Yeah, I'm cool - was having another op on my ankle.

I listened to the game on the radio though and it sounded depressing, well near the end. Before the ruckass, it sounded like a smashing tie.

Was a great game. had everything including the Controversey whcih was a shame but help male the game what it was. Troare for you impressed me also 1 of the better games Theo had

Seeing Theo's goal on the highlights, it was impressive. About time he did something because he's been absolutely abysmal for the past few weeks. The shoulder injury did really knock him for six & now he's preparing for surgery on it.

Hopefully he comes good.

As biased as people believe I am, I could never see past a Chelsea win. I was shocked when we knocked out Everton & Spurs, not including the massive win over Liverpool. But Chelsea in a final was always going to be a foregone conclusion.

I think I got it absolutely spot on in my first post in this thread.

i think walcott was far from impressive again. it was a well taken goal to be fair to him but he just seems to me to be a slightly less impressive aaron lennon. i dont think he will ever fulfill the potential or hype the media have given him which is a shame because he is probably feeling the pressure and needs to be left alone to get on with it.

i didnt mean you are saying that, i was asking, hence the question mark

i am not slating him for a one off performance. it is over a number of years rom my own personal view of him. i would never in a million years go by any media ratings of a players performance so i think you should take that with a pinch of salt.

I didn't say it meant anything. I simply posted it as an interesting statistic. Those BBC ratings are calculated through the use of statistics & football expertise opinions.

Take it with a pinch of salt or by the tail or in whichever way you wish. But I didn't follow it up with an opinion. I didn't see the game, so have no idea how Aliadière played. But on the radio, it sounded like he had a decent game when he was brought into play. Something which was quite rare due to the strength of Chelsea & the lack of support he got from his own Midfield.

It doesn't matter either way.

And Walcott has been rubbish lately, but from what I heard on the radio & from the highlights I seen - he didn't do too bad. At least a big improvement from his recent performances. And Walcott before his shoulder injury was an exciting young winger. Whenever he played, Arsenal created via Theo & the hype built itself around his form. But since the shoulder injury he's been useless.

Apparently it's a confidence issue & a physical problem. He is due to go and have an operation on the shoulder. But when you say, "I don't think he'll ever fulfill his potential," I can only laugh. He's 17 years old and you're judging his future abilities?

As Tony Adams said last week, nobody knows what Walcott will be in 7years. Nobody knows if his potential will be fulfilled. Nobody knows how much potential he actually has. So don't judge him or his future. Nobody thought Thierry Henry would become a World beater when he arrived at Highbury. Only Wenger seemed to believe that and Tony Adams admitted he wasn't much impressed by this pacey French winger who was stuck up alongside Bergkamp as a supposed Ian Wright replacement.

That all worked. Walcott can work too, he's clearly intelligent, athletically great & good with the ball at his feet. So training with Thierry Henry everyday is bound to help and playing Carling Cup finals, Champions League games & tough Premiership opponents will only help him gain enough experience to grow into a star.

It's always hard to call on a player's future, but I personally think that he has what it takes to become a star at Arsenal. But we'll just have to wait and see.

And yes, I agree, the media & the hype surrounding him is ridiculous. He's being hugely overrated & the expectation levels are growing & growing. But that's typical English.

This is a great thread. loads of banter.... LOVE IT

So is terry ok now then?

J-Axe:

I didn't say it meant anything. I simply posted it as an interesting statistic.

If it doesn't mean anything, why mention it?

All summed up; Arsenal should be very proud that their boys reached the final, beating several top Premiership sides.
They did well in the final against the best team in the country (that's going to spark a debate, no doubt! ) and a draw would probably have been a fair result.

They must learn to keep their heads though. Learning bad habits from their manager.

Simply because it was an interesting statistic to do with a game & a player that was in discussion.

I don't question why all other posters talk or post nonsense. I just read, comprehend & either reply or let go. I don't see no problem with the fact that I produced.

You didn't state a fact though, you stated someone else's opinion and used it in defence of Aliadiere. The only fact in that is, the fact that you reproduced somebody else's opinion.

It's not a statistic either.

It's a fact that Aliadière was rated higher on the BBC than all those players I mentioned. I posted that, as an interesting statistic. And it's worked out statistically & noted down statistically on the BBC website.

And I'm laughing at the fact that I'm having to explain why I used the word "fact" in a sentence. Because you idiots would argue a still smilie.

It's also a fact that Henry was going to sign for Liverpool at one point, I seen it on a website.

The fact that the rumour existed cannot be taken away.

dear oh dear Axe Man you spout as much nonsense as the rest of the forum at times (including myself)

Here's a few facts for you to consider; Theo Walcott is young. Theo Walcott is new to the Club. Theo Walcott has raw abilities. Theo Walcott is growing & learning as a footballer.

How many footballers decline at the age of 17? He will only improve.

So rubbishing his future just because of what you see now is idiotic.

And there is a difference between maturing & improving as a footballer than fulfilling your potential.

