Month: February 2023

TOTL still. For another week at least. This was not an attractive game but at least we avoided the stress of last week. Winning ugly is fine. Not that we were that ugly. Well, not until the last 20 minutes.

Eddie was left on the bench and given the upcoming Everton game and the glaring misses of the last few weeks made sense. With Trossard playing more like a false nine we played more like Man City than they do now.

We dominated possession for most of the game. We fluently moved the ball around against a Bolton block. Leicester left Tielemans on the bench with other attacking players and clearly missed Madison. This left all control to us. We tried to pass our way through them – searching for that perfect final pass or that delicate flick.

Unfortunately, very little came off. Saka, who was fouled just once today, was off his game. He seemed hesitant and nothing he tried really came off. Not that Odegaard was able to get the ball to him. But when Saka was put through by a gorgeous Jorginho pass he dithered and was unable to get a shot on goal. And his crossing was wayward today. Whereas on the other side Martinelli was having an awful game. He was unable to beat his man nor put in decent crosses. He played backwards too often. And when he did have a chance to shoot, he’s composure let him down.

Yet we still dominated. With Trossard drifting out wide it was not clear where any goal would come from. For all our possession their crap goalie had not faced a single shot. For all our intricate play, our first real chance came by way of our corner routines. Last week it was Zinny and this week it landed to Trossard to open the scoring.

Until that is that VAR intervened. Using a sub-atomic microscope and x-ray vision, VAR decided that their crap goalie had been impeded by White. Unseen to the naked eye VAR believed that White was holding hands with Ward. This is where VAR oversteps its remit. How this was clear and obvious when it was impossible to see is beyond me? And even then, when you consider the normal contact in the box, it’s inexcusable to cancel this goal out. Later on, in other areas of the pitch we saw way more obstruction and holding without any fouls being given. I just don’t understand what the purpose of VAR is. It’s not supposed to re-referee the game. Yet that’s what seems to be happening. I know I’ve said it’s a work in progress. Take the long view. In 5 years time it will have been perfected. But it just seems that we now have multiple refs for each game. One on the pitch who is accountable for their decisions. You can boo them, shout at them and abuse them. And then you have a referee deep in a bunker somewhere with undue influence and no clear accountability – well, aside from Mason being fired.

Anyway, a perfectly taken goal by Trossard was nullified. Within minutes Leicester had a breakaway. Even to the untrained eye Iheanacho was a mile offside. Even a blind man could see this. But the linesman refused to put his flag up until he’s put the ball in the net. I mean, what the fuck is the point in this? There was absolutely no doubt this man was offside. By a country mile. Why let play continue? Who knows what might have happened. Someone could have got injured. Maybe they’d get a corner or foul and score from that. I just don’t get it. And yet, later on, the linesman used his flag immediately. This has to get sorted out. But, of course, it won’t. Not until we sort out the PGMOL. And that will take years. They don’t even have a website. They operate much like the Kremlin. Just without the firepower.

Which nicely brings us to Zinny. Captain for the day, he continued to push us forward. With Odegaard being anonymous and lacking a threat through the middle Zinny continued to spray the ball around. Alongside him Jorginho continued to make me eat my own words. He shone again today. He moved the ball quickly, closed down the opposition and played some excellent passes. He really has slotted in so seamlessly. You forget he’s only been with us for a month or so and this was only his second start.  It’s inconceivable that Sambi could have contributed in the same way. Jorginho’s passing is so simple and clean. He helped build momentum and pressure from his deep lying position.

Unfortunately though he had a tendency to overpress. Twice in the first half (as he did against Villa) he got drawn to a tackle on the edge of their box. In an attempt to keep them under pressure he would try to win tackles so high up the pitch but twice he lost these and exposed our defense to the counter attack. Fortunately, without Madison, they lacked guile and creativity so weren’t able to exploit these mistakes. Then in the second half twice he was exposed behind White when he failed to track his man. Overall though he was more than an able substitute for Partey. And when Partey did come on Partey looked way off the pace. This man looked rusty. There can be no doubt he was not ready to start and is lacking match fitness. My guess would be that against the Bolton block that we’ll see from hapless Everton, Jorginho will start the game again.

