Invisiblewall.net: Gilberto Silva News

Gilberto subbed on against Zagreb

Gilberto being subbed on

Gilberto was subbed on when Arsenal were 1-0 down against Dinamo Zagreb last night in the European Qualifying match.

Walcott and Henry were the other two players to be subbed on shortly after that, and as a result, Arsenal came back to win 2-1. (Though I’m sure Gilberto was the real reason for this.)

Gilberto adjusts his shoelace

Gilberto replaces Hleb

Gilberto didn’t start the game because Wenger was giving him a rest. Gilberto has been a busy boy this summer with world cup action and Brazilian friendlies on top of that.

Ljungberg took care of the captains armband for Gilberto and Henry as he led an exceptionally young Arsenal side.

Gilberto comes on and shouts some stuff

Gilberto gets fouled, but hurries to get on with the game

Gilberto is now ready for the away game at Manchester City this Saturday. He will be eating Coco Pops in preparation of the big game.

Gilberto bumbles about the end celebrating the win

Good luck for Saturday, Bert!

Today, Gilberto’s equaliser against Aston Villa put him in the Arsenal history books as the first ever Arsenal player to score in a competetive game at Ashburton Grove.

Gilberto celebrates his equalizer

Gilberto hoofed the ball into the top of the net from 6 yards out. Here is the video:

He had a solid game in midfield, and had a lot of work to do, since most of the Arsenal players on the field were attacking during the game.

A draw was a flattering result for Aston Villa, since Arsenal dominated the game – but let’s hope Arsenal can go on under Thierry and Gilberto’s leadership to win more games.

Here is Gilberto talking about the game: “After Saturday’s game, we were a bit upset not to have got the result. We wanted to win our first match here. Now, we have to think about the next game. It is very important to have Champions League football here. We have only done the first part. We need to complete the job here at home in front of our supporters. I think we will do it to qualify for the Champions League.”

Go Bert:

Gilberto was one of the Brazilian players from the world cup not to have been axed by new coach Dunga. Dunga is Gilberto’s childhood idol, so this is very nice for Bert. Ronaldinho, Ronaldo, Emerson and R.Carlos were among the Brazilian stars not selected for the game.

Brazil played Norway in Oslo, and the game finished 1-1. About the only notable thing Gilberto did was not get injured. I suppose that’s good.

Gilberto will fly back to England today to start preparations with Arsenal for the Aston Villa game on Saturday. Go Bert.

Gilberto on Theo…

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Theo should definitely have a few more chances this season but I trust Arsene to be careful enough in his introduction.

You have not seen the kid play a game for us but, in practice, he’s fast and skilful enough to raise eyebrows.

Give him time and Theo could prove to be an amazing signing.

We can’t come out of the blocks as slowly as we did in 2005 because we’ll get punished.

It will obviously be quite strange to move house, especially for me. I had so many amazing times at Highbury.

But the Emirates Stadium is our new fortress and we should try to create a new atmosphere as soon as possible. Let’s make it a cauldron.

…And Hleb

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Yes, I think we will see even better performances from him. Sometimes when you have a problem, especially when you have just come to the country and you need to adapt to a new system and a new team, you need time.

It was difficult for him in the beginning but now he’s OK. I think this season for him will be much, much better. I think it will be better for him and for us as well. He looks stronger, more confident. Of course it is not just about Hleb needing time to adapt, it was difficult for us all at the start of last season and I think it would have been different for him if the team as a whole had been playing well, like we were maybe two years before.

But now he has adapted and this could be a big season for him.

Hooray.

Thierry Henry reveals Gilberto as one of Arsenal’s “BIG THREE” for this season, and announces him as vice captain.

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In my first column as Arsenal skipper at the start of last season, I said there must always be more than one leader in a team.

It’s vital to have three or four. Apart from myself, I felt Sol Campbell, Dennis Bergkamp and Ashley Cole all had massive contributions to make in this relatively young team.

Sol, Dennis and possibly Ashley, Robert Pires has also left us. It’s a big shame they’ve all gone.

But while some incredibly influential players have left, I’m certain three more Arsenal players will now make an even greater contribution to the team this season.

I’m talking about Jens Lehmann, Kolo Toure and Gilberto. They will become our new leaders.

They’re no longer the new guys at this club and there is no doubt those three will help this team build on what we delivered last season — starting with Aston Villa next Saturday.

I can reveal Gilberto will be my vice-captain and, while he’s hardly a screamer, he calms the team down. He’s Brazilian. He’s chilled.

Superb! Great words from Thierry Henry there, and great news for Gilberto!

May Gilberto’s season start better than it did last season. With no injury this season, it won’t be hard.

Gilberto: “Not a time to relax”

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Our always-cautious Gilberto has been warning Arsenal not to be complacent in their next European Qualifying game. Gilberto CAPTAINED Arsenal in the absence of Thierry Henry, and he bossed the midfield during the 3-0 victory. He said:

It was important for us because we have an advantage, but it is not time to relax. We will go back home and concentrate on what we have to do in the second game.

However, Gilberto has lavished praise on the youngsters at Arsenal. In Arsenal’s 3-0 over Zagreb earlier in the week, Gilberto (age 29) was the only player over 25. He said:

I think the youngsters will improve a lot because they have more experience now. It is a bit too early now to say too many things, but they have a hunger inside them to improve and help the team. Cesc Fabregas will improve more from the last year, and it all comes naturally to him. Cesc is a very intelligent player, and also a very nice guy.

On an unrelated note, Gilberto spoke of the rumours regarding Ashley Cole and Jose Reyes. He said:

We need to wait because we do not know exactly how the situation is. It is very important for us that they stay – they are both fantastic players. However, we cannot decide for them, but fingers crossed they will stay.

True say.

Yes. He scored. I can’t believe it either.

Here’s the video:

Gilberto is obviously by far the greatest goal scorer this planet has ever seen, demonstrated by his back post header against AZ Alkmaar in Arsenal’s pre-season friendly win.

See video for evidence.

On Tuesday Arsenal have their champions league qualifier, which is really rather important. Gilberto will play a key role in the game, and if Arsenal fail to win, they’ll go next season with no European football. That would be very mean and horrible indeed. Especially for Gilberto, who is the world’s most successful and nice player in history.

Believe it.

Here is a Youtube video of Arsenal’s pre-season training. It has a few good shots of Gilberto, who looks calm and relaxed.

Reports were suggesting that Gilberto wasn’t going to be ready for the start of the season, but with Gilberto solidly back in training, this is obviously wrong.

Gilberto played for 90 minutes in Arsenal’s 8-1 demolition of Schwadorf.

In the fourth minute he hit the post with a corner from a header.

His preparation for the European qualification match seems to be right on track.

Click here for the Arsenal.com match report.