If ever a fixture guaranteed an electric atmosphere from a home crowd, surely it was when having an opportunity to go 8 points clear at the top of the Prem. Instead, anxiety crept around the Emirates. Nerves in a title race are natural, but in truth, not one Gunner did anything in the second half to increase volume from the stands. Our first shot in the 2nd period didn’t come till the clock got near 90. Only then did we win our first corner. For the majority of the half, we struggled to touch the ball in our opponents’ half. Not stats you expect to read given what was at stake.
It is a sign of maturity to not play well against the Champions but still find a way to get a result. Previous versions of the Gunners would have lost, having performed like that. Arsenal are entitled to an off day, and some might argue that if ever there was a day our squad would freeze, it would be in London, facing severe rain and wind conditions.
The fear is that this is not the first time many of these players have had the chance to take that next step, yet let the moment pass us by 2 seasons ago, before we kicked off against Aston Villa, we watched Palace win at Anfield, meaning we kicked off knowing our title destiny was in our own hands. In the second half of that day, we were crippled by a fear of failure and didn’t have the mentality to cope.
That’s what last night reminded me of. It’s why, yet again, I tried to warn my peers they were getting carried away with talks of the Quadruple and comparisons with the Invincibles. Some fans are too young or naive to understand how hard it is to get over the line.
It’s not an inducement for our young squad to say we are not ready to be in that conversation, just a reflection of where we are currently at. At the moment, the last few steps are the hardest. The moment we take the first, the next will be easier.
If you had said at Xmas we get to the FA Cup weekend with a 6-point lead, I would have bitten your hand off, but we will have to show more courage than this. Yet is it a coincidence that our worst performance at the Emirates this season happens when the stakes are so high?
Ask yourself this: if Man City had beaten Brighton, why do I sense Arsenal wouldn’t have been as nervous?
Nervous, and it’s only January. Imagine the nerves in May!
Dan Smith
As it stands, I’m only 55% confident about us winning the league.
It would have been 65% if we had won Liverpool yesterday.
We need a near perfect run in order to win this league.
Too many performances like this and we might get caught up.
I believe we can only afford to have 2 more draws and maybe 2 more losses in this remaining 17 matches in order to win this league.
That is hoping Man City and Villa also drop points along the way too.
I’ve read plenty of comments about Arteta’s negative tactics last night and not really any serious mention of the players’ responsibilities. I didn’t have any issue with the first half in terms of composure (thank you Moon Girl). Obviously, the possession and occasional efforts in the Liverpool area didn’t produce a goal but I did expect better from them in the second half – in a similar manner to the Villa game. Instead, Liverpool took the bull by the horns and restricted Arsenal and before long the players looked devoid of concentration (or confidence). I thought that was embarrassing. Passes missing their targets – frequently, and they looked rattled. It was obvious from the stands.
That said, I’m old enough to know that there’s a long way to go and there will be twists and turns. 2 wins ahead of our nearest rivals is not to be sneezed at. Neither are there goals being scored against us on a regular basis. There are enough Arsenal players who have been at the club long enough now to step up.
Totally agree with the way you summed that second half display. Never seen anything like it considering we were not one goal up, plus we were at home.
Though it was a disappointing result, but the most important thing is we at least match our rival(s) results. Which means no cut in gap, therefore, no big deal. We remain our main threat.
That’s kind of the problem, Vamos. When our rivals have had a poor result, we should be capitalising. It’s an issue we’ve had for many years. If we had managed to capitalising on situation like this in the past we would have been champions again by now. It’s like there’s a mentality problem holding us back, creating nerves and insecurity. Ultimately we see an Arsenal side retreat into a quivering deffensive wreck. Afraid to dominate in attack. Even when we are attacking, there’s always an obvious caution about our play that slows our attack and sees us reverting to much more backwards and sideways passing game. We play with the brakes on. It’s so frustrating!
There’s nothing holding us back . Stop veiling ur insecurities as Arsenal mentality problems that didn’t stop us from beating fc Bayern , Aston villa and Newcastle. We are six points clear , Arsenal n City are not the same this season ,and the signs are there,teams will drop points as city lost 6pts but that didn’t give you hope but you only worry when Arsenal draw. but we will do better bearing any injuries. So either you get yourself together or join a new club.
