Episode 850 - The memes lied to us

0:23Hello and welcome to a brand new Arseblog Arsecast right here on Arseblog.com. How are you? Hope you're well. Thank you very much indeed, as always, for being here. It's a bit of a post-match podcast today. Arsenal were in Champions League action last night. A 4-0 win over Atletico Madrid. A result that's very, very pleasing, but probably one that many people didn't expect. This was set up as a game. It's Arteta versus Simeone. It's going to be sufferable. suffer ball. Two teams constructing a defensive brick wall and saying, come, knock my wall down, if you dare, if you have the gumption, if you have los huevos, to come and knock my wall down.

1:07But if you try and knock my wall down, you have to take pieces out of your wall. So your wall will be less wall-y than mine or something. Anyway, it turned out a bit differently. Maybe Atletico Madrid did have a wall, but like Humpty Dumpty, we knocked it all down. Isn't that what happened with Humpty Dumpty? Oh no, that was more of a tragedy for Humpty himself, wasn't it? Because essentially his brains ended up all over the floor. But maybe that's what happened to Atletico Madrid. They were Humpty Dumpty and we were the Humpty murderers. You see, this is why you keep coming back to this podcast for that kind of tactical insight that nobody else can provide.

1:56We are going to talk about the game, obviously, some of the individual performances, the second half, all the goals that we scored, set piece again, ole, ole. But just a quick note to say, thank you all very much indeed for being here because the other day, the Arsecast turned 19. 19 years this podcast has been running. We're into year 20. Who the fuck can believe that? Not me, I have to say, but it's true. And I know many of you have been here from day one. So I want to say thank you to all of you. And regardless of whether you've been here from day one, day 7000, day 21, whatever, whenever you came to this podcast, if you're listening and you listen regularly, I want to thank you very much indeed, because it is hugely appreciated.

2:41It would be nothing without you guys. Well, I mean, you guys and like the whole existence of Arsenal Football Club. It would be nothing without that as well. But mostly you guys. So with all sincerity, seriously, thank you. And hopefully you'll be with us for many more years to come. Right. Let's get on with today's show. And with me to talk about Arsenal 4, Atletico Madrid 0, is Phil Kosta. Good morning, Phil. Morning, Andrew. How's it going? It's going all right. Listen, big issue. The memes lied to us. But the memes lied, Phil. They said this was going to be just a defensive dig in from both sides, two defensive managers, etc, etc.

3:26And yet, here we are, the morning after, enjoying a 4-0 win for Arsenal. Can we ever trust anything ever again on the internet? That's the question. I mean, it's a big shame, actually, to have played so well, to have scored four goals, and none of them count because Arsenal are boring. And we score some set pieces every now and again. So, yeah, I mean, actually, to be honest, I didn't know what to make of this one because the narrative around this game was that it would be terrorism, haram, ball, defensive stuff. but because of the strong defensive identities of both teams, right? But even doing a bit of research would have told you otherwise because Atletico haven't been great defensively this season.

4:13They've only kept two clean sheets and they've actually been more impactful and effective up the other end. You know, they scored five against Real Madrid, against Eintracht Frankfurt as well. They scored twice at Anfield, even though we know that that's not such a huge feat anymore. But they will always be organised. I think it's just part of who Diego Simeone is as a manager. But I don't think they're the titans we remember from recent seasons with Diego Godin, Miranda, Saul, Gabi, Carrasco, Juan Fran, Felipe Luis. These guys who would like die for you. You know, there were Champions League games where they were just set in, defend, block everything, head everything.

4:53And then they'd have, you know, Griezmann and someone else scoring on the counter. So this is not them. And Arsenal also have been imperious at home in Europe since getting back into the Champions League. So I felt good about us being able to break them down. But obviously the first goal was always going to be the most important thing. And thankfully, we were the ones to get it. But yeah, I didn't really, in terms of who the two teams are this season, I didn't really get the nobody's going to leave their penalty box stuff. Because first of all, when do Arsenal ever do that? We have the highest line in the Premier League.

5:30and Atletico haven't really been up to their usual standards defensively. So yeah, there was just a bit of a laziness, I think, with that sort of narrative. Sure. I mean, I think, you know, the team selection with Gabriel Martinelli coming in on the left and Myles Lewis-Gelley in at left back, those were the two changes from the previous game. Not particularly surprising. He does have to rotate a bit. I always thought Martinelli would start this game. I did wonder if he might start Mikel Moreno against Spanish opposition in midfield, but he picked Eberreche Eze there. I think what's sort of more interesting about the team selections is what Diego Simeone did.

6:08They've been playing a kind of 4-4-2 most of this season, Atletico Madrid. And the front two typically is Antoine Griezmann and Julian Alvarez. But in this game, he started with Alexander Sorloth up front. I mean, maybe to give them something in the opposition penalty box, but it also felt very much like a selection which recognised that Arsenal have this threat and prowess from set pieces. So if you can get a bigger man onto the pitch, then it's probably the wise thing to do. Yeah, he's an outball, isn't he? Because if you play Julien Alvarez and Griezmann, they're two very talented, accomplished players, but they like to do the same thing, right?

6:48Alvarez likes to drop in, combine with others, take shots from distance Griezmann again in his in his older age he's not going to be the guy that that runs behind anybody anytime soon he likes to be the guy who can link up with with with people maybe drop in create something so I think the selection of Sooloth was quite telling because he realized or Simeone realized that he needed an outfall and a way to potentially go long in a split second if they needed to do that to release some pressure and as well it just gives you somewhere somewhere to go gives you someone to aim for and I think Alvarez in particular can be the guy that can play off Soloth so I understood the logic perfectly in the end Soloth was pretty ineffective because he was just marshaled by an excellent defense I think if anyone was going to do anything for Atletico it was Julian Alvarez who has really seemed to develop well he's come on I think at City he was sort of the supporting cast behind Haaland with Foden with Gundogan he was part of that sort of secondary group but for Atletico in this in this particular game and from what I've seen of him over the last season and a bit he's really relishing being that main man and I think if anyone was going to do something for them it was him but in the end the the Soorloff selection didn't really work out for them although I can't really say with any confidence that Griezmann would have would have done much much difference to be honest.

