Arsenal v Bolton (match thread)

[officer_dibble]

Coyle went with 5 midfielders last time here. Has to be summat similar today, either with muamba or an other (JOB?) with a disciplined holding role to stop/track runners through the middle. Assuming JOB isn't match fit I would be tempted to play Taylor in the middle before Mark Davies. Set peices being key obviously...

Anyway wenger seems to have kept it shut. Hopefully we'll pick up no injuries against the dirtiest team in football for our lot.

[TANGODANCER]

I dont think they are open play headers, i think they are headers from set pieces! 90% of them anyway!

What's the difference? Ball played forward/sideways from wide, player puts it in the net using his head. The delivery is just the same whether from deadball or moving ball. It's probably harder to score a header from a set-piece because the defenders are expecting it and in position. Don't see your point at all. Your favourite anti-hero scored the winner against Tottenham a couple of seasons ago by sticking his head in amongst a boot factory(if I remember correctly) from a near-post corner, and that was a damned site harder than any open play stuff.

[TKIZ!]

Does anyone know of a sream for this match? Commentry is on absolute radio from 1.30 (build up); but would love to see it on 'tinternet

myp2p is your friend. Streams galore.

Thanking you sir

[thebish]

an Arsenal View...

http://aculturedleftfoot.wordpress.com/ ... ng-elbows/

That gives the opportunity for Sebastien Squillaci to make his debut, a rough welcome to the Premier League will no doubt be handed out by Kevin Davies. The Bolton forward appears to be unable to fathom why he is not an England international.

The answer lies in the fact that he regularly tops the list of cautions at the end of the season; he is a throwback to the days of Finney and Mortenson when goalkeepers regularly found themselves in the back of the net as well as the ball, a firm shoulder barge having dumped both there. An anachronism who would not last five minutes on the highest stage.

Having successfully soft-soaped Chris Foy before the Blackburn game, Wenger turned his attention to Davies, presumably in the hope he will get sent off in the first five minutes for flailing elbows. Whilst fouls on the ground are more likely to result in the serious injury, there are plenty of cases where depressed cheekbones or worse have been caused by combative aerial play although their frequency is lesser.

Which one of the central pairing he targets remains to be seen although Koscielny’s relative inexperience makes him more likely. A lot rests on their shoulders being strong today. Coyle is gradually trying to move Bolton into the 21st Century of football but when faced with technically superior opposition – or as in their last game, a deficiency of numbers – Bolton revert to type and play to what are still their strengths.

There is no point in complaining after the event when this happens; that is how Sam Allardyce set the club up and highlights why he should never be allowed near the England manager’s job. To have him there would set football in this country back five decades at a time when it is already lagging behind the rest of the top European nations.

<cough>WANKER!</cough>

[officer_dibble]

Coyle went with 5 midfielders last time here. Has to be summat similar today, either with muamba or an other (JOB?) with a disciplined holding role to stop/track runners through the middle. Assuming JOB isn't match fit I would be tempted to play Taylor in the middle before Mark Davies. Set peices being key obviously...

Anyway wenger seems to have kept it shut. Hopefully we'll pick up no injuries against the dirtiest team in football for our lot.

Course there is Cohen as well. I'd behappier with either of the 3 options in as another midfielder with Davo up top.

[Worthy4England]

I dont think they are open play headers, i think they are headers from set pieces! 90% of them anyway!

1. How on earth do you know? as requested - show us some evidence of this claim. (I'd wager a decent percentage of shearer's were from corners..)

2. What would it add/detract from your argument anyway? Are "open play headers" necessarily harder or more techically skilful? do they count more?

3. you've been trumped royally by hard evidence - and resorted to desperate and ludicrous guesswork and hunch....

The answer isn't as high as 90%. It's actually a fair proportion lower (I know the %, but he can go work it out for himself).

The problem I have with the comparisons is that they're fairly spurious, unless Davo happened to be playing in a team that has bagged nearly 1,400 prem goals - which he's not.

