Emiliano Viviano is having a season to forget

Fans would be forgiven to question who you meant if you mention goalkeeper Emiliano Viviano. The Italian, on loan from Serie B side Palermo, is having a season to forget while on loan for Arsenal this season, in fact he literally has no first team football to remember as he hasn't made a single appearance in between the sticks.

He has played for the under-21s however...but just the once. It was a non-first team debut for the 28-year-old which went horrendously as he picked the ball out the net five times, in their 5-1 defeat against Sunderland Under-21s four months ago! He hasn't featured since.

Lukas Fabianski was given the starting place in goal for our 4-1 win against Everton in Saturday's FA Cup quarter-final match with Viviano benched. Only the evening before had Viviano tweeted a picture of himself all geared up for the big game. I do feel a little bad for the guy.

Emiliano Viviano tweeted this pic on his official Twiter Friday night, with
some fans thinking he may have been ready for a first team call up against Everton (image courtesy of www.hereisthecity.com). 

He was brought into the squad as an understudy to polish keepers Wojciech Szczesny and Fabianski on transfer deadline day back in August, though his move was overshadowed by the arrival of Mesut Ozil kinda understandably.

I guess some loan signings work while others don't. With not too much of the season left as things get serious, Wenger isn't exactly likely to shift Szczesny from the No.1 spot while Fabianki, when called upon, has been good back-up.

AC Milan and Bologna are reportedly tracking Viviano who would have been hoping to make an impression with the FIFA World Cup coming this summer. I fear for Viviano, that unless we have secured the Premier League with a game(s) to spare, he has no chance of featuring for us at all while on loan from Palermo.

His only job thus far has been keeping the sub seat warm, at least occasionally.

Viviano playing for Bologna in 2011.

Lost: Mesut Ozil. £42.5m reward if found.

Last week's UEFA Champions League match against Bayern Munich was a game of what ifs. What if Szczesny wasn't sent off? What if Ozil had scored our early penalty? We responded well following the 2-0 defeat, albeit against a weak looking Sunderland, but one player who sat out for the league game, Ozil, becomes centre of attention for my latest blog post.

I think the criticism of the midfielder is a fair one, especially as you know the quality he has. I wrote about the media's criticism of him only last month and so it seems not much has changed. Wenger said he missed last weekend's Premier League action due to injury but perhaps some time out to consider his performances and all the abilities needed in English football would be a good thing for Mesut.

We know he settled in immediately following his £42.5m summer transfer deadline day move from Real Madrid but he is a shadow of the player we saw at the beginning of the season, and he certainly looks missing when he features in the big games.

Today Arsene Wenger has revealed Ozil is struggling to stay settled at the Emirates Stadium according to the London Evening Standard. However Wenger quite rightly will not allow Ozil to 'shoulder the burden' of our Premier League title drive.

The players were given a two-day break at the start of this week which they are fully deserving following all the football they have played over the previous two weeks. Ozil is fit to play against Stoke tomorrow but I think the 25-year-old might need a little more than a couple of days rest to evaluate himself.

He needs to work a lot harder on his defensive game which is something he was less accustomed to doing in Spanish football. This is a good argument as to why the Premier League is much harder, and a player who fits Ozil's price tag must be equipped for all areas of play. Perhaps though he is missing the lack of really big names ahead and around him. When you consider his time at Madrid he had the likes of Benzema and Ronaldo to play with and set-up for fun. Going forward is his forte but with us his only option is often Giroud.

Ozil is recognised globally as one of the best playmakers in the world and so he should be in with a shout of a place in Germany's World Cup squad, but poor his form speaks a lot. Draxler, Kroos and Muller can play his position and they aren't bad names to call upon as replacements.

If I was in Wenger's position, I would sit Ozil out for a week or two and take it from there. What he doesn't need is the fans getting on his back. The Ozil we knew is lost but he will be found.

Arsenal play Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium tomorrow at 3pm GMT.

Ozil: going through a difficult time (courtesy of London Evening Standard).

Arsene Wenger: "The referee made the decision that killed the game" - Bayern get lucky advantage due to bad referee decision

First of all this is not one of those bias fan pieces...I do try to be fair and honest even though I am a die hard Arsenal fan, and secondly this isn't a disgruntled fan's ramble either - though I am obviously disappointed in the result. Having said that many readers will probably disagree with me and still think I am looking for excuses when I say that the referee made TWO bad decisions in both awarding Bayern's penalty and sending off Szczesny at the same time.

After a bright start by us, Bayern began to find their way in the match, and somewhat thanks to our heads dropping as a result of Mesut Ozil's previously saved spot kick.

Bayern's much talked about penalty was awarded later on in the first half when Arjen Robben latched onto a chipped ball over the defence. He stretched out a leg aiming to bring the ball down with Szczesny coming out to meet him. Now Robben's touch wasn't great as the ball veered off to the left of goal but there was contact made by the winger and keeper. The ball had passed Robben though but regardless, the ref pointed to the spot and showed Szczesny red.

I've watched it again, and again, oh and again (and a few more times after that) and yes the rules state it's a penalty if there's contact but it's very much Robben ensuring he gets the decision. I can understand if Szczesny full on wipes him out directly in front of him but for me Robben's lost control of the ball. Furthermore, Sagna was back to cover immediately and, regardless of Jamie Redknapp's view on Sky Sports' coverage, if Robben genuinely thought he had the easy chance of getting around Szczesny following the touch (I really don't think he did), he would've just poked the goal into the net to score (rather than have his side take a chance from the spot). Thus, it was not exactly a goal scoring opportunity with the ball running away from goal.

Arjen Robben, known for his theatrics, in action against his former side Chelsea.

