ANR : Myles replies to Arsenal emails

ANR : Myles replies to Arsenal emails

By Myles Palmer

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From : Zach Cafritz Washington DC

Subject : Anelka at Ashburton ?

Frankly, despite his past, I would prefer Anelka to either Kuyt or especially the overpriced Torres for the Gunners. Fenerbahce not want to part, but they are still Fener and he could likely be purchased.

I think that, value for money, he's probably the best option out there. And we know he can work with Henry.

Any thoughts?

REPLY : Not many. Anelka would have no re-sale value if Arsene signed him now. He didn't combine well with Henry for France in Martinique.

At one time I thought Anelka should have stayed at Arsenal for another three years and developed into the next George Weah. But his head was never right and it is never going to be right. Character is destiny. Anelka's career is 30% of what it could have been.

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From : Richard Back

Subject: Correction to fixtures stated on post!!

Hi Myles,

Good post as usual, just thought I'd point out that we're actually @ home against Blackburn on the 26th of this month and away @ St.James against the Geordies on the 10th December!

Still think we can get maximum points, then bring on Chavski!!

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From: Chris Akanbi

Subject: lazy strikers

I've been reading your pieces for a few years now and enjoy the original views expressed. Agree with you about Henry going missing in big games and about Reyes having all the potential in the world (lets hope he realises itat Arsenal).

Thought you were a bit harsh on Henry and Pires after the penalty incident, it was arrogant but the game is about entertainment, we don't want all the players playing like robots, afraid to try anything new.

But I'm writing about your statement that Anelka is the laziest great striker you've seen.

Surely a) he's not great (just very good on his day) and b) surely Ronaldo is far lazier (literally only running when he has the ball or there's a run on that will lead to goal for him) and IS actually great (his season at Barcelona was the most spectacular I've seen.

Never really saw Maradona, but he can't have been more dangerous than Ronaldo that season. He looked like scoring every time he got the ball).

REPLY : Anelka was gifted but had the laziest attitude of any young player I've ever seen at Arsenal.Or anywhere. From day one, from his first game as sub.

On the Pires "penalty", yeah, that was a bit harsh and Arsenal press officer Dan Tolhurst phoned me about it. We had a little chat.

Thierry sometimes phones reporters to bollock them about incorrect and unfair stories. Recently, he called Martin Lipton of The Mirror. Not having seen Lipton's story, I don't know what he was complaining about.

I reckon that if Thierry cares that much about his current reputation with Arsenal fans, he WILL sign a new deal. If he was leaving in six months, I don't think he'd bother phoning a tabloid reporter.

What do I think about that incident now, three or four weeks later? Well, I still I hate that "penalty" and the idea behind it. Even if it had been scored, I would still have hated it.

What I wrote, calling them wankeurs, was offensive to Henry and Pires, so I changed it to "plonkeurs", as Dan suggested.

I did not see writing that, or changing it, as any big deal. I did not hesitate to write it and I did not hesitate to change it.

However, I have to say that what Pires did was offensive to me. I was offended by it. You may think I am crazy, but I was offended by it. I was very, very upset by it.

That was why I reacted. When I saw that, I was homicidal. That's all I can say. I hated what they tried to do. I didn't think it was clever, I didn't think it was "entertainment".

I'm with Dennis on that one. They tried to involve Dennis. But he wasn't having it. Nor was I.

No footballer will ever do anything that will anger me as much as that, so I'm unlikely to call any player a wankeur again.

But that's more than enough about that. It's boring. It's history. Subject closed !

On Ronaldo at Barcelona in 96/97, that was the first season I got Sky Sports. I've never seen any footballer dribble as fast as Ronaldo did then and I didn't think it was possible for any centre forward to score 34 goals in 37 league games.

I think, from memory, that 96/97 was Capello's only season at Real Madrid, and Rivaldo's only season at Deportivo, as Rivaldo was sold to Barca when they sold Ronaldo to Inter, and Djaminha came from Brazil to Deportivo to replace Rivaldo, and Djalminha played at Highbury in the Uefa Cup and got sent off when the score was 2-1 and Arsenal won 5-2.

Seeing Ronaldo kicked so viciously in Serie A was as horrible as seeing Pele maimed by Bulgaria and Portugal in 1966.

