Season 2008/2009 review

Emirates..... Season 3, 2008/2009 

Sat, 02/08/2008 This is the second season of the Emirates Cup and again I got a ticket for the first day. First game up was an entertaining match at 2 pm between Real Madrid and Hamburg. Real took the lead on 25 minutes when Ruud van Nistlerooy scored the opener. On 53 Zidan scored for the Germans to level but the last word went to Parejo who with five minutes to go scored the winner for Real. At 4.15 Arsenal took on Juventus and although again it was an enjoyable game, Arsenal never got going and Juventus won. On 33 David Trezeguet headed home a Pavel Nedved cross but the goal was rightly ruled out for off side. Five minutes later, Vincenzo Iaquinta fired in a low free kick and Trezeguet slid in to score again, again the goal was off side but this time the Referee wrongly gave the goal. Arsenal looked like a team preparing for the new season and were not able to get the goal back. Juventus became only the second team to beat Arsenal at the Emirates with a 0-1 win. Still it was a good afternoons entertainment even in defeat.

My Emirates cup ticket

Sun, 03/08/2008 Emirates Cup day two started at 2 pm with a comprehensive win for Hamburg (scoreline anyway) who lost yesterday and beat Arsenal's conquerors Juventus 3-0 today. Guerrero scored for Hamburg in the 20th minute. Two second half injury time goals by Olic on 91 and 92 minutes made the game seem easier than it really was. Again at 4.15 pm Arsenal faced yesterday's winners, Real Madrid. Arsenal stepped up a gear in this game and won 1-0 with a 49th minute penalty from Emmanuel Adebayor after Michel Salgad had brought down Robin van Persie in the penalty area. Both teams made and missed chances and the 1-0 winning scoreline for Arsenal meant that the two injury time goals scored by Hamburg were enough for them to win the competition outright. All four teams had three points but Hamburg won by scoring the most goals.

 Wed, 06/08/2008 Huddersfield against Arsenal in a pre season friendly was tonight’s entertainment as part of Huddersfield’s Centenary celebrations. Arsenal sent a youthful team in a game with TWENTY substitutions in total. 16000 fans turned out to watch Arsenal win 1-2. Huddersfield were to take the lead with just 15 minutes to go. A long throw did the damage, the ball went to Berrett and his shot took a big deflection and ended up in the visitors net past Vito Mannone. Three minutes later, Jay Simpson flew down the right wing for Arsenal and rolled a simple ball into the box where Sanchez Watt was waiting to finish. Arsenal found a winner with three minutes to go, Nacer Barazite shot from the edge of the area, the keeper got his hand to the ball but failed to stop the ball going in.

 Fri, 08/08/2008 Arsenal were back in the Netherlands for this seasons Amsterdam Tournament as holders of the cup from last season. Ajax were again the hosts as always and Inter Milan (Italy) and Sevilla (Spain) made up the four team event. First game for Arsenal was an absolute cracker against Ajax who Arsenal beat 1-0 last year. At halftime Arsenal were looking a bit sorry for themselves having gone into the break 2-0 down. Two goals in two minutes did the damage, first on 34, Rasmus Lindgren knocked the ball into the penalty area where it was met by a poor defensive Kolo Toure header, the ball fell to Luis Suarez who blasted the ball home off the underside of the bar. Two minutes later, the team playing the better football were 2-0 down. Lindgren again crossed, Dario Cvitanich headed down and Klaas Huntelaar hit a low volley across Almunia and into the far corner of the net. 65 minutes in and Arsenal got some reward, Emmanuel Eboue crossed high from the right to Emmanuel Adebayor and he headed past Maarten Stekelenburg the Ajax goal. Eight minutes later and Arsenal levelled. Mitchell Donald played a poor back pass to the keeper, Adebayor intercepted and carried the ball to the byline before cutting back to Nicklas Bendtner who tucked the ball away to level. Arsenal were now rampant and on 83, scored the well deserved winner. Denilson received the ball and slipped into the area, laid a simple ball off to the waiting Adebayor and the turnaround was complete. Ajax 2-3 Arsenal. Great entertainment and a great start to the competition.

 Sat, 09/08/2008 Arsenal’s next opponents were Sevilla. This time it was the Gunners who took the lead. Carlos Vela picked up the ball wide left, ran into the box and shot into the far corner with only four minutes on the clock. After that Sevilla dominated most of the match and no one could complain when on 81 they got their reward. Jesus Navas had time and space to cross low from the left and Ernesto Chevanton swept the ball past Lukasz Fabianski from six yards. With just three minutes to go, Nevas had a very difficult headed chance but still managed to hit the post. The game ended 1-1 but that was enough for Arsenal to retain the Amsterdam Cup for another year.

All Preparation was now over and it was time to get serious!!

 13/08/2008 The season started today, not with the first Premier League game of the season but a Champions League qualifying game 1st leg away to FC Twente of Holland. Its was a poor Arsenal performance but they still gained a very important 2-0 win. On 63 minutes Emmanuel Eboue was fouled out side the area, Robin van Persie played in a low hard cross from the free kick and it went all the way to the back post where William Gallas scored with his knee. With seven minutes left, Theo Walcott broke away and set up Emmanuel Adebayor for a simple close range second.

 16/08/2008 The first EPL game of the 2008/2009 season, kicked off early at 12.45pm at the Emirates Stadium against newly promoted West Bromwich Albion. New boy Samir Nasri scored his first Arsenal goal after only 4 minutes, a Denilson cut back from the left close to the byline found Nasri and he slotted home from six yards. The crowd expected Arsenal to go on and score a hat full but that failed to happen. West Brom held firm and Arsenal lost their way but the damage had already been done, Arsenal started the new season with a 1-0 win and three Valuable points.

New Boy Samir Nasri scores his first Arsenal goal

23/08/2008 The first Premier defeat of the season came in only the second game of the season with another poor display losing 1-0 at Fulham's Craven Cottage. On this performance it could be a very long season and with the transfer window about to shut in a week's time I for one would like to see at least two more battle hardened experienced players brought in to toughen up the midfield as this is a problem area and we look very poor and lack ideas when Cesc Fabregas does not play. Without this situation being fully addressed I would say it would be almost impossible to win the Premier League this season. 6ft 4 inch central defender, Brede Hangeland scored a simple winning goal when he knocked home a Jimmy Bullard corner unchallenged in the 22nd minute. Arsenal struggled throughout and after three games this season they have failed to impress so far.

Wed, 27/08/2008 Fourth game of the season and a good 4-0 win as Arsenal beat FC Twenty at the Emirates and qualify for the group stages of the Champions League. First goal of the night came on 26 minutes, good work on the right by Theo Walcott who crossed into the box, Robin van Persie received and played a layoff to Samir Nasri who danced past two defenders and clipped the ball home. On 53 the tie was well and truly dead. Nicklas Bendtner’s shot was palmed out to William Gallas by Twenty keeper Nicolay Mihaylov and he slotted in to make it 2-0. On 66 it was 3-0, a one-two between Walcott and Bendtner saw Walcott burst forward before curling a low shot into the far corner of the net for a great goal. Bendtner slotted home a fourth on 90 minutes and Arsenal had finished the job in style with a 4-0 win and 6-0 on aggregate.

Sat, 30/08/2008 EPL action at the Emirates and for the third time in three visits Newcastle United were beaten 3-0. The first goal came via the penalty spot in the 20th minute, Emmanuel Adebayor’s shot hit the outstretched arm of Charles N’Zogbia and ref Rob Styles pointed to the spot. Newcastle keeper Shay Given guessed the right direction but van Persie’s penalty was low, hard and right in the corner of the net. Five minutes before the break it was 2-0, Adebayor in the box passed to Eboue who with his back to goal back heeled into the path of van Persie and he scored from eight yards, a well worked clever goal. The final goal of the game came on 59 minutes, Nasri passed to Adebayor and he laid the ball off to Denilson on the edge of the area to score a great third, van Persie then hit the underside of the bar with an angled screamer. Arsenal are starting to find their feet this season and this was a very comprehensive victory.

On the 10/09/2008 19 year old Theo Walcott playing only his second full International game for England scored an amazing hat trick (26, 59 and 82) in a World Cup qualifier in Croatia. With Croatia favorites to win the match it makes his feat even more special and he becomes England's youngest ever hat trick scorer. The final score was Croatia 1-4 England

Hat trick hero Walcott

Sat, 13/09/2008 Emmanuel Adebayor scored Arsenal's first Premier League hat trick of the new season (45, 78 pen and 89) with the last goal being his 50th for the club, in a 0-4 away win at Blackburn Rovers in the EPL. Robin van Persie opened the scoring with nine minutes gone. Theo Walcott out wide left beat a couple of players with his pace and gave the ball inside to van Persie, he then shot past ex Spurs keeper Paul Robinson now in the Blackburn goal to make it 1-0. Blackburn responded well and deserved to go into the break level but that was not to be because a Denilson cross to the back post as the halftime whistle was about to go saw Adebayor head a second goal. Blackburn fought hard after the break but with nine minutes left, Emmanuel Eboue was brought down in the box by Stephen Warnock and Adebayor scored from the spot. In injury time Adebayor hooked home his hat trick goal. Blackburn can feel they deserved better but it was not their day. Jack Wilshere came on with nine minutes left and became Arsenal's youngest EVER League player aged just 16 years 256 days.

Wed, 17/09/2008 Tonight it was Champions League Group Stage one night and a long trip to the Ukraine, where FC Dynamo Kyiv were the hosts. Arsenal picked up a hard fought point with a late goal from William Gallas. The first half was goal less and not too much to write home about. The second half was more lively and Kyiv took the lead on 61 minutes when Bacary Sagna was adjudged to have failed Ognjen Vukojevic after Bangoura had crossed the ball into the box. Bangoura made no mistake from the spot sending Manuel Almunia the wrong way. With time running out, Theo Walcott threw in a low cross and after some scrappy defending Gallas bundled the ball over the line with two minutes to go. Not the best of nights but a point on the board was a start.

