The Offsider

And we're Arsenal
Arsenal FC!
We're by far the greatest team
The world has ever seen!

- Emirates Stadium, on a glorious European night

I've been thinking about it, and maybe Adebayor doesn't understand the definition of offside. He's been offside three or four times now, and he's always just offside by half a body-length. Once or twice, it even looks like he checks and intentionally positions himself offside to receive the ball.

It's not like it's that difficult to get onside. On the 10th minute, Theo received a lovely layoff by Cesc and just ran through the defense. He was marginally onside, and he checked his run to make sure he was. So it's possible to score a goal without being offside for the first four chances.

Then again, maybe Adebayor is fatalistic? Maybe he thinks that he can run wherever he wants, and if it's offside, such is life? It's the infuriating thing about Adebayor. He's got all the prerequisites to become a great striker, but he's really casual. That goal against Villarreal in the first leg was exceptional, but he missed easy chances before that. And yet, he's fast, strong, works like a beast when he wants to, and he scores a lot of goals.

So what the hell is wrong with him?

60th minute, and Adebayor scored. 2-0 to the Arsenal, and the tie's pretty much over. That's the thing about him. He does a lot of bad things in a match, but then he does one decisive thing that secures the game for us. Lovely goal, got the through ball when he was about five metres onside. I think maybe that's the way we've got to play him now - when he's so deep that there's no chance of him getting offside.

And still, you wonder if we'd be better off selling him in the summer and getting someone who's more reliable. Someone who understands what offside means, and who tries in every game. Someone like David Villa.

3-0 to the Arsenal. Walcott was hacked down in the penalty area, Villarreal lost their heads and argued with the ref until they got a man sent off, and van Persie converted the penality.

Semi-final with Man Utd awaits. C'mon the Arsenal.

P.S. You know, I predicted this result. From the post a week ago, Arsenal vs Robert Pires:

"And at least he'll be able to trot out onto Emirates for the first (and last) time next week, and suffer the indignity of a 3-0 thumping."

How good am I?

1-1 at El Madrigal

"In the end there were two Arsenals: the one from London and the one from Spain's east coast. For a long time last night Arsenal appeared to be out-Arsenaled, threatened by a team that plays their game as well as they do."

- Sid Lowe, from the Guardian

I really enjoyed the game this morning. Attacking football, great passing and movement, and a couple of spectacular goals to Senna and Adebayor. We spent the bulk of the match trailing 0-1, and I wasn't that upset because it was a genuinely entertaining match between two very similar teams.

My opinion of Marcos Senna went up a few notches. I'd previously regarded him as just a good defensive midfielder, but the guy has moves. Damn fine midfielder, and I can see why Villareal slapped a £15 million price-tag on him last summer. He bossed Denilson and Song like they were a couple of truant schoolkids, and that goal of his was top-notch.

My opinion of the Arsenal went up as well. We played poorly in the first half and allowed Villareal the bulk of possession. Denilson and Song were largely absent, and Nasri was poor. Apart from Cesc and Walcott, there wasn't much of an attacking threat. But we came back after the break and played well. We scored the goal and bossed Villareal around. Yes, we should've played like that in the first half, but the important thing is that we came back. That shows a bit of character. And a bit of guts.

It's very exciting to be an Arsenal supporter at the moment. The quality is there, and you feel that success is almost tangible. We just need to get more game time into our youngsters. If Denilson and Song learn to tackle and dominate a midfield, if Clichy learns to cross, if Walcott learns to shoot, if Nasri becomes more consistent.... it's very exciting to consider how much improvement there is in our boys.

And what about the goal by Adebayor? He misses sitters by the dozen and then scores freakish goals like that. You would never have thought he'd have it in him, but then again, you would never have thought he was worth 80k a week, either. I suppose Wenger and co. do know what they're doing.

Wigan up next. It's important that we don't slack off against them, that we keep our unbeaten streak going. Arshavin's back in the team, and Cesc, Adebayor and Theo should be fully fit. The games are coming thick and fast, and we need to win them all.

C'mon the Arsenal.

Arsenal vs Robert Pires

And our friends are all aboard,
Many more of them live next door,
And the band begins to play.