For me it’s the performances that get my attention. Not going to win every game, so how much intensity, fight, desire did they show?
The 2nd half was a poor home performance for a would be champion.
2nd half was dire; Liverpool winning the 50/50 fights, stepped up their play, showed the desire we did not.
We were sloppy, looked rattled and shook, and we’re searching for another gear that was not available last night.
Liverpool is no pushover, but I didn’t like our 2nd half approach. We lacked the sharpness and directness we showed Villa.
Another step of growth and lesson learned. One day we will get there, hopefully this is the year.
Oh, forgot to add one thing; the pre-game comment from Odegaard about “being ready.”
2nd half looked anything but “ready,” perhaps another player meeting is needed because that showing was shocking.
Time to drop players for next PL match against Forest to send a message. Excuses for poor performances, when Arteta should select different starters.
Lastly, Gyokeres did nothing to change the narrative, and Jesus missed another sitter, and reinforced the opinion he is certainly no striker.
This is why you don’t get me getting carried away with these wild predictions.
This so called Juggernaut missed a gear or two last night didn’t it. 😂
It may be boring, but the mantra of one game and one competition at a time, is the way to go.
But I guess we all have our ways of dealing with expectations, whether they be realistic or not. 🤷♂️👍
And what happened to the idea that if we are all positive in predictions it has any bearings in if we win all not
We are top of the league and we have basically been fielding ten players all season. I never ever want to see Gyokores in arsenal shirt again. If Havertz isn’t fit its got to be Merino up top. If merino isn’t fit then I would try Eze before I give Victor any more minutes.
never is a long time Liam but he definitely needs to sit. It is ironic how so many of us are anticipating the return of Havertz (myself included – “he is a decent player but we shouldn’t have paid so much for him”, to quote me 🙂 ).
Anthony Taylor is a poor referee but he was our poor referee last night. Trossard should have been off and Martinelli’s behaviour was a straight red.
We also seem to have one significant brain fart in or around our box each game. Thankfully it didn’t cost us a goal last night.
The second half was right up there with Wolves.
As other posters have said, we are getting points from weak games and we are six points up. COYG!!
You better not watch our game at Pompey on Sunday then because I’m sure he will be given another chance at getting on the scoresheet again. If he can’t score against a struggling non prem team with massive injury problems then I’m with you all the way.
If he does score and play well doesn’t that just prove that his level is lower league? Against Pompey I would like to see Merino upfront with Eze behind like we did in the NDL. I want to see Rice with Norgaard as a double pivot to give Eze more license to attack.
Not at all Liam.
I remember us struggling against Pompey and it was Campbell who scored – did that one game prove our attack that day was of a lower league standing?
I’m sure you read what Declan Rice had to say about Gyokeres and, as a player with first hand knowledge of what he’s doing in games, I tend to listen to what Rice says.
Okay you take the word of someone who’s not going openly disrespect a team mate. Over the opinion of 95% of the football world. Go on Arseblog and see the 1000 of likes when someone says he’s bad compared to the one or two dislikes!!!
I don’t need to go to Facebook or anywhere else to read the opinions of others.
I use my eyes to watch what Gyokeres does during a game and Declan Rice agreed with my opinion.
If he didn’t mean what he said, he could have just replied “We’re all behind him and I’m sure things will work out.”
But he tried to point out (educate) others who just rate Gyokeres on the goals he scores.
I remember how 99% of fans said that Havertz was a bad buy, before he even signed for our club and the same goes when Mikel signed Raya.
It seems that we have to have a scapegoat every time we have a bad result – yet with Gyokeres in the side, we are still top of the PL and CL, been beaten just twice in all competitions and are in the semi final of a domestic cup.
Pompey were in the Prem then though lol so not quite the same comparison .
Also what would you expect Rice to say ?
The comparison was our strike force then had to rely on a CB to score Dan.
As for what I expected Declan to say, see my reply to Liam above.
Yeah in a response to him saying VG would struggle to score even against lower league opponents
Your saying that you remember a time when we needed a CB to score against Pompey .