 Sat, 20/09/2008 Back to the EPL and a trip to Bolton Wanderers. Never an easy place to visit with their tough no nonsense style of football. On 14 minutes Bolton won a corner, defending corners is not Arsenal’s greatest strength and it was no surprise when Kevin Davies out jumped everyone to put Bolton in front. What was more surprising even after Arsenal missed some great chances was how they turned the game on it’s head with two quick goals in the 26th and 27th minutes to take the lead. First Eboue looking like he might be offside, shot low and hard into the net by the near post after good work from Cesc Fabregas and Nicklas Bendtner and a minute later, Denilson broke clear on the left, his low cross was well met by Bendtner at the near post to put Arsenal in front. Both teams had chances in the second half but it was not till the 88th minute that Arsenal killed the game. Denilson scored from close range after a cross wide right from Adebayor had found it’s target. Bolton 1-3 Arsenal was a great battling result for the Gunners.

23/09/2008 Arsenal's youngest ever team in their history took to the Emirates pitch in a third round Carling Cup match with an average age of only 19 years old against Sheffield United and won 6-0. 19 year old Carlos Vela scored a hat trick on his first team debut (44, 49, 86) including a magical chip over Paddy Kenny in the Sheffield United goal and 16 year old Jack Wilshere became Arsenal's second youngest ever scorer on 57 minutes after he received a short corner on the edge of the box and fired low and hard past Kenny and into the net. The goal was greeted with a roar from the crowd. Nicklas Bendtner opened the scoring with the first two goals, two well placed shots (31, 42). Goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski was Arsenal's oldest player at just 23. This really was an incredible display against a full strength Sheffield United team but was the result about to have consequences?? The full team was..........

Lukasz Fabianski, Gavin Hoyte, Alexandre Song (69) Johan Djourou, Kieran Gibbs, Fran Merida (69) Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere, Mark Randall, Carlos Vela, Nicklas Bendtner (69) When SUBS Francis Coquelin (69) Henri Lansbury (69) and Jay Simpson (69) came on it made the average age even younger!

Kids stuff

 Sat, 27/09/2008 After all the media frenzy about Arsenal’s 6-0 win over Sheffield United, I have a feeling that Arsenal took their eye off the ball and lost concentration for the “easy” EPL home game against promoted Hull City today as there was not a chance in hell that Hull could get anything out of this game. Arsenal were on 199 Premier League wins and this was the first League meeting between the two sides in 93 years. What eventually happened was one of the biggest shocks since the Premier League began in 1992/1993. A goal less first half saw Arsenal eventually take the lead. Four minutes after the break Theo Walcott crossed from the byline, Adebayor knocked the ball on and Cesc Fabregas and Hull City’s Paul McShane challenged for the ball before it ended up over the line, It was a scrappy goal later given as an own goal. That should have been the moment Arsenal upped a gear but it only spurred Hull on. On 61 minutes, completely out of nowhere Giovanni received the ball, skipped past a challenge and then 25 yards from goal, just smashed an unstoppable rocket past Almunia in the home goal. The shock of that goal could be felt all around the ground and before it had subsided Hull City were in front! On 65 minutes Hull won a corner, Andy Dawson swung the ball over and Daniel Cousin headed firm and true into the top right hand corner of the net. With 25 minutes still to play, there was no way Hull could possibly hang on to become only the second EPL team to win at the Emirates but hang on they did and their battling performance earned them three of the most unexpected EPL points ever.

 Tue, 30/09/2008 Tonight it was Champions League Group Stage Two night against FC Porto of Portugal. Two goals in each half saw Arsenal to a comfortable win. After a nervy start Arsenal finally broke the deadlock on 31, Cesc Fabregas played an inch perfect pass to the advancing Emmanuel Adebayor who was wide right, he played a low cross to the near post where Robin van Persie just beat his marker to the ball with his outstretched leg to score. Five minutes before the break Arsenal won a corner and the rolls were reversed, van Persie took the corner and Adebayor met the ball with a downward header to double the lead. Three minutes after the break it was 3-0. Theo Walcott near the byline found van Persie inside the box, he then nutmegged Bruno Alves and shot into the far corner of the net. 3-0 became 4-0 with twenty minutes to go when Guarin took Nicklas Bendtner’s legs away in the box and Adebayor scored from the spot. A dominant performance by Arsenal and a final 4-0 score to match.

 Sat, 04/10/2008 Sunderland away was the next game on the agenda in the EPL. An average scoreless first half made way to a controversial and dramatic second half. On 56 minutes Robin van Persie blasts the ball into the net from a Theo Walcott right wing cross, The linesman flags that the ball had gone out of play before the cross so the goal is chalked off but TV replays show the ball was in and a perfectly good goal is disallowed. In the 85th the game burst into life when substitute Grant Ledbitter who had only been on the pitch for two minutes blasted a 25 yard rocket off the underside of the bar and in to give Sunderland a 1-0 lead. 90 minutes were now up and there were four minutes of Injury time to play. In the fourth and final minute Arsenal won a corner, van Persie took and Cesc Fabregas headed the equaliser to rescue a point.

 Sat, 18/10/2008 One point from the last two EPL games were not what the doctor ordered and being a goal down at half time to Everton at home in the EPL was a worrying situation. That goal came after nine minutes when Leon Osman slid home a low left sided cross from Steven Pienaar just inside the near post. After the break Arsenal were a different team, three minutes after the restart Arsenal were level. Mikael Silvestre fed Samir Nasri just outside the box and he shot through a crowd of players into the corner of the net. Arsenal were now banging loudly on the Everton door and with Twenty minutes to go they broke through again. Emmanuel Adebayor was through on goal but instead of shooting squared for Cesc Fabregas who did shoot, Tim Howard in the Everton goal could only knock the ball back out and Robin van Persie headed the Gunners in front. Everton were finished and had nothing left to offer, Theo Walcott made it 3-1 in injury time shooting through the legs of Howard in goal. This was Arsenal's 200th Premier League win.

  Sun, 19/10/2008 Arsenal's Women’s Premier League team beat Leeds Carnegie LFC 4-0 to go ONE HUNDRED Premier League games UNBEATEN!!! The last time the ladies team lost was a 2-1 defeat to Charlton on the 16/10/2003

Arsenal Ladies

 Tue, 21/10/2008 Tonight was Champions League Group Stage Three night and a night that produced a record equalling 36 goals scored on a single Champions League evening. Arsenal's contribution was to take part in a SEVEN goal thriller away to the very intimidating Turkish side Fenerbahce. With Arsenal two goals up after just 11 minutes you just knew this was going to be another very special European night and that's how it turned out. This was a five star performance all the way and not a score line anyone would have predicted. On 10 minutes Fabregas passed to Adebayor who ran in on goal to score, on 11 minutes Fabregas found Walcott who ran in and scored from a tighter angle. The home team were back in the game on 19 when a Roberto Carlos free kick out left to the far post was chested down by Guiza who then let fly, the ball hit Arsenal central defender Mikael Silvestre and deflected in. Three minutes later it was 1-3 to the visitors, a long high ball was taken perfectly by Abou Diaby who out powered his defender before firing across goal into the far corner. Guiza then had a goal ruled out for offside and that was the right decision. 1-3 at half time became 1-4 in the 50th minute, Nasri was fouled, Fabregas took the free kick and the ball went into the box, after a few touches, the ball found it’s way to Alex Song who fired home an angled volley from eight yards. With twelve minutes to go, Guiza found himself with time and space to chip a lovely goal over Almunia to make it 2-4. There was however plenty of time left and young substitute Aaron Ramsey fired home from the edge of the area with the last kick of the game. This was a fantastic night that ended with a 2-5 totally unexpected victory.

 Sun, 26/10/2008 Back to bread and butter football of the EPL and a short trip across London to West Ham. This was a hard fought match that saw both teams cancel each other out for an hour and then Arsenal slowly began to get on top. Arsenal finally broke the deadlock on 75 minutes when Emmanuel Adebayor’s shot from inside the penalty was going wide but luckily for him and Arsenal, Julien Faubert touched the ball at the far post and knocked it in for an own goal. With time running out and West Ham pressing for an equaliser, Arsenal broke quick in injury time and Adebayor scored a second to wrap up the points. There was still time for a bad Carlton Cole tackle on Alex Song and the West Ham striker was given a red card to seal a bad day for the Hammers.

 Wed, 29/10/2008 It’s not every day you get 4-4 draws in the EPL but Arsenal managed it twice this season. Both games were unbelievable but this game was verging on unforgivable as well. It was North London Derby night and a classic game that Spurs supporters will look back on with fond memories and us Gooners will just feel sick. Ex Gunner David Bentley opened the scoring in the 14th minute, when he hit a spectacular 40 yard volley, yes it was a great shot, was it great goal keeping by Manuel Almunia?? I will give Bentley the benefit of the doubt because it was a great strike. With 37 minutes on the clock a Cesc Fabregas shot was knocked behind for a corner by Spurs keeper Gomes, Robin van Persie took the kick and Mikael Silvestre headed his first Arsenal goal high into the net. The first half ended all square. No sooner had the second half started and Arsenal were in front. Tom Huddlestone fouled van Persie and he took the free kick himself. William Gallas met the ball with his head and guided the ball just inside the near post. Just passed the hour on 63 minutes Arsenal were 3-1 up, Van Persie played a long ball, Samir Nasri raced in on goal and lifted the ball over Gomes, Adebayor just beat defender Alan Hutton to the ball and knocked it over the line. Four minutes later and Spurs were back in the game, Huddlestone hit a low shot that Almunia could only parry into the path of striker Darren Bent and he made it 3-2. Arsenal responded immediately, from the kick off Arsenal pushed forward and Adebayor knocked a ball across the area for van Persie to arrow his 50th Arsenal goal into the Spurs net. With just two minutes left Jermaine Jenus scored from the edge of the area and with time up, and Spurs going for broke, Luka Modric blasted a long shot against the post and when the ball bounced back it went to substitute Aaron Lennon who had the simple task of Equalising. The Spurs supporters went mad and all the Gooner felt mad at giving away two goals at the very death.

