Regular drinkers in this establishment may recall how when he got to that point in the Season Ticket waiting list, my nephew found that he and his brother-in-law couldn’t quite manage the price of the two season tickets they’d hoped for, and my sister-in-law chipped in the odd 20% that was needed. Ever since the three have split the fixtures in rough proportion to their investment and I have been able to attemd a small number of games per season courtesy of my Nevvy’s Mum. So it was that an email arrived asking whether I would like to go to the first home match of the season, against some mob from out West. In less time than it takes to recall events I had typed “Yes” and pressed send. All that remained was to persuade Dr Faustus, who was originally slated to write this review, that as I would be unlikely to get many chances I might be given the opportunity instead, and this article was born. (To be absolutely fair, no persuasion was needed, and without checking, I find it hard to believe that I even asked particularly nicely. Thanks again Doc, I really do mean that.)
The more persipcacious of you may think that it’s well past time that I turned to the football, and so with a heavy heart I do so.
The NM and I got to our seats in block 113 rather earlier than planned, in good time to see the squads practising on the pitch. Perhaps I should have been more concerned when the back line (of whom I recognised half) could be seen practising running away from the penalty area in a line – I think Tierney was even practising raising his hand as they did so. Still, kick-off time rolled around and the Arsenal started fairly brightly; at one point my companion turned to me claiming that she’d never seen Arsenal move the ball upfield so quickly – I think that’s unfair to the teams of the past few seasons but I take the point that the team showed genuine attacking intent. Sadly, it was not to last.
After about a quarter of an hour an Arsenal attack broke down, the ball was played forward at less than breakneck speed, a Chelsea player won a challenge in the middle of the field about 20 yards out, played the ball to his right to a team-mate who was able to run into the area and pass the ball past Leno into the back of the net.
Arsenal 0 – Chelsea 1
I was surprised to find that the scorer was Lukaku, who I had thought was the bloke who’d won the ball in the middle. Maybe the guy to his right squared it back for him to score, maybe I was just wrong. (I found identifying the players more than usually difficult today as, for the first time for ages, I didn’t buy a programme – a decision not intended as a protest against the outrageous prices charged, but simply because I had no cash to hand when we passed the first vendor and I didn’t spot another before we got to our seats.)
The team seemed crushed by this setback and heads seemed to drop. However, the match continued with Arsenal once more having rather more of the ball than Chelsea. While there was little running at speed at and through the opposition there was no shortage of attacking intent. Sadly, about twenty minutes later, following another breakdown of an Arsenal attack, Chelsea went down their left wing, won a cross, won another challenge towards their right, and scored a second goal from somewhere around the left corner of the Arsenal penalty area.
Arsenal 0 – Chelsea 2
This time, I’m sure that the guy who won one of the challenges in the immediate buld-up to the goal was Lukaku a certainty bolstered by the fact that the scorer was named as someone else.
The team played the rest of the first half apparently in even worse heart.
Second half
After the interval things carried on much as before, and while Arsenal didn’t look very likely to score, neither really did Chelsea. The difference, however, was that the Chelsea defence didn’t look likely to concede, while the long ago days of Arsenal defensive solidity don’t look as though they will return any time soon.
I doubt I shall remember much about this game in a few months time – even eight hours later there is little that comes to mind –
- A missed header by Holding from inside the penalty area that a fellow spectator, whose expertise I have no reason to doubt, asserted would have been easier to score from;
- A lung-busting solo break from Tierney that led to the ball bouncing around the right side of the Chelsea penalty area which seemed to give rise to unjustified excitement amongst the crowd near us. I seem to recall Good Things almost coming from the resulting corner – perhaps Holding’s miss?
- A diving save from Leno that in a perfect world obviously wouldn’t have been required.
That’s about it.
Conclusions
The game looked like men against boys, which to be fair, shouldn’t surprise anyone. The Arsenal team looked as though they hadn’t been playing together for very long, which again shouldn’t come as a surprise.
The post-match atmosphere was odd. There seemed no anger amongst the crowd, and little surprise. This may have been because the Angery Brigade (sic) were disproportionately represented in those who left early – far, far more than I remember. It may have been a realisation that this team aren’t really likely to be title contenders this season, so there’s no point getting unduly exercised by a bad result. I felt that the team put in an honest shift and that they simply lost to superior opposition; maybe I got that one right and the crowd agreed.
