What I love about European matches is not just about our team and players but the opposition too. Watching and thinking how good it would be if Arsene Wenger signed player x, y or z…
Not last night though, not one of the FC Koln players would I like to see playing in the red and white of Arsenal FC. Some might be tempted to suggest that not many of our players on show last night deserve to be in our first team either and they’d be right.
The game itself was pretty poor I thought, certainly miles apart from the way we played last weekend but to be fair, we probably knew it would be. Last night was about keeping a clean sheet and securing top spot and we were doing just that until the Russian referee awarded Koln a terribly soft penalty. I don’t even think Mike Dean would have given that one.
Regardless, up front we were pretty grim. Mainland-Niles was lively but his final ball often left a lot to be desired. Welbeck was Welbeck, lively and that’s about it but he’s just returning from being injured so 45 minutes of football was important for him and Arsenal. Apart from Coquelin hitting the post and firing one just wide, our end product was poor. Wilshere gave their keeper something to do at the end of the game but that was about it. Nelson was another player who looked exciting when he replaced Chambers and Iwobi tried his best to change the result but in all honesty, we didn’t deserve anything from that game. Mind you, neither did Koln who were dreadful. We sunk to their level I thought instead getting at them. So much for some of our more senior players believing they should be playing for the first team instead of just on a Thursday night.
Giroud was awful I thought. Jack was marginally better but like Ramsey, he tries to do the spectacular instead of keeping it simple. If in January an offer comes in for Ollie, I really hope Wenger snaps the clubs hands off.
The rest of our second string, well none did themselves proud did they yet they should have against such a weak opposition.
With Red Star drawing their match our result was irrelevant as we’ve topped the group in any case, but if Arsene Wenger wants to win the European Cup, once February arrives he’s going to have to start using some of the first team players because our ‘senior’ players out their last night won’t win us anything. It’s not as if they’ve excelled in any of our Europa games so far and last night was just a blip is it?
Now Arsene Wenger can now play who he likes in our final match in two weeks time against BATE Borisov at The Emirates. Personally, I hope he plays the youngsters including Matt Macey because I’m sure they’ll do a lot better than some of those on show last night…
Anyway, we topped the group, we’re through to the knockout stages and sometimes that’s all what matters but we won’t go much further, not if last night and the previous performances are anything to go by…
Have a good Friday guys and don’t go spending too much money on a bargain….
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Morning Rico
It was hard watching last night and this is my conclusion
To maximise the chances of success with so many competitions and the lure of ever increasing money at stake a club who wishes to at least compete has to rotate but the quality of players available is fundamental in achieving that.
We all want any player who puts on our colours to do well but last night was a typical example that in general the gulf between our best eleven and those who are our second team is huge.
One can’t keep saying that they get little game time,or they are forever recovering from injury,Welbeck being a good example.
A bench mainly full of 17 and 18 year old kids with next to no experience of PL or European football is a big ask even though technically we had qualified before a ball was kicked
The gulf is there to see then add that in all probability our best two players will leave and to replace them will cost more and more (not that I think it is justified, but will AW splash the cash ?) and most of the players bought in the last three seasons just don’t come up to scratch
It’s the same thing repeating itself season after season.Many things need sorting ouy before we are able to be amongst the real elte again in the PL nevermind about Europe..
Morning Rico. I have witnessed some bad performances over the recent years and there will be those who say that last night’s result and performance is irrelevant as we are already through, somehow as group winners. But, for a team wearing the Arsenal colours to be so uninspiring, unmotivated and negative was shocking. Hartson got it right when he wondered why more of them weren’t trying to force their way into Wenger’s first team thinking. Perhaps they are in a comfort zone, he said. He may be right but last night was bloody painful to watch, like all the Europa League games this season. The list of horrible performances is long and it’s not worth going into the individuals who stank the place out last night. But where is the pride and ambition in these teams that Wenger puts out in this competition?
Morning Kelsey, Adam and all.
This whole Europa thing has been nothing short of embarrassing imo. Dreadful dreadful performances from start to finish.