Leicester were so poor that Ramsdale did not have a shot to save for the entire game. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen that. I can remember one shot they had that went wide but nothing else. And a lot of that was due to Gabriel. As they applied more pressure towards the end he remained solid and resolute. Alongside him Saliba looked more assured than the previous weeks. Ably marshalling their muted attack and handling the few counter attacks they had.

Right as the second half started, Xhaka won possession, passed to Gabriel who then released Trossard who feed a speeding Martinelli to slide the ball beyond Ward for our solitary goal. As poor as Martinelli was today this was a fine goal indeed. Perfectly placed, Henry-esque, into the far corner. This priceless goal changed the dynamic of the game. Until then it looked like we’d be faced with a bore draw. Soon afterwards, Rogers started to make numerous changes. Finally they opened up by bringing on more attacking players. We continued to dominate but still failed to put our chances away. Zinny had one nice shot but we remained vulnerable to the type of shock that Forest pulled off last week.

As the game moved to the final twenty minutes we moved more into a game management mode. Except that we started to lose control of the game. Passes were astray, tackles lost and our composure disappeared. The game became very fragmented with many fouls being called. But through all this they barely threatened. I can’t even remember them having a corner. We replaced Zinny with Tomy. Poor Tierney does not even get on as left-back cover. He must be really desperate now. And then Partey joined the fray replacing Odegaard. Odegaard seems to flit between brilliance and anonymity. And today it was the latter. Everything he tried failed to come off.

So what did we learn today? That winning is all that counts at this stage. And winning ugly is fine. Because that last 20 minutes sure was ugly. We also learned that Eddie has to fight for his place again. And that Martinelli, though he’s scoring again, has lost some of his mo-jo. And that Jorginho was an inspired signing. Just as I’ve always said.

This team continues to develop and learn. And it’s certainly easier now with the leadership that comes from Xhaka, Zinny and now Jorginho. Having a few grown-ups is no bad thing. We’re still two transfer windows away from being the ultimate Arsenal team. Today it was vital to find a way to win. Even with VAR against us, we managed to get those all important three points. In prior years we’d have left with a draw. Especially after the dodgy run we’ve finally come out of; I hope. It was not always pleasant to watch at the end but we did not managed to turn Leicester into Forest.

As for Leicester, they are too good to go down but Rogers has to play his best players and play to win. He came out way too defensive today. Only in the last 15 minutes did he try and attack and pressurize us. But they should be safe this year.

So, now it’s onto Wednesday night against Everton. Our make-up game. It’s critical we win this. Well, that’s true now for every game we play. After that painful loss to them we know what to expect. But we must extract retribution. We should start Eddie for this one but we can’t afford him to miss chances. They will defend in the usual mode of a Dyche team. It will be turgid and physical. This has all the hallmarks of an ugly game. They will not come to play football. Gaining three points will be critical for us with the added benefit that it might help them get relegated. They deserve it. It could not happen to a more worthy team. But we now they will (literally) fight for everything on Wednesday. This will be physical – more akin to a war than a football match.

Whatever happens though, we’ll end the week TOTL. Again. Who would have thought?

-LB7

And, yes, we’re TOTL again. An amazing change in fortunes over the last four days. From the despair and suffering of Wednesday to the suffering and relief of today. From the dark side into the light. From the poor second half on Wednesday to the absolute control and domination of the second half today. Truly two games of two second halves.

We deserved everything today. Not that it was imaginable that we’d come away with three points each time they took the lead. At best, all we could hope for was a draw. Yet, as the game developed so did our control and domination.

As with both games, the absence of Partey dominated the pre-game news. We are a different – and inferior – team without him. With him we purr but without him we stutter and drop points. And with the run we’ve been on it was mandatory we had him. Last season we lost out on the top 4 because of his injury. And to win the league he is a basic requirement for this team. This team can’t purr without him. He is the critical cog in our wheel. He is the player we are most dependent on. He is the player I have been worrying about all season. The fear of losing him for any period of time. And now we’ve lost him for that period of time that is crucial to us. Not having him against City and now Villa put us in jeopardy.

