Arsenal has just been swept aside by Tottenham in the north London derby and our current position brings into question our summer business.
In a game like the NLD, you expect your more experienced players to make things happen.
You want them to step up and lead the younger players by example, and that is what Arsenal would have expected from Willian and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang today.
Aubameyang has been in fine form over the past two seasons, his deal was about to expire at the end of this season and Arsenal was faced with a tough decision to extend it or sell him.
The club eventually extended his deal with fears in mind that he might become another Mesut Ozil.
Willian was signed in the summer and Arsenal knew that at 32, he was at the end of his career, they gambled and gave him a 3-year-deal.
Both players started the season well, but they have become a great disappointment now.
Willian is yet to get a goal for the club, while Aubameyang’s goals have curiously dried up.
As I watched them labour in the game against Spurs while Bukayo Saka shines, I cannot help but feel that we have made a big mistake on both players and we have to live with that now.
We wanted to avoid the Ozil situation, looks like we got ourselves into it again.
An article from Ime
It must be a worry for Arsenal that both Bama and Willian will become FOOs (Friends of Ozil).
Players with high salaries producing next to nothing for the team.
Just to make Arsenal relevant again, we will need to buy a top class attacking midfielder, and a top class striker in January. I think that would require about $200m to be available (if we are not to accumulate more dross).
What do you all think of the possibility that the Kroenke;s would sanction that level of spending?
Zero. They’ve already put in 100 million of their own money. They won’t put more. The business is meant to be self sustaining.
I commented earlier that if you add Laca’s salary to this, this represents over 700K weekly that is not delivering.
so arsenal are tied with Son on goals scored in the premier league this season (10)
bunch of clowns
It’s time to put aside Auba, Laca and Willian. In contrary Arsenal is entering the relegation zone and I swear they will not leave it. Statistics show it: only 2 gools in about 7 premier league games and these gools are from Gabriel if I remember well.
I predicted that if Willian started we would lose. Has failed to justify his inclusion as a starter again and again. How is he still a starter? Arteta is not wise to insist on playing Willian over Nketiah, Pepe, Nelson or Maitland-Niles. He brings literally nothing to the game but didn’t track Son and turned the ball over repeatedly again today. Not good enough. Nelson would have changed the entire game. Tottenham looked wobbly on the back foot. Needed a pacey, direct player who can track back to pull them out of shape. FAIL.
Arteta used the sucker punch to beat both MC and Chelsea to win the cup.He shd have been aware that Mourino will use anti soccer to win. Arsenal had 70% possession.
Wenger used to play possession against the big teams.The latter would let the gunners have endless possession and overplay to hit on the break and win repeatedly.
The problem is with the current failings ,Arsenal are swinging from left to right with no set pattern.
At the rate the gunners are performing,dont be surprised they could be fighting relegation.
The US owner is giving priority to his US team Until this changes or he sells to the African oil baron,Arsenal will continue to hang on to the coat tails of the top teams.
Wrong target on Bama. We simply lack creativity & have too many touches of the ball with highest in the league.
Arteta’s selection is not based on merit. Willian has been a disappointment. Nelson should be considered ahead of him
Arteta is inexperienced the fact that they overlooked even mourinho in his favor speaks alot of the current regime at Arsenal Fc any coach who singles out certain players as not good enough for his team the minute he gets the job is no coach according to me and the players are lashing out at his approach hence the way they have been playing bring ozil back to the side and saliba then if they don’t preform you are right and people start thinking that the players are not good enough.
Imagine a creative midfielder in the team last night arsenal would have scored. Those players tried arteta should sign one creative midfielder or bring ozil back it is that simple. If they keep playing like this with such intensity and pace they will turn it around
Willian maybe 32 yo but he played well
he was signed to provide experience, guidance and the winning mentality to the youngsters such as Saka, Nketiah, Wilock, Nelson, AMN….
We have quite a number of young and inexperience players
Fans expect them to gain experience and leadership through playing Fifa21?
Willian played well? Maybe you were watching a different game
Xhaka has been with us since 2016, Bellerin since 2013, and that tells you everything you need to know about where our main problems lie.
Neither of them would last 5 mins at a top club!
Wrong thread! Haha. Willian has been trash as well though
agreed
Do you mean that Willian is the only guy who can guide youngsters? If so, then he was supposed to be employed as assistant manager or psychologist. Our captain is mature enough to do that. Why do you always want to protect individuals over the interest of the club?
sorry ladies an gents for the long piece….
