Day: January 26, 2017

Another draw. But this one feels like a loss whereas the previous one had felt like a win. When will we return to winning ways? My bet would be on when we can get Santi back.

PSG are a good team to be fair. In the first half, they dominated. BTW, when are we going to turn up and play for the entire game. i.e. the idea that we can play both halves of the game. Our second half was way better. Up until we took the lead that is. Then they reasserted themselves and we withdrew further and ceeded the initiative. But there was a (small) period in the second half where we found our mo-jo and started to dominate.

That’s what make it so frustrating. Not as frustrating as drawing with Sp*rs or losing to Liverpool. After all, you know if we’d come top of our group we’d have drawn Bayern in the next round anyway – as opposed to the inevitable match v Barcelona. We had the game there for the winning. I’d been screaming at AW (and somehow he could not hear me) to take off Iwobi for about 10 minutes. And after his (overall) performance he should be taken out and beheaded. It’s not like he can use his head to head a ball. How pathetic was his reaction? He essentially ducked out of the way but not before deflecting it past Ospina. Not that Jenkinson covered himself in glory by losing track of Lucas and allowing the ball to by-pass him first. But back to Iwobi. He seems to have lost his game. There was a moment in the first half when he cut in from the left and had a chance to shot but took one too many touches. Last year he’d have shot. But now I think he’s overplaying/overthinking it. Either way, I suspect he’ll be on the bench on Saturday. He left Gibbs exposed several times. I can see why AW did not play Iwobi at ManU. Positionally he does not get how to defend. He is erringly familiar to Chamberlain and Theo in that respect. Though Theo seems to have (finally) figured it out.

So, while the result is not the end of the world the performance was worrying. And the form of some players. Clearly not having our Spanish contingent is destabilizing. Though Gibbs covered pretty well for Monreal – who was sub-par against MU. But we miss Bellerin. And as for Santi…..That leads us to midfield. Let’s start on Ramsey. Why not. I always do. Actually, he was not so bad. But he’s two players rolled into one. He started the more defensive of the two midfielder. Often Coq was ahead of him on the pitch when they had the ball. Ramsey’s distribution when we’re in our own half is too conservative – too many square and backward passes. Too many touches. He takes any forward momentum out of our play. He (like Sanchez) needs to play one touch more often. Interestingly though, you put Ramsey in their half and suddenly he comes alive – his runs into the box are aggressive and direct. His movement is more dynamic and his playing forward passes. And, in all areas of the pitch, he’s tackling was so much better. So, maybe, it’s just an issue of playing time for him in order to find his confidence and touch. We’ll see. I’m sure AW will continue to play him. But we have to find a balance in midfield which we clearly lack now. What’s the right combination without Santi? I love my Coq but I wonder whether Santi-Coq allows Santi to cover up for Coq defensive play. And neither Ramsey nor Elneny can compensate for that lack of creativity. Maybe that means he has to try a Xhaka/Ramsey combination. Except I don’t feel that Xhaka has really found his game yet. He needs a little longer to settle in maybe. This weekend it will be interesting to see what team AW puts out. I’d put Theo back in – drop Iwobi and maybe, try Ramsey+Xhaka (sorry Coq).

Anyway, what was up with Mustafi? It was as though someone high-jacked his body and replaced it with a Cygan or Stephanov. He’s distribution yesterday was as poor as anyone I’ve ever seen. So many of his passes put the ball at PSG feet or put our players under immediate pressure. He normally does this once a game – yesterday it was nearly everytime. It was his worst performance in our colours. Hopefully he’s got that out of his system. Overall he’s been a big positive for us this season. Everyone is allowed a poor game (unless you’re Ramsey…) but yesterday was painful to watch. He’s positioning was off (see their first goal) and his mistakes multiplied as the game progressed. Seeing him move forward with the ball at his feet you just knew the ball was going to PSG. Of course if Santi was there he would have been close by to pick the ball up from him and then move forward. Whereas Ramsey is positioned too far away and then just passes it sideways or backwards anyway. It does not help Jenkinson settle down either when Mustafi puts him under pressure with his passing. Hopefully it was just a one game aberration.

So where is Theo? It feels like he’s fallen out of favour slightly. Or maybe he’s nursing an injury. Or maybe AW is rotating his players? Let’s hope it’s the later. For Saturday I figure Chamberlin will figure more prominently. I still don’t’ trust him but he deserves his chance. And I definitely don’t want to see Iwobi out there.

