Morning all.
Liverpool’s draw at Villa Park in the week gave us a little piece of hope, then West Ham turned up at The Emirates and killed that hope dead through Bowen.
Why do Arsenal do it to themselves? Last season it was against West Ham and Aston Villa at home that we were sloppy and ultimately, those two defeats were the difference between pushing on and being crowned league champions or not.
Yesterday, when we needed to beat a team sitting one place above the relegation places in order to put a little bit of pressure on Liverpool, we failed. Or bottled it, depending on how you see things.
Our usually reliable Brazilian thought ducking out of the way for a cross was a good idea. It wasn’t. Rice could have done better too, in fact the entire team could from the moment we lost possession in West Ham’s penalty area.
But hey, let’s not lump or the blame on Gabriel because the real issue this team has is in attack. We lacked everything you and I would probably like our attacking play to be. Speed, width, crisp and progressive passing along with clinical finishing.
Captain Martin Odegaard said after the game:
We’re really disappointed. It felt like we had a good chance today but the overall performance wasn’t good enough and that’s a big blow for everyone. We tried even with 10 men, we put a lot of pressure on them, but I think we lacked a bit of efficiency in the final third, the final pass, the final cross and we should have been sharper and better around the box.I think that’s what we missed today and also, we let them run a bit too easily a few times, so it’s a big blow and disappointing. We move on and we have to strike back in the next one straight away. It’s no time to feel sorry for ourselves, we have to keep going. There are still many games to be played, and we have to keep going. The main thing now is to win the next one and work from there.
12 games left to be precise which funny enough, equals 36 points which yes, is a lot to play for but yesterdays dull performance cost us three and I don’t for one minute expect there not to be another few lurking around the corner.
When asked about his team’s title prospects, Mikel Arteta said:
It’s not in our hands. I’m really, really annoyed with the things that are in our hands – which is the performance and the result. (We were) nowhere near the levels that we have to hit to have the opportunity to win a Premier league. I’m very much responsible for that, so I’m very, very angry.
Arsenal’s Adrian Clarke hinted in his match preview that Mikel Arteta’s team need to play against West Ham. Fast breaks he said and keep an eye on Wan-Bissaka he added. We did neither. Raheem Sterling is probably one of current quickest forwards yet unlike last weekend, he didn’t start. He didn’t have a chance to bamboozle himself or Wan-Bissaka with his footwork or speed.
Oh, and just because Mikel Merino scored two from the bench last weekend, it doesn’t mean he is going to be as effective from the start, especially up against two big central defenders in a back five.
Mikel Arteta refused to blame injuries for his teams woeful performance and we shouldn’t either. Of course we miss our walking wounded and the team is stronger with 2/3 of them in it but on a day when no one played particularly well, at least not from what I saw, I doubt even our injured would have made much of a difference. Arteta was/is angry with himself which is understandable but the players need to take some responsibility too because it’s they who make the decisions on the pitch.
Great teams know how to win when they’re playing badly but this group of players don’t in my opinion. Our situation isn’t helped by injuries, of course it’s not but it’s not helped by having a substitutes bench mostly occupied by defensive players. The club knew about our lack of creative/goal scoring options not only back in the summer but in January too but instead of doing something to change that, Arsenal did nothing.
The weird thing about yesterday’s performance though is that I don’t really feel angry about it, probably because a part of me expected it.
Catch up in the comments….
Morning rico, unlike you I do feel angry. Deep down this was always going to happen, but last week’s result gave us false hope. Out of form players, out of position players, have just had no help from Januarys fiasco which surely demoralised everyone. Massive cock-up and their needs to be answers where it all went wrong, someone thought we could manage, who? I see plenty more ineffective performances coming up.
No ifs and buts, just win… you wrote Rico.
You would have thought the team would have been on it from the off. But the boys were flat and the atmosphere in the stadium was flat as well. Terrible day at the office all round when we least needed it. Need to get over this shit show quickly with Forest away in midweek.
Morning Andrew, perhaps surprised would have been a better word. I think I’ve desensitised myself to Arsenal shooting themselves in the foot when there’s something at stake. We really are the authors of our own downfall.
Exactly Anthony. They needed a fast start, but we don’t do fast starts very often. As soon as West Ham scored, it was always going to be a slog…
Hi Rico.. I hope you’re well 😁
Nice read on what was a thoroughly depressing performance. Well that’s the league done and dusted. No doubt some will say it’s still mathematically possible, the only problem being we don’t seem interested. How many chances have we been presented with to close that gap? And squandered all of them. Yes, red cards and injuries have killed our season, but so have these dire performances. West Ham weren’t even that good yesterday, we were just so poor! And listening to them singing “champions of europe you’ll never sing that” was embarrassing!
The highlight for me was seeing all those pigeons on the pitch 🤣
What on earth has happened to Odegaard (I’m his biggest fan) but he really has fallen off a cliff this season. It’s staggering!
