Video: Paul Scholes Red Card v City

Manchester United crashed out of the FA Cup to the hands of their local rivals Manchester City on Saturday, and the game wasn't without it's talking points. One talking point was the red card to Paul Scholes in which he raised is foot in an attempt to win the ball only to be terribly late and catch a whole load of Pablo Zabaleta's leg rather than any of the ball. Unfortunately, it was worthy of a red card, and there is no debating that, no matter how much you support United and Scholes. 

United went on to of course lose with 10 men, but in all honesty, the way the team played throughout the game, they were not likely to grab a goal and get back into it. It was a rare poor game in which Nani and Valencia were ineffective on the wings, rarely providing any crosses into the box, where the loan striker Berbatov suffered from early missed opportunities and struggled for chances throughout, and where United really missed Wayne Rooney.

Paul Scholes is not known for his precise, perfectly timed tackles - but rather the complete opposite, but at this stage of his career and at such a crucial time in a massive game, it wasn't the best time to commit a red card offence. I recently wrote about the apparent imminent departure of Paul Scholes due to retirement, and that perhaps this game's result could sway his mind into staying for another year at United. However, this incident may sway his mind in the other direction, and may force him into retirement. 

If the United legend does retire at the end of the season, it would be reminiscent of Zinedine Zidane's departure from football; his red card in the World Cup final 2006 with France. Scholes however will have a big part to play in the rest of the season for United, in both the Premier League and Champions League, as United remain on course for the double. 

Season Over for Vermaelen But Djourou Has a Chance

Arsenal's increasingly disheartened manager Arsene Wenger confirmed some more bad news today in relation to  Thomas Vermaelen. Wenger said at his pre match press conference:

“For Thomas Vermaelen the season is over."

“In fairness he has not played since September, I never expected him to be fit before the end of the season. He is not out on the field yet and it is impossible [for him to play] after six months without competition. I am confident he will have a full recovery but for this season we cannot rely on him.”

Considering how long Arsenal have had to cope without the Belgian centre back this season after he suffered an Achilles injury on international duty, the news won't be as big a blow.

Wenger also set the record straight about Johan Djourou's injury. The Swiss defender dislocated his shoulder in Arsenals FA Cup loss to Manchester United and was immediately ruled out for the rest of the season. However, under closer inspection by he Swiss FA, it has emerged that Djourou has a chance of playing his part in the final run of games but will be out for six weeks. Wenger said:

“Johan Djourou is out for at least six weeks. There’s a little chance [he will play again this season], he has an arthroscopy on Monday and we will know more about the damage in his shoulder. We hope we will have good news but no matter what happens he will be out for six weeks.”

The International break next week will be a good time for players to recover from injuries they have picked up during the recent tough run of closely arranged fixtures, with Cesc Fabregas hoping to benefit. The Spaniard will be missing for the week end game, but Wenger hopes he will have recovered by the time the International games are over. Walcott holds little chance of recovery any time soon and will certainly miss England's games in the week:

“Cesc Fabregas is out for the game on Saturday. He should be back after the international break, maybe, he has a chance, but he is not available for the weekend. Walcott is not available for the weekend and he has no chance [for the international break]. He is not available for England.”

Rooney: I'm Staying At United Into My Thirties

Wayne Rooney has dismissed any talk of a big money transfer this summer. Rumours have been circulating - as they so often do - that the contract troubles last summer are still very much present in the United camp and that the signing of a new 5 year contract was simply a way of making more money out of a sale in the summer. These rumours suggest that the bridges that Rooney burned with Sir Alex Ferguson over his contract saga are beyond repair and that the manager will look to sell in the summer. But Rooney says these rumours are simply not true. Firstly, he banished any idea that him and Sir Alex have fallen out:

“My relationship with Sir Alex [Ferguson] has no problems whatsoever."

Perhaps all of those doubters were looking too far into the situation, and not taking the contract he signed for face value. You can't really be blamed for that considering Rooney's poor form at the start of the season with his personal problems causing havoc on his on field performances. The England striker said:

“I’m enjoying my football here and, if I was going to leave in the summer, I wouldn’t have signed a new contract when I did. I’ve signed it and I intend to see it through to the end.”

Those questioning his commitment anger him too:

"Yes, you get angry. On Sunday I didn’t even know it was in a newspaper until I was on the way home from training. I stopped off at the garage to get petrol and a few people asked me if I was leaving in the summer. I’ll be here until I’m in my thirties though, that’s for sure.”

Rooney's form has certainly picked up in the last few games. He played very well against Marseille on Tuesday with his touch much improved and his cross field passing ability delightfully brilliant as well as clever, quick thinking passes to set up goal scoring opportunities.

