My Thoughts on The Fixture List. Part 1

Top of the Morning to y’all

This post was scheduled for Wednesday but some circumstances beyond my control meant I couldn’t post as scheduled. The post is divided into two parts and the concluding part will be on Monday God willing.

The fixture list came out on Monday and fans the world over have been giving their thoughts on it and this blog is my thought on our fixtures. After the final day drama of last season where we managed champions league qualification by the skin of our teeth, the rat race begins all over again on the 18^th of August and its really is a race I can’t wait to have get on the way. Arsenal fans the world over would be hoping for an end to the trophy drought running for seven years now. The signing of German international Lukas Podolski as well as French forward Olivier Giroud with the possible capture of Yann M’Villa has been welcomed by fans all over the world and all that remains for the summer to be complete will be to tie club captain van Persie to a new long term deal .

We start our campaign on the 18^th against Sunderland at the Emirates followed by an away trip to Stoke City. I am particularly pleased by the timing of this fixture a perennial banana peel for us which in recent seasons past, has been sandwiched in the middle of the season where they have been difficult to break beat. I am hoping that the fact it’s going to be their first game at home, we can take advantage of early season to get the maximum three points.

Verdict: The team will be eager to begin the season on a positive note after the disappointing start to last so I expect them to get maximum points from the first 2 games even though Sunderland and Stoke might play negative footie.

September brings the games thick and fast with trips to Liverpool on the first and Man city on the 22^nd while Southampton on the 15 and the Champions league day one 18^th/19^th are between them. The Capital One Cup formerly The Carling Cup third round games comes up on the 26^th while September is rounded off in style with visit of Chelsea. The first London Derby of the season.

Verdict: A very though month of football no doubt but the fact that its going to be early on in the season will mean even the we have a good chance of getting good results in the tough away fixtures against Liverpool and City as teams might take a while to settle down to their usual rhythm of play. I however expect good results against Southampton, and the Capital One Cup fixture but if we can come through this month undefeated and rack up some away victories in the process, we might just be among the league pace setters already.

October gives us a breather in terms of quality of opponents in the league but in the English Premier League, write off a supposed weaker team at your own peril. West Ham makes a return to the top flight of English football and we keep a date with them at the Boleyn Ground on the 6^th. I personally don’t like those guys, they are the ones that inflicted our first home league defeat at the Emirates and since then I have held a personal grudge against them. Norwich will be up next another away trip on the 20^th and we finish the month with our only league game at home against QPR on the 27^th

Verdict: A relatively easier month of league football compared to September but like I said, there are no easy teams in the league and the fact that we have two champions league games and a possible capital one fixture as well as an international weekend means nothing is guaranteed and the squad is beginning to get stretched but hopefully an early momentum built will see them hold their own.

November will start in the most colourful fashions with a trip to Old Trafford to face title rivals Man United on the third. The game will be our 10^th league game of the season and by then, we would have played Liverpool, City, Chelsea and United, three London derbies with West Ham QPR and Chelsea. You can also toss Stoke City at the Britannia in as well for good measure just to have a good idea how difficult the season will start for us. Looking further down the road, games against Fulham and Tottenham follow on the 10^th and the 17^th at the Emirates; a further two London derbies to contend with.  To round up a busy month, we keep dates with Aston Villa on the 24^th and four days later against Everton both away games.

Historically, November has usually not been a good month for Wenger but last season was different as we had a sort of resurgence after their horrible start to the season. Wenger will be hoping history will not be repeating itself this month as we have very difficult fixtures coming up and not just the Man United game. The team will be hoping to re write the script after the 8-2 humiliation last season and get a good result. Tottenham and Fulham will be at their irritating best as well as Everton.

Niggling injuries here and there will almost be a sure occurrence at this stage of the season but fingers crossed, we don’t get to have any serious injuries. Despite that, each member of the squad must be up and running as apart from the difficult league fixtures in the league, a further two in the Champions League means that squad rotation is a must.

Verdict:  Another difficult month but with committed performances and a fit squad, we can come out unscathed and still be among the leading pack in the league.

December, about the most difficult month of the season for most teams in the premier league and for us it’s no different. The month starts with a visit of Swansea and West Brom to the Emirates on the 1^st and 8^th respectively followed by visit to Reading and Wigan on the 15^th and 22^nd. The traditional Boxing Day fixture sees us entertain West Ham United at the Emirates before rounding off the year at home against Newcastle.

Verdict: December should be another straight forward month for us but our proven record of being inconsistent may come back to haunt us is we don’t address the problems. A high number of games played in such a short period of time may also mean that key players maybe rested in some games and the squad players have to step up when they are called upon to do the job. The fact that every other team and most especially our title rivals also have a congested fixture list will work in our favour and there may be a margin for an error or two even though I would prefer that the team maintain its form and go into the new year with lots of confidence and self-belief which they will need in multiple folds in the second half of the season especially if they are on top of the league or at least within touching distance of the summit.

That's all for now folks, be back on Monday with my thoughts on the fixture list for the second half of the season.

If you have enjoyed reading, please drop your comments in the box below or on my twitter page @Nigeriangunners and your comments will be highly appreciated.

The Arsenal Nigeria press conference is scheduled for the 27^th of this month at the SWAN Secretariat at the national stadium in Surulere Lagos. You only need to wear an Arsenal jersey to be allowed into the venue. I will be making the four and half hour journey from my temporary base in Oyo State to the venue so I will be expecting an impressive turnout.

God Bless the Arsenal Iree o