Don’t think I can bring myself to watch City/Pool later. I’m gutted we’ve gifted those bin dippers the league 😭
Andrew, your opening line was what I was about to type, I can’t understand why these players would only turn up now and again (passion), I’m sure all of them realise what’s at stake and that’s without the bragging rights that all competitive sports people possess so Arteta is right, it is his fault and by the way I really like MA but we are so predictable.
I couldn’t watch the highlights as I value my TV too much to throw my glass at it after a few sherberts but I did see MLS’s part and sorry but the kid is a fool and I’ll bet Mike Oliver and the PGMOL mafia were texting each other with high fives on X. I despise shirt pulling from any player though I will say too many don’t get penalised for it but MLS had insufficient cover.
Hi Sue, long time and all that. Hope all is well.
Certainly looks like Liverpool will run away with it now. I’m dreading the Forest game, the Utd one too which follows. I think the best we can realistically hope for is a top four place. Sounds defeatist but imo it’s a reality.
Odegaard’s not been the same since his injury has he.
I’ve just read an interesting article on why Guardiola’s tactics have stopped working and his acceptance a new rapid attacking system is in play which sounds very familiar.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c20l7lw3ypzo
All good, thanks Rico 👍
Yes Forest and United have been problematic for us in the past, and if we show up with yesterday’s mindset, we’ll make them look like prime Barca! It was bad enough losing to West Ham, but imagine losing to this dire United team, I think I’ll become a hermit for at least 6 months!
Playing Merino as a forward from the start didn’t work, he didn’t have one decent effort on target nor did he create one for anyone else, playing him from the start and expecting him to press from the front just means after 70 minutes that he’s done.
The same with Califiori, Lewis Skelly, despite his red card, generally gives us more control so in retrospect the same starting XI as we had at Leicester might have been the way to go?
Very familiar Berg, we need to catch up… lol
Exactly Sue…
Agreed Kev. Hindsight is a wonderful thing.
I just don’t understand how a group of players can collectively be so lethargic. I know Arteta will be blamed for a lot, but these players need to take some responsibility too.
Sorry to say this but, Arsenal as team does well whenever there’s no pressure and the going “is good”, but at key decisive moments, in moments of reckoning when a key result is expected such as yesterday’s, when the most basic of performances is expected of them the team always appears to cave in. You can’t just blame that on a lack of January signings only, it appears an inbuilt, systematic, historical mentality issue…
Spot on, Kyalo 👍
Yesterday they were poor. No excuses. It was so frustrating to watch especially when they got into the box. Not one of them seemed to have the confidence to strike. It was “you have it, no you have it, here you have a go”! Come on Arsenal you are better than that and must stop ‘sulking’ about currently not having a No.9. West Ham was missing one of their key players – Pacquet but they still got on with it and played well.
Arsenal repeat themselves every season when it is coming to the crunch/ this time of the season. It’s almost as if they can’t handle the pressure and start playing and running around nervously like rabbits caught in car headlights!
I don’t blame Arteta and he shouldn’t blame himself. He has done so well to pick a team and getting us this far with having so many injuries this season, which has been one of our worst for many years. The Team should not be letting him down and us!!
Buck up Arsenal. You are such a great team and it’s about time you showed the world of football how good you are under pressure and with some of your team mates injured! You are so capable of winning the Premier League so get on with it. This season may be lost for1st but that doesn’t mean you should stop trying to prove everyone wrong and start playing great football and winning the rest of your games or come 2nd (AGAIN)
It’s not throwing the players under a bus, it’s more about making them resposable for the purformance they put in, if shameing them publicly once, is what it needs to get the message through to the players then I have no problem with that.
Hopefully we are not going back to the Wenger years of top 4 is goodenough.
I wish we can have the infamous “Ferguson’s hairdryer moments” frequently, where performance is demanded of each team member. Sometimes can’t help but think that some players, in the absence of such strictness, just come to Arsenal for the paycheck. In fact, I am never moved by the common statement made by some players or the media “he rejected others teams, he only wanted to join Arsenal” . I am sorry to say that, but the motive for joining Arsenal can also be money-related.
Kyalo, for sure, it’s a mentality thing but, having more options for when players are struggling might help. It’s a catch 22 with the mentality, we need to win something to believe but until we believe, winning something is difficult.
Welcome Laura.
Shooting instead of all the tippy tappy stuff around the box would certainly be a good place to start but in general, I still feel that if we increased our playing tempo, it’d help. We’re too slow.
Morning Geoff.
I don’t believe Wenger was satisfied with top 4, it was as he said a minimum requirement, he was too passionate to settle for less than the title. I also recall at the time we had the meanest board since Blackbeard’s plank unlike the present group who have thrown a few large wedges around.
