Arsenal news/links, April 13

I'll be filling in for Thomas, today, everyone: try not to treat this like your principal is filling in for your favorite history teacher who suddenly took ill. Put away your iPhones, everyone--yes, you, Twin Cities Hawk, put it away. Away. Thanks.

I'm having one of those weeks where I think it's next week this week; this probably has something to do with Arsenal playing Chelsea, a match for which I am very stoked. I'm less stoked, thusly, about Arsenal facing Wigan on Monday while I am at work. I'm only human. I will, however, watch some Liverpool-Everton FA Cup semifinal action tomorrow real early in the morning, despite my inevitable confusion.

And speaking of confusion, hoo boy, the FA. The verdicts are in, and they reflect justified bafflement at the Football Association's decisions. Arsene Wenger thinks the FA is too fearful of change. Arseblog agrees, and finds it dangerous that a man who barely touched Ashley Young (there's got to be a better way to say that) gets his ban upheld, while a man who mistook Alex Song's thigh for the top of a garden spade gets no additional punishment aside from the one he got for all the other silly things he did on Saturday.

In other news, it's looking 100% certain that Jack Wilshere will not take the pitch in anger for Arsenal this season. There are five games left; there's just not enough time to make it worth the risk. If he plays in the Euros and then the preseason for Arsenal, hopefully that will allow him to shake off any rust, but as with Aaron Ramsey, we must remember that he's missed an entire year of development, and one hopes that he can get back up to speed quickly.

In that vein, over at A Cultured Left Foot, One Of Us reminds us that judging young players is not really a scientific pursuit, and that we must be careful not to come to conclusions. I must admit feeling a little wary around discussion of a certain Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in this regard, no matter how much I may love him as a player. He is very young yet.

Not so young is Yossi Benayoun, the focus of a column from Arsenal...erm...Column this week. I think we'd all agree that if he doesn't sign on with Arsenal, if Yossi got 40 games for Swansea next year and led them to Europe, we'd all be happy for him (assuming it didn't happen at the expense of Arsenal).

Untold Arsenal examines the development of Wojciech Szczesny and Arsenal's keeper situation for next year.

And finally, apropos of nothing, Alan Moore, the man behind all your favorite graphic novels, and his caption on the BBC.

Oh, and, a poll: