OH WHAT A NIGHT...

Just a quick one today as I’m tidying up some bits before I exit back to sunny Miami.

We had our first-ever LIVE London show last night at the Park Theatre, Finsbury Park.

My word, I cannot thank everyone enough who showed up, in the rain, on the last weekend before Christmas, to see The AOP crew. Am I prone to exaggeration? Yes. But not when I say that was one of the most beautiful nights I’ve ever experienced. I’m quite simply every LinkedIn post right now… humbled, overwhelmed, privileged.

I opened the show with a little story about how Le Grove and the AOP begun. It was crazy to meet people after the show who had been following for the best part of 17 years. I can’t believe we’ve been doing this for so long.

Also, special shoutout to NorthBanksy. We tried to work together for something different, but life got in the way, so he very kindly let us use his art for the show… and we all love his work.

We tried to make it worth everyone’s time. It was the normal AOP crew, which was juiced up with Ray Parlour joining the panel. We then closed out the evening with a performance from Johnny and Danny of The Manor, two performers who are doing incredible things at the moment (also some of my favorite Dugout guests to listen to).

The night rolled into the bar after. I got to meet a lot of people I’ve interacted with online via comments, DMs, voice notes, and even occasional slander. It was brilliant. But not as brilliant as having my old man in the audience and being able to give him a shoutout for his work on Le Grove in the old days.

We also closed out the night doing a full theatre Cobra bomb… streets are saying it was the largest joint Cobra bomb that has ever happened. So much Jaeger…

So, in short, we’re going to do that again next year… a bigger, louder, bolder holiday party. So make sure you get your tickets when they land. Thanks to everyone who showed; that was spectacular.

You know what else might be spectacular? Arsenal taking advantage of a Crystal Palace on their knees this month. Oliver Glasner has a taste for cups, but his boys are really struggling at the moment. They were walloped by Leeds, they lost their lead against KuPS in the Conference League, and prior to that, they were manhandled by Man City.

Arsenal need to make it four on the bounce this week. Arteta is going to need to lean in with a heavily rotated 11, but I think that 11 will probably look quite strong.

A lot of the best people I met last night whispered, “I agree with you on Gyokeres, but I can’t speak those words aloud for retribution will be swift.” I will continue to speak up for what is right on this subject, and I think this Palace game is probably going to have to be an evening we send him out to get some confidence. Palace are defensively frail and tired, Gyokeres is mentally frail at the moment, and he looks dead for confidence. That penalty needs to spark something more than sympathy. So I suspect we might see him given some time to prove himself.

Or, Arteta could look at Gabriel Jesus and the record he had against Palace last season. I think he scored five goals past them. This team is his bread and butter… and we’re getting close to the point where you have to let the man take a seat at the starting 11 table. He always looks fit… but, he looks, like, really fit right now. I know I’m falling in love with a player whose body will always break my heart… but come on, let’s do it one more time?

This is a game I don’t want to see Declan and Zubi playing in. It could be a good idea to play Odegaard in that deeper role he was occupying against Everton. Maybe we give Eze a chance to roam and cause some pain with his old club?

Defensively, we don’t seem to have any options outside of Timber at right back. But on the left, it has to be Myles. Centrally, we don’t have a choice outside Hincapie and Bill Saliba.

My worry, one that is always present… is Arteta is now under pressure. He knows the team has been shit. It’s clear confidence going forward isn’t there. I mean, it just feels like the ideas are drying up. Will he see Palace as a chance to rest players… or will he do what he usually does and try to fix the problem in a safer space?

I hope he can take a long-term view of the cup and I hope his analysts are brave enough to show him what City did in the comp, and where they are in the league right now.

You don’t gamble on player fitness in December. You don’t gamble on freshness for a cup that doesn’t matter. The season is long, we have many points to play for, and I don’t want to see a Europa League Sporting moment that derails our season.

Ok, short one today. Have a banger. Speak soon xxx