Bola Cafe: International

yep, yg beli tuk ayah haritu masih lagi OK, walaupun dah basuh byk kali.

letak tu ngan yg original mmg takde beza marc

Carling Cup Final Preview: Arsenal v Birmingham

by
JP Lonergan
, 25 February 2011


The Gunners and the Blues face off in the Carling Cup final, both having
been runners-up the last time they met in the decider of this
competition, with Arsenal hot favourites as they look to bag number one
of a possible quadruple this term.

Manchester United, Barcelona,
Leyton Orient and others stand in their way in the other competitions,
but it is down to the Blues to deny them at Wembley on Sunday. And they
have at times frustrated Wenger’s men in recent seasons, though this
term Arsenal have beaten them home and away in the league.

And
that should give the Gunners that added bit of confidence, if it were
needed, that Sunday will be the day that they lift their first gong
since they rode their luck to win the 2005 FA Cup on penalties.

What
they did not need ahead of Sunday’s game though were any fresh injury
worries, and they got a couple as they edged Stoke City 1-0 in the
Premier League on Wednesday. The sight of Cesc Fabregas being forced off
early on brought dismay to all Arsenal fans. His hamstring injury means
he will not play at Wembley according to Wenger, even if the player
himself feels he could.

Fellow midfield threat Theo Walcott is
also out after the winger hurt his ankle against Stoke and he may still
be missing for the trip to the Camp Nou for the Champions League last 16
second leg game on Tuesday week.

In better news, not for
Birmingham, star striker Robin van Persie (hamstring) should be fit,
while midfielder Abou Diaby is available again after suspension and
defender Laurent Koscielny is also expected to return.

Arsenal
were beaten by Chelsea in the final of this competition in 2007, with
Birmingham losing on penalties to Liverpool in 2001. They were a second
tier side then and their main goal for the remainder of this season has
to be ensuring that they are not one of those again next year - but now
that they are at Wembley they might as well try and cause a major upset.

Alex
McLeish’s side was the model of consistency in the Premier League last
season, but they have saved their best for the Cup competitions this
year – they are also in the FA Cup quarter-finals, something Arsenal yet
have to make sure of.

The Blues have been goal-shy up front and
sloppy at the back, the recent loss of key defender Scott Dann only
adding to that. They are also hampered by the fact that former Gunner
David Bentley and Curtis Davies are cup-tied and the fact that another
ex-Arsenal man - Alexander Hleb – is a worry after bruising his knee in
last week’s 3-0 FA Cup success over Sheffield Wednesday.

He will
be monitored, while striker Cameron Jerome is expected to recover from
an ankle blow and defender Martin Jiranek should also come into
contention after a thigh injury. He will vie with Liam Ridgewell for the
right to partner Roger Johnson in central defence in Dann’s absence.

Craig
Gardner’s extra-time cracker against West Ham United got Birmingham
into this final, while Nikola Zigic has hit some form in the league, and
Lee Bowyer and Seb Larsson have also played big roles in the Cup.
Obafemi Martins, meanwhile, could thrive in the Wembley arena.

Arsenal,
however, have plenty of players vying to try and earn a Nou Camp
starting place should Walcott or any others not prove fit. The likes of
Marouane Chamakh and Nicklas Bendtner will be gagging for Wembley
starts, while the game is another chance for Samir Nasri to regain his
pre-injury form; for Andey Arshavin to get a few critical fans off his
back; and for Jack Wilshere to again show the world what he has in his
locker.

Birmingham should stifle the Gunners at times, but if van
Persie, Nasri and Arshavin hit form they are likely to be worn down,
and even the absence of the great Fabregas is unlikely to prevent
Arsenal from ending their six-year itch.

Arsenal (from):
Szczesny, Sagna, Koscielny, Djourou, Clichy, Nasri, Song, Wilshere,
Rosicky, Arshavin, van Persie, Almunia, Gibbs, Eboue, Denilson, Chamakh,
Bendtner, Squillaci.

Birmingham (from): Foster,
Taylor, Carr, Parnaby, Johnson, Jiranek, Ridgewell, Murphy, Larsson,
Ferguson, Gardner, Bowyer, Fahey, Beausejour, Hleb, Mutch, Jerome,
Zigic, Martins, Phillips, Derbyshire.

DID YOU KNOW?

• Arsenal are unbeaten in their past 11 matches in all competitions.
  

• Without
  Cesc Fabregas in the team Samir Nasri has scored nine goals in nine
  games this season; when both have been playing the Frenchman only has
  five goals in 20 appearances.
  

• Nikola Zigic has scored three goals in his past four league games for Birmingham.
  

• Alex McLeish's side have only lost once in their past seven matches in all competitions.
  

• Arsenal and Birmingham have both scored 13 goals on their way to the
  Carling Cup final. Defensively the Gunners have been much more solid,
  conceding only two goals to the Blues' eight.
  

• Three of the last six League Cup finals have gone to extra-time.
  

• Arsenal's fans may have waited what feels like an eternity to win
  another major trophy but their six-year wait is nothing compared to
  Birmingham's 48-year trophy drought. The last time the Blues won
  anything of note was back in 1963 when they beat city rivals Aston Villa
  to win the League Cup.
  

