You know how some of our rivals call us a ‘banter club’?
I kind of get it. A section of our fanbase come out with some arrogant statements which come back to bite us and make us a laughing stock. Just because I’m a Gooner doesn’t mean I can ignore the constant hysteria.
When it was announced we had signed Madueke, some supporters actually started an online petition. Which in itself is nonsense because the Kroenke family are hardly going to care what a few thousand on the Internet feel. Our owners would not even know who Madueke is. Was it because he played for Chelsea? Was there a feeling that other areas of the squad needed investment more than a back-up for Saka? At Stamford Bridge or with England, I never saw what the 23-year-old did that was so bad for him not to be part of our squad. It is astounding arrogance to act like we are suddenly above a Three Lions international.
Four games into his life as a Gunner, some of my peers are suggesting his price tag has been justified, sarcastically mocking those who called him a ‘reject’ and apparently claiming he has proven that Arsenal can cope with injuries to our key players. The evidence is mainly based on two victories at the Emirates, one against a newly promoted side and another who parked the bus. The acid test at Anfield… we lost, as we struggled in attack to cope with (you guessed it) our key players not starting. Hence Alisson having one shot to save.
When I asked for evidence from those who claim he has been ‘exceptional’ so far in North London, proof of an assist or a goal was not offered. That is because neither exists.
Overreaction and reality
So while it was harsh to write off a player before he had kicked a ball for us, it equally seems slightly premature to be going overboard with praise. Like a lot of times with our supporters, the truth is probably in the middle. What Madueke did well on Saturday was target Morato, constantly taking on and beating his man, although his final ball mostly let him down.
It takes bravery and personality to demand the ball and believe you are the person who can make the difference. That already shows Mikel Arteta he has the character to want to take responsibility, especially knowing he is playing in front of a crowd who are not entirely convinced of his ability. Yet equally, we are talking about an asset who did cost an initial £48 million. With add-ons, that figure could rise over £50 million, so at that price you would be expected to get the better of a left-back not playing in his usual position.
It is almost patronising to a professional footballer to pat them on the head and congratulate them for being able to dribble past someone. That is literally his job. You know who will agree with me? The man himself. I bet at full time, as he was walking back to the dressing room, he was thinking about his end product and will spend this week in training working on his decision making in the final third. If we want to be champions, that is the standard we should demand. Imagine a Pires, Overmars or Ljungberg being told to ignore their attacking stats. It would never happen.
It is such a backwards compliment and disrespectful. It is a polite way of saying, ‘we assumed you were rubbish, so because the bar is so low, anything you do remotely well is a bonus.’
Perspective from the past
I just assumed some had been burnt so many times they would learn from the past. In January it was, ‘how do you know Nwaneri cannot replace Saka?’ The teenager was eventually dropped. Then it was, ‘it does not matter that Skelley is making defensive mistakes.’ He is yet to start this season. This time last year it was, ‘how do you know that Havertz cannot score more than Haaland?’
How many years did some readers debate that Eddie Nketiah’s and Reiss Nelson’s stats should not be considered because they did not start enough? My favourite of course remains that Maitland-Niles was better than Kante, just because he wore an Arsenal shirt.
I want our youngsters to achieve things, but the best platform to give them is a stage where we do not get carried away when things go wrong but equally stay grounded when they have a high. If Madueke is exceptional now, what will he be the day he actually scores or assists, or even has a shot on target?
The idea that in his position the main metric should not be attacking contributions is nonsense. If Spurs made that argument about Kudus, or Chelsea for Garnacho, would you honestly say those stats are not everything? At Barcelona, Rashford will not be getting praise for only beating his man. It will not matter if his cross does not find a teammate or the keeper is not worked.
So for those now asking for Madueke to be given an apology, the only people who should be saying sorry are the morons who made the petition in the first place. Because in reality at Chelsea he was decent and there is zero reason he cannot get even better. Just take a pause and let the lad breathe.
Dan Smith
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The lunatic supposed Arsenal fans that were protesting the signing of Madueke by coming up with that ridiculous “Petition”.
These people have got to stop embarrassing and tainting our fanbase season after season / year after year.
Some of us are tired of it..
🤦♂️
I agree
Another bum questioning others allegiance to the club because they did something he does not agree with.
