@ deboksy,

The URL u supplied is outdated.
That was May 2006 which is 4 months ago.

This is the latest  UEFA team ranking as at 11.06 am this morning.
http://www.kassiesa.com/uefabackup/data/method3/trank2007.html

All this noise about fletcher and the rest of them will come to past after 90m of sweats from united players, they will only be chasing shadows come sunday by the time we score 2 quick goals then the match is settled.

tell dem jare slary no long thing!!

@ mocha arsenal also won the Fair's Cup so i guess we can also say we've won it abi? anyways that was a digression.

i don't know what the ranking criteria are, but a team who beat bayern munich home and away is a better team than one who were kicked out of the CL to armenia bratislava (probably ranked 1000 in europe).

back to topic y'all dont have the 'many' options you're talking about. MU is losing the game on sunday. fletcher will play crap and if you're not careful ole will retire on sunday after the torrid game he'll have.

you're calling rooney wazza right?

the only wazzap that y'all are gonna see is the kind king henry did after scoring against barthez!!

2 quick goals?
The last time Arsenal scored a Premiership goal at Old Trafford was 53 months ago.
Can u beat that?
The last time Man United defeated Arsenal in the Premiership was just 5 months ago.
U do the math!!!!!!!!!


@ debosky,
Why get into the ranking argument when u don't know how the team ranking's criteria works?
Always check ur facts before posting.
Celtic is a stiffer opposition than Hamburg, let alone a 10 man Hamburg team.

Arsenal blows hot & cold and i expect all gooners to have learnt from this.
This season has shaped well exactly like the last season before the gunners visited OT.
The gunners came back from Turin in the mid-week having gotten a draw from Juventus and the gooners on NL went hay-wire.
They promised hellbut at the end of the day, Arsenal fell like the walls of Jericho.
Will y'all gooners ever learn?

which math? leave story for tortise - this is the season for re-writing history

by the way ur rankings site must be broken - putting newcastle utd above UEFA Cup winners sevilla and perenial CL participants+dutch champions PSV!!

rankings my ass

debosky:

@ mocha arsenal also won the Fair's Cup so i guess we can also say we've won it abi? anyways that was a digression.

Yes no doubt, Arsenal has won the UEFA cup but don't "disgrace" Celtic because you have beef with MU. And we have argued this b4.

Though I'm a great fan of Arsenal, I have to say as long as they solely rely on Thiery, they are prone to choking in BIG GAMES. Yes I said it; PRONE TO CHOKING in Big games but this is sports and anything can happen next Sunday!

@ deboksy,

Please stop displaying your ignorance on a public forum.
This rankings are based on all match results and calculated coefficients of European Cup Football since 1955.
The 1st part contains the results valid since 2004: team coefficients are based on the number of points of each individual team added to 33% of the country coefficient.

This rankings are used to seed teams in Europe and they fluctuate sporadically all the time based on league matches, home wins, away wins and so many other factors.

Jackal:


This rankings are based on all match results and calculated coefficients of European Cup Football since 1955
It contains the results valid since[b] 2004[/b]

so which is it? 2004 or 1955?? if they add figures since 1955 then it is truly irrelevant for present day team strength comparison

@ debosky,

http://www.kassiesa.com/uefabackup/seedcl2006.html

I hope u guys saw how Hamburg was eaten alive in their home by Arsenal (Without Henry). This is what is going to happen to Man U, but Man U will suffer more than Hamburg because:
1) We are determined to finish those idiots.
2) Henry will be playing (hopefully) and Walcort might also be playing.
3) It's a do or die situation for arsenal, we cannot afford to lose against those idiots.
I hope I have been able to convince you and not convince you that Man U is dead meat, come this weekend.
Thank you.

@ all guys
you are starting to annoy now. why don't you discuss all about UEFA on the relevant topic?
this is Arsenal vs man U as per premieship. let me hear anyone yearn Uefa yeaaaaah uefa pssssssssst here! abi.

Back to topic!
Open heart surgery without anaesthesia awaits  man U come Sunday.
We now understand the enemy force (Disunited) situation in terms of their strength and deployment & we have a detailed task to engage them at OT.thats our arc of responsibility men! Only to apply the 4 maximanship principles then we pull the first trigger at Trafford.
Better the end of a thing than the beginning. Gunners have a restoration in this game.
Guess what? I won't give you the satisfaction.
Even Ji sung is now malingering with an injury and he is one  of those who scored against us in April.
Contrastingly, goals will be of copious supply against Disunited . For sure we are claming this away win with Henry the instigator, Man U will find it even hard penetrating Gunner defence
OR should we bet?

