And so Arsenal's 'kids and reserves' have made it to the Carling Cup Final. Well done them.
So just who is in this 'reserve' side then?
Certainly not World Cup winner Gilberto Silva? Not Champions League, World Cup and European Championships star Tomas Rosicky? Or Kolo Toure, World Cup player and a man who's made over 200 appearances for Arsenal?
What about £7m striker Emmanuel Adebayor? First team defender Phillipe Senderos? And the man, well boy, that Arsene Wenger considered was good enough to pay £12m for, Theo Walcott. Not to mention £4m buys Denilson and Diaby. And although he was injured last night, the man who has almost single handedly got them to the final, Julio Baptista, who Real Madrid paid a rather large £22m for just 18 months ago.
So basically, it's the first team minus Henry and Lehmann. Hardly the stiffs is it?
Yet we've had to put up with jokes about how young this side is, none more so than when they walloped us in that freak 6-3 win, scoring with virtually every shot they had.
Could we get to the final without using Gerrard and Reina? Well, it would depend if Dudek was playing, but I reckon we could. We got to the semis playing reserves, proper reserves, two years ago, beating a full strength Spurs at White Hart Lane on the way. Pity poor Spurs.
The over-hyping of this Arsenal side is yet another example of London bias. How else can you explain the bollocks that we've had to listen to saying that we have to be more like them when we are above them in the league and our manager took just 11 months to do something that theirs hasn't in 11 years.
It seems as though we are copying Wenger's blueprint by signing quality young players, a raft of them have come in in the past few weeks. With Padelli, Leto, Insua, Brouwer, Ajdarevic and Duran joining the likes of El Zhar and Roque, Rafa should be getting some sort of award for creating an international youth hostel at the academy.
No doubt we all hope that the system pays off, but holding Wenger and this Arsenal side up as shining beacons of hope that we all have to copy? Give me a break.
So just who is in this 'reserve' side then?
Certainly not World Cup winner Gilberto Silva? Not Champions League, World Cup and European Championships star Tomas Rosicky? Or Kolo Toure, World Cup player and a man who's made over 200 appearances for Arsenal?
What about £7m striker Emmanuel Adebayor? First team defender Phillipe Senderos? And the man, well boy, that Arsene Wenger considered was good enough to pay £12m for, Theo Walcott. Not to mention £4m buys Denilson and Diaby. And although he was injured last night, the man who has almost single handedly got them to the final, Julio Baptista, who Real Madrid paid a rather large £22m for just 18 months ago.
So basically, it's the first team minus Henry and Lehmann. Hardly the stiffs is it?
Yet we've had to put up with jokes about how young this side is, none more so than when they walloped us in that freak 6-3 win, scoring with virtually every shot they had.
Could we get to the final without using Gerrard and Reina? Well, it would depend if Dudek was playing, but I reckon we could. We got to the semis playing reserves, proper reserves, two years ago, beating a full strength Spurs at White Hart Lane on the way. Pity poor Spurs.
The over-hyping of this Arsenal side is yet another example of London bias. How else can you explain the bollocks that we've had to listen to saying that we have to be more like them when we are above them in the league and our manager took just 11 months to do something that theirs hasn't in 11 years.
It seems as though we are copying Wenger's blueprint by signing quality young players, a raft of them have come in in the past few weeks. With Padelli, Leto, Insua, Brouwer, Ajdarevic and Duran joining the likes of El Zhar and Roque, Rafa should be getting some sort of award for creating an international youth hostel at the academy.
No doubt we all hope that the system pays off, but holding Wenger and this Arsenal side up as shining beacons of hope that we all have to copy? Give me a break.
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