Thoughts / blog

My thoughts

Out Gooned 2 Nov 2026 - Arsenal beat us not because they were better than us but because they were a bit cleverer. Their intention from the off was to con the referee with a player going to ground inside the first minute. Nothing wrong with him but it spoke volumes of what they were going to be like. The same thing happened again a few minutes later. In both cases the referee checked on the players well-being. Arsenal knew what they were doing, we knew what they were doing, our players knew what they were doing but Andy Madley, who, as a referee, has long left his better days behind him, seemingly didn’t. If the going got tough, Arsenal knew what to do. Yes, we… ...
Gooner Time 31 Oct 2026 - Arsenal are the Champions and probably the best team in the country as things stand. The game probably presents Liverpool with their most difficult test so far, forgetting Manchester City as we had too many players missing. Against The Gooners we should be putting out a better side in terms of strength so this will be the opportunity to see just where we are, how much progress has been made since the change of manager. I’d be surprised if the talented trio of Trey Nyomi, Rio Ngumoha and Lewis Koumas made the starting X1but I wouldn’t be worried if they did. That’s progress. Andoni isn’t rebuilding the side; he’s just putting things back in place and that’s all we want.… ...
Spot On Joe 29 Oct 2026 - Beating Chelsea last night, albeit in the penalty shoot-out lottery was just reward for the manager. With Lewis Koumas and James McConnell picking up early yellow cards meant they were a bit restricted, but they kept going. Both deserved the cheers when they were replaced by the seasoned pros. I’m starting to see both Rio and Trey now as first teamers and once again, Trey wasn’t far off man of the match. When the likes of VvD and Company are trusting him, you can see how far he has progressed under this manager. When Rio got the chance to run at Chelsea, they struggled to cope. I will also say this, I’ve criticised Mama in goal but last night, as… ...
The League Cup Awaits 28 Oct 2026 - Looking forward to the League Cup game tonight. I’m expecting Andoni to go with a much-changed side and the young lads like Rio, Trey and Lewis Koumas all starting, maybe James McConnell as well. Chelsea’s only playing domestic football this season, so they can go as strong as they wish. Hope the crowd are up for it. ...
Seagulls Culled 25 Oct 2026 - Strange sort of game. I thought we looked good for the first twenty-five minutes but then let Brighton have the ball for as long as they wanted. Maybe that was the plan after all, the Government is telling us we should conserve energy and we have Chelsea on Wednesday. I sat in the Upper Anny today. I just wondered if it is the norm for about 90% of the crowd to go for refreshers about 5-minutes before halftime and come back 5-minutes after. Or like the lad next to me, very passionate with his support but missed about 20-minutes of the game after taking his halftime respite and leaving ten minutes from the end. And are half ‘n half scarves… ...
Weather Or Not RAOTL ON Sale 24 Oct 2026 - I missed Andoni and his press chat, but it seems like we’re in a wait and see situation on the player front. With Chelsea in the League Cup and Arsenal waiting in the wings our squad’s being tested to the limit. Brighton come after an away night in Europe and have been on a good league run so we know what we can expect. It would be nice to win a home league game and keep a bit of the momentum we should have after three wins on the bounce. Despite the weather warnings Red All Over The Land hopes to get to Anfield and try to sell a few more copies. It’s been hard in the better weather, so… ...
The Thriller That Wasn’t A Thriller 21 Oct 2026 - Liverpool 4 Villarreal 3: The seven-goal thriller that wasn’t a thriller. Liverpool were probably worse in the first half an hour than they were against PSV last season. A didn’t know what B was doing and C hadn’t a clue. Two down and the Villareal fans were having a fiesta while Liverpool and Anfield were having a siesta. Then we came back to life when Mac Allister scored from the Greek Scousers corner. Then came Rio Ngumhoa. He created [I don’t use the word ‘assist’] a chance for ‘Big Ron’ Araujo to get us level just before the referee was going to blow the halftime whistle. I said to the guy behind me, “I don’t know how this is two-all”… ...
Euro Night 20 Oct 2026 - No Szoboszlai or Frimpong tonight and the rest of the squad will be down to speculation until we get told. Dom didn’t get injured too much during his first few years here but for Jeremy Frimpong it seems he will play a few then miss a few. Villarreal should be interesting opposition, not one of Spain’s biggest but good enough to qualify for the Champions League. They’ve lost away at Dortmund but beat Napoli at home so they won’t be a soft touch. I don’t think I’ll be enjoying too many Fanzine sales if the weather forecast is right. ...
Brentford See Red 17 Oct 2026 - As I hinted after Bournemouth, grab the points, get on the bus and get out of town. I don’t think Brentford can complain about the first red card but probably will. The second one in added time was a bit daft. Good to see Isak and Dom back and we scored two good goals. Not brilliant but Victor Muñoz and Alexander the Great won’t be complaining. Neither am I. A glass of wine tonight. ...
Brentford Preamble 16 Oct 2026 - Andoni was asked about the fitness of Gakpo, Isak and Szoboszlai but he didn’t seem to be too sure about their chances of facing Brentford so I think that could mean they won’t. He sounded a bit protective when asked about Rio, Trey and Lewis but I would expect all three of them to get on the pitch down in London. Brentford play in a certain way and the manager said he expected a physical battle knowing it will be about set-pieces, especially the long throw. It was our Achilles heel last season, so we’ll find out how we cope this time around. Our problem is that we can’t afford to have players out of the side and Gravenberch will… ...

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