Dis bugs being called arsenal fans are really making me laugh.u guys are really dreamers well thank God u r coming to the THEATRE OF DREAMS . 11 thierry henrys cannot save u on sunday.Though persie,fabregas n eboue r stars but we are going to unleash our superstars of C.Ronaldo n Rooney o your gutless babies u r calling players. Those boiz r just good for playing shell cup in Nigeria n not the battle of OT.Thank God u have sumthn to celebrate b4 being whitewashed on Sunday.I hope by monday morning you guys we not be telling us 21reasons why u lost the match.It is a 4gone conclusion, u can;;t escape the INEVITABLE DEFEAT.ONE UNITED ALWAYS

i laugh at these arsenal fans.defeat is inevitable as has bein the last two seasons.take heart and plan for week 6 because week 5 is a done deal DEFEAT!

I just received confirmation. Arsenal beats United 2-0.
Congratulations all Arsenal Fans!!!!!! Lunch is on me. Let's go and celebrate!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

4 me it wil b beta if arsenal wins so chelsea could close up d 3points gap. no doubt liverpool is goin down sat.lol. whatch out 4 joe cole he's back.

on saturday liverpool gonna win by a slim margin 1-0, but the gunners are gonna bury thhose wasted chances in previous games, i see baptista in the score sheet, and rosicky is gonna complete the damage

Ok peeps Enough of all the horse trading and posturing!!

I decided to wait until i watched both United and Arsenals CL games, before contributing my thoughts again on what will hopefully be a cracker of a match, (immediately following another cracker in Pool vs Chelski ).

Now with uncertainty hanging over Kolo and Th14, we really look like being in the s@#t on Sunday. Missing Titi can be dealt with, i actually feel right now we even play far better with him not being around as it is clear he is still not on form (however his mere presence on the pitch does a lot to instill confidence in our lads, so its a true "Catch 22" situation)

Now defence wise, we have a dilenma, frankly my defence would be

Eboue     Kolo     Gallas     Flamini

i don't think either Hoyte or Djourou can do a job for us, although if Kolo is not available then a Djourou/Gallas partnership is manageable ( i think Lehman has to take control of that defence like he did last year ) one major thing, if Eboue decides per adventure to overlap, he better make sure he doesn't chicken out when he gets behind their defence, (which he will do) and becomes more desicive.

The defence pairing above should be able to handle Shrek (Ronney) and Twinkle Toes (Ronaldo), where we might/will have a problem is with Louis, Abdominable Snow Man (scholesy) and the deceptive Baby Face Assasin (Ole), seeing that Pretty boy (Giggsy) and Ji Parky will both be unavoidably absent.

Now this game will be won or lost in the midfield, and that is where we have a dilenma on our hand on who to play. Personally i would prefer a 4-4-2 formation, witha midfield of

Walcott   Gilberto   Fabregas    Rosicky

This Midfield has pace/directiveness written all over it, on the flanks will be two runners to give their Defence something to think about, and we do know that Le Prof, will now actually unleash Dumplings (Rosicky) and we will now finally see more shots outside the 18 (Arsenal's success is based on pace, skill and movement, and this midfield has all 3 qualities) Berti should be able to shepard the Million Dollar Man (Carrick), Flecther and Snow Man, but Fabo will have to also help out with defensive duties. (the beast and helb can come in later if we need to slow the game down, or Playboy Model (Freddie), if we need grit and steel) for once in a long time we are spoiled for choice.

Up front, sorry Gonners but i would go for

RVP and Kanu 2

with TH14 coming in in the second half to just add more spice if need be.

All in all, like i said, this game will be won or lost in the Midfield, we need to take our chances, cause if we don't Man United will skin us, the ironic and good exception being; Manyoo will actually allow us play our game (counter attacking footie) as they will attack us as well. i expect some luck or silly mistake to play their part in the outcome, (Somehow this has "a draw" written all over this fixture , anyway i would take that)

But do not be decieved, even though we are underr dogs, we can actually go to OT and get a win, Man utd in the last few weeks have dropped their cautious game and are attacking teams hard but they have had to sacrafice some defensive stability as well. This is why I feel we might have a chance because our players who are failing right now may have a lot more space infront of them to play with which makes it easier for them.