 Sat, 01/11/2008 Stoke away was next up in the EPL. This game was so predictable I could have wrote the script. Stoke a big strong powerful side against Arsenal, a much smaller, lightweight team with bags of skill were always going to come out second best in a battle and the now famous Rory Delap very long throw. On eleven minutes Delap had the chance to use his long throw skill, He took his first long throw of the day and Ricardo Fuller met the ball with his head to make it 1-0. The game remained strength against skill and strength was winning but there were some very poor challenges made on Arsenal players as well causing Emmanuel Adebayor to go off injured. In the 73rd minute it was long throw time again, The throw caused havoc and panic in the Arsenal defence and Seyi Olofinjana bundled the ball over the line at the far post. The remaining 17 minutes saw Robin van Persie sent off for a challenge on Stoke keeper Thomas Sorensen and Theo Walcott carried off after another bad challenge. With seconds to go and Arsenal with just nine men, Gael Clichy scored his first EVER goal but that was far to little and far to late.

Wed, 05/11/2008 Tonight was Champions League Group Stage four night.    After the 2-5 away win against Fenerbahce we might have all expected more fireworks on firework night but that never happened and the game ended a very disappointing 0-0 but that kept Arsenal top of group G. Still I got some great photos including the photo below :-)) and a text before the game from my best friend Dave who should have been at the game saying he was in hospital with a broken leg :-(( that put a downer on the night to start with and I was planning a trip to the hospital as the game kicked off.

My Photo

 Sat, 08/11/2008 A Samir Nasri double saw off Manchester United in this heavyweight EPL clash at the Emirates Stadium. On 22 minutes Nasri scored his first AND the Premier Leagues 300th goal of the season. Patrice Evra fouled Bacary Sagna by the right hand bye line, Cesc Fabregas took the free kick and Nemanja Vidic headed clear but the ball went straight to Nasri who fired the ball back through a crowd of players taking a deflection of Gary Neville before hitting the net and beating Edwin van der Sar in the United goal. The second half kicked off with Arsenal 1-0 up, Arsenal were now playing keep ball with a number of good passes when finally Fabregas got the ball and fed Nasri 20 yards out and he smashed home his second goal in the 47th minute. Arsenal were now well in control but in the last minute and United looking for a way back they did score when young substitute defender Rafael Da Silva scored past Arsenal substitute goal keeper Lukasz Fabianski who replace injured Manuel Almunia in the 78th minute. It was now 2-1 and the board went up showing SIX minutes of injury time to be added but Arsenal held firm and deserved there win.

 Tue, 11/11/2008 Kids night as Arsenal take on Wigan Athletic in this Carling Cup 4th round match at the Emirates. Jay Simpson with two goals and Carlos Vela with one, gave EPL side Wigan a bit of a pasting. Wigan were still far tougher opposition than Sheffield United in the last round but on 43 minutes Jay Simpson opened the scoring. Jack Wilshere picked out a perfect forward pass for Simpson to latch onto and he tucked away the ball with real composure. Twenty minutes into the second half it was 2-0. Wigan attacked, Fabianski in the Arsenal goal punched clear and Arsenal raced forward on the counter attack, Vela picked up the ball and sprinted wide left to near the byline where he picked out the advancing Simpson with a cut back pass to slot the ball past Chris Kirkland in the Wigan goal. Five minutes later on 70 it was 3-0, Johan Djourou burst forward from defence and passed to Vela, he now ran in on goal, dodged a tackle from Titus Bramble and hit a lovely chip shot over the keeper and in. Another super show from the youngsters and the score was a fair reflection on the night.

 Sat, 15/11/2008 Today Aston Villa came to town and beat the Gunners 0-2 at the Emirates. Two second half goals gave the visitors the win they deserved on the day. It might have been worse if Manuel Almunia had not saved a 20th minute penalty after Theo Walcott had brought down Ashley Young in the box. Young got up to take the penalty because usual taker Gareth Barry had been injured in the build up. Young took, Almunia blocked and William Gallas was first to the ball and knocked the ball from danger. Villa did find the net though on 69, Young crossed from the left and Gael Clichy under pressure from Villa Striker Gabriel Agbonlahor headed the ball into his own net. With ten minutes to go and Arsenal on the attack, Villa won the ball deep in their own half and hoofed it forward, Agbonlahor out sprinted Gallas before shooting past Almunia. That was that and there was no way back for the home side.

 Sat, 22/11/2008 After losing at home last week the last thing Arsenal needed today was another defeat away to Manchester City in the EPL but that’s what happened and they lost big time. Just as the half time whistle was about to go, Stephen Ireland capitalised on sloppy Arsenal defending by Mikael Sivestre and Gael Clichy and simply clipped the ball over the advancing Almunia in the Arsenal goal. Arsenal came out fighting in the second half but on 55, Manchester City had snatched a second goal. Robin van Persie had the ball but was knocked off it by Shaun Wright-Phillips he then played a forward ball to Robinho who was sprinting towards the Arsenal goal, with just the keeper to beat he played a fantastic chip that left Almunia with no chance and City with a 2-0 lead. As the game was going into injury time, Johan Djourou was adjudged to have fouled Daniel Sturridge in the penalty area and substitute Sturridge took the penalty to make it 3-0. That was the final score and while it was a bit harsh on the day it was another damaging blow to Arsenal’s Premier League ambitions.

On the 24/11/2008  Cesc Fabregas becomes Arsenal's new Captain at the age of 21 following William Gallas who is stripped of the armband following comments made to the media and other reasons ("in club") problems.

25/11/2008 Tonight was Champions League Group Stage five night. This was Cesc Fabregas's FIRST game as Arsenal Captain and Jack Wilshere becomes Arsenal's YOUNGEST ever Champions League player when he came off the bench aged just 16 years 329 days young! Arsenal beat Dynamo Kiev 1-0 with a Nicklas Bendtner goal on 87 mins, Fabregas played a long forward ball to Bendtner in the penalty area, who had also just come off the bench wearing his new PINK Nike boots and he buried the ball from ten yards. Oleksandr Aliev was then sent off for pushing the Ref and getting his second yellow card of the evening. Great start for the new Captain and this result qualifies Arsenal for the knock out stages.

Bootiful, just bootiful

 Sun, 30/11/2008 Chelsea against Arsenal in the EPL was next at fortress Stamford Bridge. Besides Liverpool breaking their four and a half year unbeaten home record a month ago, this was not a great ground for any team getting away points. Before Liverpool’s win, Arsenal were the last team to win there on the 21/02/2004 when they won 1-2 with goals from Vieira and Edu after going a goal down in the first minute when Eidur Gudjohnsen put Chelsea in front. Today and against all the odds, in terms of form and the bookmakers, Arsenal were to make lightning strike twice and come from a goal down to win. Chelsea took the lead on 31. Frank Lampard took a corner, Almunia in goal caught and threw the ball out quick to Samir Nasri but the throw was misdirected, Bosingwa got the ball fired in a low cross to the near post where Johan Djourou trying to defend only managed to knock the ball into his own net. A complete disaster of a goal separated the two teams at half time. Arsenal came out fighting in the second half and got a lucky reward on 58, Denilson laid the ball off to Robin van Persie on the edge of the area and he let fly into the roof of the net past Petr Cech, it was a great goal but replays showed it should have been ruled out for offside. Three minutes later and Arsenal were in front, Kalou fouled Alex Song, Fabregas took the free kick, Emmanuel Adebayor in the box headed the ball down and van Persie again fired through a crowd of players to find the corner of the net. Chelsea battled for the equaliser but Arsenal held firm and when the final whistle went on an awesome win, the players threw their shirts into the crowd as part of their emotional celebrations

 Tue, 02/12/2008 Carling Cup Quarter Final night for the kids and this was the night that the bubble burst. Burnley beat Arsenal 2-0 at Turf Moor with two goals from Kevin McDonald. With only six minutes on the clock Chris Eagles sent in a low cross from the right, Lukasz Fabianski in the Arsenal goal failed to gather the ball and knocked it out to McDonald who sent the ball back into an empty net. On 58, Arsenal were caught cold with a quickly taken throw in. McDonald raced in on goal and sent a nice curling shot just inside the post to double the lead. That was how it finished, the kids picked up some valuable experience but failed to pick up the cup.

 Sat, 06/12/2008 Wigan were up next at the Emirates for this EPL game. Arsenal were never at their best in this game but still managed to scramble a 1-0 win. Cesc Fabregas played a straightforward pass towards the Wigan goal on 16 minutes, both Alex Song and Wigan’s Titus Bramble both missed the ball on the edge of the area and it fell to Adebayor who simply slotted the ball past helpless Chris Kirkland in the Wigan goal. Three more points on the board from this very average Premier League encounter but that was the aim successfully achieved.

