Sunderland - may be your new home for a couple of weeks

[CyprusMackem]

Can't believe Sunderland fans are getting ahead of themselves. One game at a time- we have to beat Boro first. Show a little bit of respect me thinks!!

I can't see one post that gives Arsenal anything but respect.

[The Vaughan Identity]

I can't see one post that gives Arsenal anything but respect.

talking about skipping to the weekend, assuming we'll beat boro mate

[MrRAWhite]

[QUOTE=CyprusMackem;2250294]I can't see one post that gives Arsenal anything but respect.[/QUOTE
I think he was talking about Boro..

[CyprusMackem]

Sorry. My bad.
That said we should be confident of beating Boro. Not saying for a second it'll be easy but we should be confident.

[The Vaughan Identity]

Sorry. My bad.
That said we should be confident of beating Boro. Not saying for a second it'll be easy but we should be confident.

We should be, but I'm very much wary; I thought it would be easy first time round

[Ammaar]

God, I'm really not looking forward to this game. We could get spanked. I would have gladly taken a point before hand, but due to some of our poor results, like the draws against Fulham & Wolves at The Emirates and the losses such as Fulham at CC and Swansea at the Liberty Stadium, this is a must win game for us. I can't see it happening, though.

I'd be absolutely over the moon with three points, but I think the Stadium of Light have become a bit of a bogey ground for us in recent times. I think the last time we won there was in 2008?

Anyway, I've always thought Sunderland have had great players, but they could never get the best out of them under Bruce's tenure. McClean looks quality, Campbell looks fresh, Sessegnon is performing brilliantly and Larsson has been a lovely acquisition, fitting into midfield perfectly and still a danger from set-pieces, as he showed against us at The Emirates.

Not too confident for this game, especially baring in mind our poor away record....

I really hope Sunderland have an off day....

[Samurai]

If Chamberlain plays well, we'll win.

I can see Wenger resting him though!

[MONsMush]

There's no lack of respect to Boro here lads, I think your missing the fact we play Arsenal in the league on Saturday!

Always tough, but I can see Sess and McLean licking their lips at the thought of playing Arsenal, not in a disrespectful way, but in a 'we'll get some space on the counter' way.

RVP is the leagues best, simple, and AOC has impressed me almost as much as McLean, he looks 8 x Theo already.

I fancy a highly entertaining 1-1, and us to nick the cup tie (if we get past Boro) on the basis that Arsene may choose to play a weakened side for that one.

[commachio]

All about the defences these games...

Both teams can score....none more so than RVP.

Gunners seem suspect at the back, but bloody scary when attacking...so it'll be entertaining stuff..

Likewise with McClean Larsson and Sess running at them, they'll have to be on guard against the speed and crosses.

Now watch, it'll be a 0-0......i'd take that mind.

[PNEawf]

Shame O'Neill went to Sunderland. Obviously not for them as he will make them a much better side. He is top class and can get the best out of his teams and I was hoping we could get him when Wenger goes, hopefully at the end of this season!!

[master-simpson]

Shame O'Neill went to Sunderland. Obviously not for them as he will make them a much better side. He is top class and can get the best out of his teams and I was hoping we could get him when Wenger goes, hopefully at the end of this season!!

Nee chance Marra!!!

Bart

[CyprusMackem]

Shame O'Neill went to Sunderland. Obviously not for them as he will make them a much better side. He is top class and can get the best out of his teams and I was hoping we could get him when Wenger goes, hopefully at the end of this season!!

MON's life-long ambition along with that of his Mentor (Clough) has always been to manage Sunderland.
Clough unfortunately never got the chance, MON thankfully has. He's going nowhere.

[lazarus20000]

It should be a good game. I don't think Arsenal have quite hit form yet but with the emergence of OXO and the return of Sagna will make us a tougher proposition. Sunderland will be a tough nut to crack and will be riding on a high with MON in charge.

The key for an Arsenal win will be our wingers tracking back. OXO and Walcott will have to defend against the counter-attack against Sunderland. Sess is the main danger from Sunderland. Sanga and Walcott need to combine well against him to reduce their ability to attack. Song/Arteta need to do their clean up duties effectively and not get caught on the break too much.

[Durhammackem]

Hopefully the first of two successive games between out teams. Can't wait!

[Dyavvy]

Going to be a classic game against Arsenal, I think it could be high scoring.

