About Hugo Greenhalgh

Hugo is co-founder and editor of The False Nine and a contributor to When Saturday Comes, In Bed With Maradona, Late Tackle and the Arsenal Collective. He can be found following his favourite clubs: Arsenal and Dulwich Hamlet.

Denilson – the Unlikely Arsenal Regular

Posted on October 9, 2013 by Hugo Greenhalgh

Hugo Greenhalgh, editor of The False Nine, profiles Denilson – a player who came to define an era of Arsenal mediocrity…

It can be difficult growing up in the shadow of your namesake. For Denílson Pereira Neves, formerly of Arsenal, the legacy of Denílson de Oliveira Araújo perhaps brought unfair expectations. Denilson the Elder, as we’ll call him, played in two World Cup Finals and was at one time the most expensive player in the world when he was signed by Real Betis for £21.5 million in 1998. Denilson the Younger has never received a senior cap.

Incidentally, both players began their careers at Sao Paulo. The Younger joined Arsenal at the age of 18 for a fee of £3.4 million in August 2006, although the move was somewhat overshadowed by the loan signing of compatriot Julio Baptista from Real Madrid on transfer deadline day. Having played just 374 minutes for Sao Paulo, Denilson arrived as something of an unknown quantity. Even Brazilian commentators questioned the move; “He had played only a few times for his club. He was discreet, he never stood out. I only saw him a couple of times; he was basically a reserve,” said Tostao, a member of Brazil’s 1970 World Cup-winning side. Arsene Wenger offered an intriguing description of what the young Brazilian might have to offer, stating that Denilson was “a little bit in between Tomas Rosicky and Gilberto”. Continue reading →

Arsenal, Özil and Arsene Wenger’s Nation-building

Posted on September 13, 2013 by Hugo Greenhalgh

TFN editor Hugo Greenhalgh considers the rise of Arsenal’s Germanic era following previous regimes that brought French and Spanish twists to the club…

A strange mood exists amongst Arsenal supporters at present. The signing of a genuinely world-class player in Mesut Özil seems to have not so much papered over cracks but brushed aside deficiencies. Though not the top-level striker or (with all due respect to Mathieu Flamini) defensive midfielder Arsenal were said to have needed this summer, when a player of the German’s calibre becomes available it’s simply irresponsible to say no.

Much has been written on how the German playmaker will fit into the side tactically but his signing also represents something more as a continuation of Arsene Wenger’s policy of ‘nation-building’.

The Frenchman is no stranger to tapping into the ripest international stocks of talent. His great Double-winning Arsenal sides of 1998 and 2002 coincided with a period of extraordinary success for the French National Team and Patrick Vieira, Nicholas Anelka, Emmanuel Petit, Thierry Henry, Sylvain Wiltord and Robert Pires were all key contributors towards this lucrative period for both club and country. French squad players were also added such as Remi Garde and Giles Grimandi who played their part for the club too.

Of course, it helped that France was Wenger’s homeland and the country he knew best but the French weren’t the only group of compatriots whose relationship off the pitch was beneficial to Arsenal during these eras. In his first full season at Arsenal, Wenger splashed £5.5 million on Marc Overmars, the Dutch and former Ajax teammate of Dennis Bergkamp. This pairing proved highly creative and effective in Wenger’s first Double of 1997/8. Continue reading →

Jordan Henderson and Aaron Ramsey: Undroppable Footsoldiers of the Revolution

Posted on September 4, 2013 by Hugo Greenhalgh

Jordan-Henderson-Aaron-Ramsey-Arsenal-Liverpo_2638843

Having enjoyed quietly assured starts to the season, James Dutton and Hugo Greenhalgh assess the rising fortunes of Jordan Henderson and Aaron Ramsey – the undroppable footsoldiers of the revolution…

After a low-key opening three weeks to the 2013-4 Premier League season, 58 goals scored at a rate of less than two per game is a significant departure from the norm. And yet the focus of this season’s infancy has not been shone towards rejuvenated swashbuckling defences, but to the goal scorers making the difference at the ‘business end’ of the pitch.

Daniel Sturridge and Olivier Giroud have attracted headlines for possessing predatory instincts that have fired Liverpool and Arsenal towards the top of the table, and currently the pair share the golden boot berth with Christian Benteke.

