Arsenal have earned all three points today with a thoroughly impressive performance away to Leicester.
The Gunners were pegged back early into the match when Kieran Tierney was dispossessed inside his own half, and Youri Tielemens is able to punish the space left in behind the Scot to break into the box and fire home.
We were nearly given the perfect opportunity to level shortly after when the ref pointed to the spot, but VAR moved to overturn the decision as the contact on Nicolas Pepe was just outside the box.
The Ivory Coast international continued to cause problems for the Foxes, and it was his run once again which saw him brought down parallel to their box. It was this free-kick which saw Willian find David Luiz from a training ground rehearsed move, with the defender powerfully heading home.
We weren’t level for long however, as some more fine work from Nicolas Pepe has paid off once again. It was the former Lille man’s shot which caused Wilfred Ndidi to flap and give away a penalty for handball, which Alexandre Lacazette put away.
The only negative was that Emile Smith Rowe was unable to complete the half with an injury niggle, and was replaced by Martin Odegaard.
We came out in the second-half playing with confidence, and were looking dangerous. We didn’t have to wait long before we were in on goal once again.
Nicolas Pepe’s run into the box was the initial problem for the Foxes to deal with, before the tackle moved the ball onto Martin Odegaard, and he finds Willian inside the box to open up some space, before finding Pepe inside the six-yard box to tap home.
You could be a little shocked that there weren’t more goals considering we continued to look dangerous in attack, but in honesty neither goalkeeper was really put to work after the final goal.
Willian was given the Man of The Match award by BT Sport’s commentary, but I can’t help but think that Pepe was the most dangerous player on the pitch, and played a part each goal.
Patrick
Rodgers’ counter-attack tactic almost worked well, but our “B” team responded nicely after having a problem with Tielemans’ pace and energy in the first half. They also stayed focused in the second half and the performance showed their motivations to get into the “A” team again
Pepe is my MOTM, because he gave Leicester a torrid time with his dribbles and produced an assist/ a goal. If he can play like this in every match, he would force Saka to level up
Our defenders and DMs played well too. Whereas Willian surprisingly contributed two assists and our great reply in the first half started with his nice delivery to Luiz’s head
B team??? 😳😳
Many of the starters today are bench and squad rotation players
It was obvious Arteta was gon reshuffle the squad. It’s the amount of complaints after each line up that does my head in though.
Enjoyed that one today, right from when we conceded the goal. Willian 2 assists, Pepe a goal, and Laca.
Everyone played so well today. I wish the boys can do this consistently. At a point we were playing Leicester half field.
Hope we pick that performance upon the next game.
Good thing Saka got his rest.
BTW, Arteta isn’t stunting Martinelli’s growth, he’s protecting the player:
– Called Gabi up to 1st team after long-term injury after 45 mins w U23s (Mikel is normally very conservative with his selection ms)
– Gabi twists ankle during warm-ups = red flag for neuromuscular deficits.
Gabi pushes himself too much and is open to being injured, I have no doubt he’d get his chance
“It’s the amount of complaints after each line up that does my head in though”
Francios, RW1 and Danny nowhere to be seen now lol 🧐🧐
Nope … already made my excuses .. I mean apologies … in previous post … there were no passengers in this game and some obvious take aways … need to always start with Cedric partey and osstergard who are all clearly superior to the alternatives … mari is a very good centre back and if it’s experience we need at back better him than Luiz … we are lucky to have tiernay who with saka is now consistently our best player
Things I’ve learnt this season
1. Dont try and predict an Arsenal result
2. Don’t try and predict an Arsenal line-up
3. Pepe is much better on either wing with a solid player behind him (Cedric/Tierney) and not Bellerin
4. We shouldn’t always start Auba as good as he is
5. Mari seems to calm our defence, look much better with him on the pitch
6. We still don’t seem to have any kind of style of play, changes by game
7. We thrive when teams attack us, but still look lost against teams that sit deep. Seems to be why we do better against stronger teams
Im very happy to be proven wrong this game after seeing the starters
Then I hope they can prove us wrong everytime then.