Leaving the youngsters out, not one of those players from midfield to the front deserve to be at our club.. This was their chance to prove themselves but they haven’t. In fact they’ve embarrassed the club big time.
Good post rico,
I say ditch the underperforming fringe players and play the youth.
It was painful watching giroud and co flop yet again!
Our corners and crosses were embarrassing. .same with the first team players.
You would think they spend sometime practicing !
Rico. I agree. Players like Giroud, Wilshere and Danny should be dominating games against opposition like Cologne. Whatever has happened to Elneny and Coquelin I cannot imagine. Why not, just occasionally, move the ball forward at something above glacial pace?
Morning KK. You’re right. Elneny’s corners were absolutely pathetic last night. Why on Earth he was being allowed to take them is yet another mystery. Standing over the ball, signalling with his hand in the air as if to mimic some plan or other and then kicking it straight to the first defender. Time after time too.
Thanks Kk. Our corners really cheese me off and not only last night. But they plough on with the same player taking them regardless of how bad they are..
Morning Rico, good post.
Yesterday evening was painful to listen to on the radio and I switched off and decided to watch a film when Cologne scored because I knew this bunch of players lacked to motivation to step it up enough to turn the result around.
Funnily enough the closing minutes were when Arsenal and in particular Wilshere, stopped fannying around and showed some urgency.
Too late Ethel, it’s difficult to get yourself going after spending the majority of the match in couldn’t-care-less mode. Pity about the fans who probably had a days holiday and spent a small fortune to follow this group of serial underachievers.
There’s a reason why this group of players are in the reserves…
It all stems from the manager and his lack of motivational skills, I really think that the players don’t listen to him anymore.
Take a Giroud, it’s clear that he isn’t happy about being in the cup team, is he going to be energised by a manager who he’s got the hump with especially as he knows that he isn’t going to get into the EPL team however he plays?
So he goes into these games at about 85%, with an ‘I’m too good for this’ attitude, whilst around him the limitations of Elneny, Coquelin, Debuchy and yes even Mertesaker are apparent without Alexis and Bellerin and Xhaka and Lacazette to camouflage them.
Wilshere wants to get back into the EPL team, he wants to go to the World Cup, so it follows that you’d want to go out against such poor opposition and dominate, run the show, tear Cologne apart, but did he? Or did he overindulge with all the Ramseyesque flashy stuff that rarely comes off?
There’s not many among the senior players out there last night who I’d say have much of a future at Arsenal beyond this season, that much is clear to me, that leaves Wenger, or whoever, with a big job in the summer, forget January it’s next summer.
I just don’t get it Adam, I really don’t. None of the three you mention were bad players. I really don’t know what motivates them anymore.. Nothing by the looks of it yet they should be loving time out there on the pitch and expressing themselves..
Morning Kev, thanks.
Spot on I reckon. Ollie will look to move in January I think and if they do, good luck to him. I certainly wouldn’t miss him. Having been out so long I thought Jack might be giving a bit more with the WC coming up but if Southgate will only pick him if he’s playing first team football, he won’t be going to Russia on his current performances because there’s little chance Wenger will pick him. Would he play better in the first team? Probably but he can’t pick and choose when he plays well, none of them can as they should be doing it each and every game, or very close to…
I know Wenger is pretty useless at motivating the team by the looks of it but what about these professional sportsmen? Do they really need the old man to tell them to give 100%? Does Giroud really need to be told not to fall over every time he’s tackled? Does Elneny need to be told where to put his corners or to pass the ball forward?
These blokes really need to wake up but they won’t because they don’t bloody care about the club… As Adam said earlier, where their pride for themselves and the club?
They have been trained into a pattern of play which encourages possession as opposed to flair . In consequence they take the easy option rather than try the out of the ordinary. Wilshere and Giroud were trying to replicate their one touch flick , flick goal against Norwich and there was little else on show once Maitland Niles’ game wore off at half time.