 10/12/2008 Tonight was Champions League Group Stage six night and the final group game before the knock out rounds. Arsenal lost 2-0 to FC Porto away playing a weakened side as group G had already been decided and BOTH teams had already qualified, still if Arsenal would have won, they would have topped the table instead of coming second. That was not to be, with six minutes to half time, a Rolando corner was headed downwards and into the goal by centre back Eduardo Bruno Alves at the far post and on 54, Fernando played a perfect forward ball to Lopez who let fly a rocket into the roof of the net. Arsenal finished the group with eleven points, just one behind FC Porto

The only memorable note from the night was it was Manager Arsene Wenger's 700th game in charge

Arsene Wenger's 700 Game Record

 League P463 W273 D116 L075 GF865 GA411
FA Cup P064 W045 D011 L008 GF115 GA045
League Cup P044 W27 D003 L014 GF091 GA61
Champions League P110 W053 D031 L026 GF166 GA 103
UEFA Cup P011 W006 D002 L003 GF022 GA011
Charity/Community Shield P006 W004 D000 L002 GF011 GA005
Total P700 W408 D163 L129 GF1270 GA638

(Matches finishing with penalty shoot-outs are denoted win or defeat. The void Sheff Utd FA Cup match in 1999 is counted as a 2-1 win)

By Venue
Home P339 W233 D074 L032 GF723 GA270
Away P339 W162 D088 L089 GF519 GA353
Neutral P022 W013 D001 L008 GF028 GA015
Total P700 W408 D163 L129 GF1270 GA 638

(Farnborough Town FA Cup Fourth Round match on 25th January 2003 is counted as an away match, although played at Highbury (won 5-1))

(All UEFA Champions League matches played at Wembley in 1998/99 and 1999/2000 are counted as home fixtures.)

 Sat, 13/12/2008 Time for a trip up to Middlesbrough in the EPL. Arsenal have had some mixed results at the Riverside but todays was not what was wanted. 16 minutes in though and Arsenal made the first breakthrough, Emmanuel Adebayor fended off a few challenges and fed the ball to Abou Diaby, he shot for goal and Boro keeper Ross Turnbull turned the ball out for a corner, Cesc Fabregas took the corner and Adebayor headed home from six yards, it was all to simple in truth. 12 minutes later though the lead was gone thanks to Ex Gunner Jeremie Aliadiere, Gael Clichy’s attempted clearance deflected off a Boro player and went straight to Tuncay, he crossed and Aliadiere headed home, another goal that was just too simple and cost Arsenal the full three points. Arsenal had plenty more chances and dominated a defending Boro but failed to convert any into goals. This was a missed opportunity in the race for the title.

 Sun, 21/12/2008 Next in the EPL was Liverpool at the Emirates and another 1-1 draw was not good enough for any title aspirations. It was a battling point though as Arsenal played the last 28 minutes with ten men after Adebayor received a harsh second yellow card and was sent off. Arsenal again took the lead in this game with a brilliant Robin van Persie goal on 24 minutes which was his tenth of the season. Samir Nasri played a great twenty five yard forward pass towards the Liverpool area, van Persie was the most alert and took the ball on his chest running towards goal just outside the area, he then twisted to make some space and powered a shot past a bewildered Pepe Reina in the visitors goal. It was van Persie at his classic best. Three minutes before halftime Liverpool scored a goal out of nothing, Daniel Agger simply hit an up and under as far from the Liverpool penalty area as he could, Liverpool striker Robbie Keane raced after the ball leaving Arsenal defenders Johan Djourou and William Gallas in his wake before hitting a superb half volley from just inside the area, It was unstoppable and Manuel Almunia in goal had no chance to save. It was Sunday morning football with an expert finish. Right on half time a clattering tackle from Xavi Alonso on Spanish team mate Cesc Fabregas was to injure the Arsenal Captain and see him out of action for some time to come. After the break both teams had chances and with 86 on the clock, Agger hit a thirty yarder that hit the angle of bar and post but did not go in. That would have been harsh had it gone in because Arsenal deserved their point and maybe more.

 Fri, 26/12/2008 EPL game number nineteen and the halfway point in the season. This was to be the third draw in a row after taking the lead again but not just a one goal lead but a two goal lead. Aston Villa were the home side and they battled back to share the points. Goals just before and just after halftime seemed to give Arsenal a winning position, Villa had already hit the woodwork twice when Denilson won the ball 30 yards out from Nigel Reo-Coker and headed for goal, he beat Steve Sidwell before clipping the ball past advancing Villa goalkeeper Brad Friedel on 40 minutes. Three minutes after the break it was 0-2. Diaby passed to Emmanuel Eboue who flew down the right, Diaby continued his forward run into the box and was on the end of Eboue’s cross eight yards out to hit an angled drive and double the lead. On 56 it should have been 0-3 when substitute Aaron Ramsey passed across goal to van Persie and his shot hit the post and went safe. With twenty six minutes left, William Gallas threw Villa a lifeline when he fouled Gabriel Agbonlahor inside the box and Gareth Barry made it 1-2 from the spot kick. This was now a great game and Villa were fighting to get level. Just as it looked like Arsenal were going to hold out, defender Zak knight popped up to thump home the equaliser in Injury time. Maybe a draw was a fair result but after leading 0-2 it felt like a defeat and another two points dropped.

 Sun, 28/12/2008 The last game of 2008 is at the Emirates where Arsenal take on and beat Portsmouth in the EPL. After the disappointment of letting a two goal lead slip against Villa just two days earlier, Arsenal played this match like they were still punch drunk. The game heading towards the last nine minutes looked like Arsenal were going to record their fourth straight EPL draw but William Gallas made sure that was not to be. Carlos Vela was fouled wide left, Denilson hit the free kick into the heart of the penalty area and Gallas beat the much bigger Pompy keeper David James to the ball and headed home. Not great keeping but a great header ensured Arsenal finished 2008 with a win!

 Sat, 03/01/2009 First game of 2009 is back at the big “E” for a third round FA Cup match against Plymouth. Arsenal made hard work of beating the Championship side but maybe credit is due to Plymouth, who gave it everything they had. It must also be said that they brought great support in terms of numbers and noise. An engaging first half ended goal less and Plymouth were well satisfied with that as the players left the pitch. Whatever Arsene Wenger said at half time worked because four minutes into the second half, Arsenal had already scored twice. First on 47, Samir Nasri took a corner and Robin van Persie stooped to head low past Romain Larrieu in the visitors goal. Two minutes later and it was 2-0, Emmanuel Eboue on the right fed the ball forward to van Persie and his cross to Nicklas Bendtner was turned into his own net by Gray under pressure from the Arsenal striker. With Arsenal in command it came as a bit of a shock when Plymouth pulled a goal back on 52, the visitors won a free kick outside the box that was never fully cleared, David Gray received the ball and sent a low cross across the Arsenal six yard box where Carl Duguid slotted home, the team and their supporters went mad like scoring a goal at the Emirates was the only thing that really mattered. With five minutes to go Arsenal made the game safe, Nasri played van Persie in though the middle and his shot went in off the underside of the bar. Arsenal won 3-1 but Plymouth and their travelling 9000 did their bit to make the occasion a memorable one.

 My Photos

Jack Wilshere (number19) adds another record to his collection by becoming Arsenal's youngest ever FA Cup player in the above game. He came on in the 86th minute at the age of 17 years and 2 days old

Sat, 10/01/2009 Arsenal beat Bolton 1-0 at the Emirates in the EPL with an 86th minute winner from Nicklas Bendtner who came on as a 75th minute substitute for Emmanuel Eboue. Bolton had come for a point and nearly undeservedly got one until van Persie's clipped cross from the touchline was turn in by Bendtner at the far post who had already had two good chances to score in the little time he had been on the pitch. Kolo Toure took over as Arsenal Captain until Cesc Fabregas returns from injury and becomes the SEVENTH Capt this season (Gallas, Almunia, Fabianski, Silvestre Fabregas and v Persie) are the others to have worn the armband in the last 5 months

Tue, 13/01/2009 Arsenal Ladies Kelly Smith has been voted the FIFTH best woman player on the planet so congratulations to her

Kelly Smith (in red)

 Sat, 17/01/2009 After the shock home defeat by Hull City earlier in the season it was now payback time but to be honest I’m not sure any win against Hull can make up for that shock defeat. Hull City against Arsenal in the EPL was today’s game. This was Arsenal’s first League fixture at Hull since 1915. While Arsenal eventually ran out 1-3 winners, they made harder work of the job than they needed too. With half an hour gone Arsenal won a corner, it was taken by Robin van Persie and Adebayor at the far post headed past Boaz Myhill in the Hull City goal. The second half started and Arsenal were looking comfortable with their 0-1 lead until the 65th minute, poor marking by Gael Clichy meant Bernard Mendy had all the time in the world to knock an unchallenged cross in from the right and Daniel Cousin picked his spot with a nice header to level. Memories of the home defeat after we took the lead came flooding back. After the goal Arsene Wenger brought on Nicklas Bendtner for Emmanuel Eboue and that completely changed the game Arsenal’s way. With 82 on the clock Bendtner picked up the ball wide right and headed forward, he picked out a nice neat pass to van Persie just outside the area and he swept the ball left of the penalty area were Samir Nasri was running on to the pass and drove a great shot across goal and into the far corner of the net, it was a great goal. Four minutes later van Persie played a square ball across the area for Bendtner to score a day after his 21st Birthday. All in all it was a comfortable 1-3 final score even if two of the goals were a little late coming.

 Sun, 25/01/2009 Today was FA Cup fourth round day and a repeat of the shock 1927 Final when Cardiff beat Arsenal 1-0 and the cup left England for the only time. There were no shocks today and there were no goals either but Cardiff gave it their best shot and made plenty of chances. With a 0-0 score line it meant a replay back at the Emirates.