My fellow drinkers will, I’m sure, not be surprised to read that I have no quick solutions to offer as to how we can emerge from our current trough. I propose, with absolutely no expectation of widespread support, that the ONLY option is patience. We have assembled an impressive group of talented youngsters. They need time to get used to one another as well as to augment their considerable talent with a judicious admixture of experience.
Keep the faith.
(Disclaimer: I’ve written this review immediately on my return home, without seeing the last set of drinks, MoTD or any social or conventional media. My memory may be completely wide of the mark; if it is, I apologise and I promise that if another opportunity arises I shall try to do better.)
Thanks Pangloss, an amusing summary of a match that offered little n the way of amusement for Gooners. I agree with your suggestion of patience though you’re right
that many won’t.
Pangloss,
It’s great to see new reporters and thank you for a pleasant and balanced report on an unpleasant ( for us ) and unbalanced game . You also added a touch of class which is sadly lacking in other blogs where you would never see anyone attempt to use the term
‘ perspicacious!’
A few weeks ago I wrote what I intended to be a positive and optimistic preview for the season. It was based on my faith in Arteta as coach and I did raise the doubts about whether we could do the necessary work in rebalancing the squad as it was such a huge task.
I no longer have the same degree of faith in Arteta and yesterday was a case in point . We were apparently going to match up with Chelsea with three at the back but the absence of White changed Arteta’s mind- so we saw continual overloads on the right which produced both goals and Mari overmatched with Lukaku having no cover and pace to help him out. CER and Bath were texting right from the start that we were getting pulled apart by overloads on the right. While noted and knowledgeable observers if they can see it immediately why couldn’t Mikel? Tierney in the left centre back position with Saka and wing back might have prevented Chelsea picking us apart with ease. Remember England v Germany where Southgate took pelters in setting up a matching system because of the overloads the Germans had created notably against Portugal? That was a relevant precedent. Arteta changed it in the second half but it was too late .
Never mind PG is right to counsel patience . We have no choice at present but while I won’t mention the X word we must get more dynamism in midfield and that is unlikely with the disastrous decision to offer our man a new deal . Get rid and sign Bissouma . Lokonga looks very good but we need experience and leadership in that area and we have to get up the field quicker for 90 minutes . Things will improve after the City game but we do need to be in or around the top six by Christmas or a Legohead may roll
Thanks Pangloss. A very fair review and I’m pleased you got a rare chance to see a game.
For me it was my first match since March 2020. It felt so good to be back. As usual the satnav meandered me all over North London as it tried to avoid Sunday roadworks. At one point I found myself in Muswell Hill Broadway and remembered castigating Auba for using it on the way to a game (he was late and incurred Arteta’s wrath) However eventually I parked in my normal street and made my way to the ground about 45 minutes before kick off. It was the first use of the new smart cards to get into the ground and I read elsewhere that there was chaos as many were not working. As I approached Bear Island I could see folk queuing up the steps and feared the worst. However, what had happened was that they had moved the security pat down check to the outer perimeters rather than, as usual, at the gates. Once I got through this (<5 minutes) it was an easy stroll to my gate, where there were very short lines. I couldn’t see anyone having problems and I presented my card, the receptacle glowed green and I was in.
It was so good to see my North Bank family all there. It had been 18 months since we had seen each other. Season ticket buddies are a rare subset of society – you rarely if ever see each other outside of that context, but over the years you get to know a little of each others’ lives. At kick off, it was apparent that, bar a few upper tier seats, the ground was very full. The match kicked off to a supportive and very loud roar.
In the first 15 minutes two things were apparent; firstly that Mari was being run ragged by Lukaku and secondly that Chelsea were consistently overloading our left side giving Reece James acres of green grass to run into. When the goal came it was apparent that Tierney was trying to mark at least two people with no help from either Xhaka or Saka. I would not blame him for the goal. The second goal came by the same route.
Between the two, I think, came the Saka penalty that wasn’t given. Now I can’t comment as I was 100 yards away but many people seemed to think it should have been given. Paul Tierney gave us very little all afternoon.
