Arsenal Supremo

Thursday, 3 April 2014

Aaron Ramsey looks set to return against Everton after a lengthy time out to injury

Posted on 14:54 by Unknown

Published 3rd April 2014 By ArsenalSupremo

Today Arsene Wenger revealed some good news on the injury front for Aaron Ramsey. He has been out since injuring his thigh on boxing day. Ramsey who had cored 13 goals in the first half of the season, was only expected to be out for around six weeks but a couple of niggling setbacks have delayed his return.

Wenger said : "Aaron and Nacho Monreal are back training with the squad, so that is good news. Hopefully they will be available for Sunday. Diaby is back on the pitches, so that is good news,"

Check out our new feature on the site we look back at the past Arsenal Legends today is the turn of Nwankwo Kanu as we look back on his career and you can now watch all of his goals for Arsenal if you want to find out more Click Here If you want a certain legend to be analysed next feel free to leave a comment below.

Like us on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/ArsenalSupremo

Follow on Twitter https://twitter.com/Arsenal_Supremo

Subscribe to our videos on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/user/MrArsenalSupremoooo

We are now on Instagram! http://instagram.com/arsenalsupremo

Why not join our Arsenal Fantasy Football League Now! Click Here

Saturday, 29 March 2014

Video : Arsene Wenger praises the Gunners after Arsenal's 1-1 draw to Manchester City

Posted on 20:05 by Unknown

Published 30th March 2013 By ArsenalSupremo

Wenger told Sky Sports: "What happened to us last week was a nightmare and on top of that we scored an own goal against Swansea so the dressing room was really, really flat on Tuesday night.

"I have to say the players were fantastic. The way we responded today with a lot of fight is absolutely marvellous, it shows the team has a really special mental quality.

"Slowly we got into the game and in the second half we controlled the game and unfortunately couldn't score a second goal.

"We played higher up the pitch and controlled the game much better. I was confident we could win it, but with what we have gone through it was very important not to make a defensive mistake."

Like us on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/ArsenalSupremo

Follow on Twitter https://twitter.com/Arsenal_Supremo

Subscribe to our videos on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/user/MrArsenalSupremoooo

We are now on Instagram! http://instagram.com/arsenalsupremo

Why not join our Arsenal Fantasy Football League Now! Click Here

Posted in Arsenal 1 Manchester City 1, Arsene Wenger | No comments

Friday, 7 February 2014

Thierry Henry: The Titi Story

Posted on 16:43 by Unknown

Whether you like him or love him, and no, I’m not going to give you and option to dislike him, because that would be silly, you can’t deny that Thierry Henry is one of the greatest players to come out of French football in many years and will always be the footballing hero to many of us.

Thierry Daniel Henry, or to you and I, Titi, The King, God, Sexy, ect, was born in Les Ulis, a small suburb just 14 miles outside of Paris in France on the 17th of August 1977.

Thierry grew up around football and played for several local amateur clubs but wasn’t initially that into football, as his father, Antoine, would pressurize him into going to training every week because at the young, innocent age of 7, Henry was already showing unique quality on the ball and the ability to find the back of the net.

Because of the eye for goal that Thierry was showing at just the age of 7, Claude Chezelle, a coach for a local football club called CO Lew Ulis recruited him but just a few years later, Thierry US Palaiseau in 1989 but again wasn’t at the club for long as his father fell out with the powers that be at the club, but it was not all doom and gloom as Thierry then joined ES Viry-Chatillon and was there for 2 years.

In 1990, AS Monaco heard the word of a 13-year-old striker who was destined for the top, so they sent out one of their scouts, Arnold Catalano, where Thierry was playing in a match where his team won 6-0. I bet you can’t guess who scored the goals? Thierry did. All 6 of them at age 13, whilst being scouted by AS Monaco. Impressive, huh? Arnold, the Monaco scout, asked Thierry to join Monaco without even having to go through a trial at the club, that’s how much the scout rated the youngster from just one game. Arnold asked just one thing of Thierry – to complete a course at the elite Claire Fontaine academy before signing,but the director of the academy was very reluctant to let Thierry join as his school results were not the best.

Thierry wouldn't be able to pull off that look these days!

