Swansea beat Arsenal

[AJ 1,218]

Who saw that one coming?

[Show Me What You Gooot! 0]

I hope we can do this to Chelsea next week. We need a win of this scale ourselves.

 

God alone knows how they are doing it but Swansea''s home record is phenomenal - only 1 defeat and 6 goals conceded. Its only their poor away record that holds them back.

 

Not looking forward to facing them at the Liberty Stadium.

[AJ 1,218]

Definitely, they have been mighty. Maybe it''s the Welsh air getting to the players who never normally have to visit there! At least we have Crofts and Moro'' to deal with that ;)

It should be an interesting game between us, I can see us both staying up tbh

[Cantiaci Canary 556]

I bet it galls QPR fans to see what NCFC and SCFC have achieved this season without flashing the cheque books.

 

I pray both will stay up. Like Middlesborough, Coventry and Derby Wigan. Bolton and Blackburn have outstayed their welcome in my eyes.

[Muddy funster 0]

I did at 4-1.....unfortunately as part of a double with Sunderland at 7-1.

[Shack Attack 0]

Really hope they stay up as well. What Brendan Rodgers has done there is every bit as impressive as what PL has done for us. To beat arsenal like that is incredible.

[Gingerpele 0]

They play great football, maybe better than us? But only at home, I think they will stay up this season though. They have three ''easy'' home games (including against us) then Newcastle and Everton, who based on their home record they should get 2-4 points from, and then Chelsea, Man.C and Liverpool who they could just as easily get points from as they did today. They will finish on 38+ points, which will see them safe.

[I am a Banana 0]

The only benefit we have compared to them is that we have more possible ways of playing.

4-4-2 flat, 4-4-2 diamond, 4-2-3-1.

Swansea have just 1 way so can be worked out easier!

[Norfolk Mustard 94]

I admire Swansea hugely; MOTD2 tonight should be well worth watching! The way they’re going, I’m a bit concerned they may overtake us in the Premiership shortly…

[NWC 239]

I was just thinking yesterday what was going to be our "Man u" result for this season. Everyone seems to get one - even QPR beat Chelsea - ok a nine man chelsea who were unlucky to conceed a dubious penalty.Perhaps we will keep our good run going and beat Chelsea next week in front of the cameras!! After that we''ve still got Liverpoo, Citeh and united at home and away to the arse, so who knows what could happen. We might even get 2 "Man u" results!!!Congrats to the Swans today - I hope they stay up too. Yes they do play better football than us, but I think we are a little more robust and play with more spirit - and as banana said, we can chop and change effectively.

[Gingerpele 0]

[quote user="I am a Banana"]

The only benefit we have compared to them is that we have more possible ways of playing.

4-4-2 flat, 4-4-2 diamond, 4-2-3-1.

Swansea have just 1 way so can be worked out easier!

[/quote]

Having more systems yourself isn''t necessarily the best thing, Swansea know how to play and under Rodgers they have done fanatically well although mainly at home. If you can perfect your system, you don''t need another. If/When they work out how to get points away from home on a slightly more consistent basis they can easily establish themselves as a premiership side to be reckoned with.

Barca for example, obviously have some of the best players in the world, but they only need the one system. In fact when they try something different, they tend to do worse....

[I am a Banana 0]

Only problem with swansea is that if they play on an awful pitch they are already at a disadvatage, whereas most other teams can play another way which would help.

[Gingerpele 0]

I don''t think Swansea are that completely one dimensional, for a start they could just lob the ball up to Danny Grahame.....

[farley 0]

I''m not remotely surprised that the Swans beat Arsenal today. They play excellent football and have a tight back four. They seem to have got better as the season has gone on. I actually think they are better than us as a whole unit. However, they haven''t been tested when without one or two of their key players. Lose Dyer to injury and/or sinclair and I don''t think that they have the strength in depth that we have.Looking forward to the trip to the Liberty. Hopefully it''ll be third time lucky for me!!!

[Yellowfuture 71]

[quote user="farley"]I''m not remotely surprised that the Swans beat Arsenal today. They play excellent football and have a tight back four. They seem to have got better as the season has gone on. I actually think they are better than us as a whole unit. However, they haven''t been tested when without one or two of their key players. Lose Dyer to injury and/or sinclair and I don''t think that they have the strength in depth that we have.Looking forward to the trip to the Liberty. Hopefully it''ll be third time lucky for me!!![/quote]

They certainly look more comfortable against the top top teams than we do, they were excellent today and against spurs. Not sure they have the same ability to grind out results against some of the lower teams though.