I’m saying but that was when Pompey had a Prem team not league one
So VG failing to score against them would not be the same as the strikers who didn’t score the day Sol did
Ken1945,
Although I hear you on what Rice had to say, lets be real here. He’s hardly going to slate a team mate when asked about him is he. They’ll have to play together in future games.
Its like when Van Persie was at Arsenal and he would on occasion claim the squad was good. But looking at some of the squad players we had back then, you can bet inwardly his thoughts were different.
Of course he wouldn’t slate a team mate, but, if he’s as bad as people are saying, he wouldn’t have gone out on a limb to try and explain what HE sees Gyokeres brings to the squad.
He could just have said “We’re all behind Gyokeres and are sure things will work out for him.”
Perhaps we should all ask why we’re where we are at this moment in time and recognise it’s being achieved with Gyokeres in the side.
Of course he would
Very naive Ken
If he’s asked how is etc getting on and he knows etc is getting a hard time he’s going to big up that player
Only if you believe Rice would lie Dan.
Gyokeres is not getting a hard time by his team mates and manager though and that’s the point.
They are with him every day, play beside him every game and know exactly what he is contributing to the club.
Fans judge him differently.
Dont know mate
I could find you terrible players like Eddie Nketiah and find a manager / teammate who will tell you how good he is
It would be counter productive not too
By way i don’t agree with certain views on Gyokeres
No you don’t know and that’s the point.
The only people who know are those he works with.
I don’t disagree with everything being said about Gyokeres, but I’m certainly going to take on board what his team mates are saying.
They are the ones who will be judged at the end of the season and if they think that Gyokeres is stopping them from winning games, they wouldn’t come out with the kind of statement Declan has.
I’m not
Common sense says when asked Declan Rice was not going to say ‘ yeah I think he’s been poor ‘
It’s called media training
Rare disagreement with you Ken. Rice is a leader and all-round nice guy – wouldn’t expect him to say anything different. Several (unshackled) former team mates (coventry/brighton) have commented on his lack of technical skills, with some expressing surprise he became a 70mio striker, but of highlighted his work ethic. We bought him for goals. 20 games in, there’s no sign of the skill set required at PL level to bang away 15+ goals. Looked like he’d given up last night.
Sensible Gooner, Rice is a nice guy and could have replied in the way I’ve described to Liam, Derek and Dan and not spoilt that well deserved image.
His goal returns have been disappointing, but his work ethic, running off the ball, teamwork and attitude are exemplary and that’s why, in my opinion, Declan was correct in pointing this out.
Can I ask you this?
Have we changed our style of play since bringing Gyokeres in and, if not, why not?
Fair points. As I highlighted, previous teammates have also highlighted his work ethic. But presumably when we spent 70mio acquiring him, was for a bit more than that. As to why we we haven’t changed more to play to his strengths, I have no idea. Maybe we’ll change tack and I’ll be proven wrong. But on the evidence so far, his core skills are lacking. Can’t imagine him coming on and scoring the goal Jesus did last week. Seems to me a striker who needs it on a plate against top opposition – he can sure put his foot through the ball.
Then the question has to be why buy a player who’s style needs to be accommodated to bring out the goals, but, then, carry on in the same old way?
I have watched Gyi make runs that have been ignored so many times and I feel the frustration he must feel.
Mikel needs to decide what he wants from the player and, at the moment it seems he is happy with what he’s getting… as do the rest of the players.
A Haaland he’ll never be, but we’re in a positive situation across the board with him in the team.
Ken1945,
For me, it has to work both ways. Yes a player has to adapt to the managers way of playing, but the manager needs to play to his players strength also.
I suppose that’s the hard part, getting a balance between the two.
I think I just come down on the side of playing to said player’s strength if I’m honest. But it’s atricky one to be fare. 👍
I have a theory (total guess) that his runs are being ignored because he’s struggled with ball control in PL environment – saw him fumble or even fall over the ball a lot in his early games. If the players/Mikel were so confident with him, would they not be feeding him more? We’re in a great position, but we haven’t played particularly great for the most part, but I take glass half full on that – we’ll start turning in great performances at some point with this squad, perhaps once Havertz up and running.
We are talk about a player that scored 90 plus goals in two seasons. Including some against Man city and some other quality clubs in CL.
