Month: January 2024

Welcome back dear reader(s). Welcome back Arsenal. Welcome back clean-sheets. And, most importantly, welcome back goals from open play. And, thank you Palace. That was very sweet and generous of you. A wholey pathetic performance from you was just what the doctor ordered. You were truly insipid. Just what we needed.

This mid-winter break was perfectly timed. The prior few weeks had been draining and dispiriting. Fortunately, I was able to retire to a warm weather environment and recuperate. I practiced. I trained. And I kept warm. All care of blankets, gloves and an excessive heating bill. Fortunately, the team was able to improve their sun tans and also practice their corner drills.

All the attention has been focused on our inability to score and the demand for another striker. This is clearly not going to happen. And should not. We have the players. They just have to remind themselves how to score. There is no-one out there (unless Messi gets bored in Miami) worth the money being demanded. This is the same team that was freely scoring last year. The tactics have since changed, the approach of the opposition has changed and so has our luck (for the worse).

So how about them corners? If I thought Raya was vulnerable from crosses I should instead have watched Henderson.  We were clearly prepared. Not a single short corner routine. When was the last time that happened? Instead with first Rice and then Saka, we slung into the box for Gabriel to score. How that second one is an own goal is a travesty. That first one helped settle us down and took the nerves out. We’d clearly come back energized. The style of play was unaltered. Complete possession but few chances being created and none being taken. Without those corners it could have been very frustrating.

It felt very much like the prior games – they were West Ham without a defense. Though that’s a little unfair to WHU. We dominated and controlled the entire game. We played our progressive game. Zinny and Odegaard were pulling the strings. In fact it was surprising to see Zinny out there. After his usual calf injury he’s usually sidelined for 6 weeks. And today, without any requirement to defend or mark anyone, he had a free hand to invert and push us forward. Alongside him Rice was in complete control. Let’s hope he want off as a precautionary move.

Saka was again quiet. But that was true when we played at their place. Mitchell seems to know how to play Saka. He’s still not found his form of last year but there’s time for him. I’d prefer him to rediscover his form in the latter half of the season when we’ll need him. Though there was a chance today to give Nelson more minutes.

Jesus continues to work hard and link up our play but his inability to actually score will encourage further debate about a new striker. It ain’t happening this year. But today he seemed poor. His passing was off, and I lost count of how many times he drifted off-side. We should have brought Eddie on earlier but at least we saw ESR for 20 minutes. But this was only possible due to our third goal – finally a goal from open play. As much as it hurts to say, this one was care of Raya and his distribution. 13 seconds from one end to the other. And thankfully it was Jesus passing to Trossard and not the other way round. This was a classic Trossard finish.

And then once Martinelli appeared we were able to finish them off in style as Palace brought on players without any position awareness. They clearly thought playing with a right-back was to challenging for Arsenal. This is just what Martinelli needed to reenergize him. Two identical finishes. He’s now scored 3 in our last two league games. We just have to find others to contribute.

Today was just so easy because of the ineptitude of Palace. It’s not clear how much we can extract from what we saw. It all felt a little like deja-vu. I mean, we were never going to change our style and approach. The defense remained as solid as ever helped by their complete lack of attacking intent. Eze is completely wasted on this team. He is their new Zaha. Our midfield had a ton of time on the ball but, in the first half, we created few open chances. Aside from our corners we had one clearly cut chance with Trossard. There were still instances where Jesus and Odegaard needed an extra touch before shooting.

I know I should be more excited and enthusiastic after a 5-0 drubbing at home. Every game counts of course, but this seemed so easy. Especially after that first goal. Palace did nothing to really change their approach. So, I spent the time looking for little signs of change or adaptation post winter-break. And, in truth, it seemed pretty much the same as prior games. Except this time, we found ways to score. Sometimes we moved the ball faster, more one-touch and a few more vertical passes. But nothing dramatic. I hate to say it but it just reenforces the old adage that goals change games. Once we fully unlock our scoring potential – assuming we do – all will be right with us.