So being an Arsenal supporter means agreeing with Goonster and David wolrd views. Some people really overestimate their non existence importance.
Madueke seems to be a good signing so far but that shouldn’t be a stick to beat those who didn’t want him.
Some fans act like they knew he was going to be this good. No you didn’t!
Those who opposed his signing simply had enough of always getting Chelsea rejects and spent players while paying premium for it! Facts are on their side.
I share your sentiments:
1. Madueke has had great games than I expected at this stage ad with previous experiences with ex-Chelsea players.
2. Good thing the lad seems to make no effort in seeking to answer critics other than on the pitch. Great attitude indeed and wish Geokeres learnt from this guy
You share the sentiments of those who think it is right to create and sign a petition against a player. Just because he’s played for Chelsea. How does that make sense?
Why does it not make sense to allow others to express their opinions even if you don’t agree with it?
Honestly, if you came up with a petition that claims MA is a managerial genius and deserves a statue outside the Emirates, I probably won’t agree with you, but it would still make sense to me that it’s the right of Arteta worshippers to feel that way lol
@sushi: Thanks
Madueke is a good young player and may yet develop into a great one. It was really poor to be creating petitions about his transfer.
Creating some kind of strawman as an argument is just stupid. No-one has suggested Arteta deserves a statue.
So you’re one of those embarrassing fans , I guess 😂🤣
What’s wrong with sharing such an opinion if, in my view, circumstances justify it.
I wasn’t aware we share the same brain that I should only say what you want me to say.
Coming from Cheslea, I’m convinced that Madueke is among those in the exception and a good buy.
Explain where David said you shouldn’t? He thought it was a bad idea. Seems like an opinion to me
@Tyndale.
But as adults we have got to use our logical brains a bit more. People had already written Madueko off even without him having kicked a single ball for us. What is this need for “I want it now” attitude all the time?
People don’t seem to have any spec of patience and nuance in them. This is why I keep clashing with many people on here. They always just want to jump to negativity / sensationalism on any given issue. How old are we? You can’t tell me that most of these individuals are 12, 13, 16, 17, 18 year olds etc that are still developing their cognitive / rational, logical capabilities etc. It’s adult men and wome in their 30’s to late 70’s. People that you would think have had enough life experience to decipher this complicated / nuanced human reality.
Why would grown up individual in their mid 20’s to their 80’s etc do what people did with regards to the Madueke signing? Coming up with very public online PETITIONS protesting a potential 23 year old signing? A young player that seems to be very grounded, respectful and fromna very good family.
But we have our typical loons embarrassing the rest of us with their grifts to gain clicks and attention in public.
What they did is the same thing that those Lunatics did to Wenger at a train station, they got in his face very violently.
The same that abused Xhaka in that home game and were attacking his wife and baby.
Now the Madueke thing.
I swear i just can’t stand people like this. Hence why I try my best to limit the time I spend on these online platforms in recent seasons. So irritating and frustrating trying to engage with these types.
It’s so embarrassing being associated with these people as fellow fans.. At least have constructive criticisms and opinion anf not the kind of braindead takes such as Cheering for ridiculous takes such as “PETITIONS” to stop a potential young player joining our club.
But we have to endure because we are all Arsenal fans. But it’s tough.
🤦♂️🤦♂️
@HH
Don’t tell me you were one of these lunatics that publicly / prematurely protested the Madueke and supporting that Deadbrain PETITION.
What a coincidence that you were one of these people, ey??
@HH, why are you always one of the regular people to be on the wrong side of the majority of issues year after year?? You seem to never learn. And that’s the problem with the likes of yourself.
And some of you don’t seem to understand how the “OPINION” realm is supposed to function. Opinions are supposed to be challenged / debated. Me giving my opinion should not give it automatic acceptance. If you give your opinion on a public platform then better be prepared to take the heat / pushback on top of the positive feedback.
All opinions are not exempt from criticism or praise. But if you can keep your opinion to yourself then you won’t have to worry about it being praised or ridiculous. Isn’t it?
And one more thing. Not all OPINION is EQUAL. Some opinions are much more closer to reality / common sense than others.
Example:
Someone of the opinion that The Earth is Flat or Geocentricism VERSES Another person of a Spherical Earth / Heliocentricism opinion.