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From : " Michael Ballack"

Subject : Arsenal's weaknesses

My name is Michael, I enjoy your site very much and think you represent Arsenal very well. I was wondering if you could pinpoint Arsenal's current "weakest link" so to speak. Every team has one I would assume, whether it be a particular player or an inability to do something in certain situations.What are your thoughts?

REPLY : Teams have different weak points at different times of the season. Each season is an unfolding story and we get too hung up on one game.

A pal of mine says a football match is like a newspaper, it's only meant to last one day. And, as Paul Jewell said the other day, I'm a big picture man, it's the season that counts.

I'm also a big picture man.

I'm 100% sure that Arsenal cannot win the Champions League with this team, but I want them to keep winning and finish above Manchester United. Because they don't want to be playing a risky qualifying game in the new stadium under huge pressure in early August 2006.

At the moment Arsenal are weak at left back.

Not having Clichy or Cole available may have profound consequences in the coming games. We shall have to wait and see.

One metatarsal is unfortunate, but two is not carelessness. But bear in mind that Gabriel Heinze did his cruciate, which is a far worse injury than a broken toe.

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From : Stathis Yannopoulos

Subject: Parki

hey myles

Kempson quoted you in the Times about the Vieira tackle... I still remember what you wrote.

Anyways say something about that sissy boy parki from the TV.

REPLY : Quoted in the Observer last month, the Times this month? An underground commentator is in danger of becoming famous.

Sissy boy Parki? I have rarely seen Michael Parkinson since the Seventies.

I don't like a sycophantic interviewing style.I cannot stomach his questions, his manner. It always seemed phoney, false and boring to me because I am not in awe of famous people.

Billy Connolly and Muhammed Ali made his show big. I used to love Johnny Carson, who was a far hipper, more flippant chat-show host, whom I adored when I was visiting the USA.

Also Dick Cavett.

Both were comedians, not journalists, and neither was from Yorkshire.

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David P. Griffin

Subject: England aren't gonna win the cup.

Myles,

Don't mean to burst the English dream bubble. But there are a couple of points from the game which I watched as a neutral. It had a fantastic end but by that stage Argentina were bringing players off, after they showed they could easily open up England at will.

They scored the second then took off Ayala,Crespo and most importantly JRR.

JRR made England's midfield look very ordinary.England have three major weaknesses.

1. They are being killed down the left because they have only one left sided player ( A.Cole) but he must play in defence.

2. They need a right midfielder who'll stay there. I lost count of the times Beckham came inside and JRR dropped into it.

3. Sol Campbell must play before Ferdinand.England will never win anything with him at centre back,he doesn't command at set pieces.

REPLY : With such insights, you could be a manager. But footballers would drive you mad. It's a very, very stressful job. I could not do it, obviously, because I'm too emotional. After six weeks, I would be in an ambulance.

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Dan (east stand lower)

SUBJECT : The Man United-Chelsea game

Are you thinking about writing a piece on this game? Your opinions on Arsenal are terrific, but I enjoy equally your write-ups on other games too; if not, c'est la vie.

I am on a year out, currently in Thailand, and football banter is lacking somewhat. I look forward to your articles more than ever now, so if you would oblige, I would appreciate it.

REPLY : I would love to visit Thailand. My wife's been, my daughter's been twice, I have friends in Chiang Mai and Bangkok, but I still haven't made it.I'm ashamed to admit I have never been east of Prague.

I backed Chelsea to win that match, so I lost that bet. On other games, non-Arsenal games, I do as much as I can here, when I'm in the mood and have something to say.

I'm writing another book now, and I've got a new job, but that will not impact on ANR. I'll still write stuff here.And I'll continue to make mistakes here.

And I'll still write my best ANR pieces in my head as I'm walking home from the gym, down the Avenue of Lost Pussycats. That's not the name of the road, but it's what I call it because of the notices regularly pinned to the trees, sometimes with photos of the pets.

Then I get home and the phone rings and I forget the piece. But sometimes I remember later and type it out and stick it here.

It's an ideal hobby for an old fart. And nice to think we have readers all over. Many Londoners do not live in London, and some live 8,000 miles away, or more.

ANR, to me, is a kind of sharing, a small gift of drinking water to thirsty football fans.

November 21st 2005