Quick
LinksFixtures
Reports
Players
Transfers
Rumours
Table
Stats
Reserves
Academy
The
RestArchives
Club info
Fanzines
Last Season
SJP
Unlikely Lads
A-Z Index
Arsenal (h) Premier League
|
|
Date: Saturday
29th
August 2015, 12.45pm. Live on BT Sports Venue: St. James' Park Conditions: Eventful |
|
|
Newcastle United |
Arsenal |
|
|
|
0 - 1 |
|
| Half time: | 0 - 0 | |
 |
||
| Score Sheet: | ||
og (Coloccini)
(52)  |
||
| . | ||
Teams |
||
|
Krul |
Cech |
|
| Substitutes: | ||
|
(72) Perez for Anita |
Arteta for Oxlade-Chamberlain (81) Giroud for Walcott (70) |
|
|
|
||
| Subs not used: | ||
|
Obertan Tiote Darlow Taylor |
Debuchy Gibbs Ospina Chambers Campbell |
|
| Bookings: | ||
 Sissoko Mbemba Thauvin
Anita Wijnaldum Coloccini |
Cazorla
|
|
| Dismissals: | ||
 Mitrovic
(16 - violent conduct) |
None | |
|
Referee: Andre Marriner -
won't be welcomed back on Tyneside any time soon. Varying fortunes last season when the West Midlands whistler took charge of
us: a 1-0 home win over Liverpool, the 0-4 loss at Spurs in the Capital One
Cup and a 1-1 draw at Palace. |
||
|
Attendance:
50,388 including 3,200 away fans (50,543 in 2014/15). |
||
Goals |
Half time: Magpies 0 Gunners 0
52 mins
Aaron Ramsey's effort was parried by Tim Krul, only for Alex
Oxlade-Chamberlain's off-target follow-up to hit
the inside of Fabricio Coloccini's leg and go in via the far post at the
Gallowgate End. 0-1
Full time: Magpies 0 Gunners 1
We Said |
"All we could do is show spirit and fight and they were magnificent.
What a crowd as well. It was a harsh red card. It was more clumsy and he
stood on his foot.
2I just felt early on there were too many yellows and it was a rod for the
referee's back. (Moussa)
Sissoko had a similar one just before, and that was given a yellow.
"I've seen it over and over (the red card)
- it's come over his head, he's looking at the
ball, there is no intent, there is no maliciousness, it's just coming down
and he's just stamped on his foot.
"It definitely was not dangerous. It was clumsy, but I have seen plenty of
clumsy challenges. Football is a contact sport, it's a physical sport and we
cannot take that away.
"And I don't think any of the tackles - and don't get me wrong, the seven
yellows and red card... It was not a dirty game and we've not kicked them
off the park.
"They were fouls and I think the ref has reacted too harshly with every one
of them - a bit too soon, a bit too rash.
"I hope I can (appeal). No doubt we will lose it. You can gauge
a lot from the players and even the Arsenal players looked surprised, they
weren't appealing.
"I wouldn't say it was a dirty game and we haven't kicked them off the
park, there were fouls and the referee has reacted too harshly with all of
them - he was rash."
They Said |
Arsene Wenger commented:
"Honestly during the game, I didn't see it. But I have just seen it again
on television and unfortunately it was a red card. He didn't play the ball
at all.
"I think yes, the referee did all right, but Newcastle maybe wanted to stop
us from playing, from moving the ball quickly to stop our game - they tried
that from the start on.
"(Aleksandar)
Mitrovic went a bit overboard. It was maybe a bit unlucky as well, I don't
know - did he do it on purpose or not? I don't know.
"I must say that Newcastle decided from the start on to make the game quite
physical, and we had to keep our nerve and not become a little bit
aggressive as well, so I thought we did that well.
"You play away from home 11 against 10, you know that they play 15 yards
deeper. You play 10 against nine in the final third, the crowd is behind
their team - that puts pressure on the referee - and then it's very
difficult. We didn't find the space.
"They defended well - they showed why they didn't concede at Manchester
United as well - and in the end, we are happy to have the three points and
to win 1-0."
Stats |
|
Looking for green shoots, we've improved on our return from last season's opening four games and also bettered the like for like results in the corresponding fixtures: 2014/15 after four games: 2 points, GD of -6 2015/16 after four games: 2 points, GD of -3 2014/15: 1 point, GD of -3 Southampton (h) lost 1-2 Swansea (a) drew 2-2 Manchester United (a) lost 1-3 Arsenal
(h) lost 1-2 Arsenal
(h) lost 0-1 We're currently in their worst-ever run of form against Arsenal, losing eight games in succession since a 0-0 draw at SJP in August 2011. And it's now ten meetings anywhere without a Toon victory since Andy Carroll struck at the Emirates in November 2010 to secure a 1-0 win. Long-suffering fans have now seen just two victories in twelve PL home games during 2015. Papiss Cisse's substitute
appearance meant that he completed a century of Premier
League appearances for the Magpies (76 starts, 24 as sub, 35 goals). Whistler Eddie Wolstenholme disciplined Robbie Elliott, Nicos Dabizas, Laurent Robert, Andy O'Brien, Rob Lee and Alan Shearer at Craven Cottage that day. Gunners in Toon - Premier League era: 2015/16: Lost 0-1
Full
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Waffle |
Maybe
it was the return of Joey Barton to Gallowgate today that prompted a temporary
outbreak of insanity, but whatever the trigger, there was definitely something
in the air.
