Morning all.
We all know that ‘new deal’ and ‘Arsenal signing’ headlines which fill the sports pages and NewNow need to be taken with a large pinch of salt but as the saying goes, sometimes there’s no smoke without a fire. Football London ran a story the other day which quoted Martin Ødegaard as telling a TV channel that he’d be open to staying at Arsenal. Of course he going to say that right now because he’s at the club and he’s after playing time. So far he’s barely had ninety minutes. Admittedly, he looks an exciting young player he’s qualities are yet to really be seen. But that’s exactly why he’s come to Arsenal on loan, to prove himself after being rejected by Zidane. His situation is very similar to Dani Ceballos, with both no doubt wondering if life at Real Madrid is over.
Dani Ceballos is 24 years old, his peak career should be now, or certainly within the next year or so and in all honesty, I thought he’d be one of the first names on Mikel Arteta’s team sheet this season after the way he played towards the end of last season but so far, he’s not really stood out. In fact it’s looking likely that Ødegaard will end the season with more playing time against his name. The Norwegian is two years younger than his Real Madrid teammate so the best of him is certainly yet to come. Or at least on paper it should be.
Not every footballer is a Cesc Fabregas, Bukayo Saka or ESR who have what it takes from a very early age. Jack Wilshere too just walked into the Arsenal team and took Premier League football like a duck to water but those/these kind of players are rare. When Arsenal get them, they have to do all they to hang onto them. I’m sure if Ødegaard does really well over the next three months, Arsenal will do all they can to keep hold of him too.
The club are certainly trying to tie Folarin Balogun to a new contract still. Mikel Arteta said just a day or two ago that the player wants to stay and the club want him to stay so all the time there’s no news about him agreeing a deal with another club, there’s hope.
I saw the ‘individual goals scored’ in the Premier League chart on Sky Sports yesterday. It’s concerning I think that our highest goal scorer is Alexandre Lacazette, level with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang with eight. Their total together is one less than Mo Salah who is in top spot. Our neighbours have two strikers, both have thirteen goals each. Our strikers stats wouldn’t look as bad if both were providing goals for others on a regular basis but according to that same chart, Lacazette has two assist to his name and Aubameyang, one.
Arsenal need to look at both the fullback positions as the summer transfer window approaches, I think we’d all agree with that. In my opinion the squad needs another player in a similar mould of Thomas Partey too but honestly, I don’t think Edu and Arteta can neglect what’s going up front either.
See you in the comments.
Hi Rico, I had to go to NewsNow again, but that’s ok, there’s worse things that can happen, off to read the post.
Morning Kev, do you usually just click on ‘Highbury House’ at the top of the page? This should take you to the home page which should show the new post.
Thanks for the post Rico and yeah the madness is beginning as we see the soar away Sun reporting an Arsenal summer clearout where they name some 7 players they suggest Edu will move on, it’s a narrative taken up by the Mirror, who gives it to yer straight and the appallingly tacky Football.London, baseless rubbish all of of it.
No Rico I just have HH stored on my tablet and I click on that and it usually works ok, it still does occasionally but I’ll try your method next time.
Morning Rico, little short on comments this morning. Ok so forwards is an interesting topic but we can’t discuss this without bringing Balogun into the discussion, which in fairness you did above. But what I mean is the decision on who to keep and sell must include negotiations with Balogun. If he’s as good as people are saying then my personal view is we replace Nketiah with Balogun and keep Lacazette as his performances are more often not about him scoring goals more on linking up with the likes of Saka, Martinelli, Pepe etc. Lacazette gives you something the other strikers don’t, his energy and disruptive qualities are his strengths. Auba obviously is our captain and Legend to be.
The other interesting conversation I heard the other night was Gary Neville, who along with Carragher have always maintained that you can’t win the PL without a world class goalie and world class Centre Back pairing. All the teams who win the league have this strength. I think it’s true what they say and wonder where we are in building this? I think Gabriel and possibly Saliba could grow into that partnership and I like Berno but uncertain whether they will reach world class level?