– LB7

Shit, Shit, and shit again. And more shit. And then some pooh. Yet we got a point. You have to laugh (not that’ I’m laughing) because DarVader has to be just so so pissed off. Anyway, for us, we were – what is that is the word I’m looking for? Oh, right. Shit. Just outright shit. In the first half I thought we were poor. But we managed to go in level at half time. We obviously worked on our tactics during the break because we managed to find a way to degrade our game even further and come out and play like absolute shit. Though in this case the verb should not be play but more something like exist, breath or stand.

Where to start? Oh my, any team with Jenkinson and Ramsey will make me nervous. But I thought having Ramsey on the left wing would provide more protection to Monreal. Well that was wrong. Ramsey’s passing, especially around our own box, was suicidal. There was one square pass in the first half that nearly handed them an opportunity. Overall he was just useless. He can’t beat a player one on one – he has no pace. But, to be fair, he did not decided to play on the left – that was AW decision. It just does not work. Having said that, when, in the melee of substitutions, Ramsey ended up in his favored position and he still found ways to lose the ball on the edge of our box or play passes that put other players under even more pressure. The good news is that Jenkinson was not a complete liability but having Ramsey on the pitch was like playing with 10 men. Of course, Jenkinson’s distribution and attacking sense is nothing like Bellerin. We know he’s not as valuable – that’s why he does not start. But he lacks a calm demeanor so we live in fear of a dreadful mistake. But today he did not make a costly one. But you could see that this also impacted Walcott. Yes, I know. He was on the pitch today. But he pulled one of his famous disappearing acts. Actually more of his work was defensive but if Theo wants to be a star he has to find a way to turn up for these big games.

Overall we allowed ourselves to be entirely bullied today – especially in the second half where it was totally one way traffic. If it was not for Cech we would have been out of this game in the first half alone. Whereas in the first half we had periods of possession – with which we did little. In the second half it was all one way traffic. We were giving the ball away too easily and then not tracking their movement. Sanchez was isolated and Ozil was non-existent – a worrying performance from him today; reminiscent of his disappearing acts against strong teams where we get out muscled. Again, without Santi we miss the fluency and link up play. There were too many times when Mustafi launched long balls whereas a midfielder should have been dropping short to pick up the ball. But this was symptomatic of disjointed play today. Which, to be fair, is an understatement.

That second half was as weak as I’ve seen us for a long time. I could not believe it took MU so long to score. They had so many chances. Also, BTW, that was a penalty in the first half. Monreal also had one of his worst games today. He was run ragged by Valencia all day long. Of course, the fact that his left midfield play who’s supposed to provide cover was Ramsey did not help. But all day long Monreal was schooled by Valencia. And, when Valencia nutmegged him in the box I was convinced Mariner would call a penalty. So in addition to being shit shit shit all day we were lucky lucky lucky. If that penalty had been given we would not have been able to complain. Compared to the one that was given against us v Sp*urs this was clear.

So you need luck. These decisions usually average out across the season. And it could not have happened to a nicer manager. I’ve not heard his post-match comments but you can be sure he moans and bleats about this. Te Fucking He.

Back to us. We just seemed careless today – off the pace. Some of it was due to the enforced team changes but part of it – particularly in the second half – was that we seemed to lack a leader; someone to organize us and help us keep our shape. But we were out harried when we had possession and there was therefore no fluency to our game especially in the second half. I don’t think we put more than 3 passes together. Even our goal came from just a few passes.

Of course, in the first half (20 minutes in I think) Sanchez had an opportunity to head us into the lead – it was not such an easy chance – but at that stage the teams were more evenly matched. That would have changed the game. Maybe we have an inferiority complex against MU. I find it hard to understand how we came out to weakly in the second half.

So, aside from complaining and moaning, let’s again acknowledge that AW’s substitutions were ideal (well the first two anyway). Chamberlin skinned Rashford and put in a perfect cross for Giroud to crush into the net. Our only attempt on goal the entire game. If Burnley or Bolton had pulled this off against us we would have bemoaned the injustice of it all. It also highlighted how invisible TH14 was all game. Once Darmeon picked up a yellow card I had, wrongly, assume that Theo would run at him thereafter and force him to commit to more tackles with a view to picking up his second yellow. But not once did this happen. And then the first time Chamberlin gets down the outside and puts in a cross we score. Not that I’m a fan of the Ox, but he’s got to be close to starting soon. And, back to my favorite subject, this is what we were lacking on the left side where Ramsey can’t beat his man nor put in a cross. We were so narrow and had no counter-attack.