When we went 2-0 down the crowd quietened a little. What livened everybody up (as referred to by Pangloss above) was KT3 picking up a loose ball in our half, punting it downfield and putting in a lung bursting run to collect it outside their penalty area, out sprinting several Chelsea players. A huge roar greeted this, as loud as anything I’ve heard. Make that man Captain! Shortly afterwards, via a Pepe corner, Rob Holding had a brilliant chance to make it 2-1. He fluffed it. I like Rob but his scoring record from chances like this is awful.
A word about the crowd. They booed at half time and full time. Apart from that, while the game was on, I heard nothing but full throated support for the team.
West Brom up next, on Wednesday, a game I’m going to. I think Arteta must pick the best team available. Losing to likely title contenders with half the first team out is one thing but we must not go out of the league cup in the second round to Championship opposition.
I have to say i really do enjoy the articles the dedicated people create and the comments are usually inciteful and helpful to us lesser mortals with limited understanding of the game.
Having read all the comments on the latest stage Arsenal are going through it seems we are all waiting for something positive to happen, like what sort of happened last season after we hit the Christmas nadir.
There’s an obvious acceptance that we are nowhere near finishing in the top 4 as, despite all the money we have spent recently (and God knows where that is coming from) we are still falling behind clubs like Chelsea who can attract better players and pay top $ for them. No one else seems to be competing for the players we are buying and reality is they are ok but aren’t going to bridge the gap. Then we have injuries, lack of form and the players like Cedric and Willian that make up the squad that are so underwhelming.
We are a bit of an anomaly as a club. We were used to dining at the top table in the not so distant past and can’t quite get our heads around the fact that this is not our place anymore. So we act like we are a big team with all these wasted has beens signings, but it takes us further and further away. The Leicester’s of this World have a far superior track record in their approach to player recruitment and selling on. But heaven forbid we lower ourselves to being a buy to sell club that improves year on year.
Our expectations are ridiculous frankly. We have been in decline for years and others have different methods and different ways of improving and have over taken us. We are at the moment the stupidest club in the league.
None of us have any obvious answers if we were the owners, because it’s not an uncomplicated situation. Do we retain Arteta for a season regardless? Stop player recruitment because it’s a bit average? Concentrate on getting rid of the duds? Play a more expansive and entertaining game with less emphasis on points total, subject to player’s abilities? Sack Edu?
Oh and then there’s Amazon prime so the latest episodes are going to be sobering to watch and top viewing for our rivals. Whoever signed that deal needs to leave carrying a cardboard box.
Cheers Pangloss.
I guess I shoujd have known what to expect the moment I walked out of the station at Arsenal. As I started to make my way to the stadium, all I coukd hear were Chelsea fans singing “champions of Europe.” As I approached the steps to the Ken Friar Bridge, for some bizarre reason they had shot one of the staircases? A ridiculous decision. The passage to entrance B was smooth. Again, the ban on any bag bigger than A5 in size is just ridiculous. How that will work for evening matches with people going straight from work is beyond me.
Trying to get into the ground for me was chaotic. It seems that those with cards seemed to work okay. Those with their ticket on their phones just could not get in. Inside, the queuing system at the bar was now like something out of Disney. The bar staff are as clueless as ever. When I eventually got served I asked for two Pale Ales. The server looked at me with a totally blank expression. I had to explain to him that they serve two beers. I want the one that isn’t lager.
Like others, it wasn’t great to get to my seat and be reacquainted with old faces. The atmosphere at the start was excellent. This was certainly evident for the first 15 minutes, up until the opening goal. That was sadly cut short after the first goal. I’ve just watched that back on MOTD. It’s even more embarrassing second time around. I paused the footage before the ball is played to James. There are all 10 Arsenal outfield players in the shot. KT3 is marking Mount. Not one other player is being marked. James is in acres of space. Quite frankly, it is worse than watching schoolboy football. The only thing that makes that worse than it already is that this happened 4 times in the first half. Two of these resulted in goals.