Good win by the team for the much needed rest players
Fantastic effort from the lads today, particularly pepe and willian and a shout out to arteta, great stuff today COYG 🥳🥳
Willian really came back strong after his error leading to the goal. Hoping he’s turning the corner.
Yeah mate played fantastic today, this should hopefully do his confidence a world of good, we all know what hes capable of on his day 💪
Surprisingly quiet today, maybe because Pepe & Willian threw the narrative out the window.
Only one game they said.
Won’t last they said.
Well actually Pepe has,been good for the past 3 games he has started..
Willian has been a passenger 4 months now and finally today has showed some form. Good for him!
👍
Why do people always do this? A player is terrible for months but the moment he has a good odd game here and there then we here “Where are the critics” blah blah.
A certain former player comes to mind every time i hear this kind of logic.
Any player can have a good game per season, no one doubts that. What we all can’t accept is this 1 good game after every 10 games kind of attitude. Can’t be having that at Arsenal when we have been struggling for years just to have a consistent group of players.
We will not celebrate a good game here and there. We need consistency. These players are paid 10’a of thousands of pounds each week to produce better than what they keep serving us.
🤦
It’s interesting to me because Arteta said before the game that he thought Willian was on his way back to form after the win against benfica and then he finally delivers a good performance. At least it shows he’s still capable and there’s still hope
@Goonster. Let’s frown then after a good performance from so-called under performers. You are unhappy because there’s no scapegoat today. No chance of criticism today. It seems you us lose so that can have something to write. You joy writing negative comments than positive ones.
Soccer boy exactly lol let’s crush the spirits of fellow fans enjoying a nice win 🤷♂️
@soccerboy.
Please stop strawmaning me.
I am not looking for any scapegoat. I am just calling it as I see it.
I am happy with the result and performance today but what I was replying to was this cringeworthy attitude that some people always come up with. A player is poor for 9/10 games, he has a good game and all of a sudden we have people trying to call out other for the previous criticism.
It’s cringeworthy and nonsensical.
That’s all.
We should enjoy the results instead of people trying to play “See i told you so, I was right blah blah” game.
What we all want to see is consistency from all of our players. We finished 8th last season and are currently 10th.
There we go, just give the team and manager time,
We are in transition, complicated by this pandemic, who would of thought WESTHAM would be fourth !!..
I thought Moyes was totally washed-up, but he’s been impressive in this season
Beating Leicester away is no easy task kudos to the players. But have to do it consistently a great result here and there does not achieve anything. It is a theme we have seen countless time. Beat a good team, go on a winning run and then take 12 step back to remain in the mid table.
HH, it has been a while since Arsenal went on a “winning run”. If this is the start of one, it will be very positive for the Club, given the upcoming games and the ultimate table position, which could be achieved.
Well done to Mikel Arteta and the players for a very good away win.
When we went on a winning run after beating Chelsea I truly believed Mikel had at last found his formula and things have turned for the better. I will not fall for it again and this time onwards I will be judging from the table only or winning the Europa League.
It doesn’t mean a thing as I am just one ordinary fan among millions but Mikel has completely lost my faith and it will take more than a win here and there to trust him to take us on top again.
HH No praise for our gifted manager then? As if, from YOU!
Gifted who? Unless I see us in top 4 or lifting the Europa League, Arsenal doesn’t have a manager to me!
Rest assured Jon I am with you hand in hand as we progress to the championship.
HH- it was one game, against a very tired Leicester missing their single most creative player. But Arteta called it right by resting players and the depth of our squad looked pretty impressive when considering our bench today.
But no doubt those Arteta arse lickers will be out in for e today, completely disregarding the position his total mis-management has us in. Let’s see where we are after Burnley Spuds West Ham and Liverpool, plus of course Olympiakos. One very good performance has not made Arteta the second coming of Jesus. Let’s see what happens over the next month and see where we are then
Agreed Phil. He has had plenty of one good performances which he failed to build upon the biggest of them being his FA Cup achievement, so based on his history there is nothing to indicate that he will build on the win today.
Yes you are correct let’s see where we are after a month.
Great performance.
Whether Willian, Pepe or Luiz should be Man Of The Match is all rather academic.