My Coq was very hard today – he stood up to Pogba and yet did not pick up a yellow. Along with Koscelny he was our best outfield player. Elneny was solid but his a little slow on the ball and does not have the creativity of Santi (but then who does). I can see why he came off. I like AW shuffling of the team with all the changes. But I was disappointed in Xhaka. After we tied the score I thought he was careless with the ball around our own box in the left hand corner. He gave up free-kicks and lost possession too easily. Someone of his experience should have been more conscious of the game situation and been defensive in his outlook. He unnecessarily put us at risk right after getting back into the game. And then, of course, right at the end Ramsey, in our own box, looks to shepard the ball out even when it’s clear it’s not going and he losses possession to Pogba – but Mariner bailed him out. More bad judgement.

Lucky, luck, lucky Arsenal. Lucky to have Mariner as the ref, Lucky to have Cech in goal. Lucky to have one attempt on goal and one goal. Lucky to have Giroud. And lucky to come up against a toothless MU attack. So think about how angry DarVader must be. Oh, it warms your heart. They deserved to win today – by a country mile. But tough titties – they were at home and it was up to them to take their chances and they didn’t. They brought on Schneiderlin to protect their 1-0 lead; how did that work out for them?

For PSG I’d definitely bring in Gibbs. Monreal needs a few days off to find his game again. Today he and Ramsey were our two weakest players. They had one guy down their right hand side and yet nearly all the danger MU created was from that side of the pitch – including their goal. Even Iwobi provides mores protection to Monreal that Ramsey. This formation just does not work. If you’re going to play Ramsey put him in the middle. Let’s retain our speedsters and width on the outside. And let’s find out where Theo’s mo-jo went.

And lastly, this was not as unenjoyable as our home game to Sp*rs where we were expected (and should have) won. But it was worrying. We were under the cosh and vulnerable. We lacked cohesion – we did not look like a functioning team; the second half performance was as non-existent as I’ve seen for a long time. How we came away with a point I’ll never know. We were, what’s that word? Oh, right. Shit Shit Shit.

I’ll take that point though. And can we have an early ending to November?

– LB7

And he’s back. By popular demand. Possibly. Maybe. Well not quite. By fuck it. I’m back.

So it’s been a while and while there’s a lot to cover I might defer some of that to a latter post (just like I delayed the part II of last season to infinity – and beyond).

We were not at our best today. But, then, I don’t think we’ve been at our best for a number of games this year. Sometimes the results have made us look better than we really are. I have no doubt that we are a better team than last year. I like the impact of Alexis in the Giroud position. It makes us less predictable.  But we weren’t that much better than Hull nor Sunderland. No complaints with those scores but it does falsely set expectations. And then we have to adapt to results such as today. And performances.

We still have a number of issues to figure out. The balance/mix is just slightly off.  And at this level with the competition at the top of the table, a 1% difference will have a disproportionate impact.

It’s hard to be too upset with this score. We were not dominant enough. Not incisive enough. And there were long periods were we did not assert ourselves. They were fielding a weakened tea and we should have taken advantage of that You can be sure at there places we will be under much more pressure.

I like we way we started with a high press game. But I don’t think we adjusted to their 3 at the back. It allowed them to flood midfield with Rose and Walker playing more like wingers. Whereas our “winger” aside from a thunderous shot that hit the post and was easily worthy of a goal we fairly restrained. Our game seems more suited now to a counter-attacking  one. We looked at our best when we broke from our own half after defending. Creating chances around a packed box remains frustrating. Ironically, it’s only when Giroud is on the field do we look like scoring in those situations because of his aerial strength and touch. Ironically, it’s his presence though that slows up the entire team and causes us to play tippy-tappy around the box though.

Conversely, their quick breaks in the first half looked quite dangerous. Maybe it’s a German thing but Mustafi jumping into challenges at the half way life – just like the BFG at Liverpool – exposed us and they really should have scored from some of these chances. It does not feel like the two center-backs have quite figured out their relative positioning. It’s always nerve-racking when Bellerin/Walcott lost the ball to see them counterattack down the right hand side. Without our pacy right-back to provide cover we are always exposed. Whereas in the second half when they broker down the left hand side he was able to jump over to the other side of the box an intercept. In fact both full-backs saved us today with great interceptions It’s the 2 CB that seem to loose men between them and expose us to chances. As with Middlesborough though Cech was there to save us. How invaluable is this guy?