After completing the course, Thierry joined Monaco, who were then being managed by non other than Arsène. Shortly after, Thierry signed his professional contract with the club and made his first professional debut on the 31st of August 1994, where his Monaco team lost 2-0 against French side Nice in the league.

After a slightly up and down start to his career with Monaco, he was named French Young Footballer of the Year in 1996, and the season of 1996-1997, he’s powerful, intrusive play on the wings and up front were rewarded, as the club won the Ligue 1 title. The season after his first taste of success, he played an impressive role in Monaco’s role in getting to the UEFA Champions League semi-final in 1997-1998, setting an incredible record for the most goals scored by a Frenchmen in the competition, 7 goals. His third season at the club saw him play so impressively that year and the two seasons before, that he was called up to the France international team and gained his first cap as part of the winning team of the FIFA World Cup in 1998.

In his Monaco career, spanning 5 years, he mainly played on the wing, despite Arsène seeing him as a striker, but he managed to score 20 goals in 105 appearances.

Thierry Henry signed for Italian side Juventus in 1999

In 1999, Italian side Juventus came swooping in for Thierry’s signature and he signed on the dotted line for a whopping £10.5million, expecting a long, successful career in Italy. He joined the side just a year after his friend and teammate David Trezeguet move to Italy to also play for Juventus. Thierry joined the Italian league just a few years after Dennis Bergkamp did, but like Dennis, he didn’t have a good career there, as the Italian league was very defensively orientated and Thierry found it hard to adapt to a style of play that he wasn’t used to with Monaco.

Thierry Henry signs for Arsenal

Thierry moved on in his career and signed for Arsenal Football Club after making just 16 appearances and scoring 3 goals for Juventus. Thierry was reunited with his old manager from Monaco and signed a deal on the 3rd of August 1999 for a fee of £11million and everything seemed to finally fit, he was at a club that was playing attractive, attacking football and he was playing under a manager that he admired and had a lot of time for. What could go wrong?

Thierry wasn’t convinced that he was worth the sum of money that Arsenal had paid for him and he didn’t have the best of starts to his career in North London. Thierry was labelled a replacement for fellow French striker Nicolas Anelka, and was almost immediately transformed into a striker by manager Arsène Wenger, who saw Thierry as a striker whilst they were both at Monaco.

After 8 games at Arsenal, Thierry still couldn’t find the net as a striker, and after many hard months in English football Thierry himself even accepted defeat and said that he “needed to be re-taught the art of striking”. But his first year at Arsenal had passed and he scored an impressive total of 26 goals, sending Arsenal second in his debut season, just a couple of points below fierce rivals Manchester United but also being knocked out of the UEFA Cup Final against Galatasaray.

In the EUFA Euro’s in 2000, Thierry was impressive and his national team France won the competition, boosting his confidence in his abilities even further. In the 2000-2001 season with Arsenal, he was determined to shine in the Premier League and make a name for himself, but after recording fewer goals and assists than the previous year, he still pulled off an impressive season, Arsenal, who were playing an attacking style of play that was breathtakingly beautiful, they still finished second place in the league table, again behind rivals Manchester United as well as against losing in a cup final, the FA Cup, against Liverpool, losing 2-1. Thierry was not impressed with his lack of helping Arsenal win trophies and expressed his feelings and desire to transform Arsenal into a powerhouse in English and European football.

The 2001-2002 campaign came about and Arsenal finished top of the table with a 7 point gap between themselves and second place Liverpool, as well as winning the FA Cup the same year, beating Chelsea 2-0. 32 goals for Thierry in that league campaign saw him become the league’s top scorer receiving the golden boot award, and as Thierry’s confidence shot through the roof, so did Arsenal’s. Finally, Thierry Henry, the £11million pound signing from Juventus was leading Arsenal to glory and scoring a bucket load of goals in the process whilst also claiming PFA Players’ Player of the Year.

The FIFA World Cup came about again that year and Henry was tipped to emulate his domestic success with the national team, but there was heartbreak for Henry and France as they were astonishingly knocked out of the group stage. Henry’s morale looked to have taken another blow, but the Frenchman’s mental attitude was then put to the test the following season.