Yesterday was men against boys. We looked disorganised and totally lacking any real direction. There was zero leadership and as happens far too often now, we played as if no one knew anyone else. Chelsea would play the ball out from the back. They would be allowed to pass the ball all the way to out box, virtually unchallenged. We pass out from the back and three passes later and we hit the panic button. We offered very little.
As others have eluded to, Why we have extended Xhaka’s contract and not tried to sign Bissouma I will never understand. Clueless. Why Xhaka is even starting games, let alone wearing the armband is just bizarre in my opinion. He’s offers nothing. Pepe is another one. He has odd flashes, but offers little in games like this. He is so predictable and if he’s struggling to get corners or crosses that beat the first man, then you have to ask what he does actually bring to the team?
There were positives. Sambi looks a good signing and full of potential. ESR and Saka also worked hard but with little support. KT had his Braveheart moment that briefly got the crowd excited, but sadly, it wasn’t to last.
I know we have problems at the moment but several of these are of our own making. Why were we playing a pre season friendly against the European champions, 3 weeks before we play them in the league? We have players out Ill and injured, but not all of those have had their backbone removed. As at Brentford, we need to be prepared to fight.
I like the idea that we are building for the future. The idea of buying top quality 22 and 23 year olds makes perfect sense. The problem I have is that I have zero faith in anyone that is running the club. That is from top, to bottom. You desperately want Arteta to succeed, but I just don’t see it at the moment. He looks very much like half of the players that he puts onto the pitch. He is a rabbit in the headlights. He looked a mixture of disconsolate and just devoid of ideas yesterday. The stats for Arteta do not read well. He has lost as many home games in 20 months as AW did in 6 years. Emery was sacked after 20 defeats in 78 games. Arteta has lost 25 in 88. Are we better off now than we were under Emery? The answer is quite clearly no. Will that change? If it is to change then I have seen little evidence to suggest that it will under Arteta. I really do hope that changes although at the moment, I just don’t see it. More worryingly, and don’t see anyone above him in this organisation that even has the remotest idea of how to offer him the support he needs.
It’s a bizarre thing to have to say but the West Brom game is now a must win. How sad is that?
Sorry for the typos. Not easy typing that on your phone. The one I should correct is to say what a pleasure it was to see old faces in block 4.
One other thing I forgot to mention was how quiet the bar was during the game. I would check in during breaks in play, but there was almost stunned silence when it wad hoping for updates from those elsewhere.
Block 4 eh Steve? I’m quite close to you in Block 7.
C100
That’s a meet up waiting to happen then? Norwich??
An imaginative approach, Pangloss, to a report on a game that most in this bar, in all honesty, had expected to end in defeat and a bittersweet day for those there in person. I agree that we have little choice but to be patient, and give the Arteta rebuild time to work. The only alternative is to throw it out. Yet, starting again will only prolong a return to top table, and at some expense.
That patience has to extend to a manager learning on the job. However, like others above, I find it concerning that the tactical adjustment to deal with Chelsea’s overloads on our left flank did not come until halftime, by when we were 2-0 down and chasing the game.
Next weekend is likely going to be another tough one.
Sounds good Steve! TTG may be around as well. He’s NB as well but upper tier
A meet-up ! That’s sounds a fine prospect . I could probably get a mortgage sorted to buy some of those Camden Ales which are rather prohibitively priced
Cheers Pangloss. I’m glad you got to the match and I enjoyed your report. Nicely judged.
The lack of support for Tierney, and the time it took to adjust that, was a big problem. Saka looked tired (understandably) and didn’t have the energy to chase back all day. I’m surprised KT was not screaming for more support – he must have known where the space was as he shuffled over? Unless KT was screaming and just being ignored? Either way is not good. And why Arteta ignored it is beyond me.
Of course, Xhaka is the other piece in this puzzle, and I don’t have the will to spend long on how much his positioning hurts us. At times he is the furthest man forward in a one man press that comes at a defence in seeming slow motion. And then he takes an age to get back into the midfield (where he acts as though he is independant of whoever his partner is). His positioning is just mental.
I do not like watching him play football. Although I did laugh at two attempted slide tackles that were so late he didn’t even arrive in time to foul the man. Classic stuff.