Some random thoughts now on players:

• How pissed was our Coq when he was substituted? I was not happy either but it worked out. I hated seeing Ramsey coming in – he worries me. But, he actually played quite well. I would have taken off Xhaka he played well but I’d prefer to keep my Coq about me.
• How sucky was Chamberlain again? Some of his decisions and passing was just crap. He needs to grab his chances when they come along – not just against second string teams.
• Ramsey was really not too bad. There I said it.
• Iwobi. I fear he’s going to become my new Ramsey it’s been a a couple of games now where I’ve been thoroughly underwhelmed. Against Sunderland. And again today. He is a liability defending. In the first half his covering to Monreal was non-existence. There was a point where he over chased the ball to go after the same man as Monreal and left Ericksson wide open on the corner of the box for him to send in a cross for Kant to head wide.  A number of times his passing resulted in turnovers and breakaways. Most of the counterattacks started down his side and he just does not cover back enough. And then there was his miss in the first half from the perfect breakaway play. He demonstrated a complete lack of confidence Compare that shot to the breakaway again Everton last season. He is overthinking it. And that shows when he slows the game down on the counterattack. I fear he’s going to be our Walcott/Chamberlain of previous years (though he’s younger and more talented) but is so frustrating.
• We missed Santi again today. He is the glue of this team. He keeps the game flowing and can pivot out of tight positions. I like Xhaka but Santi operates at a different level.  We are like a finely tuned machine and Santi is that 1% that will separate us from the crowd We missed him this time last year after his injury against Norwich. Let’s hope this insanely unnecessary and stupid international break gives him sufficient time to recover. We will need him against MU on resumption of play.
• Giroud misses the one chance that could have gotten us the 3 points. He was largely anonymous when he came on. But he had one golden chance and he headed right at Lloris. This is why people go made at him. That infamous world-class striker would have buried it. This is why Giroud is an A- kinda guy. I’ll take his goals against Sunderland. He’ll aways score but this was one we really needed him to place on either side of Lloris. These are those gaming defining moments. And, unfortunately, it defined him in the wrong way.
• Formation wise we seem a little rigged now. Most teams are now into this fancy smancy oh so fashionable 3 at the back. I don’t care for that. But I think the 2 holding midfield players were getting overrun today. Their fullbacks pushed on more than ours. But I felt nervous when they broke because we did not seem to know who to pick up. I think they are a better team when Kant is not playing up front – he slows them down. When they have Ali and KimJanypoohSong together they are much quicker and inventive.
• Back to our center-backs. Koschelny should never have jumped into Dembele. He was going nowhere and was surrounded. Of course it started down our left again (Obe-1 reference). But he has to do better there. Too many time Mustafi had to make desperation interceptions.

So I’l take the point. For Sp*rs that point will help them in their relegation battle. For us, even if we had lost I would not freaked out (spot the lie) – it’s a long long season and we’re surrounded by some exceptional and inconsistent teams. There will be plenty of times to pick up points. But only if we fix the balance in our team. We are just a player or two away from striking the right balance. If Chamberlain could step up and grow into the player we had hoped that could be it. He should be furious that he’s essentially lost his starting place to Obe1. It just does not seem like he feels that way. We need someone on the left hand side who has the Alexis work ethic and speed inconjunction with the talent. TW14 this year is working harder and trying to be more physical – we need the same on the other side. And we need our CBs to work better together. Still, as we have in the past with Manu, they were there for the taking – I’m guessing they expected to lose given the run they were on. And therefore we missed a chance to plunge the knife in. Having said that I hate these debris because I can’t bear the thought of losing to them and therefore I’m too excepting of a draw – the lesser of two evils.

It’s a long season. It’s a long winter. It won’t take much for us to get it right or wrong. The margins are thin. And we need the team to evolve. One thing I saw today that I liked was when TW14 got an elbow from Wanpyjamas that – like in the old days with Veira and Adams – Xhaka and others stepped up to push back the Sp*rs players. That’s the spirit we could never have when we had Fabregas and VanDickHead.

So, I remain positive. This is a better team than last year. But we have better competition. And, did I mention, it’s a long season. How some of these younger players evolve will determine whether we progress – which does not have to mean we win the league – but it does mean we have to be genuinely competitive in challenging for the title right up until the end.