I had to go through the email link at the bottom of the page opposite the post comment box.
For some time we have been looking for the balance that gives us a stable attacking system and it looks like we may have stumbled on it by accident . Just as it seems that we can play Aubameyang or Lacazette but not both together , we have six names vying for the 3 slots behind them . with two holding midfield and a back four and keeper we have an eleven that is reasonably balanced at last..
The permutation is those that play in the three positions behind the striker , to spread the goal responsibility we need the three to contribute and we know that Saka and Pepe can fit that bill but need to do it more often .
That leaves ESR , Nelson , Ceballos and Odegaard to play there . It also needs all players to know that they share the positions with others and not get the hump if either they don’t start or get repla ced during play.
If it doesn’t work sack the juggler I say.
Football London certainly likes to spin a yarn Kev. It’s amazing though, how many people believe it. Plus, HH got pulled up for not naming a source for rumours yet every newspaper does that most days. The hatred for Arsenal spreads wide it seems.
Finishing has been a problem for us all season and for a lot of last season, our reliance on one player has really hurt us while he’s been dealing with other issues and has seen his form fall away dramatically.
Lacazette has upped his productivity this season but he’s never going to be prolific enough to pick up the slack left by Aubameyang.
Saka and Smith Rowe have the potential to be regular goalscorers but they’re still developing their game. Nketiah seems to have plateaued and has lost Arteta’s trust, the rest just don’t deliver but I wonder if this is a coaching issue as much as anything?
Rico, I really don’t trust the moderators of Big Tech one iota, they deplatform at a whim, but allow copious amounts of pornography to flood their platforms and that’s ok…
That’s what I do Kev, or NN if I struggle. I’m not sure what the issues are.
Morning Mig, Balogun has been talked about a lot on here and most us cannot understand why he’s not been at least on the bench for matches. From the little I’ve seen of him, he looks a far more threat up front than Eddie and I like Eddie by the way.
At the back I think we look strong on paper with Mari, Gabriel and Holding. Also, We have MacGunness (spelling) and Medley behind them. I’m far from convinced Saliba will remain at Arsenal. It’s anyones guess as to why things have gone the way they have with him. His comments would suggest the loss of his mother played no part.
‘Sack the juggler’ That made me chuckle but how very it is as Tuchel is proving at Chelsea. So far anyway.
Each time Arteta bring Willian on the pitch, I do start to wonder what he’s thinking. Same goes with Luiz when Mari is fit. Defies logic to me.
Good question Kev. The fact that we seldom shoot on sight must be all part of the plan. Walking the ball into the frustrates the heck out of me, it’s so easy for the opposition.
Where is Xhaka’s left boot? I wonder how many of us are often heard shouting at the TV when the ball is sat up so nicely, yet another sideways pass is made.
Too much Pep influence perhaps?
I’m back, a bit of a palaver but it’s no big deal, too many suspicious algorithms 😉
According to the Sun, Lacazette, Guendouzi, Torrieira, Nketiah, Maitland Niles, Willock and Nelson are all set to be moved on in the summer and that doesn’t take into account Kolasinac, Mavropanos, Luiz and Balogun, so basically anyone whose on loan or whose contract is running down, what insightful journalism from a profession that is accelerating into the abyss.
I mean who respects journalists anymore and where is their special status, it’s down the toilet with all the lies they’ve peddled and continue to do so so shamelessly.
In one word Kev, no one. Oops, that’s two.
I think I saw a football London headline which went a step further, ten are set to leave.
Good Afternoon Rico and all
I had to go through News now to find it. I kept clicking on Highbury House or pressing f5 but I never got the usual headline. It still kept popping up yesterday’s post.
Anyway……now read it and enjoyed it.
