Morning all.
I think I’ve just read more negative headlines about Arsenal in the hour than I’ve seen throughout the season so far. Basically, Arsenal have bottled a great opportunity to win the Premier League for the first time in 126 years. Yet there’s still seven games left to play….
Mikel Arteta on whether the pressure of the season has played a part today. (Sunday)
I would say yes. If I see a team from the beginning playing like that, when I see a team playing with that flow? And at two-nil, that’s certainly not the pressure. We misunderstood what the game required in that moment.
However the players and staff at Arsenal try, they’re not going to be able to avoid all the negativity in the media and maybe that’s not a bad thing because there’s nothing sweeter in sport than to prove the doubters wrong.
I think it’s kind of disrespectful to West Ham and Liverpool to almost suggest they had no right to fight back from trailing a football match. I know in both games we gave them a bit of help but if that had happened back in September, such disparaging headlines wouldn’t have been written I’m sure. Just as I doubt Bukayo Saka would have been racially abused on social media had his penalty miss happened several months ago.
Being top of the League in September, January or March, doesn’t mean the title is won, just as being bottom in January, doesn’t always mean a club is going to be relegated. Sky Sports might like to produce stats from history to suggest otherwise but the fact is, until mathematics say otherwise, anything in football is possible.
Mikel Arteta on the importance of the last six days in the title race…
I have no idea, I didn’t have an idea seven weeks ago, twelve, for what is going to happen in three weeks, my biggest task is, go again and train really well, and on Friday play at the same level that we played the first 30, 35 minutes against a team that is fighting for their lives, or against a Liverpool team but do it for a longer period and kill it.
As said before, we’re bound to be disappointed by what’s happened in our last two fixtures but considering we’re still in with a chance of winning the League in April, I find it really hard to be too downhearted.
There’s ‘talk’ about Chelsea sorting themselves before next season, Man Utd, Liverpool and Newcastle being stronger, even Brighton, Fulham and Totts but I think whoever writes such stuff is forgetting that Arsenal too will be much stronger. We’re where we are without help from officials, without the financial clout Champions League awards and without owners who are prepared to spend money they really shouldn’t be spending.
Arsenal will be playing Champions League football next season regardless of what happens between now and the end of May which, according to many footballing ‘experts’ is required if a club is to attract the best players so in theory, Arsenal should be buying big in the summer. I jest of course because one only has to look at Brighton’s transfer policy to see that really good players don’t have to cost the earth. Arsenal’s transfer needs is a debate for another day though.
For now, the focus is on Friday and the game against Southampton. Anything other than three points and I think any slim hope we might have of pipping City to the title, will be gone. The Emirates and with 60,000 Arsenal fans behind the team, I think we’ll be ok…
Catch up in the comments.
Good afternoon Rico, the poor old journalists have to have something to write about and good news is far less interesting than bad.
One game at a time.
Just had the latest Covid jab, our local G P surgery has got the process down to a fine art. I was called in precisely on time and was out again in less than four minutes.
I only saw the summaries of the last two games. I’ll see if I can see them today. In both, it went from 0-2 to 2-2. With West Ham it’s even weirder because having played on Thursday and playing again on Thursday, you wonder who has been physically and mentally down.
Afternoon Cicero, all.
Even Rio has joined in by saying Utd have had a better season because they’ve won the League Cup..
Jm, I wouldn’t bother, just look forward to the Southampton game. Lol
Ah yes, the genius that is Rio Ferdinand.
Now there is man who proves beyond doubt that a footballers brains are in their boots…
Apparently Michael Oliver has got our gig at the Etihad.
Good, he’s a lesser bad ref than the others..
Morning Rico and all.
The most important thing now, is how do the players and Arteta respond this week,
According to the Metro paper Rio Ferdinand claim Arteta wants the Real Madrid managers job this summer if they part with their manager. I can’t see Arsenal letting him go that easily.
Well if Rio Ferdinand says it then it must be true!
Yes, Ferdinand isn’t biased at all is he…
He has a point. It’s not just the Arsenal men who get stitched up..
Arsenal boss Jonas Eidevall says it is “very odd” that his side have a league match before their Champions League semi-final and Chelsea do not.
The Gunners face Manchester United on Wednesday in the Women’s Super League before their first-leg European last-four tie against Wolfsburg on Sunday.
Chelsea play Barcelona on Saturday without a midweek match.
“It’s like you want one of the teams to have a better chance to succeed than the other,” said Eidevall.
“I find it very odd that we are the only team of the two English teams that are forced to play before our semi-final,” he added.
“I can’t see the reasons for it. It’s something we have to look into after, for the appropriate time, because I can’t see the logic.”
I wish that the club as an entity would speak up more on these aspects, you don’t have to be aggressive but you can pose the question as Eidevall has, point out favouritism but do it in a non-confrontational way, but put it out there to embarrass those in charge. It’s why I’d like to see questions posed about the amount of fouls on Saka and the fact that he gets as many yellow cards as thos3 assaulting him or the discrepancy in VAR decisions, just drop it into a post-match interview and see how it develops?
Geoff what is all this about a change in your country’s constitution, The Voice I think it’s called, something a PR firm would have dreamt up,you all get a vote on it don’t you?
Kev. The voice is a mess, it about giving the indigenous (aboriginal) people more of say in parliament, and bring the country closer but instead it is splitting the country even more, as both major parties are giving a mixed message of what power it will give them. We have to vote later this year.
So, the premier league wants to set up a team of VAR specialists, I wonder who and were these specialists are from considering they can’t even get it correct on match day.
sounds like no Saliba or Zinchenko for this weeks match
New post up