Much has been said of our "transformation" and I know you should only take one game at a time but what a dream from our position now to think of back to back wins against Arsenal....If we did that I think you could say we`d arrived

[Letalent]

Double Arsenal at home is now officially go

[billofengland]

Hello Gunners,

Hope all is well, but we have been hearing murmurings of discontent from the Emirates on and off most of the season. Assuming we can win our FA Cup replay we will have two games against each other on successive weekends this month at the Stadium of Light. Your chances of winning the FA Cup and qualifying for the Champions League this season depend heavily on your results against us. With interest and respect, I thought it might be nice to have a chat about a few of the key issues before this intriguing double-header.

The Managers
Martin O'Neill v Arsene Wenger - Two of the most respected managers in the British game, though they differ in styles.

MON - We couldn't be happier with him. He looks the perfect fit for the club he supported as a boy. Bruce was taking us down, MON has resurrected the club in incredible fashion. We are the form team in the league since he took over. He is an incredible motivator, good tactician, master of the substitution and has us well-organised, hard to break down and capable of scoring incredible goals week in week out. Negatives? Maybe we are in the honeymoon period, but we don't have any.

How has Arsene been doing recently? We hear sounds of discontent from the terraces? It seems a long time now since you were going unbeaten and this season looks like your worst yet as you struggle to reach the minimum 4th place. What's happening? Is it time for change?


The Players - Sunderland
What looked like a team of no-hopers at Sunderland now look like serious candidates for European football. We have a resolute defence (4th lowest goals conceded this season), free-scoring midfield but weakest area is up front, hence why we have Billy Bendtner on loan from Arsenal. I advise you not to look too closely at our team on paper, as the game is played on grass and our total is definitely playing greater than the sum of it's parts. Our defence is very strong - we haven't lost by more than one goal all season and we haven't conceded more than 2 in a match all season. Anyone predicting a romp is likely to be disappointed. Mignolet has good positioning and his only real problem area is weakness under crosses, where he needs O'Shea and Turner to help him out. Our FBs could be better and we know it. If you can stretch them that may be your best chance of piercing our defence as we have conceded a high % of headed goals this season with decent crosses from wide areas. How good is RVP in the air? He might find the central area too congested, even with his silky skills. In front of this mean defence you will find a dogged and determined midfield. Cattermole may/ should be back by then and he is rejuvenated under O'Neill, having cut out most of the silly bookings and poor lunged tackles. Vaughan his willing accomplice may be missing, but we have Colback who puts in a shift and rarely wastes the ball, Gardner who will shoot (and score) from distance, and Meyler if we need some height. Our wingers are dangerous too in different ways. Larsson can swing in a decent cross but his great strength are pinpoint deadballs - giving us freekicks in the sweetspot is a bad idea, as I am sure you remember from earlier this season. On the other side, you will find one of the Premier League's secret weapons - James McClean. Don't let his lack of reputation fool you - this guy is golden. Strong as an ox, fast, direct, scores goals, very good at beating his man and delivering dangerous crosses. We already accept that we are unlikely to be able to keep him much more than the next 18 months. Our real key man, however, is Sessegnon, playmaker extraordinaire. We are only partly joking when we sing God took Messi and Pele, rolled them into one, looked back and he called him Sessegnon. To win against Sunderland, you have to stop the Beninese magician, and that is easier said than done. He has the highest successful dribble % in the league, is creative, tireless and loving his football. I advise that you don't double up all your defenders on him as that will just make more space for James McClean or Fraizer Campbell and all 3 players are seriously rapid. Those 3 form much of our attacking intent and they have a lot of pace, trickery, wingplay and finishing between them. Truthfully, I don't think you can stop us from scoring, the only question is can you score more. Your best hope is winning 2-1. Normally I would say you are favourites but I doubt the bookies will agree. We are top of the form table for a reason and fancy it against anyone at the moment.

The Players - Arsenal
We all know about RVP but who else should we watch out for? Is Oxlade-Chamberlain worth all the fuss? What sort of game can we expect from him? Who will 'try' to manmark Sessegnon? How will you deal with our counter-attacking movement? What do we have to do to stop the Arsenal passing moves from hurting us in the final third? Who is Coquelin? Who is the weak link in the defence?

I am looking forward to these games (god willing we beat Boro) as two of the best games of the season. Assuming we play twice, I have a feeling it may be spoils shared, one win each. If I am right, which one do you want the most? Any other expectations for the game?

Good article four stars from me.

[Arsenal87]

lol, i think you got too ahead of yourself to the thread poster. know your place.

[JoRvIk-ViNeGaR-jOe]

lol, i think you got too ahead of yourself to the thread poster. know your place.

It's only round one mate! As an ex-boxer wait till after next weekend to gloat OK!

[MackemsRule]

lol, i think you got too ahead of yourself to the thread poster. know your place.

Honest question, did you really think you deserved all three points?