Great win….I predicted Leicester 1 arsenal 2 but arsenal decided to add another goal 😉
Lacazette link up play today was top notch. Glad he got his well deserved goal. He loves scoring against Leicester 😊
Willian had his best game on Arsenal colours today. Aside the game against Fulham earlier this season where he was good I thought he did well today.
Pepe. The hot and cold player.. today he was really hot causes problem here and there. Another player that deserved his goal today. Good one..
A game against arsenal and Vardy didn’t score. Oh yeah…
And yes, Saka got that REST finally. Hehe
Welldone to all the lads today. What could have been a horrible week is now a delighted week. A win over benefica and a win today over Leicester isn’t bad after all…
Lacazette is very good in tight spaces and his hold-up skill is also good, but he’s slow and too short for Tierney’s long crosses. We still need to find a taller CF with similar abilities, but better in the air
Pepe played like a world class winger today. If he keeps playing like that, Saka would have to train harder
Exactly.. healthy competition Will only make Saka and Pepe better. You realised once he (Pepe) kept things simple and the ball was moving effortlessly. He should be doing that. Keep it simple, pass the ball on time, know when you hold the ball and when to release it. Also, know how to beat your man.
gotanidea, take a look at Nicolaj Moller, who will have another year under his belt next season.
Yeah Moller is very tall, but I don’t know about his other abilities yet
Watch some U23’s on YouTube.
A win at the KP has been a long time coming!! And no goal for Vardy 🙂
A fantastic win and one I didn’t see coming… I thought we’d draw!
Hats off to Willian and Pepe, both played really well. Great goal from Luiz!
What more could we ask for?!!
The sun is shining, I am smiling!! Thank you AFC 👌
QD… get back here!! We won Thursday and today, you’re going nowhere 😜
That’s because there was a shortage on his red bull order Sue 😆
😂😂 About bloody time, Kev!!
That was good, wasn’t it?!! Woah! 9th now..
Nose bleed 🤣👃
That was brilliant Sue, I fancied us to win today but then I saw the lineup and thought it’s going to be a long day 😂 10th again Sue rory mcilroy just scored for that lot, we need a Burnley comeback 😆 now it’s 2-0 😣
Sue, Jamie Vardy was apparently inconvenienced by a groin injury. I suppose due to Leicester’s growing injury list, he couldn’t be rested.
Excellent win after a tough midweek game.. all credit to Arteta and the players today, well deserved. 🔴⚪
Why bring on aubameyang at 3-1 if you are “resting ” him why not martineill
My only moan but it does show that arteta is struggling
Excuse my ignorance, but HOW does it show Arteta is struggling?
You beat my by seconds pat lol
Me*
He is struggling because you have to trust players and he obviously doesn’t trust some of his squad if you bring on aubameyang when you are winning 3-1 and not martinelli to give him a few minutes. Please stop trying to be clever and have a view of your own
Lol wow 🤦♂️
No complaints today after that, a slow deliberate start and getting punished for it as well but after that was a lot better. It just shows what you can do when you have to attack and get players forwards. A big game from Pepe (MOM) Luiz, Cedric and Tierney. Willian it has to be said was a lot better today ( probably guilt) and more like what we expect, especially if you try. This has to be a benchmark and a start of an end of season push and not a false dawn. I also hope Esr is ok and for me its him or odegaard not both, for better balance. First game ive really enjoyed since beating utd at old Trafford.
👍
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Willian and Pepe will deserve the plaudits but I’d like a shout out to Xhaka in the second half. He broke up so much Leicster play in the middle including one that led to our third goal. He gets lots of stick and not everyone’s cup of tea but surely we can agree that he put in a good shoft today.
Mari also looked very solid after a horrible start. Good sign of a strong character.
Xhaka is always an important part in Arteta’s system. The team will be unbalanced without him
Xhaka put in a decent shift but Leicester didn’t really press high in all fairness.
He was also a big part of conceding our goal so in fairness you can say zn average game.
