People make requests to superstars and brands on Twitter all the time. It usually comes in the formula of “how many retweets/likes for X brand to do Y?” This time around a man bet his wife that if Arsenal midfielder Mesut Özil replied to his tweet, they would name their new child Ozil.
It really shouldn’t be any surprise D'Margio Wright-Phillips is turning into a great footballer. Just look at his family.
His father, Shaun Wright-Phillips, was a 13-year veteran of the English Premier League, winning the league with Chelsea in 2006 to go with 36 England caps. His uncle, Bradley Wright-Phillips, followed a career in England by scoring more than 100 goals with New York Red Bulls before joining LAFC in 2020. His granddaddy, Ian Wright, is Arsenal’s second-best all-time goal scorer and a Premier League winner in 1998.
The fifth round of the FA Cup kicked off with Arsenal visiting League One side Portsmouth on Monday. Because rules makers in England are about as smart as blade of grass, just three of the eight matches this round will feature a VAR. The lunacy of this decision was highlighted by a horrific Lucas Torreira injury that went unpunished.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang thought he was the GOAT — 10 minutes later he was the goat.
Arsenal’s No. 14 scored a breathtaking bicycle kick with seven minutes left in extra time to briefly give Arsenal the lead in its Europa League matchup with Olympiakos. But Youssef El Arabi equalized in the 119th minute and Aubameyang missed a sitter right in front of the goal as Arsenal went crashing out of Europe. Olympiakos advanced on away goals with a 2-1 win on Thursday after a 1-0 defeat to Arsenal last week.
After a run of four straight draws, Arsenal finally got back in the win column with a 4-0 victory over Newcastle United at the Emirates on Sunday. The two clubs somehow entered today’s match level on points, but the gulf in quality between the sides was evident from the off as Newcastle’s beleaguered attack managed only two shots on target while Arsenal dripped quality in the midfield and wide attacking areas.
Dani Ceballos and Mesut Özil looked like the most likely creators for the Gunners as the two combined for seven key passes, but Nicolas Pépé was in inspired form as well.
A sell-out crowd at Arsenal’s Meadow Park stadium was witness to the rapidly turning tide of the FA WSL as Chelsea stormed to a 3-0 halftime lead before securing a 4-1 victory to remain undefeated after 12 matches.
Arsenal’s the most successful club in the division’s eight-year history with three titles — including last year’s triumph when Chelsea finished third — but the Blues issued a statement of intent by signing Norway’s Guro Reiten in May before adding Australia’s Sam Kerr back in November, and both of the club’s marquee signings got on the scoreboard today.
There’s a handful of footballers on the planet that immediately demand your attention — when they speak, it’s time to stop what you’re doing and listen. Cesc Fàbregas is one of those players.
For 82 minutes against Chelsea on Sunday, Arsenal put forth a performance of rare shape, commitment and defensive solidity on manager Mikel Arteta’s home debut. But then Mason Mount’s innocuous free kick fluttered over the despairing arm of Bernd Leno and the excrement hit the air-conditioning again inside the Emirates.
Arsenal threw Mesut Özil under the bus, but it wasn’t even enough to save the Gunners’ match against Manchester City on Sunday from being blacked out in China.