Bolton have scored 36% of our goals from set pieces in the Prem from Allardyce onwards - United score 18%, so anyone playing for Bolton is much more likely to score from a set piece. Before we had Davo we scored 33% from set-piece, since Davo has been playing we score 36%. That's fairly marginal difference for someone who dictates our whole style of play. Finally Davo gets 23% of our set piece goals, which means the vast majority of them are scored by other people.

Scholes scored 22% of his headers from set-pieces, which makes him more likely than the team average to bag a goal from a set-piece. I guess that must make him a bit more one dimensional than some of their players . Half of Scholes' open play headed goals were dropped on his head by Beckham, Giggs or Ronaldo - I don't recall having anyone in the Bolton team whilst Davo has been playing with the type of crossing accuracy that those three have. Nor do I recall Davies being able to find as much space as can be created for Scholes by the rest of the United team.

Moving on to Shearer, 43% of his goals came from set-pieces or penalties - Davies gets 46% from set-pieces or penalties. as an aside Ronaldo got 45% of his from set pieces in a team that score half as many set-piece goals as Bolton - he must be the shittest player ever to grace a Premier League pitch.

As you say Bish, I couldn't give a flying if Davo scores a header from a set-piece, rather than open play every game - I'd be absolutely delighted.

[t_o_molloy]

We're playing 4-4-2, bad choice in my opinion.

[Montreal Wanderer]

Does anyone know of a sream for this match? Commentry is on absolute radio from 1.30 (build up); but would love to see it on 'tinternet

myp2p is your friend. Streams galore.

Thanking you sir

It's the featured game on Sportsnet in Canada - no streams required.

[James B]

We're playing 4-4-2, bad choice in my opinion.

a terrible choice if true. hoping he is still packing the middle but it's hard to see how with the personnel out there.

going to get a royal rodgering today.

[Worthy4England]

Does anyone know of a sream for this match? Commentry is on absolute radio from 1.30 (build up); but would love to see it on 'tinternet

myp2p is your friend. Streams galore.

Thanking you sir

It's the featured game on Sportsnet in Canada - no streams required.

Have you got enough beer in the fridge for us to pop round Monty?

[seanworth]

Come on you Whites. Would love a point today but we will have not allow any mental lapses.

[thebish]

We're playing 4-4-2, bad choice in my opinion.

how do you know? has it started?

[t_o_molloy]

We're playing 4-4-2, bad choice in my opinion.

how do you know? has it started?

On Wanderers Player it has the Line-ups, we're unchanged. (With the exception of Bogdan)

[Montreal Wanderer]

Does anyone know of a sream for this match? Commentry is on absolute radio from 1.30 (build up); but would love to see it on 'tinternet

myp2p is your friend. Streams galore.

Thanking you sir

It's the featured game on Sportsnet in Canada - no streams required.

Have you got enough beer in the fridge for us to pop round Monty?

Absolutely - even with the Concord you might miss a bit early on though...

[thebish]

We're playing 4-4-2, bad choice in my opinion.

how do you know? has it started?

On Wanderers Player it has the Line-ups, we're unchanged. (With the exception of Bogdan)

ahhh... but who knows? same personel is not necessarily same line-up...

[Verbal]

drop elmandder deeper plz

[officer_dibble]

drop elmandder deeper plz

and tell Muamba not to go past the halfway line, rather than having him and Holden running around like headless chickens

I disagree with the line up, see how it holds out...

[Worthy4England]

Bolton: Bogdan, Steinsson, Knight, Cahill, Robinson, Lee, Muamba, Holden, Petrov, Kevin Davies, Elmander. Subs: Lainton, Taylor, Mark Davies, Klasnic, Ricketts, Blake, Andrew O'Brien.

[TANGODANCER]

COME ON YOU WHITES

[boltonboris]

Having successfully soft-soaped Chris Foy before the Blackburn game, Wenger turned his attention to Davies, presumably in the hope he will get sent off in the first five minutes for flailing elbows. Whilst fouls on the ground are more likely to result in the serious injury, there are plenty of cases where depressed cheekbones or worse have been caused by combative aerial play although their frequency is lesser.

Don't we feckin' know it!! 2 broken ankles and a gashed shin against these dirty southern bastards