  Wed, 28/01/2009 Next on the EPL road was a night match at Everton’s Goodison Park. This game was a hard fought battle and until virtually the last kick of the game it looked like Everton had secured the full three points. A competitive first half ended goal less. After the break, Everton pushed on and finally scored in the 63rd minute when Leighton Baines had time and space down the left to cross into the area, Australian Tim Cahill scored his 100th goal for an English club with his head from ten yards out into the bottom corner of the net. Arsenal now pushed forward and with just a minute of injury time left van Persie took a great diagonal pass from Abou Diaby on his chest, knocked the ball forward and volleyed past Tim Howard in goal who had no chance. It was a point snatched at the death for Arsenal and a bitter pill to swallow for the home team.

  Sat, 31/01/2009 Remember the story of waiting and waiting for a bus and they all come along together?? well this was the football equivalent. Arsenal draw 0-0 at home to West Ham United in the EPL, this was the first 0-0 ever EPL result at the Emirates Stadium and Arsenal’s first EPL home 0-0 in fifty nine games in total. Having waited so long for a 0-0 the next two home EPL games also finished 0-0 and so did the next away game at Spurs. Arsenal came closest to scoring in the third minute when a Cesc Fabregas corner was headed onto the bar by Abou Diaby. Arsenal controlled most of the match and made some chances but that was about it and no one on either side could break the deadlock.

03/02/2009 Arsenal lose its first ever game to the weather at the Emirates due to heavy snow country wide and the FA Cup replay against Cardiff City will have to be re arranged

Snow fun and snow game

03/02/2009 Arsenal sign Russian Midfielder Andrey Arshavin from Zenit Saint Petersburg for an undisclosed fee (reported to be near £17m in total) on a long term Contract. This is a massive signing for the club and negotiations took the whole January transfer window to complete and went right to the wire last night at 5pm. The Premier League finally ratified the deal today! He will wear the number 23 shirt

New signing Andre Arshavin

Sun, 08/02/2009 Next up was the short trip to the "other" team in North London for an EPL encounter. 0-0 was the final score but the game and that score hinged on three players. First Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor pulled up with a hamstring problem on 33 and was carried off, then on 36 Emmanuel Eboue was sent off for receiving two yellow cards leaving Arsenal with just ten players and thirdly Manuel Almunia in the Arsenal goal had one of his best ever days to keep the Spurs attack at bay. On the face of it, it was a good point but in truth Arsenal needed all three. This was the first time that I went to the Emirates with Gary Jnr and his Girlfriend Amanda and watched the game live on the big screen with a few hundred other Gooners, It was an interesting experience even though there was not much to get excited about.

 Mon, 16/02/2009 Arsenal beat Cardiff City 4-0 in the belated FA Cup 4th round replay that was postponed because of heavy snow two weeks ago. The highlight of the night was not the score but the return to football for Eduardo who 51 weeks earlier had a career threatening broken leg sustained at Birmingham back In Feb 2008. To have such a great talent back on the pitch was one thing but for him to score two goals (including a penalty) and play like he had never been away was both a credit to him and to all the medical staff that made this comeback possible. On twenty minutes the Emirates erupted when a Carlos Vela cross from the left was placed into the net by Eduardo's accurate header. Arsenal were completely dominating this game and doubled the lead on 34, when Samir Nasri took a corner from the left and Nicklas Bendtner ran in to meet the ball at the near post with his head and glance the ball into the net at the far post, 2-0 at half time. With 60 on the clock, Darren Purse fouled Eduardo on the penalty spot and from the penalty spot Eduardo made it 3-0 and ran to Tony Colbert, the fitness trainer who had also helped make tonight possible in the Arsenal dugout. Seven minutes later Eduardo was replaced and left the pitch to a standing ovation from all around the ground. His replacement Robin van Persie made it 4-0 in the last minute when he blasted home from the edge of the area and still had time to hit the post with an injury time header. A great night and welcome back Eduardo

Awesome comeback

Sat, 21/02/2010 Arsenal 0-0 against Sunderland at home was Arsenal's third successive 0-0 EPL draw. Arsenal attacked, Sunderland defended and that in a nut shell was that. With time running out, Sunderland became a bit more adventurous but it was a token effort to try and snatch all the points. This was Arsenal's 13th game unbeaten but with so many draws it was not really what the doctor ordered.

Tue, 24/02/2009 Arsenal beat AS Roma at the Emirates 1-0 In the Champions League, 1st knock out stage 1st leg game (last 16 teams) with a penalty in the 37th minute from Robin van Persie after Philippe Mexes had brought the Arsenal striker down. It was Arsenal's 200th game In European Competition and their 98th win. Arsenal are now 23 consecutive home games unbeaten in the Champions League

Sat, 28/02/2009 Incredibly this was Arsenal's fourth EPL 0-0 draw on the trot and the third 0-0 on the trot at the Emirates. Fulham was today's visitors and a combination of Arsenal hitting the woodwork and some good goal keeping by Mark Schwarzer in the Fulham goal and Manuel Almunia at the other end kept the game goal less. This was a good honest tussle by both sides and not a single player was booked, a draw on the day was just about the right result. The last time Arsenal went four goal less League games on the trot was 15 years ago.

Tue, 03/03/2009 Next up was a very good performance in the EPL away to WBA. This game had a lively start to say the least with two goals shared in the first six minutes. With four minutes gone Arsenal won a corner, Samir Nasri took but the it was a poor corner easily cleared away at the near post, the ball went to Denilson, he then played the ball back to the right corner of the area where Nicklas Bendtner was on hand to curl a low shot past Scott Carson in the West Brom goal. Arsenal's goal drought was finally over. Two minutes later though and it was 1-1, West Brom won a free kick 20 yards out, Chris Brunt stepped up and hit a low drive straight through the wall and past Almunia who was not happy to say the least. The goal lifted the home side who went looking for a second goal. In the 39th minute the second goal did come but to Arsenal, Gael Clichy was fouled out left, Andrey Arshavin played a perfect cross into the box and Kolo Toure's downward header hit the net. Six minutes later and just before the half time whistle it was 1-3, Toure turned provider and played a ball to Bendtner out right, he ran in on goal and from just inside the area smashed home his second of the game. 1-3 at half time was also the final score at full time. As the game went on Arsenal played keep ball and frustrated both West Brom and their supporters who were heading for the exits long before the final whistle. 

Sun, 08/03/2009 Eduardo becomes Arsenal's EIGHTH captain of the season in Arsenal's 3-0 win over Burnley in the 5th round of the FA Cup at the Emirates. Carlos Vela opened the scoring on 24 with a great run from near the halfway line and despite having his shirt pulled by Joey Gudjonsson he managed to sprint clear of three defenders before chipping over Brian Jensen in Burnley's goal, it was a great goal. If that was a bit special, Eduardo's on 51 was even better but a different type of goal altogether, Alex Song floated a great ball into the area, Eduardo connects with the outside of his right boot and hits an amazing volley into the roof of the net. It was pure class, a goal out of the "top draw" With six minutes remaining and after Arsenal had already had a good goal wrongly disallowed, William Gallas played the ball forward to Song, he back heeled the ball into the path of Emmanuel Eboue who raced into the box and fired low and hard into the bottom corner for another quality goal. 3-0 was the final score but there was still time for Burnley's Captain Steve Caldwell to head against the bar from the edge of the Arsenal Penalty area and they also claimed a last minute penalty when Chris McCann went down in the box but referee Chris Foy saw nothing wrong with Johan Djourou's challenge. 

Tue, 10/03/2009 Gary_TheGooner Jnr heads to Rome in Italy for Arsenal's crucial Champions League game against AS Roma tomorrow night. Arsenal hold a slender 1-0 home lead so the game is still in the balance

Gary_TheGooner Jnr in Rome

Wed, 11/03/2009 What a dramatic night of football in this Champions League, 1st knock out stage 2nd leg, away to AS Roma. With just 10 minutes on the clock Roma were a goal up and 1-1 on aggregate, Juan completely unmarked at the far post knocks in a weak cross from Francesco Totti that both Kolo Toure and William Gallas failed to clear. That was the only goal of the game after Ex Gunner Julio Baptista had a simple chance to score on 80 but somehow put the ball wide and Robin van Persie's last minute volley what was deflected wide when it looked like it was going in. 1-1 at full time meant the game went to extra time. There were no goals in extra time so the game went to penalties.

0-0 Eduardo (Alexander Doni saves): 1-0 Pizarro scores: 1-1 van Persie scores:

1-1 Vucinic (Manuel Almunia saves): 1-2 Walcott scores: 2-2 Baptista scores:

2-3 Nasri scores: 3-3 Montella scores: 3-4 Denilson scores: 4-4 Totti scores:

4-5 Toure scores: 5-5 Aquilani scores: 5-6 Sagna scores: 6-6 Riise scores:

6-7 Diaby scores: 6-7 FINAL SCORE..........Tonetta Blasts over the bar
 and AS Roma are out!!!

AS Roma pay the penalty .......and Arsenal head to the next round

Sat, 14/03/2009 After a long difficult night in Rome, it was great to see Arsenal well beat Blackburn Rovers at home in the EPL. After three 0-0 home EPL draws it took Arsenal just 75 seconds to score today. At first it looks like Andrey Arshavin has scored his first Arsenal goal but in fact the ball went in off Andre Ooijer from Theo Walcott's low cross. Twenty minutes into the second half and Arshavin does get his first goal and what a goal it was! He picks the ball up wide left and goes to the byline but instead of crossing he runs along the byline heading towards goal then blasts a right foot drive from what seems an impossible angle high into the roof of the net. It was a class goal that took many supporters by surprise and that included players form both sides I would suspect, the angle was so tight that the shot simply never looked like being on. With time almost up, Rovers could not complain about the 2-0 scoreline but maybe they felt a bit hard done by when the game ended 4-0. In the 89th minute Arshavin shoots and keeper Paul Robinson can only parry the ball to Emmanuel Eboue who has only been on the pitch for five minutes to stab home from two yards and a minute later, Carlos Vela is fouled in the box by Martin Olsson and Eboue scores his second from the spot.

