Morning all.
Well that was a pretty weird game I thought. Feisty at times, offsides not spotted, including for our third and a sending off which didn’t materialise. If sticking your boot, studs up, into a players body whilst he’s on the ground isn’t worthy of a booking then I don’t know what does. I’ve seen straight red cards given for less let alone a yellow card. Kevin Friend missed Kolasinac shoving a Burnley player in the back too which is a good job otherwise he’d have pointed to the penalty spot.
After the match, Sean Dyche accused some of the Arsenal players of diving which I thought was a load of poppycock. Yes Ozil went over once or twice a bit too easily but there was contact. Dyche needs to look at the behaviour of sone of his own before talking about ours. Unai Emery dismissed such claims rather swiftly.
The media have made the most of Lacazette appearing unhappy to be substituted but I wonder how they’d see it if he ran off at great pace smiling and jolly. Idiots. No one wants to come off a football pitch, or at least they shouldn’t but he didn’t snub his manager or the player replacing him. Maybe he was just cheesed off with some of the rough treatment he’d received on the pitch. Maybe he really didn’t want to come because he’d worked so hard he wanted a goal to go with it. Too bad though, we’ve another fixture in a couple of days and he needs to stay fit.
No such luck for Nacho Monreal who left the game early due to injury and was accompanied straight down the tunnel which is worrying. I fear this is how it’s going to be for him now because as we age, our bones/muscles etc don’t recover as quick or as well as they do when we’re younger. It’d be a great shame if that is the case. Sticking with left backs, how good was Sead Kolasinac yesterday? I loved that shoulder to shoulder barge, his determination to get to the ball which led to our opening goal too. In fact I’d say that was one of his best performances this season and just why he was awarded the man of the match award at the end.
The game itself was ok. Not the best but not the worst either. Our defending left a lot to be desired but then we only had one central defender fit enough to play. When Monreal went off and Xhaka had to drop back into defence it all got a bit messy. When Elneny was replaced, even more messy. Ozil should be thanking the Egyptian for clearing up the mess he made on the edge of the penalty area which nearly let Burnley in on goal. Not only that, it was from that interception that we scored our opening goal. A fine move it was too.
Two further goals came our way and two good strikes they were, the first from Aubameyang and then late in the game from Iwobi who must have been relieved to see his shot hit the back of the net and the linesman’s flag stay down. In amongst the two, Burnley pulled one back through Ashley Barnes who really should have had his early bath, dried and changed by then.
A good result and some good performances but not from all. We’ve serious problems in defence, in fact we have serious problems defending full stop. Nice to get back to winning ways, especially as Chelsea dropped three points at home.
Boxing Day is our next one, away to Brighton. Then it’s a trip to Anfield to face the league leaders. Hopefully by then Bellerin and Mustafi will be fit and Emery can play his strongest team.
For the Brighton game though, I hope Torreira doesn’t play as he’s one booking away from a one match ban and we really can’t afford to lose him for the Liverpool game.
Have a great day guys…
Cold wet and miserable here in my side of windy Norfolk . Still they don’t build windmills where the wind don’t blow/
Dyche would do well to remember that as he rides off from London tilting at the unfairness of life like a northern Don Quixote with a sore throat. he really seems to want to take the position of a pantomime villain with selective vision. His boys are no angels , they know how to put it about a bit but that’s all fair but if it goes against them ,? well it’s not . Bringing up the diving issue from a couple of weeks ago to garner some creedence is really poor , he knows that two of those bookings were contentious and also knows that Barnes , Mee , Cork are not beyond a little skullduggery and as his team picked up a fine for 5 bookings he feels hard done by and and feels that the referee was not on his side. He doesn’t stop to think though that Emery no doubt felt the same about picking up three diving cards but did not go running to the press to bitch about it.
Yesterday Burnley were outplayed and only Arsenal’s ability to shoot itself in it’s own foot allowed them to get into it.
Yet again it stemmed from a long diagonal not defended at the far post. We either have to get some extra height or we need to stop those crosses at source.
Work to do at London Colney.
Well said Potter.
Afternoon Gooners
Afternoon Rico
Yes, Mavropanos back in training is great news, but considering how decimated our defence has been of late, those standing in have done a good job.
Wtf is Dyche going on about?
We’ve learnt to our cost that we cannot rely on the officials to protect us from intimidation so you act accordingly, you exaggerate foul challenges that usually get ignored, you fall to the ground you basically wind up the opposition and put them off of their game, which is exactly what they are trying to do to you. And it worked…
Sour grapes by Dyche, meanwhile Emery is cultivating a cosy relationship with referees rather than the antagonism that existed when Wenger was in charge.
Yes, Ozil had a good game, now let’s see him perform again on Boxing Day…
First, again in Indonesia. Death and devastation. May they be strong again to again and again, face with great courage the natural accidents and the loss of their relatives.
Second, now football. It was also (very) good that the Totts lost today. I did not like the game from yesterday. The team was “lost” on the pitch. With an referee like many who are hitting us, we had problems. Defense is a disgrace. It’s fragile. defends poorly, is poorly placed, does not guarantee any safety. And this is reflected in the team. I think that at this point in game overload, one or two of the freshest players, young and motivated to play in the League, would be a great chance. As for Ozil: everyone says wonders of the pass of the first goal. No one denies you the “class” only in my point of view, he has no longer have rhythm to play at this level: he losea in all physical contacts, he does not defend, he does not have time to execute what he thinks, he is slow to what is required. It ends up as he is nullified, predictable, and physically deficient unit.
