AFTV News

Arsenal's best ever Boxing Day fixtures By Tom Harle Boxing Day football hasn’t been good to Arsenal over the years. We have played 85 games on 26 December and won 36 of them, a win rate that means fans would be better off troubling the leftover turkey. But watching the Gunners is still the best way to shake off the festive torpor and our trip to Carrow Road to face struggling Norwich has escaped the clutches of Omicron. Let’s take a look back to better times and six of Arsenal’s best Boxing Day triumphs. 2000 - Arsenal 6-1 Leicester City You couldn’t have scripted this one better - the Foxes came to Highbury joint-second and left with their tails between their legs. Thierry Henry scored his first of eight Arsenal hat-tricks on his 50th appearance, the Frenchman leading one of those irresistible attacking displays we were spoiled with. Patrick Vieira, Freddie Ljungberg and even Tony Adams got in on the act as Arsenal completed a rout and sent the fans home happy. The Gu...

Five great goals in Arsenal v Newcastle clashes over the years By Tom Masters Arsenal face Newcastle this weekend, looking to get back to winning ways following a disappointing 4-0 defeat to Liverpool on Saturday.  The Gunners did the double over Newcastle last year, winning 3-0 at the Emirates, before going to St James’ Park and winning 2-0.    Facing Eddie Howe’s winless Newcastle side at the Emirates will hopefully produce goals, as Mikel Arteta looks to go on another winning run.    This is a fixture that has produced some crazy results over the years, a 4-4 draw, a 7-3 win for Arsenal and everything in between.    With that said, we have a look at five of the best goals scored in this fixture.    Santi Cazorla – Arsenal 4-1 Newcastle United (Emirates Stadium) 13/12/2014    On his 30 th  birthday the Spanish midfielder scored a sublime goal to make the score 2-0 early in the second half.    Olivier Giroud played t...

Comparing this Arsenal squad with the squad of a decade ago By Jack Lacey-Hatton Mikel Arteta has already rode out some tough moments as Arsenal manager since his appointment in 2019. He still maintains the support of the vast majority of the fanbase and has already overcome a difficult start to the current season, with his team finding form in recent weeks.   However, despite some good summer signings, it is still difficult to gage just how good this group is and whether they are moving in the right direction. Maybe a comparison of the current players with the squad from exactly ten years ago, will give us a clearer picture.   Goalkeepers & Defence New arrivals Aaron Ramsdale, Nuno Tavares and Ben White have settled well at the Emirates since their arrival and the trio have greatly improved both departments. Without these signings it would be difficult to make a case for Arsenal having a strong backline, but all three have made a difference. A decade ago...

Should the Gunners take inspiration from Southampton’s approach? By Peter White Having emphatically bounced back from a turgid first half of the season, Arsenal’s impending double header against Southampton represents something of a make-or-break moment in the 2020/21 campaign.   The Gunners have been looking up ever since a 3-1 win over Chelsea on Boxing Day initiated a six-game unbeaten streak, which has also produced five successive clean sheets for the first time in 11 years.   Arsenal and Southampton shared the spoils in a 1-1 draw at the Emirates in their previous meeting last month, and now the Saints stand in the way of the north Londoners’ bid to continue their FA Cup defence on Saturday, before a league meeting three days later.   Currently one spot and two points above 10th-placed Arsenal in the Premier League table - and with a game in hand - Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side have largely impressed throughout 2020/21, beating the likes of Everton and defe...

Leno getting lippy: What we learned from Arsenal's 1-1 draw with Southampton in the Premier League By Adam Le Roux It really says something when we are sat here today pulling the positives out of a 1-1 draw with Southampton as Arsenal still languish in bottom six of the Premier League, but the way things have been going of late, beggars can’t be choosers.  There were definitely a number of promising signs from the clash with Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side, including the fact that Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang netted for the first time in six Premier League outings to salvage a point for the Gunners.  But the fact still remains that it is half a dozen league matches without a victory for Mikel Arteta’s side, who had Gabriel dismissed in the second half to make it three red cards in the last five domestic matches - more than the amount of goals they’ve scored in that time.  As ever, there was plenty to talk about following the midweek clash at the Emirates, including a grumpy goalkee...