Man. City.

I know we lost the game against City but I've rarely been more happy in defeat.
Some excellent performances by our youngsters, their potential looks very good indeed.
We don't need the extra pressure of this competition, so it's good we're out.
I think the continued booing of Nasri was ridiculous. How many times has that inspired excellent performances from ex-players? Though, I must say, Nasri is such a wimp it had the opposite effect on him. That didn't surprise me, so I'm happy we got shot of him.
All in all, not a bad night.

jak wrote:I know we lost the game against City but I've rarely been more happy in defeat.
Some excellent performances by our youngsters, their potential looks very good indeed.
We don't need the extra pressure of this competition, so it's good we're out.I think the continued booing of Nasri was ridiculous. How many times has that inspired excellent performances from ex-players? Though, I must say, Nasri is such a wimp it had the opposite effect on him. That didn't surprise me, so I'm happy we got shot of him.
All in all, not a bad night.

It was an opportunity to end the run of seasons without a trophy.If winning silverware is an unwanted pressure then the players shouldn't be receiving wages.

QBVILLA wrote:

jak wrote:I know we lost the game against City but I've rarely been more happy in defeat.
Some excellent performances by our youngsters, their potential looks very good indeed.
We don't need the extra pressure of this competition, so it's good we're out.I think the continued booing of Nasri was ridiculous. How many times has that inspired excellent performances from ex-players? Though, I must say, Nasri is such a wimp it had the opposite effect on him. That didn't surprise me, so I'm happy we got shot of him.
All in all, not a bad night.

It was an opportunity to end the run of seasons without a trophy.If winning silverware is an unwanted pressure then the players shouldn't be receiving wages.

Dont give JAK a hard time he is afterall just trying to put a decent spin on a bad situation...

QBVILLA wrote:

jak wrote:I know we lost the game against City but I've rarely been more happy in defeat.
Some excellent performances by our youngsters, their potential looks very good indeed.
We don't need the extra pressure of this competition, so it's good we're out.I think the continued booing of Nasri was ridiculous. How many times has that inspired excellent performances from ex-players? Though, I must say, Nasri is such a wimp it had the opposite effect on him. That didn't surprise me, so I'm happy we got shot of him.
All in all, not a bad night.

It was an opportunity to end the run of seasons without a trophy.If winning silverware is an unwanted pressure then the players shouldn't be receiving wages.

That's all very well but you can only fight on so many fronts. Particularly so when we have a squad that has started to improve but still needs some strengthening in January, we're a bit thin on the ground.
Our players did very well against a multi-
multi million pound Man C team. So like I said I'm
not too unhappy that we lost.
I seem to remember MON, a man I know you admire, taking a similar view of Villa's involvement in a European competition.

FrenchSpur wrote:

QBVILLA wrote:

jak wrote:I know we lost the game against City but I've rarely been more happy in defeat.
Some excellent performances by our youngsters, their potential looks very good indeed.
We don't need the extra pressure of this competition, so it's good we're out.I think the continued booing of Nasri was ridiculous. How many times has that inspired excellent performances from ex-players? Though, I must say, Nasri is such a wimp it had the opposite effect on him. That didn't surprise me, so I'm happy we got shot of him.
All in all, not a bad night.

It was an opportunity to end the run of seasons without a trophy.If winning silverware is an unwanted pressure then the players shouldn't be receiving wages.

Dont give JAK a hard time he is afterall just trying to put a decent spin on a bad situation...

Keep sucking that sweet, Cath.

jak wrote:

QBVILLA wrote:

jak wrote:I know we lost the game against City but I've rarely been more happy in defeat.
Some excellent performances by our youngsters, their potential looks very good indeed.
We don't need the extra pressure of this competition, so it's good we're out.I think the continued booing of Nasri was ridiculous. How many times has that inspired excellent performances from ex-players? Though, I must say, Nasri is such a wimp it had the opposite effect on him. That didn't surprise me, so I'm happy we got shot of him.
All in all, not a bad night.

It was an opportunity to end the run of seasons without a trophy.If winning silverware is an unwanted pressure then the players shouldn't be receiving wages.

That's all very well but you can only fight on so many fronts. Particularly so when we have a squad that has started to improve but still needs some strengthening in January, we're a bit thin on the ground.
Our players did very well against a multi-
multi million pound Man C team. So like I said I'm
not too unhappy that we lost.
I seem to remember MON, a man I know you admire, taking a similar view of Villa's involvement in a European competition.

Indeed he did and he severely damaged his relationship with the Villa fans by doing so.At the time I understood his decision as had we won the following weekend against Chelsea we could have gone top of the league.Lets face it though if Arsenal are comparing themselves to Villa then it shows just how far you've slipped in less than 12 months.

