Last Season: 14th, 10-11-17 (41 points, -19 goal differential)

Recent Form: LL

Away Form (last season): 2-8-9

Last Meeting: Portsmouth 0-Arsenal 3 (1/28/09)

Portsmouth is bad. Really, really bad. In our season preview I picked them to barely stay up over Birmingham, but it wouldn’t surprise me at all if they were relegated from the Premiership. Since winning the FA Cup in 2008 and establishing themselves as a skillful, fundamentally sound, top half of the table club, they have sold: Glen Johnson to Liverpool, Peter Crouch to Spurs, Jermain Defoe to Spurs, Lassana Diarra to Real Madrid, Miguel Mendes to Rangers, and Djimi Traore to Monaco. They also lost manager Harry Redknapp and allowed Sol Campbell’s contract to expire. They haven’t found suitable replacements for those players.

Financial woes have made Portsmouth a relegation candidate, and they’ve looked the part so far. They’ve recorded a pair of 1-0 losses, at home to Fulham and away to Birmingham on an injury-time penalty. They’ve recorded 0 goals and only 5 shots on goal, and it must be said that their attack looks particularly anemic at the moment. The bottom line is that if Portsmouth are going to stay up this season, their path is clear–they’ve got to rely on a decent backline in front of solid (but overrated) keeper David James and try to grind out a lot of 0-0 and 1-1 draws, along with the occasional 1-0 or 2-1 victory. They’ll line up tomorrow in a 4-5-1 with three holding midfielders shielding the backline, and will be more than happy to just hoof the ball downfield in hopes that either a winger or the lone striker can track it down; if not, it’ll force Arsenal to reset and bring the ball downfield all over again.

In that respect, this match will present Arsenal with an interesting test. Last season, particularly at the beginning of the season, Arsenal seemed to lack focus against teams we were heavily favored against, and had particular trouble against physical, defensive, direct teams like Stoke and Fulham, which is probably pretty similar to Portsmouth’s game plan. However, part of the problem against those sides was that our short passing attack was too content to pass the ball back and forth looking for an opening, but if 10 men are behind the ball, openings are hard to find upon passing alone. Since then we’ve added Arshavin, who is willing and capable of attacking with the ball, which can draw defenders to him and create some space and passing lanes for other players. Bendtner has also shown an occasional tendency to attack with the ball, although his proficiency at it is obviously nowhere near Arshavin’s. Hopefully they and others will be aggressive tomorrow and open up Portsmouth’s defense.

I certainly don’t mean to be insulting or disrespectful, but Portsmouth is a bad team, and anything less than a win would be a big disappointment for Arsenal. This is one of the 5 or so easiest league fixtures we’ll have this season, and it’s the kind of match you have to win to be a legitimate title contender, and the kind of match we all too often ended up with a draw or even a loss in last season. I am a bit worried, because: (a) I always worry about everything; (b) Portsmouth will be playing the kind of tactics which have given us trouble in the past; and (c) this match is sandwiched right in the middle of a fixture list chock full of “big games” (Everton, the Celtic tie, Manchester United, Manchester City) and could be the kind of game players don’t take as seriously as they should. Here’s hoping we show up to play and can bust the game open a bit by grabbing an early goal and forcing them to come out of the shell and play.

Given that many of the players played 2 full away games in a 4 day span against Everton and Celtic, and we’ve got 2 big games (Celtic on Wednesday, Manchester United on Saturday) in a similarly short span coming up, don’t be surprised if Wenger rotates a couple members of the squad. No injuries were picked up in Glasgow, which is good, and Eduardo should be back in contention for this match. However, Walcott is still out with his back ailment, and Wenger said that he is unsure if Walcott will be fit for United next weekend or not. For now, I’ll just go with chalk and put the same lineup as we saw in the first couple of games out there, but don’t be surprised if Eduardo, Diaby, or Eboue start, or at least see significant action as substitutes:

