It had been a terrible start for Arsenal. Three defeats, nine goals conceded and bottom of the table. We could make excuses for why they lost but now is not the time to linger on the disappointing start but to start strong after the international break. Arsenal have fairly easy fixtures before facing Tottenham. Now is the time to build momentum.
With the international break, we have the return of key players that will improve the squad. Partey and Gabriel will help and bring stability to the spine of the team and the Gabriel/White partnership can start to build. With the upcoming fixtures, Arteta can slowly start to integrate new signing Takehiro Tomiyasu into the team. With Xhaka’s brash action during the Manchester City game it can allow Sambi Lokonga to start the next few games. If he performs well enough, it will force Arteta to play him over Xhaka, which I think most fans would prefer.
I think the most important thing right now is for the players to get in the right frame of mind before our game against Norwich. Most of the players should be embarrassed with their past performances. They need to realise that the longer they play like this, the more their stock and the club’s stature goes down.
For Mikel Arteta, he needs to change his approach towards the players and the game. We have all seen how his man management has frozen out promising young players and he is tactically inept when facing certain opposition. He needs to work on including all of the players into his plans and forcing them to be their best. When players make mistakes that cost the team, they should be forced to give up their position until they can work their way back in. Players need to understand that when you underperform or cost the team, your position is at risk.
Players need to feel that if they are not up to the task, the players on the bench are and ready to take their place. There needs to a winning atmosphere amongst the players that they cultivate by themselves. They need to believe it and push to be the best.
When they are a goal down they need to keep their heads up and push to equalise, push to win the game and build on that mentality. Now there is no excuse.
These are the players that Arteta wanted and now is the time for him and the players to prove themselves.
Vuyo Mataka
Season started 3 weeks ago if I remember correctly. The fact that we were unprepared and yet don’t know our formation and best starting 11, after almost 20 months with this manager in charge is an entirely different topic that doesn’t excuse in any way the fact that we are bottom of the league on a goal difference of -9!
And some people think I am negative…
this remind you of anything Konstantin? unprepared to start a season, not knowing your best 11, shoehorning players into the lineup, not addressing your most pressing needs first, tactical stubbornness, a leadership vacuum within the locker room and on the pitch and asset mismanagement(among other things of course)…this to me is the “Arsenal Way” since the arrival of our absentee landlord and our subsequent move to the Emirates
Talking of best 11, it would be best to play with three at the back, I feel this would suit our players best, the only problem would probably be Odegaard.
Arsenal FC is in shambles, we sign 6 players and only two of them would be starters. We wouldn’t have even signed the RB if we couldn’t shift Bellerin, sad state of affairs.
So if we have a bad September, does it start october, or a good September and bad October, does our season start in November and we can go on. Our season started 3 weeks ago and we have been dire.
The Kroenkes have to go for sure, but it’s a fact we spent a lot of money and I don’t feel the squad improved at all…
You have spoken correctly mate and you’re not negative at all just that truth can be bitter at times.
so the season should start with spending big?
sign as many players as the club can…
spend everything the club could….
pay then whatever they wants and no negotiation
maintain.a 50 men squad
I genuinely apologize if this comes out negative but I honestly feel like despite signing 6 players, we are still a mid-table team.
Tavares competes with KT, BW replaces Luiz, Lokonga for Guendouzi,
Ramsdale replaces Martinez, ODE for Ozil and Tomi for Bellerin.
I do not think we are strong enough for a top 4 push.
No difference maker, no major threats, Pepe does “ok’ only when the season is ending, PEA is a ghost, Partey is always injured, Laca is inconsistent..
I think we would be lucky to finish 7th, we have spent money but we are not stronger imo, I stand to be corrected though
Ramsdale for Martinez?
Lokonga for Guendozi?
Odegaard for Ozil?
Have you been in lockdown for the last year?
None of the 3 players you mentioned have played for the club for a year or more.
