Yay, for the Arsenal...

Arsenal

Finally watched the Arsenal match from Sunday... last match of the year and what a sack full of drama it was.  Some good hustle from Yossi got us one to the good.  So good to see someone get a goal just from pure work... even though it was a howler of an error from the goalie.  The Arsenal defense didn't cover themselves with glory by any means.  The first goal was a totally down to shabby defending... so much of that this season.  The second West Brom goal should absolutely have been called offsides.

Good to see Santos score one.  He's definitely an attacking player... too bad his defense isn't as good as his attack.  The final goal from another goalie mistake by Kos was freakin awesome!  Almost makes me want to get a Kos jersey for next season... almost ;-).

Project Update

Worked more with Bootstrap yesterday.  Using Modal windows for preferences and such seems like the way to go.  I'll probably just leave things pretty stock for the initial release.  I'm not too great with making things look pretty, and maybe if the project gathers a following someone will volunteer to help out with that aspect of things.  Though just using Bootstrap makes things look a lot better... the LJ article was right about that, heh.

I'll be back working with the meat of the project and Twitter again today.  It is fun and interesting to work on the visual style stuff though.

Chain Update

Glad to have had the chance to work on the project before watching the Arsenal last night.  Had a bottle of red wine and one of Peach.  I think the homemade peach wine I created last summer has some stank on it.  I was feeling pretty drunk after the game.  Then played some Left 4 Dead 2 with the bro... good day overall ;-).


Party On!

Arsenal vs Leeds United

First FA Cup match for the Gunners, and what a match it was. There were a lot of subs out there to begin with, and I don't think that was too much of a surprise. I think Denilson should definitely been subbed at half time. First off he gave away a penalty which a player in good form would not have given away. It just left us flat footed until Fabregas came on.

I think Denilson is off the pace this season. It's definitely not his fault he was sidelined with injury if I remember correctly, then hasn't really had an opportunity to come back into the starting eleven. I definitely think he has the caliber to be a starter he just needs some more playing time. Having said that if he's playing like balls, and can't put a pass together, makes a shitty block which gives away a penalty, and is too slow to make a difference, he needs to come off.

Overall I think the game was well reffed, and am looking forward to the replay.

Entertainment Value: 5-5

Arsenal vs Shakthar Donetsk

Another great performance by the Gunners! Great to have Cesc back, he really adds a lot to the team. He'll need a few games under his belt to get back to 100% fitness, but he looked good. Another good performance was put in by Tricky Jack... he looks really good alongside the skipper. I have great hope for the rest of the season if they can both stay healthy.

Song was up to his new found tricks. Seemed like he was always bombing forward, and I can't really complain because he got the first goal by being in a poachers position. Shakthar will probably be kicking themselves for conceding a needless penalty on the free kick. Especially after the ref warned them. Nasri's goal was brilliant, and was definitely deserved. Wilshere and Chamakh had finished the scoring with some great finishing as well.

It was also great, even if with a little chagrin, to have Eduardo score for Shakthar... the fan's response was super. Makes you wish things had turned out different for him.

Overall a solid performance that will see Arsenal top of the group.

Entertainment Value: 5-5

Party On!

Arsenal vs Birmingham

Lots of controversy in this one... Not sure where to start, but I guess the best place would be Chamakh's dive. You can't honestly call it anything but a dive. It will be interesting to read how the Arsenal Internets community comments on the penalty.

Birmingham's goal showed that we really could have used Kos in this one. I feel he would have picked up that guy in the box better.

Overall things seemed a little flat on the pitch to me. Some great build up play, as always, from the Gunners, but no emphatic finish. I thought Diaby had a great game, and I'm glad and hopefully he will build from this and get a run of games. He always looks better after playing five or six in a row, and when he doesn't get that it leaves him open to some heavy criticism.

Wilshere had a great game for 90+ minutes. I thought he moved the ball well, and only had one errant pass that I can remember. I truly don't know what he was thinking at the end though. It will seem sublime pay back for Wenger's critics to see the golden Jack red carded for a rash challenge. For me I think the ref got it right... he had no business making that challenge.

Good to beat Birmingham, and get a league win. Totally not good to concede the first goal at home though. I think things are looking up for the Arsenal, and am glad League Play has recommenced. Looking forward to the midweek Champions League fixture.

Entertainment Value: 4-5

Party On!

Chelsea vs Arsenal

The Gunners really pressured Chelsea well for the full ninety minutes. It seems we're just lacking that last killer ball to break down a tough defense. The first half was interesting that the percentage of possession was 50-50, it was very back and forth.

Then in the second half Chelsea conceded possession to Arsenal. They relied on their defense to deal with any threats posed by the Gunners. Very unfortunate that Drogba again got a goal against us... though it was pretty much luck that it blasted in on the near post. Then again there was a lot of hustle in the build up, so I guess you create your own luck.

Very disappointing to have two league defeats in a row, but I feel confident of winning something this season. The team played very well, I think Chelsea sat back more because they realized they couldn't keep up the pace in the second half, or if they tried Arsenal would eventually find the back of the net.

I though Wilshere had a great game. He really adds some needed creativity in midfield with Cesc out. Chamakh did very well disrupting Chelsea's back four... it's great to have an aerial threat for teams to think about. Arsenal seemed to get more energy and drive when Rosicky came on for Diaby... almost think Tomas should have started and given Diaby more time to recover from his injuries. Diaby didn't have too bad a game, just seemed less then 100% match fit to me.

Entertainment Value: 4-5

Party On!

Partizan vs Arsenal

Great match... after a lack luster start Arsenal really pulled it together. I guess it's not unexpected to have a slow start so far from home, and coming back from a bad defeat. I thought they recovered well, and overall had a decent match.

Partizan did some very good defending as also expected. Though there were some very shady challenges throughout the match. Especially the elbow into Wilshere's face right in front of the dugout.

About Wilshere, he had a great match. He was really creative in midfield, and stood up to the physicality of Partizan very well. Also, thought Gibbs had a great game. He bombed up from the back consistently yet his defensive duties didn't suffer.

In front Arshavin and Chamakh both had great performances. Chamakh's double header to get the second goal showed a lot of hustle and determination. Wilshere link up with Arshavin for the first goal was a thing of beauty. Also, good to see Squillaci get a goal... great corner from Nasri who came on as a sub and showed great energy and creativity.

After all the speculation, second guessing, and hubbaloo about Arsenal's goalie situation Fabianski had a pretty good game. Not too much for him to do in the first half... can't fault him for not saving the first penalty. Then saving the second penalty was pure class. But for me the big moment was his awesome save at the end of the second half when Partizan pushed and were through on goal. The Fab definitely has talent, but he needs to make better decisions consistently in my opinion.

Entertainment Value: 5-5

Party On!

Arsenal vs West Brom

Sigh... sigh, sigh. I had a feeling it would be hard for the Gunners to start this game in a very strong way. After the big game on Tuesday, it's easy to take a game like this for granted. Seems like this type of thing happens when we have a bad captain, or the captain is injured for the next game after a big one. This is not the West Brom team from a few years ago, however.

Nasri showed some great determination to bring us back in it, but too little too late. After so many great defensive performances, I guess it was time to have a howler. To West Brom's credit they really played well.

I was one who thought that Almunia was doing better, but after he let the second goal bounce off him, it makes me wonder. It's a shame we didn't pick up a senior keeper this summer. Hopefully we'll grab Given during the January window.

Entertainment Value: 4-5

Party On!