Somehow, and unlike Wednesday, we managed to take control of this game in the second half. Not that we weren’t on top in terms of possession in the first half. It was just more incisive in the second half. We created more chances and pinned them back. We were able to find our rhythm today in a way we weren’t able to in the second half on Wednesday.

But, after the abject disappointment of Wednesday, to find a way back against Villa is a testament to the reliance and drive of this team. I’m sure listeners were skeptical when they heard Arteta say he was more proud of his team after that defeat. Today I think we saw why. Their ability to come back from the abyss was electrifying. Make no mistake, if we’d have lost this game given our current run of (lack of) form, it would have placed everyone under massive pressure. It would have brought into question all the progress of this season.

When we were 2-1 down I was already taking solace in knowing that we were essentially unplayable for the first 18 games. That we’d won the league for half the season. That we had half a cup in our cabinet. Which, let’s face it, is more than that lot down the road. I reminded myself that we had no right to expect this team to be at this level at the start of the season.

Yet somehow we found a way back. It took a little longer than it should care of Eddie. Poor Eddie. He can’t buy a goal now. After missing two critical opportunities on Wednesday he then proceeded to pass up a few more today. In fact, he was even less involved today, essentially, anonymous. He did though miss a glorious header that was eventually ruled offside from another White cross. Then in the second half he had a header that hit the crossbar. And finally at a critical time in the game, he was put through by Odegaard , and failed to get a shot on goal.

I know Eddie has scored some important goals for us this season, but we really need to speed up the recovery of Jesus. We can’t afford for him to be hanging around any longer. We need him back. But I fear that’s at least 2 more weeks away. And even then, he’ll need time to readjust. In the meantime, let’s hope that Eddie is about to explode back with some well timed goals. Because, today, he was pretty crap. Sorry, but it’s true.

Let’s start though with our first goal. It began with White. As with most things in the first half. We made two changes from Wednesday. White and Trossard. And White was key today. It looked like White of old. He helped link up Saka. Who, between numerous kicks and fouls, tormented Villa. And, in one perfect stroke, showed Eddie how to take chances. A perfectly placed volley that flew past the dive-for-cameras Emi.  

Saka was, as ever, brilliant today. It also showed his commitment. After being hacked to pieces and limping for most of the second half he chose to remain on the pitch. He should have been subbed after 30 minutes in truth. Apart from the gulf in class and the difference in cost, on Wednesday you saw the two most fouled players in the league – Saka and Grealish. You had to remember, on Grealish’s old stomping ground, that neither of these two get the protection from the referees they require nor deserve.  And to hear the Villa crowd boo-ing one of the key English players of his generation when they had cheered Grealish for so many years, just confirmed their stupidity. Somehow Saka found a way to remain on for the entire game. It’s amazing to watch his development and growth. He is a monster.

White was extra important today because with Odegaard being pretty quiet most of the game, he was the one who supplied and involved Saka. Whereas Trossard, starting his first game, seemed to withdraw into his shell. He seemed reluctant to be as aggressive as he had been coming off the bench. As such, our left hand side was subdued for most of the game.

Sure, Ben got roasted for their second goal. But then we’d already been exposed right through our midfield prior to that. In the second half, he continued to supply Saka and create more opportunities for Eddie. I thought it was the right call to bring in Tomi on Wednesday but that turned out to be a disastrous move. He gave them the first goal and helped deflect their second as well. Maybe it was good to rest White. Today he was a monster for us. And, even when he was substituted, Tomi came on and played with more conviction and support than on Wednesday. Maybe MA knows his players and knows what he’s doing.

And our other full-back continued to help drive us forward. It’s hard to believe that before today he’d not scored in the Premier League. What an important goal that was. At that point, with our missed opportunities, I could easily see defeat staring us in the face. We’ve played a number of interesting short corners of late. We tried a few in the first half that didn’t come off. But this one was perfect. Zinny struck is so sweetly and it was a just reward for our second half domination.

