Thursday Throwdown: Summertime, And The Livin' Is Easy

Arsene wooed his man, who chose
North London over Merseyside
(Credit: Fanny Schertzer)

Sam: Well, it feels like ages since we last sat down to talk about the Arsenal. What with work getting busy, then enjoying the World Cup too much to actually take the time to write about it, and major transfers happening, the time has just flown by. So far, we've had a really busy summer, and I'm sure there's a lot more to look forward to. I also realized last night that Boston Gooners events are getting back in to full swing, with Arsenal playing friendlies every weekend until the new season opens with the Community Shield on August 10. So, Andy, how has summer treated you? What's been the highlight from an Arsenal perspective so far?

Andy: Some of us are lucky enough to have tickets to go see Arsenal playing their friendly in New York City against the Red Bulls so that is certainly on my mind at the moment. Overall though, the Arsenal based highlight of the summer for me has to be the signing of Alexis Sanchez. He stood out as a star among a game Chile side during the World Cup, but we all knew how good he was far before that. Players don't earn transfers into the starting eleven at Barcelona for being decent occasionally when representing their country and to be honest, it's still a shock to me that the Catalan club was willing to give him up.

World Cup: Quarter-Finals Predictions, Day 2

Well, I was completely wrong about yesterday's results, but that's never put me off before, so here are my predictions for Saturday's quarter-finals.

Argentina vs Belgium
On paper, this match looks like it should the best of those on offer this weekend. On one side, you have one of the best players of his generation, Leo Messi, supported by a brilliant winger who is just starting to get the credit he's due, Angel di Maria. The second tier of players - Ezequiel Lavezzi, Sergio Aguero and Gonzalo Higuain - certainly have the talent, but haven't played their best (yet), while the rest of the squad is largely made of functional players - your Mascheranos and Zabaletas. The Argentines needed 120 minutes to beat well-organized Swiss side in their last match. On the other hand, you have most people's pre-tournament dark horses, who have so far failed to live up to expectations. The de Rode Duivels, however, boast an impressive array of attacking talent - Hazard, de Bruyne, Origi, Mirallas, Lukaku, etc - and are solid in the middle and at the back. They also boast a goalkeeper who has never lost on the international stage in Thibaut Courtois. Marc Wilmots selected Origi up front in place of Lukaku against USA, and the teenager looked sharp, worrying the American defense and only being kept at bay by an inspired Tim Howard. Once Lukaku came on in extra-time, his strength and pace changed the game, which may be a tactic the Belgian manager wants to repeat against an aging Argentinian back line.

World Cup: Quarter-Finals Predictions, Day 1

Brazil's hopes rest squarely on Neymar's shoulders.
(Source: Danilo Borges)

The quarter-finals of the 2014 World Cup take place this weekend, nicely coinciding with the Independence Day weekend, so even though the United States were eliminated in the last round, there should still be a major audience for the games. For the first time, all 8 sides that won their group have progressed to the quarters, and the only real surprise package is Costa Rica. For the first time this tournament, I'm going to have a shot at predicting the winners and score in each match; so if you fancy a little bet, whatever you do, don't follow my advice.

World Cup Watch: Do Arsenal Players Equal Wins?

Campbell celebrates his goal
against Uruguay
(Credit: Danilo Borges)

During the England vs. Italy game on the first weekend of the World Cup, as my home nation were losing, I turned to my wife and her parents and jokingly said that the reason the Three Lions were losing was that Roy Hodgson had neglected to select the Arsenal players in his squad. This was followed by a dawning realization that I may have actually been on to something; Spain had been thrashed by the Netherlands the day before, while Santi Cazorla sat on the bench for the majority of the game, while Joel Campbell inspired Costa Rica to a 3-1 victory over Uruguay in the match before England's. After this, I kept an eye on the trend. Germany started Per Mertesacker, Mesut Özil, brought on Lukas Podolski, and demolished Portugal. France's first game ruined my theory, as they beat Honduras with Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny, though I was bailed out on Twitter by my regular Throwdown partner Andy, who said that everyone would beat Honduras anyway. France then redeemed themselves - in the eye of my theory - by thrashing the seeded Switzerland, with Giroud starting alongside Karim Benzema for Les Bleus.

World Cup Links: He Bites, He Dives ... Well, You Know The Rest

Cannibal Suarez. To be fair, Chiellini
does sound like a tasty pasta dish

I’ve been meaning to write about the World Cup ever since it started, but just couldn’t really find anything of interest to say; we’re all aware of how good this iteration of the tournament has been, with more goals per game than any World Cup in a long time, the reigning champions being eliminated after just two games, and late equalizers and winners. I didn’t feel like I could add anything to what we’d all witnessed. Until yesterday, that is.

As I’m sure you’re all aware, Luis Suarez bit Italy’s Giorgio Chiellini on the shoulder, with the score tied at 0-0 in a game that would go on to decide who qualified from Group D behind Costa Rica. It should be noted that replays from multiple angles haven’t proved overwhelmingly conclusive, but it certainly looked like the Racist Cannibal had a good munch on some prime Italian shoulder meat. FIFA have opened an investigation into the incident, with Suarez claiming that Chiellini “bumped” into him. Compounding the matter is the fact that Suarez threw himself to the ground as if he’d been shot (as is his wont) in a clear attempt to either confuse the referee or earn his side an important penalty; he might have been hoping the Italian defender would react and shove him, so by going down quickly was preparing for contact.

The WAT: Arsenal to try new 0-1-0 formation

Having negated the need for new, returning, or current first team players with the signing of Mesut Ozil in 2013, Arsene Wenger may be adopting a new midfield-heavy 0-1-0 formation during pre-season training after the World Cup.

The new formation will feature Mesut Ozil in all outfield positions and, with limited goalkeeping options, Wojciech Szczesny featuring largely in the "rotation."

Ozil kicking ball, running after ball, then kicking it back the other direction at training.
(https://flic.kr/p/hTWEmw)

The always excitable Arsenal fan and first/only team keeper announced his excitement to get back to basics in the upcoming season. "Mesut is a great, great player. I'm looking forward to us getting a lot closer this year. Also, I haven't talked to the boss yet, but I'm hoping maybe I can get some outfield play time in some big games this season, too."

Thursday Throwdown: World Cup Predictions

Neymar (center) will be key to the hopes of the
host nation
(Credit: Ronnie Macdonald)

Sam: The Greatest Show on Earth is finally here! The 2014 iteration of the World Cup takes place in Brazil, the nation that gave the world the likes of Pele, Ronaldo, Zico, Romario and Roberto Carlos (definitely deserves to be in that list!) and home to some of the most rabid and passionate soccer fans on the globe. The hosts will be considered among the favorites to win the tournament, though the last time they hosted, the Seleção crumbled under the intense pressure, losing to Uruguay in the final.

Despite that, I have them as ranked as favorites to win; they won the Confederations Cup convincingly in similar stadia and conditions last year and key players like Hulk and Neymar enter the tournament in good form. Argentina will also have a good chance; their group is one of the easier ones, so they should progress without taxing too many of their key players, and Lionel Messi will be desperate to add international success to his club trophies and strengthen his argument as one of the best players ever. Finally, I am looking forward to watching Germany. They have a very talented and deep squad, though taking just one traditional striker could hurt their chances as they get to the latter stages. So, Jess, those are my favorites to take the trophy home. Who do you think will win the 20th World Cup?