Morning all.
As the burning embers of the north London Derby defeat turn into cold ash, perhaps it’s worth remembering what’s going on at Arsenal and what’s gone on. What’s gone on is frailty, the ability to switch the panic button quicker than Hector Bellerin used to be able to cover fifty yards, the inability to hold onto a lead for more than five minutes and the failure to track the runner or mark like for like height wise, on a set-piece. Among other things.
Highbury House has been in existence for nearly ten years and throughout that period of time, the above mentioned weaknesses within the Arsenal team/squad have been the mainstay of the conversation. Having one manager through much of those years didn’t help, especially as his managerial peak had been reached long before Highbury House was born but any hope his eventual replacement offered us, soon disappeared. I think we’ve slowly lost our ‘soft’ label, but certainly not the ‘vulnerable’.
The term ‘practice makes perfect’ is heard quite often but one mustn’t forget that perfection, or something close to it, will only ever be achieved if it’s done right in the first place.
I’m sure we’d all agree that the same player names pop up when Arsenal play well and the same names when Arsenal play badly. If Aubameyang scores two and we win 2-0, does anyone take great notice of the ones he’s skewed wide, hit over the bar or straight at the keeper throughout the same game? Do we remember a great touch, header or tackle by Luiz, Kolasinac or Mustafi when their one howler leads to a goal? It’s a genuine question.
I bet anyone 50 pence that prior to joining Arsenal, Mustafi and Kolasinac didn’t have so many errors in their game as they have now. Nor Xhaka for that matter but as each joined an already disorganised and disjointed squad, they’ve picked up bad habits and for the want of a better expression, perfected them. Not just them either but I’ve not got all day.
Another thing I’ve noticed and yes, I may have mentioned it once or twice before but the body language of our younger players like Eddie, AMN, Nelson, Willock etc – it’s the same. They seldom seem fired up and ready for action, the opposite in fact. So much so I’m sure if they shut their eyes for long enough they’d nod off. I’m not knocking them, honest. I just don’t get it.
Anyway, my point is, when things go wrong for Arsenal, is it because of the here and now, or the past? The constant and consistent errors made over a sustained period of time which up until now, have not been rectified. Everything we do in life, whether it’s good or bad, right or wrong, we learn and don’t stop just because we get older. Or at least we shouldn’t.
As far as Arsenal go, it seems that at long last we have a head coach who’s prepared to teach. Wants to teach and expects his pupils to listen, learn and repeat. That’s the ‘going on’ part of where this little scribble began. But life isn’t that simple is it? Learning something different or how to behave differently, doesn’t happen overnight. If Arsenal wanted a quick overnight fix just to focus on winning one match, they’d have gone for Mourinho, but longer lasting change, ie permanent, takes time. Nearly every bad habit we human beings pick up through life, takes time to remove from daily routine. From biting our nails furiously, to reaching for that leftover half a bottle of red you were determined to keep for another evening. It’s what we do when things aren’t going according to plan.
Whether every player we have wants to learn, to improve or buy into the changes Mikel Arteta hopes to make is another thing but if Luiz can decide not to bundle Moura to the ground, giving away a penalty and getting sent off along the way, then anything is possible.
As for the leftover half a bottle of red, well, I didn’t know there was such a thing…
See you in the comments guys.
Morning all.
Great post, Rico.
You raise some very interesting questions.
One thing I’m sure we all agree on, as it’s been discussed often enough, is we lack of one thing above all-a true leader.
The old story of Adams and Dixon prior to Lee’s first NLD-imagine that happening amongst our current lot?
No chance at all.
We need that guy who truly would throw his body on the line for us.
One would become two, two would become three etc etc etc
Nor bad players.
We’ve bought terribly over the last decade, at first out of financial necessity but lately out of disorganisation and lack of strategy and vision.
We need to be very smart and very focused in the market, because what we need to rectify will take 2-3 seasons at least.
Not only do we need quality we need character and intelligence.
The defence has been a perpetual problem since Adams and company left.
The epl has not been won since 2004.Why?A poor defence Arsenal could have won at least 2/3 epl titles if the defence has been more cohesive the last 10 years.Since 2013, its astraight
fight between Chelsea and MC.2016 leicester won against great odds.
If the gunner continue to be unable to challenge,sponsorship deals will be in jeopardy.
Sponsors wnat to be associated with winning(top ) teams.
Afternoon Rico and all. For me, it’s all been going on for way too long. Years and years of negative play, catastrophic individual errors and a transition period that seems to be eternal.
