Back to the fight for 4th place trophy then………

What can we say about last night that has not already been said in the media on tv and by our fans.

We had the usual excuses from the manager about suicidal defending and the strange comment about not being mentally ready…! Can’t fathom that one at all.

 

Apart from the first five to ten mins we didn’t play with any tempo or width what so ever. Monaco were bigger stronger and quicker than us and we returned to backwards sideways tippy tappy football that went nowhere and put them under zero pressure.

Yes we missed some gilt edged chances but it wasn’t like we peppered their goal was it. I thought Kondogbia bossed the midfield and thought well if only he was in our midfield.

 

We had our wide players wanting to come inside and we clogged up the channels we had no one running of fthe ball and we looked clueless yet again when it really matters.

Why is it that it’s in our DNA to have to fight about us…? We lack fighters and players to get the team up for big matches and it shows time and time again.

 

Words fail me after watching last night to be honest and we had a very collective off night, we had 3/4 players who were awful and the rest were not much better. Is this the catalyst for the team to implode for the next month to six weeks or will they somehow sort themselves out and show some much needed grit determination and fight to put things right..?

We need our manager to kick them in the nuts throw the hairdryer and anything else he can lay his hands on and also look in the mirror and address his own inadequacies with tactics and balance of the side.

Enjoy your day if you can and here’s wishing a get well soon to Rico.

65 thoughts on “Back to the fight for 4th place trophy then………

  1. Wath says:

    I think it’s time to play Gabriel with Kos on Sunday and see how we get on… Can’t be worse than last night can it…!

  2. southyorkshiregunner says:

    Morning. There is a lack of fight and leadership both on and off the field. That works from the top all the way down.

    Monaco weren’t good, however how poor we were, made them look half decent. Real Madrid would have spanked them 5-0 last night. Monaco were on par with Anderlecht.

    The thing with Arsenal is the bullshit comments that come via the club and filter down through the web. ‘We want to win it for the boss’ and ‘Ozil’s stats are better than Coutinho’s and Fabregas'” etc etc. It’s all bollocks.
    Best practice is to shut up and concentrate on the job in hand.

    The match: A lot of the players in the team are show ponies who like to carry the ball, nothing wrong with carrying the ball if you don’t give it away cheaply.. However, show ponies always have a tendency to lose the ball. Welbeck is an improvement on Sanogo, but Walcott is a much, much better fit. Welbeck lost possession for goal 1, but Ospina really should have caught the shot. That was poor. Very poor.

    Sanchez lost possession for goal 2. I like the player, but there are instances when he holds on to the ball far too long. Wilshire and Chamberlain tend to do the same. However the question is where were the defence and the alleged Messiah ‘that is Coquelin’?
    Shameful, and it was a case of Man Utd (h) revisited.

    Chamberlain got us back in the game and we fluffed our lines again.

    Amateurish. Lack of leadership?

    Yeh, Giroud fluffed an easy chance , but saying that Welbeck’s chance was just as easy.

    There is a problem, and that problem won’t go away until changes are made at the top.

    We have the tools to work with but the problem lies with the spanner man.

    We lost 0-3 at home to Inter Milan and beat them 5-1 at the San Siro.
    Overturning 1-3 is do-able, but doubtful.

  3. potter says:

    What have I missed re :- Rico , whatever it is hope she gets over it soon , her chickens need her. Last night proved that for all the bluster we still cannot cut it against an organised team. We may have flair players but there is no engine room , no driving force , and a serious lack of responsibility . Do we get that from the transfer market ? or from a complete change of direction ?. Personally I think Wenger has run his course but then I have felt that for a few seasons now.

  4. frednerk says:

    Morning All,
    Have we all been here before..most of us have,
    Some on here think the players are to blame,
    most know its the manager.
    So what do we do….what do think.
    Wenger blames the players,
    He says that it was stupid defending,
    He says that the players underestimated Monaco.
    So do we get rid of the 14 players that played.
    Or is it becoming a bit of a habit.