The issue with our strikers is not a question of chances. We have that by the buckets in certain games but still dont score them. Its not that we dont have the personnel. Rather its a question of playing style….that of wanting to walk the ball in the bet. We never have been nor will ever be Barca with their Tiki Taka style. Simply because its a playing style sussed out by opposition managers who know how to nullify it. If Xhaka, Partey (when he plays), ESR, Saka and whoever is playing take a couple of shots, even in the first five minutes of the game (as that would set the opposition asking questions) instead of trying to walk the ball in the net. If I was the manager, even with the current team I would tell them that in the first 10 minutes I would want at least 5 shots…..whether they are on target or not I dont give a damn. As that would work their keeper, the DM would have to come out to stop shots, that would create space which the team can exploit. Yes even from 25-30 yards out. And if it hits one of their defenders and flies in who cares…..it still counts the same as that scored by JW10 against Norwich and a few weeks earlier by TR07…..where it seemed the whole team took a touch before we actually scored and tied their defence in knots. A few years ago, when Berbatov was still playing for Man Utd, he was their 2nd topscorer. The topscorer unitl February??? Yep…you guessed right….it was Own Goals., As Berbatov had 9 while the opposition had scored 11 OG in favour of Utd,
A few weeks ago until the first 30 mins we had just one shot on target and only two off target. In just 30 mins.
Change it a bit…..then when we are 4 goals up then play tiki taka. Otherwise the ‘JUGGLER’ should try some new tricks and seek a different circus.
The only snag is that I love Arteta a lot
Football.London is owned by the Daily Mirror and their raison d’etre is to earn advertising revenue by churning out an endless supply of click bait rumours with absolutely no substance in them whatsoever but they’re generally guaranteed to lure us into clicking on them.
I do click on some of their stories Rico, I can’t deny that, but I often feel mugged off afterwards and promise myself that I won’t do it again…
But I still do, occasionally… ☹️
I too have time for Arteta and believe that given it he will change things for the better.
Regarding Shooting and deflected goals , you only have to look at Frank lampard who scored close on 200 league goals and a fair few for England .He was never afraid to shoot and got a fair few deflections on the way .
I would also like to see more of our wide players shooting from narrow angles . If there is one thing a defender hates it’s defending whilst facing his own goal , an outstretched boot and Bob’s your uncle .
Kerching!
HITC are similar too Kev . Always a misleading headline that it is so hard to resist , often when your trapped the headline subject doesn’t even appear in the story.
A must to avoid.
There are certain aspects of Arsenal’s play that have both mystified and annoyed me in equal measure ever since Arsenal Wenger took the helm in 1996, and it carries on today.
One of them is, at DG states our reluctance to take the shot, take the shot early and trust in your technique, don’t always take that second touch.
The others are our awful ability at dead ball situations, corners are a waste of time, I never feel as if we take full advantage of that aspect of play and as for free kicks, I think that players should be fined if they take a free kick and miss the target. And mix up the free kicks, don’t just take a pot shot, chip one into the box and see if the ensuing mayhem works in our favour.
Our corners and free kick are boring, predictable and lack imagination and that comes from the training pitch…
Yep Potter I’ve been mugged by them as well, as you say it’s often got nothing to do with the headline.
Hi Devil, always said similar re shooting. A lucky deflection, an own goal, who cares if they go in or how.
We don’t break quick enough, or play the kind of swift football we did under Wenger in his early days, to pass the ball into the net. Seems our lot like to touch the ball too many times before releasing it. Funny enough though, it’s our younger players who like to pass and move.
I’ve had to learn the hard way too Kev, but once bitten and all that… I think those particular sites are just earning a living.
Even if they don’t go in Rico, shooting from a distance in the first 10 minutes is a must. Especially against teams who come to defend. There is always space, a gap or even a fissure. These men all go to the loo don’t they? I dont expect them to sit down like ladies so they would walk it in. They aim from a distance. And we are talking about a WC with a maximum of 1.5 feet diameter. A goalpost is 20×8 ft for heaven’s sake. It’s easier to get it on target. I hope they practice shooting during training. Because if they don’t it’s criminal. Training sessions, especially evening ones, should be on defensive tactics, shooting and attacking combinations.
One of them will eventually get in. Yes, a lot might go out. And that would mean give them possession. But then when they have it press them from up front, or else retreat back and form a defensive wall yourself. We are talking about professionals here….not small kids.