[The Fish Seller 0]

Of the three promoted teams only two look like they belong in this league, Norwich and Swansea. QPR on the other hand are beginning to look like a championship team playing a premiership team in a cup tie and have begun treating each league match as the proverbial "cup final".

[a1canary 0]

They are the Arsenal of the rest of league. Today the apprentices beat the masters and I have to say I wasn''t that surprised. Arsenal have been fragile all season. What i am i trigued about is how it is they can be so so solid at the back at home yet so leaky away. Surely defending is the same art wherever you play! Is it just that they can''t deal with teams coming at them??

[AJ 1,218]

To be fair, had we played better and given them a bit less respect, I think we could have been worth at least a point against Arsenal

[canary_bird 0]

Is Brendan Rogers seen as a better manager than PL? Does this mean he would be more of a target for a "bigger" team looking for a new manager?

[Branston Pickle 3,632]

You''d certainly think that Arsenal would want Rodgers should Wenger decide to call it a day!

[courtyboy89 0]

[quote user="AJ"]To be fair, had we played better and given them a bit less respect, I think we could have been worth at least a point against Arsenal[/quote]They did have Vermaelen fit at Carrow Road though who makes a huge difference to their defence. Agree we could have got something though.

[Oz Canary 0]

Great win for Swansea. They are doing every bit as good as we are, I bet QPR fans hate us for it too.

[AJ 1,218]

Really interesting analysis from Dixon tonight about Swansea''s play, that''s really clever! Rodgers has done a great job, and I still remain confident both us and them will stay up this year.

[unique 434]

Without wishing to dampen all this Swansea love, they were playing an Arsenal side with the woeful Arshavin and unreliable Walcott offering very little up front, allied to a full-back I ''d never heard of.

Norwich played an Arsenal side containing Vermaelen, Arteta and Gervinho - a far more potent proposition.

It would also appear that we played Spurs at their peak, because their performances ever since have been nowhere near the same high level!

[Shack Attack 0]

[quote user="unique"] Norwich played an Arsenal side containing Vermaelen, Arteta and Gervinho - a far more potent proposition.[/quote]

 

Did you just mention Gervinho and potent in the same sentence [:O][;)]

 

In all fairness you have a point but the impressive thing about Swansea yesterday wasn''t the fact that they beat Arsenal. It was the way they beat them. It''s one thing getting a backs to the wall 1-0 against one of the top teams. For a newly promoted side to comprehensively outplay one of the top six is very unusual. We''ll still finish above them (Swansea that is. Although we''re only eight points behind Arsenal [:D]) but credit where credit is due.

[Jim Smith 2,314]

Arsenal were pathetic yesterday. They looked a shadow of the side we played against a few weeks ago. I think we might well have beaten them as well playing like that.

Having said that I think we made life far too easy for both Arsenal and Spurs in the way we approached those games and if Swansea''s performance yesterday teaches us anything its that if you get in these guys faces and make life difficult for them then they don''t look half as good and are beatable. For me, the only disappointing element of this season so far has been our approach to those two home games. i don''t think we believed we could win and I think we sat off both teams and gave them far too much space. I am very hopeful, however, that Saturday will be different. The two away wins at QPR and WBA have given us both confidence and a big cushion from the relegation battle. We are not really under any pressure and are not looking over our shoulders. I hope, therefore, that we will go out and play our own game and give it a right good go on Saturday. i also feel Chelsea''s style of play may suit us better. They are still a very good side with world class players but they don''t tend to have the same fluidity and movement as Arsenal and Spurs do when they are on their game. I think, therefore, we should be able to cope with them better (famous last words).

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

[quote user="Gingerpele"]They play great football, maybe better than us? But only at home, I think they will stay up this season though. They have three ''easy'' home games (including against us) then Newcastle and Everton, who based on their home record they should get 2-4 points from, and then Chelsea, Man.C and Liverpool who they could just as easily get points from as they did today. They will finish on 38+ points, which will see them safe.[/quote]

Suppose it depends on how you define ''great football'' but when it comes to passing they are miles and miles ahead of us. I think Norwich have one of the worst pass completion rates in the Premier League and one of the lowest levels of possession. Last time I checked Swansea make more passes per game than anyone else and have one of the highest possession rates. Their problem has been turning possession into goals, but Dyer and Graham have started to find confidence in front of goal and they are looking increasingly impressive.

[DisorientatedCanary 0]

Although it was the first time ive ever seen a side get a penalty for the attacker stamping on a defenders leg.......odd one that but you can see why it was given at first glance.