    Look at the game at palace,9 defensive players
    at the end of the game,and still couldn’t
    defend.
    Last night a very weak Monaco team,
    score 3 past us.
    Berbatov,runs from the halfway line to score,
    with the BFG infront of the bench on the wing.

    We all like wenger on here, we all know
    it will be nigh on impossible to replace him.

    But looking at the bench last and seeing
    Wenger and Bouldy scratching their heads,
    It reminded me of Laurel and Hardy.

    Welcome to the Cookoo’s Nest.

  5. rockyrocastle07 says:

    it was absolute fucking dogshit.. Did Ozil complete many passes (to a team mate)? How many times did Ox want to fall over the ball or give it away? Why is our current best player (Cazorla) playing in the DM’s area? Get Ozil off and put Cazorla in his place. I never say a bad word about Merts but fuck me, he was terrible last night. No-one seemed able to control the ball, everyone held on to the ball too long and they all seemed clueless. I have no idea why we, all of a sudden, have thrown away all the good performances of late (NLD aside as we were shit then too) and suddenly started playing like a bunch of strangers. As I said.

  6. Wath says:

    Actually when I saw the team I though ok that’s decent, pace on the wings and both Welbeck and Alexis will put in a shift… Speed with the fullbacks and Santi and Coq been playing decent…. Fuck me I couldn’t of been more wrong.

    Kos and Per played like they never seen each other before, Gibbs was like a headless chicken and Bellerin was lost as well but hardly surprising with those around him doing sweet fa…! Is it me or would Monreal have given us better balance and more savvy at left back..? There were so many things wrong lat night it’s just not worth going into it all or I’ll give me arse a headache…!

    It’s as usual though the same old flaws and the same old mistakes and nothing changes does it.

    Agree with SYG, til the very top is changed the whole club is riddled with mediocrity is acceptable..!

  7. craszy gunner says:

    Monaco scored with their first 2 shots on target..

    Arsenal got caught on the break

    Arsenal effectively out of the CL round of 16 after the 1st leg at home

    Should I go one..is there a french word for de ja vous anyone?..

  8. Dublingunner says:

    We were awful, kept losing balls, caught out repeatedly defensively and as always once we come up against a team who can defend “PROPERLY”, We get taught a lesson. We are simply not a top European team, What was taught to be our best opportunity to finally make it past the the last sixteen round, again goes t-ts up. Wenger is actually further away from winning this trophy, than he has ever been. They can win their next 3 premiership games 10 – 0, and it will mean nothing to me, after watching that game last night, It was a night to step up and show Europe, we are a threat, We f—cked up again. No more excuses of “We always get the hardest draw in the last 16 .Last night put that excuse to bed, and as for our 2 Germans , Jeez I,m hurting.

  9. southyorkshiregunner says:

    You can only get taught a lesson if you are willing to learn DublinG.
    As you said – we are no nearer to winning the CL than at any time.

    The thing is – Monaco aren’t that good.

  10. rockyrocastle07 says:

    Some twat on Facebook yesterday was saying how grateful we should be to have 2 German World Cup winners in our team. Fucking peasant. Both are shit.

  11. rockyrocastle07 says:

    Its really worth finishing outside the European places this year so we can get rid of the drek, Wenger will walk, and we can start afresh. Didn’t do Liverpool any harm.

  12. rogerbij says:

    I admit, I have been hiding. I didnt read the papers after, I didnt log in to HH this morning. Hiding the embarrassment.

    I said before the game, patience and watch the counter attack. It was worse than I couldve imagined…

    The first goal we conceded I can forgive. Sort of. If a team has one shot in a half of football and its from that distance Im fine with it. Terrible luck with the deflection, and normally even a good shot would be easily covered.

