Arsenal must approach Leicester as a very winnable game

The game against Leicester City will be another one of those very tricky games against a tough opponent who has something to play for, and even if they didn’t would still want to take the scalp of a top-six team like Arsenal.

When you consider the performances against Everton, Crystal Palace, Wolves and to some extent the win over Watford you can be forgiven for approaching the game against Leicester in a negative frame of mind.

The Foxes want to finish seventh as do Wolves, Watford and Everton and they will feel that they have a great opportunity to beat us right now and you have to think that their manager Brendan Rodgers will be telling them that exact thing, that this Arsenal side is fragile and definitely beatable and one cannot disagree with him really.

But we do need some perspective, we have put on some horror displays recently, I am the first to admit, but we also know that we are much better than what we have been offering up.

Remember that we outplayed Tottenham away, we beat Napoli away, we have beaten Spurs, Man Utd and Chelsea this season, we are in the semi-finals of the Europa League and are still in the fight for a top-four finish so it is not as if we are Huddersfield Town, we are actually a decent side when we put our minds to it.

If we play the way we know we can play we will beat Leicester City, we are 18 points ahead of them for a reason and we should not forget that.

It is down to Unai Emery to get the players into the right frame of mind It is down to him to select the right team and formation and now is the time for him to do his job right, because if we lose this game and Chelsea and Tottenham get positive results then it is unlikely we will make the top-four.

So, in conclusion, we obviously have to be worried, it would be naive not to but I believe that we will win and that Emery will send them out with the right mindset.

Predicted score 2-1 to Arsenal

22 Comments

  1. As long Aubameyang and Lacazette are willing to work their socks off on the flanks, Arsenal would be able to press Leicester’s defenders high up the pitch

    But if they just wait for the services again in the center as what they did when playing against Palace, Leicester would be able to predict Arsenal’s attacks easily. Our creative midfielders are in a drought as well, hence we need a decoy in the middle and Emery should enforce the strikers to play wider

    Leicester are not as dangerous as they used to be since they lost Mahrez, but Vardy’s pace and Pereira’s tricks could hit us on the break. Arsenal usually do not have an answer to their opponent’s pacey attackers, probably because of their tiki-taka style

  2. We’ve heard it all before… I’m so fed up with the way we played in the last 2 games.. no fight, no grit, no determination… how easy was it for the opposition to gain control of the ball (& the game!) They’d admitted defeat & seemed like they couldn’t care less… and now pipe up saying we have to win all our remaining games blah blah blah
    Just try every bloody game, not just when you feel like it!
    I can deal with them losing, when they’ve given EVERYTHING for the entire game, fought for every ball, challenge etc then I can say we tried but were just beaten by the better team on the day. But when you have to witness that rubbish, just rolling over to be mauled… Oh here you are, you have the ball & go & score as many as you like, t’s pathetic & makes me so angry… I do not want to see that again on Sunday… oh and btw come on Huddersfield

    1. You’re right Sue, same old story every week, I can’t see us beating Leicester, we’ve been talking like this since before the Watford game, who we only beat because they had Deeney sent off, otherwise they’d have beat us as well. So many bad players in the side I just can’t see any future for the club. Also agree with you about Huddersfield, if only for the way Sky Sports are desperate to push Liverpool to the title. Manchester City are not given the respect they deserve in the same way as Arsenal never got it in the era when we we’re up against United. Continuous air play for Klopp trying every bit of psychology to force City in to a loss. The reason they Sky Sports dislike City? That’s easy , they’ve taken the mantle from their beloved United.

      1. Kenny, I couldn’t have said it better myself ?
        I can’t either, I’ll be amazed if we pick up another point! Yes we scraped that Watford game, i agree about Deeney & if Deulofeu hadn’t been injured, I reckon it would have been a complete hammering!
        I’m struggling at the moment too, with all these bang average players that can’t be bothered, we’re just going nowhere, no money, can’t win away from home, I mean in all honesty who would want to sign for us??
        This certainly is not the end to the season I wanted.. we have the semi final on Thursday & I don’t even know if I’m looking forward to that, if we were to win it (big if) what would happen in the CL? I doubt we’d even make it out of the group stage! I really hate feeling like this….
        You’re spot on (as always) about Sky ?

      2. Off topic, Just seen a headline “EUFA set to hand Arsenal a huge boost in the Europa Cup” For a minute I thought, it was going to say something like , both finalists into the Champions League. But the massive boost, just to calm everybody down was Mhkataryan is going to be allowed to play in the final. Personally |I think it would be more of a boost if he wasn’t allowed

        1. I did reply to you Kenny, but I don’t know where it’s gone!
          Oh great… because he’s been so Messi-esque lately hasn’t he? ?? with a bit of luck, his passport will go walkabout ?

    2. Sue, everything you said is why I put so much of the blame on Emery. What is it he demands from his players. Who has what responsibilities on the pitch. What is his game plan. He was there when we failed at Everton and I read him said they would continue to do what they do..which they do against CP and failed and still do it again against Wolves. He is as culpable as the players because he set them up to play the way they play. The stubbornness he is showing is the same that got the legend Wenger out of our club. He can’t keep doing things the same way away from home and expect different results. Somebody said we are lion at home and a cat away from it and I agree with him totally. What he didn’t say it was because of Emery cowardice.