Arsenal’s 49 unbeaten run, 2003-2004

Thierry Henry seemed to all but forget about the French national team failing in the World Cup the year before, as he become part of a remarkable Arsenal team, a team that marked a landmark record in English football, and Thierry was a major factor in that success, along with the likes of Dennis Bergkamp, Robert Pires, Jens Lehmann, Sol Campbell, Lauren, Ljungberg, Vieria and Gilberto. This was the second consecutive year that Thierry claimed the PFA Players’ Player of the Year, as well as winning the FWA Footballer of the Year, but Thierry once against fell short of the FIFA World Player of the Year award, coming in second place behind Ronaldinho, who previously came in third place behind Zidane and Henry the year before.

39 goals in all competitions that year saw Thierry yet again master the Premier League and show his brilliance through his passion and commitment to the game and for Arsenal and he claimed the European Golden Boot, but yet again failed to bring any success to France as the national team yet again failed to win the EUFA Euro in 2004.

Arsenal’s FA Cup victory over Manchester United in 2005

The following season, Arsenal failed to retain the Premier League title as they fell short to Chelsea but managed to reach the FA Cup final again in 2005, beating Manchester United 5-4 on penalties. Although Thierry missed that game through injury, he was still seen as instrumental in Arsenal’s FA Cup run and he still won a winner’s medal. Shortly after that FA Cup win, Arsenal’s captain Patrick Vieria unexpectedly left the Gunners after scoring the winning penalty against Manchester United, and in 2006, Thierry saw a new strike partner in Robin Van Persie (I feel dirty writing his name!) as Dennis Bergkamp announced his retirement from football.

Thierry Henry beats Ian Wright’s record goal scoring tally

Henry became Arsenal’s all time top goalscorer in the 2005-2006 campaign as he overhauled Ian Wright’s record of 185 goals. Thierry went on to score an incredible and seemingly unbeatable record of 228 goals for Arsenal.

In the same year, Thierry Henry scored a hat-trick in his and Arsenal’s last ever game at Highbury against Wigan as Arsenal moved a stone’s throw away to the new, state of the art stadium The Emirates. The emotional day saw Thierry Henry be part of one of the most iconic pictures ever taken of the man, as he goes down on his hands and knees and kisses the Highbury pitch.

Thierry Henry kissing the Highbury pitch.

A kiss goodbye to Arsenal? a kiss goodbye to Highbury? many people and newspapers reported that Arsenal would lose the services of Thierry Henry as he seemed to be saying goodbye to Arsenal when he kissed the pitch, but Thierry stayed at the club despite rumours of a move to Barcelona.

Arsenal then failed to win the Premier League title again but found themselves in the final of the 2006 EUFA Champions League against Barcelona, a day which saw Arsenal lose out to the Spanish giants, after losing the game 2-1.

It was not all doom and gloom as Arsenal secured the signature of Thierry Henry for another 4 years after he signed a new contract at Arsenal, declaring his love for the club and saying that he would be at Arsenal for life. David Dein shortly afterwards had said that he rejected two gigantic bids of £50million for the French striker from two Spanish clubs before Thierry agreed a new deal with Arsenal.

In 2006-2007, Arsenal were dealt several cruel blows as Thierry was constantly bogged down with injuries despite scoring 10 goals in 17 appearances for Arsenal. More blows were handed out in February as Thierry Henry came on as a substitute against PSV in the Champions League, but not long after coming on, the Frenchman began limping, and the hearts of Arsenal fans sank, as their talisman striker, the man who lead them victory multiple times in season upon season, was ruled out for up to 3 months, which meant he missed the rest of the season, and little did the fans know at the time, that would be the last time they would see Thierry Henry in an Arsenal shirt….. Or was it?

Thierry signs for Barcelona

In 2007, instead of Arsenal hearts sinking, they were shattered, as Arsenal announced the sale of Thierry Henry to Spanish club Barcelona for a fee of €24million, a transfer that was certainly one that took the footballing world by surprise, especially after Thierry just signed a 4 year contract with Arsenal. Thierry left Arsenal with a heavy heart and constantly said that Arsenal was “his club” and that he would always be open to a return, whether that would be as a coach or even as a ‘water boy’.