    Then we panicked. While Giroud was fluffing his lines, Merts went walkabout for the second. I really dont think I ask too much from defenders. Im not the person who wants them to contribute with goals, or moving the team forward or whatever. Just be in damn position always. Especially when most of us on HH could outrun Merts. Positioning, security, low risk defending. At 1-0 down, I thought it was just a matter of time before we made 1-1, until the second goal.

    We pulled one back, and then promptly threw away the whole rest of the tie. at 2-1 down I still thought it would be difficult but possible to pull a 2-0 at their place. But after losing 3-1 I read the last time a team reversed a 2 goal deficit in an away European match was Ajax in 1967. So at least its been done before. But I doubt it will be with our lot.

    Like Rico says, back to 4th place, and dip our toe in the FA cup. *sigh*

  13. rockyrocastle07 says:

    they were a gnats cock away from winning the league after their European hiatus. I’d take that as they obviously improved massively. Agreed, as an entity, they are fucking horiffic people. But what happened after they failed to qualify for Europe, I’d definitely have some of. Beats all progress in 10 years.

  14. Marinello says:

    I went to the match last night and have to say, it was depressing.
    First ten minutes, out of the traps and at them. Then the usual, cannot break the defence down, tippy tappy football comes in, chances created and not taken, get caught on the break and the rest is history….
    Ozil appeared disinterested, slouching body language. BFG was caught for pace and Gibbs always appears too lightweight for me. We were out muscled when we needed to be strong. Many players just did not turn up and put in a shift. Same old, same old…

  15. allezkev says:

    Wonder if Wenger is going to go into one of his depressions?

    Then the team will mimick him and we’ll play like wallies and fail to beat Everton and QPR…

    His players’, his tactics, his preparations, his coaching, his team, his fault…

    Now get over it and win the next few games you big tart….

  16. tsgh says:

    Very fair post Wath.. and get well soon Lady rico.

    Hey Syg… lay off Le Coq! 😉
    He went from barely getting into the Charlton team to tripling his pay in 4 weeks. Some have it good. 🙂

    On a serious note, you nailed his performance on the head in referring to the old Trafford game.
    I know I seem to bash him a lot but he is not a DM and won’t be a DM at any decent club going forward. Still he gives his all; AW is the culprit for asking for Kramer on loan in January.

    AW better have some trick under his sleeve.

  17. rogerbij says:

    I just had a further look Rocky, since Liverpool were last in the CL in 2009/10, in the premier league they have come: 7th, 6th, 8th, 7th… and then 2nd. Currently they are outside the top 4. Thats not a massive improvement. Thats an embarrassment for that club. As was their CL showing this year. Ok we fail again at last 16, but again I wouldnt trade places.

  18. rockyrocastle07 says:

    Just got ANOTHER email from Arsenal offering me a season ticket. These people are seriously taking the piss!

  19. Micko says:

    tsgh, is that because he’s used all the one’s up his sleeve !

    rocky, you could probably get your own row if you asked ! Just think of all those extra credits next season.

  20. Micko says:

    Only with a “fooking” in front of it eh rocky.

    Saint Patrick’s Day should be a celebration……not this year, thanks Arsenal.

  21. tsgh says:

    ha ha Micko… he indeed us.
    As Rocky was saying earlier, Bould and AW look like real tools on the bench when things are going wrong.

    They should get together and sing kumbaya…

  22. Judge me in May says:

    Afternoon,.
    Good post..
    what I feel is mixture of apathy, frustration and despair..
    when someone asks you how was the game, you just shrug your shoulders and say ‘ ha same old same..
    Get well soon Rico..

  23. George says:

    Afternoon all… here’s my 2 pence worth, as Rocky mentions earlier Dogshit is being kind.

    Team selection set up poor. I wouldn’t be surprised to find out a few days later there has been a ruck in the dressing room.

    We can beat them 3-0 in France, but we would need to see them play like worldbeaters…

    Interested to see a lump in Central midfield…have we got one ? errr nope…. Cazorla ozil and Rosicky won’/t exactly win the aerials in the middle of the pitch.