This bunch of young ones are talented without a doubt but comparing their desire to win against that of the Rocastle , Merson , Davis and of course Keown and Big Tone that all came through in the 1983 / 85 period , I just don’t see it . Perhaps it’s the motivation and the drive in the players or perhaps Georgie was wielding a cattle prod as opposed to a feather flick.
Probably the George factor. Wenger is far too soft on his lot…
Potter, I’m not sure that you can compare teenagers of today with those of over 30 years ago, it’s another age, they’re all Snapchat and You Tube stars nowadays.
Plus too much money too soon, where’s all the hungry fighters gone? They’ve got the big car, the Barbie doll girlfriend, the agent, the contract.
All before they’ve got a regular spot in the 1st team…
As I said cotton wool against a cattle prod . There used to be a connection , you could even get a drink in the Kings Head with some players if you could get past the bouncers but today it’s the biggest headphones and blinkers . They are a seperate breed now.
Sit all the young guns down together and make them watch Fever Pitch. Actually, sit the first team squad with them too…
I have never actually watched the whole of that film in full. Perhaps I could go too and make comments from the back or even sell the ice creams at half time. I have seen the crowd scenes ( shot at Craven Cottage) as my son features in them . He tells some really funny stories of the shooting about the producer asking them to sing ” we hate West Ham “songs. The cameras rolled and the crowd burst out into And we hate Tottnum and we hate Tottnum, followed by the obligatory Yiddo chant as he pulled his hair out . After about an hour of this he was nearly in tears.
I enjoyed Fever Pitch, mind you I do have a bit of a thing for Colin Firth…
Just read that Florentino Perez has called a reported Arsenal bid of £40million for Karim Benzema, embarrassing…
Embarrassing?
For a 29 year old kept out of the French national team by Olivier Giroud!!!
Well fcuk you Florentino, keep him then, I won’t lose any sleep.
The fact that we are looking at Benzema is embarrasing enough in itself.
Afternoon Rico and All
I don’t take defeat lightly,even when training,
the learning curve is to win the game.
Skills training and shape are stop/start training
sessions..
Game day matters for future players,
not many of them had a good nights kip..I bet.
Have we ever fielded 3 slower centrebacks
than last nights 3.
Elneny is just average,going by that performance.
Jack’s head is on key but his body is a bit slow.
Arsene for some reason replaced Danny with
a midfielder.
Arsene said before the spuds game he may not
have focused on them the last 5 seasons.
Arsene did say before this game he had focused
on this game….Em
N…………………urse
After all we have tried and failed( been rejected ) so many times before. This smacks of Wenger making a last ditch effort before our Dortmund man gets a say in things,
I hope we don’t want Benzema, his better days are done…
Afternoon Fred..
I’d like to see Sven given that £40m and told to pick up the next big things out of the Bundesliga, starting with a good young right-back, a holding midfielder and a left winger/midfielder.
Glad you said starting with. I would like to see a dominating centre back and a winger that can cross the ball and take corners and then someone to attack them would be nice.
Not good. Saw the same thing in the entire campaign. Jack needs better partners, like Nelson, Nketiah, and Iwobi, not Giroud, Walcott, or Welbeck (though I still hold onto hope Welbeck will return to his earlier form). I though Chambers was a centerback? Would have rather seen Debuchy up the right wing, more experienced and tries to make things happen. Per was fine, young Rob seems to have lost not only his form but some of the pace he had last season? Was there some accident or injury that I missed with Holding? Elneny & Coquelin are not Arsenal material. They belong in the bottom half of the table and don’t deserve to play for the Gunners. I was pissed when Wenger picked Ospina over Matt Macey. How’s the kid going to learn sitting on the bench? This was the perfect game for him, major Wenger fail. How about Horn for Ospina? We need another keeper. Maitland-Niles was good but his final ball is rubbish. Only one good ball into the box and Giroud and the rest of them ignored it! No wonder we didn’t score, we’re using prima donnas who think they’re too good for Europa.