8:11No I agree I agree I mean the first half I think Arsenal started really brightly there was that chance for Eze, deflected, looped up. Jan Oblak was beaten, it came off the bar. I did wonder what exactly had happened with that Declan Rice follow-up, but you could see what he was trying to do there, given the height of the ball when he hit it. It was basically hit it into the ground and get it in under the bar. It wasn't too far away from going in, but it was quite a bright start from Arsenal. Then it sort of became maybe in the middle part of the first half, the kind of game that people were predicting it might be with Atletico sitting with 11 men behind the ball when we have possession in their half we know they're defensively solid and well structured etc etc and it's sort of we sort of not faded away but we weren't quite as bright they sort of figured out a way to negate us in a way yeah I don't think you can expect to keep Atletico pending the whole time because they're still a very good football team with good players right and if Koke can get on the ball if Pablo Barrios can get on the ball they can they can do things and I know they're not traditionally Spanish midfielders Barrios and Koke are a lot more tenacious they like to get into challenges but they can still pass the ball around and they sort of weathered that early storm we had a few chances that we didn't maximize obviously you mentioned as a hitting the bar Rice a very difficult one to get over there volleyed it into the ground but there were some other moments that we didn't really capitalize on some set pieces as well that we couldn't couldn't break through but I think that's perfectly normal it's just a natural rhythm of the game that eventually Atletico would be able to settle down a bit our press wouldn't be so fast and ferocious we'd just sort of manage things a little bit more because there was what three quarters of the game left to go at that point so yeah I didn't think we we fell off or anything I just think Atletico settled a little bit and maybe we took a minute to take a breather, take stock, although it would have been very against the run of play to have conceded in that moment with David Raya.

10:19I don't know what we would have done if Alvarez managed to stick that into the corner. I mean, to be honest, it was quite a decent effort there, bouncing on his left foot, first-time volley. I was very relieved to see that drop past the post, and I think most of the crowd was as well. David Raya, especially. Just a strange moment, especially... I can understand him coming out. He sort of misread the ball. He expected it to go out, eventually got the throw in. But the lack of urgency from him running back towards his own goal just felt a little bit strange to me. And also, not just from him, but from Gabriel and Saliba as well.

10:57That's what I was saying, yeah. They were just standing there. And I thought, isn't your instinct to go back to the line and kind of defend a goal that's empty? I don't know. That just felt like a really strange moment all around. I agree. I agree. It was, you know, you could see what Raya was trying to do, but I think, you know, when it became clear that the ball was not going to go off the line, he really had to make a better decision there. They get a throw in, it's played to Julian Alvarez, and he curled it wide. But yeah, Raya, Gabriel, Saliba, you know, the three of them, just, I don't know if they switched off or whatever it was.

11:30They were just sort of like, oh, well, we'll accept our fate, whatever happens here. Thankfully, he did put it wide. I think we got away with one there, you know, in a big way. And there are a couple of moments in this game where you might think, OK, it's a 4-0 win for Arsenal. It's very convincing. And it is ultimately, you know, a very convincing win and a very important and a very impactful win when you look at the Champions League so far this season. I think, you know, there's no question about that. But I think you also, if you're going to analyze the game properly, you have to acknowledge a couple of sliding doors moments.

12:01And we'll come to one in the second half in a couple of seconds. But obviously there were other chances for Arsenal. I think there was a great pass from Ezeb, but Saka threw an oblek, came out and denied him. There was the offside goal, Martinelli just a little bit ahead of play. There was a shot from Myles Lewis-Skelly, which dragged wide. wide and I think maybe if somebody gambled at the back post we could have we could have scored there as a bit of a tap in late in the first half there was a headed chance for Martinelli which he didn't quite time right which is slightly unusual because he is pretty decent in the air we've seen him score some some great headers that one came off his shoulder so there were moments weren't there you know in that first half where Arsenal could have gone ahead but we have to acknowledge as well that Atletico could have could have been ahead by the time we put one of those chances away Yeah, for sure.

12:50I mean, we were definitely the better team in that first half, the dominant team. But when you've got players like Alvarez, like Simeone out wide, for example, you will always carry a threat. So it's just a normal part of the game. Although I do think, especially in wide areas, I mean, the David Hansko, I mean, he's going to, he's going to have nightmares about Bukayo Saka this morning. I thought Martin Ali was a bit quieter in the first half because we were so clearly and so obviously pointed towards that right side. We saw him go past Hansko a couple of times in the first 10, 15 minutes. And then we just thought, well, this works.

13:25So we're going to give it to Saka. And there were a few lovely balls, another one from Yuri and Timber that sort of played Saka in behind as well. So that was the key and obvious way in, I think, in terms of what we were trying to do in the first half. But again, it's normal for Atletico to carry some threat because they're one of the best teams in Europe. You know, they're not mugs. And I think, you know, I posted earlier before the game that I was happy with the lineup. You know, two changes, changing the left-hand side. But some people responded and said, did we not have more scope for rotation today?

13:58Could we not have rotated? I mean, we've got Palace on the weekend. And I thought, not really. I mean, we're playing Atletico Madrid at home in the Champions League. I don't want to make five changes and then all of the issues that come with that about the automatisms and the lack of match rhythm, match fluency. So I just thought we managed the game really well. The changes were good. And it felt to me like eventually we would get there. It more just felt like a matter of when. Because we did have them on the ropes a couple of times. Second half early on, I mean, I thought Jurian Timber was unbelievable again, more or less impeccable.

14:38I think we can talk a bit later on about him and maybe the development of the relationship between him and Bukayo Saka on that right-hand side. However, he did get caught on the ball in our half, which led to, again, one of those sliding doors moments, if you want to call it, that where Julian Alvarez cracked a shot off the bar. It's a brilliant effort. I really like him as a player, I have to say. But David Rye was beaten. If that dips under the bar, we're 1-0 down. So, again, it's just one of those incidents in a game where you can look back on and say that could have been a turning point. it went in our favour sometimes you know Arsenal this season we've defended very very well across all games as everybody knows but there are going to be times when you need a little bit of luck too aren't there and that was potentially one of those yeah for sure I mean especially when you are so defensively strong and resolute we give very little away and sometimes if we saw it a bit in the in the in the game at Anfield against Liverpool if somebody just cracks one into the top corner from 30 yards there's not a huge amount you can do about it so you can control yourselves your shape your structure but obviously it did come away from it did come from that giveaway from from timber in the in the sort of defensive third and and Julian Alvarez has always been able to strike a ball I mean we saw it time and time again for City he scored a few belters for Atletico already three kicks he can do the lot so if someone just decides to step up and whack one towards goal it can happen so yeah raya was beaten for sure we're just slightly fortunate that it ended up being a couple of inches higher than it needed to be and then i think from that moment the the sort of the quick turnaround between alvarez hitting the bar and then our opening goal was extremely important in the in the context of the game because it was level at that point things were fairly even they just hit the crossbar we'd start at the second half a little bit slowly and sometimes games can get away from you but it's just it's all reliable there's the there's just a remarkable consistency to what we are able to do with these set pieces and you know i know i know we laugh about it now having embraced the corners the long throws the set piece fc title because it just goes against everything we were and have been for a long time uh since since the i don't know the days of arsene wenger i guess but i can't stress enough how important it is to have this weapon to be able to break games open with elite dead ball quality and movement to score these goals because once we scored i wasn't worried i thought we'd go on to win the game i didn't expect us to score four but i did expect us to go on and win the game and i think that's just such a lovely safety blanket to be able to have because we give nothing away So to find yourselves ahead in that way, you know, the Arsenal way at the moment was just quite funny and quite reassuring.

