Remember when Martinelli scored off of Ake's face?

Plus, I went to New York

Hi,

I know that this newsletter rounds up the week that was for Arsenal with silly drawings, etc and I know that Arsenal supposedly played a match in the middle of the week that they lost. But, hear me out, I’d much rather spend our time just talking about the Man City match. I didn’t draw anything from the Lens match, I don’t think we collectively had any fun watching that, and I don’t think the Arsenal players enjoyed playing in that either. So I’m going to skip it.

I was in New York on Sunday watching the match at O’Hanlon’s, one of two Arsenal bars in Manhattan. When Martinelli’s goal went in pandemonium broke loose. I was lifted in the air and that person nearly fell backward into a table as I was in their arms. That person asked for my consent, to which I said “What?” because I couldn’t hear a thing in the chaos. Next thing I knew I was in their arms as they screamed in joy. I don’t tend to watch Arsenal matches with other people, I’ve got my own workflow for Poorly Drawn Arsenal, so I don’t know if getting lifted in the air is normal at O’Hanlon’s, but I will say that it was fun and I recommend it for anyone needing a place to watch in NYC.

It feels good to finally win against City, which I recognize is not a controversial opinion for an Arsenal fan to have. It was the first time in the league since 2015. I think the reason it feels so good is because last year, losing to City twice very much felt like the end of our title chase. Getting this match out of the way so early, and winning it, makes me believe that we are in the title race again. That maybe we can finally do this.

I would like to take the very end of this to say thank you to everyone who came out to the book event in New York and everyone I met at O’Hanlon’s. It is truly humbling to have the experiences that I’ve had. Someone gifted me a scarf, someone made me a beaded bracelet that says “Poorly Drawn NYC” on it. The whole weekend touched my heart and made me feel incredibly lucky to be in the position that I am in. Next up, at the end of the month, London.

Poorly

This week’s podcast:

This week’s Poorly Animated Arsenal Podcast is, well, not animated. It’s available wherever you get your podcasts. We discuss my trip to NYC, the win against City, and what Arteta must do when he’s hiding in a game of hide and seek.