Leicester City’s Demarai Gray’s comment shows how bad Arsenal have become.
Arsenal was on the wrong end of a 2-0 scoreline in their last game against Leicester City. That was the fifth time in six games that they have failed to win a match and Gray’s damning comments are hard to ignore.
One thing Unai Emery has been known for this season is using different tactics and team selection for different games.
Against Leicester City, he fielded a back three of David Luiz, Rob Holding and Callum Chambers. That was a different setup from the one he used against Wolves.
Arsenal played much of the game as a back five and Demarai rightly praised his teammates for breaking Arsenal down.
‘It was a nice win. It was a different kind of game,’ Gray told LCFC TV. ‘We had to be patient as they sat off us but we knew as long as we kept playing, we’d get the opportunities and Vards [Jamie Vardy] got us going.
‘I said on the bench at the start of the game to JJ [James Justin], “If you look at them, they’re quite deep”.
‘It’s kind of a compliment as we’ve got a team like Arsenal playing backwards’
Gray is right, it was a kind of compliment to the Foxes but a damning indictment on Arsenal. There was a time that teams feared a visit from Arsenal, even the major teams, nevermind teams such as Leicester. That is no disrespect to Brendan Rodgers men, more a reflection of what Arsenal has lost.
The players play with a shocking lack of belief and they go into every game looking scared stiff of losing. Opponents now know this and that boosts their confidence and it is going to take some time now to turn that around.
Yep…… and we have Emery to thank for it….. take a bow sir. (applause)
Spot on negative no plan football
Emery has tried everything, he has tried full press which left holes and we let in some silly goals now he gets the team to sit deep and first point of attack is to defend and sit deep inviting pressure. That may have worked in Spain or France but every team in the prem has the ability to break down a team. As Gray said as soon as he saw arsenal sitting deep it invited them to attack.
Emery needs to either stick to a style and balance and drill it into the team or go.
“Every team in the prem has the ability to break down a team”……
Except us!
Exacltly, well said and put Martin! Grey is a young player who most likely admired Arsenal for many reasons, he just don’t get how our football went so backward!
Great point to make from a young player who is in shock because he admided Arsenal, looked forward to get to next level with such a team; but realizes how Arsenal is not a impresive anymore nor a dream for young players!
Great article, sad reality but on point! We need that!
We beaten them home and away the year Leicester FC won the premier league
That was then! Can’t seem to beat them at their place anymore!!
Every team knows how to beat us. We’re predictable. We can’t play out from the back and we always receive the ball facing our own goal. Mostly because we’re going to pass backwards anyway. Our brand of football is in a rutt. It’s football without style and thought. It’s embarrassing that every one has us worked out easily and that is why the stats are so bad in our favour! Emery has to go because he isn’t taking this club forward!
Yep, too predictable. Even if Emery fully realizes his style of football in Arsenal given enough time for him to do so, it will still be too predictable and counter-able a style as to lose any relevance a season after. He really lacks imagination and isn’t creative with his elements at all. We have the right ingredients, but a chef who cooks strictly by a recipe book. When people are served the same dish over and over again, without any variations, they will figure the recipe out very soon, and it’s over.
Our players have potential for so much more, but are limited by Emery’s handbrake.
When our coach is too scared to go after teams, what message does that send the players.
All he needed was to fix the defense, yet has has chosen to reinvent the wheel.
Made some negative comments but does not appear to be disrespectful in any way. Deserves respect imo. Unlike a certain cojones man.
Emery has been very defensive away from home due to our pathetic away form over the last two seasons.
Under Wenger we would approach away games in all out attack mode and get picked off by average sides, Emery experienced the same thing last season despite bolstering our defense. As such a change in tactics has been necessitated and the players are slow to adjust.
Reverting back to all out attack won’t change the outcomes and would mean that we haven’t made any progress over two years. Emery needs to continue his attempts to fix our defensive problems or else we won’t achieve anything.
Does it suck? Yes. Is it a necessary evil? Yes