Yaa thats true l would like to say Xhaka plays well if our opposition team isn’t pressing well. Today it was an easy game for him and elneny
People on this site have some kind of agenda against xhaka.But I am glad that i was wrong against willian.Finally let’s push for top 6
Palash the agenda is nothing except his lack of ability and his negative attitude. Arsenal will be a lot better without his influence or lack of. I want Arsenal to be better and xhaka is taking this team knowhere, he hasnt for 5 years. On the opposite side, i really dont understand this xhaka love in. He did ok today but thats the best he can do today, he is so limited.
So sadly true! Reggie why SOME onJA still rate this ponderous, slow thinking, slow acting, immobile player is a mystery to me. As yourightly say, he has been holding us back ever since he first came. The only reason he is still here is we cannot afford a far better player to replace him. He does have power and works hard. But thats all! And THAT is not enough. No way!
Xhaka and also Odegaard, who played well when ESR was unfortunately injured. It is good to have options from the bench.
Injuries are now taking a toll at Leicester City.
Xhaka is very limited and should be finally sold this summer. Koopmeiners from AZ is similar but he’s great defensively, aggressive yet disciplined, chips in with goals and is a leader of men.
He’s the man to replace Xhaka. And we can afford him and he might not mind us not playing European football next year.
Brilliant win for the guys today.
I think pepe was the most dangerous guy on the pitch.
Got the other team a yellow
Forced several fouls including the one that led to the equaliser
Got a pen
Got a goal
Maybe not worth the amount of money we spent but starting to show some real quality. Now scored in his past 3 strts I beleive
SBG I literally lost count of how many times pepe was chopped down today
Lot of fouls and yellow cards by Leicester City.
Like Eddie, the negativity of some of our fans regarding team selection before a ball has even been kicked is quite astounding… Dankit shame on you my friend😂😂
What made this win even better, is remembering that we can win games without Saka and Aubemeyang – I thought Lacazette was excellent today.
Great all round performance and 10 /10 for Arteta.
Took a gamble and it paid off perfectly.
Anyone who thinks he has a problem with Martinelli, please read what the manager and player are saying… his time will come.
Most of us are happy to be wrong about willian lol.But still I want martinelli to get some chance
Ken, The first proper pro our manager comment on this site One other said a mere well done I think.
BUT THE CONSTANT CALLS FOR HIM TO GO HAVE STRANGELY BEEN LACKING THIS LAST HOUR. NO DOUBT THEY WILL START UP AGAIN IN THE MORNING, ONCE THE POSTERS HAVE EATEN THEIR CO -CO POPS AND STARTED THEIR HOME SCHOOLING. Spoilt kids who have no idea what REAL support entails, KEN!
Jon Fox- stop getting too excited PAL
Played 26
Won. 11
Drawn. 4
Lost 11
Let’s see where your love child has us after the Liverpool game PAL
And another thing FOXY- I notice how you very quickly jumped on @Ken1945, as Ken has the utmost respect from everyone on this site, unlike yourself PAL.
One win does not give Arteta anything other than a Pat on the back. That’s all. And your juvenile comments show you as the biggest little girl on this site, not a pleasant thought at all.
FFS GROW UP PAL.
You surprise nobody with your ever changing thoughts that prove themselves wrong so consistently. Others thoughts that differ from yours are far more reliable and get far more respect. Something you are seriously lacking PAL
In my culture respect to old people is sacred and is given by default from us younger people. To their credit our old men (not all of course because there is always that one) in their words and actions show they deserve that respect.
Until one day I saw comments of Jon and Ken arranging phone calls, I never believed Jon was an old person he claimed to be (based on his words and my cultural experience on how an old man should conduct himself even if it is only an online forum). I thought he was just a young person pretending to be old to troll other users.
Oaf and NON PAL! You do not even have the normal common human decency to address me by my real name – which I put out there in full for all to see, as I HAVE NOTHING TO HIDE.
I note you hide your name, NON PAL.
AND I THINK I KNOW WHY YOU HIDE IT TOO!
Is that me who is hiding his name? Please go ahead and tell me why I am hiding it. I am eager to know.
I challenge you to show your deduction skills.