17:43All right, we'll come to the goal. I think there was one more moment, which I remember, which was Koke going into the box and Lewis Skelly almost made a tackle. It's one of those where the defender or the, you know, he comes the blind side of the defender and stick a foot out to get the ball. you get the man and we've seen penalties given in that regard. But thankfully, he did withdraw his foot in time. But, you know, the goal, like you say, came from a set piece. What's your read on the free kick that we were given? Because I suspect Atletico Madrid are probably not that happy about it, given that Martinelli basically jumped into the defender and got given a free kick.

18:29you know I think you have to be honest and say that was a generous decision in our favor I mean they still have the opportunity to defend the set piece but you know if we concede a goal like that we're going that come on Julian Alvarez just jumped into Gabriel what's he supposed to do get out you know so there is that aspect to it but um yeah I didn't read too many complaints from Atletico afterwards but I think they might be slightly aggrieved at that one yeah Llorente wasn't too happy was he and I think he realized afterwards he sort of said a few things to the referee always those ones for me are given to the attacking team you know especially if the if the attackers in possession of the ball I think he'd already ridden a couple of challenges beforehand so more than anything it might have been an escalation thing or an accumulation thing because the the contact itself was a bit jumpy from Martinelli and maybe Llorente can't really do much in that situation but there was a bit of contact on the calf on the back leg so again it's one of those where you think could we have just let that go in general does it have to be a free kick for Atletico does it have to be a free kick for Arsenal maybe not but the referee's given it and I think their frustration about any awarding of a free kick there will have been compounded by some questionable defending I think when it came to the delivery itself even though it was inch perfect from Declan Rice.

19:57I mean, yeah, listen, I think I'm much more inclined to give Declan Rice and Gabrielle the credit for this goal because sometimes I think you can look at a set piece or you can look at a team and say, oh, they didn't defend that well. They didn't track the runners. They didn't get organized sufficiently before the ball came in. But the quality of the delivery from Declan Rice from that position is absolutely perfect. Like if you were to draw it on some kind of geometry fucking page or whatever, the trajectory of that ball over the defender onto the run of Gabriel. And as we know, there's just, there's nobody better in the world, I think.

20:38No striker, no defender in the penalty box in terms of the timing of his runs, the ability to catch the flight of the ball really early. and the bravery as well, because it is one of those when you're in the penalty box, you kind of have to put your head into places where potentially you might get smashed. And Gabriel doesn't really care if that happens to him. He will just stick his head in there. He'll stick it in places that other guys don't want to put their heads. And the benefit of that to us is goals and assists. And last night it was the opening goal, relatively simple header from close range.

21:18But again, it's all down to the timing of his run and the quality of the set piece from Declan Rice. Yeah, we struck gold with Rice and Saka, who are able to put deliveries on a dime consistently. And the one for the opening goal was outstanding. That's about as perfect as you can get. But I spoke about Erling Haaland on the 30 this week and how the feeling of inevitability around him is increasing somehow. And that's exactly how I feel about Gabriel. He is unique, one of one in the world right now. And in my football watching life, I can probably think of two defenders who held that much gravity in both boxes.

21:58And that's Sergio Ramos and John Terry. Yeah, I'm really sorry. Wash my mouth out. But you can see it happening, but you can't stop it. There was a moment in the first half where Atletico had five defenders around him in the penalty area to try and block the run and the chaos he causes. But it doesn't matter because he finds a way. You know, when you watch a horror film and the protagonist is running, trying to escape the monster and just trying to flee with everything they have. and they finally get a second to breathe. They think they've got a way only for them to step on a twig or some kind of creepy floorboard gives them away and then it's over.

22:41They just come with a giant jaw and bite their head off or something. That was Jimenez last night. That was Lenormand last night. That was Old Black last night because you cannot get away from someone whose entire existence is centered around biting your head off. And you can't get away from Gabriel who wants his head on the ball more than anybody else it's just incredible the way he attacks every cross he anticipates the flight of the ball runs over everything in his way it's quite special um and when when he's not there you really feel his absence uh in both boxes and thankfully he is here and we can enjoy this silliness every week because it's it's a cheat code um he's like the the central defensive version of Iron Robin.

23:26You can see it happening, but you can't stop it. I did see a stat that Gabriel has officially broken into Arsenal's top 100 goal scorers of all time. Really? Yeah, which is insane for a central defender. I did see another stat that said no centre-back in Europe's top five leagues has scored more goals than Gabriel since 2020. So since he joined Arsenal, he's the top scoring defender in Europe's top five leagues. Unbelievable. Not bad. Not bad at all. Yeah, and as you say, it's a great way to crack a game open, particularly against opposition who are of the highest quality. Atletico Madrid have been operating at the top level in Europe and in Spain for a long time with a great manager, great players, and this cracks a game open, and it sort of changes the dynamic.

24:15Nevertheless, there are other ways to crack games open, and Myles Lewis Skelly demonstrated that for the second goal. is quite funny. Apparently, Ricardo Calafiori was on the sideline getting ready to come on. Then Myles Lewis-Galley picks up the ball in midfield, inside the centre circle in our half, and just cut through their midfield like a knife through butter. And we've seen him do this more than once. I was waiting for him to buy a foul just outside the box. I thought that's kind of where this was going to go. as he was about to get crowded out. But credit to him for the perfect pass into the path of Gabriel Martinelli, who had pulled wide, and the finish first time from Martinelli.