Those two opinions are not equal just because they are both opinions. One is closer to reality than the other. So we can’t conflate both opinions as equals, one of them is absolutely RIDICULOUS.
Right?
Same as the lunatics that prematurely publicly protested the Madueke signing going by theIr typical sensationalism / coming up with cringeworthy PETITIONS.. Why don’t people think before they talk? It’s always the same attitude and never any introspection.
Again, those supposed Arsenal fans have got to stop embarrassing and tainting the rest of us. We have become a joke online and in the media as a fanbase because of these types of fans.
We are tired of always having to explain ourselves that the lunatics don’t represent us all.
🤦♂️🤦♂️
Dont you talk some shite 😂
Oh and reason we have become a joke is Because of our manager ,nothing more nothing less .
Oh boy, it’s Danny Boy.
Have you managed to improve your communication capabilities or you are still stuck in the same old Shallow twitter type one-liner mode devoid of any adult substance?
It’s never too late to improve on your conversational / engagement skills you know.
Now, let’s see you engage in more educated manner this time around. You can do it sweetie.
🤞👍🙏🤓
What an arrogant, self important, conceited and pompous person you seem to be Goonster.
I promised myself not to get involved with you again, but your lack of civility to those who disagree with you is mind boggling.
You think your posts are “educated” and “conversational” when all they actually consist of, are words that demean anyone who doesn’t agree with you.
To have a meaningful and sensible debate, one has to respect others, something you have no idea about.
I’m not going to get involved with you and your arrogance again, so don’t bother replying.
I’d rather debate with DK, HH or any other party who I disagree with, than someone who thinks he’s superior than everyone else innit!!
For the record and as stated previously, I believe the petition was a pointless exercise.
But those who signed it had every right to do so, as it’s their opinion, but one that brought the fanbase and the club into ridicule in my opinion
DK – how on earth have we become (your words not mine) a laughing stock because of the manager?
I suggest that manure, west ham and the spuds would be in that catagory, but finishing 2nd to city115 and pool, doesn’t make The Arsenal a laughing stock….that’s my opinion innit?! 🤔
@Ken
Here you are once again poking your little toes into my space while at the same time demanding that I shouldn’t push back on your own pompous rhetoric towards me. What kind of delusional bubble are living in? 🤣🤣
You drew a Red Line about two or three years ago with a postulate which I will try to paraphrase, you said: “I don’t want to ever engage with you Goonster because you are this and that blah blah.. Don’t ever try to engage me blah blah..”..
So I have tried to respect your wishes on that front since then but you have continually failed to keep your word and end of that bargain. Now and then you have continued to bat into my spaces on here even if you promised to not never ever try to engage me. You attack me while at the same time regurgitating how you promised to never engage me. Make it make sense to me because to me it seems like you are engaging in cognitive dissonance here. 🤓
You are personally attacking me / throwing flames and stones my way while at the same time also demanding and commanding me to not attack or throw flames / stones back your way. Are you Puntin’s who wants to attack others while demanding that no one should dare try to attack him back. Are you turning into an Arteta-like Dictator / Authoritarian? 🤣🤣
But I will hold fire here and let it go.
Ken, please keep your word and promise. Stop consistently sneaking in your little jabs into my spaces knowing too well that you don’t take pushback very well. Keep your little toes and punches away from me and I will continue to respect your space.
Thank you. 👍🤞🙏
Little toes into my space !
Hahahaha
Lost for words on that one .
Puntins and little toes DK – that’s the intellect that your missing!! 😂Innit!!
Blokes (if he is one )a complete tool job ,goes missing when we lose come out all fired up after a win .
Mind you plenty of them on here over the years
Sweetie !
Haha love it .
If I wanted to engage with you in a more conversational manner I would have ,but if didn’t so that can mean only one thing .
You’re a clown.
@Dan Kit
Sorry mate should have said Sweetheart instead of Sweetie. Hope that makes you feel much better.
And please don’t flatter yourself darling, I have been around you on “Just Arsenal” since about 2018 during the Emery Era. You have been the same old One-Liner / few paragraphs poster on here. 🤣🤣
And it’s not only me that seems to have noticed it. A few posters on here have called you out on it in the last two or so seasons.