My apologies to defund the media and admin pat for my comments earlier totally unacceptable and unnecessary please accept my sincere apologies for my silly rant at 3.05
Perry your grand bud, we all do it 👊👊
I spose Jon Fox you think were going to win the prem league now oh please real yourself in the stats still don’t lie if we were a club with huge ambitions to challenge for the big trophies then Arteta would not have even got the job in the first place and if by some miracle he did then would have been sacked ages ago!!
Funny you should say that because wait for it….the Arteta squadron (Jon included) are at the forefront of accusing the owner to lack ambition.
Lol HH always liked you mate but “the Arteta squadron” is rich as you were a massive part of that until about 2-3 weeks ago
DTM
I have nothing against millions of Arsenal fans in support of Arteta as I was like you say few weeks ago (you will find the majority of those fans acknowledge that Arteta is not doing a good job even though they hope he will in the future)
What I don’t agree with and who I call the squadron are the selected few such as ThirdmanJ, Gotanidea and of course Mr Fox who keep telling us that we have progressed (how being knocked out of all cups and sit 10th for the majority of the season is called progress is beyond me), calling Arteta a genius and such.
One of them even had the audacity of saying the great Arsene Wenger the master of the invincibles is learning tactics from Arteta.
You will find that these selected few what they have in common is their deep dislike of Mesut Ozil and Arsene Wenger. Their support of Arteta in my opinion (or theory) is not because of the phantom progress they tirelessly keep preaching about (unless if it is a progress to the championship then I agree) rather they are happy because of how he treated Mesut and their support is a reward for that.
HH yeah fair enough mate good points, just feel like confrontation has pushed you too far in the opposite direction too fast judging by some of your comments, I’m definitely on the fence with arteta, just trying to wait to see how he fares at the end of the season, but yes he has definitely underperformed thus far this season. My comments come from a good place bud as I’ve said, ive always liked you, I mean no disrespect 👊
Thank you DTM. No offense taken rather I really appreciate your feedback.
My replies to the selected few I usually use their own logic to the things they oppose but sadly when cornered they never reply.
You are right though I have to tone down posting emotionally.
Regarding Arteta I don’t want him out yet because it will be pointless to change the manager at this stage but come end of season if there is no top 4 or Europe win what justification will there be for him to remain at the helm?
Only time will tell.
HH Yes I and most Gooners KNOW the owner lacks ambition. I assume even you realise that truth too. But that fact does not change my opinion of Arteta as a good manager, though it makes his – or any managers – job far harder than it need be!
Wanting Kroenke out and rating Arteta highly are quite compatible thoughts, so why do you assume differently?
Dangote, I hope, will take over before long.
@HH yeah that’s my take regarding the arteta situation also, and as for your segment on emotionally responding I’m the exact same mate, I’ve realised my participation on things like just arsenal etc have become much more emotional/hostile and I’m going to actively try to dial it back, think isolating (coming up on one year 😱) has really taken its toll on my social skills lol and I think isolation coupled with the current situation with arsenal have subtly had a similar effect to some on here also, were all on the same boat and all support the same team so I need to wise up lol 👊
DANNY BOY do not speak to adults until you have grown up!
Aahhhh- so Foxy is now back on the topic of juveniles.
This very same person who quite embarrassingly informed us that we were “ only “ drawn against Olympiakos in the Europa Cup, and I lmplied they played in a third rate league, when any four year old would know that Arteta actually somehow managed to get us knocked out against last season. Every juvenile would know this of course. Unless of course those marbles are being lost. Ha Ha Another embarrassment PAL You Mug
Haha
Yea I hold my hand up to that one Ken.
But you must have been thinking the same when that team sheet came out .
Great performance ,Luiz my MOTM ,he’s been nothing but a seasoned pro when called upon .
Shout out to Pepe and TIerney as well .
Dan Luiz apart from a couple of games has been an absolute legend. He is bringing something to Arsenal something we haven’t had for a while GUTS!
Right on Ken. Give credit where credit is due. Well managed game and excellent effort by all players. Let’s hope this is the start of a new era.
For me, Louis and especially Mare where the difference.
Spurs already 2 0 up after 20 mins…..noooooooo😟
Some of the fans who predicted a loss when the line-up was released must be feeling stupid right now.