25:04Like, Jan Oblak is a brilliant goalkeeper. He's one of the best goalkeepers in the world. The precision and the power on that finish from Martinelli was perfect. You know, you couldn't ask for more from, a man sitting in the CBS TV studios last night. If that ball comes to Thierry Henry and he finishes like that first time, you go, yep, there's Thierry Henry doing what Thierry Henry does. Gabriel Martinelli is not that, but I think we have to give him a lot of credit for that finish. And we also, much like we did with Leandro Trossard at the weekend when he scored against Fulham. What's Fulham?

25:46Yep. Yep. Yeah, that's how good my memory is these days, folks. I can't remember fucking three days ago. You know, and not for the first time, Trossard has made a contribution this season. Martinelli has made another contribution this season. You know, these two guys who were, for some people, you know, surplus to requirements, have demonstrated very, very, very clearly that they have things to offer, maybe a lot to offer this team. It's a great finish for Martinelli, and I think overall he had a very good game last night and the decision or the retention of these two players when externally, and I'm not sure this is true internally at all, but externally there was probably, if you want to call it pressure, but certainly a movement for at least one of these players to be moved on, maybe just because people were tired of them.

26:40People, you know, familiarity breeds a little bit of contempt or people who were, you know, maybe get the money for this guy, get some money in for that guy. It doesn't matter if we replace him. We've got Ezzo, we've got, you know, whoever. Like these guys are important. This is part of why this squad is so strong. Martinelli can come in last night, having seen Trossard start the last few games. Trossard has scored in, you know, against Fulham, but Martinelli says, okay, this is my chance. And here's a goal and it's 2-0 to Arsenal. Yeah, I think it was Tim Stillman who said we should tell Martinelli that every game is a Champions League game because he obviously likes this competition and he seems to find another gear that maybe isn't always there in the Premier League where teams can find him out a little bit.

27:25They push him into places he doesn't really want to be, but that's three games, three goals for him in the competition this season. And this was the pick of the bunch by far. I mean, in terms of his own goals and our goals on the day. he when I look at him this year he seems to have found some joy and spontaneity in his game again and I think he's getting closer to goal he's finding himself in dangerous areas and situations and I think it's been a good month for him generally with that late goal against City and another one for Brazil against Japan during the break so I love this goal I thought it was amazing obviously Lewis Skelly does does a lot of the hard work with a vintage run through through midfield.

28:07I love the way he can almost, he's got that Jack Wilshere-esque burst of being able to suddenly create separation within the first five or 10 yards. And he received it on the back foot. And when he sees a gap, he goes. And maybe they didn't expect him to do that in that moment, but we've seen it before against Everton. We've seen it before against City that when he motors, he can really go. So that just broke the game open, like you said, in another way, a really accomplished finish against the top goalkeeper. You know, I think people will think about the chance he had against PSG last season where he couldn't quite get all the bend on it that he needed.

28:44But Donnarumma, like Oblak, is a giant. You know, they're 6 '5", 6 '6", 6 '7". These are huge guys. And if they read the ball, more often than not, a fingertip will put it wide. But not this time. A fingertip puts it into the corner. He did exactly the right thing. And I've been critical of him. I wondered whether or not he had been left behind slightly by Arsenal finding this incredible collective level in a sort of Smith row way where he got us to where we needed to be. But can he be a guy that stays with us? But what I've never doubted is how useful he could be with some wind in his sails in areas of the pitch he feels comfortable in.

29:24And I'm really pleased for him because he's had to fight a little bit. Maybe not again in terms of how he's valued and rated within the club, but I think a lot of the noise around him has been a bit, has he kicked on enough? Has he done enough to be able to match Pukai Osaka because they both came through together? And is this the level we need to be at to be pursuing the Champions League and the Premier League? But even his celebration felt very 2022-23. You know, the knee slide to the jump, a little fist bump. It just seems like he's got something back in how he's playing again and how he's feeling about himself.

29:59So I really enjoyed that moment. He was good in the second half. I thought down that left-hand side, he was a big threat running in behind. Marcus Llorente, I know he plays at right back, but he's not really a right back by trade. So we identified that as a problem area for them. And yeah, just a super goal. What was it? Six minutes after the first. And by that point, you could feel Atletico shivering and shaking because they'd just been blown apart, really. Yeah, I mean, we have to talk about Martinelli in the third goal, too. I mean, obviously, we'll look at what all this means for Victor Jokeres having broken his little dry spell with a couple of goals last night.

30:38But Martinelli makes a great run on the outside of Llorente. It's a brilliant pass. Such a good pass. It's a brilliant pass from Martin Zubimendi with his left foot, by the way, folks, his wrong foot. It's a great pass. He pulls it back as it has a shot. It's sort of blocked and it falls at the feet of Jokeres. Listen, is it the most beautiful goal you will ever see? Absolutely not. It's a scruffy, scrappy, crappy, whatever you want to call it. It's not beautiful, but it doesn't matter a bit. You know, when you're going through a little bit of a dry spell like that as a striker, and for him, you know, it was probably the first time in two and a half years.

31:20I think they said like the last time he went any period without a goal was when he was playing for Coventry in the championship, you know, and the rate that he scored for sporting, you know, meant there were no dry spells, you know, the amount of goals that he scored there. So, you know, you come to a new club, you get off to a decent enough start with some goals early on, and then you don't score for six, seven games and everyone's talking about you and everyone's analyzing you and everyone's questioning you. And they're questioning, you know, oh, he brings this to the team, that to the team.

31:53But who cares if he's a striker, he's not scoring. Who gives a fuck what he does? You know, there's all of those conversations going on. And I think regardless of the fact that you're 27 years of age and you're plenty experienced, I think as a striker, you're going to feel that pressure. You're going to feel the weight of that. And the longer it goes on, the heavier that pressure becomes. So while it wasn't the most brilliant goal he will ever score in his life, it felt really important, didn't it? That he just got the ball over the line one way or the other. And we can talk about that in terms of the second goal, too.

32:30but it was a big moment for him. You know, it sort of added to the crescendo of momentum that Arsenal had. And I think as well, you could sense that everybody understood what that goal meant, not just that it more or less made the game safe for Arsenal, but that it meant something very specifically for Victor Jarkarez. Oh, absolutely. When you're a striker, goals are your currency. That's your self of, that's your sort of sense of self-worth and value. So it's absolutely the most important thing you need to be doing on a pitch, scoring goals. And I think you raise a really good point there about how it's been so long since he's had to deal with anything like this length of a goal drought.

