The date was 06/12/2008. Arsenal had just beaten Wigan 1-0 but the game will not be remembered for an Arsenal victory.
That day will be one remembered for the wrong reasons. It was the day that I thought I would never see happen. The Gooners had turned on one of their own.
Emmanuel Eboue was the unfortunate victim that day. Booed and heckled I really felt for him and seeing the man trudge off, almost reduced to tears, brought a lump to my throat.
That game he became an outlet for the Gooners frustrations. He was the easy target. It was disgusting. Almost on the verge of bullying.
It seemed Eboue was broken. By all accounts he is loved by his team-mates, and he was supported by them. Despite this support I thought that was the end of Eboue's Arsenal career.
Would anyone have blamed him for leaving? Yes he was poor that day but he seemed heart-broken by the treatment he received. It was a liberty.
He could have taken the easy option. He could have just fucked off. Instead he licked his wounds, showed true character and bounced back.
I think Eboue deserves a massive gee-up.
Since that dark day he has rolled his sleeves up and has turned the whole situation round.
You couldn't call him an Arsenal legend but you could say that he has achieved almost 'folklore' status with the Arsenal faithful.
From time to time you still see the theatrics but to be fair to him the Ivorian has cut a lot of that from his game.
How mad is it that people are now calling for him to be played more often? That's how far he has come.
I think that Eboue is a very useful player to have. He can play in a number of positions, is liked throughout the squad, loyal, has ability and is obviously strong-minded to have come back from the berating he took that day.
To turn it all around, I think Eboue deserves a lot of credit. He was immense today and if he continues to play like this, he will continue to win more and more Gooners around.
Keep it Goonerish..............
46 comments:
well said all true
Anyone who sits in the family enclosure at Emirates will see what a great guy Eboue is. While warming up as a sub he is always smiling and waving to the kids. He seems like a genuinely nice guy who appreciates what he has (prob coming from a humble background in Africa) and he really seems to love Arsenal. He deserves the fans respect and love!!
.... if only we could get him get some shooting boots, cause he gets into position to shoot quite often ... he had a great game today .. well done Manu!
Absolutely.
It was terrible that the booing occurred at all, but it has been great to see Eboue turn it around.
I don't think I'm the only one who sees the irony of today's Theo bashers...
Totally agree.
@Booed and heckled I really felt for him and seeing the man trudge off, almost reduced to tears, brought a lump to my throat". I felt the same way, but I always thought that he could come back strong because he looks happy in his life, had support of his manager and teamates, and tremendous skills and versatility. He\s a very useful squad player
Evening Wrighty, nice one -
MOM today? Kenny Sansom made him his.
Aren't mny that would have stuck it out, take Ade for example....
Like Song was not always my fave,but Wenger see something that we fans don't. He has a hunger to do well that is lacking from a few first team players and is always up for a fight in the game. Have a lot more confidence in his ability than Walcott at the moment and was sorry and surprised that he didnt play against Porto
was awesome today, I like him in the team as he offers something different, can be very direct with the ball and some variety from just pass pass pass when thats not working.
Cheers Rico. How are you?
I agree with KS.
Eboue shows Ade up. In a big way.
I've always loved Eboue since our run to the Paris final. I remember he absolutely murdered juve at highbury from right back. I was upset he didn't play Wednesday, honestly, since he is one of our few players who couldve attacked the space they were giving us. No question he was our best player today.
Good thanks Wrighty, hope all is well with you too?
Great result today and good to see players like Eboue and Theo start to pick their game up, Nik had a slating off Matt Le Tis on Sky Sports, I agree with him sadly...
I love Eboue. To be fair the treatment some fans gave him that day has made him a better player and probably a better person.
In a funny kind of way it's what he needed. If only Ade rolled his socks up.
The booing was mainly cus he always dives etc & on that day he wasn't having a good game.
Completly agree - he was brillant and has been for the past few games - makes me think twice when i get so angry at walcott- eboue deserves his cahnce at rb or as part of the front three
Eboue has shown his strength of character & also improved his game. As an attacking wing back he's was always very strong & lets remember that it was the playing him out of this position that caused him the grief last year.Today he was the best player on the pitch.
