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Who's missing who? Arsene knows
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Written by Benjamin Cullen
Andrei Arshavin, few would disagree, is an exceptionally talented individual. But many people were bemused that Arsene Wenger chose to sign another attacking player instead of a replacement for the dynamic midfield ball-winner Mattieu Flamini.
However, if we look more closely at Arsenal’s 2007-8 home fixtures with Man Utd and West Ham and the corrosponding 2008-9 fixtures, we can see that perhaps Arsene Wenger already had in his ranks a ready-made replacement for Flamini. Not Alex Song, as some may have thought, but the young Brazilian midfielder, Denilson.
No longer are the terraces a hostile and violent place where women, minorities and the infirm aren’t welcome. For better or worse the game now strives towards a more wholesome image. One that is inclusive, marketable and appeals to a broad and diverse audience.
A bye-product of this is the trend for the rich and famous to occasionally crop up in the stands - and sometimes even on the pitch - in the hope that their newfound affiliation with a football team will endear them to the British public.
More often than not their show of 'support' reeks of the facile.
Michael Jackson – Exeter/Fulham
Clearly not averse to changing his colours, Wacko was first paraded at Craven Cottage at the behest of chairman Mohammad Al Fayed in 1999. In 2001 the King of Pop then turned up at Exeter City’s St James’s Park alongside his spoonbending buddy, Uri Geller, and gave a speech about children with AIDs.
Last Christmas, a Leicester City fan shouted to Nigel Pearson at half time "Oi Pearson, what's going on, it's like pantomime season out there," to which the Foxes manager drolly retorted "Oh no it isn't!"
The Leicester performance that day may have been a bit Widow Twankey, but over the course of the season thus far, they have bossed the third tier of English football and deserve to be taken seriously.
A far cry from the Premier League where the sheer amount of teams in danger of crashing through the trap-door reflect just how many clubs are in disarray. The dramatic and desperate daily shenanigans of some of the country's most famous clubs are like something out of a terrible soap opera.
What’s football without a good sing song? Absolutely nothing.
According to the media, footballers live like kings, cashing salary cheques the size of Neville Southall’s gut. But the real kings of the football ground are the terrace overlords who write the anthems that echo off the advertising hoardings like hymns off cathedral walls.
Brazil playing Italy at the Emirates on Tuesday was the best friendly for as long as memory serves. Media-bashing of these midweek matches has become commonplace but games like this bring balance to the argument.
Football, as a spectator sport, is surely best when skill is being showcased like it was by the South Americans during the first half.
Elano, Mark Hughes may have noticed, is a brilliant player. He scored the first of two special goals with his Eastlands team-mate Robinho adding a stunning solo second.