"The last two or three weeks is the best I’ve felt all season. I feel sharp and, if the manager needs me to get up and down the pitch, then fine.

"I haven’t played as many games so I feel good, but the more you play, the more consistent you are and better you feel.

“Since I had my injuries, people have taken their chance when they’ve come into the side and done brilliantly, so I’m delighted that we are still in three major competitions and it’s going well.”

He isn't getting carried away however with the possibility of a Manchester United treble. United remain in contention for the Premier League, FA Cup and the Champions League, but Rooney insists United must take one game at a time:

“We have to just take each game as it comes. We can’t look at that [The Treble].

“If you talk about that then it just puts pressure on ourselves, so we need to just concentrate on each game and see what happens.

"We didn’t win the league last year or the Champions League or the FA Cup, so we need to prove to ourselves that we are capable of doing it.”

Arsenal Accused, Djourou Ashamed & Fabregas Out

Arsenal have had a rough week. If being well beaten by Barcelona in the Champions League wasn't enough to darken the mood around the Emirates, seeing rivals Tottenham progress a stage further really rubbed salt in the wounds. The amount of competitions Arsenal are now involved in has been halved in the space of a few weeks, and with Manchester United just around the corner in another winnable competition - the FA Cup, the next game will be massive for the season.

Manuel Almunia was one of only a few players who had a good game against Barcelona on Tuesday after he came on in the 19th minute for the injured Sczcesny, and from his busy goal, he watched his team mates closely. Like many others, he wasn't impressed. The Spaniard accused his team mates of lacking effort, and believed that if they did more and showed more fight in the game, they may have been able to snatch a win.

"Barcelona bossed us and in the second half we had players that were not running. We only needed one goal and with a bit more effort we could have caused them damage at the end.


"Even at 3-1, we only needed one goal and, well, you can't understand how there can be players that were walking. We were tired.


"It seemed that everything was lost but you can score a goal at any moment. So the only explanation I have is that we were so tired and the players couldn't give any more.


"And down to 10 men, it was double the effort. We came up against a Barcelona side that are the best in the world."

Almunia can't be blamed for his light criticism of the team - the now infamous statistic of a total of zero shots on goal will be and as been brought up by rival fans for years to come and Barcelona's domination in every area of the pitch was clear for all to see.

The match however did not come without it's controversies - the referee's decision to send van Persie off for shooting at goal after the whistle had been blown for offside the big talking point. Massimo Busacca, the referee in question, was called many things after the game, but his Swiss compatriot Johan Djourou even went so far as to claim a sense of shame:

 "I am Swiss and the referee was Swiss. I feel a sense of shame.

"He had no right to take a decision of that kind. It changed the course of the game. At this level of football you can not accept decisions like that.


"But you have to be honest and admit Barcelona deserved their win. Lionel Messi is an exceptional footballer, all the more so when he plays at home, and he does some amazing things.


"It is really hard to mark him. We succeeded in the first half. We were very compact and it was a real pity that we conceded just before the break."

Arsenal's next game will not be as hard as the last - that is for sure, especially in United's current form. United have lost their last two games against Chelsea and Liverpool, and in the absence of Nani after his deep cut on the shin, Arsenal will be hoping to make United's losing streak a miserable hat trick.

Arsenal will be without Fabregas however, after his suspect performance at Barcelona was explained by a recurring hamstring injury, as Wenger said:

"He will be out maybe for the next two games"

Sczcesny's injury - a dislocated finger - will also rule him out for the immediate future, and Almunia will fill in for him for the game against Manchester United. Robin van Persie will be available too, as he went off - admittedly in questionable fashion - but without an injury.

Time for a trophy for Arsenal, and time for a win against a big team. The victor in the weekends game will - I believe - go on to win the Premier League. It's going to be massive.

Watch: Arsenal 5 - 0 Leyton Orient

Arsenal cruised to a 5 - 0 win over Leyton Orient, who had taken the Gunners to a replay and won themselves a trip to Las Vegas as reward from their chairman.

Nicklas Bendtner grabbed a rare but classy hat trick, while Chamakh scored his first since November, as Clichy finished the game off with his first for Arsenal. The convincing win sets up a quarter final tie with Manchester United - always a mouth watering encounter, especially considering this seasons title race.

Arsenal predictably enjoyed the majority of possession - 65% to Orient's 35%, while Arsenal gathered a total of 9 shots on target to the away sides disappointing solitary one.

Arsenal play Sunderland on Saturday, which Cesc Fabregas, their injured captain announced he may play a part in as the Barcelona second leg approaches. The daunting schedule has taken its tole on Arsenal and has claimed a number of injuries, including absenties Theo Walcott and Robin van Persie who will both miss the trip to the Nou Camp.