      1. Mobella, what I really can’t get my head round, is this away game hoodoo!! Do you know any other teams that have this issue? I can’t think of any..
        I know we had this problem last season, but new players & a new manager came in & it’s still happening….so does this prove that our players are just mediocre? Even one of our ex players said that 10 players aren’t good enough… so how long will it take to get shot of all these rubbish players and bring in better?? But who would want to join us?! All they’d probably be interested in, is the high wages we pay…
        I’m still behind Emery… for the time being anyway, but am really, really disappointed right now..

        1. Yes it was like this last season but it wasn’t like that season before last with virtually the same crop of players so I won’t say that was because of the qualities of players. Let us assume Wenger squad wasn’t good enough but Emery added 6 players and the situation is the same. And if we are to put it to the quality of the players, that means Wenger overachieved with those players. My opinion is Emery has his own demon away from home in the league. Apart from his time in psg his record away from home is not that impressive. Imagine with the same Sevilla team he won 3 consecutive Europa league with his record in the league away from was 9 draw and 10 lost in 19 games in his last season there. The other 2 seasons away record was impressive either.

          1. So what you’re saying is we’re going to be known forevermore as the team who can’t win away from home!! ??
            As we know, UE isn’t out on the pitch & can’t play for them, but it is his job to motivate the players… get across what he wants them to do.. so why the big difference between home & away? Are they complacent already? Oh this makes my head hurt Mobella… ?

  3. If they were playing for their jobs you would see more fight and grit from them. Hopefully UE put players on notice that changes are coming in the Summer.

    Only Leno, Laca, and Auba should feel safe, I’d probably add Holding in as well. AMN and Guendouzi are probably safe too, but the rest should be putting everything on the line to keep their job.

    Tired of players talking, just do the f-ing job, or step aside and give another a chance. Can Saka or Eddie be worse than Mhki and Iwobi?

    Instead of Sokratis explaining the loss, try ripping into teammates who’s performance and effort levels could improve.

    We need an Adams Vieira type leader badly. A captain on the pitch who can get a response from the players.

  4. The thing is that we don’t have any fight. I remember once Gervinho said that we were invincibles because teams thought they could not beat us. The war was won in the tunnel even before kick off.

    I’m not saying we need to be hard or aggresive but the fact is that teams still see the weakness in AFC. It’s like this one time a bird pooped on my car. My reaction? Well I made myself scrambled eggs, went out to the drive with my garden chair and sat right next to where the ‘incident’ occurred and ate my scrambled eggs. I could hear the birds above gulping at my disproportionate retaliation. No bird ever pooped on my car since. Would I go and get a bird’s eggs and make scrambled eggs out of them if it pooped on my car? Probably no. But they don’t know that and think I will and hence now go elsewhere.

    Anyway, that is Arsenal’s problem. Teams have a go too easy (except Deeney ????). It is not about aggression outright but rather building themselves up as a unit. We need to build that backbone again!!!!

      1. Hahahaha Sue I also want to know where s/he gets those names from. Hilarious. Well the bird analogy quite hilarious too.
        Am just praying for Iwobi to “wreak havoc” against Leicester. I don’t know why I have a feeling that we will win against Leicester.
        Well, Huddersfield crumbled against Liverpool, I hope City will thrash Burnley this weekend.

        1. Haha what I’d give for ANYONE to wreak havoc ?? I’m afraid I don’t share your enthusiasm, I’m expecting a loss.. we’ve let in 6 goals in our last 2 games.. with Vardy up against possibly Mustafi? I don’t see why tomorrow should be any different!
          Yep Huddersfield were just like us at Anfield – annihilated! So I hope too, that City will win.. can’t be much in the GD now?
          Btw maybe we could have you in the team tomorrow? We surely could do with a ‘Little Magician’ ??

  5. Yep. Auba and Laca together have scored 31 premier league goals and Auba is still in with a chance for Golden Boot. They jobs are not in jeopardy. They would have done a lot better had Ozil performed better

    Ozil is barely in the Top 100 for Assists. He’s tied for 96th place with two assists. He’s worth every penny lol

    1. “Every penny eh?” What , all four of them? Fourpence in fact! OZIL REPRESENTS ALL THAT IS WRONG WITH THE ATTITUDE AT OUR CLUB. And those who foolishly make excuses for him are complicit in this charade.

  6. If Arsenal will contain the excesses in game playing that will come from Vardy who really mostly on his pace to operate successfully in scoring goals in matches for Leicester, Pereira and the overlapping Morgan by marking them out of the game to cutoff or block their supply service lines in their passing out to give assist and receiving passing assist in whatever form to cause havoc to Arsenal in the game, Arsenal could neutralise Leicester in their attacks to score against them in the game but beat them if the Gunners make the most of the goals scoring opportunities that will come to them or fall to their ways in the match to take their goals scoring chances in the game and bury them decisively in the match. But not profligate in front of the Leicester goalmouth nor be wasteful in the game to play to the gallery.

  7. If I was the owner of this club and I see that two season in a row my club is in the top five teams winning at home but yet we somehow can’t win away from home I could never blame players that’s mental issues. The manager needs to get a guidance counselor ????????

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