We all know where the problem lies but refuse to say it.
In a poor league with a lot of penalties. He scored against city when they where getting turned over every week and embarrassed by lowly prem teams. Which other quality sides are you talking about Lille or Stum Graz? One goal in 6 games in the league against Braga, Porta and Benfica. 6 against Estrela Amadora over two games and getting hattricks against the likes of Farnese and Boavista dont make you a top player. Not attacking the cross from Rice last night was embarrasing. This is not a Mikel problem.
nobody is attacking the crosses (and that isn’t to excuse Victor), we just don’t seem to be doing it consistently at all.
The forwards don’t attack the crosses because most of the time when they make the runs the ball never comes in.We pass the ball to death and then don’t active anything.This has to be one of the most boring Arsenal teams in recent years.Yes we are top of the league but it certainly isn’t entertaining.I remember our previous premier winning teams destroying teams home and away but not this team.I honesty can’t see us winning the league as I feel they will buckle when it comes to the sharp end of the season
Merino
Liam, can you point to when city115 were being “turned over every week and embarrassed by lowly prem teams?”
Yes of course. Before the sporting game they lost to spurs in the cup and Bournemouth. After the loss to sporting they got stuffed 4-0 by Tottenham in the league and lost to Brighton. Then they conceded 3 against feynoord in a 3-3 draw. Then they lost to united juventus villa and Liverpool. Maybe not all poor teams but shows they were there for the taking.
So you were wrong then, when saying they were being turned over every week by lowly premier league teams.
Not really they got beat by spurs twice who finished 16th and got beat by united who finished 17th. They got beat by Brighton who didn’t qualify for Europe. Conceded 3 against a poor Dutch team. The loss to sporting was during a period where they won 1 draw 1 and lost 8 in ten games.
And a 0-0 draw with Saints
As far as I am aware, Dutch and Portuguese sides don’t qualify as lowly PL teams.
During the period you mention, who were the teams they lost to?
Gykores is pure shite, enough saud
How on earth can a professional sports person be “pure shite” ? 🙄
Unbelievable HD.
How ar you getting along with your health issues?
Not to good Ken. Last month I spent some time in hospital after having a TIA (mini stroke). My cancer consultant said it may have been caused by the tablet that has brought down my PSA rate from 155 to 27. After talking to him I’ve decided to stop taking the tablets as they may cause me to have a major stroke.
Hope you are well. I will be going to a game at the Emirates, but not sure at the moment which one.
Really sorry to hear this HD.
I noticed there was a blip in your contributions to JA.
Maybe we could catch up when you visit the Emirates?
Let me know if you want to and we could, perhaps, have a bite to eat in the Wonder cafe?
Take care.
I echo Ken1945’s sentiments and wish you well HD.
Herr Drier,
Sorry to hear of you’re Issues. And I send you my best.👍
Pat Morris,
Don’t by shy, say what you really think. 😂🤣👍
Yes we could have been 8 points, which isn’t insurmountable but we need to take these chances when City doesn’t win to build a bigger lead.
That said, Liverpool are current champions and have a good team so I’m not exactly devastated about last night lol.
It was a rough and tense game with neither team at their best. Managed not to lose, or get anybody sent off, so it’s not bad. Man City have been dropping points, so Arsenal are in a great situation now. Hopefully they regroup their efforts and come back stronger. Exciting times!
Beautiful piece of writing, Dan!
I have read many opinions after the game, but none come close to your Zen-like perspective. You have clearly spoken from experience, vision, and a sense of calmness, I thank you!
Stepping backwards after such an underwhelming performance, indeed, I realize it does take so much to cross the finish line, and there is no guarantee Arsenal will do it… so what can we do? We simply must enjoy the ride! After all, it is just a game and life means so much more. It is obvious we must embrace the ups and downs.
I believe years from now, when documentaries are made about this team, I am sure the highs and lows will stand as immeasurable treasures, which will be the very lessons that will guide the next generation of champions hoping to walk the same path.
So hopefully, the boys pick up their lessons, dust their sleeves and we move on to the next…
Stay positive! *smiles*
Cheers!
Six points is about the minimum to make me feel confident! Previously, we’ve had more points in credit and at later stages of the season before capitulating.
