From Arsenal to the Ball God

”Hold him!”

After the match resumed, Newcastle’s manager Alan Pardew seemed to be swept up in the simmering tension of the stadium. He commanded recklessly, ”That’s right! Sometimes you just have to use fouls to stop them!”

”Be tougher! Let the ball go through, but not the man!”

Newcastle’s attempt to seize the initiative had completely failed, but the tactics still needed to be executed... They had to keep pressing and forcing turnovers, though now playing reactively instead of proactively.

Their aggressive offensive posture left plenty of gaps for Arsenal in their defensive rear, making every attack from Arsenal extremely threatening.

”Boom, boom, boom...”

In the 21st minute of the match, Arsenal once again showcased a brilliant combination play from the backfield, breaking through a wave of pressing and creating a promising four-on-four counterattack scenario.

Ma’el held the ball and charged towards Danny Simpson; this time he used the bicycle kick feint, taking two steps sideways before exploding down the baseline.

The opposition didn’t have enough defenders, and the distances between them were wide, making it difficult for anyone to provide backup for the full-back.

At this point, bursting through was the most efficient and successful choice!

”Yah!” Danny Simpson threw his body towards Ma’el, intending to use his weight to slow Ma’el’s advance.

But his small frame had little effect in front of Ma’el. Ma’el barely exerted any extra effort, using normal forward momentum to knock Simpson over near the penalty area line.

”Boom!!”

Ma’el then delivered a precise cross, giving Gervinho at the back post a chance to score with a header, but he unfortunately headed the ball into the ground, and the goalkeeper caught it in his arms.

What a chance... Though a bit regretful, he still clapped to encourage his teammates, ”No problem, there’ll be more opportunities!”

Six minutes later, Frimpong intercepted Newcastle’s forward pass from the midfield and redirected it sharply to the right towards Gervinho’s position.

Hot Bird rushed forward at high speed towards Coloccini, using a few body feints and changes in speed to successfully breakthrough, driving into the penalty area and delivering a back-pass towards the triangle.

”Boom!!” Ramsey rushed in for a shot, but his opponent slid in to block it, sending the ball rolling towards the baseline.

Just a bit off!

These scenes had Alan Pardew and Newcastle fans feeling extremely frustrated, constantly in suspense and fearful of Arsenal scoring a second.

Something needs to be done!

In the season-opening match, on their home turf at St James’ Park Stadium... constantly allowing the opponent such attacking plays was certainly not easy to swallow.

Arsenal’s penetrating passes weren’t just breaking gaps in the defense; they were also a slap to Alan Pardew’s and the home crowd’s faces.

”Shush, shush, shush...!!” The stadium erupted in another wave of boos, as Newcastle supporters tried to incite chaos, jeering and cursing at Arsenal players each time they handled the ball.

”Hit him! Hit him!”

Alan Pardew continued to stoke the fire, urging Newcastle players to seek out more physical confrontations, ”Midfielders have to be harder; your average confrontation ability surpasses theirs!”

”Don’t act like children, scared of physical contact and afraid to take the initiative!”

”Beep!”

In the 31st minute, Newcastle’s left-back Kolonic tripped Gervinho along the left flank, prompting the referee to quickly blow the whistle and issue Kolonic a yellow card.

”This action deserves a card?!”

Alan Pardew was dissatisfied, ranting at the referee from the sidelines, ”If you think the Premier League is like playing house, go blow the women’s league then!”

This behavior soon earned him a yellow card as well, heightening his discontent.

”Come on! Come on...!!”

He turned around to signal the Newcastle supporters in the stands, urging them for louder boos, aimed at pressuring both the referee and the opposing players and coaches.

”Break his leg!”

”Alexander Song, go back to Cameroon! Black people should go back to doing hard labor!”

”Wenger out!”

Newcastle United fans collaborated perfectly with him, what they needed most now was this... an opportunity to rally everyone to vent their frustrations in one place.

Everyone was holding onto dissatisfaction, waiting for a target to unleash it on!

In the Arsenal’s coaching area, several assistant coaches couldn’t hold back anymore, standing up to denounce Alan Pardew’s and Newcastle fans’ behavior.

Alan Pardew chose to ignore them, continuing to incite the fans, occasionally turning back to engage in ’friendly’ synchronized interactions with the crowd.

”What are you doing?” Wenger also approached, heading towards Newcastle’s coaching area, ”Do you still have the demeanor of a coach?”

”You’re interfering too much; this is not London, not the Emirates Stadium!” Alan Pardew retorted without backing down, the two standing approximately ten meters apart, engaging in a heated altercation.

”Boom!” At that moment, someone on the pitch couldn’t bear it anymore, Alexander Song—who was dribbling—kicked the ball hard towards the advertising boards, expressing his dissatisfaction by halting the game.

He heard extreme Newcastle fans shouting racially discriminatory remarks at him.

That was unacceptable!

Arsenal players quickly ran to him on the field, embracing him reassuringly, fearing he’d act more aggressively out of impulse.

Passing Newcastle players were expressionless, but the atmosphere on the field was already charged with tension.

”What do you want?”

”Do you want to try me?!”

It wasn’t over yet; on the other side, Gervinho and Newcastle’s midfielder Barton were arguing near the center circle, shoving each other, with a hint of escalation looming.