It’s fair to say I was not a happy camper when we signed Jorghino. In fact, I was adamantly against it. I despise taking Chelski rejects. And this one, an aging, slow midfield player was not one that interested me. Not that I wanted to play over the odds for a pubescent Brighton midfielder. And, seeing him in place of Partey on Wednesday in my mind, assured us that we would not function against City. Not that it was his fault entirely. And then again today,  I remained unimpressed by him in the first half. He seemed too slow to jump into tackles he could not win and failed to play enough forward passes.

But, for one 45-minute period I might be wrong. In the second half he controlled the game and pulled the strings that Odegaard failed to do. He linked up play and intercepted their moves (well, most of them). And then he sealed his place in this new team with the perfect strike to earn three points.

And how absolutely wonderful was it that the shot came back off the crossbar to then ricochet off of Martinez into the goal. It was stunning to see karma in action so clearly. It could not have happened to a more annoying and arrogant ex-Arsenal player. We’ve had to suffer playing against Adebayore and his infamous slide when he scored for City. And, of course RVP. But Martinez after 10 years at Arsenal he has shown his true colours – that of an ignorant, arrogant, egotistical narcissist. Someone to genuinely be embarrassed about and someone who’s easy too despise. So, thank you Emi for your heading us back to the top of the league. We appreciate your dedication to Arsenal. And Jorginho, welcome to Arsenal. I knew you’d fit in.

And contrast, up the other end we had Ramsdale to thank for pushing a shot onto our crossbar from Bailey. He was not at fault for the goals on Wednesday or today. But he made a couple of pivotal saves today that kept us as float as the game opened up. It’s pretty clear who you’d prefer to have as your goalie. And who fits into our team chemistry.

In front of him Saliba and Gabriel are stil having to deal with their joint dip in form. On Wednesday Gabriel was lucky to stay on the pitch. In addition to sloppily initiating their important second goal, he also nearly gave away a penalty and picked up a booking. Today he was more solid and dependable. Saliba got exposed for their first goal and looks a little down on confidence and assurance. Some of his original initial composure seems to have evaporated. Of course, for a kid in his first season in this league he’s more than entitled to a dip in form. This is what he – and Gabriel – will learn from. They were bossed by Toney of Brentford and then had a difficult time with the monster from the Great White North on Wednesday. But today, it was a different proposition. After those two goals they seemed to find their groove again.

Our substitutions were interesting today. Martinelli was energized when came on and reminded us of his form earlier in the season. It made sense for him to be on the bench. Let’s hope it restarts his season. And, by some miracle, even bringing Vieira contributed. Unlike his recent performances and his feeble free-kicks, today he played through a Odegaard like pass for Martinelli to put the icing on the cake and relive and residual pressure on us.  Maybe with 15 minutes here and there Vieira find his role in this team. But we need ESR back; just not as much as Jesus.

Odegaard was very quiet in the first half but was more involved in the second. Not that that can excuse his, essentially, open goal that Eddie created for him. It was his pass that set up Eddie for another one of Eddies’ misses. Alongside him Xhaka, who was our best player on Wednesday, was somewhat subdued but was able to play further up the pitch today. I think he suffered from not having Martinelli alongside him. But maybe that’s a little unfair on Trossard. I suspect though he’ll be back on the bench for the next game.

What a contrast to Wednesday. This game could turn out to be pivotal for our season. Not just because we climbed back to TOTL. But we stopped the rot. And we scored four goals. This seemed like we found our way back. Of course, Arteta says he saw this on Wednesday – and even against Brentford. Today we saw a backbone that we didn’t display last year. Last year, without Partey, when the going got tough we vaporized. Today, we showed that we’ve evolved. Twice we fought our way back. And then proceeded – in the dying minute – to demolish them. This was reminiscent of our last minute Man United victory. This is what Champions do. Not that we are there yet. We need Partey and we need Jesus. In no particular order. But I’ll take Partey first.