33:12Because I think half an hour would have been a goal drought for him at Sporting. He was just scoring at such an incredible rate every game, every competition. So this is quite alien for him. And I think it's been a tough start for Jokeres, who's had to come in and perform right away with no preseason after what happened with sporting leading up to his move. He's adapting to a new league, new teammates. His teammates are also adapting to him. And more importantly, there's been no chance to rest or rotate with Kai Havertz out injured. So that's a heavy burden to take on your shoulders. And I think we've got a good idea of who he is as a player now and what he can offer this team.

33:53And one of the things many people highlighted about him when he signed was his mentality. You know, how there's this relentlessness, this single mindedness to score at all times, even when things aren't going well. And I think we've seen that manifest over the last few weeks, because even though it hasn't quite happened for him in front of goal, we're becoming more comfortable with him as the focal point. for me it's absolutely never a question of effort because he runs himself into the ground he presses he gets bumped and bounced by defenders all game he's constantly looking for those runs and those little darts in behind so i think eventually you earn your luck and he looked a bit embarrassed about the first one which ended up with that half-hearted celebration he was a bit like i'm gonna do it for a second and then and then stop um but more than anything it allowed him to take a deep breath and leave behind those x amount of minutes without a goal stats that start to follow you around a little bit and yeah you could just see that he he felt a bit more lighter a bit more brighter and um yeah you could see what it meant to the team as well because everyone was pushing him towards the towards the fans celebrating gabriel came in with his batman and robin uh sort of um bane and robin tribute act and have you seen that picture of martinelli when he's covering his eyes he just looks as i put it in the blog today it's it's so good it just looks like it's a it's like this is bane not pan's labyrinth you know yeah well he's like well i need to do something here um we're just progressively going further up the face i mean there's someone going to do it on their head eventually but yeah i mean a big goal for him and i think the second one was funny as well because we might need to amend the phrase about one needing to go in off your ass because now it should be one going in off your ghoulies um after he thrust it in at the back post.

35:40I mean, we have on this podcast down the years referenced the penis of William Gallas scoring goals. So I don't know if we have to talk about the cock of yoke. I don't know if that's the right way of putting it. Dick to cocker us. Yeah, I mean, listen, you get them over the line however they go in. Again, it's another brilliant delivery from Declan Rice from a corner. Gabriel is at the back post, heads it back across, And listen, it's there for Victor Jokeres to sort of thrust his special area in the direction of the ball and put it over the line. And this was one where you could really feel like the celebrations were big for him.

36:19You know, one, everyone goes, oh, yeah, I got one, a scrappy one. But two, it just sort of takes it to a different dimension. And of course, to score four goals in 13 minutes, the sort of the level of emotion inside the stadium. I mean, we were talking on WhatsApp and it was just like, what the fuck? You know, another one again? What? You know, it is that. So it is highly elevated because as well, I think everyone, even if they're a bit Jokeres skeptic or whatever, will have been very, very happy for him because they understand that if Arsenal are to go the distance this season, we're going to need this guy to score a chunk of goals.

36:59So we need him to sort of break those dry spells as and when they happen. I think Arteta spoke afterwards about how happy all the teammates were for him. He spoke about all the hard work he does and the way that he does allow teams or he does allow the team to play in a slightly different way, that he does occupy defenders. Your mileage may vary on how important you think that is, but there's something to that. If Mikel Arteta is talking about it, I don't think he's just talking about it to say, well, you know, we can excuse six, seven games. Like, you know, when a player isn't working hard, you know, I don't think that's been the case with Jacarese at all.

37:39And maybe he hasn't had the rub of the green in a couple of moments here or there in those six or seven games. Last night, he gets two over the line in, I don't know, a combined total of three or four yards. Eddie Nketiah sitting at home watching that going, yes, you have inherited my number 14 shirt. Maybe not the 14 shirt of Thierry Henry, but I can put them in from close range, as can you. Listen, just really, really positive for him and obviously for the scoreline as well. It makes it a great night for everybody. Yeah, completely. We're just having to get used to someone that's a bit different.

38:14Because for so long under Arteta, we've had Jesus, Havertz, even Nketiah to an extent, who are quite comfortable being in areas where there's congestion, where there's people, they can link play. Even Trossard when he plays as the false nine, Merino when he plays as the false nine. These are like technically accomplished guys, right? So when we're seeing someone who's a bit more traditional, a bit more meat and veg, you know, nothing fancy to his game, hold up play can leave a bit to be desired at times with a clunky first touch and all these things. But it doesn't matter because he's giving us something different.

38:50He's running in behind. He's occupying defenses. He's fighting center backs. Maybe he's giving others space that wasn't previously there. So it's just about us having to get used to someone new. And that's why I think it's a shame we don't have the ability to sort of swap him in and out with Havertz at the moment because it's just all Jokeres. so he doesn't have the chance to come on and run at fresh defenders he doesn't have the chance to sit anything out yet because we need a center forward and he's our only center forward i know we can play other people there but that's that's just sort of added to the acclimation that he's needed to jump into so i think if arteta's been talking him up he can see the things he's doing they've got all the data about the runs and the and all of this stuff that we wouldn't even dream about having because we just we just don't see it so they know what he's doing he knows what he's doing the team can see what he's doing because at the end of the day if your if your teammates don't don't care for you and they're not backing you and they realize that you're not putting in the effort you'll see it yeah and I don't get that vibe from from Yoko Reza at all and I'm just really delighted that he can hopefully draw a line under this and and sort of go again because it has been a difficult few weeks for him in terms of his fortunes in front Yeah, and look, the ideal scenario in a situation like this is that the goals open up the floodgates a little bit, you know.

40:09The pressure is off and maybe he can now sort of relax into, not relax, obviously you want him to work hard. I don't mean he can coast through the next games, but I think with the pressure off, maybe you're hoping that the pipeline of goals continues. He was then, look, 4-0 up at home. It allowed Mikel Arteta to make changes, a triple change. I think Mosquera, Norgard, and Wuneri came on. I thought Wuneri was quite interesting. He looked like a guy who was very determined to make the most of his time on the pitch. You know, his minutes have been a bit scant so far this season, but he produced a really good clearance from under our crossbar, which might have saved a goal.

