Morning all.
Well that was quite a final day of the season wasn’t it? Liverpool went behind against Wolves and Man City did the same at the Etihad against Aston Villa. The PL trophy looked like it was heading to Anfield after Klopp’s took a 2-1 lead but then City final woke up, scored three goals and that was that. At the other end of the table it’s was just as exciting, well, Sky Sports were getting excited. Leeds survived and Burnley are finally relegated. It’s been a long time coming in my opinion.
At The Emirates, Arsenal showed can score goals! All is well then? Yes, I jest.
Scoring five goals against an Everton team who were clearly still hungover after celebrating Premier League survival is not a gauge Arsenal should measured by.
- Great to end the season with a home victory.
- Five goals is the most goals we’ve scored in any league game this season.
- Five different scorers.
- Why did it need Alex Lacazette to be ruled out of a game for Eddie Nketiah to get an opportunity?
- Why has Mo Elneny been sat on the sidelines for so long?
- Why has the squad not been rotated more to prevent injuries?
- Why did it take so long, or need Aubameyang to break the Arsenal rules, before he was dropped earlier in the season?
- Why did this Arsenal team collapse in such spectacular fashion when 4th place became achievable?
- Why did we lose to Everton, Southampton, Man Utd and Crystal Palace the way we did?
- Why oh why didn’t Arsenal dip into the transfer window in January?
This season has raised so many questions in my head. Actually, the last two and a half years has because I still can’t see where Arsenal are going. Finishing 5th is a vast improvement on last season but I don’t feel like Arsenal have really improved on the pitch. There’s been some great moments but in my head, that’s all they are, moments. As we’ve all said many times, we’re not consistent. I know the squad is young, it’ll improve etc etc etc but in my opinion, it’s Mikel Arteta who needs to improve most.
However, we’ve still finished 5th and we’re back in Europe which is ideal for the squad players and youngsters who I hope we get to see more of next season. The club has cleared the room of egos, big money earners. Arsenal fans, both at home and away, have been right behind the team from the moment this campaign kicked off as they will be next season I’m sure.
I think this summer is the most important one for the club, Edu and Mikel Arteta. Arsenal fans won’t support the “process” if the process doesn’t work. Not for one minute do I expect Arsenal to be beating Man City or Liverpool to the Premier League title but I do expect them to compete against both clubs and not be rolled over. We need a deeper and stronger squad and Mikel Arteta has to use it in a much better way than he’s used his squad this season.
Mikel Arteta is going nowhere anytime soon so the best thing the club can do is give him the right support in the transfer window and let his management prove whether he’s right for Arsenal or not. All the time the squad has gaps in it, there’s an excuse for Arsenal not scoring goals as well as conceding too many of them.
When does Mikel Arteta start thinking about next season?
Now, because I cannot stop now. We have a very important week to make some decisions as well and start to set the platforms for what we’re going to do in the summer. We are ready to do that and we need to start to go.
Good because now isn’t the time for the board to have a holiday either. Get our transfer business done early, sort out the contracts which need sorting and then go and mess around on the beach.
Anyway, another season done and dusted, another season with you guys supporting HH so thank you. It’ll be twelve years this year that HH has been in existence and I’ve not a clue where that time has gone. All I do know is that Arsenal don’t look much better off now than they did in 2010. Yes there’s been a squad shakeup and we have some great young players but as far as challenging for the league title goes, we’re well off the pace.
Maybe next season will be better, much better.
https://theshortfuse.sbnation.com/2022/5/22/23137016/mohamed-elneny-signs-arsenal-contract-extension
You clearly have an issue with Arteta which from my side of the fence is ok for anyone to have an opinion, But it has to be made from clear facts and truths !