Have-that had another quiet but effective and industrious game. Not out loud impressive but if you monitor his work-rate and the breath of the field he covers you’ll appreciate his contribution. And maybe that’s some of the problem. This description could be applied to both Jesus and Have-that. We just need them to also be able to score. And for Saka to. That’s all we need. Is that too much to ask?

Without the distraction of the FA Cup we have another ten days off. Maybe they can go off again to the desert. And Forest have a match – albeit it against Bristol City. So we’ll have plenty of time to prepare for that one. And then we have Liverpool visiting. Let’s hope Salah is till at the ANC and the AA is injured. We won’t have any new additions so this is the squad we’ll have. With, possibly, Timber back in April.

Its noticeable how quiet this transfer window is. This time last year we were in a bidding war with LAChelsea for Mudryk. Thankfully we lost that one. And got Trossard instead. But very team teams have made any moves yet. Maybe it all happens in the last week. But with the FA randomly enforce financial fair play rules against everyone bar Man City, everyone seems more cautious. And even they can’t offload Philips yet. And the wankers have brought back Timo. That’s always good for a laugh.

And speaking of wankers, I can’t believe that we won with Tierney as the referee. And no penalties or yellow cards. And very little VAR either. Of course part of this was due to not needing to make any tackles against the toothless Palace.

So now I can resume my recuperation from the trauma of December (and the FA Cup exit) for the next ten days. I’ll put out the deck chair, don my speedos and put my feet up knowing I won’t be screaming, for the next ten days, at Jesus when he misses yet another chance and then roams off-side. It’s a shame we can’t play Palace each week.

-LB7

I thought it could not get worse after West Ham. Boy was I wrong. This one needed going into the next year to recover from. What a way to end the year leaving the worst to last.

This was pretty self-evident to everyone. Here is just short list of applicable adjectives – abject, lifeless, soul destroying, ineffective, lackluster, aimless, predictable. It really defies explanation how a team could implode so quickly. Except that we’ve seen this before. Last time was in April/May but then we could blame injuries to Saliba, Partey and Tomi. Here we saw the inevitably injured Zinny replaced by Kiwor. Maybe Zinny has been carrying this for a while – which might explain his performances.

Within 4 minutes we’d scored a slightly lucky goal; it’s not like Saka got a clean touch on the ball. And then we had to wait for VAR to try and rule it out. This one started with the quick distribution of Raya and then a classic Martinelli break up field.

From then on it progressively got worse. It was like watching the life drain out of our team. So many mistakes and simple giveaways. Kiwor was exposed on the left. He’s decent player but lacking the pace to be a full-back. And, of course, he was caught out for their equalizer. But then so was White. He found it tough to mark their full-back all game long.

Saka was again off his game (again). He wasn’t able to beat Robinson with any one-on-one. Aside from missing that (difficult) chance in the second half Saka seemed lost. As did most of the team. Our triangles on the right were slow and ponderous. Odegaard seemed the only one willing to put in the work. But there was no creativity. There was no movement up front. This might have been Eddies most ineffectual game – and that’s a pretty low bar.

Eddie barely touched the ball. For someone who finally got his chance to start a game it was a utterly wasted opportunity. He did himself no favours. Of course he suffered because there was zero fluency, rhythm or pace about our game. It was a classic possession without any intent performance. We moved the ball around with no intent. Yet, when Fulham (easily) recovered the ball, they moved it quickly forward and took on our full backs. They looked the better team.

This performance was that of a team that looked at the end of an era not the start. This looked like a performance of a team in disarray; with no identity. As poor as we were against West Ham this was far worse. Against West Ham it seemed our only problem was being able to score. Against Fulham, it was much more basic. We were incapable of playing basic, fundamental football.

How does this happen and what does this say about us? How can you put in a performance like this when you have a chance to go top of the league? It’s inconceivable that we could win this league now. Forget that we’re still in contention – right in the mix. This speaks – as it did last April/May – to our mental fortitude. For every turnaround we experienced at Luton, we then have games like this. And this lack of inconsistency precludes us from competing with City (or Liverpool).