QBVILLA wrote:

jak wrote:

QBVILLA wrote:

jak wrote:I know we lost the game against City but I've rarely been more happy in defeat.
Some excellent performances by our youngsters, their potential looks very good indeed.
We don't need the extra pressure of this competition, so it's good we're out.I think the continued booing of Nasri was ridiculous. How many times has that inspired excellent performances from ex-players? Though, I must say, Nasri is such a wimp it had the opposite effect on him. That didn't surprise me, so I'm happy we got shot of him.
All in all, not a bad night.

It was an opportunity to end the run of seasons without a trophy.If winning silverware is an unwanted pressure then the players shouldn't be receiving wages.

That's all very well but you can only fight on so many fronts. Particularly so when we have a squad that has started to improve but still needs some strengthening in January, we're a bit thin on the ground.

.
Our players did very well against a multi-
multi million pound Man C team. So like I said I'm
not too unhappy that we lost.
I seem to remember MON, a man I know you admire, taking a similar view of Villa's involvement in a European competition.

Indeed he did and he severely damaged his relationship with the Villa fans by doing so.At the time I understood his decision as had we won the following weekend against Chelsea we could have gone top of the league.Lets face it though if Arsenal are comparing themselves to Villa then it shows just how far you've slipped in less than 12 months.

Yes we have stumbled in the last couple of years but I'm certainly not comparing us with Villa.
You see, we ARE in a European competition and we will compete as strongly as we can in it.
It is also of vital importance to the club that we give our very best effort to reaching the top 4 in the PL.
On top of that there is still the FA Cup to come.
We simply do not have the resources to put full strength sides out in the Carling cup.
So under those circumstances, yes, I am very pleased that we're out of the competition to ease the pressure on our squad.

What do you think your chances are of actually winning a trophy this season? The title is way out of reach and the CL is a massive ask with Barca,Bayern and Real Madrid in the competition.FA cup maybe, but that depends on the luck of the draw.I don't think any club outside of manchester can afford to be sniffy about the league Cup nowadays.

As I said before (and after) the League Cup final last year I, as a fan, couldn't give a toss about the competition. If it no longer existed I wouldn't mind a bit - the only plus point is seeing the youngsters getting a game against tougher opposition. If we won it - so what? - that's my feeling.

QBVILLA wrote:What do you think your chances are of actually winning a trophy this season? The title is way out of reach and the CL is a massive ask with Barca,Bayern and Real Madrid in the competition.FA cup maybe, but that depends on the luck of the draw.I don't think any club outside of manchester can afford to be sniffy about the league Cup nowadays.

So do you think we should have made the Carling Cup a priority over everything else?
As I've said, our priority over all else is the pursuit of a place in the Champions league. The Carling cup is a distraction and has cost us dear in the past. All the top teams use it as a training cup. We gave it a decent shot on Tuesday night, it wasn't enough but it was absolutely the right thing to rest the players that were rested.

Think that comment regarding the top teams using it as a training cup is wrong Jak. Who exactly are the top teams, do you class a team that hasnt won a trophy of any kind for 7? years as still a top team.

villanfromluton wrote:Think that comment regarding the top teams using it as a training cup is wrong Jak. Who exactly are the top teams, do you class a team that hasnt won a trophy of any kind for 7? years as still a top team.

I class the 4 top teams, at any given time, as those that occupy the top 4 finishing positions in the PL.
As The Arsenal have occupied one of those positions consistently for the past many years. Yes, I would say that qualifies The Arsenal as being one of the top teams.

jak wrote:

QBVILLA wrote:What do you think your chances are of actually winning a trophy this season? The title is way out of reach and the CL is a massive ask with Barca,Bayern and Real Madrid in the competition.FA cup maybe, but that depends on the luck of the draw.I don't think any club outside of manchester can afford to be sniffy about the league Cup nowadays.

So do you think we should have made the Carling Cup a priority over everything else?
As I've said, our priority over all else is the pursuit of a place in the Champions league. The Carling cup is a distraction and has cost us dear in the past. All the top teams use it as a training cup. We gave it a decent shot on Tuesday night, it wasn't enough but it was absolutely the right thing to rest the players that were rested.

I seem to remember you getting a little bit down at heart last year when the boys in blue showed you how to win a cup..... Seemed quite important then

jak wrote:

villanfromluton wrote:Think that comment regarding the top teams using it as a training cup is wrong Jak. Who exactly are the top teams, do you class a team that hasnt won a trophy of any kind for 7? years as still a top team.