A new chapter in Thierry’s career was opened as one closed, and Thierry scored his first goal to mark a new beginning against Lyon in the Champions League in September of 2007. 10 days after his first goal in a Barcelona kit, he scored a hat-trick against fellow Spanish side Levante in the league and although Thierry was mostly played as a winger, he still managed to find the back of the net, something he never failed to do in his Arsenal years.

Haven claimed he wasn’t happy with his first season in Spain and having said he ‘missed home’ (Arsenal) he was Barcelona’s top goalscorer that season scoring 19 goals with 9 assist, one behind top assister of that season Lionel Messi.

The following season, Henry was more impressive in front of goal and won his first ever trophy with Barcelona, the Copa del Rey in which they managed to beat Athletic Bilbao and soon after this accomplishment for both Barcelona and Thierry, the club went on to do the treble – the Primera Division and the Champions League.

The season after, Thierry found himself warming up the bench because of the emergence of Pedro. Thierry started 15 league games in the campaign and the Barcelona club president at the time, Joan Laporta said that Henry could leave in the summer if he so wished, as he only had a year left on his contract.

Thierry Henry signs for New York Red Bulls

2010 came about, and Thierry Henry maybe not surprisingly joined American footballing team New York Red Bulls in the MLS. The Frenchman made his debut for the club in a 2-2 draw with Houston Dynamo on the 31st of July and pulling off two assists in his first game.

Scoring in the MLS didn’t came long after as he scored his first goal for the club in a 2-0 victory against San Jose Earthquakes in the quarter-final of the 2010 MLS Cup Playoffs.

Thierry Henry returned to Arsenal to train in the MLS off-season to keep fit and prepare for when the MLS kicked off again, and Arsenal signed him on a 2 month loan deal on the 6th of January 2012. Wenger initially said that Henry may not feature for Arsenal in his loan deal and was seen as many as ‘not physically fit enough’ to again play in the ever increasingly fast paced English game.

Thierry Henry’s emotional return as he scored in the FA Cup tie with Leeds

Tears were shed, hairs stood up, the day Thierry Henry returned to Arsenal and scored his goal, the goal that will forever be stamped in Arsenal’s history as a historic memory. I have watched this goal many times over, and every single time it never fails to raise the hairs on my arms and neck, as well as bring a tear to my eye. Thierry Henry’s goal v Leeds was without doubt one of the greatest moments we will ever see.

“You said you didn’t want to be a hero when you returned..” Thierry: “That wasn’t the plan.”

His emotional interview after the game showed his class as a person, not a player, as he was saying it was ridiculous that he was crowned man of the match, even before he came on off the bench.

Thierry Henry scored his second goal in his last game at Arsenal against Sunderland in stoppage time to win the game 2-1. February 17th, 2012, the legend returned to America to his parent club New York Red Bulls to prepare for the seasons return.

To date, Thierry Henry is still at New York Red Bulls and is still pulling off some exceptional goals, such as some of the following:

Amazing Bicycle Kick Goal

World Class Equalizer from Thierry Henry vs Toronto FC

Thierry Henry with an ABSOLUTE BANGER from distance | New York Red Bulls vs Chicago Fire

The Henry statue outside the Emirates Stadium

What does the future hold for Thierry Henry? the man himself said he is undecided on whether he’ll end his career or whether or not he’ll extend his contract with NYRB in the MLS, but Arsenal fans see a different path for the Arsenal legend and some fans see him as a future successor to Wenger, whilst others see him as an ambassador or even a coach at Arsenal.

The future

I asked my followers on Twitter what their favorite Thierry Henry goal was, and their answers are as follows. (Clicking on their @ Twitter name will direct you to their Twitter page.)