Im feed up to my back teeth with the “bring Ozil back” ( say it in a whiney voice for effect) brigade. Ozil is past it, he’s finished, he has become a relic of how a 10 used to be. He’s a player whos been forced out by modern tactics and the new standards required by a midfield player. He hasn’t adapted or changed his game out of pure arrogance, because he thinks too much of himself and thats all his fault.
Over 60 games Ozil has played across all comps in the previous 2 seasons, how many goal contributions did our mercurial creative savior make…….. 11. Ryan Fraiser at Bournemouth eclipsed that and last year he was frozen out. He was feeding Dominic Solanki and Callum Wilson, not Aubamyang and Lacazette.
Back to the article point, its unfair that we bridle blame on Auba and Willian. There are still big problems in this squad and we all know how bad it was and it was going to take time. There are still too many weak and average players in and around the squad and were nowhere near a champions league team let alone title challenge. Anybody who believed otherwise is severely deluded. We have nowhere near the squads of Liverpool Chelsea, City, United and Spurs and thats where we need to get to.
Bellerin’s finished and has been for 3 years. His passing and crossing are abysmal in addition he’s not the greatest defender. Xhaka, well tbh Xkaka I have no doubt is a good player, but he’s not cut out for the pace of the Premier League especially nowdays. Lacazette has lost it his head, its gone and is really struggling to find his feet again. The man at the top of the piece, off the the ball he adds nothing and on the ball hasn’t added anything for 4 seasons.
Our problem, because of and as well as weak links is tempo. We don’t move the ball quick enough from front to back. Getting the ball to our front players quickly is key. When we get the ball there were not moving it quickly between the lines to have any cutting edge. Instead passing sideways and backward because our transition is far to slow. Just like Liverpool, City and what spurs did last night to catch us out.
Arteta has shown his inexperience as we should expect at first but i have no doubt hell learn from. Having moved from the reliable 343 what suits our current squad. To a to 4231 in a quest for more creativity and the glory football of the past. We don’t have the players for that at the moment and nor Auba, Laca and Eddie can’t play up top on their own.
With the 343 we absorbed attacks of the opposition and caught them on the counter. Just like spurs did to us last night, Chelsea didn’t fall into this trap and thought fine well play for a draw and try and catch you out. I think he’s tring to shoehorn players like Bellerin and Xhaka in for their experience and they are causing our problems.
Go back to 343 drop bellerin and Xhaka use three at the back Tierney and AMN on the flanks, 2 of Cebellos, Elneny and Party in the middle then Pepe Aubamyang and Saka up top. Absorb and spring out attacks, It beat Liverpool twice and won us Two trophys until we get the squad we need to play results football and nothing else.
arsenal needs creative players. you might not like Ozil but it is what we have currently so why not play him? how i miss the free flowing teams of Wenger, with All its challenges! Now this? boring staff i have ever seen. cant this manager try the youngsters?
I think he’s trying to use the youngsters as sparingly as confidence can take a hit. But you are right id like to see Smith rowe and Balogun in the squad more
No coherence and lack of commitment, those are the only words I can use to describe the NLD. RH#16 has no business playing for The Arsenal, why back track, why….?
Willian is also wasting chances by taking corner kicks. Arteta should delegate another player to take corner kicks
One thing I’ll say about Ozil is all his usual injurys he gets seem to have dried up.
I know hes not played but his injurys never seemed to come from matches.
Enough of this Ozil come back to the team things.
If even Arteta is playing Ozil now ,what will he contribute to the team ? nothing he has been awful for Arsenal long time ago even during the time Prof. Wenger . The last mathches he played…
Games played … 18
Assist… 2.
so what will he do to this present squad. The fans that are calling for him to come back were the same fans that was abusing him of hidding in big games and not showing interest.
They should start shooting from outside the box, laca, aub, nketia they predators they can feed from rebounds balls. This playing left, right and back kills the attack. You can’t go to your opponents box just to pass back and start over and lose the position.
Teams which wins game have one gear, which is forward only. Not backward.
If you attacing just go all the way out, shoot let it be a goal kick if you missed.
Not go forward and come back with ball again.
Why blame Auba and Willian?
With Xhaka, Elneny and Ceballos in the middle who play like threatened cats, and pass the boll sideways and backwards to play “safe”, and the defenders who pass the ball to each other for a for very long time during kick despite the team is on the verge of defeat, how does one expect the forwards to score goals?
Santi, Cesc, Alex, Mesut…are the type of player who contributed to the famous arsenal offensive play.
We won´t see that happen in the coming 2-3 years until fundamental change takes form at arsenal.