Anyways. I will only believe it when I actually see you deeply engaging me or other posters on here. Your normal no substance one or two paragraphs are never mind stimulating. Add a few more paragraphs to your postulates so that your points can have a bit of meat on them for others to chew on.
Keep trying love.
🙏🤞✊ 🤓
Now we are mates ?
One liner few paragraph kind of poster I may be ,but I put more sense into my little posts that you can muster in your essay style writing ,let’s be honest you posts are full of nonsense and your paragraphs are just a carbon copy of each other .
Would love to know these other posters that have called me out (any names )?
Would imagine they are in the same (village idiot)class as yourself if they did .
Have a good day Love ,sweetheart or sweetie .
Or should I call you little toes from now on ?😂
BS of the highest degree DK – A wanbabe Jon Fox without the education, knowledge and acumen to pull it off. Innit 🤡
Now, can you answer my question about why you see MA as making Arsenal a laughing stock? Innit!! 👍
Right I’ll come back to the clown above if he wants me to be more conversational,the T1T .
Now to your question Ken .
The bloke as become a walking meme from his ridiculous excuses to his embarrassing behaviour on the touchline ,it’s not Arsenal fans that rivals laugh at it’s our manager .
I could talk about his ridiculous team motivation speeches or the way he carries himself as some kind of special manager (I won’t bore you ).
All said and done he’s spent a fortune and got f all to show for it .
Personally I just don’t like him ,he’s done a good job but plenty of other managers could have done what he has done and it’s the backing ,without copying his mentors style .
You could go on any football forums and rival fans will be talking about Arteta not us fans ,I find him an embarrassment,as do they .
Not for me im afraid and that is my opinion simple really .
I’m watching the game now, but I’ll quickly reply to you.
I don’t really care about rival fans, the media, or pundits.
I listen to roughly 58,000 fans chanting his name at every home game and that’s good enough for me mate.
Now back to the CL and see if we can go two steps further under MA and win it!!
👍
I take your point regarding fans who said Madueke was going to be a success HH, but the other side of the coin is that those who organised a petition had no idea he was going to be a failure, but undermined the club with the pointless petition that did nothing except bring scorn and ridicule from others.
This idea that we have not benefitted from chelsea buys is another red herring, as any transfers we did lose out on, is history and our current “chelsea rejects” Havertz and Madueke are proving to be well worth the outlay.
Agreed with all u said.
Anytime a fanbase works hard to justify a player’s cost, it usually means the player isn’t living up to the hype. If Madueke starts scoring and assisting freely, no one will need to defend his price tag—it’ll be obvious for all to see. Only expensive players who underperform relative to their fee need their fans to argue why they’re worth the money.
A couple of tweaks and changes to his game like getting his head up earlier for crosses/passes at the right time and he could be well on the way to being the best wing in the EPL
He’s not close to that
I know he’s not close YET because of what I already mentioned. On the way means not there yet FYI…
Beating a man he’s gotten down to an art already and he’s very quick with the ball at feet, quicker than most defenders without the ball
Perfecting crossing and passing will see him him near the top in that position in a few years.
Keep in mind…I don’t need you to agree with me 🙂
Well you didn’t say one of , you said he would be the best
Bear in mind , if your going to write an opinion on an opinion site people are allowed to respond
What do I expect from you Dan, so typical. Always in touch with negativity.
What to say he won’t become the best winger in the Prem ?
It’s called realistic
Not realistic Dan, just an opinion.
I bet you 500 pound Salah scores / assists more then Madueke this season?
So your back to betting again Dan?
My offer of a 19/1 £50 bet that Arsenal will win the PL is still on the table.
No mate
I can get better odds then that
I’m a business person lol
Some of the criticism of players, doesn’t make a whole lot of sense and people Trump up their own issues with players they don’t like.
It’s always been my opinion that Noni could easily have chosen any top 6 club and made the first team. I just like the fact we don’t have to face him in the league, otherwise the same people would be going for our defenders’ heads.
Disagree mate
He doesn’t make our best 11 when all our fit and wouldn’t get into Liverpool or City’s either
And how are you so sure he wouldn’t?
Because he’s not as good as Mo Salah
No other club could’ve easily parted with 52 million for him. Just because he is playing good doesn’t mean his signing wasn’t a gamble.