  24. rockyrocastle07 says:

    We can win if Monaco suddenly play like us and vice-versa. We’ll fall short again.

    Thing is with Rosicky, he always gives 100% when playing. How Ozil can look these people in the eye (using those bullfrog eyes of his) I will never know. Rosicky, Sanchez, Cazorla even Welbeck put him to shame. I don’t think he’ll be here too much longer.

  25. rockyrocastle07 says:

    Micko – I had to dial it down a bit in order to get around the email filter here so no swearing this time!

  26. Joaquim Moreira says:

    I posted last summer Monaco’s coach (eonardo Jardim) will be a good coach for us.
    back to the facts. Last Emirates cup, monaco won us by 1-0, Anyone remember this? Of course is the pre-season, the teams change but the score was that.
    My opinion it’s the same: we can’t play width Cazorla,Sanchez and Ozil at the same time. There are many playmakers, they do the same thing on the pitch and miss palyers for others important skills, Then, the subs, later and in my opinion wrong.
    Watching Monaco team, i’m still very impressive with Wallace , central defender, brazilian, 20 oe 21 years old and Fabinho, the Dm player. They were everywhere.
    the first page of all newspapers write about yesterday game and the victory of Jardim versus Aw.

  27. scottfromoz says:

    Why does everyone point the finger at Ozil?
    Do people realise what his game is all about?
    We barely had a player who made ANY movement off the ball.
    It was a slack, lazy, disinterested group out there and again, whether you want Wenger gone or not, how the hell can you blame him for that.
    100k a week and these guys can’t motivate themselves!

  28. allezkev says:

    Well I dont know about you lot, but I’m really looking forward to enjoying my Christmas dinner whilst watching the WC Final in 2022…

    Roll on Qatar…

  29. allezkev says:

    I know that we tend to obsess about Arsenal, on here, but there seems to be something seriously wrong with English teams in Europe…

  30. allezkev says:

    I was offered a ticket BT (before yesterday’s result I must add) but I gotta work, so I backed it…

    A good decision in hindsight mate…

  31. allezkev says:

    You know what BT, you’d like to think after a bad result, that our team would be uber wound-up and detirmined to get back on track against Everton.
    But as you say, we have absolutely no idea what Arsenal team is gonna turn up…

    I’m not confident that Wenger has it in him to kick them up the arse BT…

    So how on earth can we expect a positive reaction?

  32. BT62 Gooner says:

    My mate’s niece and her fella are going, he’s Arsenal daft, hope they get a better performance than last night…I think it’s his xmas pressie..

  33. rockyrocastle07 says:

    Scott – Ozil couldn’t even pass to a team mate 5 yards away. It was sloppy to say the least. We all know he thrives on runners off the ball, but come on…. 42.5m and he can’t pass the ball? Not good enough in my view. It wasn’t just this game, lets be honest. You can’t possibly say hand on heart that he has flourished at Arsenal. We’re not the team for him, and the way this league is, this isn’t the right country to ply his trade in.

  34. Judge me in May says:

    Morning all,
    Good you feeling better rico,
    arsenal and healthy don’t come in the same sentence right now.. lol..
    Ozil imo has been a disappointment so far.
    He showed glimpses of absolute quality now and then, but over all contribution has been poor.
    Ok he had a poor game against Monaco, and his attitude and body language stunk the Emirates, why wenger insisted on keeping him on!?
    Problem with wenger as we all know hasn’t learned anything when comes to gung Ho football.. How many times it happened? Too many imo..
    You can’t play a high line with mertasacker in defense, everybody knows that except dear arsene.
    If you use 3 playmakers with similar creative style in your midfield, and use your full backs as wingers to provide you with width, you’d need 2 defensive midfielder to cover up the space they leave behind, otherwise your centre backs are exposed to counter attack.
    And if one of them is as slow as slug, it’s just suicidal..
    I have not managed fuck all of games, but I can see what’s wrong with wenger stubbornness.

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