I can see, like most of us can, the torpor that exists around the club and that seems to permeate every part of the playing staff. Now that FFP is essentially dead I think we are due for a lengthy period in the wilderness as I doubt the Kroenkes are going to put a full stop under the ‘age of frustrating mediocrity’ and start the rebuilding properly and with ample funds. Man City, Chelsea, Man Utd and possibly some others are going to invest stupendous amounts of money with the ludicrous Man City decision in their back pocket as a guarantee. We are going to start getting rid of some of the major liabilities but plenty of them will probably still be there next season, too nervous to make a forward pass and always precariously on the edge of an alarming lapse of reason.
At this moment I am not really sure where we are or where we’re heading despite liking Mikel.
Hi Rico well put, Hi all one of our problems is we don’t have a true leader in this group of players and these young players all say the want more game time but they don’t seem to be motivated except for Saka who all ways looks like he is trying to join in and pick his team mates mind to learn more.
Thanks Scott. Agree, we’ve no one handing down the Arsenal baton these days.
Tierney seems to have more passion on his left boot than most have in their entire body and it’s clear to see every time he plays.
Let’s focus on young, keen guys from some of the “lesser” PL clubs, for want of a better term, or lower League clubs and bring them on.
Build something.
We have no European football next season so we can take advantage of the situation.
Kolasinac joined us in 2017 having just been named in the Bundesliga team of the season as a fast running powerful attacking left sided player. So what happened. ?
one look at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3oovNUsRLM and you see a player that played with a fast tempo in a team that wanted to get forward with speed . As is often the case we seem to buy a player because they are good at something and then ask them to do something different and look surprised when it doesn’t work.
We now have Tierney doing that job but I would like to see a stat that tells just how many of his centres find a man in the box and whether there is anyone there to centre to.
We bought Xhaka to be a quarter back pinging long diagonal balls to each wing to players on the run at least that’s what he did at Basel and Borrusia M.
But here we are pedestrian and centre our play on the half way line playing lots of one twos in restricted areas . We need to learn to spread the game quickly , we need players that move for spaces up front safe in the knowledge that someone is looking for them and that the ball will come .
We have players but no pace, we give opponents too much time to reorganise . Playing with 5 at the back invites teams on to us . I think our players are more suited to a 4-4-2 formation with Auba and Lacazette up front whilst perming Martinelli , Pepe , Saka , Nelson wide . Then 2 six footers in the middle one holding and the other box to box capable of winning things in the air and protecting the defence which needs to learn defending as a unit and protecting each other . Keepers providing we can keep them both happy are sorted .
Just my thoughts , feel free to destroy them as you wish. regards Potter.
And dished out some very expensive contract extensions to a number of average players Hobart.
Afternoon Adam.
Hi Geoff.
Adam, we’re financially hampered because of so many ridiculous historical contracts imo, once they have expired and players leave, their replacements together with younger players are going to have to bloody good. Otherwise we might as well pack up and go home.
Agree James. Wenger couldn’t spot a proper defender if he fell in his lap.
Or perhaps just agree Potter as it makes sense. As you said the other day about Lacazette, he’s a poacher, but all the time he’s tracking back, he’s redundant as a striker.
Spot on re Tierney Scott, he’s one of a few bright spots after the weekend.
Rico. Apart from the Ozil black hole and of course Kolasinac who must surely be off this year, we are suffering most from the culture within the club from what I can see. My point is that we are always on the cusp of a rebuild in name, but the same old nonsense never goes away.
Adam, I agree re the culture, much of which away from the pitch, can’t really be changed but, Mikel can bring in a different type of player from now on. Workers rather than shirkers, of which we have plenty.
As Scott said earlier, Tierney has more about him than most of our experienced players. I’d raid the relegated clubs for their best, build a whole new attitude on the pitch.
Super read, Rico…
It’s funny isn’t it how a while back we started shipping out the ‘deadwood’ yet we seem to have replaced them with super deadwood!!! Only we could do that 😆
One thing that really irks me is how this lot seem quite happy to resign themselves to defeat… wave the white flag… give up…I bet if we go a goal down tomorrow in the first 15 minutes or so, our heads will drop and it’ll become embarrassing… and all those scouse pearly whites will be on show… urgh….
We’d better see some bloody fight tomorrow… although I wonder how many back passes we’ll see?? As you can tell, I’m still incensed about Sunday…😄
One other thing, Rico, 50 pence??!! 🤣🤣
Well, he definitely deserves the chance to do that Rico.
