Arsenal – Bolton Match Preview, Plus Other Notes

By: Homey | October 24th, 2011

carling-cup For some reason, I had it in my head that the match with Bolton was going to be on Wednesday. So I was going to write a nice little news report today, and then we’d roll out a preview tomorrow. But alas, the schedule is a little different. We apparently have only one day off in between, so I have to do the preview today. I still want to get to a few other notes though, so I’ll start with those.

First of all, don’t look now, but our team is finally starting to look decent. We’ve 1-6 of our last 7 games, and have also fixed some of our defensive frailties as well. People are jumping off the Homey train at a blistering pace, but I’m fine with that, since it means the team is winning. I’m sure it’s a combination of things, including a fairly weak schedule, combined with the new players getting more comfortable with the team. But it’s finally starting to become more fun to blog about Arsenal, and it’s good to look at the standings and see us only three back of Spurs and two back of Liverpool.

And if you somehow didn’t notice, I couldn’t pass up a little dig at Man Utd in the previous paragraph. Now of course I’d still happily trade our place in the standings with theirs, and our lineup with theirs. Still, I enjoyed seeing them get smacked in the face a bit at home. I’m sure many Arsenal fans have grown to have a greater distaste for Man City than United at this point, and I understand that. But for me, if I had to pick between the two teams, I’m hoping City wins the league. The biggest reason is for the few die-hard City fans who have been there all along and never seen their team do anything, all the while living in the shadow of United. So it’s good to see the true fans smile a bit. And second, while it seemed like I was swimming upstream at the time, I was the only one of our blogging team who picked City to win the title before the season. Of course there’s still a lot of soccer to be played, so we’ll see how it all turns out.
Arsenal training

Turning our attentions back to the Carling Cup, there are three main theories as to what sort of team we should select for this competition. There are two extremes in either direction, and then a middle position, I would have to say. One extreme is to consider it the “Mickey Mouse Cup,” and use a reserve lineup. We’ve done this to a large extent in the past. The other extreme would be to consider this our best shot at a trophy this season, and put out the best lineup we can muster. And then the third theory, which was more or less what we did for most of last season’s Carling Cup run, is a little of both. Mix in a few regulars with a few guys who are usually on the bench, or with the reserve team. This time around, much of that decision will be essentially made for Wenger by the schedule-makers. Even if he wanted to field a really strong lineup, it would be almost impossible with one day of rest. So I suspect we’ll be seeing almost complete rotation from what we saw on Sunday.

Regarding Bolton, I won’t take too much time to dissect their team, since Darren did so in his preview of them just a month ago, when we faced them in league play. JG provided the recap of that one, as we cruised to a 3-0 win. RvP scored twice in the second half, and Song provided the icing on the cake just before the final whistle.

Overall, the Wanderers have been dreadfully poor this season, winning twice and losing seven times in nine league outings so far. They’ve also given up more goals than anyone else in the Premier League – 24. And their goal difference is the worst in the league. After we saw them play last time, they lost 1-5 at home to Chelsea, defeated Wigan away, and then lost at home to Sunderland on Saturday. However, they’ve been a bit better in the Carling Cup, having defeated Macclesfield Town from League Two, and then winning at Aston Villa in Round Three to advance this far.

So what sort of lineup should we expect tomorrow from both sides? From Bolton, I would expect something closer to a full-strength lineup. They had an extra day of rest, and the Carling Cup is the best thing they have going at the moment. From an Arsenal perspective, as already noted, we should expect a lot of rotation. Most of us could make an educated guess as to our lineup at the attacking positions. However, injuries to our back line have forced me to really ponder what the options are. But with that said, here’s a wild stab at our lineup:

Fabianski

Djourou Squillaci Miquel Santos

Frimpong

Coquelin Benayoun
AOC Miyaichi

Park

Bench: Martinez, Vermaelen, Angha, Aneke, Ozyakup, Rosicky, Watt

One of the few easy decisions in the lineup is to insert Flaps in goal. Moving out from there, you’ll quickly notice that I have Djourou and Santos starting, even though they played on Sunday. I’m a bit out of ideas for those spots though, due to injuries. I suppose Angha could start at right back, and perhaps Vermaelen could start at left back. I really didn’t think we’d see Vermaelen back for this one, but I saw pictures of him in practice, and there are reports he might play. I split the difference and put him on the bench. If he’s really at full fitness, this would be a good chance to ease him back into the action. Boateng could also factor into the back line somewhere too.