A great day to be an Arsesnal supporter for sure. And when you look around the league you have to laugh. Out loud. After Wednesday, it’s funny how City can drop points at Forest. Even funnier to watch Chelsea just drop. Potter will be released back to the wild soon.

For our game, thankfully, VAR was not involved. And it’s good to see Lee Mason “retired”. There has to be some accountability. Even with the Super League being discussed again it is the inconsistent standard of referring that needs addressing. There are too many important mistakes. Not just us. And it’s not technology fault. It’s always people. And in this case unaccountable, underperforming and unqualified hidden figures someone in the deep in the bunkers of middle England. Even today, in various games, offside decisions that are clear to the naked eye take too long and disrupt the celebrations. Automate it or get rid of it. And lets choose automation please. I know I’ve always said that we need to give VAR tie to bed in and evolve. It will get better. Just look at rugby, cricket and tennis. But it’s the people who are the problem. Let’s mic up the VAR referees so we can hear their deliberations. That would provide transparency and accountability. They would no longer be able to hide their incompetence. Also, why do we need ex (crappy) refs to be the VAR refs? Why can’t ex-players or anyone with judgment and understanding of the rules make these decisions. The ones that are not automate-able? I have some faith in Howard Webb. He is trying to be more transparent. It’s only been a short-time for him. So let’s see how far he takes this.

What a great game today. What a great performance. And an even better result. It was a vital win. It broke the run we’ve been labouring under. And it showed the spirit and strength of this team. This was a challenge we rose to. And, around us, others faltered. How everything can change in just a matter of a few days. The wonders of the Premier League.

So, after the trauma of Wednesday, here we are. Back where we belong. Still TOTL.

-LB7

Well, still TOTL. But only just. This was like playing a tougher version of Newcastle. But one where we were fortunate and yet unfortunate.

They should have been 2 up by half-time. They out muscled us up front. Gabriel and Saliba looked as threatened as they have all season. Toney and Mbeumo seemed to win every header, every second ball. And every tussle. Saliba looked as uncomfortable as we’ve seen all season. Fortunately White had one of his better games. The wobbles of his last few games disappeared. Brentford are very direct. More so than Newcastle. But both defended the same. And credit to Brentford. That are quite a plucky little team.

We were faced with a wall of 10 and found it tough to break down. As would anyone. It did not help that we were just a little slow in our passing and lacking in penetrating runs and passes. In the first half Martinelli was too central so we lost our width.

Our team is clearly going through a tougher time. That rhythm and precision is lacking. It’s harder for us to draw teams out. Its not like we can point to any particular weakness in our own play. We dominated possession. But it can be frustrating to watch. As we tried to work through their lines and create crossing opportunities, you just knew that they would win any header. Alternatively we’d try and weave through their brickwall defense.

And from their long kicks we were super vulnerable. Toney bullied both our defenders, winning every header and exposing our defense. Their first chance came early as they got round Zinny. And then another move starting with them winning a header had them hit the cross-bar. This was tough to watch. We were better than we were against Everton but still not at our best.

As fortunate as we were to go in level, we seemed to dominate the second half. We had a little more urgency. The crowd was excellent again; helping the team apply pressure. We managed Toney at al slightly better. But we still would miss chances to clean up second balls from those initial challenges in defense.

Most of our penetration was coming down our right. Saka was running the show with help from the reenergized White. Odegaard was able to conjure tricks and passes that created openings. On the other side though Martinelli was unable to get round his defender and, apart from one shot in the first half, seemed unable to penetrate. Zinny was excellent again but Xhaka was too quiet. He seemed unable to find the space in which to operate. Though in the second half with Martinelli operating wider that helped him.

Eddie received little service. Of course, being marked by two big lumps did not help. He found it tough today like last week. He had few direct sightings on goal but managed to get involved where he could. A few times he escaped with his trademark quick turn but he was largely starved of opportunities today. This is all part of his learning process I suppose.

As the game wore on it seemed like it was destined for a draw. As expected, we swapped out Martinelli for Troussard and within moments we finally found a way through. Starting on the right Odegaard released Saka to put in a perfect right-footed cross for Troussard to swoop in on the back post.