Sadly for Steve McClaren though it proved to be toxic to his hopes of rounding
off a positive week at his latest club, as referee Andre Marriner took centre stage
with a card-happy display that ultimately dictated the destination of the
points.
However United were equally culpable as they registered numerous own goals,
culminating in an unlucky deflection off Fabricio Coloccini that
ultimately decided the contest in favour of Arsenal.
The major incident of the game had already happened by then though: striker Aleksandar
Mitrovic continuing a brainless start to his Toon career
with a dismissal that has looked inevitable since he took out a Southampton
player within seconds of his competitive debut for Newcastle.
Handed he task of facing the Gunners a man short for 75 minutes, the Mission
Impossible theme rather than Local Hero would have been a more appropriate
soundtrack as we self-destructed and were left grateful that Arsene Wenger's
side weren't in a goal grabbing mood - reducing Olivier Giroud's chances of
continuing his scoring run against us by giving him just a 20 minute runout.
Unless an optimistic appeal is lodged by United, the Serbian will now miss
league games against West Ham and Watford plus the Capital One Cup visit of
Sheffield Wednesday, returning for the Chelsea home game. And even if an
outbreak of clemency saw Mitrovic reprieved, then severe doubts over his
temperament have been raised - and noted by the rest of the Premier League.
Marriner was only too keen to reach for his cards, while Francis
Coquelin contributed massively to a card count of one red and six yellows -
the Frenchman rolling and tumbling in a manner reminiscent of Steven Taylor
but receiving every encouragement to do so from the referee's reaction. There
was more squealing here today than in the whole of the Women's World Cup
Final.
An ill-disciplined start by the home side saw Moussa Sissoko booked inside the first three minutes for leaving his foot in on Nacho
Monreal.
But the referee looked to be unsighted when Florian Thauvin clumsily
challenged Hector
Bellerin in the box and failed to award a penalty.
Minutes later the game's turning point came when Mitrovic scraped his studs
down the shin of Coquelin and Marriner swiftly reached for his back pocket to show
the striker a straight red card.
Bookings for Chancel Mbemba and Thauvin swiftly followed as Marriner
threatened to join Trelford Mills and Brian Coddington as Tyneside's least
favourite officials.
Theo Walcott should have put the Gunners ahead when he followed up a parried
shot from Alexis Sanchez but skied his close range effort into the Leazes End when it seemed
almost impossible not to hit the target.
Walcott also failed to convert a near post cross as the ten men made it to
the break still on level terms, but having only managed one off-target shot
from Sissoko.
Vurnon Anita was next into the book after receiving a series of warnings
before the break and when an Arsenal player was finally
punished, Marriner also showed Gini Wijnaldum a card - presumably for
passing comment.
Minutes later Arsenal took the lead and although United defended resolutely
from then on and brought on Siem de Jong, Papiss Cisse and Ayoze Perez, we failed to register a
single shot on target for the second successive game - Petr Cech not even having a corner to test him.
Krul pulled off some excellent stops, notably from Giroud who should have
scored to finish off the game in added time but saw his limp lob juggled and caught by the United 'keeper.
Some free-kick opportunities were wasted by the black and whites but a
famous comeback never seemed likely as our winless start to the Premier
League season was extended to four games - it took eight attempts last season
to register a maximum point return.
As was the case a week earlier, there was no lack of spirit and commitment
from the team, with home fans continuing to offer support - acknowledging if
nothing else that there has been an improvement in our play from last despite
results in the opening weeks suggesting otherwise.
Keeping 11 men on the park though is becoming a major concern for
McClaren, whose side currently have the worst red card record in the division
and are also collecting yellow cards at a rate of knots.
The antics may be different - lunging and hoofing rather than hockling and
elbowing - but the effect on the side is the same as the self-inflicted
absences of fellow striker Papiss Cisse last season.
And having confessed to learning nothing about his team in the loss at Swansea,
McClaren remains no wiser about how his side are shaping up in an attacking
sense after the Manchester United and Arsenal displays.
The defeat and Saturday's results put us third from bottom, with Southampton's
resounding win over Norwich on Sunday leaving only the mackems below us. And
our Monday night TV billing when hostilities resume in a fortnight could see
us head down Green Street bottom of the pile.
Biffa