Sure thing – let’s give this a whirl.
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Hey everyone.
Not sure if it’s just me, but there’s this haze of dust in the air, or maybe it’s just my mind trying to wrap around everything. Anyway, it’s Friday, and I’ve got a few thoughts floating around before I hit the golf course, hoping to switch off.
### Feeling Stuff
As I blabbered on in yesterday’s ramble, Wednesday night left me feeling a bit blah. It’s just a different shade of blue now, but it’s more about liking this team, you know? Arsenal, yeah, it’s my team, but it’s also these players. Been three years of “so close” moments without a single shiny trophy to show off.
They’ve stayed true, wearing the badge like it means something. Unlike back in the day—teams full of guys who probably thought Billy Ocean was a type of fish. When things went sour, they evaporated like steam off my morning tea. You remember those guys, right? Played like they were in their own bubble, not a team.
So yeah, maybe we’re the “almost” crew right now, but that’s heaps better than dreaming from the sidelines, wondering if winning’s even possible. It hurts more this way, weird, right? Honest pain or something like that.
And yeah, frustration is like… sharper now? Maybe? I’ve harped on this before—our merry little club couldn’t have made things easy for these players with their “strategies.” But we held on, teeth clenched, this season. Even taking a tiny step forward in Europe. Semis might hurt, but hey, better than the desert of ‘once every 16 years.’
We’ll dust ourselves off and try again.
### Gabriel Who?
I realized yesterday – and no idea why this popped up in my head – that I haven’t mentioned Gabriel’s absence much. Jakub Kiwior stepped in and calmed everyone’s nerves a bit. People thought he’d be a bit of a disaster, but he’s shown up. Regular playtime seems to do wonders – who would’ve thought? When you’re just a bench warmer, errors lurk, waiting to pounce, you know?
Anyway, when we chat about missing players, everyone eyes the strikers. Scoring has been… challenging. We thought PSG had a soft spot, chucking balls into their box like darts. But maybe not. Didn’t pan out, did it?
Gabriel, though. Picture him there for two games. He’s like our set-piece hero – scores more from them than anyone else. Think back to those crucial goals against Spurs, Man City (that game with the bizarre Trossard red card—don’t get me started), West Ham, and Man Utd. Remember the derby header? It was morally his, even if officially not.
He’s one of those big-game magicians. Makes you wonder if his presence might’ve prevented those goals we leaked. Sure, individual mistakes were made, but maybe with him around, there’d be a calmness in the storm. Just spitballing here, but it’s one more thing to shake our heads about regarding injuries this season.
### Android App Alert!
Hey Android folks, guess what? The wait’s over – kind of. New app’s live on Google Play. Check it out here.
Quick heads-up: push notifications are still a work in progress. But hey, there’s a dark mode now (yay), reading’s smoother, and it’s ad-free across the board. Talk to Milk Bar Studios on BlueSky—no idea what that is—or shoot over an email if you’ve got thoughts to share.
Yeah, it took a while, but it’s up. iOS users, sit tight, a shiny update’s on the way.
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Alrighty, that’s me done for now. Arteta’s chatting later, getting ready for Liverpool on Sunday. There’ll be a podcast preview, either today or tomorrow – who can tell, really?
Time to take a swing at the most tantrum-inducing game ever.
FOOOOOOOORE!