I won’t get too excited just yet though.
Afternoon Rico and All
It seems for now onestep forward onestep back,
Micky wanted the players to make the pitch bigger,
that left Shacky the Wacky and Danny the Dier,
to protect our three ball watches,who needed to
switch on the after burners every time we lost the
ball,it reminded me of when you see people
chasing their pet dog over the park with the lead
and a poo bag flapping every where.
Poor old Micky,you can see the bags under his
eyes.
To find a leader that will fight for us and have
the class to play top football,I think will be hard
to buy, I just can’t see it.
I remember Robin Van Pursestring,”Judas to us”
saying he felt alone in fighting to win games.
We can only hope Micky and Edo have the nous
to find these Geezers.
Ho Di Ho… 😉
Thanks Sue, I’m tight. Lol
You’re right, Dido wrote a song about our lot…
Adam, I think he does too. It’d be nice to think the board will support him him financially too. Give him the tools to do his job properly.
😄👍 Dido’s a gooner, so she didn’t need to look too far for inspiration haha! I bet she’s as p****d as the rest of us!!
She sure is a Gooner. Went out with Big Sol at some stage I believe…
You’re showing your age Kev. Lol
Morning campers…. 😉
I think it was a couple of weeks before the re start that Josh Kroenke said that Arteta wants to change the culture of the club and that he, Josh/KSE have faith in him and trusted him to do it , but that it’ll be a long job. Or words to that effect….
Looking back to the transfer window when Emery first arrived we got Guendouzi for £8m that was good business. Sokratis cost £16.6m and was a good signing initially but VAR buggered him up as a large part of his game is shithousery, he was good at that and our defence needed to be more cynical, so he was an ok signing for one season but now he’s past it. Lichtsteiner was very average and was a poor signing. Leno was a fantastic signing at what was it £26m, an absolute steal. Torrieira has been pretty good as well at £23m, we’ll make a tidy profit on him if we sell even in a deflated market. I think that that was it for that window and I’d say that that was fairly good.
Suarez was Emery’s pick and a terrible choice in the January of 2019 and probably influenced the management teams decision to go for Pepe instead of Zaha last summer ignoring Emery’s preferences.
The Pepe deal has been average but we can’t complain because most of us were absolutely delighted when we got him, the club spent serious money and showed ambition which was what we were all calling for.
Tierney at £25m looks to be a bargain, he’s a top top player with a great attitude and is just the type of player we want and need if Arteta is to change the culture of the squad.
Martinelli at £6m has been a fantastic piece of business a big thumbs up to the transfer team. Saliba is an unknown quantity but I’ve yet to hear anyone say that he’s been a waste of money so another top piece of business I’d say but Luiz has been mixed, I know many Arsenal fans had serious doubts about that one and I have to agree, not a great deal, but he’s popular in the club and Arteta likes him so…..
This January we’ve signed Mari and Soares on long term deals, I’m optimistic about both but I simply can’t understand why some fans are so negative about them when they’ve hardly played – give them a blooming chance eh? So the jury is out on them in my opinion.
Then there is our youngsters and the contracts guys have all our best ones signed up on long contracts so what’s to complain about?
All in all I’m quite satisfied with the transfer business we’ve done since July/Aug 2018.
Therefore those players who seem to let us down by making the same old mistakes again and again and those who don’t play because of sciatica are in the main from the Wenger era with a few from Mislintat and when they’ve eventually been moved on maybe we’ll begin to see a more resolute and successful Arsenal team, but it won’t be this season or probably next season.
Kev, I’ve seen nothing from either Soares or Mari to make me think they’re bad signings. Our recruiting/contract dealings were poor before Emery/Raul imo, and we’re certainly paying the price now. Literally.
If Pepe struggles next season, then I might start thinking that his £72m could have been spent better elsewhere.
Yeah, I agree with you on Pepe for sure Rico, but we can’t dig out the club for signing him, he was red hot in France and Klopp wanted him and was gutted he choose Arsenal so KSE pushed the boat out financially, just as we wanted them too.
Rico, I reckon that Soares and Mari will turn out to be shrewd signings.
Absolutely Kev, I was thrilled the club signed Pepe and I still think he’ll be a very good player for us. Ditto re the other two too and I kind of get Luiz too, probably for his experience around the club more than as a player. Didn’t Arteta say Luiz wants to become a coach? What a coup it would be if he did that under Arteta, rather than returning to Chelsea?
New post up now