Tavares is an upgrade on Kolasinac, Lokonga is an upgrade on Elneny, Ramsdale is an upgrade on Runarsson and Ryan, White is an upgrade on Luiz, Tomi is an upgrade on any of our right backs. Whilst Odegaard is a better creative player than Willian or Willock.
Yah it really shows
How can you say Tomi is upgrade than our RB?
He hasn’t even kicked ball in PL yet
So in your words is CR7 a downgrade of Anthony Martial as he was not in the EPL for n number of seasons? Or was Ozil an upgrade on Fabregas ? Was Nacho Monreal an upgrade over Kieran Gibbs as he was not from the EPL when he signed? Tierney from the Scottish league is much much better than Kolasinac (in terms of footballing brains and skill I meant) Arteta bashers will find any reason to defame our manager. Onto the next topic to bash Arteta!!
Your comment is juvenile…
I asked do you think Tomi is an upgrade from what have given that he hasn’t kicked the ball..
How can you compare CM like Farbregas against CAM like Ozil..
Shows how strong we could have been had the 3 players were here last season. And the 3 “replacement” are not looking any better..
non of these guys are clear upgrades on our starting 11.
We are the biggest spenders in the summer window and failed to upgrade our starting 11 in a season where we have no European football and don’t need a deep squad.
Our biggest problem is and was not scoring goals yet we didn’t spend a penny on players that could have helped us scoring goals.
Odegaard is not an upgrade on last season since he already played for us last season and was not exactly world class.
Disagree,
Tavares is replacement for the if while often injured KT. BW does replace Luiz’s crazy interludes quite well. Lukongo replaces Xhaka, Guendo has been gone forever i dont want him back, Ramsdale to replace Leno soon, Leno to guard the pine. ODO is back Ozil has been gone, “Tomi” to take the position Bellerin has yet to return to his preinjury form, he needs to eat some cow. Great window for us. mAn sticking around another great thing. Auba and Laca sill here to guide Baologun and Gabby. Optimism! to quote Phlox.
How many points did you expect to have at this stage?
I was expecting Brentford to give us a good match in their first appearance in the top flight for 73 years and hoping we might get a point, until covid struck.
I expected Lukaku to tear us a knew one and I wasn’t disappointed. A draw at best until covid was still playing a part.
I fully expected Man City to give us a drumming
Failure shouldn’t be accepted in anyways, remove Son, Harry Kane and Lucas Moura from the Spurs team then tell me other major guys left, i remember they played without Harry Kane and they came out fight for the ball all over the pitch, their hard work was eventually rewarded by a goal from Son and they didn’t relax because they wanted all the three point as the believed in themselves that they could do just that.
That team was played basically to their strength.
I am surely aware that some of our starters was not available but i won’t still take that for an excuse when the coach didn’t set up the team in a better way than he did.
Exactly. It’s time to look at the players than. If Tottenham players played with the right attitude, where is our players?
Tottenham sack a under performing j.mourino and now performance is much better I think our biggest problem is a very average manager
You can hate the yank as much as you like ! He’s still spent a load of money. So who’s to blame now
Has ‘he’? Or is Arsenal spending money the club generates..
Stan isn’t in the habit of putting money into Arsenal. He has taken money out though.
Shocking window IMO all considered and as some rightly state the readiness for the season should have started 3 games ago..
Think the Japanese Ben white cover wreaks of desperation again.
Stupid logic. He owns the club so it’s his cash. He could stpped the spending, so yes it’s his money.
There is no stupid logic.. I meant (if you didn’t already know) money from ilhis own pocket like Chelsea’s oligarch does.
Not money that the club his owns generates.
Clear enough for your stupid logic.
Look. If this team is as good as the team that ended last season, it’s in Europe. The fact is that AFC had the second-best record in the league over the final 2/3 of last season.
We started this season without several of our best players, and with a TV crew swarming all over a young side. When we next play, we will have close to a full side, and will be more used to the stupid documentary. As a supporter, I expect us to start playing with more cohesion and energy.
