We lack creativity and can’t keep playing with 7 defensive minded players.. by Eddie
Good day everyone, I sat down after the game with my phone in hand, staring at the league table, the more I stared, the more pissed I got. I’m sorry I used a lot of swear words last night in some of my comments, I’m a passionate fan and games like that gets to me. I had to retire to bed early, I raised my voice at my fiancée, who I apologized to immediately Lol. She’s aware I’m a strong supporter, she requested I explain to her what happened or went wrong, I could only tell her how important those points were and how the team messed up. She understood my anger, and I have to admit I’m one lucky guy to have her!!
So once again we’ve dropped valuable points and Manchester United are just below us 6 points away now, which is troubling. I wrote two articles on how we can’t keep playing with 7 defensive minded players on the pitch and why we should drop the high line until we get proper players. Yesterday’s game was another solid example and proof of my observations, we keep repeating the same mistakes time over time.
It doesn’t take rocket genius to know against teams like this, you need all your best creative players because teams will sit back and you have to break their defence. Playing with a team made up of Litchsteiner, Sokratis, Koscielny, Kolasinac, Xhaka, Torreira and Guendouzi will leave our attack limited. These guys aren’t creative enough and can’t make final passes, all they do is make long passes from our end. Just like I don’t expect Ozil to play like a defensive midfielder, I don’t expect Torreira and Guendouzi to play like an attacking midfielder. They can’t do that, only few players could do that.
I really don’t believe in these excuses that our players are injured, Arsenal fans are used to that. What we do is figure stuff out and we make readjustments. So why is Emery struggling to readjust? Is Xhaka a favourite player? Is our academy so much bad that we can’t call up a defender for cover? Is there a vendetta between Ozil and him? Should Lacazette be treated this way each season? So many questions to be asked – but all will get no answers because there’s no direct communication line to the club.
In the race for top four, games like these are most important ones. We can’t afford to drop points like this. Emery, for all the amazing job he has done since he was appointed, has made a few bad decisions. We are a team that needs investment and new players but until we get what we need the best solution is making use of what you have left.
We don’t know our style of play yet, so much of the pressing and pressing and yet with the ball we look like a team with no style of play, the back passes, the sideways passes stayed with the team. We can’t attack properly. I once made the case of Aubameyang and Lacazette being each other’s strength. We should stick with Lacazette up front or we should play Lacazette whenever Aubameyang plays. These guys so much know each other, Aubameyang plays like a complete striker when playing with Lacazette, gets involved in games. So much that whenever Lacazette isn’t on the pitch Aubameyang is one useless striker who brings nothing to the team. His only goal yesterday is a proof of how they work well with each other.
I think Emery needs to take the risk, man up and face the challenge. Since it’s his first season, most people will give him a pass. He needs to take the risk and call a defender from the academy, ask any Arsenal fan and they’ll tell you Medley would be a great option from our academy. I don’t mean to sound negative about certain players but the truth is Litchsteiner and Koscielny are both done. Koscielny can’t even play a full game, his Achilles was a big problem before he got that injury. He’s finished, and Litchsteiner? You know the rest.
Emery also needs to sort this problem with our attacking players. Ozil is so so poor and inconsistent we all know, so but with how inconsistent this guy is, not one single player in the team can make a final pass or create a chance, not one, not even Iwobi.
This leaves so many questions to be asked, Ozil could’ve been told “Look you have just fifteen minutes to lead your brothers and find a way for them then I’m getting you off”. My point is Iwobi could’ve done anyhing, for all his contributions what we needed was someone who could play a pass and not dribble with the ball. Hell I even failed to see him make a dribble. This loss isn’t on Iwobi, it isn’t on Ozil, it isn’t even on Aubameyang who people keep saying blew a chance, it isn’t on Torreria who played with the brakes on. It’s on one man. He made the selections and chose to field players we all knew shouldn’t be on that pitch yesterday. Why do we pay Ramsey’s salary? He could’ve started that game, he’s leaving for free but for now are we paying him or not? Emery needs to find a way to make use of these players.
Nobody expects a miracle from him but he’s responsible for his decisions and selections. Torreira looked average because he couldn’t even do his job because he was being cautious. It’s not rocket science to know Torreira is a battler who you can’t ask to play cool, and yet he was thrown on the pitch and made to play cool. He was ineffective, afraid to make tackles, couldn’t go deeper forward like he normally does. A midfield trio of Xhaka-Torreiera-Guendouzi is too defensive minded, I have no problem with playing such midfield against the big guns but against mid table teams? Come on Emery you can do better than this. You built a midfield pairing of Xhaka-Torreira, one that’s been our strongest since the Cazorla-Coquelin pair and then you destroy the pair just because you don’t want to give a young CB the chance to play. Come on man, you’ve got this. Restore the midfield back to its perfect order and see the defence you’re so scared of get the cover from them.
I won’t repeat much because I’ve said it all in my previous articles. We need to stop playing a high line with these finished defenders that we have until all our other defenders get back and we sign world class defenders, and we need to stop playing with seven defensive minded players on the pitch against these average teams. Like I said before, I’ll prefer winning a game 6-2 than struggling to win 1-0, 2-1. Nobody will question your team if you win games like Spurs did against Everton. Bitter truth, Spurs seems the better team in North London. Come to terms with that. Until Emery improvises with his choice of selections, we’ll keep struggling to attack and defend.
Eddie Hoyte