@Rambo_AFC simply replied with a Vine video of this wonder strike: https://vine.co/v/hEQl6aL39Bu

@Gunnerblogger97 said: “Backheel vs Charlton 04/05″ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqDq_byhIIc

@HardsMark said: “Real Madrid away in Champions League followed by Man Utd swivel shot” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyAYSm4Ud8o

@UpdatingAFC said: “The one against Manchester Utd 2001 I think” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyAYSm4Ud8o

@gooners4evah said: “The Leeds goal in 2012! I almost cried” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExPNxsVJA9E

@GonnerUpdates said: “The goal versus Leeds I honestly cried for a good few minutes, it was very emotional for myself and my father” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExPNxsVJA9E

@V888BEN simply said:” Leeds goal” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExPNxsVJA9E

@Gooner457 said: “that goal against the Spuds” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhrfO_OBdtU

@Gunnerblogger97 again said: “Goal vs Leeds” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ExPNxsVJA9E

I think people liked the goal vs Leeds, don’t you…?

I then asked my followers a different question – What role would they like to see Thierry Henry be in at Arsenal in the future, if any? and again, the replies are below:

@Tilley_Gooner13 said: “Manager after Wenger”

@Tjdougan said: “Assistant manager”

@ckeogh1971 said: “An ambassador”

@V888BEN said: “Up front”

@ArsenalBFG said: “Assistant manager for sure, any player playing for the club in the future would have huge respect for Thierry.”

@GoonerUpdates said: “Possibly him and Bergkamp return, one of them manager the other assistant, I couldn’t decide which one I’d want to manage.”

@Wild_Squirtle said: “Ambassador/Coach”

@Gunnertweets said: “Ambassador”

@UpdatingAFC said: “I would want him to take over Arsene Wenger when he retires! I think he will do a massive job!”

@Gunnerblogger97 said: “Ambassador”

And finally, @tjzbrin said: “Striker coach”

So, Thierry, if you’re reading this, which I know you’re not, BUT IF YOU ARE, when the saddening day comes that nobody will be able to see you grace the pitch again with your presence, the door, as you know, will always be open to you at Arsenal Football Club.

Thierry Henry, Thierry Henry, Thierry Henry, Thierry Henry!

With thanks to @GoonerUpdates for helping me get responses to my Thierry questions.

Published 8th Febuary 2014

Written by our new writer Avalon @AvalonAFC

Get more Arsenal content from Avalon in his own Arsenal blog Click Here

Check out our new feature on the site we look back at the past Arsenal Legends today is the turn of Nwankwo Kanu as we look back on his career and you can now watch all of his goals for Arsenal if you want to find out more Click Here If you want a certain legend to be analysed next feel free to leave a comment below.

Like us on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/ArsenalSupremo

Follow on Twitter https://twitter.com/Arsenal_Supremo

Subscribe to our videos on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/user/MrArsenalSupremoooo

We are now on Instagram! http://instagram.com/arsenalsupremo

Why not join our Arsenal Fantasy Football League Now! Click Here

Posted in Avalon, Exclusive, Thierry Henry | No comments

Wednesday, 29 January 2014

Arsenal have sent out a team to German in a bid to sign Julian Draxler

Posted on 07:32 by Unknown

Today according to Sky Sports Sources Arsenal have sent out a team in a bid to sign Schalke's Julian Draxler. He has a release clause of £37 million but Arsenal are not willing to pay that much, time will tell whether Arsenal can sign the player before Friday's deadlines.

Posted in Julian Draxler, Transfer News | No comments

Monday, 27 January 2014

Dennis Bergkamp : Past, present and future

Posted on 16:45 by Unknown

Dennis Bergkamp. Where do I start? technician, perfectionist, genius, elegant? all of the above?

Born in Amsterdam, Netherlands, May 10th, 1969, Dennis is now married to Henrita Ruizendaal, with 3 daughters, Estelle, Deborah & Yasmin, and a son, Mitchel.

Standing at 183cm, 6’0 ft, the Dutchman is a legend in football. An icon, a role model in which young kids of today who aspire to be at the level Dennis was at for so many years, can watch the way he played, the way he thought, the way he moved and glided across a pitch, seemingly effortless, to you and I. I could sit here and talk about Dennis’s career at Arsenal and how much Arsenal fans like you and I respect the man and have a great urge to want to see him back at Arsenal, but I want to give a little background on Dennis beforehand.