It was a decision which changed the game that's for sure and from that point in we faced an uphill struggle with Bayern controlling the rest of the game. In the end we lost by two pretty good goals by Kroos and Muller, there's no denying that, but it's how the game changed from our point of view, after that red card.

Wenger faced the difficult decision of who to bring off for Fabianski (who had another decent game in Szczesny's absence) and Santi Cazorla was the unfortunate player to make way. A bit like when we played Barcelona in the 2006 UEFA Champions League final, he made a bad decision when he brought off Pires following Lehmann's red card in Paris that night. Last night though Ozil should have been Wenger's choice to make way for Fabs, particularly on hindsight - that wonderful thing.

Ozil has faced some criticism recently and last night he looked lost again; a far cry from the player who first arrived at the Emirates Stadium on transfer deadline day. He missed an early penalty last night as he strolled up to his penalty and calmly placed his shot against the strong palm of Manuel Neuer. He didn't seem to recover from his poor penalty.

Lost: Mesut Ozil.

A friend asked me what scoreline I would pick if I depended on it and I said a two nil or three nil Bayern win so I guess overall it ended as I expected. But it really was a game of what ifs though you have to accept it as what's happened has happened.

Is the tie over? Probably. But we faced a two goal deficit going to the Allianz Arena last year and won 2-0 and, if we play like we did then and show the intensity as we did prior to last night's sending off, who's to say we can't turn this tie around.

Click here (opens in new tab) for Wenger's post-match press conference where he also discusses the ref's decision and Ozil.

Thanks for reading and queue the trolling (most probably from non Arsenal fans).

Arsenal v Bayern Munich in 2013 (lost 1-3).

Arsenal v Manchester United: Opportunity to prove Liverpool result a one-off

Has it sunk in yet?

I was unable to get out a post after the Anfield demolishing, though I think I'd have struggled to find the words following that game.

It's a result the players need to quickly put behind them and I am sure it is simply a one-off. As much as we were far from a decent team on Saturday we did at least do a little better in the second half which in itself ended 1-1.

Looking at the month, the Liverpool match was seen as the start of a difficult period and the way in which we fell at their feet does not bode well for the forthcoming fixtures, but with Manchester United rocking this season, we have a great opportunity tonight to respond.

We have been playing good football on the whole this season and have done well to be in with a real chance of winning the Premier League for the first time in a while. Saturday lunchtime however showed why we may end up behind the likes of Manchester City and Chelsea though as collectively we just never looked up for it.

With Flamini missing through suspension there was no cover or communication at the back while our back four were unable to cope with Liverpool's attacking threat. The midfield were undone and closed down at every opportunity by the hosts, Ozil looked particularly poor, and Giroud had no service to do any potential danger in their half.

For me Arteta proved exactly why he should not be a defensive midfielder but as I said, it was not an individual performance that let us down here - apart from Wilshere and Oxlade Chamberlain, nobody looked up for this and even with the lack of service for Giroud, as a Premier League forward he still isn't good enough to be a leading striker for our club. Ozil has continued recently to show he isn't worthy of the £42m price tag - is he missing the winter break he became accustomed to Spain? He looked to have settled in straight away when he moved to Arsenal on transfer deadline day but we've seen nothing of the player as we did then.

Fortunately, Flamini is set for his return against United tonight where our defence will be up against Rooney and Van Persie; no easy task after being undone against the attacking force of Liverpool just days before! Still, I believe that was a one-off, as for however good Liverpool were, we certainly played a part in their demolition job.

Still we have the chance to prove this as a one-off when Brendan Rodgers' side travel down to the Emirates Stadium for the F.A Cup on Sunday. But before then we have the big match tonight and a chance to gear ourselves up, and make the Emirates a real fortress this month!

Sturridge was one of the scorers in Liverpool's 5-1 win at Anfield.

Ozil is the business

A couple of days late I may be but first off, welcome to Arsenal Mesut Ozil.

To say Arsene has pulled off a great bit of work here is an understatement. Ozil has proven himself at the highest level and I can't wait to see him start playing for us.

On Monday I fully expected Demba Ba and Angel Di Maria to sign but when I heard Ozil was undergoing a medial (which seemed to drag on) I was still more than happy. I still hoped Wenger would bring in another striker and I am a fan of Ba, but Giroud is in good form so let's hope that continues!

Is the reported fee of £42.4m a bit too much? I'd say so for one player but then I think I've heard of some other players going for more...

Add to the fact Wenger hasn't spent the millions compared to other clubs in recent years, and not even a penny this summer, to spend this amount of money on a world class player doesn't sound too bad.

Ozil becomes the third German over the last couple of years to sign for the Gunners, and he will be welcomed by his fellow international team-mates Per Mertesacker and Lukas Podolski. I can't wait to see Podolski and Ozil link up together, as well as see our new number 11 play alongside other creative talent in Santi Cazrola and Jack Wilshere.

Nobody would have thought Arsenal would've been able to bring in an established player considering their apparently deteriorating status as a footballing force.

Morale will be high at the Emirates however with Arsenal on a good run, and having made one of the best signings possible. It seems, Mesut Ozil is already a fan favourite, and he hasn't even kicked a ball in Arsenal colours! I'm more than tempted to buy a shirt with his name on.

Podolski celebrates with Ozil, as the new signing looks ahead to joining up
with the Arsenal team after the international break

Arsenal also brought in Emiliano Viviano on loan from Palermo on transfer deadline day. The Italian keeper will be in contention with Szczesny and Fabianki for the number 1 jersey, but Szczesny is in top form and it would be difficult to drop him.

Arsene has finally done business that fans have been shouting out for. He surprised us, like he said, and he's acquired one of the best players in the world. These could be exciting times for the club.

New loanee Emiliano Viviano