Isn’t every signing a gamble HH?
I remember the Raya transfer and how fabs were saying (I was one of them!) we didn’t need him and know we have one of the best keepers in the PL…. that was a gamble that paid off.
Perhaps you can give an example of a transfer that wasn’t a gamble my friend?!
Ken,
I would say transfers such as Gyokeres, Eze or Zubimendi were not a gamble because they are already established top players.
Like every transfer they might work or not work out but still I would not class them as a gamble. Furthermore for established players like those 3 the likelihood of them being good is higher than the opposite.
For Madueke it was a gamble because it was a very high fee for a very young player who has yet to establish himself as a top player.
All signs so far points to a bright future for the lad in Arsenal colors. Considering the amount Arsenal parted with to get him, I am sure is glad the gamble is paying off.
Thanks for the reply HH.
The transfer history is littered with top players who didn’t make it until they found their “home”.
Look at one Dennis Bergkamp got example, a player discarded as not good enough by the Italians, despite his record in football.
Buying a “name” doesn’t always equate with success, while signing a lesser known player, struggling at his current club, but with obvious potential is what made Arsene Wenger such a great manager.
I would suggest everyone of his signings were a gamble, even the high profile names such as Ozil, Aubameyang and Sanchez – they all arrived with baggage in tow, but the gamble was taken….. whether one sees them as successful or not is an opinion, but they all had fantastic footballing careers!!
I agree with you on not overhyping a player especially at an early so that too much pressure does not get in his head.
But it’s instinctual for supporters to be aroused by skillful dribbles of a player against an opponent especially if they end up in the winning side so Madueke’s standing ovation when being subbed was normal because he entertained the supporters who paid there hard earned money to be at the stadium to watch the match.
I also believe that he will practice on his end product because he even said it in his post match interview that our attack will improve with time.
He would have had 2 assists if not for the woodwork and the defensive brilliance of Murillo that even lead to him Murillo leaving the match injured.
For me Madueke had an 8/10 rating and that is enough reason for him to be praised and applauded on that day.
My player ratings against Nottingham Forest –
Zubimendi – 9/10
Madueke – 8/10
Gyokeres – 7/10
Eze – 7/10
Nwaneri – 7/10
Merino – 7/10
Calafiori – 7/10
Gabriel – 7/10
Mosquera – 7/10
Timber – 7/10
Raya – 7/10
Well said SJ. I think Dan is a good fan, but after mady’s recent performances, I expect Dan to be more subtle in criticising him and give him some respect coz that lad earn it so far.
And as a true fan we should be optimistic (and not the inverse) about a player showing promise
When have I criticised him ?
Simply said he has a good game but not extraordinary
I’m also saying I don’t think he will be the best winger in the division and would not get in our or Liverpool first 11
That’s not criticism
Definitely too early to judge any player now even Sesko and Wirtz! The Madueke petition guys might be vindicated later on but so far he is passing the eye test..
The idea that genuine Gooners should not criticise our team or anything around it is honestly unreasonable.
As a club we have previously made bad decisions that would make us a laughingstock to our neighbours if we defended them. For a club as big as ours and expecting to win trophies, certain decision patterns must certainly be below us by all means.
Some very good decisions we made this summer and that’s great indeed. We expect to keep growing from this and be a team that genuinely seeks to win things.
Give kudos to the petitioners for putting Madueke on his feet. Arteta should be next_ Arsenal Must Rise above UEFA POT 2 club AND THE Time is NOW!
It’s poor to compare Madueke with Salah, who plays every game and takes Liverpool’s penalties. Of course he’ll score more goals.
Take away pens and I bet Salah still will score more
I’m sure Tyndale didn’t read my comment well, I never said arsenal player shouldn’t be criticised, I av been the number 1 critic of awful martinelli, zinchenko and any under performing player.
But madueke is not underperforming and its why I said he doesn’t deserve a harsh critics.
Please be reading well before you comment
Up Gunners!
What is the writer up to? The guy is doing well just give him his flowers
The only reason I had issues with the signing of madueke was, we didn’t have a solution for Matinelli and I thought we lost the opportunity to sign Eze.
But after the signing of Eze, I had no more issues. I still think we need a permanent solution in the left wing, I will choose half fit Saka to matinelli anytime on the right.