It’s no secret that he admired the style of play that Glenn Hoddle played at Tottenham (I know right, he admired a Spurs player!), his passing ability, his technique and focus on being a perfectionist. But this helped Dennis and he learnt from watching it. He used to watch the FA cup final games on his TV with his brothers whilst they were all growing up, and afterwards they’d immediately grab a ball, run outside and have a kick about.

From just a very young age, Dennis was finding any place he could to kick a ball about, be that the corridor of the building he was living in, on the pavement, on the grass that was guarded by a bulky man with his dog, that is, of course, as soon as the guard left, or even kicking a ball against a brick wall and setting himself a goal – hit a certain block in a certain way, ‘make the ball come back to you and control it’, if he didn't succeed, he’d try again and again.

From a young age Dennis always wanted to perfect his touch and control of the ball, whether he was kicking the ball against a tire of a car, trying not to set off the alarm or just against a wall, nothing was perfect until it was perfect in the eyes of Dennis.

In his book, ‘Stillness and ‘Speed’, he says, whilst looking on at where the building he grew up in and the wall that he learnt to perfect his touch on, he says, “it’s fair to say I had a perfect childhood here.”

There will be many blogs out there on the childhood of Dennis, so I want to skip to the football, the apple of Dennis’ eye, the real reason I’m writing this article.

At the age of 11, Dennis was introduced to the Ajax youth system after playing in the lower leagues, strutting his ‘thaang’ (sorry about that..) and impressing the scouting network at Ajax. In his book he remembers going into school and everyone would love seeing him around because he was the kid that was playing for Ajax’s academy, the kid everyone wanted to be friends with.

He made his professional debut for Ajax on the 14th of December, 1986 against Roda JC at the De Meer stadium in Amsterdam. Just a year after that unique achievement in his young career, he was called up to the international side after a storming season with Ajax in his first year, to play a game against Italy on the 26th of September, 1990 at La Favorita, Palermo. He went on to play 79 games and score 37 goals on the international stage over 10 years.

In his long, career defining time at Ajax, a total of 7 years, he played a total of 185 games, scoring a scorching 103 goals, before joining Inter Milan in 1993 for £12million.

Dennis in his Ajax years

It’s fair to say Dennis Bergkamp’s time at Inter wasn't as successful as he would have hoped. He only played 52 games in 2 years at the club and scored 11 goals.

He made his debut for Inter Milan on the 29th of August, 1993, against Reggiana at the San Siro stadium in Milan.

Italian football teams at the time would set up with a defensive mentality, wanting to go into a game, score one goal and defend their lead to assure themselves of the 3 points. Dennis didn't like the idea of playing his football like that, before he joined Inter, he was promised changes. Changes to the style of play, personnel and mentality. This didn't happen, the Italian giants were defiant and determined to stick to their mentality and the way they played their football. At the time, the Italian team were playing with two strikers, Dennis Bergkamp and Ruben Sosa, which is an attacking set-up that Dennis simply wasn't used to and hadn't played before with Ajax. Dennis was a number 10, he’d create chances for those around him as well as scoring chances himself with his impeccable touch and skill.

Dennis would often exclude himself from social gatherings that the Inter Milan team would have, whether a few of them would go out for a meal or go and do some other sport in their spare time, Dennis would rather stay at home with his partner, Henrita Ruizendaal. He was, and still is, a shy and conservative man and likes to keep himself to himself.

Two years had passed since he joined Inter, and more European clubs were wanting his signature. That’s when Arsenal came knocking, and before long he signed on the dotted line for The Gunners on the 20th of June, 1995 for a fee of £7,5million.

Dennis at Inter Milan

Two conditions of Bergkamp’s contract were that Arsenal would play him in his natural and favored position, behind the strikers, as well as the promise that they’d sign a new midfielder.

Signing for Arsenal FC

Upon signing for Arsenal, he made his debut against Middlesbrough at Highbury on August the 20th, 1993. It didn't take too long for him to score his first goal in Arsenal colors, as he netted his first of many against Southampton on the 23rd of September.

His first Arsenal hat-trick came in a game against Leicester City in the Premier League on the 27th of August, just 7 days after he made his debut. Pretty good signing, eh?