No, i didn’t predict a loss but i had little confidence but no i dont feel stupid. Why?
Reggie, it’s hard to be confident, when you don’t know which Arsenal will turn up. The record this season does not I still confidence, but we have to keep the faith and enjoy the win.
“instill confidence”
Great win&long may it continue&i really hope that arteta continue to play pablo mari alongside any of luiz or holding as our main centre back pairing inorder to have defensive stability/solidity,gabriel is a scam
Take out the horrendous defending mix up between Mari and Elneny, and several APPALLING and potentially costly backpasses from Cedric, Odegaard, Willian and Elneny (note MA backpassing is NOT always the safe option) and it was a really excellent team showing. Hey – we can do it without Saka! Best performances and drive I’ve seen from Willian and Pepe made the difference. I thought Xhaka was immense second half – almost single-handedly cancelled out their midfield. Tactically perfect from MA and the icing on the cake? We played good, offensive football!
I’m happy Gooner today.
When I saw the team I thought “Here we go again”… so I hold my hands up and say that I was wrong and we played really well. Feck me Willian might push Saka to go on loan 😏
But I still stand behind what I said… our season is over except the Europa. If we fail to win that then MA and Edu need to go.
But I’m gonna wallow on this sunny Sunday afternoon and make the most of it until the next game.👍🏻👍🏻
Good performance today right throughout the side.
One particular position I’ll be looking at for the Burnley game.
There is no way Bellerin should start ahead of Cedric.
Really enjoyed seizing BOTH full backs on the front foot, whilst doing their jobs defensively.
At last, being driven FORWARD on the right, which certainly brought the best out in Pepe.
Excellent result.
Yeah AJ
See how well Pepe can play on the RW when he has a proper player behind him
👍 👍
Most of our remaining games are winnable for us.Even the liverpool one because they are not performing consistently right now.Lets push for European spot.Come on arsenal we can do it
Keep the faith!
Great game, great result thoroughly enjoyed and now back to reality – can we see this in a consistent manner week in week out?
If everyone performs like this Arteta has a big headache albeit a good one. Our major problem was imbalance in the wings, we had only Saka in the right whereas Auba, Pepe, Willian, ESR, Martinelli on the left. If Pepe could produce this performance consistently a lot of burden would be taken off of Saka’s shoulder.
Leno/Ryan
Cedric/Bellerin Luiz/Holding Mari/Gabriel Tierney/Cedric
Partey/Elneny/Ceballos Xhaka/??
Saka/Pepe ESR/Odeggard Willian/Pepe/Martinelli
Laca/Auba
Seems decent enough to create two strong teams.
Soares for Bellerin all day.
This win goes to show. We have a good manager on our hands. Players just need to be switched on all the time and come to the party. It’s amazing how the manager just gets blamed for everything. Than there’s the Martenelli band… The negativity is just awful. But as I said earlier we can overturn Leicester and we did. GOYG!!!
Can’t have it both ways Dboy
You only blame players when Arsenal lose and excuse MA completely but praise MA when we win? Can’t be both mate
Win or lose is always a combination of manager and players IMO
👍
100% correct observation PJ – and both are therefor equally compliant whatever the result and that’s why I argue that the buck doesn’t stop with just one person(s).
GO MA!!
Spurs 3 – 0 up already….damn
We played good today. all round good team performance. Pepe was excellent today,didn’t put a foot wrong. on a side note the goal conceded was part Tierney,Willian and elnenys fault. happy for the win though.
Watch a replay and explain to me how Mari not culpable for that goal. He responded very well though so full credit to him but that was atrocious positioning on his part. Almost like his main aim was to make sure Vardy didnt score.
Apologies to everyone regarding my comments on the team selection before kick off. I was completely wrong, it was a fantastic performance and result. Only saw the first half as had to go out and just watching second half now.
Mr Declan, u don’t need to apologise@all!! Dats y you re a Fan!!
Chelsea, Man utd, Liverpool fans on dier sites complain alot about team selections/performances and you should know how Ole Gunner Solkjear, Lampard, etc has been ripped apart by Fans this season!!