Turn coats.
http://www.goals.se/2010/02/20/highlightsother-quality-arsenal-2-0-sunderland/
for the highlights of the game :)
In the time when Arsenal had a partnership with Beveren in Belgium I sometimes went to see Beveren play and when Beveren played in the Belgium cup final he was the best player from Beveren on that day together with Yaya Toure.
I was there and also Wenger was in the stand and saw him play and was impressed by his performance.
So I'm really pleased that he has come good after his bad spell.
Eboue was so fantastic, beautiful to watch, far beta than sagna, attacking n crossing wise. Should nail down d rb slot as his.
All eyes on Denilson,Theo,Clichy,Bentner,Song,Diaby etc..........
Should start selling humble pies at the emirates.
Well said Wrighty - Eboue really worked hard today, I was thrilled for him - his was the only name that was sung around the ground too.
I have been calling for Eboue to be starting matches recently and its good to see he has changed his ways. It just shows what can be done when you grow up and stop all the bullshit.
I remember when he got booed I thought it was totally deserved and still do. I believe if you pay £100 for a ticket or £1500 for season ticket and player is on £30k per week and diving about etc then you have every right to boo. I mean its not like you could go to the AGM and vent and have Bob Wilson saying you are a disgrace.
But the fact he has shown great character to come back makes it all the better and good on him. Should be a regular from now to the end of the season but just remember its only Sunderland. Lets not get carried away. To win anything we need top top players who can also turn it on against the big teams.
Eboue has always been impressive if allowed to played in RB, his natural position. Remember he took the place from Lauren, another great player. It's only the arrival of Sagna (now, another solid player) that has pushed Eboue in the RM position, where he needed time to adapt to the last season. Today he's back to his fav position again and thus the MOTM recognition.
Well said mate! Eboue was fantastic for us today, he offers much more attacking verve that Sagna, though he might not be as effective defending, but he does have pace, and when going forward, he brings that much needed drive and urgency to our attacking play.
what a game the ivorian played, whod know that our right back woulda been our biggest attacking threat all game, even more so than the man sitting infront him who had a abysmal display, non other than our theo.
if all the arsenal players had the same attitude as eboue we would be champions,sometimes some arsenal fans piss me off for slagging their own players,leave the slagging to the media and support every arsenal player,was at the game today and when the PA was calling out the subs fabianski was booed by some fans,he had a poor game but it that a good reason to boo him?
Amazing how todays british media focused on how good Walcott was ??when Eboue was man of the match (along with Song).I criticised him along with everyone else following the Wigan game - but fair F*cks to the guy he has guts and passion!
for the record i don't think he was only being booed for one bad performance. he'd barely put in more than a handful of acceptable performances in closer to 18 months. but yes i think in the frustration of the day people used him as the outlet when much of the frustration seemed to be directed at wenger and other members of the team as well. that said he has done brilliantly this year. he's a little inconsistent at the back in that he makes more errors defensively than sagna, but going forwards he is a different class (and fundamentality stylistically different) from everyone else in the team.
his running has always been direct, he's tricky and he beats people very easily, the issue with him has always been he panics when he gets in the final third and fucks up the simple things after doing the hard work of skinning 3 players. that can't be said of him this season and he's really added something different whilst having more end product. he is the best crosser in the team by a very, very long way. it's infuriating how he is the only player in the squad who will regularly pick out a fast rasping cross head height or on the ground and actually find it's target. even when there's no one on the end of them, his low ones tend to have so much power that anything could happen and the could easily deflect in or bounce to one of our players and that's an incredibly useful tactic to exploit, which he does.
he's also just about our only player who (when he chooses to use his strength) is both power and fast and carries the ball at speed. he breezes past one or two players with ease and i think walcott needs to pay much more attention to cesc and eboue in this respect. cesc doesn't usually carry it at speed but uses his body cleverly to go past people. eboue is much more direct and has absolutely no trouble getting behind players and defenses carrying the ball at speed. walcott's currently not doing either enough and i think he should take much more note of both these guys for that.