I think Pangloss is right to council patience. If we get Odegaard, Partey, White, Gabriel and Auba back into the side then we will be stronger. Arteta won’t have unlimited time but we need at least couple of months to get a look at where he wants to take the side now he has been backed in the transfer market. I remain a supporter of his but there is no doubting he has made some dodgy decisions and I am as baffled as everyone else how we have started the season with Xhaka in midfield. The U-turns on him have just been painful. There is no doubt the gaffer has plenty to prove.
Having said that, I thought our attacking play showed signs of improvements and that Auba would probably have scored from a couple of attacks down the left. Sambi spread the ball well. Pepe won a challenge and set Saka loose but he fluffed his lines from a promising position (which i just thought was a really good chance). ESR was good.
Saka was fouled in the box in as clear a penalty as I have ever seen a bunch of dishonest Sky pundits claim was a good decision from a poor ref.
Anyway, Chelsea were good and we have a long way to go this season. If we play Partey and Sambi in the centre of the park – with Gabriel, Gabi, White, KT, ESR, Saka, Odegaard, Auba and Pepe – then that is a team that might be quite fun to watch.
My fingers remain crossed.
A measured assessment of a difficult afternoon for the Gunners, Pangloss. You are right to urge patience.
The better team won and while we came close to scoring through Holding and had a penalty claim denied, we can thank Leno for keeping the score respectable and that save from Lukaku’s header from 8 yards was stunning.
Our CBs never got to grips with Lukaku’s strength, movement or distribution and definitely looked like boys against men. I hope White is as good as some claim because we seriously require a major upgrade in that department. A distinct lack of defensive organisation was once again evident and while Sideshow Bob can be justifiably castigated for his brainfarts, our defence did generally look more organised when he was on the field. I still do not understand why we didn’t play three at the back against such an offensive threat as we must have known we would have to deal with. FGS, I knew so surely Areta did too? Someone said that we were going to do so until White’s Covid status ruled him out but we had several other options that would surely have provided more security:
Saka. Tierney. Mari. Holding. Cedric.
or
Tierney. Mari. Holding. Chambers. Cedric
or
Tavares. Tierney Mari. Holding. Cedric
We were reliving the naivety we used to show against Moaninho’s Chavs when we ignored their rope a dope strategy and simply threw players forward believing we could outscore them.
I am capable of much patience but I don’t think Arsenal will make the desired progress even with addition of several more talented young players until we improve our defensive organisation (I imagine James is still out there in blissful isolation on our left flank), CB skillset and strategic intelligence.
The recent signings are definitely a step in the right direction but we have to shed several overpaid underperforming individuals from the wage bill. We all know who they are.
Thanks Pangloss for a clear-eyed and lucid review.
Lots of insightful comments above, far from the histrionics that for a while has (fairly or not) started to represent Arsenal fan-base to the wider world, starting with: Flying banners with “Wenger Out”, protests with placards containing such wisecracks like “In Arsene We Rust”, “Anyone but Wenger”… we (including the new club “management”) were successful in kicking out the only man remaining in the club who actually knew a thing or two about the game (and as it transpires more and more every day was kinds of a genius to get us the now much coveted top 4 “trophy” year after year), instead of giving him the support and ensuring a smooth transition…
Anyway, while the flaws and limitations and challenges have been covered in great details in the comments and in other places above, I thought I will share a few good moments I saw yesterday. This is not to imply that “everything is great” or “the future is bright” . Things are very messy now, and the near future is quite uncertain, but that I feel shouldn’t stop me from observing moments I enjoyed.
1. A perfect cross-field pass from Sambi in the deep midfield to KT out in the wings. Saka wasn’t moving well yesterday but a Saka of regular form would have combined very well with KT on a switch like that.
2. Pépé mixing physical strength (something he rarely has done) with his dribbling and brought the ball forward straight through Chelsea forward line and midfield before releasing Saka with a perfectly weighted pass. Again, a Saka of regular form (not even on his best days) would have made more out of that.
3. Sambi releasing Auba down the middle through a line-breaking pass from deep (likes of which we haven’t seen anytime last season) which with a fitter Auba and a goalkeeper less comfortable with his feet than Mendy would have led to a goal.
4. Leno’s unbelievable save from Lukaku’s close-range header. Hopefully this will help him get his confidence back (and I guess now having Ramsdale breathing down his neck focuses his mind more).