Forget that we have too many underperforming players. Have-that was anonymous. Martinelli was worse than anonymous; he has completely lost his ability to effect a game. Jesus was isolated and uninvolved (except for working back to help out in defense). We were so poor that even Rice looked uncomfortable. It’s rare you see him out of position chasing back. Or see him making sloppy passes. The spirit seemed drained from this team. The only player that looked decent was Saliba.

There was just no urgency or passion. There was no movement off the ball. Fulham – like West Ham – sat back knowing we could not pass our way through. There were no one-twos, no runs behind and no passing through the lines. We were just devoid of ideas. We really looked like a bang average mid-table team just lacking the passion of those types of teams.

Once we went 2-1 down I was as close as I can ever remember from walking out on this game. It was so frustrating and unenjoyable to watch. If we had put in the effort and created any chances (aside from the Saka one) and threw everything at them and still lost then I could accept that. But not this performance. This was reminiscent of past Arsenal teams. Ones with Mustafi or Aubameyang or Ozil. teams that were floundering for an identity.

The manner of our performance undermines all the good will that this team has built up. It undermines the entire program. Sure, it’s just one game and we’re still in the top four (just). But coming after the draw at Liverpool and then the home defeat against West Ham, it’s inexplicable for this team (especially, once it had the lead after 4 minutes), to not have the backbone, spirit or football intelligence to navigate their way to even a draw. There was an emptiness, a void, in this team that brings into question the viability of this team and it’s management.

The first question, the obvious question, is has Arteta started to lose this team? If you can’t get yourself up to win a game that would enable you to go TOTL, have the players started to tune him out? I hope that’s not the case. So maybe, it’s the fact we’ve not rotated the team. We’ve played Rice in every game. As with Saka and most other players. Is this a consequence of exhaustion over the Christmas period. I hope that’s the case.

Previously I’d argued that the winter transfer window could help us if we sold Eddie and Ramsdale to reinvest in another forward. After this game I’ve now reversed course. I’m firmly of the view that this team is not ready. That we should not burn the future for the present. Sure I’d like an improvement upfront. But rather than waste more money I’d insist that this team – as it currently is – takes responsibility and fixes themselves. Bringing in another player does not solve the problem with this team. This team needs to own their problem and fight their way out of it.

This game was so draining and frustrating it makes writing this blog even more dour and depressing. Having to relive the futility of our performance and the waste of an opportunity – against a team that everyone, recently, has used as a doormat – crushes any love for this team. It makes thinking about Arsenal, Arteta and the future too aggravating.

Even if there’s some sort of reaction or bounce in the next couple of games, it won’t remove the stain of this result. We will always carry the knowledge that – like last season – we can implode at any time. That, on any given Saturday (or Sunday or Monday….), we can quickly revert to a directionless, aimless, identityless, soulless team.

Not the best way to end a year. If only I had confidence we could draw line under this and move forward. On the basis though that this was due to exhaustion, then it comes back to our lack of rotation. Our over-dependancy on Rice, Saka. And the lack of growth in Have-that, Martinelli, Jesus and our full-backs. We have to give more time to Nelson, ESR and Jorginho. We have to share the load around the squad. This is what we failed to do last year. And here we go repeating the same mistake again. As Karl Marx said “History repeats itself, first as a tragedy, second as a farce”. For you youngsters out there, if. you’ve not heard of Karl Marx, he was, back in the 50’s a famous right-back for Crystal Palace.

So where does this leave us? Restore Ramsdale and get some heart back in this team. This will never happen. I’d start by resting Rice and Saka for the upcoming F. A. Cup match. Watch how Liverpool rotate their squad. Give minutes to some other players. Or phrased another way, drop some players. Let’s have some accountability. That’s two back-to-back crappy performances against mid-table teams. So hold the players accountable and give others some minutes. We’re at the half-way point now. Something has to change. Otherwise we’ll be desperately fighting for a top four spot. And if we fail then Arteta will be under immense pressure, particularly if those wankers (once they get back some of their players) finish higher than us. We’ve spent a kings ransom on this team and Arteta needs to show progress. It can’t revert to last years season ending fiasco.

So good-bye 2023. Good-bye any chance to winning the league this season. And hello 2024 and the chance to reset, learn from our history and reignite this team.

-LB7