I class the 4 top teams, at any given time, as those that occupy the top 4 finishing positions in the PL.
As The Arsenal have occupied one of those positions consistently for the past many years. Yes, I would say that qualifies The Arsenal as being one of the top teams.

I would suggest that Man Utd and Chelsea have been the top 2 teams for some time time, with Man City now joining the equation, possibly ousting the other 2 on the way. Next (and below that) comes another group of Arsenal, Tottenham and Liverpool, in no particular order. These are clubs who should be wanting to win any trophies at the present time IMHO. I agree with QB and ROT in wanting my club to actually win a trophy rather than finish top 4. MON pist Villa fans off massively by sending a second team to Russia when we had a reasonable chance of progressing in the Europa league. We were challenging for champions league at that time, did MON make the right decision, I certainly dont think he did?

I agree with you that MON fucked up on many fronts that season.
If I were you I'd want my team to win whatever silverware was on offer.
It's a different ball game where a serious chance of a place in the CL is concerned.
MON adopted that point of view when he sacrificed a chance in the Europa Cup, in pursuit of the bigger prize.
Man U, Chelsea, The Arsenal, Money City, Liverpool, certainly adopt the same attitude, such is the pull of the CL prize.
Are they all wrong about the Carling Cup?

jak wrote:I agree with you that MON fucked up on many fronts that season.
If I were you I'd want my team to win whatever silverware was on offer.
It's a different ball game where a serious chance of a place in the CL is concerned.
MON adopted that point of view when he sacrificed a chance in the Europa Cup, in pursuit of the bigger prize.
Man U, Chelsea, The Arsenal, Money City, Liverpool, certainly adopt the same attitude, such is the pull of the CL prize.
Are they all wrong about the Carling Cup?

Liverpool and Chelsea have put some good players out, Man City also. Man U I can accept as they have won trophies continuously, cant honestly see Arsenal beating in the same boat and there are lots of Arsenal fans who agree as well.

villanfromluton wrote:

jak wrote:I agree with you that MON fucked up on many fronts that season.
If I were you I'd want my team to win whatever silverware was on offer.
It's a different ball game where a serious chance of a place in the CL is concerned.
MON adopted that point of view when he sacrificed a chance in the Europa Cup, in pursuit of the bigger prize.
Man U, Chelsea, The Arsenal, Money City, Liverpool, certainly adopt the same attitude, such is the pull of the CL prize.
Are they all wrong about the Carling Cup?

Liverpool and Chelsea have put some good players out, Man City also. Man U I can accept as they have won trophies continuously, cant honestly see Arsenal beating in the same boat and there are lots of Arsenal fans who agree as well.

I'm pleased you are in touch with lots of Arsenal fans. I never realised you kept such good company.

jak wrote:

villanfromluton wrote:

jak wrote:I agree with you that MON fucked up on many fronts that season.
If I were you I'd want my team to win whatever silverware was on offer.
It's a different ball game where a serious chance of a place in the CL is concerned.
MON adopted that point of view when he sacrificed a chance in the Europa Cup, in pursuit of the bigger prize.
Man U, Chelsea, The Arsenal, Money City, Liverpool, certainly adopt the same attitude, such is the pull of the CL prize.
Are they all wrong about the Carling Cup?

Liverpool and Chelsea have put some good players out, Man City also. Man U I can accept as they have won trophies continuously, cant honestly see Arsenal beating in the same boat and there are lots of Arsenal fans who agree as well.

I'm pleased you are in touch with lots of Arsenal fans. I never realised you kept such good company.

There are things such as radio shows that discuss football surprisingly

Blimey, Luton, you were on the hook quicker than the Duchess there.

jak wrote:I agree with you that MON fucked up on many fronts that season.
If I were you I'd want my team to win whatever silverware was on offer.
It's a different ball game where a serious chance of a place in the CL is concerned.
MON adopted that point of view when he sacrificed a chance in the Europa Cup, in pursuit of the bigger prize.
Man U, Chelsea, The Arsenal, Money City, Liverpool, certainly adopt the same attitude, such is the pull of the CL prize.
Are they all wrong about the Carling Cup?