- Yellow Submarine, The Beatles

I've been scanning the English papers for news about the Arsenal vs Villareal match, and I'm surprised no one's made a reference to the Beatles' song Yellow Submarine. Then again, Villareal gets in the papers pretty regularly now, so maybe they've done the reference to death. Or maybe the papers just think that psychedelic songs are embarrassing. Drugs and songwriting don't always go hand in hand, and I think Yellow Submarine is a case in point.

Anyway, by now the streets of Barcelona are flooded with semi-drunk, pallid Englishmen all speaking their best Spanish and trying to figure out where the hell Vila-Real is. They're sunning on the fake beach by the quay and rambling down La Rambla and drinking San Miguel by the crateful. I've never seen an English football crowd in all its inebriated glory, and I imagine it must be an awe-inspiring sight, like a flock of passenger pigeons darkening the sky, or a plague of locusts descending upon a wheat field.

Our friends are all abroad, and the band's about to play.

I'm really excited about the Villareal match. It's the next test for our young side. After the horror of our mid-season run, we're starting to see the genesis of a new team. Denilson and Song have made good progress of late. Theo and Cesc are back. Arshavin's an amazing signing, and Nasri and Vela will only get better after a season with the Arsenal. I'm eager to see how much progress we've really made, and how much more there is to go. And our two-legged tie against Villareal will be a good test for our boys.

And of course, we get to see Robert Pires again. He's 35 now and can't play a full game, but he's still an awesome player. I saw him a bit during the Valencia-Villareal match, and it was amazing. He's smoother than dark chocolate that's been dipped in Earl Grey tea, wrapped in silk and varnished with PVC. And that's pretty damn smooth.

We love Pires. Some of the greatest goals I've ever seen have come from his boots. Wenger erred quite a bit by not giving him that 2 year contract and letting him grow old in the pastures of London Colney. We wouldn't have fallen so far in the intervening years if we had his experience in the side. But that's in the past. In the present, Bobby Pires is alive and kicking and eager to play in front of the Arsenal once more. And at least he'll be able to trot out onto Emirates for the first (and last) time next week, and suffer the indignity of a 3-0 thumping.

It's the least we owe him.

Robert Pires had this to say about facing Arsenal:

"When I go out to face Arsenal, there will be a lot of emotion, that's for sure. It was my goal to face Arsenal at least once before retiring and say goodbye to the tremendous fans. If I'm lucky enough to score, I won't celebrate simply as a gesture of respect. But I'm sorry, if I can play well and eliminate Arsenal, then I am going to do it."

We love the Arsenal, but we love Robert Pires as well.

3-3 at the Mestalla

"Puta! Puta! Puta! Puta!"

- the four stands of the Mestalla last night

It was clearly a dive. 

The Valencia player put out his arm and the Villareal guy went down like he'd been hit with a baseball bat. The referee pointed to the spot, though, and then the crowd started on the above chant. I remember what "putain" means in French, and if it correlates with the Spanish, I have to agree with their sentiments. 

Puta, indeed. 

It would be a cliche to say that it changed the course of the game, but it did. It went from a 3-2 win to Valencia to 3-3 with ten (?) minutes left on the clock. Valencia worked hard for the next five, ten minutes to get the winner, but it wasn't to be. Villareal closed shop, played for a draw, and got it. 

So 3-3 it finished. 

It was a very good game, though. Probably the best I've seen in my time here; it was fast-paced, attacking, real end-to-end stuff. It was like a Premier League game, but with two sides who can pass, dribble and who are committed to aesthetically pleasing football. The passing was polished, the movements were slick, and the players willing to dribble and take on the opposition. It was miles better than anything I saw in Italy, and (sentiment notwithstanding), a better spectacle than the Arsenal flogging a hapless Premier League club. 

If I had to be cruel, I'd say that Valencia deserved it. Every time they gained the lead, they sat back. They were 2-0 up in the first half after dominating possession, and then they conceded a goal in injury time. They lost the lead in the 75th minute, regained it three minutes later, and then sat back again. So something like this was going to happen. 

But it's better to be pleasant than cruel. And it was a very nice game of football.