took an
early bath this weekend, which illustrates the hard fought battle for points in the league. The
football season has started once again. We are certainly pleased to see fans flocking back to the
stadiums.[/align]



Arsenal's best possible start
A brilliant win in the first match of the season leaves manager Arsène Wenger in the enviable position of being able to look down on key rivals from an elevated league position. Even at this early stage of the season, such a psychological advantage could prove crucial.
Villa fall at the first hurdle
In a game in which they were expected to do better, Aston Villa failed to register a morale-boosting win. As a result, some reporters are predicting Martin O'Neill's team may struggle to fulfil their potential. It seems, however, premature to write off a team's chance after just one poor result.
Worst possible start
Alex McLeish was on the wrong end of an opening day defeat as the season got under way. Birmingham City failed to achieve the flying start to the season they had hoped for. They desperately need to kick-start their campaign and regain the belief that this can be the year they achieve their goals.
Manager happy with result
Rovers manager Mark Hughes was in a buoyant mood after his side pulled off a good first result against Middlesbrough, at Riverside Stadium. He said: "After all the hype in pre-season, it's nice to get out there and play football. At the end of the day, that's what the lads are paid to do."
Tricky start for Trotters
Gary Megson's ambitions for the season took an immediate blow as his side failed to record victory in the all-important first game of the new league campaign. Even at this early stage, points are vital if a manager is to retain his position at a club.
Manager hails magnificent start
Blues manager Avram Grant suggested his side's in in the first game of the season can form the basis for a good run in the league, but warned his players against becoming over-confident after such a promising beginning to the campaign.
Rams lose opener
Supporters of Derby County were disappointed to see their side come out on the losing side in the crucial first match of the season. Paul Jewell's men looked out of sorts in a game he must hope will not set the tone for the season ahead.
Everton make disappointing start
David Moyes's teams didn't exactly make the start to the new campaign he had hoped for, as they were unable to grab a victory against Wigan, that would have filled fans with optimism for the season. It's hoped the manager can put things right in time for the next match.
Derby lose for Hodgson
Roy Hodgson wasn't in celebratory mood after he saw his side lose in Fulham's first derby match against local rivals Arsenal. "I know the gaffer isn't happy," say Hodgson, "And I also know that Arsène will have a couple of shandies tonight."
Benitez head to head with O'Neill
Reds boss Rafael Benitez has promised to learn from his match against Alan Curbishley next week, but says he won't be intimidated by West Ham United boss's reputation. The Spaniard spoke to reporters ahead of the game between the two clubs at Anfield.
Victory for triumphant Eriksson
Sven-Göran Eriksson said in press conference that he was "very happy with the victory. We played a tremendous encounter. There was a lot at stake in the game for both sides and I even saw the supporters were a little edgy prior to the kick-off."
Injuries attack the team
Manchester United have the longest injury list in the league at the moment, with a total of 5 players out of action. The absence of Paul Scholes is causing Sir Alex Ferguson the biggest headache right now for the match against Portsmouth. The player likely to be missing the longest is Ji-Sung Park, with torn cruciate ligaments (about 5 months).
Bates coming back for 2nd game
Matthew Bates is coming back from a muscle spasm which had ruled him out of the reckoning for the game against Blackburn Rovers. Manager Gareth Southgate will be delighted to see that his player has shrugged off the setback and can play in the next match against Wigan at JJB Stadium.
Kevin Keegan pleased with maximum points
Newcastle United boss can reflect with great pleasure on a job well done after his players registered a win in the first match of the new campaign. Now is not the time to rest on the laurels, however, as he must prepare his side for the 2nd game against Arsenal at St. James' Park.
Top cats paws for thought before fur flies
Harry Redknapp and Sir Alex Ferguson good-naturedly pondered the outcome of the upcoming clash between the two managers' sides. In what is expected to be a toughtly-contested game, both bosses took time out from the war or words and ribbed each other over which was the superior side.
Duberry is back
Reading's Michael Duberry is "fit and ready to play against Chelsea", said manager Steve Coppell today. Duberry seems determined to make a full recovery from his short term injury this week to stake a claim in the first team. The player said: "You can't let these knocks get you down - these things happen in football all the time."
Keane wants defense
After losing against Tottenham, in press conference, Black Cats boss Roy Keane said that "the team goal was the same as ever, stop the opposition from scoring. In fact, we wanted to keep a clean sheet but that wasn't possible this time". Sunderland faces Birmingham at St. Andrews next week.
Ramos hails solid start
Tottenham Hotspur manager Juande Ramos was quick to praise his team's performance against Sunderland as they got their season under way with a very good result. Who knows how much of a bearing this first game of the season will have on the outcome of the campaign?
Points not on board
Hammers boss Alan Curbishley couldn't take heart from his side's loss in their first match of the league. After a lengthy preseason period, he wasn't thrilled enough to have seen his team get off the mark for the campaign from the word "Go".
Koumas set to return
Wigan player Jason Koumas was keen to get back down to the business of playing as he chatted with journalists at the club's training centre: "I hate being injured, I just want to get to the pitch and into the thick of the action", he said.

[Jing]

nooo JS Park.... isn't there another Chinese guy on ManU?

[kibaxx7]

nooo JS Park.... isn't there another Chinese guy on ManU?

Yes, Dong Fangzhuo. I remember one time (in another game) Man Utd defeated Chelsea 2-0 with Dong scoring both goals.

[GoHornets]

I'm sure you will qualify

I'm curious, team's manager names, are real?

Very clean, as usual. Keep it up