Feb 23 730AM (EST) Birmingham City vs Arsenal - Setanta
Feb 23 945AM (EST) Liverpool vs Middlesbrough - Setanta
Feb 23 1200PM (EST) Newcastle vs Manchester United - FSC
After the excitement of the CL first leg tie against AC Milan, Arsenal travel to Birmingham to play City in search of three more points. The Premier League competition remains the main focus for silverware for Arsenal this term.
The long-term injured, Rosicky and Van Persie are still out but most of the first team players are available. By this time in the season, I'm sure everyone has picked up little knocks and knacks but these should not hold players back from playing. When you're top of the table with less than a third of the season left, you want to keep the momentum going to finish top come May.
Birmingham is hovering just above the relegation zone but under McLeish, they are a well organized team that are up whenever they play us, especially in front of their home crowd. So this could be a tricky match that requires Arsenal players to be on form. Three points are imperative given that Man U. are playing Newcastle who are basically in a free fall. I can see Newcastle getting slaughtered because people may say C. Ronaldo disappears in big games but he certainly doesn't mess around with weak teams. Chelsea have the Carling Cup final this week so they will drop back a little more but pick up a game in hand. Judging from the midweek CL game, Arsenal players are playing well and they should have no lack of motivation to keep their perch at the top of the table so let's hope they can keep the league wins coming.
Up the Gunners!
1 hour ago
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4 deflections:
I'm guessing the Arsenal first 11 will look a lot like it did against AC Milan.
Does a really hardcore Californian wake up at 4:30 a.m., stay up until 4:30 a.m., or record the game to watch a little later.
For Champions League games, which happen at 2:30 p.m. Eastern, while I'm at work, I've implemented a policy, coined by Sixes and Sevens, of "Media Blackout," whereby I know nothing of the game before I watch the tape delay.
Self-imposing a media blackout to avoid spoilers is a common practice, no?
I am obsessive about media blackouts: sending warnings to my friends who are football fans, ignoring any text messages I receive, etc. More recently, I've been forced to turn off the e-mail notification of new comments on this blog. Just in case.
My claim to fame, however, is being personally responsible for ESPN's recent policy of not showing score updates during the live Champions league match on ESPN2, allowing you to watch the tape delayed match they show later on ESPN Classic without knowing the result. I know, it was ridiculous.
I e-mailed Derek Rae and Tommy Smyth on the Tuesday of the last group stage matchday, they passed my e-mail on to their superiors, and ESPN changed the policy before the matches began on the next day.
Tommy Smyth e-mailed me back and said it was "possibly the best email [he] ever got" and said I have "the Midas touch."
It was pretty cool.
Yeah, 430AM is a little hard but I've done it. Tomorrow, though, I am recording it and won't see it until after dinner - I have to work also.
I get your point about media blackout but my job involves sitting in front of the computer all day so it takes extraordinary will power to stay away from taking a peek. Football or not, I use the BBC site as my main news source and it's just too easy to click on that "Sport Headlines" link.
Red Scare, good job getting ESPN to not show other scores during the match; I noticed that while watching last night.
Brilliant work with ESPN, Red Scare.
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