and the argument is frivolous from corse178's blog
There has never been any question about both Arsenal and Manchester City having style, but the debate over whether they have the substance to be Premier League champions continues to rage. Womens Chicago White Sox Jerseys .Despite owning the last two Champions League spots in the table, both Arsenal and Manchester City have armed critics with plenty of skepticism over whether either or both can possibly overtake Chelsea by seasons end heading into Sundays crunch clash of these top-four teams at the Etihad.Much of it has to do with the flowing style of play both employ, a direct contrast to the blood-and-thunder mantra of the Premier League. English fans have long favoured the crunching physical tackle and the challenge of 50/50 balls in the air over the one-touch passes designed to open up defences to exploit via through balls.While Arsene Wenger has built up some capital in his two decades on the Arsenal touchline to deflect barbs and criticisms, it is the arrival of Pep Guardiola at Manchester City (10-3-3) that has added fire to this debate throughout the club backrooms and pubs of England.Wenger took to Guardiolas defense ahead of the midweek matches this week, after Guardiola claimed he wasnt a coach for the tackles, so I dont train the tackles after Manchester Citys 3-1 loss at Leicester City. Its not surprising given the two share a kindred spirit in how they construct offencesPep Guardiola, like myself, we are for offensive football. And when you dont win, people question that. And thats as simple as that, the Gunners boss said. Overall, I think what he wanted to say is that he promoted a game that is positive and I agree with him on that. You respect him for that.At first, it looked like Guardiola was every bit the genius tipped by supporters upon his takeover of City from Bayern Munich -- the team stormed out of the gate to win their first 10 matches in all competitions, including their Champions League playoff to enter the group stages.But that swagger has given way to a City side struggling to find its defensive identity as Guardiola tinkers with his backline on a match-to-match basis. As well as a shift in opponents philosophy to simply let the Citizens pass the ball around the middle of the pitch and then dare them to pile drive through two banks of defenders in the final third.Their 2-0 home win over Watford on Wednesday was more persistence than panache -- defender Pablo Zabaleta finished off a nice cross from Kevin De Bruyne in the first half, and David Silva sealed the three points with a goal on 86 minutes as City struck on the counter as Watford threw numbers forward in search of an equaliser.The victory, though, came at a high price as Guardiola lost Ilkay Gundogan to a torn ACL, a season-ending injury that puts a gaping hole in the midfield for both Citys Premier League title hopes as well as their Champions League aspirations come the knockout stages in February.It is so, so difficult for him, its sad for him, were going to miss him a lot, its unlucky, but thats football, Guardiola told the teams official website.Now we need him to feel we are there and wait and come back safe. Hes going to be operated (upon) and be back as soon as possible.Gundogan will be the fourth key regular out for this match for Guardiola. Defender and talisman Vincent Kompany remains sidelined due to injury while forward and top scorer Sergio Aguero and midfielder Fernandinho continue to serve their four and three-match bans, respectively, for their roles in a brawl at the end of their 3-1 loss to Chelsea on Dec. 3.On the plus side, Yaya Toure has excelled in the midfield since returning to Guardiolas good graces last month. There is still plenty of quality in the attack with De Bruyne, Silva, and Raheem Sterling in the midfield. It will be interesting to see if Guardiola opts for a solo striker approach again after using Nolito atop a 4-1-4-1 formation versus Watford and leaving Kelechi Iheanacho on the bench.You know the reason why he was out in the first part of the season, Guardiola said about Toure. Now he is playing like he can be, like I met him at Barcelona. Theres no doubt about his quality.Wenger is no stranger to the criticisms that come with his style of play, and some seasons they are louder than others given Arsenals fixture in the top four of the table while not winning any Premier League titles since last lifting the trophy in 2004.But the all-too familiar questions were being asked again after a 2-1 defeat at Everton on Wednesday dropped the Gunners (10-4-2) into third -- behind Liverpool on goal difference, one point better than Manchester City and six adrift of rampaging Chelsea.The Toffees took the match to Arsenal in the second half, utilising that physical style of play Arsenal rarely answer. Wenger felt rightly aggrieved by an error by referee Mark Clattenburg that resulted in an Everton corner that led to Ashley Williams eventual match-winner on 86 minutes, but he also noted his team seemed to back down as Everton grew in the ascendancyWe lost the game because I feel we started well and after that maybe we lost a bit of urgency because we were a bit too comfortable and then Everton made it very physical. Overall, I believe that from then on it disturbed our game and we created less flow going forward.We didnt create too many but we had clear-cut chances in the game we didnt take. After that you can be caught away from home on a corner like that.Like Guardiola, Wenger is dealing with some key absences due to injury, most notably central defender Shkodran Mustfai and holding midfielder Santi Carzola. Denny Welbeck, Aaron Ramsey and Per Mertesacker continue to be long-term injury absences. Wenger also again addressed the issue of contract extensions for Alexis Sanchez and Mesut Ozil, both of whom