Beau Dure
09 Apr 2004, 01:23 PM
I'll be giving away a result in this thread, so as a courtesy to those seeing my post on the homepage who may be waiting for Fox Sports World's rebroadcast, I'll babble on for a couple of paragraphs before getting to anything about the Arsenal-Liverpool game. I won't even say whether Henry played, which ought to leave you guessing.
So to fill space and give me adequate disclaimer, let me say that I have no strong loyalty to Arsenal. Friends of my mother-in-law are Arsenal supporters and have sent along a bit of merchandise for me, which I think is nice. I sometimes lean toward Arsenal in the Premier League just because I don't like to see the same team win every year, but I don't have any sort of antipathy toward Man U, especially now that they have Tim Howard and a handful of younger Yanks on hand.
Oh -- and this new Brazil-Portugal Nike ad in which they take off and start playing in the stadium concourses is fantastic.
There ... have I done enough to bury the result? Just to be sure, I'll test the "spoiler" tag here: In the name of all great soccer, please watch this game.
On we go ...
I'm a little confused as to why Tino Palace (http://www.mlsnet.com/content/04/tcs0408.html) has turned against Arsenal. The treble is gone, the double is gone. But I can't see why any neutral would begrudge them a Premier League title. They're just so ... so ... so incredibly good.
Today's game a masterpiece when it was needed the most. Playing Liverpool in their first game since the twin calamities, Arsenal twice fell behind. They then asserted their will on the game in a way that only a champion team can.
And then there's Thierry Henry. The recent "Ruud vs. Henry" debate poses a classic question -- do you prefer a striker who doesn't play an all-around game but is lethal in the box, or do you prefer a player who is less of a classic finisher but is dangerous no matter where he touches the ball?
For me, it's not a question of loyalty to Arsenal or United. It's a question of aesthetics. I'm going with Henry because of games like today and goals like the second one he scored today, in which he sliced through the Liverpool defense (and even the teammates who realized too late they would only be decoys on this play) and finished emphatically.
It's certainly not just Henry. Robert Pires and Freddie Ljungberg had their moments today, Patrick Vieira offered his usual proof that defensive midfielders need not be devoid of skill, and Dennis Bergkamp showed that his skills have eroded little over the years.
I understand that there are people whose varying club loyalties means they can't support Arsenal no matter what. Fair enough. But those who are cheering for Arsenal to fail simply out of lust for the "Triple Choke" might need to question what they like about this game. When Arsenal plays, it truly is The Beautiful Game.
So to fill space and give me adequate disclaimer, let me say that I have no strong loyalty to Arsenal. Friends of my mother-in-law are Arsenal supporters and have sent along a bit of merchandise for me, which I think is nice. I sometimes lean toward Arsenal in the Premier League just because I don't like to see the same team win every year, but I don't have any sort of antipathy toward Man U, especially now that they have Tim Howard and a handful of younger Yanks on hand.
Oh -- and this new Brazil-Portugal Nike ad in which they take off and start playing in the stadium concourses is fantastic.
There ... have I done enough to bury the result? Just to be sure, I'll test the "spoiler" tag here: In the name of all great soccer, please watch this game.
On we go ...
I'm a little confused as to why Tino Palace (http://www.mlsnet.com/content/04/tcs0408.html) has turned against Arsenal. The treble is gone, the double is gone. But I can't see why any neutral would begrudge them a Premier League title. They're just so ... so ... so incredibly good.
Today's game a masterpiece when it was needed the most. Playing Liverpool in their first game since the twin calamities, Arsenal twice fell behind. They then asserted their will on the game in a way that only a champion team can.
And then there's Thierry Henry. The recent "Ruud vs. Henry" debate poses a classic question -- do you prefer a striker who doesn't play an all-around game but is lethal in the box, or do you prefer a player who is less of a classic finisher but is dangerous no matter where he touches the ball?
For me, it's not a question of loyalty to Arsenal or United. It's a question of aesthetics. I'm going with Henry because of games like today and goals like the second one he scored today, in which he sliced through the Liverpool defense (and even the teammates who realized too late they would only be decoys on this play) and finished emphatically.
It's certainly not just Henry. Robert Pires and Freddie Ljungberg had their moments today, Patrick Vieira offered his usual proof that defensive midfielders need not be devoid of skill, and Dennis Bergkamp showed that his skills have eroded little over the years.
I understand that there are people whose varying club loyalties means they can't support Arsenal no matter what. Fair enough. But those who are cheering for Arsenal to fail simply out of lust for the "Triple Choke" might need to question what they like about this game. When Arsenal plays, it truly is The Beautiful Game.