Morning all.
I watched the Aston Villa v Newcastle Utd game yesterday and wow, Unai Emery’s team battered the new big spenders. Ollie Watkins was superb, as was young Jacob Ramsey and John McGinn wasn’t bad either. Emery has shown what a good coach can do with a very good squad of players. Something Steven Gerrard couldn’t do. The Spaniard has also shown how he can a group of players which doesn’t include big egos to believe in his ways. I’m really pleased for him, especially after his last spell in England didn’t go well but I still believe he could have been the right manager if he’d had a different group of people around him. A board and manager has to work together as one for a club to do well, otherwise, as Chelsea are proving and Totts too, things can go horribly wrong.
Totts losing in the 95th minute was just hilarious, especially at home to Bournemouth. Chelsea being beaten by Brighton at Stamford Bridge was pretty funny too although with South costal club yet to come to The Emirates, I’m not laughing too loudly.
If Mikel Arteta’s team win today, Totts can’t overtake us. A draw would do but a point isn’t what we want or need if we’re to keep our title challenge alive. Man City won yesterday but it might have been very different had Leicester City taken their chances late in the second half which should give any club yet to play City, hope. Yep, even Chelsea and certainly Brighton.
Here’s the team for today.
Enjoy…
Good morning Rico, is that the official starting line-up or your selection?
Has Zinchenko been dropped? He’s not even on the bench!
It will be interesting to see how Declan Rice goes today, he’s widely tipped to be Arteta’s number one target for the summer transfer window.
I just checked, it is the official line-up.
Zinchenko left out as a precaution. Groin injury.
Morning Cicero
That’s the team..
Afternoon Rico and all.
Looking forward to today’s match, fingers crossed we win and a clean sheet.
Zinchenko a miss. Saliba a loss!
Nice goal by Jesus, looks like he has his confidence back
Yes second goal, odegarrd
Pleased for Tierney to get a start. And what a start 2-0!
Did he ever lose it Geoff?
Excellent from Gabriel
And then not….
So soft though.
First foul and Partey booked! Well done Pgmol! W*****s…
Stupid penalty to give away by Gabriel, now he has given them the lift they needed I hope we resettle
David Coote’s previous job. 😆
https://heartbeat.fandom.com/wiki/PC_Geoff_Younger
Sure this ref would love to give a second booking here. Watch out Partey and Jesus. They have come in late twice on us and that’s fine.
2 nil up and alls well then relax . All it took was a Rice handball and then a dive before Gabriel caught him and Coote breathes life into West Ham .
I hope Arteta sends a rocket up there ass, it’s starting to look like the Liverpool match all over again.
Might be worth bringing on Trossard and take Saka off,
Agree, same old ‘let’s penalise Arsenal and ignore the opposition’ – no way will win the League if it’s down to the officials. Makes me sick!
Oh dear. This wasn’t in the plans..
Not sure what’s worse Saka piss weak attempt or Arteta clapping it, now it’s a draw
30 mins left yet Geoff…
In an era where 5 substitutions are allowed, I just don’t understand a manager’s reluctance to sub players who are having a bad game. Liverpool all over again. Please sub.
We were out coached and out played, another crap performance
We had no forward momentum Saka and Martinelli ineffective and was Xhaka playing as we completely lost the midfield .? After the penalty miss we hardly made forward pass with any venom . We got what we desrved and its not enough .
Got what we deserved today. Unfortunately.
Oh Rico.. totally unacceptable turning up for only 10 minutes! All those backward/sideway passes, jeez where was the urgency? Shocking end to the season, we’ll be annihilated at the Etihad playing like that! Gutted..
Quite right Sue , Sideways passing doesnt cut it when you need the points and we desperately needed them .
For so many nbot to be on their game at one time . Slow build ups and no speed of action or thought and we got dragged down to their level .
Cant help thinking that is all up now.
Depressed doesnt cover it .
Really disappointing Sue. We’re certainly not winning the league this season. We’re great when everyone is fit and the wind is blowing in the right direction but once there’s no Partey and Saliba, we seem to lack something.
I too don’t understand all the backwards, sideways stuff when we need a goal. We had plenty of time to play with more purpose and actually look like we wanted to score.
We’ve been a bit like this for a while. Over-complex and less dynamic.