The gap between the two sides, especially given the injuries and illnesses we had, was most glaring when the substitutions were made: Kante, Werner, Ziyech for Chelsea. Other than a semi-fit Auba there was not a single player in our bench who has ever changed a match for us.
This was Dermot Gallagher’s take on the Saka penalty incident.
Don’t get too excited yet but Willian is in talks with Corinthians of Sao Paolo about joining them . Pray very hard
Forbes have produced this well argued article which articulates the problem I have with our summer turnaround in planning. This rethink ( if that is what it is) has changed my opinion radically on what we can achieve this season
https://www.forbes.com/sites/grahamruthven/2021/08/23/what-does-granit-xhakas-new-contract-say-about-arsenals-summer-planning/?sh=678477c033f2
“None of this paints the picture of a club with a clear vision for the future.”
Scary stuff TTG, although I would suggest that there is nothing there that will be a surprise to any of us.
Hello all.
Just popped in to say hello.
Not much to add.
As my daughter used to say when she was four years old – “Its all poo poo and wee wee Dad”
She was a very onto it child.
Thank goodness I live in NZ – Im inured somewhat from the flack.
But I feel your pain brothers and sisters. Really do.
Have another drink
Its working for me
Don’t mind if I do, IF. Slainte
Good to see you in, IF.
I’ll join Pangloss in taking up your offer. I suspect there will be a long queue.
Frustrating day and start to the season but no reason to panic. Thanks for an excellent report Pangloss.
Unless panicking means benching Xhaka permanently. That would be good panic.
TTG@117: Far from Graham Ruthven’s first article to be down on the Arteta project.
I am with you, however, on the volte-face about Xhaka. I understand that the Swiss is regarded differently inside the club than from the outside. But if Arteta’s wants him around to help the development of the younger players, make him player-manager of the U-23s. Just keep him out of playing in the first team. Otherwise, it will never develop the speed of play that Artetaball needs. I keep trying to convince myself that Xhaka is only playing because Partey is out, or that he has a gentleman’s agreement with Arteta to go at the end of the season to give Lokonga time to bed in. But I am not doing a very good job of it.
@23
😂
It’s not Xhaka, he’s just a symptom. It’s the whole flabby culture:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2021/08/24/chelsea-everything-arsenal-not-will-not-change-kroenkes-leave/
Pangloss,
An excellent report. I sometimes find the game is rather different from that I viewed in the ground when watched from home. You certainly caught what I saw from my living room.
Sancho Panza@4 – don’t be a stranger.
Steve T @15 – you must understand that the former referee engaged by the media, whether Walton or Gallagher or any other, are there to review the evidence, weigh up the pros and cons, and then either a. make increasingly jesuitical arguments as to why the referee was right in the first place, or b. not even bother with the pretence of impartiality and agree that the referee was right in the first place offering zero reasoning. Here Gallagher has gone for Method A. I wouldn’t trust the man even to sit the right way on a toilet.
One further point relating to the pen, I have no mathematical evidence but it does seem to me that far more often than not, decisions like this go the way of the England international. I can’t help thinking that if it had been Sterling or Grealish or Kane, a pen would have been given.
Thanks for the update CER. Hopefully You will forgive me if I decide to place more emphasis on the opinion of a qualified official? Personally I’ve always found DG as one of the better officials, but that’s just me.
Personally, to explain my opinion in cricket terms, I would say it’s umpires call. Whatever way it had been given, I would not expect VAR to reverse it. No doubt throughout the season you will see similar incidents both given, and not given.
Not quite sure what your point is re being an England international? Isn’t Saka an England international?
Thoughtful take in Arseblog’s Tactics Column on the Chelsea goals, that they were both the result of our poor pressing.
And some fell on stony ground….
Ned @30. That’s a superb analysis of Sunday’s debacle, Ned. A must read. Thanks for sharing.
I remain nonplussed as to why Arteta did not play 3 at the back (see above @13 for the multiple options to do so despite White’s late withdrawal).
I remain perplexed that he didn’t address the recurrent deficit on our left flank during the first half. He had the personnel to shift into a 3-4-2-1 or variant thereof.