That was unexpected but deserved given the possession and pressure we’d been applying. It was just surprising that we found a way through their brickwall. At this point, given the balance of play, it seemed we’d find a way to hold on. They’d had barely any chances in the second half and seemed to be tiring.

Yet we found a way to waste this lead. It took them a while but from a long ball we were again exposed. From the free-kick Troussard lost his man and then a litany of chances to clear the ball or win aerial challenges were lost to them. And finally Ramsdale left his line and did not win the ball to leave Toney unmarked to score. There were hints of offside from the initial free-kick. VAR seemed to linger over this but did not seem to examine the point at which they crossed the ball back when Ramsdale went to win the ball. That looked a clear offside but it’ not clear this was considered.

After all that hard work to take the lead it felt like such a lapse in concentration, such a waste of an opportunity. Not the type of thing you expect from any team looking to win the league. This was a game we should have, undeservedly, wrapped up. Instead, as we had all game, we lost a number of headers and challenges but this time in our own penalty area. We had too many chances to clear the ball. And Ramsdale, again, did not cover himself in glory.

That’s two game in a row now we’ve conceded from set pieces. I love Ramsdale. He has been a pivotal player for us. But we’re beginning to see a chink in his game now. He has issues with dead balls where he would be expected to dominate his own area. But, physically, he seems out matched. It’s a confidence thing. There was little for him to do during the game but in these key moments he’s been exposed. Shot-stopping, marshalling the back-line, providing leadership and distribution have been world class. But controlling the box from corners and free-kicks have proven his Achilles heel –even if this metaphor has nothing to do with his feet.

Overall, this was a very frustrating match. We struggled for periods to crack them open and yet we finally did, it felt like we gave it away. It’s hard to get too angry – even we you feel the title might slipping away from us. Everton was annoying because we were clearly sub-par. Today was different. Brentford were like Newcastle 2.0. They defended really well but had a much greater threat up front. As I said, we were lucky early on in the game. But yet, we surely should have held on for the victory.

It also says something about our bench strength that once they equalized the only change form the bench was to swap Vieira for Xhaka. Apart from adding a few more vowels, there was no impact. I thought that was the right move as Xhaka was quiet by his standards. He was unable to find space within their brickwall. Yet Vieira added little aside, with the last kick of the game, one of the all time worst free-kicks. When you need, in the dying seconds, a testing cross put into the box for our players to lose yet another header, instead he meekly overhit it right to their goalie. Pathetic. Aside form this, he seemed inhibited as he only passed the ball sideways and backwards. To be fair he was not the reason we dropped points. But it does speak volumes to the strength off the bench or lack of it.

We need ESR to find his way back. It’s beginning to feel like he might turn into Wilshire 2.0. ESR has basically been out the entire season and will barely be able to make an impact this year. When you consider the contribution he made last year, that’s a big miss. His vision and creativity would surely have helped us in the last few games. And relieved the dependency on Odegaard. You’d certainly prefer to see ESR come off the bench compared to Vieira.

As depressing and upsetting todays result is, and this little run of results has been – and as it starts to evoke the trauma of last year as we fell away from the top 4 – one can’t but help be uplifted by results elsewhere. Around us everyone – bur Fulham – seem to be dropping points. You have to enjoy the mess at LA Chelsea. They deserve everything they get. Including not getting stone-cold penalties in the last 5 minutes. It couldn’t happen to a nice bunch of twats.

Then there is United drawing against manager-less Leeds. Yet somehow they get to play them twice in 5 days. Each time without a manager. That team is good enough to stay up but why fire your manager when you have no-one willing to take the role?

Which, leads us – though this was pretty clear from the start – to our wonderful friends just down the road. Going to mighty Leicester and finding a way to lose 4-1. Oh, if that does not make you laugh out loud the chances are you’re already dead.