Pepe, Odegaard, Saka, ESR, Partey, Gabriel, White, Lokonga. All with big upside. One reason I was pleased to get Partey last year was that he had previously been very little injured. This team is not the finished article, but it has a chance to become great. Especially if the supporters actually support it.
However, new ownership would be nice. The documentary idea is the ownership shooting the club in the foot.
Takehero Tomiyasu sounds like
“Take hero Tommy as you”
The season has started Matey. It’s not about top four, but just being in the pack. None of the players Arteta bought in are there as potential title winners. Why six players when three big names and getting rid of Xhaka would have made a 12 points difference.?Now it’s about steadying the fort and hoping that not enough damage is done before next season’s rebuild.
Exactly what I was thinking. We need a need manager
Does losing the first three games, having scored no goals and being bottom of the PL remind ANYONE with any knowledge of our club of previous years?
Thought not and now there are no further excuses to hide behind.
MA will have at his disposal every player he has signed and given new contracts to at his disposal.
There is no need to select any of the players he inherited who he doesn’t rate, so we can only hope that he turns around the 9 point gap at the top of the table, with HIS squad of players.
I hope he can.
Nice try Ken, even though we’re kind of on the same page in many respects, at least on this day
Hmm….
If I read this article correctly, we should delude ourselves and rewrite a bit of history (the bit where we lost the first three games, and almost all of our pre-season games), and pretend that the season starts now.
I suppose this new optimism is based upon the belief that we can easily beat both Norwich and Burnley, and then everything in the garden will be rosy again.
I am sure we all hope that is in fact going to happen, but have our misgivings.
If we do not win both games, will the Pollyanna who wrote this article please write a more realistic piece, I wonder!
A great manager once said
“Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning”.
It feels like the retreat from Dunkerque right now at Arsenal.
And it will take a monumental effort to turn the tide.
In the weak market Arsenal as expected were forced to play transfer poker down to the last day but there were few takers.
Joe Willock was our only sale.
So we had to keep Mari Xhaka Cedric
Elneny Laca Auba till January at least.
Holding Niles Chambers Nketiah were kept to fill out the English quota with Ramsdale and White.
Hard to sell Torreira Bellerin Nelson are all in loan purgatory waiting for the market to improve.
Saliba Guendouzie and Mavro were not recalled.
Willian and may be Kolasinac have “ripped up” their contracts which is of course is total bollox.
Ramsdale White Tomiyasu Lokonga
Tavarez and Odegaard have been bought
to form the new young saleable core.
Late transfers and January deals may
still be struck.
We started building the new young core.
Ramsdale White Tomiyasu Tavarez Lokonga Odegaard.
Overall in an incredibly difficult market the club did everything it could to spark a revival.
While the future long term looks bright it is the
here and now which is critical for bottom of the table Gunners.
Norwich Burnley and Spurs await amidst an angry impatient toxic fan base urging the executioner
to wield his axe.
Arteta may well be rehearsing his “We shall fight them on the beaches” team talk.
9/11 twenty years on awaits
come on realistic fans, get out and post your thoughts, otherwise the blinders brigade(see above) is going to use your apparent, yet understandable, apathy as an opportunity to persuade the fence-sitters into thinking there’s really a “plan” in place and these are exactly the kind of players that warranted the largest transfer window outlay in the HISTORY of this club…just think back to the days leading up to the window, when some media outlets suggested that there was a substantial war-chest in play, which caused some to quickly dismiss this notion for obvious historical reasons, and imagine if someone said we would have well over 150M and these are the exact players who would be joining our ranks, how would you honestly feel??? keeping in mind, once again, that this was the biggest transfer window expenditure EVER and that this might not come around again for another 12 to 15 years, should our absentee landlord stay in his all-too-comfortable catbird seat
thanks goodness as I was composing this post some more realistic commentators already started to emerge and offer up their respective takes on this dumpster fire of an organization
It’s too tiring trying to explain TRVL4E..