Not sure it’s a must in the first ten minutes Devil, but I do think we could improve our shooting stats vastly.
And with regards the fact that we don’t break away fast like we used to do under AW that is a different era. Back then each team used to attack and many teams left open spaces which our players could exploit. Defenders were a bit on the heavy side and maybe a tad slower back then. Nowadays they are more technical, more mobile and faster themselves. Not necessarily good defenders but more agile and athletic. Ferguson and Sam Allardyce and Pulis found a way to stop Arsenal…..Get behind the ball and get in their faces. In the meantime other teams began playing the pass and move and had the money (City, Chavs etc) to buy the players they wanted overnight.
The problem lies in the fact that Arsenal….AW, Emery and to a certain extent Arteta (seeing that the majority of players played under the two managers before him) always wanted to play that way. At least now Arteta adapts the formation and tactics to the opposition (to a certain extent due to the players are taking their time to understand his tactics) but before then it was, imo. bordering on arrogance not to adapt to the opposition. The best team with the best players do not adapt. True…..but we are not the best team and we do not have the best players in all positions and even the subs.
The most important thing for Arsenal is that they need to continue producing from the Academy. Not only for the forward positions but also GK, CBs, FBs, DM. Who was the last guy produced by the Academy who plays in defence??? How long has it been since we had a product of our own between the sticks??
Don’t tell me AMN because he is not a defender. He is a winger who prefers to play in CM but has been square pegged in the FB positions. He is not a defender. And recently Souness said a comment with regards his level….that is why he is at WBA and not at Arsenal. Because there is something lacking in the grey matter between his ears. By a defender I mean the likes of Tierney, Adams, O’leary. Players who know how to defend because they are first and foremost defenders.
Maybe Okonkwo will one day be the answer between the sticks. I cannot comment as have never seen him play but only read comments about him.
First 10 minutes will set the opposition asking questions about their tactics. Because if we keep on playing trying to walk the ball in they will just confirm what they have been set out to do. Their coach will tell them that Arsenal players don’t shoot. If we do….they will have to change their mindset and also confuse their plans….especially if one goes in via a deflection.
Evening Rico and the House.
As I type this Rico my computer is frozen on todays post.
It is on your comment (no 7) timed 12.06pm.
My tablet is showing 28 comments with y7ours at 6.48pm the latest.
just posting this to see what happens.
Evening Rick, which browser are you using out of interest please?
Rumour has it that Thierry Henry is set to become the Bournemouth manager. How good is that?
Weird As i posted Computer updated to DG comment timed 710pm
No movement on Tablet.
The joys of the internet.
Morning all.
I just read that, Rico.
From left field…..let’s hope he does well, if it happens.
I hope he does well too Scott, be nice to see Bournemouth back in the PL. I’ve always had a bit of a soft spot for them.
A long time since the last comment.
That was at 2.34 pm. But it’s now caught up.
Update
Rico I am using Chrome.
I find if I post comment computer updates,defrosts
Thanks Rick.
New post up now
Maybe we’re all being monitored?
Anyway, in other news, it was great to see Keiran Tierney joining in with the senior squad at training and looking as fit as a fiddle. So that leaves Partey as our only injury concern.
Can’t see it yet?
Nor can I.
Tried Safari and Firefox on both IPhone and IPad.
https://highbury-house.com/2021/02/18/familiar-faces-to-lineup-against-arsenal-in-rome/
Here you go Hobart. 🤞🤞
Thanks Rico!
Same here Rico, I click on my iPad and it brings me here, very odd.
It changed later in the day yesterday for some reason from when I showed you but it’s stuck on yesterday’s as it was initially stuck on Mondays yesterday – if that makes sense.
Morning Rico and all. I’ve never understood why teams don’t prioritise corners. A free ball into the opponents box seems worthwhile to me so why top professionals can’t consistently beat the first man I don’t know.
Football. London are the Donald Trump of Arsenal sites and they’re not alone in this either. The crap those people spout is beyond belief.
Morning Adam. Agree re corners, set pieces too. Ours are particularly shocking.