Almunia

Sagna-Gallas-Vermaelen-Clichy

Denilson-Song-Fabregas

Bendtner-van Persie-Arshavin

We’ve had 2 great wins in our 2 games so far. Let’s keep that momentum going and avoid this potential stumbling block–especially with Liverpool’s early loss and Manchester United’s slip up against Burnley, a win tomorrow really keeps us at the head of the pack with a game in hand. Also, this will be probably be my last post for a couple of days, and I won’t be able to watch the Portsmouth match–I’m moving to NYC tomorrow, so will be busy with moving, unpacking, and getting settled in over the next few days. But I’ll be back next week to weigh in on whatever’s been going on. And if any of you live up in NYC or are ever in NYC on a weekend when Arsenal is playing, drop me a line and we can meet up at Nevada Smith’s and I can buy you a beer while we cheer on our Gunners.

Other than that, there’s just not much in the way of news. St. Nick is apparently negotiating a new contract, rumors are linking us with Newcastle center back Steven Taylor, who’s young, big, and I think would actually be a decent pick up in terms of providing cover at the position. Hope you all have a great weekend.

UPDATE: I didn’t feel like this deserved its own post, but Wenger has come out and rubbished the recent report that he had agreed to send Cesc to Barcelona next summer. The boss said: “The only thing I can say that the day I agree to sell a player one year in advance, I will not be in this job any more.” Well, he either rubbished the rumors or found a very clever, obtuse way to announce his retirement.

Come on Arsenal.

Current Position: 14th, 9-11-14 (38 points, -15 goal differential)

Home Form: 7-3-7

Recent Form: DDWLD

Last Meeting: Arsenal 1-Portsmouth 0 (12/28/08)

Chelsea Watch: Fulham

Back in action tomorrow as we travel down to the coast to play Portsmouth. First off, make no mistake–this is not going to be an easy win. Not at all. Portsmouth have actually been pretty good at home this season, and since Paul Hart has taken over, they’ve been playing very well, and have only lost to Chelsea and United during that time. Furthermore, they’ve got a lot to play for–they’re playing to stay in the Premiership next season. A win tomorrow would basically seal it for them, and don’t think they wouldn’t love to do it against a big team in front of their home fans.

As for us? Well, not so much. We’re 10 points ahead of Villa for 4th place, and have a far superior goal differential. So, basically, to overtake us, Villa would have to win out, and we’d have to either lose all four remaining matches or lose three and draw the remaining match. I think we’re safe. The only thing we really have left to play for in the league is trying to overtake Chelsea for 4th place.

We’re 6 points behind the Blues with 4 to play. One of those is a head-to-head at the Emirates. Even if we assume we will win that game, we would still need to make up 3 points in 3 games. Chelsea’s 3 games over that span: Fulham, Blackburn, at Sunderland. Meanwhile, we have: at Portsmouth, at Manchester United, Stoke. Based on what we saw Wednesday, you’d have to say it’s unlikely we’re bringing 3 points back from Old Trafford. If we don’t, that means Chelsea only has to get 4 points out of its remaining 3 games to finish 3rd, and it’s hard to see them not doing that. Look, stranger things have happened, but . . . not many. Frankly, 3rd is a pipe dream at this point, and our focus really needs to be on trying to put out United on Tuesday.

Because of this, I expect we’ll see a LOT of squad rotation tomorrow. I really think most of the key players will be rested. Maybe I’m wrong, but I’d expect to see Denilson, Bendtner, Vela, Eboue, Ramsey, and maybe more get a start or see some significant time on the pitch.

As I said, Portsmouth has really come together and has been playing well. David James is a solid if overrated keeper, Glen Johnson is a very good right-back, and Peter Crouch is the kind of tall target-man type striker that can give us a lot of problems on balls into the box. They’ve got a solid backline anchored by Sylvain Distin and former Gunner hero Sol Campbell. They play a single striker formation, and will be looking to keep us from dominating possession and trying to nick a goal on the counterattack. The key for us will be to keep them from picking out Crouch around the goal.

