Arsenal's Appeal of Vermaelen's Red Card Could Prove Costly

The main news today: Arsenal is going to appeal the red card that the Verminator received on Saturday when he was adjudged to have committed a so-called professional foul on Franco of West Ham.

I can understand fully why they would want to appeal the card because he should not have been sent off but the FA are a useless bunch, and the most likely outcome is that he will have another game added to his ban for making a frivolous appeal. 

As it stands, he will miss the trip to Birmingham on Saturday, but if we lose the appeal he will also miss the home game with Wolves which comes between the two games against Barcelona.

It's a tough one to call because a loss to Birmingham on Saturday would probably mean our battle for the league is almost over, but with the boss already saying he was going to rest Campbell, our central defensive options are very limited.

I imagine that Song will partner Silvestre at the centre of defense on Saturday although there have been a few suggestions that Sagna could play there.

I've made my feelings on the subject known for the last few weeks and I think Kyle Bartley should come back from his loan at Sheffield United if it's possible as he would be a better option than Silvestre in my opinion.

Look how Blackburn's young centre back played against Chelsea on Sunday, and how Mannone did in the first few games for us when he was thrown in. We also have Nordtveit out on loan at Nurnberg and surely he can offer us something at the back if it's needed too, although I would imagine that he can't return until the season is over.

Vermaelen will of course be available for the two games against Barcelona, and I would imagine that Campbell will play alongside him in those games.

That is, unless of course Gallas makes a miraculous recovery in the meantime.

At least our defense is looking a little stronger at the moment with Clichy regaining his form and Almunia not as bad as he had been.

I'm happy enough with either Sagna or Eboue at right back in the league games but I would prefer to see Sagna play against Barcelona as I trust him a bit more in that position.

The Boss could be appealing the red card because if Song plays at the back on Saturday it leaves Denilson as our holding midfielder.

We should know the outcome of the appeal very soon as the FA are acting very quickly to hear it today. 

Despite the noises coming from RVP about doing ball work for the past few weeks, the boss said that we aim to wait at least a month before he plays again even though he looks very sharp physically.

I have said all along that I can't see him playing for us again this season, but that we might well see him starring in the World Cup for his country this summer. That would be annoying, as it was in a meaningless friendly international that he got injured in early November.

The bookies have moved us up to second favourites to win the league, and they have made "Manure" odds as well.

It would seem that Chelsea's poor form is causing the so-called experts to write them off.

We'll see exactly how poor that form is tomorrow night and on Saturday afternoon. If they win their two games they will be on top of the league when "Manure" kick off on Saturday evening. It's very early to write them off. 

Cesc has revealed that the reason for his facial hair is that he has a bit of an infection on his face, and if he shaved we could see the lump on his throat.

He also spoke about the strength of the team when he isn't playing and he said that of the five Premier league games he missed the team won four and drew with Everton.

He said people are wrong to say that Arsenal are a completely different team without him. There's no denying how good a player he is and how influential he is when he's playing but results like those and the Porto result without him show that we can cope when he's injured. 

Thierry Henry was interviewed on Sky yesterday and he said he doesn't want to play for Barcelona against Arsenal.

He still loves the club and he said he was in pain when the draw was made. He said he wouldn't celebrate a goal and he feels that the bond he has with the Arsenal fans could not be gotten anywhere else. Maybe he could talk Messi out of playing too while he's at it.

The reserves lost 2-0 at home to West Ham last night and it now looks like the league is more or less out of their reach this season.  Aston Villa are still two points ahead of us and they have played two games less than us.

The youth team are still doing very well and are well clear at the top of their league and the ladies are in a great position to win a few trophies, too. It could be a very fruitful campaign for Arsenal teams as far as trophies are concerned.

That's it for today. With Vermaelen's appeal we should have plenty to discuss tomorrow as well.

Here are some very good goals from Arsenal.

See you tomorrow.

UPDATE: The FA have rejected Vermaelen's appeal and he will miss the trip to Birmingham on Saturday but he will be eligible after that. Apparently a ban can only be increase if it is for violent conduct and not preventing a goalscoring opportunity or so I have been told.