Arsenal, TV, Draws, and the FA Cup

I have been fighting a cold this week, so I have been staying home thinking about a few things to cover in this blog.
Here’s a few of the items that clanked me on the head…

I’m feeling so much better about Arsenal these days. I think Mikel Arteta might be the guy after all to bring the Gunners back to some sort of respective form this season. He says the right things, and has had some good results on the pitch after his first 3 games. He couldn’t get his squad past Chelsea, but he did orchestrate a clean sheet and a huge win over Manchester United. As usual, there is a lot of speculation going on in the transfer market. We most definitely need help at center back, and maybe at holding midfield as well (depending on what Xhaka does). I know these things take a while to develop, negotiate and finalize, but for heaven’s sake, don’t keep us holding our collective breath too long. COYG!

We were all glad to here Calum Chambers got through his knee surgery this week with flying colors. He seems to be a genuine lad, and his future is bright for the Gunners. Get well, and get back soon Calum!

The Arsenal-Manchester United match on January 1st posted the 2nd highest U.S. TV rating in the 6 years NBNSN has been covering the Premier League. 1.68 million viewers across all NBC platforms watched this game. This is such important news for all of us football crazy American who watch the beautiful game and our favorite clubs every chance we get. NBCSN does a terrific job for us Yanks! Thank you! Let’s hope CBS can deliver the same results when they take over the Champions League and Europa League coverage in the US in 2022.

Speaking of American TV coverage, this one really bothers me. I have nothing against streaming games on my computer, tablet or phone, however, I think it is such rubbish that ESPN does not carry at least one FA Cup game per round on network TV. I really think American viewers could get into this tournament if they were better educated on how it works, and the “David v Goliath” storylines it creates. Not even the FA Cup final will be televised on one of the ESPN networks, just streaming on ESPN+. Thank heavens for that at least.

The other day I was thinking about why football matches can end in a draw. In this country, we don’t like a tie or a draw. The only sport that can have a potential draw is the NFL, and those games only end in a draw after they play one overtime period. So, I asked my myself again, why can football matches end in a draw? I mean the players work their tails off for 90 minutes and only get 1 point for their effort. Is this fair?
So I did some research, and I found an article by a guy named Christopher Harris. Here’s what he said about draws…
“Why are there draws in soccer?” For most people outside of soccer, a draw seems like a foreign concept. Most American sports (maybe all?) have a winner and a loser. Seeing a winner and a loser in US sports seems more, well, American. Those who work hardest are rewarded. There is no place for a draw. Draws are for foreigners, not Americans.”
With that, I’ll keep my mouth shut.

Finally, one last thing about the FA Cup. Personally, I think it is one of the greatest things in football. Take Sunday for example. Sheffield United plays AFC Fylde. Now to put this into perspective, it’s #8 in England v #121. Now, for some this might sound like a really boring game to watch, and it might turn out that way. However, this game will feature multi-millionaire players competing against guys who not only play soccer, but also have jobs like butchers, firemen, cops, or plumbers. Can you find a better storyline than this one anywhere else in sports? There have been those rare “giant-killer” stories in FA Cup history, but what makes games like this so interesting to me is the human element. If you’ve never seen an FA Cup game, check it out.

Enough said, now back to the cold medication.

Cheers. Gunner1953