40:54There was a shot on target. There was some good pressing, a couple of tackles as well. You know, we've often spoken about him and wondered, what's the reaction going to be like when you're not in the team, when you're not playing? How do you react? Do you sit there? Do you mope? Do you complain? Or do you, when you get your chances, do your best to show the manager that he can trust you? And I think there was an element of that to an Aries cameo last night. I know it's not the big story, but I certainly took notice of it between the time that he came on and the final whistle. He's doing all the right things.

41:28All you can do is play as well as you can when you're given the minutes. And there does seem to be a really nice bounce and intensity to his game at the moment. I think he's moving really quickly in terms of his sharpness. He's putting in the defensive work. I don't think anyone's questioning the quality of Ethan Ranieri on the ball. I think a lot of his issues are not even issues but where he needs to improve is off the ball you know in terms of tracking runners learning when and how to press how you can support people and that's going to come with time as we can even see now with Eze the way Odegaard plays that particular role is is quite unique and very challenging so I've even seen some grumbling about Eze because he's not the sort of high touch guy who's going to be on the ball all the time but in the end he could have he could have created two or three goals yesterday so it's just about accepting different players doing different things but also the value of competition I think Ethan wants to be playing but he knows that he's got two senior internationals ahead of him and if he gets 15 minutes in a Champions League game at home he's going to be putting everything into that and I'm sure when we see Incapie come in he's going to be playing at his best when we saw Louis Skelly come in he he sort of had a decisive moment that created a goal when mosquera is needed at some point he'll be playing well so it just raises the level of the team and i think we're we're very lucky to be in this situation and it's why i've never understood that oh how can we keep people happy at least for this season people are here they're on board they're they're ready to fight for silverware you know whether or not this is the case in 18 months or two years there will be some casualties but for the here and now this squad is here for a reason and that's because they believe they can win so I'm all for players coming on and showing a bit about themselves some intensity some pressing in a corner when you can maybe lay off or ease off a little bit because it's important and the manager will be seeing this stuff and thinking oh in injury time against Atletico Nourneri closed down a Llorente clearance he's got all of this in his head so yeah I was pleased to see him come on and there will be opportunities for him no doubt yeah so can we talk maybe a couple about a couple of individuals before we talk about maybe arsenal and what this result means and how it how it sort of might make people think about arsenal um i did want to talk about zubimendi because i think when we talk about players new players maybe adapting to a new club a new team, a new environment.

44:04He's done it very, very quickly, really quickly. I know he got a yellow card. That means he misses our next game against Slavia Prague. I think the game after that is Bayern Munich. So maybe that's not the worst game for him to miss. One for Uncle Norgard, that one. Yeah, well, that's it. Yeah, yeah. He can easily step in there and maybe there's a decision to make with regards to Declan Rice when it comes to a selection for that game for Mikhail Ohteti. You don't want to miss Rice against Bayern Munich. But I have to say, I continue to be really, really impressed with just how, not fundamental, but how well he is slotted in, how intelligent he is as a footballer, the ability to use both feet, the passing range, which isn't always spectacular.

44:55but as we saw last night with that pass through to Martinelli, which led to the third goal, can be really, really incisive. We saw him against West Ham a couple of weeks ago have that kind of impact in the game. How impressed have you been with his adaptation to this new team and what he's brought, let's say, to the side in footballing terms that's different from what we've had the last couple of seasons? Yeah, I've been really impressed with him and I thought he was brilliant last night. I mean, obviously he's no stranger to Atletico, having played against them countless times for El Sociedad, but his influence was very clear in the middle yesterday.

45:34And I'm not going to say Rice struggled to get into the game, but he was a bit quiet in the first half. And you could see Zubimendi taking more responsibility and trying to affect the game in different phases. I mean, in terms of him as a player, what always stood out for me was his appreciation of the basics and how his actions always seem to be executed correctly on time and with others in mind. You know, left foot, right foot, one touch. He can play short. He can go long. We spoke about that pass to Martinelli in the lead up to the third goal on his weaker side. Even that little flick, spin and pass into Jokeres on the edge of the box was lovely.

46:12And I don't think people appreciated that until we saw it on replays. He's just a really intelligent player who in possession has a real calmness about him. But I also love the way that he smells danger. And some people weren't sure about him physically and whether he would be able to adapt athletically to the Premier League and to the highest level in the Champions League. Sorry, but I'm not worried. you can see the dynamism in him getting across winning his duels there's bite and aggression in close quarters he pushed up and made that challenge in the lead up to the offside goal as well so these are like tangible impacts and I wrote in my piece just after we signed him that that most people think of these deep midfielders as firefighters you know banging and crashing into tackles blocking shots putting their bodies on the line but Zubimendi is the guy who makes sure those fires don't happen in the first place you know he just realizes things from two or three steps before likes to block off a passing lane he corners people by the touchline and I just think we've got a really complete player on our hands and I'm liking the ability we have to play him alone as a single pivot but also as a as a more natural pivot with Declan Rice I think that's given us a lot of flexibility in in how we play it can it can give us options further forward with how we use Eze, Odegaard.

47:38So I think he's made a really positive start. There's been a couple of good interviews as well this week with him in The Guardian and one other in a Spanish publication. I think it might have been Marker, but I'm not sure where he spoke really well about how it's not him adapting to Arsenal, but also about Arsenal adapting to him and how they've been the ones to have trusted him with minutes. So it feels like a really mutually beneficial signing. and obviously we did the work. We waited for him and I'm really glad that we did because he's proving to be worth the wait. Yes, me too. And I'm glad that he decided that London was preferable to Merseyside because they could use him.

48:19They could definitely use him. I think there'd be a better side with him in it the way we are with him in the side. Jurian Timber is another guy I want to talk about. And I think what's interesting about him is, Listen, defensively unbelievable. Like one-on-one defending. He's so quick. He's so strong. He must be a nightmare to play against. Just this guy snapping at your ankles the whole time. You know, can you think this season of a winger who's had any purchase out of him at all? Like, I can't. Maybe Doku for like a little bit in the second half against us. But that's it. Maybe, maybe. You know, basically what happens is whoever's playing on the left wing for the opposition becomes anonymous.

49:02because he renders them anonymous, which I think is unbelievable. But also where I want to go with this is where he plays when he gets into the opposition half and particularly around the corner of the opposition box. The relationship with Bakayo Saka, I think, has really developed this season. And we've often talked about the relationship between Saka and Ben White and that like triangle, the Odegaard-Saka-Ben White triangle, which was so effective for Arsenal. But typically Ben White was a guy who made his impact on the overlap. And that's where he and Saka combined most often, right? It's not to say he always did that, but that's kind of what you think about when Ben White and Saka were combining really well.