It’s like banging your head against a brick wall.
The truth of this ongoing facade will be undeniable for even the most delusion ridden mindset in the not too distant future.
The cracks were clear some time ago and now they are chasm like.
sad but true AOT…I was so ready to go on an old school rant, detailing every obvious misstep of this ridiculous off-season, but I just couldn’t seem to muster up enough energy to follow through…it’s such a troubling commentary when those, like myself and yourself, who are so passionate about this club simply can’t be bothered…as you’ve witnessed on this site, the traffic has been meagre, to say the least, on a day that normally rates as one of the busiest of the season, good, bad or otherwise…what does this say about the immediate future of our once-envied club…I honestly fear what could be on the horizon should things continue to go sideways, which is such a bizarre statement to make on the heels of having the most expensive window in our history…how is that even possible???
A dark time for AFC for sure.
Apathy, neglect and poor management from top to bottom is killing our once great club at the roots.
It’s truly amazing how some “so called” fans are happy to jump on the MA circus train heading into a deep abyss. Blindly they know there is nothing but hope. They support for supports sake because they feel they need to. Convincing themselves that an unproven manager (who is making all the wrong headlines and historical statistics) will soon get this club back on track. “Trust the process” he says. And so they trust in a process that obviously looks like another £150m pounds worth of “potential” and nothing more!
If we start scoring lots goals and climbing the table by the end of October I will eat my hat!
I don’t understand how over 150m was spent and we ended up getting mostly defend minded players when we all know what we need the most are attacking players. we find it difficult to score but all we could get are defenders and odegard shouldn’t even be considered a new signing.
Starting the season almost 30 days after it really began is really a bag of crap. A Premier League squad needs to be prepped and ready on day 1, and obviously al was not. Now, we are 9 points down, in 20th place, and have scored zero goals. The players need to take their share of the blame, but the real fault lies with Arteta.
If Arsenal’s current league position doesn’t break down the complacency and dire acceptance in this Club, nothing will!
Season 2019/20 8th
Season 2020/21 8th
Season 2021/22 P 3, W 0, D 0, GF 0,
GA 9, GD -9, Points 0, Position 20th
Now, let us see what Arteta got up his sleeves. He has signed a lot of players.
He should have full focus and pick out the best players he has signed for each position.
Lacazette.
Smith. Odegaard. Saka.
Lokonga. Partey.
Tierney. Gabriel. White. Tomiyasu.
Ramsdale.
Sub – Leno, Aubameyang, Pepe, Martinelli, Xhaka, Elneny, Tavares, Chambers.
Out of the 11 starting players above, 7 are Arteta signings. 3 are Arsene signings. 1 Emery signing.
There is literally no excuse for Arteta this season.
If we are not in top 6 come December, then he should be sacked.
He should be sacked immediately. Waiting till December makes no sense.
Most of said our thoughts out.
Let’s c how the new few matches outcome.
New players still need sometime to build some chemistry.
On th pitch the players either need to work hard or play smart.
Arsenal have not open scoring in premier league matches so far since last half last season if am not wrong.
Arteta and Edu have all tried a lot for Arsenal during the just concluded summer transfer window. As they’ve signed six new senior first team players who are all young in age. And at the same time offloaded one on sale and some they’ve loaned out.
This action taken by the duo Arsenal technical chieftains that is premised on the rebuilding the Arsenal team project that’s being embarked upon by the club’s 2 chiefs which must has been sanctioned by the Arsenal board should go a long way to see a remarkable improvement achieved in the fortunes of the club in the Premier League in particular and the domestic Cup completions in general during the first half of this season’s campaign before another revamping exercise of the team for an enhanced performance improvement is embarked on next winter window.