Players and Coaches get a Huge paycheck every weekend while we Fans get Nothing!! We get Shamed/Trolled by Rival Fans instead!!
So I feel we have Full Rights to criticize and demand alot from dem Players and Coaches!!
Vinnie 2000, Yes indeed we do. It is called free speech and long will it remain our precious gift to use. Players and managers and even owners, when they sign for their contract take on a full job responsibility , to we fans who pay them directly or indirectly.
They are duty bound to give their utmost efforts on behalf of the club, which includes fans.
I criticise and correctly too, all those who choose not to give their best efforts. Most prominent was Ozil who was an idle slacker for many years.
dont apologize. we have no consistency and are in 10th place. The players who have underperformed all season FINALLY played a good game and it’s the end of February. Not exactly an “i told you so” statement when they’ve been awful for over half a season. Happy they FINALLY put in good performances.
Tierney was not the player dispossessed in his own half.Xhaka was the guilty party, but where on earth was Mari?A shocking goal to concede.
Not Mari, watch Elneny….he didn’t come across at all once Xhaka was beaten easily.
Elneny was marking no one and just hanging in the box
In FACT , both Mari and Elneny, if you watch properly!
Elneny, Xhaka and Mari were all culpable, but as the left sided centre back Mari ought to have been out to confront Tielemans as Luis was covering Vardy. The writer of the article wrongly fingered Tierney , and I just wanted to correct him.
I’ve always noticed that our defence backs off deep in the hope that midfield will get there and rarely come out in a situation like today, I agree someone should’ve come out sooner.
I thought Luiz was immense today.
Luiz was immense.
Mari learnt from his early error.
See him dispossesing Vardy on a one to one.
Pepe scared them.
Luiz is our go to player, he is a warrior.
He was very solid today Declan.
Funny how same people who wer saying Arteta is shielding Saliba by not playing him, are saying same thing about Martenelli lol!. When they have been proven wrong already when Saliba came into the open with his treatment by the club ( Arteta). Some times I wonder some ppl here are probably from Arteta PR team, they try to spin every mistake he makes into a world class decision n put blame on other then when the same set of players perform whole credit is given to Arteta.
Credit to the players ..I didn’t see this one going out way..But r
They stepped up in a big Way..
We seem to be getting better with the big boys in the league…It’s the smaller ones we that seem to lose shamefully to..
Records say Pepe needs a RB who overlaps.
Pepe and Cedric linked up 31 times in today’s game.
Pepe only had 7 link ups with Bellerin against city. We all said Pepe was doing well as a LW. Guess who was behind him………Cedric.
just for a lark, go back a reread the responses to this article:
(1) people apologizing for their lack of faith upon seeing the team selection sheet, even though anybody who’s claiming that they envisioned this result based on our starting 11 is either taking psychotropic drugs or an unequivocal liar
(2) others hailing Arteta as the second coming, even though the facts would suggest that he’s struggled mightily to find his way this season and if anything looks much more like the Second Generation Wenger than the far more appealing first incarnation…I can only imagine what I would have heard if I were a fly on the wall at any of your respective residences when Xhaka and Mari basically handed Tielemans a goal before anyone had even broken a sweat
(3) holier than thou respondents who can’t wait to direct ridiculously short-sighted barbs towards anyone who has made any negative comments, no matter if they were logically conceived over a considerable period of time, that didn’t hold true on this PARTICULAR day
I just wish that we were able to regain our sense of perspective, that has been on a continually decline ever since Dein left the building…I get it though, how could anyone be expected to maintain a sense of balance when they’ve endured such a seemingly constant roller coaster ride of emotions for the better part of 15 years…as such, one of my biggest beefs with this club and it’s absentee landlord is how their ineptitude and oft-times indifference has had such negative psychological impact on the fanbase…after a game like today, the comments should have been largely positive but likewise reflective of the fact that this was just one game…a game that saw a few players who have performed poorly, more often than not, actually rise to this particular occasion, nothing more, nothing less
Hey RVL – some great points. I think we are both pretty balanced on this. Perhaps I am slightly pro MA at the moment and you are slightly in the other camp. What’s interesting is how your observations are mirrored by me, but from the other perpective. Inconsistent form over a prolonged period has created inconsistent, but polarised fans and most of the infighting is illogical. There’s backbiting if you are adjudged to be blindly defending a certain position regardless of developments, but ironically also ridicule if events cause you to change that opinion. If so much as one game bears out their opinion it is quoted as unequivical proof that MA is either a genius or Satan. Any obscure stats and comparisons available are thrown in, but are normally way out of context.
