Is it going to be our year in the Europa League? Never say never!
After another solid winning performance from our boys last night at Molde and yet another goal rout in the Europa League to shout about, the boys were all smiles after the final whistle and so they should be.
Although whether we carry the goals and Europa League form into the Premier League only time will tell.
It was another convincing performance both defensively and attacking wise for our boys on yet another Thursday night in Europe. A 3-0 win on a cold night in Norway saw another goal from Pepe added to by a second from Nelson, and a debut goal for youngster Folarin Balogun with only his second touch of the game after being on the pitch for just 60 seconds.
People will say it was only Molde and Arsenal should have won anyway, but we know too well that we should never underestimate any team, especially with how inconsistent our boys have been so far this season!
It was an impressive game full of intensity and chances which we know they are capable of, and Pepe was a standout player on the night which wasn’t very surprising given that he seems to shine in the Europa League as he has done so far this season. He also partly made up for his sending off in the last game. But there is no doubt he still has a lot of work to do and a lot more to learn to even to get to the top level that we are used to with our players!
Runarsson should also get a shout out, as although he had some shaky moments he was tested more against Molde and he came through it unscathed, so maybe all is not lost after Martinez left and Alex can really be a good back up keeper if not the number one!
Although another strong Europa League win and performance was nice and helps us reach the last 32 with two games to spare, it will mean nothing if we do not go on to win the competition that will help us get back into the Champions League. There is a lot of work for the team to do but a win is a win and we move forward and hopefully we will have a trophy to show off after all our work so far!
But the issues we are facing are not about the Europa League it is about the Premier League, where we cannot seem to find the back of the net. So again, here’s hoping that they can take this performance into the weekend’s game against Wolves and start turning those chances into goals in the league too.
Gooners?
Shenel Osman
Let’s not get ahead of ourselves please. Our group stage was a walk in the park despite how impressive we’ve won all games so far. But let’s not forget, there are still good teams in the competition and as much as I don’t see Spuds as a big team, they’re still a threat, apart from teams dropping out of the champions league group stages. Not every team would waste their chances in the first half or let us play in the second like Molde did. We have a really long way to go as a club.
AND that said, if we happen to somehow turn our season around and win it, then it’s a plus. Just don’t get your hopes up with these players. Under Emery, we were more impressive in the Europa league that playing Chelsea in the final seemed too easy judging by the opponents they’ve faced to our tough ones. But look how that turned out.
I think that a lot will depend on who gets relegated from the CL as this usually stiffens up the quality of the later rounds. Not a fan of this at all. Failure in one competition leads to a second chance in another. Ridiculous!
Mourhino will go all out for it unless Spurs are comfortably in the top 4.
Definitely never say never
Tottenham are favorites cause they have found their first 11.
But winning it is still a possibility
If Spurs are fighting for title or Top Four, Mourinho will simply ignore the Europa
no he wont Pat, he is a winner and wants to win everything and im sure that will be the case this season aswel
I agree Val that winner is etched into his being. But would he endanger a definite top 4 to pursue the EL and then possibly miss out on the conventional CL route by spreading the team too thinly?
Mourinho love cup games. And I don’t see Spurs lifting the Epl.
Our upcoming game against them will tell a lot.
Win the Europa League? For heavens sake, we beat a pub team not Real Madrid. We need to win a few PL games first.
I wish that we could develop some type of meter to balance the responses. If we win, even against Molde, we are on our way to the Europa League and world domination. If we lose, we might be the worst team ever and one where my girl’s U-17 team would make Arsenal cry.
Surely we can find something in between the roller coaster levels – we are bipolar (and no disrespect to anyone in this group who is bipolar – that is a hard row to hoe).
Arteta has had one summer transfer and it seems like it was pretty fair in terms of what was brought in – we have had a lot of pretty average to poor windows of late so that is a real plus.
Right now though we are a mid-table team that can do well in Europa. We aren’t top four or Champions League and we need time to get there.
Some luck and two more good windows might move us up the ladder but right now we have too many weaknesses.
Smith Rowe and Balogun scored a nice one – against Molde. That likely does not translate into a run of games in the EPL. Don’t get me wrong, it was a great pass and excellent finish.
We need to be realistic – but doesn’t mean that I am not cheering hard every time!!!
It’d take something special, very special!!
Good to see your articles again, Shenel..
Welcome back!
On this article, we may win the EL or we may not. I just hope the campaign helps us to find stability and bring confidence to our play..