Despite that Arsenal did not do any new forward players signing during the last summer window to improve their team forward department. Nevertheless and notwithstanding, I believe the Arsenal 7 forward players on ground will ultimately come very good for the club in goal scoring in number to see Arsenal win matches after matches during the season.
We’ve won one game in our last 10 matches….one! And that was against a Championship B team.
Before the WBA game, we last won on the 15th of April. Let that sink it.
Arsenals last ten real game results.
May
2nd Beat. Newcastle 2-0.
6th Drew. Villareal 0-0
9th Beat WBA 3-1
12th Beat Chelsea 1-0
19th Beat Brighton 3-1
23rd Beat Palace 2-0
13th Lost Brentford 2-0
22nd Lost to Chelsea 1-2
25th Beat WBA 6-0
28th Lost to Man City 0-5.
Lost to City
Beat WBA
Lost to Chelsea
Lost to Brentford
Lost to Spurs
Lost to Chelsea
Drew to Rangers
Lost to Hiberian
Drew to Villarreal
Lost to Villarreal
10 games, 1 win
PJ
How come you include the pre season games we lost against chelsea and tothm and choose to exclude the pre season win over watford…
I guess it’s anything to justify your ranting
Arsenals last ten real game results.
May
23rd Beat. Cristal palace 3-1
19th won. Brighton 2-0
July
9th lost to Hibernian 2-1
17th draw at rangers 2-2
August
1st Lost to chelsea 2-1
8th lost to spurs 1-0
13th Lost Brentford 2-0
22nd Lost to Chelsea 1-2
25th Beat WBA 6-0
28th Lost to Man City 0-5.
Still waiting for our premier league goal of the month
We lost our first 3 Premier League games with no goal scored.Cann’t wait to watch our next 3 games which must change our season by any means, , come on Gunners be >…
The season starting now? Than what was Aug 13 for? Did we not have a proper preseason? Was a team playing for the first time in the PL since the last 73 years not beatable? Was Chelsea game not possible to draw after we did the double over them last season? Was it necessary to concede 5 goals against City to make our GD so poor that we are at the bottom of the table? Anyway, giving the benefit of the doubt to Arteta for one last time, with 6 new signings, a fit again team with many first teamers returning, lets see what happens in the next 3 games. A minimum of 7 points from the next 3 games or else Arteta should know that Arsenal is too big for him. I am ready to still be patient with Arteta, considering all the circumstances and situations, but results must improve asap. No club, not even the bottom half of the PL table will tolerate such failure, let alone a club of Arsenals stature and standing. Anyway, as a true gunner, I will support Arsenal come what may, managers and players come and go but the Club is something that is forever, so supporting Arsenal over anything and everything is the requirement of the time. I only hope the international break gives enough time and space to Arteta and the team to correct their mistakes and improvise so that we see definite and practical improvement on the pitch. Let us not be under any illusion that Norridge and Birnley will be easy games. Norridge have Billy Gillmore in the midfield, a very talented youngster from Chelsea and Birnley have Chris Wood a consistent goal scorer. No team in the PL is light and no game is easy, Brenford is enough proof. Even Leeds have strengthened by signing Daniel James from Man Utd., Westham are very strong now, stronger than last season, Leicester and Everton are improving all the time, so even top 6 will be a battle, Arteta and the team must be ready to fight it out.
The season is already over for this weak perfetic team and manager. Big Sam waiting for the call to try and save the club from relegation!!
If you analysed last season’s performance we lost top 4 spot because of errors by Luiz, poor right back presence, bad officiating, no creativity until Ode showed up, anytime Tierney got injured we had challenges. Same with Partey. Lokonga will be a backup for Partey who frequently get injured. Lets be positive. Both Tomi and Ben White can play defensive midfield as well. We now have a younger squad who can run for 90 mins because we are shipping of some of our old deadwood.
What we need now is a good manager and good officiating. Prayer and our support will help.