49:51It was the overlap and the ability of those two to find space behind the opposition fullback, whether it was Saka playing in White or White playing in Saka. You know, those combinations were brilliant. but they gave us width. And what's interesting now is that Timber is operating in this kind of inside right channel, right? And it's different. And it is something different for the opposition to have to deal with and to contend with. You have someone like Zubimendi who can find him with these passes over the top or between the lines. I think Eze found him with a pass between the lines yesterday, which was really good as well.

50:24But is there a consequence of that as well, perhaps, that when he does pick up the ball, But Kaio Saka has a little bit more freedom because Timber is taking somebody with him when he goes into those inside right positions, as I said, which might just leave a little more room for Saka. And Saka, as we know, when you give him time, when you give him space, when you give him the ability to go at a fullback one-on-one, he's not going to do it every time, but he's going to do it a lot. And I think we're seeing maybe Saka exist with a bit more freedom this season because of where Timber is playing.

51:00Yeah, it's very possible. I mean, the way that Timber is adding layers to his game has been quite extraordinary because when we had White and Timber both fit, which hasn't been very often, to be honest, unfortunately, but there was a clear distinction, I think, when he first arrived at the club that Timber was the better defensive player and Ben White was more capable in the final third in terms of his ability to combine. and just his general final ball on the overlap crossing, things like that. But now Timber looks a bit scary for Ben White. And I'm not saying this in a bad way. I think he's still an excellent player.

51:39He's still going to be a big part of this team and this group. He's done amazing things for us. We kind of flogged him a little bit when there was nobody else fit and all of these different factors and contributing issues as to why he hasn't been playing so regularly recently. But I just love Timber. I really really love watching him and there was one moment in the second half where he kind of had the ball by the touchline and he he bounced someone off the ball and then he left another player on his knees and then he drove into the box and I think they eventually crowded him out for a corner but there's just this like level of punch and drive and strength in his game where you trust him in any situation if he's 1v1 you trust him because he's quick and strong and his body positioning is great but going forward he just has the ability to skip inside someone he's got so much running power I mean he could play rugby quite comfortably or American football you know he's just got that physicality about him where you think he he doesn't stop he doesn't stop running and we are very very fortunate to have him I do think there is a relationship between him and Saka blossoming I do think there is something in him being afforded a little bit more space because timber is a threat now as well so running in from that half space running in behind there is another person to think about and players can't just go okay put three players on because ben white's not really going to make that run so much but i think the way in which he does it the speed at which he finds those gears is quite terrifying and we are watching him blossom into this incredible player.

53:21Every week I'm looking at him thinking, he looks better. He looks better. He looks fitter. He looks stronger. This is someone who had surgery at the end of last year because, again, we flogged him with others out injured. So I just think we're hugely blessed to have these two as our fullbacks. We've got Mosquera there as well who can just come in and play comfortably. So, you know, at the highest level when you're playing a Vinicius, when you're playing an Mbappe, when you're playing someone like Doku or Gakpo or someone that's really tricky and strong and quick, I don't worry. I really don't worry anymore.

54:00And that's quite a luxury because there aren't many fullbacks who do this thing so many well in the modern game. No, I agree. And listen, anyone who listens to this regularly will know how highly I think of Ben White and I, you know, like you, I don't think for a second it's, you know, well, it's all over for Ben White because I think he's got a big role to play this season because there are a lot of games and we want, we want, you know, this sort of timeshare model to keep everybody fit and fresh and competitive and everything else. But it is a case, I think you have to say that Timber is now the first choice right back at Arsenal, that if there is a big game, if you are, you know, in knockout stages and you have to win, he is the first name on the team sheet for me.

54:49And look, it might come around the other way. But I think what we're seeing is the, as you say, the blossoming of a really, really talented player into potentially one of the best fullbacks in the world, right before our eyes. and it's hugely enjoyable to watch. And I think that sort of right-hand side with him and Sackham, whether it's Eze or Odegaard or whoever plays there, I think will be pretty fundamental for Arsenal. I mean, look at us talking about defenders on a night when Arsenal won 4-0 against Atletico Madrid. Those four centre-backs, Andrew. Yeah, I do think it is worth noting, though, that it's three games this season in the Champions League, three wins, no goals conceded.

55:34The remarkable stat that when Arsenal returned or since Arsenal returned to the Champions League in the 23-24 season, we have played nine group stage slash league stage games at home, won them all without conceding a single goal. I mean, that's insane because, you know, there was that conversation, but well, listen, Arsenal, you know, they need to, they need to learn what European football is all about again, you know, having missed out previously and you're back in the Champions League and it's the highest level. I mean, this goes back, you know, one, two seasons, three seasons. And to have that kind of defensive record at home, I know Arteta talks about like turning the Emirates into a fortress, right?

56:21And part of that is like, we've got to get the crowd on our side. You've got to get the fans there. You want the support. You want it to be intimidating, et cetera, et cetera. But by doing what Arsenal are doing, by making it like almost impossible for the opposition to score when they come and play against you, it's kind of doing that job by what you do on the pitch. You know, and all the other things are combined and they're part of it. But it's an amazing record. nine games, won them all, having conceded a single goal in three seasons. Like, what the fuck? Yep. And I think it's 11 in total, isn't it?