Or at least stop the ineffectual pressing as suggested in the article linked @30 as soon as it was evident that the Chavs were playing through it with consummate ease.
Like TTG, I am beginning to worry about ‘the project’. The failure to change a blatantly flawed plan before HT is just inexplicable. Oh well, Arteta has an opportunity to test his project and tactical nous against the best coach in the PL last season. Go get him, Legohair!
Mikel’s old manager got the Hammers to the top of the table. 🙂
Much praised Brendan got hammered …
Let us see what happens once much of the starting eleven are available. Maybe the central midfield pairing would be Partey-Sambi? Maybe with both Ødegaard and ESR on the pitch together we will create more chances? Maybe by the close of the transfer window we will solve the RB position?
There is a lot of problem with how Mikel has been setting up the teams etc. Last season I thought he was way too cautious and conservative, and maybe even scared. But just going by the results, in the last season the post-Christmas period of 24 games Arsenal was third in terms of points earned. That is not a “target”, obviously. But maybe it is possible for us to put together a string of results and show cohesion in the next couple of months once at least a few more key players are available?
In the pre-season I don’t think most of us (myself included) wondered about the RB position given so many other holes in the squad. But given how Chambers — who had mostly been okay enough last season — and then Cedric (sigh!) performed in the first two matches, and given Hector’s rapid decline, this is a position that needs attention.
I still think is Ainsley had put his head down, focused on making this position his own, he had all the ingredients. Can he revive that possibility? In any case I would rather see him play and make the odd mistake than Cedric (sigh!).
Nice work, Pangloss !
I much enjoyed your usual spirit of equanimity – even if it was mainly induced by amnesia !
You must certainly have more opportunities to write – don’t fancy my preview for WBA (Wist Brum to the unfamiliar) tomorrow, do you ? 😬
Ned,
Great article . There is an arrogance in football that suggests if you haven’t been an international you can’t understand tactics at the highest level. We are starting to see less accomplished players like Wenger, Mourinho, Potter and Nagelsmann bypass the glittering playing career to run teams successfully – and so many of the ex-pros called to explain the game to us on Sky, BT and TalkShite are as thick as a large plank of timber and are tactically very unconvincing .
Without wishing to embarrass CER he sent a WA message a few minutes into the game alarmed at the overloads on the right . A shrewd man and experienced football -watcher but he saw it immediately and our coaching team didn’t . If only he had Arteta’s number ! Nobody alerted Arteta and he seemed to miss it completely until it was too late . Why ? And lots of other questions- are we a pressing team like Brentford ? Do we press effectively at all ? Do we take risk and where ? ( We take risk close to our goal passing often very dangerously but at our corners if a pass is blocked off we often transfer the ball back to Leno rather than put a speculative ball into the box with whip hoping a striker or midfielder will get on the end of it .) When did we last see a midfielder or defender score with a late run into the box? – my guess is Luiz at Leicester last season . Why don’t we have players on the posts at set pieces ? Why were we so discomfited by the Brentford long-throws when it is a staple tactic of theirs ? When there are these many questions on the field you get a serious confusion off the field as well and you take decisions like extending Xhaka rather than binning him .
As Bath’s article says we were very snooty about Abramovich when he went to Chelsea. I was asked to help the Chelsea management with some insurance issues in 2004 and Kenyon aside I was very impressed with their focus and ambition . Ken Bates was literally on his way out and a very sharp team took over. But we ended up with the Kroenkes ( Peter Hill-Wood summed them up well when he encountered them !) while Abramovich has created a ruthless , high-performance culture at Chelsea which if we had it would already see Conte, Rodgers or Favre in charge at Arsenal.
Big game tomorrow and one that has more significance than early League Cup ties usually have for us
Bath@32: I, too, am nonplussed (in the British English, not US English sense) by Arteta not matching Chelsea’s formation and play three at the back. Tuchel makes no secret that he likes to play three at the back and four in midfield with both wing-backs pushed up high. I would be doubly nonplussed if TTG’s intel is correct that that was Arteta’s original intention. Even if White was unavailable, surely we could have permed a serviceable back three out of Holding, Mari, Chambers and Tierney, with Tavares, Kola, Cedric, AMN and Nelson as candidates for wing-back. If our ability to play a formation is dependent on a particular player being available, we have an all-new layer of problems.