The same Liverpool and City who will be playing eachother in the semi final? As for United haven't they won the league cup three times in the last 6 or 7 yrs? Chelsea themselves have two wins in the same period along with a runners up spot.Take a look at the side Ferguson sent out against Palace.Berbatov,Smalling,Fabio,Rafael,Valencia and Park were sent out against a Championship side.That's £70m + worth of transfers.Ferguson was definitely looking to win that tie.
Anyway Jak, following your comments in this thread:
https://jwned.forumotion.com/t6607p15-up-for-sale

I feel you have conflicting views and you don't know your Arsenal from your elbow

You're over doing it QB, are you suffering from exhaustion?
I don't see any conflict in the two threads.
Of course Man U and Chelsea have won the competition. Look at the players they've had languishing in their reserves!!!
Look at the side Money City were able to field against The Arsenal, it's surreal in footballing terms.
The Arsenal are not in that position, I'm not going to say again why we rested key players because I know a man of your intelligence would understand that.
Take it easy.

jak wrote:You're over doing it QB, are you suffering from exhaustion?
I don't see any conflict in the two threads.
Of course Man U and Chelsea have won the competition. Look at the players they've had languishing in their reserves!!!
Look at the side Money City were able to field against The Arsenal, it's surreal in footballing terms.
The Arsenal are not in that position, I'm not going to say again why we rested key players because I know a man of your intelligence would understand that.
Take it easy.

Man U, Chelsea, The Arsenal, Money City, Liverpool, certainly adopt the same attitude, such is the pull of the CL prize.
Are they all wrong about the Carling Cup?

Now you're arguing against yourself and I thought you said the Duchess was easy to hook

QBVILLA wrote:

jak wrote:You're over doing it QB, are you suffering from exhaustion?
I don't see any conflict in the two threads.
Of course Man U and Chelsea have won the competition. Look at the players they've had languishing in their reserves!!!
Look at the side Money City were able to field against The Arsenal, it's surreal in footballing terms.
The Arsenal are not in that position, I'm not going to say again why we rested key players because I know a man of your intelligence would understand that.
Take it easy.

Man U, Chelsea, The Arsenal, Money City, Liverpool, certainly adopt the same attitude, such is the pull of the CL prize.
Are they all wrong about the Carling Cup?

Now you're arguing against yourself and I thought you said the Duchess was easy to hook

Really, QB. You surprise me.
How am I arguing against myself?????
You must read what I said and not pull one line and quote it out of the context in which it was used.
What I said was that all those top sides adopt the same attitude in resting their first choice players for the Carling Cup, I've never said different.
Of course if Man U, for instance, rest Rooney to play Berbatov, they're still playing a very strong side but it doesn't change the fact that Ferguson was not fielding his strongest side. The same goes for Man.City but their second string cost twice as much as many PL clubs first choice side. The same applies, to a slightly lesser extent, with Chelsea.
So you cannot say that any of the top teams fielded their first choice XI's, because the Carling Cup is not a priority for any of them.
So have another look at your hook, I think you'll find it's gone through your own thumb.

villanfromluton wrote:

jak wrote:

villanfromluton wrote:Think that comment regarding the top teams using it as a training cup is wrong Jak. Who exactly are the top teams, do you class a team that hasnt won a trophy of any kind for 7? years as still a top team.

I class the 4 top teams, at any given time, as those that occupy the top 4 finishing positions in the PL.
As The Arsenal have occupied one of those positions consistently for the past many years. Yes, I would say that qualifies The Arsenal as being one of the top teams.

I would suggest that Man Utd and Chelsea have been the top 2 teams for some time time, with Man City now joining the equation, possibly ousting the other 2 on the way. Next (and below that) comes another group of Arsenal, Tottenham and Liverpool, in no particular order. These are clubs who should be wanting to win any trophies at the present time IMHO. I agree with QB and ROT in wanting my club to actually win a trophy rather than finish top 4. MON pist Villa fans off massively by sending a second team to Russia when we had a reasonable chance of progressing in the Europa league. We were challenging for champions league at that time, did MON make the right decision, I certainly dont think he did?

Have to take issue with two (highlighted) comments there Lutes.
1) How very dare you put us in a group with Tottingham and Liverpool (in no particular order)! OK, historically Liverpool are up there as a top club but Tottingham? And you're suggesting that ManC are walking away from all the other clubs this season - no they effin ain't!
2) Winning a trophy is great, providing it has value - the League Cup has no value whatsoever (aside from getting your youngsters playing at a higher level) The FA Cup is a competition we've long held dear and has some value cos the final's normally at the end of the season so it comes as a kind of football celebration (even if the games don't usually live up to expectation) - but for the bread-and-butter rewards it's the Premer League champions followed by ECL winners and qualifying for the ECL means having to finish fourth in the Premier League, if you don't finish at least fourth you can't compete. Finishing top-four is therefore a priority.

1) I think you three clubs will be battling for the 4th spot, Im not on about history, I am talking about things as they are now. Where did I suggest Man City will walk away with the league, are you going blind with your exercising
2) Just my opinion, I would love to win the league cup.