Our member Muhammad Nasir shares his visit to The Arsenal to watch the team take on Sporting Lisbon and Crystal Palace

Penalty Heartbreak and The Saka Show
Trip report by Muhammad Nasir

It’s been 10 years since my last trip to the Emirates, everyone knows a lot has changed since then. Hence about time to return and thanks to the tickets by Arsenal Singapore, I planned my short London trip to catch both the Europa League match as well as the league game against Crystal Palace.

Everyone talks about the new imagery on the outside walls of the Emirates Stadium and it really is something to behold, especially in the evening as I walk to the stadium for the game against Sporting. While all the artworks are great, the one that really caught the eye is the multi flag supporters artwork, illuminated by the pink Emirates Stadium sign – awesome!

As for the match itself, wow what a long game! To be honest we didn’t play well for large parts of the game and that was evident in the crowd as well – doing our best to encourage the team with a slight edge of frustration at the mistakes and decision making. Fortunately (or not) we had great seats at the side of the pitch where both goals were scored and the penalties were being taken. That meant that I had a clear view of the long range shot and also had to watch the Sporting players celebrate in front of their away fans! Nonetheless, despite the defeat and the long cold night (which resulted in a large crowd at the tube station before the last train) – nothing beats watching the team live after such a long time!

The Crystal Palace game was such a contrast – brilliant weather, dominant performance and as Amy Lawrence mentioned – continuous chanting in support of Patrick Viera. The atmosphere felt a lot ‘stronger’ in a way – it’s as if everyone in the stadium subconsciously wants the league title a lot more than the Europa League. Where we were seated – we also had a bit of smoke come our way from the away fans’ flares (another new experience) but we had superb views of the first 2 goals too from Saka and Martinelli. The first goal really sparked crazy celebrations, it’s as if we all knew that the game was more or less ours already! Aside from the win, when watching the team live, a few players stood out – Ben White and Xhaka for their pure athleticism; they looked really strong and aggressive the whole game, and also Martin Odegaard. Our captain is clearly super skillful, but also obvious how much ground he covers and to follow it up with his magic in the final third is really outstanding (Chapeau!)

Apart from the games, I had a memorable time walking around the stadium – I managed to find my ‘Arsenal stone’ at the North Bank, which was a gift from my wife back in 2015. Such an amazing feeling when we finally located it, we were wondering what had happened since our order several years back, happy to see its part of the stadium now. Also great to meet fellow Singapore Gooners – Simon, Billy and Aloysius (when are you guys going back again? :P)

Finally, massive thanks for Arsenal Singapore for supporting us with the tickets – Dhanesh and Connie, big appreciation! Email communications were smooth and no issues at all with payment, etc.
COYG!

Our member Joel Thong shares his visit to The Arsenal to watch the team take on Bournemouth

It was a lovely Saturday afternoon in North London walking to the Emirates. As a fan for the past 22 years, I was brimming with anticipation at the chance to visit our home ground for my first competitive live Arsenal match. Many, like myself, were expecting a whooping. 3-0 was a common score in conversations on the way to the stadium.

Alas, it was not the start we wanted when Bournemouth scored after 9 seconds straight from kickoff. The whole stadium (except for the away fans below us at the clock end) was stunned. Nevertheless, the spectators rallied behind the team and egged the boys on.

We plugged away and created some chances but lacked a true cutting edge and after Bournemouth scored the second goal in the 57th minute, it was starting to feel like one of those nights. Tensions were visibly mounting and frustrations from the stands were starting to kick in. However, In true Arsenal style, Thomas Partey – who has been a real boss in midfield for us this season, pulled back a goal after ESR’s looping header into the box. This relieved some of the pressure and the fans were starting to sing again. Substitute Ben White then leveled the game in the 70th minute and the stadium roared back to life. We had 20 minutes to chase the winning goal and you can feel all the supporters in red and white collectively willing the team to push for it.

When THAT Nelson goal hit the back of the net, my word – the whole place was bouncing. It was as brilliant as any atmosphere I have felt at a sporting venue and the whole Arsenal family celebrated as one. You might have seen some of the celebrations on TV and I can tell you it was every bit as wild as the broadcast showed. Players ran to the stands to celebrate (Gabriel, Zinny, and of course our skipper Martin who never once looked like giving up and took every opportunity to spur the crowd on). Sweet Caroline was sung long after the final whistle.

I am extremely fortunate and was extremely excited to visit the Emirates   Many, like myself, were expecting a whooping. 3-0 was a common score in conversations on the way to the stadium.

Alas, it was not the start we wanted when Bournemouth scored after 9 seconds straight from kickoff. The whole stadium (except for the away fans below us at the clock end) was stunned. Nevertheless, the spectators rallied behind the team and egged the boys on.

We played decent and created some chances but lacked a true cutting edge and after Bournemouth scored the second goal in the 57th minute, it was starting to feel like one of those nights. Tensions were visibly mounting and frustrations from the stands were starting to kick in. However, In true Arsenal style, Thomas Partey – who has been a real boss in midfield for us this season, pulled back a goal after ESR’s looping header into the box. This relieved some of the pressure and the fans were starting to sing again. Substitute Ben White then leveled the game in the 70th minute and the stadium roared back to life. We had 20 minutes to chase the winning goal and you can feel all the supporters in red and white collectively willing the team to push for it.

When THAT Nelson goal hit the back of the net, my word – the whole place was bouncing. It was as brilliant as any atmosphere I have felt at a sporting venue and the whole Arsenal family celebrated as one. You might have seen some of the celebrations on TV and I can tell you it was every bit as wild as the broadcast showed. Players ran to the stands to celebrate (Gabriel, Zinny, and of course our skipper Martin who never once looked like giving up and took every opportunity to spur the crowd on). Sweet Caroline was sung long after the final whistle.

I am extremely fortunate to have the chance to witness this as my very first Arsenal game. and a huge thank you as well to Arsenal SG for this opportunity. Looking forward to cheering on the lads at WTF as we approach the final few weeks of the season. Victory Through Harmony. Let’s bring it home, boys.

Our member Jake Chia shares his visit to The Arsenal to watch the team take on Brentford

Since visiting the Emirates Stadium tour last year without witnessing a live match, I promised to make a trip back to catch the Gunners in action this year. 

Brentford started the match very strongly and defended in the most discipline fashion to fend off our Gunners attacks. We played with a braver heart in the 2nd half and scored a brilliant goal with Trossard opening his scoring account. 

Not the best result we would had wished for, but definitely glad that Trossard erupted the entire stadium with his debut goal for Arsenal! And as we all should know by now, VAR again did us a big disfavor on such an important match. We need better consistency on this technology, such an irony!

It’s a dream come true to be watching Live at this amazing stadium and we truly thank Arsenal Singapore from the bottom of our hearts for this splendid arrangement. 

We are the Arsenal, Come On You Gunners! #COYG