Tue, 17/03/2010 FA Cup Quarter Final night at the Emirates against Hull City who had shocked Arsenal earlier in the season with a 1-2 EPL win at the big "E". On 12 minutes Nick Barmby put the visitors in front and another shock was looming, his shot hit Johan Djourou's leg and looped over the top of Lukasz Fabianski in the Arsenal goal. Hull held out until the break and would have been well pleased with their 0-1 lead. The second half was a niggly affair and there must have been many Gooners wondering if Arsenal were ever going to score. With sixteen minutes to go, Nicklas Bendtner passed to Arshavin, he shaped to shoot but instead laid the ball off to van Persie and he blasted the ball into the roof of the net, panic over. Ten minutes later on 84, Samir Nasri took a free kick, Djourou flicked on in the box, Boaz Myhill in goal could only touch the ball to William Gallas and he headed the winner. The Emirates erupted and Arsenal were on their way to the new Wembley for a FA Cup Semi-Final showdown with London rivals Chelsea. Final score on the night was Arsenal 2-1 Hull City

Sat, 21/03/2009 Next was the long trip up to Newcastle in the EPL. This game will be remembered for a nine minute spell in the second half that decided the game, thankfully it was decided Arsenal's way. The best chance of the first half was when Arsenal keeper Manuel Almunia brought down Peter Lovenkrands and a penalty was awarded. Obafemi Martins took the kick but Almunia diving to his left saved the shot and managed to hold on to the ball. On 36, a run and shot from distance by Andrey Arshavin hits the bar, it would have been a blinding goal. The half ends 0-0 but this has been a blood and thunder encounter from the first whistle. The second half is more of the same but with goals for good measure. On 57 Arsenal take the lead, Arshavin takes a free kick and Nicklas Bendtner jumps the highest to glance a header past Steve Harper in the Newcastle goal. A minute later and it's 1-1, Bacary Sagna tries to clear a long ball but his headed clearance goes straight to Martins and fires past Almunia. In the 64th minute it was 1-2 as the visitors go back in front, Nice work from Robin van Persie sets up Abou Diaby and he fired high into the net. Three minutes later and it was 1-3 and game over, van Persie again the provider this time to Samir Nasri who fires home at the near post, Harper in goal might have done better. There was still time at the death for Diaby to hit the bar but it really did not matter. Great game and a great away win. Arsenal are now the only EPL team still unbeaten in 2009.

 29/03/2009 saw Arsenal Ladies lose 0-3 to Everton in the Women's Premier League and their amazing 108 game unbeaten League record went up in smoke. It was a fantastic achievement and all the girls have to do now is set a new record.

Sat, 04/04/2009 Arsenal who have not conceded an EPL home goal this year (from 01/01/09) beat Manchester City who have not scored an away goal this year 2-0. Its fair to say then, that this result went to form. Adebayor scored two goals on his return from injury with the first coming on eight minutes, Cesc Fabregas took a free kick after a foul on Sagna outside the box, the ball was swung over from the right and Adebayor without jumping simply headed the ball home, all very very simple. Four minutes after the break and the same combination doubled the score, Fabregas finds Adebayor who neatly takes the ball around Shay Given in the City goal and places the ball into an empty net. Given in goal worked overtime on the day and kept the score down to two.

Tue, 07/04/2009 Champions League Quarter Final, 1st leg night and a tough away game in Spain against Villarreal. Arsenal were on the back foot from the kick off and went behind in the eleventh minute, Marcos Senna hit a great shot from 25 yards that flew into the net but he was completely unmarked and had all the time in the world to set up the shot. Arsenal were under the cosh for the rest of the half and went into the break 1-0 down. The second half started and Arsenal were now beginning to put the home team on the back foot as Arsenal upped a gear or two, then in the 67th minute Emmanuel Adebayor scored probably his best ever Arsenal goal. A fantastic chipped forward ball from Fabregas found Adebayor on the edge of the Villarreal area, with his back to goal, Adebayor took the pass on his chest and as it dropped hit an acrobatic over head kick into the far corner of the net, amazing stuff!! That goal secured a deserved draw at the final whistle and with an away goal, Arsenal are now favourites to finish the job back at the big "E"

Emmanuel Adebayor's best ever goal??

 

Sat, 11/04/2009 Next was a trip to the JJB stadium to face Wigan, four second half goals with two in injury time led a great away win. On 17, Arsenal fail to deal with a Ben Watson corner kick and Mido scores from six yards out with his boot. Wigan take that advantage into the second half but on the hour Arsenal are level, Andrey Arshavin snakes his way into the Wigan area and lays a nice ball off to Theo Walcott who shoots past Chris Kirkland in the home goal. Eleven minutes later and the turnaround is complete, Arshavin takes a throw to Cesc Fabregas and his low cross is turned in by defensive substitute Mikael Silvestre. With time up Arsenal score twice more, first a bad back pass from Jason Koumas is intercepted by Arshavin who easily scores and then Alex Song hit a nice shot from 18 yards out that hit the back of the net as well. Wigan can feel a bit hard done by but the Gunners were on fire in the second half. Wigan 1-4 Arsenal was the final score.

Wed, 15/04/2009 Arsenal beat Villarreal 3-0 at the Emirates and 4-1 on aggregate in the Quarter Final of the Champions League, second leg. Like the first game, this was expected to be a difficult game. Arsenal took the lead when Theo Walcott scored on 10, Emmanuel Eboue knocks the ball forward to Fabregas, he flicks the ball on to Walcott and he then chips over Rodriguez Diego Lopez in the visitors goal, brilliant stuff. On the hour, Robin van Persie plays in Emmanuel Adebayor who simply slots the ball under the diving keeper. Nine minutes later and a reckless challenge on Walcott inside the box by Diego Godin gives van Persie the chance to make it 3-0, he makes no mistake firing hard into the roof of the net. Sebastian Eguren had too much to say about the penalty and got his second yellow card before he saw the red. The final whistle blew and Arsenal were in the Champions League Semi-Final against Holders Manchester United. What a two legged Semi that would turn out to be but for all the wrong reasons.

Sat, 18/04/2009 Arsenal play their first ever game at the new Wembley in the Semi-Final of the FA Cup against Chelsea. Arsenal got off to a great start with an 18th minute goal by Theo Walcott, Young left back Kieran Gibbs plays a great cross to the far post from the left and Walcott is in the right place to side foot home the opener past Petr Cech in goal. From then on Chelsea turned the screw and Arsenal seemed to fall apart. Florent Malouda levelled out of nothing in the 35th minute, he controlled a long forward ball before cutting inside Eboue like he was not there and placed a shot just inside the near post that Lukasz Fabianski celebrating his 24th Birthday should have done far better with. It was an easy easy goal. Three minutes later and with Arsenal all at sea at the back, Ex Gunner Nicolas Anelka hits the post for Chelsea. The game remained 1-1 until just six minutes left. Another long ball forward by Frank Lampard found Didier Drogba, the man who simply cannot stop scoring goals against Arsenal, he raced in on goal while Fabianski raced from his line, Drogba side stepped the keeper and put the ball into an empty net. That was that, 2-1 to Chelsea. Arsenal can rue the fact that key defenders were injured and first choice keeper, Manuel Almunia and Gooners can scratch their head as to the reason Arsene Wenger never played Andrey Arshavin, which was a very strange decision but it was Chelsea heading to the FA Cup final and not the Gunners

Theo Walcott (far left) puts Arsenal 1-0 up but it was not to be their day

Tue, 21/04/2010 Not content with one 4-4 draw this season, Arsenal had to have two. This in it's own way was also a bit of a disaster as Arsenal took the lead and again lost it in the last few seconds of the game but this was a far harder game than the home 4-4 with Spurs. Just a few seasons ago, Julio Baptista scored FOUR goals at Anfield in the 3-6 Carling Cup win over Liverpool and today, new boy Andrey Arshavin was to do the same in the EPL and still not get a win bonus. Liverpool it has to be said were well on top in the first half but on 36 minutes Arshavin struck for the first time. A great move between Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas down the right sees a nice cut back from near the byline by Fabregas to the waiting Arshavin who blasts the ball home off the underside of the bar from seven yards. Three minutes after the break and Torres heads the equaliser, Arsenal fail to clear and the ball falls to Dirk Kuyt who after his first cross was blocked manages it at the second attempt, Torres heads past Fabianski in goal, diving to his left. On 56, Liverpool take the lead after more woeful Arsenal defending, again with the ball at the feet of Kuyt who crosses deep to the far post where Yossi Benayoun beats two defenders and the keeper three yards out to head home. Eleven minutes later and it's 2-2, A long clearance from Fabianski, the ball is headed on and Arshavin picks up the ball thirty yards out and heads goal wards, ten yards further forward he riffles the ball right foot past Pepe Reina and into the far corner of the net. Three minutes later on 70, it was Liverpool 2-3 Arsenal, Nasri crossed from the left was met by the unchallenged Fabio Aurelio who sliced his clearance to the unmarked Arshavin twelve yards out and centre goal to blast under the keeper for his hat trick. Two minutes later and it was 3-3, nice footwork from Torres just inside the area and then a shot to finish but in truth, Fabianski should probably have done much better than he did to keep it out, diving to his left he got a weak hand on the ball and it went in. With 90 minutes on the clock, Liverpool have a corner, Fabianski punches clear and Walcott gallops forward down the right before finding Arshavin in loads of space, he again races in on goal and from just inside the box riffles a left footer this time into the corner for what surly would be the winning goal? but no, seconds later and it's 4-4, more poor defending leads to Benayoun blasting home his second goal unmarked from just eight yards out. This was a classic game and Arsenal only have themselves to blame for not winning and not giving Andrey Arshavin the win bonus he so richly deserved. Arshavin became the first player to score four league goals at Anfield in 64 years.