Dennis Bergkamp was branded an important signing for Arsenal at the time by some people, whilst other thought it was a mistake and that he wouldn't adapt to London life, just like he couldn't adapt to the Italian culture or the football Inter Milan were playing. Everybody has seen the classic picture of a newspaper article in which it featured quotes from none other than Stuart Pearce, who said Bergkamp was a ‘waste of money’ and that ‘signing Dennis and David Platt at the same time is a massive gamble on Arsenal’s part. I’m not convinced it will pay off.”

But doubters were well and truly proven wrong through Bergkamp’s long Arsenal career as he spanned a total of 11 years, playing a staggering 411 games and scoring an incredible 120 goals.

In the eyes of many, especially Arsenal fans, Dennis can do no wrong, and he certainly proves that on and off the pitch. His classy way of playing the beautiful, his impeccable touch of the ball, his ability to pick out a pass that no other mere mortal would ever be able to even think of let alone pull off. You could say Dennis was the perfect player. A player with the ability on and off the pitch to dazzle everyone listening to him speak.

Before Dennis retired from football and left Arsenal, he had a testimonial match at the Emirates Stadium. The first and last ever game that Dennis would ever play in the new home of Arsenal after having the iconic ground Highbury for many years, where Dennis played and loved his football with his time at Arsenal, pleasing his team-mates, managers, fans, opposition (even though they had to play against him, they still admired him!).

When Dennis had his testimonial match it was a sad day for all involved in football, especially at The Arsenal. The stadium was alive, with the colours of the Arsenal, red and white beaming across the ground thanks to the humble support of all involved on that day. All eyes were on Dennis, but there were many other iconic football players playing that day, the likes of Ian Wright, Arsenal’s second all time goalscorer, Thierry Henry, Arsenal’s all time record goalscorer, Emmanuel Petit, Patrick Vieira, the man who won Arsenal their last trophy in the FA cup final in 2005 against Manchester United, Marc Overmars, Kanu, Lee Dixon and Steve Bould, the right hand man to Mr. Wenger, all playing in Arsenal colours.

Then there were the Ajax players, some iconic ex-players such as Johan Cruyff, Ronald de Boer, Marco Van Basten and Rijkaard. All players that Dennis had played with in his formidable career at either Ajax, Inter Milan, Holland, or indeed The Arsenal.

But the spotlight was taken off of Bergkamp for a brief period of time in the game as Klaas-Jan Huntelaar scored the first goal of the game to make it 1-0 to Ajax, but soon after, the leading goalscorer for Arsenal, Thierry Henry converted a cross from Lee Dixon to give Arsenal hope of making the day better for Bergkamp.

It didn’t take long for Ajax to come on the attack again and then be awarded a penalty, which Ronald de Boer fired over the bar, before Kanu gave Arsenal the lead and Bergkamp his dream game to mark the end of a magnificent career.

Dennis Bergkamp being paraded around the Emirates stadium

When the game had finished, the reception the fans in the stadium gave Dennis Bergkamp was heart-warming. The love the fans had and still do have for Dennis can not be explained, no matter how hard you try, you can’t express your gratitude to the man who sparked something unique in football. The man who can do things others can’t. Dennis Bergkamp will forever be an Arsenal legend, and in my eyes can do no wrong. He is, as many of you would agree, perfect.

The day came that Bergkamp hung up his boots and stepped away from the green grass of football pitches for good. Or so he thought. He retired from football and was determined to spend his days with his family and not get into coaching, and declining a role as a scout at Arsenal. In April 2008, Dennis came back to the idea of coaching, as he took a fast-track coaching diploma for formal Dutch international footballers, and he took up a trainee coaching role at Ajax.

Upon succeeding in that diploma, Dennis took up a role along side Johan Neeskens, a former Ajax and Barcelona player, as the assistant to the brand new Netherlands B team on the date of 26th of October, 2008. In that year and through to 2009, Dennis returned to Ajax as a coach for the U12 youth team. But less that 2 years later, Ajax announced the appointment of Frank De Boer as their new first team manager, and Bergkamp’s role at the club moved up a level, as he was then appointed assistant manager to Fred Grim for the U19 youth team. Again, not long after that appointment, Dennis was then moved up in the ranks at Ajax, as he was appointed assistant manager for the first team for Frank De Boer in August, 2011.