Overall the game was an awful advert for the prem and one of the games where we got lucky to get a point against a Liverpool team that was down to the bare bones up top .
But a point is a point so I won’t complain.
Luckily for us Man City’s up and down form as helped us tremendously ,still 6 points ahead and I cannot see us losing the league this season .
Would love to see Odegaard (awful again last night )replaced next season ,talks the talk everytime but rarely backs it up .
@Dan Kit. Odegaard was playing his famous roll as Casper The Ghost 👻. He was playing hide and seek
Odegaard doesn’t need replacing he just needs dragging off if he isn’t performing. I think it takes about 15 mins of a game to work out if Odegaard is going to work or not. Eze and Merino should have been on at half time last night.
Merino needs to start against United.
The other thing that was weird for me was that we insisted in hitting long balls to the CBs and their CBs are big. We wasted a lot of recoveries by booting it to the middle.
Suspect that was as much panic as a plan but we did have some success on the wings by times.
Well then he needs replacing then IMO ,he’s hot and cold ,when we have tough games he disappears .
What makes it worse is that he’s the captain,that should go to Rice next season no matter what ,even when he’s having a bad game he doesn’t hide .
I 100% agree he shouldn’t be captain. Gabriel or Rice should be. I still think he’s worth keeping around though. Our problem is we don’t actually play with an out and out 10 and his role is a hybrid role of a ten and 8. That’s why eze struggled in the role yet was phenomenal for palace in a free role ten. Interest to hear who you think could operate well in that roll if we did replace him?
I don’t agree with the anti-captain sentiment. I watch how the team interacts and they seem like a really tight unit. Odegard isn’t as vocal as some but he generally is working his butt off up front. There isn’t a glimmer of angst from other players at least publicly. I also think that Arsenal operates more as North American teams do (especially ice hockey) with “C”s and “A”s.
I am not disagreeing that he needs to be yanked by times but I felt he was starting to round back into good form over the last few games. After the 30 minute mark was poor, but they were all crappy and the subs were pretty crappy as well when they arrived.
If the captaincy issue comes and goes for sustained period, there surely is an issue that some didn’t accept. Arteta said done and dusted but at least on JA forum it seems not like that. Rice on the pitch has some visible qualities that Odegaard doesn’t have; maybe vice versa though I doubt.
Let’s be honest ,your last question who should he be replaced with ,is like the Arteta fans that constantly ask the same question regarding him !
That’s up to the club to decide,what I will say is ,he’s been here (Odegaard)5-6 years and we have won Fck all as a main stay in the team .
I could put 5-10 names , but without a manager that can win things ,what do I know ?
I honestly believe with a different manager we would have already won a prem title .
Look what slot did .
Thankfully, our closest rival, Man City, still have some dicey away games against Utd, Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham etc coming up. All we have to do is take advantage of one or two dropped points & we’ll forget how awful our game against Liverpool was.
As it stands now City should be more worried Villa will overtake them to the 2nd spot instead of looking to overtake Arsenal for the top spot.
The whole match itself was a massive let down. Certain players having brain explosions on the pitch out of pure frustration. The way Arsenal played in the second half was atrocious by Arsenal standards. You can’t blame that poor performance on Mikel Arteta. Players need to take responsibility at their own performance. The high pressing was non existent. You can see Mikel Arteta waving the players to go forward quite a few times in periods of the second half,,,, and it wasn’t just in time added on. Who knows, the lads may get the weekend off due to extreme weather storms. With various players coming back from injuries and needing game time,,, the last thing you want are players receiving meaningless injuries. The Daily Mirror has reported the cup tie Portsmouth vs Arsenal could be postponed. That could be a blessing in disguise. I’m just looking at the player welfare side of things and the fact that Arsenal can’t afford anymore injuries leading to the run in
There are too many 15 minute players in the attacking side of the squad.
Changing players will not do anything, since the players that replace them are also 15 minute players.
At this moment, they would be lucky to win league based on attacking performance alone. Been bad at that aspect all season long, and the signs were the early in the season.
Go and watch those matches again. Almost every game has a minimum bad 45 minutes, usually the first half. Some games they play bad for 80 minutes, trying to win it with the remaining time.