Four goals in a five star Individual performance

Sun, 26/04/2009 Back to normality and a comfortable 2-0 home EPL win over relegation threatened Middlesbrough. A Cesc Fabregas doubles seals the win with the first goal coming in the 27th minute, Fabregas on the half way line plays the ball left to Arshavin and runs forward, Arshavin darts down the left and when he reaches the penalty area returns the ball to the advancing Fabregas who fires home from the edge of the box. On 67 and with Arsenal dominant, a great through ball from Emmanuel Eboue sets Fabregas free, he shows skill and composure to take the ball around Boro keeper Brad Jones and roll home his second League goal of the day and only third League goal of the season!! This was Arsenal's EIGHT home Premier League clean sheet on the trot (which equals a 106 year old record) and still no team has scored at the Emirates this year in the Premier League (from 01/01/2009) This Middlesbrough defeat set a club record TEN away League defeats on the trot, the worst In their history!

  Wed, 29/04/2009 Arsenal lose 1-0 away to Manchester United in the Semi-Final first leg of the Champions League. Arsenal took a bit of an early battering as United went for the jugular and it was only the heroics of Arsenal goal keeper Manuel Almunia that kept the score line down. The only goal came after 18 minutes, United won a corner on the right, the ball ends up deep into the far side of the Arsenal area, Michael Carrick knocks the ball towards the byline with his head and follows it cutting back a cross that deflects of Ex United defender Mikael Silvestre and into the totally unmarked path of John O'Shea who blasts the ball into the roof of the net from eight yards. Almunia did well to get something on the ball but there was no way he could save this one. The goal had been coming and to be honest, I feared for the worse. I felt total relief when the final whistle went and we still had a good chance in the home leg but I also thought United would score at the Emirates and if that was to happen it would probably be Champions League Semi Final curtains.

  Sat, 02/05/2009 Arsenal beat Portsmouth 3-0 at Fratton Park in the EPL and Andrey Arshavin becomes Arsenal's NINTH Captain of the season. I have never heard of any team having so many Captains in a single season before. This turned out to be a very comfortable afternoons work. With 13 minutes gone Arsenal win a corner, 6ft 7in striker Peter Crouch back defending, clears the ball but only to Andrey Arshavin who plays the ball back into the area for Nicklas Bendtner to score with his head after a terrible fumble from England goal keeper, David James, who let the header squirm in. Five minutes before the break and it's 0-2, Sean Davis takes out Arshavin in the box and Bendtner scores his second with a low powerful drive into the corner of the net. In the 57th minute it's 0-3, Arsenal break quickly and the ball ended up at the feet of Carlos Vela on the edge of the Pompy box and he also fired hard and low into the bottom corner. With 15 minutes left and Arshavin threatening to score again, Noe Pamarot was sent off with a straight red card for bringing him down. Not a great day for Portsmouth but a far better day for the Gunners!!

Tues, 05/05/2009 Arsenal's biggest, most important game at the Emirates Stadium turned out to be the biggest nightmare in the stadiums short history. It was Champions League Semi Final second leg night against Manchester United. Having failed to score an away goal it was imperative that Arsenal stopped United from doing the same and they did....... for just eight minutes and that was basically game over! Anderson set Ronaldo free on the left, he crossed hard and low to the back post, young left back Kieran Gibbs lost his footing when about to clear and Ji-Sung Park picked up the ball and scored past Almunia. Three minutes later and the Emirates was a shell shocked stadium. United get a free kick thirty yards from goal, up steps Ronaldo to blast the ball past Almunia. A mountain to climb now became mission impossible. The half ended 0-2. Arsenal started the second half well but on 61, they got caught on the break, Park finds Rooney who races into the Arsenal box and plays a square ball for Ronaldo to blast home his second and United's third. Arsenal's only consolation (which was no consolation at all) was a Penalty on 75, when Darren Fletcher was harshly adjudged to have fouled Cesc Fabregas in the box and before Robin van Persie blasted home past Edwin van Der Sar, Fletcher was sent off. That's how the game and the final dream ended. United were the first team to score against us at home in the Champions League this season and the first team to score more than one Champions League goal at the Emirates. Overall and it hurts to say it, the best team over the two legs is off to Rome for the final and Arsenal's season is now over.

 Sun, 10/05/2009 Arsenal's EIGHT game clean sheets consecutive home record was destroyed by Chelsea who became the first Premier League team to score at the Emirates this year (from 01/01/2009) and scored no less than four times in a 1-4 home defeat. This was another devastating blow after losing 3-0 at home just five days earlier to Manchester United in the Champions League. This was Arsenal's fourth home defeat of the season and fortress Emirates is now beginning to look very shaky indeed. Alex scores first for Chelsea on 28, when Drogba's free kick is headed home off the underside of the bar and in. Ex Gunner Nic Anelka makes it 0-2 with a surging run and powerful twenty yard low shot. Four minutes after the break, Ex Gunner Ashley Cole crosses low from the left and Arsenal defender Kolo Toure turns the ball into his own net. With twenty minutes left, a great Bacary Sagna cross from the right is met by Nicklas Bendtner's head to pull a goal back. Chelsea had the final say with four minutes to go when Florent Malouda's shot was parried out by by Lukasz Fabianski in goal, the ball went to Anelka who fired against the post, the ball then rebounded to the off side Malouda who tapped home and the goal was given. The most amazing fact about this game was the fact that Chelsea had scored four and Didier Drogba had not scored any of them. This was Arsenal's worse home League defeat for thirty two years.

Sun, 10/05/2009 Arsenal Ladies win 1-0 away to Everton to snatch the title that could have been Everton bound with a goal from Suzanne Grant in the 13th minute. It was the Ladies sixth successive Premier League title and completed the treble on Vic Akers last day in charge of the team after 22 years. In that time the Ladies have won an incredible 32 Competitions

Sat, 16/05/2009 Arsenal's last EPL game of the season and of all places to go, it's away to Manchester United. Arsenal put in a much improved performance to the two Champions League performances and come away with a 0-0 draw. Arsenal did win 0-5 in terms of yellow cards as Song, Fabregas, Nasri, Arshavin and van Persie were all booked.

24/05/2009 Arsenal finished off the 2008/2009 season with a bit of revenge beating Stoke City 4-1 at the Emirates in the EPL after losing 2-1 away earlier in the season. All five goals were scored in the first half of the game. James Beattie with an own goal on 10, set Arsenal on their way, when he stabbed home a Cesc Fabregas corner. Six minutes later and Stoke defender Ryan Shawcross brings down Robin van Persie in the box and he gets up to score from the spot. Two minutes later on 18 and it's 3-0. Arsenal get a free kick and penalty scorer van Persie lifts the ball into the danger zone, Abou Diaby out jumps everyone to head past Steve Simonsen in goal. Stoke earned the second penalty of the game on the half hour when Denilson up ended Ricardo Fuller in the box and like van Persie, got up to bet Vito Mannone making his first team debut in the Gunners goal. The fifth and final goal of the half and the game came four minutes before the interval. A poor header by long throw specialist Rory Delap into his own penalty area towards his keeper is intercepted by van Persie who blasts home. 4-1 is the final score and a good way to end the season but once again it was another season with nothing to show because of too many average results and twelve draws

End of season thoughts..........I expected an average season and that's what I got. To much talk and not enough walk. I feel Arsenal are on the wrong track (to much emphasis on youth and not enough on experience) and if we stay on the same track, next season will be another long hard frustrating season

Emirates third season Premier League record

 1  Man Utd  P38  W28  D06  L04  GF68  GA24  GD44  Pts90
2  Liverpool  P38  W25  D11  L02  GF77  GA27  GD50  Pts86
3  Chelsea  P38  W25  D08  L05  GF68  GA24  GD44  Pts83
4  Arsenal  P38  W20  D12  L06  GF68  GA37  GD31  Pts72

Emirates third season home record  

 Played 19 Won 11 Draw 05 Lost 03 GF 31 GA 16 GD 15 Pts 38

  2008/2009 Pre Season and Full Season Results

Black=Win Blue=Draw Green=Lose 

EPL=English Premier League ********** CL=Champions League

Sat, 19/07/2008 Barnet 1-2 Arsenal HT 1-0 (Friendly)
Simpson 64, Barazite 73 

Tue, 22/07/2008 Szombathelyi Haladas 1-1 Arsenal HT 1-1 Hungary
Walcott 42 

Mon, 28/07/2008 Burgenland XI 2-10 Arsenal HT 0-7 Austria
Bendtner 15,20,30,38 Vela 25,33,53 Wilshere 1, 65 (pen) Walcott 69 

Wed, 30/07/2008 VfB Stuttgart 1-3 Arsenal HT 0-0 Germany
Vela 58, Bendtner 65, Wilshere 73 

Sat, 02/08/2008 Arsenal 0-1 Juventus HT 0-1 Emirates Cup 

Sun, 03/08/2008 Arsenal 1-0 Real Madrid HT 0-0 Emirates Cup
Adebayor 49 (pen) 

Wed, 06/08/2008 Huddersfield Town 1-2 Arsenal HT 0-0 Friendly
Watt 79, Barazite 87 