All in all It is gonna be damn hard and there is a good chance of us losing but I wouldn't rule us out just yet, they will attack us and leave themselves open and we have to seize our moments. If we do that, or even score first and make them chase the game, then i see us coming out with a win (close game, but Arsenal on top)

Prediction 2-1 to the ARSENAL

"BRING SUNDAY ON" i say

GONNER 89

we have started poorly every one nose dat

but against man u am sure and i (nose ) dat we will win gunners 4 life

@ Loyika,
Anuther brilliant in-depth analysis from an astute gunner.
We need more dudes like u at Arsenal, why don't u take up Wenger's job?
Your comments are catchy but they are spot on.
United knows just one way to play and that is to ATTACK.
Sir Alex will never use a 5-man midfield like Arsenal, Liverpool or even Chelsea.
Its a taboo for OT fans to watch their darling team play defensive.

Having said this, United are always super-cautious in the DEFENCE when they play big teams like Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea.
U have to remember none of these teams mentioned above scored a goal at OT last season so stabilty is assured against the gunners.
This match is going to be the 1st litmus test for Man U who had a disappointing summer with the transfers.
United will rely heavily on the old horses to deliver which will be a big boost as consistency in the gameplay is guaranteed

In the defence, i will rely on:
Neville   Rio Ferdinand   Brown/Vidic     Heinze
With Gabby Heinze, United will close shops on Van Persie and gangling Adebayor.
I also expect Vidic to fit in as his brilliant defending stopped Henry and others from really running chaos last season.
Gary Neville can overlap and supply quality crosses and i back Ferdinand to marshall Henry like Rio always do every season.


The midfield is where i think the battle would be won as Loyika has suggested.
United have soldiers who are hungry and are prepared to battle hard to win balls off naive Fabregas and Gilberto Silva.
Arsenal plays with no width so i will be comfortable with a 3-man midfield:
Scholes       Carrick            O Shea

Paul Scholes is like a new signing for Man United and his darting runs and dropping of shoulders can pierce teams apart.
He will be immense on sunday as he has adapted to the new way midfielders win balls in the middle of the pack.
Well-timed interception of passes is the key and Scholesy is the master of this new trick.
Tomas Gravesen was on the receiving end last night as he kept giving passes away that led to the downfall of Celtic.
Gunners should worry more about this because Scholesy's quality will punish Arsenal.
Michael Carrick is the most under-rated player in the team because of the money paid to get the lad.
I must admit he is arguably the best passer of the ball in the Premiership.
His passes and distribution of long ball surpassed Lampard's last season and he's proving to be a good buy and sunday's game will assess him.
John O'Shea should provide stabilty and discipline with well-timed tackles to frustrate Fabregas and Hleb.


In ma opinion, Upfront for United should be a 3-man attack:
Rooney        Saha          Ronaldo.

Cristiano will win so many free-kicks with his trickeries and that is a bonus for Man United.
I am glad he would be back on sunday for United as fresh as a stack of benjy'z
Ronaldo's mesmeric step-overs are bound to cause problems for Flamini and this is where Arsenal's achilles lie.
Wazza's brilliance with the combination of Louis Saha's speed should be able to outwit Gallas and Kolo Toure.
The trio will cause extensive damage to Arsenal's back four as Arsenal has no consistency at the back.
Toure + Gallas haven't really worked out an understanding and Flamini will be too weak to stop Ronnie.
Eboue's brilliant runs upfront will leave the back four exposed and there's bound to be chaos at the back unless Wenger plays defensive(4-5-1).

In conclusion,
Man United to win 3-0 with Rooney, Scholes and Saha to provide the goals.

The 1st goal could prove decisive but i expect United to keep a clean sheet at OT.
Afterall, clean sheets against Arsenal @ OT is becoming a tradition.
Henry normally develops cold feet against Man U in recent times .

I detest such long posts as much as they make sense.
Is this Jackal I used to know or someone else?My man! you are just mistyping nowadays good words though.
Infact I smell a rat a big one in that case.Be brief
Rosiscky scored the best goal ever seen in Europe so many just watch the game on sunday.

@ Prisccy,
So how do u study for ur course-work if u cannot read 20-30 lines?
Feed ur eyes and learn more about football.
I made it long deliberately for u so u can cop 2 or 3 facts about football.
Are u there yet?

QUOTE FROM JACKAL

Sir Alex will never use a 5-man midfield like Arsenal, Liverpool or even Chelsea.
Its a taboo for OT fans to watch their darling team play defensive

.

Please tell me, how many midfielder/Defence do United use in the second half against Chelsea at Old Tratford last season?

Please be truthfull.