57:01And we've managed to maintain a plus 25 goal differential in those games. So that's pretty sustainable when it comes to a sample size. You know, this is not two or three games. This is a lot. And again, it just relates back to some of the narrative around Arsenal that we get pigeonholed into these anti-football defensive corners when realistically it's just a team from front to back that knows how to defend really well nobody shirks their responsibilities there is a strong defensive effort and mindset to keep that goal as clean and uneventful as possible but also we don't concede many goals because we force so many teams back you know there's a lack of goals or chances to be to be conceded because we are suffocating teams in their own third so as at face value this sounds like a defensive thing but it can also be an offensive thing as well because we're so good at forcing people into areas that don't want to be in so it just frustrates me how the agendas and the narratives about this team this group this manager always seem to stick regardless of what we do or how we play they always still apply and maybe we're not what Liverpool were under Jurgen Klopp or what Manchester City were in their peak years under Pep Guardiola but why does that make us boring why does that make us this anti-football team who play with four centre-backs and three defensive midfielders when anyone who can watch the game with their eyes can see that's not the case yeah you know and i've had issues with how we've played under our tetra you know especially when it comes to facing deep blocks breaking down defenses we've been a bit one paced at times it became a theme right but a lot of that is influenced by how other teams play against us as opposed to our intention and i think ultimately at the end of the day breaking down a deep defense is one of the hardest things to do in football especially now when coaching levels and fitness levels are better than ever so i don't know i just think yesterday we saw a tiny chink in the atletico armor after that opener and we really went for them the game opened up a bit and they couldn't live with us our running power our movement our combinations and they were drowning in that second half i mean red shirts were just swarming blue shirts and i think every time there was a chance for a turnover or transition they couldn't handle it so we are seeing or continuing to show a level of adventure in our game and more importantly what i've liked about this summer is that we've tried to right a few wrongs in terms of what we've had in the squad not taking enough shots not taking enough risks take-ons ball carriers we've tried to address those issues and i think we're seeing that slowly come into our game so don't listen to a lot of the outside noise because we know what we watch you know and i think it's very easy to get caught up in some of the clickbait and the rage bait um but i think we're very fortunate to have really good quality fan media in our circles where analysis can be detailed and nuanced but also critical and honest so yeah that's why i'm i'm quite fortunate or consider my fortunate that i don't i don't need to consume general media um and idiots on sky iSports News.

1:00:25Fair enough. I thought we were brilliant. I thought we were brilliant. You know, it's one of those games, I think, where on another night, you know, you'd hear all these stories about, oh, this is the kind of game that will make Europe sit up and take notice, which, you know, might well be true, but to a large extent, what happened in the Champions League last night was kind of nuts. You know, there were some crazy games, some amazing goals. I was sitting there doing my post-game stuff on Arseblog News, and I had half an eye on the goals roundup and I was looking at some of the goals that were scored in some of the games.

1:00:59It's like, what the fuck is going on here? Some of the scorelines, Barcelona 6-1, we won 4-0, Paris Saint-Germain beat Bayer Leverkusen 7-2, both teams down to 10 men, but some amazing goals there. PSV Eindhoven 6-2 winners over Napoli, Inter big winners over Union Saint-Gilois. You know, there's some big, big results in that And I think maybe that might take some of the focus off the sort of the external, oh, this is a result now that will make Europe sit up and take notice, which I don't really care about, to be honest. Because what I think is within this group, within this group of players, within the squad, certainly within the Arsenal fan base, we don't need the people outside saying, oh, look at what Arsenal did.

1:01:47I think these players will take so much from this game because, you know, Atletico Madrid under Diego Simeone are just, you know, about as good as it gets in European terms. You know, I know they sort of battle with Barcelona and Real Madrid and they're the sort of third side. But, you know, he's a brilliant manager. He's done incredible work there. He's had revamped that team more than once and they still remain hugely competitive. And I think they, you know, Arsenal and Arsenal players, and they'll have their mates who are on that team as well, will understand that beating Atletico Madrid 4-0, even if it's at home, is a big, big deal for them.

1:02:28You know, it's a real, it copper fastens what they already know about themselves and their potential and their ability, their defensive prowess, their set piece prowess, the ability to score goals in open play as well. So regardless of what people say from the outside, internally, I think this is a huge, huge result for Arsenal. It's massive. It's massive. I can't think of too many times Atletico have been beaten 4-0 in Europe. So they're often the team that do the upsets. So when you think about Real Madrid, Barcelona, PSG, they're the ones that are disrupting the status quo. So maybe this is a different side, as I mentioned earlier, to what we remember and what we know.

1:03:09but they're no mugs, right? And they've got an excellent manager who has continuously overperformed in European competition. So I just think this is another tick off the list for Arsenal. We're in a good moment of momentum, I think now, because there's a feeling that when we do go ahead, that when we do get our noses in front, we're going to win the game. And I think that's such a valuable thing to have mentally because not saying that anyone is complacent or anything and there's no underestimating any opposition. I don't think that would be allowed in this dressing room, to be honest, by the manager.

1:03:45But there's a quiet confidence and an assurance that once we get our noses in front, if anyone's going to score the next goal, it's going to be us. So this is really encouraging to take into, you know, a difficult part of the season now. We've got some difficult games. I know Palace are going to be a tough opposition on the weekend. Burnley, maybe not, but going away from home is never easy in the Premier League. Then we've got some more European games. It's just about going, going, going, going. Next game, three points. Next game, three points. We're going to get players back in December, maybe towards the new year.

1:04:19So it's really exciting to watch the team playing with such a confidence and assurance. And also when the chances do come, there is a bit of a ruthlessness as well, as we saw yesterday. So, yeah, it's not all going to be easy. It's not all going to be unicorns and rainbows and sunshine. But I think in terms of where we are now, we're in a really good place. And I really enjoyed last night and hopefully the players did too. Yes. And I'm sure the fans did as well. Everybody watching did. And hopefully you enjoyed this conversation. We'd better leave it there, Phil. Here's to the next one. Thank you very much for being with us as always.

1:04:55Nice one. Thank you, mate.

1:05:00Thank you very much indeed to Phil. You can find him on Blue Sky. He is at philcosta.bsky.social, at philcosta.bsky.social. So that is just about that for this particular episode. An enjoyable one. Hope you enjoyed the conversation. Hope you enjoyed reliving a 4-0 win over Atletico Madrid. I mean, there's probably something wrong with you if you can't enjoy that kind of result and that kind of performance. I know I did. I'm pretty sure you did too. And I thank you for being here and thank you for listening. A bit later in the week, we'll look ahead to our next game, which is Crystal Palace at home on Sunday.

1:05:35That's no walk in the park, that's for sure. Even though we're at home, Palace have been so good lately under Oliver Glasner. So we'll talk about that game a bit later in the week after Mikel Arteta holds his press conference on Friday. You can find that podcast over on our Patreon, which is patreon.com forward slash arseblog. Right. I'll leave it there. Thanks for being here as ever, folks. Take it easy and we will catch you on the next one. And until then, cheers. Bye-bye.

1:06:30Thank you.

1:07:05You

1:07:13From acclaimed director Mikel Arteta comes a terrifying new horror experience Defenders petrified Goalkeepers trembling with fear The critics are raving. Stark raving mad, that is. I'm not a girl from the corner. Coming to a football ground near you this season. They scared you once. Now they're gonna do it again, but in Spanish. Say peace, FC. Ole, ole. Lock up your center halves. because Gabrielle is coming.

1:08:03Rated R, as in har har har.