Gooner Talk

Arsenal youngster Henri Lansbury put in a Man of the Match display for England Under-21s, as they continued their Euro 2013 qualification with a 4-0 win over Belgium.

Lansbury, currently on-loan at Championship side West Ham, scored a thunderous strike after just nine minutes before Steven Caulker headed in a second on 35 minutes.

The highly-rated 19-year-old added a third seven minutes into the second half, while Arsenal team-mate Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain netted a stoppage-time penalty to secure a comprehensive victory at Middlesbrough’s Riverside Stadium.

Chelsea supporters have lamented the departure of Yossi Benayoun to Arsenal on loan, admitting on a Blues fan site that the Israeli international is ‘better’ than their current midfield options.

The 31-year-old has had a journeyman career in England, playing for West Ham, Liverpool, Chelsea before being loaned out to Arsenal by new boss Andre Villas-Boas on Transfer Deadline Day last September.

Benayoun started against Tottenham in Sunday’s north London derby and impressed with his good ball control and vision in the final third, prompting a Chelsea fan site to ask why they sent him on loan to a rival club.

“He [Benayoun] puts pressure on the Spurs defence and the Arsenal player`s looks towards him for creativity. So I have to ask, why did we loan Benayoun out when we`ve got the likes of Malouda, Kalou, Bosingwa, Meireles and Mikel at the club?”, the article asked.

Following several abject midfield displays from the likes of Florent Malouda and John Obi-Mikel, Chelsea supporters cannot understand how he’s not part of an underachieving Blues squad at Stamford Bridge this season.

“We dont need Malouda, Kalou, Mikel anymore. Benayoun would do much better than either of those”, one fan claimed.

“I cannot understand why Yossi was sent on loan, he’s the closest replacement we have to Mata”, added another supporter.

“He’s an intelligent playmaker. He finds little pockets of space, has good ball control, can dribble in tight areas, and he has the vision to pick out a killer pass”.

Villas-Boas’ side are currently below Arsenal in fifth place although the Gunners are only ahead on goal difference following their win on Sunday

Israeli international Benayoun has netted three goals during his time at Arsenal so far, the most important of which came against Aston Villa in December where he headed in a late winner.

Related Article: Yossi Benayoun selection epitomises Arsenal’s philosophy in derby win

Arsenal fought back from a two-goal deficit to claim all three points from a superb North London derby against Tottenham at Emirates Stadium.

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Arsenal are a top priced 2.6 with Boylesports to bounce back and beat their arch rivals Spurs in the North London derby at the Emirates on Sunday.

This is a game which the two managers go into with contrasting levels of support, with Arsene Wenger is a man under pressure after the Gunners’ 4-0 drubbing in the Champions League at the hands of Ac Milan which was quickly followed by a poor 2-0 defeat at Sunderland.

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Andrey Arshavin is on the verge of rejoining his former team Zenit St Petersberg on loan before Friday night’s Russian transfer deadline, according to Sky Sports.

The Russian midfielder has made most of his 27 appearances this term as a substitute and has fallen down the pecking order at the Emirates, with youngster Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain impressing in recent games.

Gunners boss Arsene Wenger responded to question’s about Zenit’s approach in his pre-North London Derby press conference, saying:

“I have no proof [to see if they've contacted Arshavin personally]. I do not check the phone bills of Andrey Arshavin so I don’t know.”

Arsenal are expected to receive a £1million loan fee for the 30-year-old in a lucrative deal which is likely to cost Zenit around €100k-a-game in wages.

Zenit’s midfield star Danny is currently ruled out for the rest of the season, meaning Arshavin should be able to get plenty of game time ahead of this summer’s European Championships.