In the midfield, I really wanted to make a case for Aneke in the starting lineup. But I’m afraid we won’t see that, and there’s a good chance Rosicky gets the start as well (probably in place of Coquelin, who I have starting). Also, since Benayoun hasn’t had much action lately, I think Wenger will want him in the game. And then on the wings and up top, I filled it out as I hope we see it, with the young guys on the wing and mystery man up front. I didn’t really insert much firepower on the bench, so hopefully we won’t be in search of a late goal. Perhaps Arshavin could occupy a spot on the bench, since he only played about 20 minutes on Sunday.

With the way that Bolton has looked, and with this one at home, you’d like to think we could squeak this one out. But that lineup I just typed isn’t likely to instill any fear into the opposition. And if we have the central defensive pairing that I suggested, there could easily be a goal or two gifted to Bolton. Without RvP to provide his magic, I’m also a little worried about where the goals will come from, despite Bolton’s defensive generosity this season. So yeah, it shapes up as a difficult one, due largely to the schedule-maker.

I’m not sure just yet who will live blog and recap, but I’m sure we’ll have something for you somehow. Stay tuned.

Come on, Arsenal.

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Even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace; When he shuts his lips, he is considered perceptive. Proverbs 17:28.

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Category: Arsenal News, Bolton, Carling Cup, Preview

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Rico

I really want to see Park on the pitch, for the sake of several arsenal.theoffside readers and, to see what he's got.

It'll be good to see how AOC and Miy are getting on with improvements and determination to prove they're worth. In response to Homey I think these two will be the goal scorers. I can't say much about Park as I have forgotten what he looks like and what e does for Arsenal.I agree with Brenton, seeing Squillaci in the team gets me worried.
brenton

I see Squillaci there and I get scared.
Perry S.

Two Words (same as last year): CONFIDENCE CUP.
JG

According to the highly reputable Young Guns, the side for tomorrow will be:
Fabianski; Yennaris, Squillaci, Miquel, Vermaelen; Frimpong, Coquelin, Benayoun; AOC, Arshavin, Park.
Subs: Mannone, Boateng, Meade, Ozyakup, Aneke, Miyaichi, Watt.
Highly experimental bench. Slightly worried about TV5, but excited about Yennaris. Hope that Ryo, Aneke, and Ozzy get some significant minutes.
Bumblefock

would it mean arsha's captaining?
Homey_Mills

Thanks for that. They must have posted that after I searched their site. Anyway, please disregard my proposed lineup. It's hard to guess for Carling Cup matches.
JG

Whoops, Kanoute isn't racist, he's Muslim. Huge train of thought mistake there.
JG

Apparently Cesc DID happen to say some offensive comments towards Kanoute. Not xenophobic (Kanoute is racist), but racist. "puto negro de mierda", which roughly translates to "piece of f****** black s***". Awful if true, and inexcusable from Fabregas.
Now, out of all the 3 accusations in the last couple of weeks, this one has the most weight. Evra, in my honest opinion, could have very well pulled the accusations out of his ass. No real evidence that Suarez said anything particularly racist. Anton Ferdinand has yet to accuse Terry of anything. But if you look at this video on FourFourTom's Twitter, you can clearly see Cesc say something to Kanoute not once, but twice, and Kanoute angrily slaps Cesc and starts to choke him. Now, AFAIK, Kanoute is not a particularly feisty type a la Barton, Rooney, or Busquets. He seems like a peaceful guy. But for him to react like that is jarring. Cesc and Kanoute have already publicly apologized to each other. But the fact that Cesc could have said it in the first place, and the fact that these accusations are growing in number is really, really worrying.
Kas123

No disrespect and many may disagree with me, but from what I understand racism is rampant in Spain. There have been numerous cases where players of color were racially abused but nothing became of it. Some recent cases that come to mind are Henry being called derogatory names by Luis Aragones, or Carlos Kemeni being abused by Espanyol and visiting team fans, and now Kanoute. I love Cesc just like the average Arsenal fan, but at the same time I dont believe such behaviour is beyond him. Cesc seems to me as though he is easily influenced. I say that because Cesc did not belong to Barcelona, he was trained and developed into a great footballer by Arsenal, but throughout the last few years at Arsenal he acted as though he owed Barcelona and had to return by any means necessary. I understand people may say he was upset when he sai his racial slurs, but for him to say it 2 or 3 times, according to the video, says a lot. Saying it once could be considered a mistake, but 2 or 3 times is intentional. Cesc no longer is an Arsenal player, therefore we cant expect him to behave like an Arsenal player. He's a Barca player, he simulates injuries and gets players unfairly ejected from games. I wonder how his black team-mates feel about his sentiments?
Kxevin

The video is here: http://www.canalplus.es/play/v...