Baba Alex nearly come to help on the field in one of the best match Chelsea play in Jose's era.

don't mind jackal, he's drunk on those four premiership wins and can't see straight.

with replacement diver giggs (taking over from RVN) and the park bench from SK absent, the only source of MU width is Ronaldo, all i envision for him on sunday is plenty step over but no delivery. kolo will marshal saha properly - he's the most dangerous man in MU's attack on current form, rude rooney will get himself booked after getting no chances.

by all indications T14 will only come in second half, with adebayor and baptista starting, since RVP may also be injured. I forsee walcott and henry coming on in the second half, with rosicky, hleb cesc and gilberto starting, kolo will be fit so it'll be eboue, djourou,kolo and gallas.

2-1 to the Arsenal!!

@Debosky and Jackal

If i have to predict Sundays match based on yesterday's performance, Arsenal will carry the day but what amazes me is United knows how to get results against Arsenal.

To me United did not play well.

Saha will soon get his usual injury then Baba will feel the absence of Mr Goals in Ruud.

@ Loyika

Bros sorry about the post in another thread. I enjoyed your analysis without noticing who made it, Its brilliant and quixotic.

@chacal; I'm not sure I can be ur assistant if you ever land a job as a coach.

I favour using 5 mid-fielders with the wingers playing the whole length of the field and sticking an out-of-this-world attacking midfielder in the middle.

Arsenal would soon be going to dubai to auction T14 ( sounds like a Mountain black track)

@ Akolawole,
United's team list against Chelski at OT goes as thus.

Van Der Sar

Wes Brown
Rio Ferdinand
John O Shea
Mikel Silvestre

Darren Fletcher
Cristiano Ronaldo
Alan Smith
Paul Scholes

Wayne Rooney
Ruud Van Nistelrooy.

Ruud was subbed in the 82nd minute for JS Park so where is ur 5-man defence/midfield?

Can Fletcher play in the defence? No.
Ronaldo in defence? Never
Smith in defence? Impossible
Scholes in defence? Disaster(he's too short)

So tell me how was the team defensive?
U have to realise Chelsea played an under-strength United team as 4 players were missing.
Mourinho himself mentioned it in the pre-match conference that he was sorry for United's chain of injuries to key players.
Giggsy, Scholesy, Keane and Heinze all missed the match.
Take the equivalent out of Chelski and lets see how they will perform.
Nevertheless, United defended as a unit and that should not be seen as a defensive game.
United still played 4-4-2 and it worked out really good
Alan Smith marked Essien out and Makelele's dominance was cut short by Smithy.
With these 2 players marked out, Chelsea lacked the ideas and no decent balls were fed to Drogba.
The whole picture changed when Gudjohnsen(a substitute) began to grow in confidence against United's tired legs.

jackal!
its just that most of the time I use my mobile phone on browsing thats why such lenghty writings piss me off at the same time i have not screened the lap top and my eyes just tire.
I can see you and Kola are online chatting!
Everyone knows Arsenal will carry the day.

@ Akola,

U cannot base yesterday's performance on sunday's game.
The opposition are different as Hamburg is a weaker team than Celtic.
Celtic will take Arsenal apart and i remember Celtic grinding out a famous draw against Chelsea in the pre-season.
Don't even say nuthing was at stake as this was a match Mourinho wanted to win after Chelsea's shambolic performance in California.

Arsenal's problems lie in United's ferocious attack.
Only Chelsea's steely defence is capable of holding United's attack in the Premiership.
Other teams will just crumble because Ronaldo and Rooney will outpace and outwit most defence units in England.
Rooney and Ronaldo have developed a deadly partnership and it will be evident on sunday as the 2 rookies will tear the gunners apart.

@ debosky,
If Arsenal score on sunday, i will adjudge them the winner irrespective of the scoreline.
I'm going to count an arsenal goal as 10 because it's more likely to have Ian Wright as BNP chairman than for Arsenal to score at OT.
What do u take United's defence for? Especially against a blunt attack like Arsenal's
Please read between the lines- Arsenal will have to re-sign Dennis Bergkamp, Kanu, Pires and Wiltord to score a goal on sunday.

we will win and win this time around no mistakes

keep on ranting you hear?

if a novice like venegoor can beat that superstar-wannabe called rio what do you think henry or rvp will do to him?

if a shunsuke - a japanese upstart scores a freekick against geriatric van der sar what do you think a T14 or a RVP freekick will do?

the so called 'invincible' defence was breached twice in the same night by two novices, the goal that even got MU back in the game wa a dubious penalty due to the reincarnated/fresh sigining diver giggs. lets see whether your tricks will work this sunday.

stop calling pre-season frendlies as matches even you know that chelsea was at 40% for that game according to mourinho.

celtic is nothing but a local champion, they havent beaten any quality opposition outside scotland in 3 years, hamburg beat BM ( a team ranked higher than celtic of course) twice - home and away last season

Arsenal WILL score on sunday - twice