Arsenal travel to Turkey to face Galatasaray in the final Champions League group game. And while we still have a chance to finish top of our group and avoid some of the biggest teams and toughest ties, like Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, I think we will have to trust to luck.
It was always unlikely that Borussia Dortmund would lose their final game at home to Anderlecht, but while their domestic form was continuing along it’s awful recent course, there was always the chance that being rock bottom of the German Bundesliga would affect Jurgen Klopp and his players.
However, Dortmund moved five places of the bottom after a vital win over Hoffenheim last night and our slim hopes of an upset became even slimmer. But one thing Dortmund’s win has done is make it even easier for Arsene Wenger to give some of his key players a well earned rest, especially those like Alexis sanchez that have played almost every minute of every game and are starting to show signs of fatigue.
The boss will still want to beat the Turkish team, of course, but he will hope that we can manage that with some of the fringe players in the Gunners squad. Galatasaray have managed just one point from their five games so far and so even with the likes of Alexis, Welbeck, Mertesacker and Chambers not in the side, Arsenal should be too strong.
And there are plenty of players like Bellerin, Podolski, Rosicky and Campbell who are desperate for some time on the pitch. With no Capital One cup games, this could be the best and only chance to experiment a little and if we lose or draw, it is very unlikely to matter. Do you agree or do you think Wenger should still field his strongest side?
You lose points when you don’t have a clinical striker. Who knows how the game would have been if Giroud had headed that CLEAR chance in? Fans are fickle and quickly forget how Giroud frustrates us week in, week out before he got injured. He’s always better coming off the bench – FACT. Sorry, didn’t address the article, it’s the Stoke game I’m still thinking about 😀
Not saying I would be able to make that goal, but ffs that’s what he’s paid to do. Like you said could’ve changed the whole outcome of that sorry a$$ performance.
PMSL & LMFAO.
I am past getting angry now, I just laugh at this farce.
At all of the fickle sheep fans that love/hate Giroud/Wenger on a game by game basis.
At all of the AKB’s, I hope the taste of defeat is good for you, your blind loyalty and refusal to criticise have allowed Wenger to continue his comedy roadshow.
Enjoy the humiliation YOU DESERVE IT!
rest players for what? hah! they are tired of losing so they need rest? Players are showing to us that they will not give theirs 100 % under Wenger, you have Podolski who has bad influence on others for sure, cuz he is unhappy, why he is unhappy? ask Wenger, its clear, Arsenal players dont want Wenger anymore!!!
Forget everything –
Why paper over the huge canyons that are getting exposed quicker than Hartlepool managers..
Is it worth being humiliated by Real Madrid or Barcelona again or resting players and strengthening in January to make top 4??
We are a joke of a club..we employ arguably one of arsenal and England’s good ( not great) defenders- but still a respected defensive coach.. And defend like girls!!!!!
Totally shambolic…
answer to all those problems is in Wenger, how can one average team like Atletico Madrid won La Liga in front Real and Barca, whats difference between us and them? arguebly we have better team but they have what? a manager !!!
A manager with tenacity and a hunger to succeed and possibly a board that supports the team?
No English?
I don’t think we’re a joke of a club. I think we’re one of the greatest clubs in the world, but in a joke of a state at the moment.
Mick agree – but the fans are the ones made a fool of.. So to me we are a joke of a club..
No other club in world football would allow such embarrassing results to continue without some kind of intervention..
We are a great club – ran by men that have no interest in what made us great..!!
You do know that Wenger interferes with the defensive training?
Ian Wright said on Talksport recently that he knows 100% that Wenger ignored a list of defenders that Bould gave him in the last transfer window. Apparently Wenger spent the money on a 6 pack of croissants and some smelly cheese from Lidl.
OT: Had to work so couldn’t watch the end of the match nor could I read the comments on this site. I’ve just caught up on them and they are f*cking hilarious. Thank you all. Needed that laugh after that match.
Before this match, I was thinking we should rest players. But since we got beat like an egg by Stoke, I say put in our strongest side with only minor changes.
If we get second in our group again, we will just be doing the usual of getting knocked out in the knock out rounds. Our players and manager gotta let us fans know that they want more than that and go for first in our group.
to show interest we must field a full strength team….injuries may happen but thats normal..
Im still in awe and disappointment after our shambolic display against stoke city!
we all are Greg, we all are. [glances off far into the distance]
Today I don’t really give a sh*t about reading rotation articles!
As long as we have a thread bare defence and Per M on the pitch were doomed and the nervous ripples impact all of our squad. I mean really did anyone watch the highlights on MOTD? Per – So slow, pulling out of headers, no communication, trotting around. The guys a disgrace and needs to go, Wenger can’t you see this? Playing a hard working MF’er in place of Per would be an obvious improvement.
Our back four won 1 tackle in 90 minutes, shocking!
#arsenallaughingstock.
My mates who support other teams are all delighted that we have BFG!
Can someone please tell me if Koscielny was injured or not? Because I need a good reason why Wenger decided to start Bellerin against Stoke on their home turf, a place where we haven’t won in years.
I could’nt give a shit about the CL it only makes money for Wenger and he’s EGO Gazidas!