I often appear to be gung-ho for MA. I’m not. But I feel the need to balance the (IMO) over the top criticism he gets. Probably others feel the same in that they see the “blind” unwavering faith shown by others in MA. Somewhere in the middle is probably right, although I think some the the outers will never be happy – they relish criticising. If MA wasn’t the obvious target, they would have to devour another victim, as it’s become second nature. The MA supporters appear at least to be more optimistic types!
agree with this. espescially the last few sentences. There’s just not much to take away from the win because it’s just another stop on the crazy rollercoaster that is Arsenal. No consistency is around the corner and it’s very likely we finish 7/8th at best. more heartpounding up and downs and close calls from disasters are on the way. All part of being a supporter though and I’m along for this crazy hectic ride with all you guys.
Thanks Guy…I agree with your premise that the fanbase should take a more balanced and common sensical approach to all things club-related, but that’s a bridge too far for those who have witnessed their beloved club fail, time and time again, to do likewise…the oftentimes frenetic reactions of the fans simply mirrors the actions of the club, as it’s never easy to remain rational in a largely irrational environment…I think I would be far more optimistic if Arteta had stayed the transitionary course, following last season’s FA Cup victory, instead of pursuing Willian…he had a chance to be the adult in the room, but instead chose the supposed path of least resistance, which means you can’t be upset when people call you out if or when it fails to get the desired results…of course, I’m trying to remain hopeful, but it’s difficult when you consider several factors, like rumours swirling about who we might keep from our current roster(Luiz, Xhaka, Ceballos etc…), the fact that he doesn’t have a Dein-like character to provide some much-needed checks & balances and the way in which he’s mismanaged some of our potential blue chip prospects(Marts, Saliba, Balu & even ESR, since Ode’s arrival)…I just don’t want to give someone the keys to the kingdom until they prove themselves worthy, which certainly isn’t the case as of now
No problem with that. We will never know all of the facts, so there may be justication for some of the actions, but on the other hand there may be no justification either – they could just be a series of bad decisions. I’m still out on that. I am seeing improvements one week and dross the next. For now I accept that this way of playing takes a lot of bedding in. I’ve given up on this season just enjoying it (or not) on a match by match basis. For me the acid test is not how we finish this season, but how we start next season. I don’t agree with this ultimatum of top 4 or we sack him. So personally I’m prepared to wait until 10 or so games in next season to cast my vote.
Like everyone else I get emotional (usually anger as it also seems easier these days to criticise than praise) but i make sure to calm down before posting. Arsenal sites (not just this one) are so negative lately. We win and all people can do is highlight mistakes, say the other team was crap, or worst of all say its just one game and we were bad in all the other ones. Can’t some people just enjoy the performance on the day?
After the third goal.. COMPLACENCY.
I gave us a 70% chance to win based on the previous game against Leicester and the fact that some of our players are coming into form. Lost it though when I saw the team lineup, you know the same old favorites. The slow start didn’t help. No Holding to blame for that one. The comeback was excellent. The players, ie ESR, Pepe and Tierney had a belief that they could still win it,which is all that you want from your team. Having said that Leicester were poor and did not offer much. If they are top four then Arsenal should be there as well.
Joe they ARE top four. Every team except Man City has off days this season. We need to get out of this habit of not giving credit when we play well. If we cant credit good performances then we shouldn’t criticise bad ones. Fans are also called “supporters” so maybe we should be more generous. By the way – if we start our season on New Years Day, I think we ARE top four.
Credit to Brendan Rodgers in his post match interview. When discussing Leicester City’s injury toll, he acknowledged the severity, but didn’t look for excuses, just has to do the best they can with what he has.
I’ll take it one game at a time guy and hopefully we’ll still be in this good place in two weeks time.