They only played good in both halves of a game only in a few matches this season.
That is the season summed up above so far.
After the first half I thought we would come out for the second in another gear like we did against Villa. Instead we changed gears to ‘do not lose’. I can live with result because it’s not the end of the world, but l was so disappointed with that second half performance that l was numb. I could dig out several players but one thing that stood out to me is that M-LS was completely exposed by Frimpong and is too slow for a top level left back.
thankfully Frimpong or Liverpool did not seem to recognize this…
I don’t think we were playing for a draw, the whole strategy was confusing. Despite the negative Martinelli play, the one positive thing was that we were playing for a win, and I think he thought it was a time wasting tactic, which was substantiated by the fact the Liverpool player was off field and crawled back on.
Arsenal played ok first half but played like they were frightened or didn’t know each other second. I still say, the way we play, the style of keep possession at all costs, breaks down far too easy and while it has got us to where we are, it hasn’t achieved anything other. And the amount of times Zubimendi plays a negative (safe) pass and puts us into trouble is not great. Even Rice was negative against Liverpool. Saliba and Gabriel this last couple of games have been caught out as well, playing loose negative balls. Why have we got all these attackers?
the squad is injured and tired, we somehow have to manage the gametime for the rest of January and give
Nwaneri some minutes. I´m sure he would relish that !!
Then there is Marli Salmon?? I have a gut feeling he is
ready to step up against weaker opponents ! And go buy Guehi..
And which centre back would you leave out to accommodate Guehi?
I have a gut feeling we might get Guehi in the summer. I read Hincapies loan doesnt include obligation to buy.
He is great cover though. Granted if Guehi comes in we have too many and three who would expect to start all the time.
Kiwior is also playing really well by all accounts.
I can’t see us getting Guehi unless it is to not let someone else have him. We need a left winger more. Suspect that we couldn’t afford to go for Semenyo unless we moved people.
We did spend a lot of cash in the summer.
Don’t trust the Portugal league; almost uk league one. We’ve seen both Gyokeres; Vieira and Tavares from there. With Kiwior take the money and invest on Guehi. Don’t bring him back.
Guehi > Hincapie. Honestly incomparable!
fully agree but Arteta does not rotate CBs and teams tend to keep their CB pairs together. I can’t see one of the three willing to be the extra.
If that is the case, personally i would not sign him on a permanent basis..Basically a left CB who can fill in at LB but not as good as Calafiori in either position.Unfortunately both of these playere seem to be injury prone which will leave us with MLS who is decidedly a risk at LB.If push comes to shove i would use White at R B and switch the excellent and versatile Timber to LB at least on a temporary basis.
I agree. MLS can play against slower wingers or when he is meant to be in midfield more than full back – bottom sides, cups and some CL.
I don’t think we can count on Calafiori over a lengthy stretch (which is too bad).
If Frimpong had been more experienced we would have been in a lot of trouble late.
And to be fair, MLS is still really young so he may well get stronger with training and time. They may be keeping White off for recovery as well.
If Skelly never donned a Three Lions shirt, we could have seen him in a Coventry shirt. His passport saved him. At present not EPL material.
Tried to point this out mate , defensive always makes mistakes
did he show us his hidden gems on the offensive either?
Never did we the carried away say it would be smooth sailing. Points are inevitably dropped here and there but thanks to the chemistry of the league we’ll be ahead by a better 9 points in the next fixtures.
While it may seem a bit of a lame excuse, in my opinion, the weather did affect the flow of the game. Who it affected more adversely is neither here nor there
What worries me that it wasn’t just one or two players that didn’t perform well. It was the whole team pretty much. It’s as if they don’t the collective mentality to deal with the “bigger” clubs. Maybe Aston Villa was an exception? Fact is. We need to perform much better if are to win the EPL.
A bad performance topped off with Martinelli’s antics at the end, what the hell was he thinking? I’d like to see him sold in the summer after seeing that, he should have known better seeing as he’s had his own injury issues over the years, disgraceful behaviour.
