Blimey. Where do we even start this morning?
What an utter car crash is going on at the club and unfortunately for Mikel, even his driving skills can’t rectify what is a completely broken team.
Almost ‘literally’ given that we’ve probably lost Leno for the season – maybe beyond – now.
Neil Maupay telling the Arsenal players to have some humility is interesting, especially as he played ‘Villian-in-chief’ with a very Armautovich-on-Debuchy looking push that has probably cost Leno a chunk of his short football career. What an utter prick. And then to top it all off, he bags an undeserved last minute winner for a team that, frankly, aren’t that good.
We’ve not beaten Brighton in five matches and that is baffling, because in every one of those matches I’ve watched a bang average team beat us. But they seem to have some kind of lucky charm against us. Yesterday was the same because they managed to come from behind and win having barely had any touches.
But I guess it isn’t so much luck as it is a collective of clowns at the back. In goal both Leno and Martinez are ok, good even, but the back four is a travesty. It’s mistake after mistake and it is genuinely embarrassing. Hector has lost a yard of pace and now looks a shadow of the guy who broke onto the scene. Mustafi has his redemption but again for the second goal he was left wanting. He is what he is – a bad defender. Holding is probably an average one. He didn’t make loads of mistakes but I just don’t see him as this commanding centre half who could be in the side for years to come.
In Tierney I think we have some real potential but Kolasinac was preferred yesterday and whilst I understand the decision for rotation purposes, I’m afraid that he also is another guy on a lot of money with little to evidence he’s worth it.
Saka looked good in the midfield but, wow, our midfield is so bad and I feel like my eyes were finally open to it yesterday. Mesut Özil isn’t the answer – we all know that – but we do need somebody in the middle of the park with vision. Somebody who can spot runs and distribute. With Xhaka our is isn’t him from deep and it most certainly isn’t Guendouzi or Ceballos. I don’t actually know what they’re both ‘good’ at. They don’t drive us forward with the ball at their feet. They’re alright passers but they don’t pick passes into difficult positions centrally. And that’s where our problem lies. This midfield is horrendous. Willock certainly isn’t the answer. He’s anonymous when he plays. I’d love to see the kid come good but I’m just not seeing it at the moment.
I am seeing Pepe though. A great finish, he had a great game, despite being kicked all day by a Brighton team who were quite happy to see Martin Atkinson avoid giving them yellow cards. Their number eight in the middle of the park made eight before he came off – EIGHT. That’s eight times he made fouls and Atkinson never bothered to punish. It’s a joke.
But not as much of a joke as this ramshackle bunch of Arsenal players. We need to just reboot it. The season is done so it’s time to start experimenting with a view to a mass clearance when the season ends. I don’t really care any more. It’s time we moved on from the over paid senior players we have and go back to another Project Youth.
Aubameyang is a fantastic player but if we have to cash in to address the clear flaws that exist in this side then we have to do it. Playing him out wide left is fairly pointless anyway and yesterday he offered little from the flank. Mind you, what he did offer was more than Lacazette who let’s be honest, is looking nothing like a £50million striker. that’s because he’s not. We went to Lyon and just paid over the odds for him and there is no way we’ve got value from his purchase in the time he’s been here. He can’t score away. How can you have a player that cost £50million who can’t do his job 50% of the time? It’s crazy. Time to move him on too. Rip the plaster off and go again. We can’t be any worse than we’ve been this season.
Can we?
Like I said – time for a reboot and time for another period of investing in youth.
I’m ready for it. How about you?
Catch you tomorrow.
Let’s face it, Arsenal are no longer a force. You can’t get the same mediocre players all of a sudden being world beaters. Rebuild required. Could take 5-6 years and that’s only if it’s done right.
Yep – I think that’s where we’re at mate
Yeah I agree, let’s face it we were never a constant championship winning team through the last 40 years. Liverpool had the 80s, United the 90s, and still won more titles than us in the 00s, then silly money clubs come in and started buying the league.
We cant buy the league, this squad is simply nowhere near good enough and Arteta needs to be given time and the players he wants to fit his system. We need probably 8-9 players if Laca and Auba are moved on, which tbh needs to be to fund a rebuild. If we can get close to 65m for the 2 of them then so be it.
Sokratis, Chambers, Mustafi, Luiz, Kolasinac and Holding they are not good enough. Out of the 5 Holding is probably a good backup, but the rest need to move on. We have bought cheap defender after cheap defender for the last 4 seasons and none of them are good enough. We also have too may CBs, i wouldnt be too hard on bellerin he has only played what 5 games since popping his ligaments with no pre season.
Our midfield is the biggest issue, no cover for the back 4 and no creativity for the front players. We have let Santi, Ox, Wishere and Ramsey go, signed a player on loan in Cebellos who is not cut for the Premier league, he wants too much time on the ball and switches off constantly, I would send him straight back to real. Guendouzi doesn’t seem to know what type of midfielder he is but he is good and will get better and the the 350k elephant in the room Ozil.
Ozil not going anywhere, his position is your paying me 350k per week its your choice, you can play me, if not then I’m happy to sit on the bench with my massive wage coming in. Then I’ll leave at the end of the year for free and get another massive payday from my new club because no-one will pay my massive wage if they have to pay a transfer fee.
The club is a huge mess, we need all the dead wood out. On the positive we have made good signings like Leno, Saliba, Mari, Tierney, Guendouzi, Martinelli and Pepe plus very good youth players. Dont slate Willock too much, when the base of the midfield is so shit, a recently introduced youth player will go missing. He needs a leader with experience to guide him and push him on.
I wouldnt say we need 6 years but 4 windows to get the players we need in. Let’s hope Arteta has the say in any future transfers.
Fucking clueless bunch of prima donnas. Arrogant, think they’re better than they are. Sledging Brighton players FFS. The challenge was nothing. Short hairs. Get over it. But searching for pantomime villains and whingeing about inability to buy decent players with a 60k arena charging premium prices? Grow up you tosser. We don’t need better players. We need players of this ability that care more about winning than their haircuts.