You could have safely said that Henry had what it took to become a star at Arsenal, but anybody who said he would never fulfill his potential couldn't have been more wrong - you're suggesting that same thing with Walcott here, and I'm laughing because I feel you're wrong. Henry was a fast Winger with a few goals here & there to add to his name, yet Wenger believed he could be a star, he became a star. He has similiar confidence in Walcott and I'm following suit, from my own point of view.

But for you as an onlooker to rubbish his future does make me laugh.

would you care to point out where i rubbished his future...

i said i dont think he will fulfill the potential and hype of the media who seem to think he is the best thing since sliced bread.

why is is comical to say i dont think he is as good as people claim? you say similar things about Rooney who is still young. i have not seen anything from walcott to put him in the top bracket of players now or in the future. on the ball he is less than impressive and only has speed in his armoury. he is not very skillfull and doesnt have a great touch. IMO to compare him or put him up there with henry is comical. yes he is young, and is always time for improvement but you can still get an idea of a players ability and how they cope with real competition. there has been nothing to suggest he will be or is a top player from any of his performances. i think you are wrong to blindly have faith in wenger and ignore the glaringly obvious fact that he has been poor most of the time and little more than average at best. i think he will become a good premiership player but nothing more.

it was a rough match.

He has bags of skill and shows good first touch. His first Arsenal goal is a perfect example of both.

Yes, he has struggled since his shoulder injury & has been rubbish. If that's an excuse or not, he has & will be hugely overrated.

But he has intelligence, maturity and all the raw abillities that all the star players had when they were young. He is reminiscent of a young Henry and Wenger always knew Henry to become a star.

I don't have blind faith in that, I've watched Walcott in every performance except yesterday's game - OK, for the Reserves he's been magic because he's playing against lesser opposition and his early games for Arsenal were impressive & very promising. Then he was out with the injury and since returning, he's been rubbish.

I jumped to conclusions & took it as if you were having a swipe at Arsenal (per usual), Wenger & Walcott. I realise you just believe that he won't become the player you think he is capable of being (somehow).

But I'll accept that and we'll have to wait and see. You're opinion was sternly made, whilst my opinion on his potential future was simply that he could become a star on evidence of the current talent he possesses that will only grow in time - boosted by the fact that he's at such an illustrious Club.

No need to start name calling, J. Don't lower your level.

I back you up on Walcott though. Of course, time will tell how good the boy will end up, but under Wenger's tutelage, I personally reckon he will develop into a fantastic player, in Michael Owen's mould. He's already better than Franny Jeffers

I can't be bothered reading through all of this thread but J, would you accept that Arsenal are bad losers? I mean, I hear you time and time again saying that you love players expressing themselves and showing their emotion blah blah blah, but how do you feel about the reaction of Fabregas (again) and Toure? Could you defend that?

Well it's absolute nonsense.

Touré has never behaved like that in his life, Touré is not a bad loser - he's always been an honest & genuine footballer, sure when he handballed the ball onto the post against Man United, he confessed to the Referee at half-time and admitted that he did! The only time I see him jumping about screaming at people is when he's trying to make our Defenders defend or our Attackers attack. He's a passionate man, of a kind I've not seen as a football fan.

I think this whole ruckass was blown out of proportion per usual especially between him & Mikel - they should have settled their differences, put the ball down and played on, Touré probably collecting a yellow card for his reaction. I'd prefer it if they got the ball down & played on without any mouthing - hence my support for Cesc's outburst of emotions after the game against Blackburn.

Eboué has an awful attitude. When he's winning or losing, he'll cheat, moan, yap & scrap for the sake of it. He's a bit strange in that way. I've always pointed this out and I can't stand his attitude - I don't know how Wenger treats it or anything, but clearly not doing a good enough job.

Cesc shouldn't have got involved, although do you know why he did? Lampard attended to the Touré situation & Cesc followed him to take him out of the way. But you know, once one does, another does & another & another. Lampard was in Touré's face & Cesc intercepted, wrestling him (hehe) away from Touré.

Adebayor joined in the ruckass that many players were involved with. He was sent off by mistaken identity.

So the only man I can point the finger at is Eboué - like I've always done. He's the only one who threw a punch at Bridge (who's pansy collapse was ridiculous).

Touré - made a mistake & apologised, he should have kept his cool like he always does.
Adebayor - was sent off for nothing none of the other players in the scenario was guilty of - it was a mistaken identity, Adebayor had only come on a short while before in attempt to win/equalise. You can understand his frustration & anger at being sent off for no reason given.
Cesc - I've explained his position in it all.
Eboué - Fool.

You can call us bad losers after this melee, but I'll have you know that Adebayor & Cesc (and the other Arsenal players) did nothing more than any of the Chelsea players. Look at Essien, Lampard, Bridge, Carvalho etc. joining in with it all.

When there is 7/8mins stoppage time, you don't kick up a fuss before that time starts to tick about losing.

So, no I don't think we're bad losers in that scenario. The game was still on a good while before/after/during it.