I do agree though that a bit of public critisism and a challenge thrown down would be more beneficial and give him less scrutiny by the media.
I very much doubt top four is Arteta’s aim each season.
Potter after the game:
“The players gave everything, and left everything out on the pitch, which is what we’ve been trying to instil and encourage. When you do that, you’ve got a chance to get results. Talent is one thing, but it’s about being a team, and having a collective mentality. I think we showed that today in abundance, so I’m delighted.”
We had a poor summer window and followed it with an appalling winter window. We have suffered this season and it’s mostly due to the fact that we haven’t had the squad depth to rotate properly. Combine this with some cluster injuries and some dodgy refereeing and we sit where we are.
My concern is that the squad needs some success soon. Partey, Jorginho, Neto and Sterling are all out of contract in the summer requiring us to get some immediate replacements in. Tomiyasu, Trossard and Zinchenko expire the following year which will also need either resigning or replacements.
My big concern is then the players that at the end of next season will only have 1 season left on their contracts. Unless we offer mega contracts or have some shiny silverware for them they will be easy pickings for other, more successful, clubs to swoop in. This is the list of players that this applies to….
Saka, Saliba, Gabriel, Martinelli, and Jesus. Losing these would be terminal to the clubs ambitions and would probably trigger a new manager and a complete rebuild.
In my opinion this means that if we don’t have something significant in the trophy cabinet by the end of next season we will see the departure of Arteta and the break up of the squad.
Really good point Hobart. Hard to disagree with any of that..
A make or break summer perhaps. I think Potter suggested something similar before.
Miles Lewis-Skelly took one for the team, Raya was way to far forward and where the f**k were the rest of the defence.
Calafiori had one very good shot on goal and was unlucky to see the keeper in exactly the right spot to save it. Unfortunately, he messed up in the build up to the goal.
I still think Odegaard is struggling with fitness and confidence as well as Rice carrying an injury.
Wednesday may see Timber at left back with White on the right.
One moment of sloppy defending gifted West Ham a goal and with our depleted attack we weren’t able to reply.
Not a great performance, but not a reason for suicide either.
Just one of a quite a few though Cicero. I do think the club have much to do in the summer and if they do it, we should be much better. But, a change in approach must surely be on the agenda too.
Yes with hindsight we can say that Arsenal blew their chances of a really successful season with two dreadful transfer windows.
Odegaard has a lot of merits but one major fault is that he slows us down. Far too often he twists , turns and twists again and then plays the pass that was available in the first place. As Kyalo said everything is good when there is no pressure and people have commented that our lack of mentality prevents us getting over the line .
We need more dynamism and need something or someone to drive us forward and as we have seen in the past a popular captain in the dressing room is not always the best on the pitch.
Would McLintock , TA6 or PV 4 have accepted the malaise that we displayed yesterday ? I doubt it . Yet we continue to do the same predictable things and expect a different result.
Does the captain on the pitch have any power or are we captained from the bench ? and as I suspect we are , then Arteta needs to get a different voice in his ear , perhaps an experienced ex manager that doesn’t want the top job but knows how to change things to get a rabbit out of the hat when needed.
Moyes before he went to Everton might well have been a choice . Someone who sees things differently and someone that realising that trying to play like Xavi , Iniesta and Messi doesn’t always work if you don’t have those players with an Eto’o , Torres , or Larsson in front of them.
https://www.islingtontribune.co.uk/article/the-arsenal-stadium-misery?fbclid=IwY2xjawIn0_lleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHRrMfdAmbEV-5oGay4ef-WfecMOGk9PK2kElvsHMgHkRxfXjXw_ssBLyRQ_aem_KRF6B4EfS9_v1kYfKONtLQ
Wonder if this has anything to do with our lack of squad spending.
Surely the companies responsible for building the apartments and the architects and Islington planning dept and the lawyers share the blame?
Islington Tribune is an an extreme left-wing publication (bordering on Marxist) staffed by people with no love for Arsenal…
I always like to give credit to the opponent when deserved (except Spurs) West ham played well.
I too can’t get too upset,we should still make Champions league and catching Liverpool was always a long shot.
Even if they lose to Man City,it would take a miracle to overtake them. I like a bit of Hot Chocolate but come on.
I agree about Odegaard,a fabulous player but it drives me mad how he rarely shoots when it’s on,he usually passes sideways or tries a dink which will succeed about one in a hundred times,even if it does the chances of a goal are even less.
Interesting about the Highbury flats,I feel sorry for the people living there.
Hindsight Cicero or did we see it coming?
Agreed, hence my earlier about sitting the players down with Adams or Keown etc. I really like most of our players but one or two really do lack a bit of fire in their bellies.
That’s sad for those who bought the flats…. Scary too.
Forest, our Wednesday opponents, were one nil up to Newcastle they are now four one down.
Our lot should be made to watch the video.