Taken together, it should remind us all that all – normal – team will drop points in this long drawn out WC impacted season. Whether City , with their legitimate, legal, honest, genuine and straight-as-an-arrow financial resources will drop points remain to be seen. So far they have proven to be less consistent than prior seasons. But with the talent at their disposal they should be able to destroy our old Accountant tomorrow and then set themselves us to steal back the lead if they grab all three points on Wednesday.

While we should acknowledge and credit Brentford for their effective gameplan. And we should understand why they occupy their position in the table, the challenge on Wednesday will be entirely different. As opposed to having 70+% possession as we’ve done in the last two games. And from seeing a parked bus, on Wednesday we’ll have to face up to KDB, Foden and  a fluent, creative team that will press us. And they’ll have the physical presence of the ugly Nordic one.

This was two dropped points today. Especially when you have the lead at home with 15 minutes left in the game. When you have the entire crowd supporting you – having your back. Let’s just hope that the City game provides us with focus, motivation and the drive to come out of this (what I hope is) mini slump.

I just realized I’d not mentioned Partey’s name until now. You could see today how important he was to our team. I hope that two games in a week was not too much for him. Though he lost a few of those physical ariel duals today, he again controlled our team and provided the cohesion and fluency to move us forward. And, because of their approach, he often operated from a more advanced position. Of course we were also treated to a few of his long-range efforts – destined, as ever, for row Z. Nonetheless, it was great to see him back to his normal levels. And even more importantly, to leave Jorginho on the bench.

So, onto Wednesday. Assuming they demolish our ex-accountant tomorrow, we are faced with losing our top spot if City beat us. How this young team fares with this increased pressure will be instructive. Assuming Cit come out all guns blazing, whether we wilt, or resist will provide insight into the mental state of our team. Recently, too many of our players have been ever so slightly underperforming. This is the game where we’ll need everyone back at the top of their game. We have an extra days rest, and are at home, so let’s see how this one turns out. All I know is we can’t lose this one. A draw would be not be a disaster. But for a young team, this will be critical to their collective confidence and self-belief. We are way ahead of where we expected to be at the start of the season. But, now that we have created this opportunity, it would be soul destroying if we found a way to implode. Way too reminiscent of last year and the associated trauma. This is about creating a winning culture. An expectation that we can overcome obstacles and grow as a team.

But for now though, we are still TOTL. For a few days more at least.

-LB7

Still TOTL. But, now the pressure starts. Two losses in a row. Two games without goals. But, in this game, we were clearly way below par; below Partey. Not that I can blame Jorginho but I’ll try finding a way.

Listen, it’s a long season and we knew there would be some dips. This though felt more like a throwback performance. We were sloppy for most of the game. Too many simple passes were under hit or put our own players in danger.

It did not help that they had recently installed the Ugly Dyche in place of the Limp Lampard. If only they could have waited another game. They were physical, energized, well-organized. They were Burnley 2.0. They were Burnley with supporters. They were Burnley with attitude. And we were, well, Arsenal of last year.

This will be an interesting test now of how far we’ve come. How do we handle this result and performance. Do we dig in and stop the rut setting in? Today, too many players seemed off the pace. Eddie barely touched the ball but then he barely saw it. Martinelli was up against old-man Coleman. So old that when Arteta was at Everton, they played alongside each other. But he failed to run at him and create any real chances. And he lost possession too easily.

On the other side Saka was being bullied by their Ukrainian. And whenever he received the ball he was marked by three thugs. Odegaard was pretty anonymous in this game and not only had no impact but found it hard to release anyone with his passes. Saka was not helped by White. Against United I genuinely thought White was injured or sick. But, again, today, his distribution was off and he gave too many balls away. In particular, in the first half when, under a little pressure he misplaced the pass to Odergaard which then set up a chance for Calvert Klein and the Andy Caroll pony-tail. Eventually he was replaced by Tommy. I think we’re are the point where Tommy needs to start and have White search for his missing mojo. These two meant that Saka was too isolated. The best passes too him came from Zinny and Xhaka playing cross-field balls. He did nearly score only to have one of their big apes clear the ball off the line.