have 18 months remaining on their respective deals.You waste your time because these players have 18 months on their contracts and I dont see why there is any urgency in every press conference to have that question, Wenger mused. Maybe you lack a bit of creativity in the newspapers and you always come up with the same subject. I dont see why that should turn up in every press conference.Arsenal took four points in the two games between the teams last season, posting a 2-1 victory at the Emirates and scrambling from a pair of one-goal deficits to forge a 2-2 tie at the Etihad. Olivier Giroud scored in both matches, and Sanchez scored the equaliser in the corresponding fixture. De Bruyne and Aguero netted the two goals for City.The Gunners are unbeaten in their last five (2-3-0) against City but also have just two wins in their last nine trips (2-2-5) to the blue side of Manchester. Arsenal have won 23 of the 38 all-time Premier League matches between the teams, while all six of Citys wins have come since 2006. Authentic James Shields Jersey . Three came down to the fourth quarter while quarterbacks continued to shine in all four games; so important to the overall quality of the game. Authentic Luis Aparicio Jersey . Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek defeated Nenad Zimonjic and Ilija Bozoljac 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 (4) on the indoor hard-court at Belgrade Arena. The victory improved the Czech pairs impressive cup doubles record to 14-1. http://www.cheapwhitesoxjerseys.us/authentic-carlos-rodon-jersey/ LOS ANGELES -- The Latest on the trial of a lawsuit accusing NBA star Derrick Rose and two others of gang-raping a woman (all times local):5:05 p.m.Derrick Rose and one of his friends have provided conflicting stories about the night the two men and another friend are accused of raping an incapacitated woman.Randall Hampton said Tuesday during testimony in a lawsuit by the woman that the NBA star has a poor memory and was mistaken when he described sex acts the two engaged in with the woman.The womans lawyer is trying to show inconsistencies and contradictions in their testimony.The woman has accused Hampton, Rose and Ryan Allen of raping her at her apartment after she had drinks at Roses Beverly Hills house in August 2013.Hampton says the woman had sex with him and Rose earlier at the Beverly Hills house.Rose has denied having sex with her there and the woman denies having sex with anyone at the residence.---12:55 p.m.Derrick Rose says he had a hunch his ex-girlfriend was going to claim he raped her after he and two friends had sex with her.Rose testified Tuesday that he became suspicious when the woman texted later on the day of the alleged assault to describe burns she claimed she got on her hands from a fire pit outside his Beverly Hills, California, house.Rose says he never saw the woman burn herself, and he had an inkling he was being set up.Rose is testifying for a second day in the $21.5 million lawsuit that says he and his friends had sex without the womans consent when she was incapacitated from drinking and, possibly, drugs.Rose says the woman was sober, and he assumed consent based on their past and her behavior.---11:10 a.m.Testimony has resumed in the Los Angeles trial of a gang-rape lawsuit against NBA star Derrick Rose and two others as the judge considers whether to declare a mistrial.Rose concluded testimony Tuesday under questioning by attorneys for the woman who filed the $21.5 million lawsuit claiming she was the victim of a sexual assault in 2013.Rose is expected to return to the stand for questioning by his defense aattorneys. Authentic Jose Abreu Jersey. U.S. District Court Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald has not indicated when he will rule on the mistrial requested by Roses lawyers.They say the plaintiffs lawyers did not disclose three text messages important to their case until Friday, when Rose was already on the witness stand.The plaintiffs lawyers say the texts were previously disclosed, and the judge told them to prove it.---9:10 a.m.The judge in the trial of a rape lawsuit against NBA star Derrick Rose and two other men has criticized the plaintiffs lawyers as unbelievably careless in production of exhibits and says hes considering a mistrial.Roses lawyers asked Los Angeles U.S. District Court Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald to declare a mistrial Tuesday because they had not been given three text messages important to their case until Friday, when Rose was on the witness stand.The lawyers for the woman who accuses Rose and two friends of raping her in her apartment in 2013 say the texts were previously disclosed and the argument is frivolous.The judge says it is not a frivolous matter and he told the lawyers to prove the texts had been disclosed.The judge says if there is a mistrial it would push a new trial into the regular NBA season.---NBA star Derrick Rose is set to return to the witness stand in a $21 million lawsuit that alleges he and two friends raped an incapacitated woman.Before Rose retakes the stand Tuesday, a judge will consider a mistrial request from Roses lawyer. The lawyer says the other side failed to reveal a text message that was relevant to the case until it came up Friday.Rose had to miss the New York Knicks preseason game with the Washington Wizards Monday night in order to get to court Tuesday.When Rose first took the stand Friday, he testified that he had received sexual text messages from the woman throughout the day in August, 2013 when the alleged rape occurred.Rose said he took those messages as consent for sex. Jerseys NFL Cheap Cheap NFL T-shirts Cheap NFL Black Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys From China Discount Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Wholesale ' ' '
The Wall