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Cesc- fourth spot is not good enough

6 May 2009

Cesc has said that Arsenal have not been at their best this season, and believes that getting off to a good start next season is key.

“We have gone 21 consecutive games without being beaten [in the Premier League] and that shows from the beginning to the end we have improved a lot – but when you play in these sort of competitions you have to be at your best and we have not been at our best.

Fourth spot for Arsenal, I do not think is good enough.We have not been at the level that everyone expected for Arsenal Football Club, that is for sure.

“We have to try to finish the season as well as we can and be ready for next summer because as we have seen this year the start of the season is really important.”

Cesc talks about Gibbs

Cesc spoke to Sky Sports News about Kieran Gibbs after yesterday’s match:

Cesc also had a lot to say about tonight’s Champions League match between Chelsea and Barcelona.(Source)

â€œChelsea are a very complicated rival who donâ€™t give you an inch on the pitch and theyâ€™re very direct. But if Barcelona move the ball as they know, I believe theyâ€™re capable of scoring at Stamford Bridge and getting through to the final. Any score-draw favours them.â€

â€œWhat Guardiola has done this season at the helm of Barcelona is something few managers can do. Heâ€™s turned things around and more importantly he has built a side based on home-grown players.

â€œIt was a pleasure to watch the team at the Bernabeu with Xavi, Carles Puyol, Gerard Pique, Victor Valdes, Andres Iniesta and Leo Messi. Then Sergio Busquets and Bojan Krkic came on as subs.â€

â€œGerard [Pique] is my friend, we played together in the kids teams at Barcelona and then we saw each other when he was at Manchester United.His success at Barca has not surprised me at all because I knew what he was capable of. Heâ€™d already shown it at United playing in the Champions and the Premier Leagues.â€

â€œStamford Bridge is a pitch small in size, long and narrow that will make the game difficult for Barca who need space to develop their game.Itâ€™s different to the Nou Camp, much smaller. The small distance between the two goals makes Cechâ€™s long-kicks, important.

â€œBarcelona have to play as they know, move the ball quickly and try to score early to break the pressure from the crowd and Chelsea themselves.

â€œChelsea have very important players like Drogba, Lampard and Essien, a strong defence with Terry and a great keeper in Petr Cech.They pressure you relentlessly. It will depend a lot on whether they can avoid distractions at the back from set-pieces. The absence of Puyol and Marquez will be important.â€

Arsenal 3-1 Manchester United

Feeling a bit numb, so this match report will be short.Arsenal got knocked out of the Champions League with Man United winning 4-1 on aggregate. Park Ji Sung scored the first goal, after Gibbs slipped. Ronaldo then scored the second in the 11th minute from a free kick. The third goal came in the second half with Ronaldo scoring again. Arsenal then received a penalty, which Robin converted. Full match report here.

I have added 13 pictures of Cesc at the match in the latest photos section.

Plu says:

May 8, 2009 at 6:25 pm

I didn’t think we were going to either. I didn’t think our defence would be able to stop Man United from scoring. But yeah, I didn’t think it would all end in 10 mins. I felt for all the players out there on the pitch. It must have been heratbreaking

I hope Gibbs is ok too. That will no doubt be playing on his mind for weeks. I hope his confidence has not been dented a lot. He’s been one of the best players for Arsenal lately. It’s just unfortunate that he slip and completely not his fault.

Lol. I noticed that. He looks especially good when he is wearing black.

Clichy is out for the rest of the season? :s I didn’t know that. The injuries just keep on getting worse. Apparently, Arshavin looks like he’ll be too sick to play against Chelsea. As for Clichy, this will mean that Gibbs gets some more playing time. Hopefully this should slowly boost his confidence.

I’m worried a little about rvp too. Although a few weeks ago he did say he was going to stay at arsenal. I remember reading an article in which he said they had got into the semis for both the FA cup and the Champions League. And that being in the semi finals for the CL meant that Arsenal were one of the four best teams in Europe and showed that Arsenal had ambition, and he was happy enough with that. I’m not worried about Cesc leaving as he has already committed himself to the club several times this season, and recently.
kate says:

May 7, 2009 at 10:46 pm

hi plu . thanks and keep the good job
u really didnt have to add any photos from the game . there are enough pics in my head for the next couple of months to keep reminding me with the terrible night . watching the game was really enough .
arsene sight was heartbreaking indeed during the game . to be honest with u , i didnt think we would have made it , i just didnt imagine it is gonna be that cruel , i mean that was too quick . arsenal players didnt get a chance to play their football . i even didnt get the chance to judge them or the way they played
rvp looked so upset while going out , i dont blame him . we didnt make the max use of our changes , it couldnt have made any diference antway , it is done now , we should let go and look forward to the next season .

what i really feel sad for is little gibbs , that wasnt his fault at all . hope he will be fine soon.

has anyone noticed that cesc looked amazingly handsome in his pics with carla and thomas ? he is so fine
clichy is out until the end of the season and the hits just keep on coming

i think our most important concerns right now r keeping the squad together , i am worried about rvp the most and cesc too , but rvp is in my mind now .

GO GUNNERS
GO FABREGAS

ARSENAL FOR LIFE