Arsenal v Chelsea review – Arsenal back on track.... by Dan Smith
If we have thrown away the title our collapse started with the 3-3 draw with Southampton.
That was the score line which meant we had to win at the Etihad to be in control of our own destiny.
That’s nearly two weeks of some Gooners being humbled, the more arrogant ones having to take some of their own medicine, rival fans have bantered us, pundits have debated if ‘bottling it’ is a fair description to describe us handing the advantage to Man City.
We needed last night.
Yes, we returned to the top of the table, but the likelihood is by the next time we kick off Man City will be four points above us.
It’s unlikely the Champions are going to slip up in two home fixtures against sides in the bottom 6. Not when they are unbeaten in their last 18.
The truth is we have the tougher fixture over Coronation weekend.
In many ways though last night wasn’t about that. This was the start of the healing process.
The time to block out the noise.
The moment for the Emirates to put an arm round a shoulder.
To wrap up the players with a comfort blanket.
To give thanks for the journey we have experienced.
After all this was still the Gunners topping the Prem with 4 games to go, not done in nearly two decades!
This was still a London Derby against bitter rivals who would have loved to be the ones to end our dreams.
Not that you would have thought it considering how Chelsea played.
Lampard was maybe clutching at straws thinking that Aubameyang might be motivated on his return to North London. The striker must have touched the ball less times than how many goals we scored.
It’s sad witnessing the direction we continue to take, while our ex-captain continues to decline.
Mudryk’s cameo only reminded me how we got the better the deal purchasing Trossard instead of him. The Belgian was considerably cheaper.
It’s almost inconceivable that so much talent could be so unmotivated. It goes further than a lack of confidence or poor coaching or having too big a squad. Something serious must have happened for them to be this bad …. a whole 38 points worse than us!
3-1 flattered the visitors, Arsenal only taking their foot off the pedal and protecting what they had, no doubt haunted by the memories of recent leads they had thrown away.
That showed maturity, our youngsters learning from their mistakes.
Our manager did the same, this time not afraid to drop those who mentally been struggling.
Partey deservedly was dropped and Trossard got a start (although Martinelli’s been more consistent than Saka recently).
Once deciding to protect what we had Arteta trusted Tierney ahead of Zinchenko as the better defensive option. If only he made that sub sooner at Liverpool before the Ukrainian got nutmegged.
Those are the margins.
You can’t help but watch that opening 35 mins and think of how we equally flew out of the blocks at Anfield and the London Stadium and ask, ‘What If?’.
What if Saka coverts that penalty against the Hammers, what if Ramsdale doesn’t pass the ball for Southampton’s opener?
The likelihood is we will be asking ‘What If’ all summer.
Yet we can still be proud of our progress and recognise the ride we have been on.
The fans thanked the players, the players thanked the crowd.
A night where we all came together, licked our wounds, took a breath and told the world we are not broken just yet.
Our heart still pumps, and blood still flows, oxygen still in our lungs.
Proud to be a Gooner!
Dan
A happy Arteta enjoys great win over Chelsea – “We are still top with four games to go!”
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Let’s not cry over spilt milk and be grateful to have Arteta over Allegri/ Conte/ Rodgers/ Potter/ Lampard. The poor man’s Guardiola will only get more experienced next season
We managed to dominate Man City at the Emirates. The only difference was they had the most powerful CF and AM in the world
I’d be really surprised if Arteta and Edu don’t sign someone like that in the summer
@GAI
Funnily enough, I’d surprised if they do sign someone like that.
I think majority of the kitty is going in defence and midfield and I kind of agree with that.
If KT leaves we need a LB as OZ is not up to the task. Plus we need a decent RB backup. + proper top top mobile holding midfielder.
We’ve got Trusty, Tomiyasu and many central midfield options
Do not consider Trusty as a midfield option. Both could be CB options. Tomiyasu maybe to a small extent but again more CB than midfield and not convinced by his passing ability.
Yeah, I mean we’ve got Trusty/ Tomiyasu as defenders and many midfielders
We have many midfielders but only 2 are really top-level (Ode and Partey), and Partey is injury prone. Xhaka and Jorginho will not take us to the next level. Elneny, ESR and Viera are mediocre (ESR might be better but not suited to pressing game). So to compete in CL and EPL we need two more top CM. And that’s expensive.
Vieira is just having his first season and he’s still young, so there’s room for improvement. I’d also like to see Sambi-Lokonga in pre-season
Its ok to have not great first season, but neither Viera nor Sambi-Lokonga showed anything positive at all. Viera seemed actually pretty pathetic. They are not 18 they are 22, so its hard to believe they will turn thins around.
Great article Dan. We just showed we may be down but not out. City will have to lose one match and draw one for us to win the title, provided we win all our matches. It is difficult considering City’s current form but not impossible, stranger things have happened in football. That said, I hope Arteta starts Tierney against Newcastle, starting with Zinchenko as LB is asking for trouble. Zinchenko could start in the midfield if required. I only hope Gabriel’s injury is not serious and we need him for Newcastle. The performance of Kiwior fills me with confidence, he reads the game well. I think Xhaka plays with more freedom with Jorginho around. I am still happy with the season for how we have played throughout, how the performance levels of some players have risen and how strong we have become in terms of resilience. Except for the mini blip of 4 matches, our performance this season so far has been fantastic. If we add Rice, another striker and a quality defender to our ranks in the summer, Arsenal will surely challenge for many title’s including the CL and the PL once again, come next season.
Point of correction;. Tierney did not start ahead of Zinchenko, and the latter played exceptionally well, given the roasting he has been subjected to. I just think he needs to make his passes quicker, stop thinking he’s the engine that determines the momentum of the game, and be open to making simple passes along his flank when his winger s open. Great minds get the basics right before attempting complex manoeuvres.
I meant when we decided to protect the lead he was chosen to come on
@Dan perfectly captured how I’m feeling about the whole season.very proud of the team,manager,fans .. but as the article correctly listed,I have that lingering feeling of “what if..” which I cannot get rid of.i just hope that MA has learnt to be more pragmatic, ruthless…and that next time he won’t hesitate to make changes,tweak..and rotate/drop players when needed.
We will be licking our wounds indeed. When City win the league by literally 1 or 2 points, it will become more clear and painful to everyone that we really should have won it. We chucked it away.
3 points from Everton, Liverpool, West Ham and Southampton; what could have been?