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Camden New Journal - CROW by RICHARD OSLEY and PIP WROE
Published: 8 October 2009

Can we play them every week? The case for a Rovers return…

WHAT a wonderful world it would be if Arsenal could just play Blackburn Rovers every week.
A golden universe where beautiful passing always embarrassed rough-house fouling and the Gunners scored at will.
It would be a world where only good things happen, where players who don’t normally thrash in goals from 25 yards, thrash in goals from 25 yards. Like centre backs. And Nicklas Bendtner.
The goodness would rub off on everyone else.
It would always be sunny. Kids would play proper music from their mobile phones on the back of the bus rather than bleepedy-bleep I-wanna-grind-you-up-missus music. And they wouldn’t be told to eat crisps by former England strikers who should be role models for healthy eating like Gary Lineker. It would be illegal in this utopia for Cheryl Cole to patronise genuine singers. Beetroot would taste as nice as vegetarians say it does. Natalie Imbruglia would come for tea. Manish would dump the fluff checking the emails on the Football League Show. Cats would wipe their paws on the mat. Ricky Gervais would still be funny. Pip Wroe would have an up-to-date shirt. And Thierry would come home.
For 90 minutes, we were in a magnificent world on Sunday, a world where nobody cared much for defending, just scoring goals. If only it was always like that.

IT’S hard to know who puts greater fear into a defender, Cristiano Ronaldo or Kevin Davies.
The latter’s performance against Spurs on Saturday seems evidence that the lingering fear of an elbow in the eye or a long rake of studs along a shin can be just as effective as a barrage of lollipops and a well-timed crumble in the box.
Davies was the thorn in our side, although relatively clean by his usual standards – the bulldozing Boltonian’s reputation gave him the edge in every 50-50 challenge.
We can certainly be pleased with a point, and returning to the Lane unscathed.
This time last year Spurs were being compared to cocktail sticks.
It’s fair to say that our jowly helmsman Harry Redknapp has turned it round.
It seems Liverpool will wallow in inconsistency and leave a top three.
With each display they grow more toothless while, in sharp contrast, Arsenal seem to mature and grow more ruthless.
As hard as it is to admit, the Gunners were brilliant on Sunday. It is truly a sad and worrying day when Nicklas Bendtner scores an impressive goal.

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