Knee-jerk defender of referees? No, I do not refer to myself.
Ned@37: I think that is one of Mikel’s main problem. He cannot seem to make up his mind about players, their best roles, and always is looking for these perfect players to be able to play exactly the way he imagines. That is why the torrent of micro-management — which is getting embarrassing now — from the sidelines.
It is glaringly obvious by now that he hasn’t yet learnt to build a playing system that is clear, consistent and simple enough to be able to allow for versatility (that is, multiple players playing in a role). He tries to over-prepare the team to the most painstaking detail with precise players in mind in precise roles (and hence any unforeseen disruption makes the entire plan unusable). Sometimes it works — FA Cup semi and final — but it cannot be a recipe for a league season.
It is possible that despite his manifest abilities he is simply not capable of learning this quickly enough on the job to make his position tenable as Arsenal manager. Next couple of months will be telling and he needs to improve rapidly …
TTG@36: Do you think the club hierarchy has a clear definition of “minimum success criteria” to achieve in the early stages of season (say by end of October) that if not met will lead to a managerial change? Do they have alternative options already discussed and planned?
Do they have similar success criteria for Edu by the end of this transfer window? If Edu doesn’t meet those do they have a succession plan?
If there are no clearly defined measurable goals for the TD and the manager then no wonder they may not feel the necessary pressure to deliver…
Dr.F @39/40
Your comments about Arteta are very accurate in my view . I think in a dysfunctional environment ( which Arsenal has become ) with ingrained incompetence in some roles it is hard to stick to a template . Arteta started well and the FA Cup win was the result but over time the chaos at the club has overwhelmed him . The lack of a penetrating vision for a soccer club ( I use the term soccer to illustrate that the Kroenkes don’t understand English football) has led to a host of bad appointments and no clear direction of travel . In the early days Wenger just got on with it and Kroenke left him to it but Stan failed to appreciate Arsene’s waning powers because he was still a high achiever .Since then we’ve had a series of very poor appointments and Arteta is wading through the chaos trying to drive a way forward . Arteta is quite a difficult character I think . His treatment of Saliba is incomprehensible, and his handling of assets like Emi and Willock is very questionable.
I can’t answer your point in 40 . They probably have a basic plan but not a hard nosed operator like Abramovich would have criteria I don’t think they have . I think Edu was a very poor appointment but he has a very hard job. He knows how Hercules felt as he opened the stable doors!
My favorite of their many great songs …
(Lovely understated drums and one of the most tasteful guitar solos)
RIP Charlie Watts!
RIP Charlie Watts. One of the giants.
Dr F@39: Everything you say seems perfectly accurate. It is discouraging that it does.
Thanks Trev@35. I’m not certain it is equanimity. Perhaps it is though.
Perhaps I really am the only person here who thinks it’s important to put out one simple message: “Hold your nerve. Support the club. Support the team. Support the manager.”
Yes, I can count. That is indeed four sentences. It is, however, a single sentiment.
COYG
Pangloss
You should not think you are alone in being the voice of moderation. That is a very strong claim if I may say so. This is a blog on which most of the regulars take a measured and unhysterical view of Arsenal’s fortunes .
It is vitally important to support the club ( financially as well as in terms of wanting them to win ) and Lord knows there are plenty on here with massive credentials in that respect but there comes a point where people who are too passive do the club no favours. Change is sometimes necessary .
I remember several years ago a debate on the Kroenkes in which you wrote that you needed evidence that they were harming the club. This was not greeted with equanimity by most of those following the blog at the time ( including me) . Similarly it was not wrong to suggest it was time to move Wenger on despite the fact that he had done an outstanding job. It is too early to move Arteta on but there may come a time when it is the club’s interests to do so . Certainly if we’d not moved Emery on we were diving headlong into a relegation battle . The question the owners must decide is when it becomes unlikely that Arteta can lead the club into Europe because that is a financial imperative. When that stage is reached a decision needs to be made . It has not been reached yet and I pray it will not be reached .
Pangloss @45. Pretty arrogant view if I may say so.
>>>>>>>
RIP
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