Only time we looked dangerous was when Jack started to step up and Nelson, Iwobi, and Nketiah got into the action in the last ten minutes. I really thought we would score. Props to Horn, that was some good goal keeping.
Kev, add a central defender in there too imo..
Oops, sorry Potter, you’d already suggested that..
Welcome a big Cheese, sorry you were stuck in moderation for a while.
Hard to disagree with what you’ve written although I didn’t think we looked like scoring. Had Eddie been given more time on the pitch though, we might have done. Giroud certainly wasn’t going to.
Evening all and thanks Rico.
I know I should, but I couldn`t give a toss about last night, top of group who cares ?………..next game should be all the youth, but seeing as we have qualified, I`d take another repeat of last night if it means a repeat of our last EPL game !………………………………..League Cup and EL for youth and EPL and FA Cup for 1st team, that`s how it has always been for me………….unless we get to the semis ! hahaha
Best thing to come out of last night was this…………………………………………………..
🙂
This might not go down well with some or most but diverting our attention and euphoria of beating Spurs doesn’t really sort what is far more important and that is sorting our own house in order.
Stiffs playing Hammers tonight !…….
https://twitter.com/Arsenal/status/934139575936700416
Dont think the euphoria of beating Totnumb is diverting away from the real issues, Kelsey , but in a time of the footballing and management etc depression of our club it was nice to have the warm feeling back of beating the scum, infact, I`m still high even after last nights virtual dead rubber game !……………………we all know the issues, Saturday was like a mini break in the Carribean for the likes of the Wavy in the frozen/rainy lands of middle earth England ! hahaha……………………………………..seriously, I had sun cream on down near Sennen Cove today…………..women in bikinis in late November !……………………lovely !
🙂
Agree Kelsey, one swallow doesn’t make a summer. If I was Lc I’d have put a few ………………….. in my comment………… ?
Evening Rico and the House.
Tonight theU23’s are showing the big boys (from last night) how it should be done.
They are playing some superb football and at half time are leading 2-0 with both goals scored by Dragomir.
Could be a lot more Eddie missed pen and goalkeeper has made some very good saves.
i
Evening Rick, Eddie playing so soon? Great to hear they’re doing well though..
Night guys.
Morning rico1 & all,
Messi would make a difference rico. I see where he hasn’t signed with Barca yet. The Arse would make heaps on shirt sales, etc alone & he would be a Gr8 signing.
Eddie scord the final goal in a 3-0 win.
Rico 5 of tonights team were last nights squad. No Nelson
Dragomir Willock Dasilver and Ben Sheaf were outstanding Tonight.
2nd……………..
https://twitter.com/Arsenal/status/934145555550306305
3rd………………………..
https://twitter.com/Arsenal/status/934164392345784320
Vlad Dragomir !……………………what a great name……………………for a Vampire ! hahaha
Give Dragomir a run out from the bench against Borisov…
Vlad Dragonmir Vs Boris Karloff…………………………………it`s what Hammer Horror Films were made of !
🙂
Morning all.
Seems it’s a toss up between Utd and Barca for Ozil then…
Albeit the Catalan word is that it’s still Coutinho as their number1 choice , and that they will only go for Ozil if Liverpool still say no. Messi apparently prefers Coutinho saying that Ozil slows the attack taking too many touches.
To me it makes little difference where he goes , I would prefer that he went abroad but I can’t consider United being direct rivals to us at the moment . We are in the mix for an outside chance at 3rd but more likely 4th ,5th 6th whereas they are looking at 1st or 2 nd.
I’d rather he went abroad too. Imagine the smug Mourinho if he got Ozil and then won the league.. Not that I can see Utd winning it…
As much as I dislike the man I don’t really care who wins it if we can’t , as long as it doesn’t end up in North London I am ambivalent .I pay little attention to him or his media sychophants , he learned so much from his time with Bobby Robson but failed to realise the importance of humility. Robson had it in bucket fulls but it was the one word that Mourinho never learned to translate.
Ditto really re the league winners..
New post up now.