The incident is said to occur between 2:10-2:20. I can't for the life of me make out anything except (maybe) "Puto." Native Spanish speakers are saying that they are 100% certain. I reckon my lip-reading skills aren't that good.

My question is what makes the Fabregas allegations any more credible than the ones against Suarez or Terry? Evra says that he was slurred 10 times by Suarez. In the Fabregas/Kanoute scrum, Iniesta, Busquets and Navas are in close proximity when the words are uttered. Surely they heard them.

The situation is a mess, pointing to the fact that the game we all love is a mess. Until its governing bodies are clear about stamping out hate speak, allegations such as this will always arise. And people can point at the offender, breathe a sigh of relief and not question the problems present in the institution.

For the record, not defending Fabregas, but defending someone's right to be innocent until proven guilty. Same as with Busquets, Suarez and Terry.

If the allegation is true, I would want him off the team. Period. Gone. That, to me, would show the appropriate tolerance for such speech. Another question raised by someone is what if it was a sexual orientation slur? I don't know, except that this is a mess that is tarring two leagues right now.
Homey_Mills

Sounds to me like a suspension would be in order if this could be proven true.
Kxevin

Homey, for some reason DISQUS put my comment into moderation. Can you release me from prison, please? I'm sure it's because I put a link in there, speaking as a fellow board moderator. Thanks.
brenton

We have never been given mod status for comments. I'm not sure the current admin team know how to do that, which is comical.
Homey_Mills

I'm sorry about that situation, Kxevin. When it comes to approving comments and such, I don't have moderator status. If you'll notice, there's still a blue star next to Martin, but not next to me. And he hasn't written a blog here since the start of June. Anyway, maybe that's why certain former Offside bloggers go elsewhere to blog.
You'll have to write your link in code or something, with spaces, etc.
Darren_V

Yennaris is likely to start this game at RB.
Darren_V

Nevermind, Martin beat me to it.
Mike Howells

Is this one televised?
Carson Jenga

Fox Soccer Plus is where they show Carling Cup games in the U.S. and for
some mystifying reason they are showing Aldershot vs Man U live. I know
Man U has a large fan base but I don't think it makes sense to televise
that game instead of Arsenal v Bolton which is between two recognized
premier league teams... Well I hope there will be a stream. Good preview Homey, go Gunners!
Martin

Well, unfortunately it does make sense -- I think Man U has way more fans than Arsenal vs. Bolton put together, and this kind of match in this stage of the competition is never going to attract many neutrals. So I have no doubt they'll get more viewers for Aldershot-Man U than they would for our match.

If anyone is a member, ArsenalPlayer (through the original site) is showing it tape delayed starting very shortly after the match ends, so you can watch it that way if nothing else (that's usually how I watch these when I get home from work).
Homey_Mills

Not in the U.S. as far as I can tell. FSC is showing Juventus/Fiorentina.
Martin

The rumbling is that Nico Yennaris will start at right-back. Promising young player, I did a "Who's Next?" article on him for the blog a few years back, but missed almost all of last season through injury. And left-back is anyone's guess. People are claiming it could be Vermaelen, or Vermaelen starting in the middle pushing Miquel or Squillaci out left. But I'm with you -- I think it would be a bit foolish to rush Vermaelen back into action so soon when he's only been in full training for a few days now. Jernade Meade or Sead Hajrovic, both of the Reserves, can apparently play at left-back, so I think it could be one of them there.

Another thing to consider is that Arshavin was training with the first-team ahead of this match, whereas most of the other big guns weren't, which suggests to me that he could very well be involved, and possibly even start, in this one.

Between Fabianski, Squillaci, Vermaelen, Rosicky, Benayoun, Park, and Arshavin, the team for this one could be quite a bit more seasoned and experienced than our typical CC lineup.
Homey_Mills

OK, good info. I thought Angha would be a little further ahead in the pecking order, but I really don't know enough about the Reserve players to have much of an opinion.
By the way, are you still writing a blog? I haven't seen anything new in a while.
Martin

Yeah, Angha has had some training sessions with the first-team and reportedly has a fan in Wenger. Some people had said that he was likely to make his first-team debut tomorrow. But he started and played the full 90 yesterday against Chelsea for the U18s (a match that was held at the Emirates immediately after the first-team match), so can't imagine he'll be involved in this one.
Homey_Mills

Dangit, I missed that. I did go to Young Guns before writing my blog, but didn't notice that. Martin 1, Homey 0.
Patoux21

Is it just me or the weekly injuries report is no longer available on the Arsenal official website?
Martin

Go to "News", and under that tab "Team News," and that should bring up the injury update page.
Patoux21

Thanks!