The day this Arsenal team grew up…. by Dan Smith
As long-term readers know I feel mentality in sport is key.
Talent gets you so far, the mind separates the good from the great.
Good tennis players get to Finals of Grand Slams, the greats have the character to win them.
You have to be Good to represent your nation at the Olympics, the greats have the self-belief to take home the gold medal.
The Good talk about beating the All Blacks, the greats have the leaders to do that.
An honest appraisal is the only reason the title race is no longer in our hands is because in a key part of the season, crucial moments in games, we lacked the above qualities.
That’s what made Sunday so beautiful.
In the short term – we still need Man City to drop points in two of their last 5 League fixtures to be Champions. To put that in perspective, City’s winning sequence in the Prem is at 11 wins out of 12 (drawing the other one). So, it’s not likely.
Long term though this could be crucial to our development, both as a team and for individuals.
Next time we go to a tricky away ground with a daunting atmosphere, we can draw on this experience.
Second only to the League leaders, is there a tougher challenge in the UK right now then a trip to Saint James’ Park?
Against a Toon Army who recently blew away Man United and Spurs.
With top 4 pretty much secured, a team who could play with freedom knowing all the pressure was on us.
Give the Geordies something to cheer about, give them hope and they can make their ground a fortress.
Eddie Howe’s done that, hence only Liverpool winning on Tyneside.
The calendar was again not kind to us, once again dictating we play after Man City.
Then there was our experience here 12 months ago. Last year many of the same players knew they had to win to qualify for the Champions League and froze, crippled by the fear of failure.
Mix that altogether and you understand why this weekend feels like a pivotal moment in this team’s journey.
Maybe too late for this campaign, but don’t be shocked if it’s crucial in the next one.
Of course, a game can be decided by small margins.
One minute in, Murphy hits the post. Moments later we thought we had conceded a penalty.
Both Ramsdale and Pope made 1 on 1 saves, woodwork rattled numerous times, Xhaka made a couple of world-class last-ditch blocks.
We earnt the right to play.
That’s what’s been beautiful about our manager’s approach to this weekend. All week he spoke calmly, didn’t hide away from the scale of the task, but he simply had faith in his side’s ability. All they had to do was earn the right to play.
That means to battle, be brave, don’t shy away from the ball, to get through the early moments, to dig deep, to learn about game management.
Any Gooner wanting to know why we brought in Jorginho now knows why.
It’s not just what he did on the ball but off it, constantly talking, ordering his peers what position they should be in, instructing them how to close out a game.
Arteta might regret not leaning on his experience sooner, specifically at Anfield, when he needed a calm head to keep hold of possession.
On paper City have the harder fixtures. One slip up we can take it to the final day.
Whatever happens though this was a game when Arsenal grew up.
Dan
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