• Both sides have lost League Cup finals in the past decade, with the
  Blues losing to Liverpool on penalties back in 2001, while Arsenal lost
  2-1 to Chelsea in 2007.
  

• Arsene Wenger has taken Arsenal to eight major finals during his
  time at Arsenal and he has a 50% success rate, winning four and losing
  four.
  

• Sunday represents not only an important day in Birmingham's history but is also the birthday of club owner Carson Yeung. The Hong Kong businessman will hope his side give him a birthday present to remember.
  

nuff said

dak abu.. "kita serupa.. kita serupa.. nasib pasukan kita serupaaa.." huhuhuhuuuuu

cuma wa ader terfikir.. ni terfikir sebelum game tau
kalu gunners menang ini piala liga pastu tapau awal dlm semua piala lain
adakah ia cukup tuk buat fabregas kekal kat emirates tuk musim depan.?

aper-aper pun.. nasib team kita memang serupa
huhuhuuhuuuu

Hehe....terjumpe board nih..
Defend back four dgn keeper fail.
Wenger pun ckp, communication breakdown...

itu lah, ni aku tgh try nak kontek semutipoh nih,
mesti dia bengkek kat forum lagi satu

itu yg dok takut tu..
tp wa rasa la kalo btol Fab kluar
mmg eden hazard la datang, Nasri amik tempat Fab4.
Hazard amik tempat Nasri

hmmm, arsenal kempunan lagi setelah 6 tahun menunggu...

takpe Ven, kita sekali gooners tetap menyokong
tp semalam ralat skit pasal miscommunication je

atreyudevil wrote:takpe Ven, kita sekali gooners tetap menyokong
tp semalam ralat skit pasal miscommunication je

huk3, tuhler pasal... xper2... next time ada lagi... EPL masih open, he3

EPL,FA,UCL suma open lagi

Tahniah Liverpool kerana telah menewaskan MU dgn 3 gos berbalas satu (perggg, mantap2)
nampaknyer MU nak kena mandi bunga coz dh kalah 2 game direct... erkkkk, ampun pak ampunnnn...

venez wrote:Tahniah Liverpool kerana telah menewaskan MU dgn 3 gos berbalas satu (perggg, mantap2)
nampaknyer MU nak kena mandi bunga coz dh kalah 2 game direct... erkkkk, ampun pak ampunnnn...

referee main tipu.....
carager patut kad merah

sCorpene wrote:

venez wrote:Tahniah Liverpool kerana telah menewaskan MU dgn 3 gos berbalas satu (perggg, mantap2)
nampaknyer MU nak kena mandi bunga coz dh kalah 2 game direct... erkkkk, ampun pak ampunnnn...

referee main tipu.....
carager patut kad merah

huk3, xkan alasan referee lagi kot...

ayat SMS member aku..

"La aku igt kunyit nih guna tuk masak je, rupanya bleh skor gol"

heheh btw
Ven, Caragger punya tackle tu mmg patut kne red card, pasal tinggi, stud ups dan agak malicious, as gooners kita dah tgk 3 tragedi macam tu..

tp nani bleh tak sedar kaki dia berlubang.. lari ke ref baru tau sakit dan tgk kaki dah berdarah

atreyudevil wrote:ayat SMS member aku..

"La aku igt kunyit nih guna tuk masak je, rupanya bleh skor gol"

heheh btw
Ven, Caragger punya tackle tu mmg patut kne red card, pasal tinggi, stud ups dan agak malicious, as gooners kita dah tgk 3 tragedi macam tu..

tp nani bleh tak sedar kaki dia berlubang.. lari ke ref baru tau sakit dan tgk kaki dah berdarah

he3, kadang2 referee pun misjudge gak... maklumler manusia...

standard la tu, tp EPL pnya ref nih mmg terkenal paling incompetent dalam Euro

hahahaha

Sesungghuhnya ku terima kekalah 3-o nih dengan hati yang terbuka...

phyxius wrote:Sesungghuhnya ku terima kekalah 3-o nih dengan hati yang terbuka...

he3... xper2...

hati dah tertutup dah...
sedih

sCorpene wrote:hati dah tertutup dah...
sedih

sedih pasal MU ke bro?

venez wrote:

sCorpene wrote:hati dah tertutup dah...
sedih

sedih pasal MU ke bro?

Takpe... banyak game lagi nih...

venez wrote:

atreyudevil wrote:ayat SMS member aku..

"La aku igt kunyit nih guna tuk masak je, rupanya bleh skor gol"

heheh btw
Ven, Caragger punya tackle tu mmg patut kne red card, pasal tinggi, stud ups dan agak malicious, as gooners kita dah tgk 3 tragedi macam tu..

tp nani bleh tak sedar kaki dia berlubang.. lari ke ref baru tau sakit dan tgk kaki dah berdarah

he3, kadang2 referee pun misjudge gak... maklumler manusia...

hidup ni mmg cam roda
kalu man u nyer player buat blum tentu kena kan
apa salahnyer sesekali share nasib tu ngan orang lain plak

btw.. boss ven & abu
team wa dah kasik can kat gunners nih
apa lagik.. korang jangan sesiakan in peluang tau

ayooo itu lah..

ini budak2 gunners aa kalo tau depa bleh naik mesti gugup...

rotan baru tau sorang2

hah apa lagi anak muda sekalian..libapool dah bagi laluan tu..