Now HENRY (14) blames "Tiredness" on performances.

[Jeff L]

Thierry HENRY has now joined Patrick Vieira on blaming "tiredness" and the "schedule" for the performance against Auxerre last night. HENRY has been quoted as saying, "Against Everton, it wasn't me out on the field".
With two such important games with 3 days of each other, is there now beginning to be some merit in Vieira's "early season" quotes about being tired?
Are we now "looking for excuses" for an "underperforming" evening, as a team, against Auxerre?
Perhaps the game against Blackburn, with a 4 day "rest period", and them being "fresh" from their 5 - 2 win against Newcastle, and no mid week performance, might be an indication that the players might be right?
Successful teams, play a lot of games. If you want to win, then that's the price of success. "can we 'afford' it" this season? We will know by May!!

[fox point fury]

http://football.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/0,1563,817656,00.html

Henry makes a strong point in mentioning that several other "dominant" clubs had poor performances in the CL this week and that most of the players on these teams just came off international duty.

[BazoDee!]

We may know by January. The call for a winter break is a legitimate one. Look at our December schedule:

Dec 4 Worthington Cup
Dec 7 EPL
Dec10/11 CL
Dec 14 EPL
Dec 18 Worthington Cup
Dec 21 EPL
Dec 26 WBA
Dec 29 EPL
Jan 1 EPL
Jan 4 FA Cup
Jan 8 Worthington Cup
Jan 11 EPL

Games every three or four days on average. If you think we're tired now.....


http://www.fl.net.au/~steve/fixtures.htm

http://www.arsenal.com/sportsappcontroller.jsp?command=forwardOnly&nextPage=mdlfixtures

[michaec]

If past indications are anything to go by, none of the first team regulars will play in the Worthington Cup matches, so that lightens the load a bit. And if we get a lower league team in the FA Cup third round, expect to see the reserves get a game against them too. Also, with Pires, Keown and Gio coming back, I'd expect to see some more rotation of personnel in Premiership games.

[GJ40]

I think there's some truth to the "tiredness" and "schedule" as a factor but I also think Arsenal simply lost their form during the international break and the players are looking for answers as to why. It happens to all teams but the great ones like Arsenal stay positive and manage to turn it back around. If it had to happen, now is not a bad time. Hopefully they'll return to form on Saturday.

[topcow]

I was cursing Wenger for not resting Henry for the Everton match. He just played two games for France and has a CL game the following Tuesday. What was Wenger thinking playing him for 90 min? We were away, and was in form, I know Wenger doesn’t want to play anything but 4-4-2 and Bergkamp was injured, but playing Henry after his two games for France was just too much.

[Catfish]

The notion of burning out your stars early in the season is not too bright. This is when depth really is a key. Have Henry and a few others play only 70-MAYBE 80 minutes a match. They will be aching to play and love it near the end of the season and less likely of being injured by some scrub off the oppossing bench. Unfortunately, being the champs, I think even the lesser teams gear up more for the match. A downside to being in the CL and winning in it is all the added matches.
That is why no matter what anyone says Utd's win of the treble is still very impressive to me. The Double is quite winnable for a great English side, ie. last season..Arsenal.
Later,
Patrick

[Senor Askew]

If you ask me all the complaints of fatigue are legitimate and can all be traced back to the World Cup.

In every post World Cup season fatigue is more of a factor than in any other year.

Not that I have much sympathy for these players making thousands of pounds/dollars a week mind you. I'm just saying.

Get back to work jerks or get a real job and find out what fatigue really is. And try to maintain a 3.86 GPA at University on top of that, I dare you.

If you want any suggestions on how to do it, gimme' a call.

Crybabies. :mad:

[Jeff L]

I'm sure we all get tired and "run down" at our own jobs.
However I wonder just how much credibility can be placed on "World Cup Syndrome" from the French players.
Not a great deal of action for "4, 11 & 14" and none for "7". I just wish that I could suffer my tiredness in their situation on £40,000 a week rather than a year.

[michaec]

If only I got £40,000 per year!

This stuff about fatigue is built up by the managers and the media as far as I'm concerned. The '71 double side played 64 games, did anyone hear them complaining? Footballers nowadays are pandered over like they're the royal family (those lot should be made to work too, but that's for the politics board). We have a few that are like Bergkamp, Keown and Lauren who are happy to play football and not be shooting their mouths off in the press about anything and everything, but there are too many who don't know how lucky they are.

[Jeff L]

That's meant more as an "expression" that these guys are earning in a week what some people earn (or don't earn) in a year. They don't also "do" a 40 (or more) week. Train for about 3 hours a day, 4 or 5 days a week for that money.!! (NIce work if you can get it!!).
It brings back the same of question of "market forces" or "supply and demand". Nurses, and similar professions don't get anywhere near that. Who would you want by your side in a car crash incident. We can all live without Arsenal (CAN WE!!!???), but can we live without doctors and nurses! We hear the same old arguments about "it's only a short career". Maybe. I don't begrude them it. After all, I (and "WE") pay their wages! My view is that they are not at the "top of the tree" when it comes to hearing gripes about tiredness etc. when there are plenty of other people with more justified claims to moan about wages and work conditions. I'd gladly trade places with any of them!!