Fri, 08/08/2008 Ajax 2-3 Arsenal HT 2-0 Amsterdam Tournament
Adebayor 66, 83, Bendtner 73 

Sat, 09/08/2008 Sevilla 1-1 Arsenal HT 0-1 Amsterdam Tournament
Vela 4 

Tue, 12/08/2008 Boreham Wood 0-4 Arsenal HT 0-2
Fonte 28, 43, 66, Simpson 52 

SEASON 2008/2009

Wed, 13/08/2008 FC Twente 0-2 Arsenal HT 0-0 CL Qualify 1st leg
Gallas 63, Adebayor 83 

Sat, 16/08/2008 Arsenal 1-0 WBA HT 1-0 EPL 
Nasri 4

Sat, 23/08/2008 Fulham 1-0 Arsenal HT 1-0 EPL
Hangeland 21

 Wed, 27/08/2008 Arsenal 4-0 FC Twente HT 1-0 CL Qualify 2nd leg 6-0 agg.
Nasri 27, Gallas 52, Walcott 66, Bendtner 89  

Sat, 30/08/2008 Arsenal 3-0 Newcastle United HT 2-0 EPL
v Persie 18 (pen) 41, Denilson 59

Sat, 13/09/2008 Blackburn Rovers 0-4 Arsenal HT 0-2 EPL
v Persie 9, Adebayor 45, 78 (pen) 89 

Wed, 17/09/2008 Dynamo Kiev 1-1 Arsenal HT 0-0 CL Game 1
Bangoura 64---Gallas 88 

Sat, 20/09/2008 Bolton Wanderers 1-3 Arsenal HT 1-2 EPL
Davis 14---Eboue 26, Bendtner 27, Denilson 87 

Tue, 23/09/2008 Arsenal 6-0 Sheffield Utd HT 3-0 Carling Rd 3
Bendtner 31, 42 Vela 44, 50, 87 Wilshere 57

Sat, 27/09/2008 Arsenal 1-2 Hull City HT 0-0 EPL
OG 51---Geovanni 62, Cousin 66

Tue, 30/09/2008 Arsenal 4-0 Porto HT 2-0 CL Game 2
v Persie 31, 47 Adebayor 40, 70 (pen) 

Sat, 04/10/2008 Sunderland 1-1 Arsenal HT 0-0 EPL
 Leadbitter 86---Fabregas 93 

Sat, 18/10/2008 Arsenal 3-1 Everton HT 0-1 EPL
Nasri 48, v Persie 70, Walcott 90---Osman 9

Tue, 21/10/2008 Fenerbahce 2-5 Arsenal HT 1-3 CL Game 3
OG 19, Guiza---Adebayor 10, Walcott 11, Diaby 22, Song 49, Ramsey 94 

Sun, 26/10/2008 West Ham U 0-2 Arsenal HT 0-0 EPL
OG 75, Adebayor 90 

Wed, 29/10/2008 Arsenal 4-4 Spurs HT 1-1 EPL 
Silvestre 38, Gallas 46, Adebayor 64, v Persie 68---Bentley 13, Bent 67, Jenas 85, Lennon 90

Sat, 01/11/2008 Stoke 2-1 Arsenal HT 1-0 EPL
Fuller 11, Olofinjana 73---Clichy 94 

Wed, 05/11/2008 Arsenal 0-0 Fenerbahce HT 0-0 CL Game 4

Sat. 08/11/2008 Arsenal 2-1 Man United HT 1-0 EPL
Nasri 22, 48---Rafael 90

Tue, 11/11/2008 Arsenal 3-0 Wigan HT 1-0 Carling Rd 4
Simpson 42, 66 Vela 70 

Sat, 15/11/2008 Arsenal 0-2 Aston Villa HT 0-0 EPL
OG 70, Agbonglahor 80

Sat, 22/11/2008 Manchester City 3-0 Arsenal HT 1-0 EPL
Ireland 45, Robinho 56, Sturridge 90

Tue, 25/11/2008 Arsenal 1-0 Dynamo Kiev HT 0-0 CL Game 5
Bendtner 87 

Sun, 30/11/2008 Chelsea 1-2 Arsenal HT 1-0 EPL
OG 30---v Persie 59, 62 

Tue, 02/12/2008 Burnley 2-0 Arsenal HT 1-0 Carling Q/F
Macdonald 6, 57

Sat, 06/12/2008 Arsenal 1-0 Wigan HT 1-0 EPL
Adebayor 16 

Wed, 10/12/2008 FC Porto 2-0 Arsenal HT 1-0 CL Game 6
Alves 39, Lopez 54

Sat, 13/12/2008 Middlesbrough 1-1 Arsenal HT 1-1 EPL
 Aliadiere 29---Adebayor 17

Sun, 21/12/2008 Arsenal 1-1 Liverpool HT 1-1 EPL 
v Persie 24---Keane 42

Fri, 26/12/2008 Aston Villa 2-2 Arsenal HT 0-1 EPL
 Barry 65, Knight 90---Denilson 40, Diaby 49 

Sun, 28/12/2008 Arsenal 1-0 Portsmouth HT 0-0 EPL
Gallas 81 

Sat, 03/01/2009 Arsenal 3-1 Plymouth HT 0-0 FA Cup 3rd Rd
v Persie 47 84, OG 49---Duguid 53

Sat, 10/01/2009 Arsenal 1-0 Bolton HT 0-0 EPL
Bendtner 84 

Sat, 17/01/2009 Hull City 1-3 Arsenal HT 0-1 EPL
Cousin 65---Adebayor 30, Nasri 82, Bendtner 86  

Sun, 25/01/2009 Cardiff 0-0 Arsenal HT 0-0 FA Cup Rd 4 

Wed, 28/01/2009 Everton 1-1 Arsenal  HT 0-0 EPL
 Cahill---v Persie 90

Sat, 31/01/2009 Arsenal 0-0 West Ham United HT 0-0 EPL

Tue, 03/02/2009 Arsenal OFF Cardiff City FA Cup Rd 4 Replay 

Sun, 08/02/2009 Spurs 0-0 Arsenal HT 0-0 EPL

Mon, 16/02/2009 Arsenal 4-0 Cardiff City FA Cup Rd 4 replay
Eduardo 20, 60 Bendtner 34, v Persie 88

Sat, 21/02/2009 Arsenal 0-0 Sunderland HT 0-0 EPL

Tues, 24/02/2009 Arsenal 1-0 AS Roma HT 1-0 CL 1st leg KO stage
v Persie 36 pen  

Sat, 28/02/2009 Arsenal 0-0 Fulham HT 0-0 EPL

Tues, 03/03/2009 WBA 1-3 Arsenal HT 1-3 EPL
Moore 7---Bendtner 4, 44 Toure 38

Sun, 08/03/2009 Arsenal 3-0 Burnley HT 1-0 FA Cup Rd 5
Vela 25, Eduardo 51, Eboue 84

Wed, 11/03/2009 AS Roma 1-0 Arsenal HT 1-0 CL 1st KO stage 2nd Leg 1-0 aet Juan 9 (WIN 6-7 Penalties) v Persie, Walcott, Nasri, Denilson, Toure, Sagna, Diaby

  Sat, 15/03/2009 Arsenal 4-0 Blackburn Rovers HT 1-0 EPL
OG 2, Arshavin 65, Eboue 87, 90 pen

Tue, 17/03/2009 Arsenal 2-1 Hull City HT 0-1 FA Cup Qtr Final
v Persie 74, Gallas 84---Barmby 13

Sat, 21/03/2009 Newcastle 1-3 Arsenal HT 0-0 EPL
Martins 58---Bendtner 57, Diaby 63, Nasri 66

Sat, 04/04/2009 Arsenal 2-0 Manchester City HT 1-0 EPL
Adebayor 08, 49

       Tue, 07/04/2009 Villarreal 1-1 Arsenal HT 1-0 CL QF 1st Leg
Senna 10---Adebayor 66

Sat, 11/04/2009 Wigan 1-4 Arsenal HT 1-0 EPL
Mido 18---Walcott 61, Silvestre 71, Arshavin 90. Song 92

Wed, 15/04/2009 Arsenal 3-0 Villarreal HT 1-0 CL QF 2nd Leg Agg 4-1
Walcott 10, Adebayor 60, v Persie 69 (pen)

Sat, 18/04/2009 Arsenal 1-2 Chelsea FA Cup Semi-Final (Wembley)
Walcott 18---Malouda 33, Drogba 84 

Tue, 21/04/2009 Liverpool 4-4 Arsenal HT 0-1 EPL
 Torres 49, 72 Banayoun 56, 90---Arshavin 36, 67, 70, 90

  Sun, 26/04/2009 Arsenal 2-0 Middlesbrough HT 1-0 EPL
Fabregas 26, 67

Wed, 29/04/2009 Manchester United 1-0 Arsenal HT 1-0 CL Semi-Final 1st Leg
O'shea 17  

Sat, 02/05/2009 Portsmouth 0-3 Arsenal HT 2-0 EPL
Bendtner 13, 41 pen Vela 56 

Tue, 05/05/2009 Arsenal 1-3 Manchester United HT 0-2 CL Semi-Final 2st Leg Agg 1-4 v Persie 75 pen---Park 8, Ronaldo 11, 61

Sun, 10/05/2009 Arsenal 1-4 Chelsea HT 0-2 EPL
Bendtner 71---Alex 28, Anelka 39, OG 49, Malouda 86

Sat, 16/05/2009 Manchester United 0-0 Arsenal HT 0-0 EPL

Sun, 24/05/2009 Arsenal 4-1 Stoke City HT 4-1 EPL
OG 10, v Persie 16 pen, 41, Diaby 18---Fuller 31

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