for a team that has virtually no penetration at all eboue is a very rare exception who really can cut through defenses with ease. the issue has always been mostly his lack of end product and finally this season we're seeing more consistency in that.
against a lot of teams recently like chelsea we've lacked a player with the guts to run at defenses and ask real questions of them. walcott can and does do this, but he's his own biggest enemy and usually has far more trouble beating players and putting in a good cross than eboue. i can't even believe i'm saying this because, whilst i never booed eboue, i am the first to say when he moved into midfield 2 years ago he barely put in even a couple of tollerable performances in a good 18 months, but he's worked really hard and the guy deserves so much credit for that. i for one now think a lot of him for his character as well as what he contributes and i think frankly (can't believe i'm saying this) a lot of our team could do with a dressing down somewhat and be forced to step up their games as eboue has done. well done to him and let's hope his excellent form can continue because right now he's looking too good to sit on the bench. i'd say he should be on the right wing next game and be left to it.
One good game suddenly He's king midas. Great. Personally i dont rate eboue. But then again i dont rate most of our team. The fact that a player like eboue is guarenteed a place in the Arsenal team is a joke.
Bendtner, Denilson, Diaby And Eboue. 4 Players who should be kicked as far away as they can from the emirates. What happened to the Overmarses, the vieiras, the petits even the reyes! Out of todays 11 only 4 should be there!
Vermaelen
Ramsey
Cesc
Nasri
Rosicky
Sorry Only 5 Should Be There. Long Day!!
The fact that eboues was being touted as man of the match today shows how low the arsenal have sunk. Just another piece of brilliant management from Le Boss. Engineering his own downfall.
Boot wenger up to director of football and appoint a manager that will rip the arse out of the players. Playing coco the clown in goal today was a real 2 fingers up at fabianski. The only way fabianski is going to get his confidence back is by playing in matches. Not dropping him for a half fit goalkeeper.
Wrighty7;
I cannot believe you are slating |Eboue again.... Shame on you!!!
Hahahaha! Only f*ckin about fella!!!
Oh dear, I was joking but looks like we had some doo lally fuckwits on here before me!
Eboue has been fantastic whenever he has played RB this season and deserves all the credit for his performances...
I detest some of our so called support, they suck king king's balls big styleeeee...
man of the match eboue today, defensive, attacking, passing, mentality and commitment was all excellent today plus probably the best crosser in the squad, not surprised seeing all these comments since i always said that eboue is a very very good player but nobody listened just because he doesnt deliver goals or alot of assists like cesc. The way eboue opens up space is unlike anything we have at the moment in the squad the nearest person we've had in the last 2 season has been hleb and rosicky, his performance was excellent man of the match by far he was the only 1 who was attacking an attacking non-stop and penetrating their defences and he will only get better, so glad to see people admiring him again just hope it lasts forever now before fans start moaning again. Interms of the team performance i think nasri had a very good game too he aswell when he plays good his excellent but he needs to be more consistent attacking the left wings coming central going forward these two; eboue and nasri were by far our best attacking players i think song was a rock again lacked a little inch of stamina but can understand, everyone else played well, theo had a descent game too and was fairly impressed with almunias performance i think he made 2 or 3 vital saves so well done. Bendtnerd definitely brings something else to the team although ramsey had a good game too apart from the unforgettable pass he let slip into darren bents path to test almunia, crucial save. But has anybody noticed when we don't play with denilson we have more of a fluent game and control in the midfield hurts me to say an nothing personal because i really want denilson to succeed at arsenal as his come from a difficult place if you know his background an its only his 2nd full season too, plus he will be the player in the future who will be our box to box midfielder an he will improve believe me, so well done to the team today not the best game but even better, learn how to play "JUST GET THEM 3 POINTS IN THE BAG REGARDLESS OF THE" plus saves us more energy as you dont burn more energy than running everywhere counter attacks beautiful football etc, well done to the team, lets focus on stoke now difficult game but bring it on, COME ON ARSENAL!!!
yes arsenal have sunk to third in the league ,2 point behind manure and six behind the chav with a better fixture list.