Firstly this stuff about why didnt Arteta rotate more ? well Tierney was injured before the start of the season as was White Gabs and Partey even odegaard was injured and holding all for the start of the season. They did not all come back at the same time either and when Arteta tried using them to rotate the squad they fell down injured again. Its ok sitting there from your seat barking what when and should have been done, but reality isnt quite like that. Especially in football. Players want to play so badly that they will lie about their fitness to get on the park, which is a in a way a good thing as it shows they are hungry but it doesnt help the manager or team or squad if they arent ready and go on and get injured again or flare up the same injury. Taraves who was brought in to be tierneys replacement just wasnt ready until the final 4 games or more thats even if you think he ia ready now or not. My opinion is he is not good enough and that was why Arteta never rotated him during the season. Same could be said about Cedric not good enough and could not be rotated with TOMMI as again he was out injured. Partey the same happened there then he came back in the team and madfe a massive improvement to the team and our scores and then he got injured. Saka has no replacement Pepe again not good enough and wasnt used because of that fact.Martineli was again out from the strart of the season again injured and it took him time to come back and we do not have a replacement for him bar ESR that really doesnt play there as he plays number 10. Laca well enough said there he is woeful and probably should of left the club in the summer in my humble opinion and Eddy finally grew up and started to play football instead of act like a little boy that wasnt happy ! so all in all Arteta did what he had to and he over achieved with the squad we have FACT !! BRING ON NEXT SEASON !! Also regards to Auba Arteta did try and buy a striker and top striker actually but the player choose Juve because the player had always wanted to stay in Italy and play from the Old lady. He didnt just buy for the sake of it as if he had of people liike you would of attacked him for buying for the sake of buying.
Young teams are not consistent and lose strange games and win strange games that happens with any young team and new teams ! half the team was new and it takes time to gel and get use to the premier league just ask Henry Bergkamp Pires that they all struggled in their first season of premier league football FACT i even spoke to them about it and they all said wow what a league , how fast etc etc as i used to clean their cars daily.
Its interesting when you get the chance to talk to actual players.
COYGs
Morning Rico. Congrats on turning out regular, high quality, blog posts. Not an easy task.
Another fun day out at the game yesterday.
The foundations of the team are there, but we need to add quality to progress.
A powerful centre forward is a must. Watching Calvert-Lewin yesterday makes me think he would definitely add something different to our side. He’s quick, very good with his head and has an amazing leap. But I worry about the time he’s been sidelined with injuries.
Get the business done early. Have a settled team to start the season at pace.
Carl, Tierney played against Brentford on the opening day so how come you think he was injured. I don’t have anything against Arteta, I just think he could have done more with the resources he had.
Morning Pete, thanks.
Agree, early business and give Arteta the tools to do his job and go from there.
Morning Gooners, morning Rico, regarding your comment to me this morning about Arteta making some odd decisions, well Arsene made a few of those and so did George as did Bertie back in the day, it’s just that maybe the years of famine under KSE have made us less patient with those in charge. I mean I’m just expecting Newcastle to jump past us and into the top four in a years time as Tottenham fade, this is a vital summer if we want to stay ahead of the pack.
Since Arsenal won their first League Title in 1930/31 the longest the club has gone between winning its next championship is 18 years, 1953 to 1971 and 1971 to 1989…
This season it was 18 years since 2004, a large chunk of that has been the Kroenke years, so next season Stan the Rams fan has broken new ground…
Morning Kev. I get he’ll make slip ups. I just don’t understand why the obvious ones are repeated though. Maybe I am just too critical of Arteta, I don’t think so though. 😆
Nice post Rico and morning all.
Repeating my late post from yesterday.
It’s now in Edu and Arteta’s hand to fix up our weak area’s like a striker and some decent back up players so we can rest our main players when not needed.
Any fan running on the pitch that hit’s or tries to hit a player or official or damaging the goal post should face a jail term and a fine around Ten Thousand Dollars before this gets out of control and we find our self’s looking at some sort of ugly fence again.
Morning Geoff, thanks.
I’m sure the pitch invaders will be punished, at least the clubs will. I don’t think Vieira did his reputation much good though.
I think Burnley are going to be in big trouble. They were bought by some American asset strippers who loaded the cost of the purchase onto the club in the form of debt. I expect the debt payments will not be able to be made with Championship money. I reckon they will be bankrupt in a few seasons.