Saliba was also guilty of little mistakes. Passes that put our midfield under pressure and hesitating too often. Gabriel was pretty solid though, just once, he did lose him man to allow a free header on goal. But he played CL quite well. ZInny was the only one who seemed up for this game. He took on the initiative to try and push the team forward. But they parked the bus and worked tirelessly to shut us down. Unfortunately, as they game wore on and they tired we made substitutions that meant we still weren’t able to create obvious chances.

It’s unlike Arteta to make chances so early but on the 58^th minute we removed the ineffective Martinelli and brought on Trossard – who made an immediate difference. Ever since Martinelli signed his new contract his performances have disappointed 🙂 .

And then Partey was replaced by Jorginho. And then Everton scored. I’m not saying it was directly Jorginho fault. But, in the same way last week as soon as Partey was replaced by Sambi we lost the game, we saw the same thing this week. That’s not to say I don’t like Jorginho. I don’t; I hate him. I wish we’d never bought him from LA Chelsea. I hate the idea we gave them money. I hate the idea that, in the long line of Chelsea failures – Willian, David Luiz, Gallas and even Cech – we have to acquire their rejects. He’s too old, too slow and I pray we never let him take a penalty. I don’t trust this guy to fit in. At least with Sambi he had potential to improve. I fear that Jorginho will be a poor-mans Willian. Sent over by Chelsea to ruin our season.

In classic Burnley style they then proceeded to score from a corner. Ramsey had not looked confident on any of the previous corners so this had the feeling of inevitability about it. We’ve seen Ramsdale have issues from corners all season. He seems to get lost in the crowd and can’t decide when to come out. For this one, the box was (again) crowded and he made no attempt to intercept a ball within the 6 yard area. But we had Saka, Jorginho and ultimately Odegaard not marking them men to give Big Ears a clean header at goal.

Our response was muted and inconsistent. We infrequently created chances. Odegaard skyed one after some nice work by Eddie. Trossard had a few shots. Pickford wasted more minutes on his goal kicks than he had saves to make. He is a limited goalie but today we barely tested him. Eddie had one clear chance in the first half and none in the second. Too many times that final pass was overhit or left short.

Until their corner I had thought this would end nill nill. But once they scored I knew we’d lost. And we ended up with a midfield of Jorginho and Vieira. That’s a scary state of affairs. The only one who pushed us forward today was Zinny. He was our best player. Xhaka also left too many simple passes short or overhit his passes behind the full-backs. It was just not happening for too many people today. To be honest I thought Partey looked fine today. He still controlled the midfield and linked us up. It must have been that his rib injury really was impairing him. But once he was replaced you could see the gaps appear in our midfield. Did I mention I’m not a great fan of Jorginho?

Performances like today certainly give you pause in the belief we can win this league. Too many players were off their game. Too many players could not find their rhythm. Too many players were out-muscled. We looked like Man City on a poor day. Just too slow on the ball and unable to find that final pass. Let’s hope City turn into Arsenal come the end of the (last) season.

The pressure will mount now after two losses in a row. How we react and respond will be telling to whether we can withstand set-backs. This loss was different to the one at Old Trafford. That was VAR/referee induced. Here it was entirely on us. This is still a young team. So it will fall on Partey – assuming he recovers – and Xhaka to help guide this team. Of course, you can’t be perfect in each and every game. It’s inevitable there will be games like this. The pressure will mount now along with the inevitable questions. How we respond will tell us how this season will pan out.  

A special word for Neil Maupay. What a monumental Cunning Unpleasant Neanderthal Twat.  A complete dick. He fouled Gabriel for a non-awarded penalty and then tried to get Zinny sent off right at the end. He is just a nasty little fucker. And a waste of money. But not our money.

Now I have to find a way to enjoy the rest of the week-end. I don’t know whether I should wish for a City win that would push that lot even further behind us and limit their chances of champions League football or for that lot to cause City to lose and not make up any ground on us. Maybe a draw would be the best outcome. With Kane being injured and Son being sent-off. I need something to cheer me up.

For another week though, we remain TOTL. So enjoy that while it lasts.

-LB7