Scratch underneath the surface, however, and you will find an unlikely duo who are no less vital to their respective sides, who provide the elbow grease and unstinting work ethic without which the teams would self-implode. The beginning of this new league season has witnessed the continued renaissance of Jordan Henderson and Aaron Ramsey, and confirmed their centrality to how Liverpool and Arsenal perform. Continue reading →

Steve Bruce’s new look Hull can beat the drop

Posted on August 20, 2013 by Hugo Greenhalgh

TFN’s Hugo Greenhalgh has faith in Steve Bruce to guide Hull to safety…

“It’s funny, my daughter & missus are coming to Chelsea today – I don’t think they’re coming to look at me”, Steve Bruce quipped before Hull’s game on Sunday. Yet the way Bruce has been acting in his interviews and on the touchline, his motives for coming to West London were exactly the same: to get up close and personal with Jose Mourinho.

It was like watching an elderly history teacher who has taken a shine to a younger and more extrovert language teacher, returning from a sabbatical in Europe and Bruce had already been lavishing praise on Mou in his pre-match press conference. “The fact that Jose is back is a ‘wow’”, he said. “I’m delighted he’s back because we need people like him. He’s quite remarkable in what he has done and not just at Chelsea; he’s gone to Italy and done it; he’s gone to Spain and done it; he started in Portugal and done it.”

In the dying moments of the first half, with Chelsea leading 2-0 and in control, the Stamford Bridge crowd were also treated to a legitimate example of goal line technology. Branislav Ivanovic’s header was indeed clawed off the line, although replays showed just how close it was. Meanwhile, Bruce strolled over to Mourinho by the dugout, laughing and holding his hands up in mock prayer. Did he actually care or was this just an opportunity for some small talk? Continue reading →

Nicklas Bendtner: the Danish party boy who refused to grow up

Posted on August 7, 2013 by Hugo Greenhalgh

As the Danish striker’s time at Arsenal comes to a close, Hugo Greenhalgh wonders where it all went wrong for Nicklas Bendtner…

In the same way that a stereotype can often contain a heavy dose of truth, a brief, personal anecdote epitomised all the expectations of a certain footballer. On a recent flight back from Copenhagen I was convinced I had seen Nicklas Bendtner boarding the same plane. But what was a Premier League footballer doing flying EasyJet? Arriving at London Gatwick I called, ‘Nick’. He turned around to reveal a puffy-eyed and scruffy visage, topped off with a backwards baseball cap. ‘Where have you been?’, I asked.

‘Vegas.’ Continue reading →

TFN’s Pre-Season Picks

Posted on July 6, 2013 by Hugo Greenhalgh

It’s that time of year again. Players are returning to their clubs to start training and pre-season has begun. The False Nine have scoured the schedules of clubs up and down the country and picked out some of our favourite pre-season friendlies…

1. Whitehawk vs. Brighton and Hove Albion – 6^th July, The Enclosed Ground

Brighton won many plaudits last season for the attractive football played under Gus Poyet and new manager Oscar Garcia has promised to maintain this style. As a former Barcelona player and youth manager, Garcia is no stranger to attacking, free-flowing play. In his first friendly at the helm, Brighton take on Whitehawk, a local non-league side who won promotion to the Conference South last season. Recently, a plan was floated to change their name to ‘Brighton City’ in order to put them on the map but for now they remain as Whitehawk. Does this represent something of a local ‘Brighton Derby’ then? Ties between the clubs are not uncommon and Whitehawk are managed by former Brighton winger Darren Freeman. Continue reading →

Paris Saint-Germain: Wenger the wanted man as PSG draw Blancs

Posted on June 27, 2013 by Hugo Greenhalgh

Hugo Greenhalgh believes that PSG’s most recent managerial appointment is proof they have some way to go before they can dine out with Europe’s football elite…

The second half of last season was defined to a certain degree by a series of well-publicised open secrets that quickly unravelled to become common knowledge. Jose Mourinho would be leaving Real Madrid and his position would be taken by PSG manager Carlo Ancelotti. Roberto Mancini was to be shown the door at Manchester City and replaced by Manuel Pellegrini. A managerial merry-go-round of sorts was about to be set in motion. Continue reading →

The False Nine

An analytical and satirical digest.

Author Archives: Hugo Greenhalgh