As I said, there’s going to be a lot of rotation, so who knows who will suit up tomorrow. Because of that, trying to predict a lineup is a pretty futile exercise. But futility hasn’t stopped me from wasting thousands of dollars on women throughout the years, and it won’t stop me now:

Almunia

Sagna-Toure-Djourou-Gibbs

Eboue-Fabregas-Ramsey-Denilson

Bendtner-Vela

I could be completely wrong–maybe Wenger will put out a stronger side than that, but as far as I’m concerned, our one and only focus at the moment needs to be preparing for United on Tuesday. We shall see.

In lighter news, Chelsea revealed their new home shirts for 09/10 today. And…well, see for yourself:

I know The Offside is a friendly blogging community, so I don’t want to go overboard trashtalking other teams, but I have to say: what the hell? What are all those little lines that look like the outline of a sports bra? That looks ridiculous. Not to nerd out on you too bad, but it reminds me more than anything of the undershirt/overshirt combo that characters on Battlestar Galactica wear:

Very questionable. If I was a Chelsea fan I wouldn’t wear this, and wouldn’t be happy that my team was wearing it. I’m no fashion expert, but the lines that only go on the shoulders and the bottom of the sleeves are pretty stupid looking as well. And are those zippers on the collars–are they going to be unzipping a little after the game to show off some chest hair? And, last but not least, I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out that I find the mini-”popped collars” to be an exquisite touch. They should have just gone all out with it:

+1 to whoever designed this. Seriously, Chelsea fans, if you’re reading this, what do you think? I’m not trying to go out of my way to pick on you, but this shirt is really bad, right? Or am I just crazy and bitter because you knocked us out of the FA Cup and are going to hold us off for 3rd place? Why do they always have to go and mess with this stuff–what’s wrong with the classic Chelsea blue and white shirt?

This post has gone a long way off course since it started, and I have no idea how to end it. Oh, right, I remember:

Come on Arsenal.

Can’t comment too much on the game – the holiday season, combined with the fact that the game wasn’t easily accessible (ie on FSC) I couldn’t watch it. Harsh to admit, I know, but sometimes you just can’t structure your life around one game.

I won’t get into much detail about Portsmouth, but a win can hopefully provide some much needed momentum even though there’s a short break till the next league game (Bolton on Jan 10). It seemed like more of the same, as Tony Adams had his team well-organized defensively. One thing that was clear from the game is how much this team will struggle to break down other defenses in its current state. That’s not to say winning will be impossible, but Diaby, Denilson, and Song are hardly the answers – unless they start to play as brilliantly as Wenger seems to think they are capable of.

With the transfer window opening in just a few days, chatter is already starting. A lot of websites are whispering the name Arshavin, and while I see that he is a possibility, I can’t believe that Wenger would pay the £20m Zenit is asking for him. Perhaps they’ll secure his services for a smaller price, but I don’t know if it is realistic. I’ve never been a huge fan of Arshavin and the fact that he would need a few months to adjust to the Premier League turns me off to him even more. If he’s still at Zenit at the age of 27, there’s a reason that no other clubs have come calling.

However, there is no question that one or two new players need to be brought into the squad. Wenger has continued to claim that he won’t bring in more experience:

“You cannot have a youth policy and suddenly buy three players aged 27. You destroy what you have done and created. I could have put a player in front of [Theo] Walcott, Denilson and [Cesc] Fabregas, but that would be crazy.”

All valid points, but when two of those three players are out injured and the other doesn’t have the required quality to win any silverware, maybe the youth policy could be put on the back burner. What worries me is Wenger’s insistence on this team finding success, even domination in the future. I find this truly hard to believe – what kind of reason do Arsenal fans have to believe that? The young players who are getting consistent minutes – Bendtner, Denilson, Diaby – have only proved that they aren’t ready yet or don’t have what it takes to be a consistent winner in the Premier League. Yet the manager is standing by his players, and while it is good on some levels, it can be damaging later on if they are overconfident in their own abilities.

Bottom line is this next month will go a long way in determining whether or not this team has a chance at keeping their spot in the top four. I can’t bring myself to mention any sort of title contention at this point.

After the jump are the highlights of the Pompey victory, courtesy of 101 great goals.

Arsenal v Portsmouth