The talking is now on the air but the one thing we need to make clear is that Arteta should make the team feel ready to win any match. Not in a gambling way and the players should also think about their future by doing their best in the field in order to raise their starters both in the field and in the market. Otherwise, they should see how it has become difficult to get clubs who can buy them.
So let me get this straight:
A team, us, who had major struggles last season with creativity and finishing those few chances we had, will go into new season with the exact same offensive players that we’ve had since January (minus Willian)?
And somehow this time we will expect different results? Exactly same offensive players since January, but now suddenly we will be more creative and our same forwards, will suddenly finish all the chances?
Yep, Elneny and Xhaka are going to split those defences open with the range and accuracy of their passes, while Pepe will grow a wise brain to utilise all his skills,which will then create chance after chance for Aubamayang and Lacazette to stick in the back of the net. That’s 20 extra points right there.
as you said, we always start the season when we cant compete anything, that our style
We are miles behind the top 4 clearly behind Spurs and Leicester … and most shockingly struggling to match moyes’ hammers … that puts us competing with Everton and villa for 8th and hoping one of teams above falters .. has the transfer window changed that … no .. despite 140m spent … that’s a pretty despondent place for a long-standing fan to be in … and as much as I want to I can’t blame kroenke for that … and despite all the big talk of a summer clear out not one of the deadwood sold … the only move that makes any real sense is the one done at the 11th hour … our lack of creativity and impotent attacking options remain … and worst of all the one change that could have made a big difference is still there … and at minimum cost … arteta is a toxic presence and a blight on the club
Beautiful piece. Right on the spot.
It is time for the players to stand up and be counted. We are and will always be ARSENAL FOOTBALL CLUB.
I still believe there are better days ahead, I will only judge Arteta and his building process when we have a fully fit squard. So let’s keep our fingers crossed.
Well, the transfer window opened with much hope and again, lies fed to Arsenal fans, and it closed as I anticipated last May: a total disaster.
Where do I start? Lets take an overall look at first. We are, maybe even the first time ever, the highest spenders in Europe. If someone would’ve told me this back in May, that we would pay 150 million for new players, I would’ve never believed that. Stan Kroenke didn’t even give Wenger such backing so what lies were fed to him by the conmen Edu and Arteta? One can wonder.
And if I would’ve fallen into coma in May, to wake up 1st of September and actually see the list of players bought for 150 million, I would’ve fallen back to coma again. It’s just.. speechless.
We have two grossly overpaid Englishmen, who by no means, have not set the Premier League alight at any times. And yet, we spent over half of our budget on these 2. I’m not saying they can’t be good players, I’m saying they will never, ever justify their price tags, ever. They will never be value for money. I’m not saying this because I want them to fail, I’m saying this because they just aren’t all that. They are not that good for the amount spent.
Tomiyasu, ASL and Tavares I think are decent signings. Not expensive, young and a lot of potential. Definitely players to strengthen the 25 man squad.
Ödegaard is a gamble. He wasn’t amazing last time around, but one can hope he will fulfill his potential now that he has a permanent club to stay. I think the fee was very acceptable.
5 defensive players, 1 offensive. For a team who had outstanding difficulties creating chances and finishing those chances. Apparently Ödegaard is that player who will make the difference. Without him, we will see same Arsenal we had last fall. With him, it will be goals galore. That is the set up Arteta has here.
I look at the team with 6 new players and can’t say its any better than last season. My honest opinion is that it takes special skill to spend 150 million on players and still look worse.
I can guarantee our season will be over early as well 🤣
@neilpearce
The yank hasn’t spent that much he’s actually spent 32m this year with incomings of 25m from Willocks sale.
The other payments have been amertized over the next 4 and 5 years.
Club revenue should pay for this rather than Kroenkes deep pockets.
Don’t matter when the season started……..two or three injuries and the season is over………especially in midfield…….!
Arteta is out of his depth and has zero man management skills, the longer he stays in charge, the worse it will get unfortunately.