Hopefully for Arsene Wenger however, the goal scoring form that his strikers showed tonight with a combined four goals can continue into the coming weeks to help them through this difficult period.

Nasri Could Miss Barca Game but Wenger Won't Buy

Samir Nasri has been Arsenal's best player this season, so Wenger must have been feeling his compatriots pain when the 23 year-old midfielder pulled up with a hamstring injury against Huddersfield in the F.A Cup. After chasing a long ball from the returning Almunia, Nasri pulled up, and every Arsenal fans' breath was held, hoping that it would be nothing serious, and Nasri would be back to terrorise the opposition defence in a couple of short minutes. But it won't be minutes that Arsenal will have to wait for Nasri's return, it will be weeks.

Wenger had risked Nasri for the game, and now admits his regret at doing so, as it looks as if the injury could rule Nasri out for the next thee weeks - that is including Arsenal's massive clash with Spanish giants Barcelona. But will Wenger buy a replacement for Nasri in the remaining day of the transfer window? Take a guess.

The Arsenal manager was reluctant to predict when Nasri would return, but had a go nevertheless:

"Nasri looks to have a serious hamstring injury. Usually it is three weeks. We have to see if it is a grade 1, it will be two weeks, so we will see. It is very difficult to predict.

"I have now regrets because the plan was to play Rosicky, but he was still too weak because he was sick, so I took the gamble on Nasri. It backfired, but he could have come on and that happened as well.

“We are at the stage of the season where we play so many games that to lose bodies is very difficult for us. But Samir is a big blow."

Arsenal play Barcelona on the 16th February, which means that if Nasri recovers in two weeks, he could play some part at least in the Champions League match. However, if it is three weeks out that Nasri must suffer, he will certainly miss Arsenal's biggest test of the season. It is so unlucky for Arsenal that the player who has been in such fantastically blistering form this season is the one who could miss the match that he could make such a difference in, and showcase his skills against the likes of Messi, Iniesta, Xavi and so on.

A familiar quote that passes Wengers lips nowadays is:

"No, we will not sign anyone."  

He has said it again.
Instead of splashing the cash on a player like Eden Hazard who has expressed his desire to play for Arsenal, Wenger will recall Jay Emmanuel-Thomas and Henri Lansbury, who are currently on loan spells. This could irritate those Arsenal fans becoming more and more frustrated by the lack of movement in the transfer window, especially considering the big games coming up as Arsenal challenge for both the Premier League and Champions League in the next few games or so.


The calmer Arsenal fans with more faith in Wenger will once again respect his decision not to sign anyone in the January transfer window, and happily see the younger players step up and help to take on the big teams. Wenger has never been one for a knee-jerk reaction, but we will have to wait and see if his patience and relaxed attitude towards transfers pays off against such a good side in Barcelona without their top player in Nasri.

Leeds 1 - 3 Arsenal - Best Goal?

What an absolute beauty of a goal this was. As I watched, my jaw was firmly rooted to my chest for a good couple of minutes as I soaked up the replays of an unstoppable, stunning strike. He will surely never hit a ball any better than he did in that moment. The only criticism there could possibly be was the celebration - didn't he realise what he had just done?! Its the goal you always dream of when playing the game, and what a stunner it was.

It did not however, stop Arsenal from progressing through to the next stage of the F.A Cup. Goals from Nasri, Sagna and van Persie (which you can see here) wrapped up the win for the Gunners who battled well against a resilient home side backed by their roaring, passionate fans. It was a proper F.A Cup match, great entertainment, great goals, two committed sides, fantastic home support - and even the goalkeeper went up for a corner at the end.

FA Cup Final - Is a Shock Result On the Cards?

This truly is going to be an interesting game. The clash between the top team in the Premier League against the bottom team. One team having arguably their best season for three years, the other in financial meltdown and relegation to the Championship confirmed. But both are fighting for one thing in this match. The FA Cup.

If Portsmouth aren't on their game, they could be in for a complete whitewash. It was only last week that Chelsea beat Wigan by eight, whose to say they can't do it again?

Portsmouth have shown tremendous fight this season, with everything going on around them, they have fought so hard. The club, however has been as stable as an eight year old with matches in a firework factory. Players being paid late, worries over finances and eventual administration have ruined the clubs Premier League status and caused chaos.

But, despite this, anything can happen in football.
A lucky bounce, an awkward deflection, or even a beach ball could decide this matches out-come, not to mention a dodgy Wembley pitch!

I'm not going to make a prediction, because I will probably get it horribly wrong. It always depends on who turns up playing the best. In the FA Cup, as it has proved over the years, it isn't about the quality of the individual players necessarily, but the quality of the team as a whole.