Disagree , players can’t have it both ways
If there wasn’t so many faking it wouldn’t happen
It’s like those who blame reffs for getting decisions wrong but not those who dive
Yeah, Frimpong made a rapid recovery and had pretty good game after looking as though he’d been seriously injured, and Martinelli himself looked out of the game later, but none can match that Villa muppet who threw himself at Gabriel’s knee.
Thr opposing manager Slot’s reaction tells you all you you need to know on this matter.
If anything it shows he cares, and exactly what our invincible team e.g Keown or Vieira or just about any of our leaders or passionate players since then would do.
If he was already on a yellow, I doubt he would have done it.
The player doesn’t have a discipline problem or history.
Absolutely correct Eamon12 – just an excuse for those who have been on his back for the last two seasons.
I disagree.
Slot was reasonable and balanced when making his comments. However, that does not excuse Martinelli’s behaviour. To suggest that such irresponsible behaviour is an example of leadership is just ridiculous. It was poor and really shameful.
The fact that many players feign injury does not mean that Martinelli needed to attempt to manhandle another player as he did.
On the other hand some of the reactions of certain pundits and former players have also been disgraceful.
The game was the first time in 600 matches that Liverpool have not had a shot on target. 16 years.
Not sure what that says about us….
Today lunch time at Emirates:
ARSENAL WOMEN v Man Utd. 3rd v 4th. A point separates them. With a win can be 2nd behind Man City. The coach extended her contract yesterday.
JA stopped writing on the women?
Yeah Ambechew, no women’s news lately, probably won’t acknowledge Slegers’ new contract.
Jax,
Again today Arsenal Women 0-0 at Emirates v Man Utd. It wouldn’t be wrong if you and many others myself included question the credentials of Slegers. Always drawing while possessing lethal strikers who don’t stop scoring for their national teams.
Ambachew,
The women today, 25 attempts on goal. Only 6 on target 🤔. I wonder what they need to practice more. 🤦♂️🤷♂️
In the first half we were quite good, we spent a lot of energy, without being able to take the lead. Our opponents set up the bus and waited for the storm to pass. In the second half I suppose we entered more restrainedly, because at the pace of the first half we would have lasted until the 70th minute at most and in the end we would have lost the game due to lack of strength. Our opponents, either because of our own reaction or having received instructions to change tactics, took measures on the pitch. The fact that they were playing without a central striker meant that they had an extra player in the middle, as a result of which they dominated this area. They never became threatening but they were able to keep and circulate the ball safely.
In the end the game ended in a draw. It is not a bad result for us. The bad thing would have been to lose, which would have meant that Liverpool would also enter the title race, while with a draw they remain far away.
I remain optimistic about winning the Premier League, our opponents are no better.
But I have lost all hope for Gyokeres. It is clear that he lacks technique and speed, especially in his reactions, issues that do not improve with time. I do not see him as strong either and he rarely beats his opponent. His acquisition was a big mistake.
We fans, myself included, are our own problem! We put pressure on ourselves by having inflated egos. We feel that our team should roll over teams like an elephant in the park! That isn’t how things work out in daily life. small insects like bees can sting an elephant to death! We should never be complacent at all! We need to work hard. We shall win EPL this season.
DEREK,
The most important stat that further shames the team is we had a numerical advantage after 65 minutes at home when a Utd full back was sent off for two yellows. All strikers except Kelly were in the match yet 0-0. Missed chance to climb up to 2nd.
It was just yesterday Slegers won her contract. 6-5-1 are team’s results always drawing that is in 5 games.
Ambachew,
It seems to me that the Women are a good cup side where on their day they can beat anyone.
But to win the WSL, you need consistency something they lack up to now sadly. And that’s been their problem for some seasons now.
And like you, I have my reservations about Slegers tactics. Caldentey hasn’t been half the player this season she was last season.
And a few of the others need to start shaping up to.
But with them being in 5 competitions, hopefully they’ll hit the bulls eye at some point.👍
5 competitions? League Cup, FA, WSL and UCL. The fifth?
Ambachew,
The fifth competition is the FIFA Women’s Champions Cup. It’s the Champions League winners from each country’s equivalent competition playing each other, and the overall winner will be Champion.
They first play a team called AS Far. If they make it to the Final it will be played at the Emirates Ironically.
It’s the equivalent of the men’s competition.👍