Agree Adam. What’s made us good has been paused.
Come on, we are 2nd in the League, and have drawn away to W Ham and Liverpool. Had Saka scored, I think we would have gone on 4-1 or 4-2. Very disappointed because we raised the bar of our expectations, but they are not dreadful results in any other season and we dont have a large enough squad like Man City. It would have been worse if we were still in Europe let alone cups, we must add two more top players like Rice next window.
Honestly Andrew, I’ve never thought we’d win the League so I’m chuffed to bits at where we are. So much better than I thought we’d do. Just disappointed with todays result etc.
I’m certainly not going to turn on Arteta because of him clapping, or not making changes etc etc. I think he’s been brilliant this season and so have the players. We just need a few more at the level of Saka, Jesus, Gabriel, Saliba etc etc..
We need more than that , We dont have a lead the line forward that holds the ball and keeps possession when we need to . We need to convince Arteta that is quite possible to sub xhaka off and also we need to careful that ESR doesnt get a request to go because the weakling Vieira seems to be in front of him . And most of all we need a leader that drives the team and doesnt disappear when it starts to get tough .
Oh and a referee or VAR that can spot a hand ball would be handy.
The ESR thing is really odd. Unless he’s not 100% but even so, if he can’t get through 15/20 minutes, there’s little point on him being on the bench.
Viera does seem a weak link at moment, maybe forever. I really cant see in him what Arteta does! I would rather have had Odergaard stay on who late on did seem to realise we needed to pass or drible forward.
Ditto re Vieira. Too lightweight for English football imo.
To give away a two goal lead at Anfield is one thing, to do the same away to West Ham is deplorable.
Partey should have been subbed immediately he was booked, he just went to pieces. Jorginho would have surely been less accident prone.
Dropping four points in two games piles much more pressure onto the Southampton game.
I know it’s fashionable to blame the ref, but I thought Coote had a reasonable game. It’s worth remembering that not every tackle is a foul. Some of our players go down far too easily.
Jesus for one..
Not bothered about the general reffing but for both he and Var missing or ignoring Rice’s handball is what lost us the points . Coote let them back in it . The photos are clear .
Reasonable or not the game turned on both he and VAR either missing or ignoring Rice gaining advantage with a handball in the build up to their penalty. Pictures quite clearly show the handling of the ball . Thats my complaint .
sorry about the duplication Signal went down in Cyprus
Yep, Rice clearly controlled the ball with his arm, but nobody cares because it’s Arsenal, almost as if the powers that be wanted this, you know, Arsenal make a fight of it so that the Premier League doesn’t look like a one team sham, but the narrative has to be Arsenal bottled it, the media have been hinting this since we scraped past Bournemouth, they’re loving it.
We can complain as much as we like about rice handball or the ref, but the fact is, Saka penalty shot was a disgrace, it’s bad luck if the keeper saves it but to total miss a huge goal right in front of you, there is no excuse.
don’t get me wrong a top 4 place is great but on yesterday’s performance we don’t deserve that.
as I said before we don’t have that killer instinct in us to finish teams off, we just let them back.
How can you say that Geoff? We absolutely deserve to be top four, we fully deserve to be top too because we’ve got ourselves there without the gifts the PGMOL have handed out to other clubs. We’re all disappointed but to ignore such contributory factors like a handball before their penalty is just wrong imo. Yes, our performance dipped, yes we blew a two goal lead but I’d put my mortgage on it that had it been City, Liverpool, Totts etc, VAR would have overturned the penalty decision because of the Rice handball.
I thought Coote was inconsistent when deciding what or wasn’t a foul worthy of a booking.
Morning Rico.
Couldn’t agree more. When I saw the replay I thought VAR would rule the goal out for handball.
We absolutely deserve top 4.
Morning Adam.
I just don’t understand the stuff said and written sometimes. I’ve just been reading a few comments sections in other blogs and the response after yesterday is quite horrid really. I read that Saka is being racially abused online again.
Rico. Some people have no sense of loyalty or realism. So Saka missed a penalty. It happens ffs. The team are wobbling for sure and need support not the inane, selfish and hypocritical nonsense that seems to be forever bubbling under the surface of some sad lives.
Adam, absolutely agree.
New post up now