Up next that utter fuck-head Darth-Vader. Let’s hope his political equivalent does not win on Tuesday either.

Ah, it’s good to be back.

– LB7

[Editor’s note: A welcome return for DB10; an early transfer window addition as DB10’s loan move completes]

I know what you’re thinking. Chelsea win the league, Arsenal barely scrap 4th place and Sunderland somehow don’t get relegated. There are certain norms that have taken shape over the last decade or so in the premier league but I think we would be foolish to hold faith in them. Yes, I am disappointed with Arsenal’s overall standing so far in the league and I am quite dumbfounded by how poorly we’ve been playing for a few weeks. That being said, Arsenal are only 8 points back of Chelsea and 1 point out of the top four. Therefore, don’t rule Arsenal out of the top 4 or hand Chelsea the title just yet, things change.

However, this season is so frustrating for Arsenal supporters because this was finally the year we were going to overflow with talent. The training ground would be littered with quality players fighting for places, our starting 11 wouldn’t be a guarantee and our issue of mental strength would be one step closer to finally being fixed. Well, I must say that the reason I am writing this is to highlight exactly where Arsenal have went wrong this season and it has nothing to do with talent, but rather leadership and communication.

I think due to the past 2 seasons of constant improvement Arsenal fan’s assumed that we would naturally continue to get better on the pitch simply as a result of good form; but it is the lack of the right personalities hindering Arsenal.

Now obviously I am not in the dressing room with the players nor on the pitch, but it is easy to gather that few players open their mouths during games. The only Arsenal players to give constant communication to others (excluding goalies) are Kos, Cazorla, Coq, Alexis and Ozil. Giroud has shown over the past few weeks that regardless of his quality he has developed a mental toughness to his game. More importantly he has shown a higher respect for the club where his performances are really dedicated to the team and his work rate is much higher.

Yes, Kos, Cazorla,Coq, Alexis and Ozil talk. Kos has been masterful defensively this year and really deserves recognition. He’s definitely up there now as a top 3 center half in the prem. You guys can decide the other two. The bigger problem is that Kos is a lead by example type of player. He rarely makes mistakes and is incredibly swift on the pitch, but he is not the type of player who will scream at his teammates to stay focused. This is where Coq and Alexis come in, they are the team’s emotional leaders. They get animated and bring passion to the starting 11. A sense of responsibility that comes with playing for a club of this standard and such rich history. Alexis also leads by example but the technical leader, the one who creates for the team is Ozil’s title as well.

The key here is that Cazorla is missing…well because he’s been missing for months. He was our technical leader and emotional leader in the heart of the park. Without his experience, drive and absolute class ability to go right through a defense is not shared by Xhaka and Ramsey. The two players mentioned have great talent in different areas but are currently more focused on using Arsenal and the game of football to raise their status, help their names grow. They are still finding themselves as players and it is clear are more focused for some games and not others. How content are two players like this to develop their games this season, get more comfortable in the first 11 and challenge for the title next year? How content is a player like Ox or Iwobi.

Ox is genuinely the most inconsistent top talent I’ve ever watched. One game he can dominate a mid level Prem side and this past weekend we watched him get dominated by preston. He doesn’t seem to have that passion and drive to be the best. The idea that Arsenal should be wining the league with this team should be reinforced all throughout the club, but Im not sure if it is. Iwobi? he’s an amazing talent but he’s only a kid still, he’s not thinking this is my last chance to win a title, he’s just trying to get good game time and develop at a steady pace.

On their day, this season’s Arsenal team have given us performances that breed a lifetime of happiness. 3-0 over chelsea, 5-1 west ham, 4-1 sunderland. Dominant displays with the ball zipping around but more importantly the players were electric and refused to accept anything but a win.

But the reason why we are in 5th? why this season has fallen short and looks like it will continue to? A lack of leadership and accountability from the team as a whole. On team’s you have your captain and vice-captain, but you also have a technical leader, someone who leads the line, and other’s who dominate certain areas of the pitch. I don’t know who’s Arsenal leader are besides the 5 players mention. One of them has been hurt for ages and it is clear we fucking struggle without him. We need our supporting players to hold themselves to a higher standard, to play with more confidence and passion. If Arsenal want to get second this year, which I think is a realistic goal, they must organize the team off the pitch first. Sometimes it seems like the team doesn’t even know each other that well they’re so silent and distant from one another during matches. And for fuck’s sake, how can you loose the first half to Preston 1-0.

-DB10