Let fire Wenger the board for making us one of best team in England and Europe for the last 11 years,one of the most watch team around.let sale the emirate,the players,close everything down like that you can stop moaning all the time .i m really worry about your health......not actually f**K O** we don't need you at arsenal
we have some really strange supporter like the idiot danishgooner.
eboue is maybe not a club legend but he is a cult hero for many
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DuEif0Rpr00
it is not just him but Song and Diaby as well. How we feel their absence this season when they are not around, is a vindication of arsene's belief in them. More than anything, they are loyal to the club and don't flirt around. We cannot spend 500 million and buy what we want, but the home grown players make us gooners proud. I am happy Arsh and Gallas got a well deserved break.
i am a friend of eboue and his family and i can honestly say he is a very nice guy, ive known him since he first joined arsenal and i have always liked him, i didnt understand how arsenal fans can boo off a player of their own team whoever it is. i think denilson has played far worse than eboue has ever played yet he never gets bood and is chosen every week by wenger somehow. when speaking to Eboue about the situation he seemed down but was very determined to get the fans back on his side and i feel he truely deserves a pat on the back.
Walcott's had many more bad games than eboue but has never been booed.
Eboue was Man of the Match yesterday. Theo played well too. But isnt funny the moment Eboue was moved midfield to let Sagna on as a sub, he started giving the ball away. The guy is a right back, arguably one of the finest attacking right backs in the world. He should ONLY play there. A midfielder or wnger he aint.
He did well yesterday but lets be honest, Sunderland were shocking and we were STILL fortunate not to let in a couple of goals.
AW was partly to blame for keep playing Eboue at left midfield!!?? what the fk...he was great at RB all the way to the CL Final but became another Wenger development project. I swear if we had bought Drogba and Ronalado back in the day, they would have been turned into Goalkeepers if the crazy professor had worked with them!
Good win yesterday - scrappy and lucky but who's complaining...on to the next match. If we keep plodding on like this and win the title, who cares...although it would cover up the mediocrity in our team.
Denilson, Bendy, Al the spanish waiter, Silvestre should all be at Bolton IMO. . with Diaby, Clichy and Eboue on 6 month review!
I watched the reserves v Chelsea the other night - why wasnt the likes Fabianski, Silvestre, Traore playing for them and getting match practice??? weird.
Well said Lordgunner,
danishgooner is a spud no doubt.
iv seen the walcott and eboue combination on the right wing.......those 2 r breathtaking they both communicate so well and i think wenger should stick to that combination because it can realli put the shits up any defence.....iv always liked eboue cos hes one of the best players in that team
And one last thing about Emanuel, his head never drops. Sadly, that's not true for many of our young 'stars'.
Let's see then how well Eboue does for the rest of the season. If he keeps this up some of you will have to eat your words.
The thing is that Eboue's attitude is as valuable as his potential contribution.
As for the 'Anonymous' who can't count up to five ... still ignoring Song, Sagna, Clichy, and persisting with digs at Diaby and Eboue ... one wonders whether you've ever been sectioned, because if not, it's not that far off, my friend.
THanx Wrightly good article..
Justice is definitely served here.
DutchGooner10
hear hear. whether you like him or not as a player, you have to give him full man-points for sticking at it and bouncing back the way he has. im not the biggest eboue fan, but i do have a lot of respect for him. and he's importnant for the team as hes the only rb cover and defensive minded wide player we have, as well as a locker-room favourite of the players.
My main problem with Eboue used to be how he'd dive whenever a tackle went near him. Granted, he's not alone in being guilty of that, but it really used to grate.
Saying that, I was at the Wigan game, and didn't agree with the booing at all. We should always support our players, even if they are having a tough time, probably more so if they are having a tough time to be fair.
Let's save our boos for the fuckwits who truly deserve it, like Cashley Cunt, Rooney, Terry and of course anyone who represents those lilywhite shites down the road.
I hope Fabianski can take a leaf out of Manu's book, and put that horriffic display against Porto behind him. I still rate him higher than Manuel 'Keepers are meant to make saves? Never!' Almunia.....
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