Torreira is tired too. ..
Hi Rico
You are right, Dyche has a cheek – he ignored all the little elbows and boots left in that we were subjected to. I thought the defence played OK considering the players we had, it could have been a lot worse.
By the way, vampires are immortal – has one come back from the dead to manage us?
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81fvzqWdCPL._SX342_.jpg
Brian
Afternoon Kev. Burnley are the new Bolton.
Seems the media are saying Ozil was superb. Really? I didn’t think he was. A few great moments perhaps but a few times when we broke away, he virtually stopped the move with his slow play and turn on his left.
Nice comment Jm.
Totally agree re Ozil. Great ball for our goal, but sell him still. Turkey want him apparently and they can have him…
And Ready have a new coach!
I imagine Dyche was just pissed that we didn’t buckle under his primitive rough-house tactics. The fact that we gave a bit back must have really wound him up.
An umfashionable view I know, but I hope we hang on to Ozil and he makes lots more assists, like yesterday’s.
Hi Brian, managers like him often do..l
If only Ozil could such things more often Adam..
Rico. If only….
That’s what frustrates me about him Adam. No one expects him to get stuck in for 90 mins but at least try every now and again…
Yes, his demeanour perhaps makes him an easy target.
Demeanour and his slow approach to the game.
63 minutes on the clock yesterday and he was played through down the left. It was a chase admittedly, but he gave up without even trying. I bet Kolasinac would have got there roles reversed
Hello, fellow HH’ers….
3 excellent finishes (did Iwobi actually score? It WAS him!))
What a muddled group of players in the penalty area to gift Burnley an “almost” lifeline – not a cool head that I could see to just put the ball out to touch. Y’know, nothing fancy but hopefully it’ll happen one day…….
Özil did play with more commitment but, like a few players, went down far too easily. I would swear that last season he was bulking up in the gym (as he was a bit of a lightweight)?
Dyche did complain over some of the Arsenal “dives” and I definitely agreed with him over Xhaka because, he also fouled in such a well disguised manner that HE got the free kick.
His players made some brutal moves which begs the question, why are referees and linesmen so poor at spotting these misdemeanors?
We need 4 linesmen (errr…sorry, linespersons) because two definitely can’t cut it.
To be honest I look forward to VAR ‘cos I dislike cheating, and, what example are they sending out to the upcoming youngsters who will just copy them because they thinks it’s “cool”?
My last comment of the day is that a few players (no names but we know who they are) REALLY need to spend MORE time on the practice ground striking free kicks, crosses, and lay-offs so that in the majority of cases the ball goes between both posts and the crossbar. Wunderbar and much jubilation if it goes in but, even if it doesn’t, at least they were ON TARGET!
C’mon boys!!!
Meant to add…….Good observations Rico
Thanks Andorra – I didn’t see Xhaka dive, I didn’t think any of ours did. Ozil went over softly but no dive imo…
Aside from yesterday’s game, I agree with Rico, rest Torreria for the Brighton game, we need him against the Bin Dippers.
Although I know that we’re well into the midst of the pre transfer window bullshit period it seems that the claims from the president/chairman/supremo of Lille that Nicholas Pepe is worth €80m (or approx £72m) means that we can now quite happily forget about him.
I guess that leaves Boca Juniors mercurial Argentinian wing forward Cristian Pavon as the next cab off of the rank – a snip at £40m?
Failing that, Sven Mislintat really has to turn up an uncut diamond from somewhere in January as Aubameyang and Lacazette can’t be expected to do it (score goals) all on their own for the next 5 months…
I mean if you’re gonna pay €80m for Pepe you may as well push the boat out for Dembele!
I’m not sure about the Brighton game guys, although I know what everyone, myself included, has been saying about Torrieira and being suspended at Anfield.
I mean, let’s get the three points at Brighton and then worry about Liverpool…
I’d hate to get caught up in worrying about Liverpool only to drop points at Brighton as we recently did at Southampton. 3 points is 3 points after all.
And does anyone on here really think that we can get anything at Anfield anyway, because I’m afraid I don’t… 😕
I guess what I’m saying is that I’d pick our strongest team for the Amex and if that included Torrieira, then so be it.
Let’s get the win on Boxing Day and then think about Liverpool.
It strange how when players get injured and miss a few games that they become more important and better players than when they were in the team…
Take Mustafi, many would have said before he got injured that they wished somebody would take him as long as he wasn’t in the team, but we actually do miss that nutcase – well I certainly do. Since Holding got injured Mustafi has become one of only two dependable centre backs at our club, yeah I know that Mustafi and dependable never really went together before, but he’s been showing signs of improvement under Emery and having Sokratis next to him seems to have had a beneficial effect on him.
We really need him back pronto…
Yep Kev, we need Mustafi back, it’ is the pantomime season after all. 😉
I thought the pantomime Cicero, was at St Mary’s when our defence was doing an impression of ‘He’s behind you’ – not that I was laughing mate. 🙂
Morning guys.
New post up now..