Fit and Proper persons test? Not on your nelly FA.
Meanwhile over at Norwich Delia gets criticised for running a financially prudent club. Spending only what they can afford.
I know which owner I would prefer…
Nketiah’s future at the club is also up in the air, but the striker has been in good form in recent weeks, scoring against Everton. He also bagged two goals in Arsenal’s 4-2 win over Chelsea last month.
“When you see Eddie training the way he trains, he doesn’t even need to play,” Arteta told reporters. You know you have a player there who is going to help you and he’s done that — look at his numbers with the amount of games he’s played. It’s terrific.
“I will speak to the three players now or tomorrow and after that we need to start to move but we have clear ideas of what we want to do. (Their future) has been decided but it’s very difficult to communicate it. To do it earlier, one way or the other, with three situations like that is very, very awkward.”
Pete, me too and it isn’t Burnley.
That’s probably why I’m not anti the Kroenke family. I detest the way some of the clubs are allowed to operate. How is football fair when it’s like it is…?
Good day Rico and all.
The biggest question of the season for me is why didn’t Nketiah play more often rather than Lacazette? Too often we saw Laca missing chance after chance, with inaccurate shots at goal. Yesterday was a case in point at 4 – 1 up with no pressure on him he put the two good chances created for him wide of the net. I’m sure that Eddie would have prospered in some of those games where the lack of a goal or two cost us an extra point or two.
Eddie will come down to what offer come in, Elneny will stay and play of the bench and the start in the FA cup round ect, Laca will leave and Pepe will either Leave or go out on loan for 12 month
I love an ITK but really Arteta’s rotation problem wasn’t caused by injuries more like the parcity of his squad.
As much as I understand the need for reducing overheads we seemed to leave ourselves short by loaning players out or just freezing them away from the team in general.
With some it was right that they went but others left because they saw no future in staying.
Players like Maitland – Nile’s and Chambers left because of their lack of use as did Mari . It must be disheartening to see the team shuffled around when they are sitting on the sidelines They wanted out and consequently when Tierney and Tomiyasu were out together we had to put Xhaka back due to lack of alternatives.
Afternoon Cicero, ditto. And before with Aubameyang.
Spot on Potter.
Was it a good season for Arsenal? Rico it was a bit like the curate’s egg…good in parts.
To finish fifth was a better outcome than I expected, after the first few games of the season, but the almost non-existent cup runs were bitterly disappointing.
In terms of team reconstruction, it was quite good but was spoilt by the lack of activity in the January window when we needed reinforcements, although some of the deadwood was moved out and a much better team spirit was achieved there remains quite a bit of work to do.
As far as the manager goes I think Arteta has learned a few lessons and, I hope, has learned to trust his younger, less experienced players when it comes to team selection. The one thing missing is consistency.
Kieran Tierney has been omitted from Scotland’s squad for the World Cup play-off semi-final with Ukraine on 1 June. Tierney is recovering from surgery and has not played since the end of March.
If Scotland get past Ukraine at Hampden, they face a match with Wales in Cardiff on 5 June for a place at the World Cup in Qatar.
Three Nations League matches follow, with a trip to take on Republic of Ireland in between home and away games against Armenia.
Arsenal’s Tierney had an operation on his knee and hasn’t featured for Arsenal since Scotland’s 2-2 friendly draw with Austria on 29 March.
Chelsea midfielder Billy Gilmour is selected after missing the final game of his season-long loan at Norwich City with an ankle problem.
(Taken and edited from the BBC website)
Yes, brainiac Steve Clarke flogged Tierney for 180 minutes in two pointless friendlies in March and now he’s lost him as well as the damage he did to Arsenal, hopefully Ukraine will beat them and Clarke will get the sack.
Cicero, that’s pretty much how I feel. We had some good moments, a few really good moments but otherwise, up and down. The Nottingham Forest defeat was one of the worst.
Cicero I agree with what you said and it will depend on who we bring in to weather or not I eat my humble pie at the start of next season
Morning all
New post up now