Our club is going backwards and seeing Wenger’s stupid remarks after todays match just shows that he has lost the the plot, blaming everybody except himself. Wenger is a deluded idiot who is clueless and still thinks we play teams like 16 years ago, football has changed and we have been sussed the way play where other clubs have moved on AFC has stagnated, Wenger has become too big for his boots and shows he’s arrogance towards fans paying the highest prices in Europe for watching mediocre players achieve nothing. Let’s face it Arsene got lucky with the FA Cup and Community shield, He failed to buy players during the summer to bolster our defence, everybody screamed the need for these players but the arrogance of this man would’nt listen cos he know’s best and he listens to know one. You can tell by the look on our players faces after each game they are not happy with Wengers ways and as Ian Wright has said today Sanchez will want out if we do not improve and spend in January. As for the board that run Arsenal football club, Kroenke is only interested in making money and taking it back to the US and the muppets on the board nod their heads to he’s every wim no doubt!
Although I don’t want Arsenal to become a big spender like Chelski or Man Shitty,We need a manager who buys the right players and plays them in there respective positions, thats the reason for buying them/ Usmanov has the money (more than Abramovich)and should be allowed to either buy the club or sit on the board, it is a disgrace that a man who is Arsenal’s 2nd biggest shareholder is disregarded as having any say on Arsenal matters. Arsenal football club is being run to make money for it’s major shareholder Kroenke, achieve 4th spot in the premier league and get to the last sixteen of the Champions league. Arsenal is a big club, but the way it;s going season after season we are becoming a middle rate club with it’s demise ever increasing under this board and management.
we have 2 billionaires and we running a club like a small team…
we need to spend big sign 7 to 8 players and release all the deadwoods..
wenger out
bellerin and Martinez are not good enough…
we need to sign cech and a backup RB if chambers is to backup for cb
its time for Wenger to go!!!
its over…
if this is not a crisis then what is…?
Wenger out!
Do we have much choice?
Martinez Inexperienced.
Bellerin (Not ready) Chambers (Overplayed)
Mertz(too slow) Gibbs (Usually injured)
Flamini (Not good enough) Ramsey(struggling)
Ox( Inconsistent) Cazorla (battling) Sanchez (Plays every game)
Giroud / Wellbeck (Mediocre)
Bench.
Szcz (injured? out of form)
Koz (injured?)
Ajayi ,Maitland-Niles. Very inexperienced
Podolski Campbell Rosicky (not wanted)
Injured.
Ospina Hayden Debuchy
Arteta Wilshere Diaby Ozil
Sanogo Gnabry Koz
Loan.
Jenkinson Ryo Coquelin.
32 players and only one really in form.
No it’s not Diaby!!!
We can only get better.
yep, that pretty much sums up our squad.
I understand the frustration of us the fans, but we can not continue to be so wishey washey with players. Last week we were praising Martinez, but now he isn’t good enough. The same for Bellerin. Lets get behind the lads and support instead of always criticizing.
First time commenting but long time reader. Love the site. I’m a newfound arsenal fan since the signing of Alexis Sanchez. I’m half Chilean and he has been a favorite player of mine for years. I never had a favorite team unless you count Colo Colo (Chilean primera team that Alexis once played for) which is my family’s team. That being said, I had to register and post on this.
I feel that Wenger hasn’t done as poorly as the WengerOut crowd are harping. An additional defensive player or two and a better CDM in the summer were oversights. It was impossible to predict injuries could happen to this magnitude but the plan should have been in place in case. Like not sending so many players on loan or additional transfers. Many players are underperforming for one reason or another. Ramsay, aside from his clean goal today, Wilshere (let’s be honest, isn’t cutting it as a stand-in CDM), Ozil who I expected to be league assist leader with Alexis signing, giroud is hit and miss, welbeck who I knew wouldn’t be an out-and-out poacher but I thought would have a decent combination of goals and assists, flamini who started slow is looking better, arteta…, cazorla who has looked a little lost at times.
Its hard to know details while sitting in an armchair. Is arsenal unlucky with injuries? Over-training? Under-training? Is it Wengers decision to sub players late (80+ mins) and not let the talented roster have a chance to rotate? Why isn’t Joel Campbell getting time? Podolski? Rosicky? All of these are fair questions but only those within the organization and Wengers brain trust specifically can answer them.
Wenger will leave if Arsenal don’t get a CL spot next year. By force or by choice. I’m sure he is going to try his damnedest to make sure that doesn’t happen and I feel he has the right to ask for that much time to right the ship. A solid transfer window could be exactly what we need. Carvalho fits the CDM bill, two additions to the back line would also be very good. If he is planning to let Poldi continue as is, then let him go. Wasting salary money this way.
Rest players and rotate some new blood in versus the turks. Let Szczesny start, bellerin, rosicky, poldi, Campbell, let that Maitland-Niles kid play since you let him into the reserve lineup today and he didn’t get his debut. Dortmund isn’t going to get a shock defeat and our team getting rest can help both in the CL going forward and in league play (the more important campaign).
My 2 cents.
My fellow gooners,
Hardships always bring about change, top 4 would always keep breeding mediocrity into the club like it has in the past. As much as we respect our manager’s sacrifice and all the good memories he’s brought to the club even he can’t escape this year. This is the end of AW at arsenal and whether we rub it in his face by bringing banners to every stadium or not he’ll be out at the end of the year if he doesn’t spend BIG in January to bring in players that can take us into top 4. If we miss on that the board will encourage wenger to resign and probably bring in Klopp as his replacement.
Ps: Sanchez can’t carry us every game.
I think it’s easy to blame Wenger, and maybe with some justification, but the truth is many players are seriously underperforming and need to step up a gear. We have the potential to be doing much better.
I think if a new manager comes in unless player attitudes change there won’t be great improvement.
People should not blame Martinez… poor defensive formation and marking. Simple as that.