So what’s next for Dennis? A managerial role at Ajax? to stay on as assistant for the unforeseeable future? nobody but Dennis himself knows, but one thing we do know, is that Arsenal would welcome him with open arms in a coaching role at the Emirates stadium and would help him flourish and become one of the best coaches in the business.

Manger at Arsenal after Wenger? Henry his assistant? Henry to be manager? Dennis to be his assistant? so many questions, with no answers. I honestly can’t see Thierry Henry as a manager. A coach, and a damn good one, yes, but a manager? I think Denis Bergkamp would be more suited to the role and title of ‘manager’ of a team than Thierry. Don’t get me wrong, I would love to see Thierry back at Arsenal in some form of coaching role, but in m eyes, Dennis is the man for the job, dare I say it, when the day comes that Arsene Wenger steps down and pursues a different role within Arsenal Football Club.

What about you? what do you think? does Dennis have what it takes to become manager at Arsenal in the future? does Thierry Henry have what it takes? a coaching role for them both?

I took to Twitter to ask my followers what they thought of the idea of Dennis Bergkamp having a managerial status at Arsenal in the future, and the responses I received were mostly in favour of the idea of Dennis becoming a manager at Arsenal in the future.

@adh_krishna said: “Yeah sure, Henry should coordinate with him.”

@GoonerUpdates said: “Yeah, either him or Henry.” and: “Because they’re familiar with the club and are well respected by the fans.“

@FazeelTheGooner said: “Yes. He has a footballing brain. He’s a genius.”

@gooner1947 said: “not sure respect is enough though. Fans are fickle.”

@Vinny19671 said: “X Pros do not naturally make good managers & can be a risk.Except for DB10. Because he can do anything”

And @futbolking10 an Arsenal fan who certainly wants Henry back at Arsenal said “King Henry!”

I hope that one day we will indeed see Dennis Bergkamp or Thierry Henry back at Arsenal, but for now, we have arguably the best manager in the league, and in good or tough times, we all need to get behind him, because once he’s gone, he will be sorely missed, and will no doubt leave a huge hole in Arsenal Football Club.

Written by our new writer Avalon @AvalonAFC

Get more Arsenal content from Avalon in his own Arsenal blog Click Here

Posted in Arsenal Legends, Avalon, Dennis Bergkamp | No comments

Thierry Henry believes with Ozil Arsenal can win the Premier League

Posted on 10:56 by Unknown

Talking at a Puma Event in Barcelona Thierry Henry believes Arsenal won't collapse in the final part of the season and can go on to win the Premier League and believes Mesut Ozil can be vital in Arsenal's quest to win the Premier League.

"I can say right now that everybody is expecting Arsenal to collapse, just as they were expecting it earlier in the season. But they didn't," Henry told goal.com at a Puma launch event in Barcelona . "They are still somehow keeping up the pace in the Premier League, and every time they have been in a situation where they have to answer back to Man City and Chelsea, they have done it.

"Hopefully, they can carry on doing that. As an Arsenal man and a fan of the club, I want them to carrying on doing that the whole way and make sure they can win the league.

"The future will tell us if they are good enough, but right now for me, they are."

"With his calmness, his quality on the ball, his vision, he is a great player and can give an assist at any moment," Henry said of Ozil.

"He also has the quality and capacity to score goals at any moment, so it’s always great to have a player like that around in the dressing room on a daily basis, and at the weekend at the game."

Published 27th January 2014 By ArsenalSupremo

Source : The Independent

Posted in Latest Arsenal News, Mesut Özil, Thierry Henry | No comments

Sunday, 26 January 2014

Arsenal draw Liverpool in the fifth round of the FA Cup

Posted on 10:12 by Unknown

After an convincing 4 0 win against Coventry on Friday night Arsenal have been drawn at home against Liverpool in a very tough draw for the Gunners. Arsenal rivals Manchester City and Chelsea have been drawn together which looks to be the tie of the round.

Arsenal now have very tough fixtures in February:

Liverpool (A) Man United (H) Liverpool (H) Bayern Munich (H)

Watch the full draw being done

Posted in FA Cup | No comments